The Hays free press. [volume] (Hays, Kan.) 1908-1924, 1910-10-22

plodded along with his set of books
at Bennison's for ten years. He had
come there when he was 25. Now
the hair was thin at his tenn
pies and little gray. And he no
longer hid from himself the fact that
there was a small bald spot on his
crown. He did his work well, but
he had become a f1xture-he made
no Roadway. They had raised his
wages twice in the first four years
he had been there, but no raise had
been mentioned since. He dared not
mention 1t because they might refuse
1t, and his pride could not let him
remain after that. But he could not
lose his job. There was the old
mother at home, bedridden for years
And, year ago. she had died He
had not yet paid all the doctors
bills And there was bill at a drug
store. Akers was honest, and paid
installments as he could.
When he was almost 30, the
year his mother first took to her
bed, there had been a girl. She was
pretty and gentle and sweet. a bill
Ing clerk in the office, but a born
homemaker. Her smile was a com
1ort' and though she was not much
past 20 she mothered everybody
In the store impartially, from the
skuIk1ng, smoky cat to Akers. She
seemed to understand. Nobody made
love TO, and everybody loved her
Akers walked up one morning-one
morning after he had been up all
night with his mother and had beer
told that her case was hopeless, but
that she might live many years-tc
the fact that he loved Amy Bart
lett. After that he kept away from
the girl. He could not bear to be
near her and remember that common
decency and honor kept him from
saying: Il love you"
So his life became a starvation. fo,
hearts must be fed-and minds. He
no longer found time to read any
thing, or even to go to church, OF
ever to the theater-he could not af
ford the latter And, he found b,
must sleep when he could, lest he bt
so weary that his office work suffer
From doing his work confidently
gladly, it became a drag and .
trouble. He might make a mistak,
and lose his place.
1t was about a year after he haC
reached this point that Amy came t.
him a moment one day when he wa.
feeling so tired and blank that the
figures were a mere daze She hat
not said more than a casual word To-
months. and now her nearness
brought feeling akin to hysteria t.
his throat.
Il just thought I'd ask you-if
had offended you in any way?" sh,
said rather timidly. I'm so careless
of what say, and you've-wen, W,
used to be friends, and 1 thought
might have said or done somethin,
that hurt you Or" This was nor,
than he could bear, but he maanget
to be very steady and formal, and t,
speak with set little smile.
mo, indeed, Miss Bartlett, not a
all. You've always been very good
I've only been busy-my mother i
sick at home, and I've had to be III
nights-and I'm sure you've neve
said anything" And then, becaus
he knew he could not bear her ques
tons OF sympathy about his hom
life, he turned from her to answer tn
senior partner who was about to as
him something. The girls eyes wer
plying and pitiful, but she wen
away.
A few weeks after that she took
position in another store, and b
never saw her-not even on tn
street.
Then his mother grew much wors
and much more trying, and he wa
up more at night, and the bills BIZ
come more frequent. And his wor
his one effort was to do his wor
well, and 1t was done. No fault coul
be found with that, but all huma
spontaneity left him. He had los
step. The girls did not smile at hiI
and throw jokes and slang his wa!
The partners called him Mr.. Akers,
not the jovial John" he had been fc
the first years,
One day he heard the girls in tn
Office talking about a party the fore
was to have. His name was mel
toned. They were not even carefl
wanted to invite him, but anothe
carelessly remarked that he was g
| thousand years old-and entirely oil
of the running" He realized this.
And then the mother had died. Tn
firm gave him two weeks off, on pa
and perfunctory condolences. The
liked Akers. He was. faithful. H
went home and managed the f
neral, made the few distant rel
tives who could come as comfortab
as he could, wrote letters, faced a
empty house. Then he knew tina
trying as the half-insane, peevis
unloving old woman had been, h'
absence was a terrible thing. H