The Southern herald., 1912-08-02
DiSCharging
Mary Drake
By Jane Osborne

CCopyright. 1914 BY Associated Literary
Press)
Mary Drake, the pretty stenogra-
phsr at Billington's. was kneeling be-
fore the hling cabinet in the outer
ONCE. Old Grenobls paced back and
forth through the ofices elutching his
long. white hands in restrained annoy
anee. Never, in all the course OF ~
years experience as prime minister
to the great steel king, Ellington, had
the wheels OF the once machinery
played such a trick. and now a mere
slip OF a ten-dollar-a-week girl had
tied up q big deal involving tens oil
] thousands Of dollars by mishling an
important letter.
Grenoble came back to the outer
oflce and stood behind the pretty
stenographer. She was such de-
fenselesA well meaning little thing,
and now she turned around and look
ed at him so sQuarely and unfiinchins'
ly as she admitted that the letter was
still missing that Grenoble was speech
less
The fact was that Mary brakes
simple, childlike frankness and pref
tiness had once more disarmed OLD
Grenoble. The little stenographers
smile had proved again to be her
surest means of self-defense.
Still she searched with unrufned
serenity through the files, and still
Grenoble stood torn between real an
ger and compassion.
II do wish | could find that letter
the girl murmured In conversations
tone.
At this moment Tom Wayne, Gre
mobiles clever young assistant, came
into the office and his eyes fell from
force OF the habit that he had been
acquiring for the last few weeks on
the figure OF the pretty stenographer.
Then he saw Grenoble. pale and strug-
Cling with suppressed irritation. and
he knew that something had gone
wrong.
Miss Drake was the first to break
the silence.
please, Mr.. Wayne" she said ap-
pealingly, without looking at him.
cant you think where l might have
put that order from Smiths. You see
Mr.. Grenoble wants to have It right
away and it will take all the after
noon for me to look in every folder
I in this cabinet. 1t isn't where It
/ ought to be and can't think where
could have put It"
! OF course, the letter was found.
Tom Wayne himself helped the girl
! look through the files for 1t. 1t had
, been misflled-Miss brakes fault oil
course-and even Mr.. Wayne realised
. then that Miss Drake would have to
! leave, for this error, and several oth'
, ers which had not been Of so great
: moment, only went to prove that the
. little woman was as useless on the
: files as she had been at typewriung,
: or stenography, or at the ofhce tele-
phone switchboard, where, after q
:, week, she had proved herself incap
able Of mastering the mechanism oi
the wires and plugs.
"See here, Wayne" Grenoble said
to his young assistant that afternoon
when they had finished discussing the
important business Of the day, "you
, will have TO discharge that Miss
F. Drake. l have tried a half doZer
0 times and somehow she doesn't seen
l. to understand. The first time l tolt
her to go she was so nice about Il
d that promised to let her try another
L week. Then when told her tha
9. she had shown no improvement sh'
5. pleaded so earnestly to stay that
/ turned the telephone boy into an Office
II boy and gave her a try at the tele
3, phone, but you know how impossible
& she was there Then 1t was on tn
files and she has failed. have triet
d again to discharge her but don't be
70 lieve she quite understood me. T,
Q. tell you the truth, Wayne, she Is 81
near the age Of my own daughter
o that I haven't the heart to tell he
q brutally to go. But think 1t woul
d be easy enough for you Mr.. Billing
D. ton will be back in day or so and b
" would never stand for any one lik
b Miss Drake"
!, True, indeed. thought Wayne. Mar
c Drake would have to leave befor
Billington's return. One Of the 81
crets Of the great financier's success
was his ability to choose his employees
I Now for the FIRST time since he ha
> been In business he had consented t
go away and had sailed for Europe 70
a few months Of rest. Before he ha
gone he had suggested that a ne'
/ stenographer be employed to lights
the tasks Of the hardworking wome
I in the office during the summe
months. Miss Drake was the resul
~ tho auUOoatiou-aha had oonna Srnx