Putnam patriot., 1909-05-07
ecCccc oOcCc0cC CoCc soc
 ! TIE ARTIFICIAL ! FLOWER MAKER.
,oeocoaoeoooeococoeooooo
g. HELEN SOPHIE CASSIE

On eae of tbe principal streets Of St. Fesar~f.lse stands little shop ia whose windows are samples Of artsa- 4ja eaasrs. it is kept actually hy Ivan less-ss#zteh. though II really ex- ists by Hfue f his daughter Katia. KafH4 ut a1.x makes the flowers but aesS .8e ssaiH4 When customer ef.- fsr=. l.le t #aa. eho Is usually sls- fiBa il -he s-ani # tlIe shop reading 4 neAs f rises dusfies forward. asz. vha1 $ waatssi ztes behind sas tIag . 4HteF and agens tle eases. a1 tll. u4I... sssE....EeiEs fo te fuI of l4ls ness. But # < not long before be calls. skat5s. have we any tnlipsz- .Eatt4 E#N aHeiH are these roses s.. .Kaa mt i4eeaa.e of these crySan. themun> Iueu Natta goes and takes cliaf4e # IHe customer
 One day each stopped before he shop q fsas5HHIu HeSI5e1dsuf in nurHzs and gold 43a W4lge silk stecklnzs opened tae eeaea door, and taay alighted aud raue into the shep. THe cid man a4et hss. but. without fenis- ing To lis question as To how he could serve her she said
 .I am told by one who has bought artificial flowers here that you have a daughter who makes them"
 Katla came forward.
 So you are the girl" said the lady, "of whom my friend. Mme Noronka. has spoken If 10 ne so feelingly. she has not overpraised your eyes nor the kindliness Of your expression, IL does not indicate one born 10 dc great deeds: rather one born to love ones fellow beings. Nine. Noronka tells me. too. that vour flowers are as lovely as yourself.
 katia. wreathed in smiles at such delleigus happening. hreueht forth Ter wares. and tfe ady bought plentiful snpniv. =d take this. and these ani those and fllaf ere over there," she said uutH she had purchased nearly an arutul ~ead them. CT rafher. bring tsleal fo he ten.arrew at , in the eecn.ug
 @ah. latler.s exsiaimed Katia IS the doer closed HaHiad the lady T feei as if au angel h8d come down from heaven 10 visit me.
 .NYhat name cid she give youF'
 sCounfess Bakiaa8f"
 \ singular expression came over the old mans f4ee. but he said nothing to his daughter.
 The next afternoon Katia took the flowers to the lady. She did not re- turn till nearly o'clock and when she did was full of enthusiasm about her patron "Oh. father." she exclaimed. "whom do you suppose she is? No less person than the wife of the min ister of the interior, And the order she gave lie. I'm to carry her 10 rubles' worth of flowers once every week.
 The first of these statements the man received without surprise; the sec ond arrested his attention.
 One day when Katia was making up her flowers to take to her patron her father said:
 "katia. the lady has been so good 10 us that we should show our apprecia- ton I have been thinking how We can best do so and have concluded there can be no better way than for
 
 you to make a special bouquet of your flowers and present them to her hus- band the minister.
 '.Oh. father, would not that be de lightfulr'
 katia set to work at once to make specially beautiful bouquet of flow. CTS and had them all ready to take to the minister three days before she was to fill the next order for the countess. She put them up in one of the cases where they would not be injured and told her father on no account to touch them. When the day arrived to de liver them. as she wds going out her father charged her to deliver those for the countess. then. without waiting To take those for the minister to his of flee and to carry them very carefully since being of wax they would be easily injured katia promised to d. all this. Her father folded her in his arms, kissed her ryently-,soaethins unusual with him-and she sailied forth.
 As she walked with a bouquet under each arm she thought she perceived an odor something like burning paper, but she was so intent on the surprise she was about to give her whom she called her angel that il did not make much impression on her Arrived al her estimation. she laid aside the flow. CTS for the countess. and with spar king eyes and glowing cheeks she held forth her and her fathers gift for lie minister Then she was about ta huf. " away 10 deliver the latter. accord ing 10 her promise, when again her at- tention was arrested by that peculiar odor. Fearing mouse might have erawled in among the flowers and died there. she unbound them.
 lg the center was q small glass globe. Inserted in il was fuse, one end of which emitted a scarcely per ceptible film of snlake
 The gaze of the two women met Both were white as snow Then ka- tia lneit before her patron and beggei her not to believe her Intentionally guilty.
 You are as innocent as babe" said the other. "You have been made ] tool "
 The countess had not the heart to strike kafia through her father. Fs- lher and daughter siill sell flowers ia their little shop. The police are iens- rant that reveluIionis, lives there. The minister doesn't know of his nsr- row essape. Bui the a-m of the rev nlntienist Is paralyxed by the kindii- s.2 kA