The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1909-09-21
THE EVENING STORY
In Borrowed Plurnage.
(By Jane OSBORNE

When Thornby college opened last
autumn there was a new maid in the
cloak room Something about her
| dark, close-fitting dress, her small,
ruffleG apron and her parted hair,
tied with big black bow at the back
OF her neck. suggested a French maid
much more than a student But the
tact was that Molly Dodge really was
a poor southern girl working her way
through the woman's department of
this big university.
During the three or four hours that
Molly was not attending lectures she
had to stay in the stone-floored, lock-
cr-lined cloak room and be ready at
any time to get students hats and
coats or put them away in their own
erss lockers
At first it had seemed not at all bad,
Tor Molly har soft, lovable, Southern
way of talking and honest brown ewes
that made all the girls like her. But
as the months passed they became ac-
customed to seeing her every day, and
they passed her thoughtlessly by. It
would not have been so hard if Molly
mad been intellectual. but she was not
at all fond of books. In fact, if she
had had a chance she would probably
nave been a little frivolous.
But there were two things that made
Molly's life bearable: One was the
daily visit of the university porter and
the other was the appearance, now
and then, of new and pretty hats and
wraps. Molly had a little mirror over
her desk in the cloak room, and when
ever any specially charming hat ap-
peared on the clothing counter she
would wait till the girls had left the
room and then, with it on her own
pretty head, steal an admiring glance
at herself over her desk.
And the porter! Well, he used to
come over from the university every
cay with the students mail, which it
OF course a woman student of Thorn
by college ought not to have flirted
with SO humble a parsonage as the
university porter, but Molly was only
half student The half that was
cloak room maid looked forward with
impatience to the daily visitation of
the porter's cheerful smile and con-
tagious laugh.
On rainy days Molly had to handle
countless damp and muddy rubberS
and goloshes and dripping umbrellas.
That alone would have made her dis
like the rain, but, besides that, stu
dents always wore their old hats when
1t rained.
She was looking out of the iron bars
of her basement window at the gloomy
sky, one dreary day in March, when all
at once there swept in stately senior
"a Variable billow of soft black furs
She care1eSSly slipped them Off, smiled
at Molly and hurried off to her class.
What a dreami" thought Molly
"And on a day like this! But what
does it matter when one has a car
riage?"
Molly raised the soft pieces gently
from the counter and started to put
them in their locker. But the tempta-
ton was too great. She came back and
replaced them lovingly on the counter.
Then, very carefully. she pinned the
toque over her piquant little face and
glanced approvingly at her image in
the mirror over her desk. If only she
could see the rest. she wished In a
flash she jumped over the counter,
closed the door into the hall and
slipped into the luxurious coat. Then
she stepped up to the students long
pc ar glass
s'If only it-were a little longer" she
thought. And then, turning around at
the sound of the opening door she
faced the porter. He closed the door
quickly and stood against it. Then he
turned to Molly and laughed But
Molly didn't laugh back. She slipped
out of the furs, sprang over the coun-
ter, and, with guilty blush, took the
mail.
The next day when the porter came
Molly was deep in a volume of Horace.
Mice book you're reading, Molly"
remarked the porter, and Molly, the |
student, smiled coldly without raising |
her eyes.
After that the porter left off the
Molly from his mornings salutation |
and Molly had no difficulty in repres- /
sing him. In fact, she was little dis |
appointed that he took his squelching |
so willingly.
About a month after the episode of
he furs there was a dance in the col |
ege gymnasium, and Molly, as was her !
custom on such occasions, took her
place as maid in the dressing room. /
Here she buttoned gloves and slippers
Ind arranged ruffles and bows for her
more favored colleagues till her fin
gers were numb. Then. during the
ong hours of the dance. she was sup
posed to sit and guard the wraps and
end her aid in case of a dilapidated
,oiffure or torn ruff1e. But tonight
strains of the dance music took pos
session of Molly's soul and started
Ter dainty feet tapping on the stone
1ad the upper hand and she slipped
out of the dressing room, ran along
he corridor, up the wide stone stairs
oward the gallery overlooking the
gymnasium.
AS she was hurrying timfd1y along
the had to pass one of the lecture
'ooms, which had been converted for
he occasion into mems checking
DOM. Three young men were standing
dly smoking. There was something
bout the cut of an evening coat that
fascinated Molly and she turned in
he shadow to look.
Suddenly her heart stood still. 1t
eally was the porter. He was laughing
low. oAe was yuSe III AtA5 - ~
when he faced about. And just for
econd his eyes met hers through the
of the dinly lighted corri-
Tor.
She had been discovered deserving,
nd by the porter! AS she couldn't
20 back to the dressing room now
Without being seen openly, she fled to
he gallery and slipped into seat.
So the porter was probably stu
ent from the university! The porter
vhom she had tried to repress was
riend of some girl at the dance. Her
ead swan with the excitement of the
Information.
Tust then the vfoIfns struck I'm a