The Birmingham age-herald., 1910-12-04

faces crowded, the voices rang out, the packages had to be delivered. the change made, the checks written out.
 Afterward it seemed to her that her whole year had been rushing toward this Christmas climax. Most of that year she had worked In cheaper store worked nine and one-half hours day for g. 621s week AS this was not enough to live on. she had boarded with an aunt in Hoboken, paying her l 10 week But it took her an hour and quarter to get to work and she rose early before dawn to get to her counter at sharp Car fare cost her s1 26, which, with the board, left her 20 cents week No recreation, no fresh air. And every few nights she was up till midnight laun- derng her clothes that she might be neat appearing This work she felt was killing her so she left it and took position In the larger store for s4 a week.
 But she had to figure close. She slept nearby in charity dormitory for cents night. She went without break fast lunch and supper consisted of cof- fee and rolls for 10 cents each laundry was N cents a week. Clothes and ex- extra came close to g. In this way she spent all her wages-toiied from a. m. to 6:15 p. m., and on Saturdays till Sso o'clock Strength does not como on coffee and rolls. nor on nine and a half hours of standing indoors, nor on lack of pleasure and mental growth. Mamie grew sickly, wrinkled, weaker day by day; she was afflicted with vio- lent headaches, and at II she was al- ready a sapped and aged woman, unfit for marriage and collaborating and housework, with no future but incessant toii. and no savings againat sickness or old age. s pAjs EE5HXi ] This was bad enough. But then the holiday rush began. The store was kept open until II 80 o'clock at night Mamie grew feverish, had dizzy spells, was too sick to eat. Her condition grew worse each day and now on this last day she had come to work at o'clock in the morning feeling that she could not dure a half-hour of standing up nor the crowds, nor the noise nor the bad air. That day was g. wild, slow torture, measured by minutes, endless and piti- less. On and on 1t went, on up to noon, on from 12:45 to o'clock on from S:3c O clock to this very minute. This snow? How much? Bee here, where's my change? Do you think I can wait all night? Say, I'll tell the floor walker. Yes, wrap me up six, in two packages please. Isn't there anyone else | waiting at this counterf
 sunburst after sunburst of faces, sea- roar of talking. dazzling lights, con- fusion, hustle. noise. hands flying, lips moving, and this would go for another hour and a half
 A man pushed his way through the crowd. See here. kid" he cried, You do me up 10 of these-quick." Mamie leaned forward on the coun- ter and smiled dimly.
 "Ten? Ten?"
 Cant you hear? Eight, nine, ten" "Ten? Ten what?'
 | She leaned further forward; she sighed; she slipped and her arms and | face and hair and thin bosom all slouched among the packages on the counter.
 Cries went up: She's tainted! Some | things the matter! Get water! Help her up!"
 The crowd damned; the noorwalk CT broke his way through, muttering:
 Mamie down7 Thunder! And just now when we can't replace her. Why
 the devil couldn't the girl stick 1t
 out?"
 . Next morning the nurse in the hos
 pital wished her a merry Christmas. s.
 She looked up vacantly and went of in delirium, crying shrilly: l "It's cents a package, ma 'aml Just a minute! Yes. snow-snow for Christ
 mas trees.' n
 At the same moment over the wide spread city the little children hoped | out of bed and ran in their nighties to the parlor. There famed the candles of the pines. there hung the bulgy stockings. there lay the mysterious packages. Little eyes glistened with awe and wonder; women and men were
 blinded with happy tears, and the Christmas bells peeled love and broth erhood through the tingling dawn.
 And one woman said to another:
 The jam was awful last night. I | thought I'd never get home. And the service In the stores was insufferable. ..
 Asked the other: "why didn't you shop earlier in the month";
 Why? Oh, you know how 1t is!'