The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1913-09-27
THE EVENING STORY
The Model Flat.
(BY Mary Marshall

4
house stood ajar and Dick Wadley
| went in, passed a group of coarse
| figured, Sallow faced east side moth
ers waiting to receive their offspring
from the day nursery and CROPPED his
| way through dark hall of the old
| building in search of some one in
| charge. He found Miss Bailey, the
| head worker, and told her that he
wanted to look around" and with
| stereOtyped cordially she told him he
could go through the building. and If
| he wanted to ask any question he
! could find her later.
Dick knew that if Miss Bailey knew
| what errand had called him there her
| reception of him would have been diff
| ferent, her cordially would have been
| of different brand. He wandered
| into different club rooms. The build
| ing had once been a church, but since
! the encroachment of a non-church-
going population in the neighborhood
| it had been abandoned to the uses of
| a settlement house. After the last
| flight of stairs he found himself in a
| region that had once been the vault
| ing of the church before the floors
| were inserted. At one side of this
| attic room Dick saw what seemed to
/ be a playhouse. AT least there were
| four small windows looking out on
! the main floor, and through these
| windows he could see curtains and
ported geraniums. There was front
! door apparently leading into the
| small apartment
| Wadiey was interested. He stood
looking at the little apartment AMI
| heard girlish chattering. Then a lit
tie pig-tailed, east side girl, with an
apron and an empty market basket,
came through the door and went
about apparently pretending to be
! shopping. She stopped at wood
| box at one end of the large attic and
! filled her basket with kindling wood
! Then she went back to the play
| h
at the door and finding out what was
going on inside, but he waited. Final
| ~ the door opened and a dozen little
| girls, all very happy and with great
deal to say, came out. A young wom-
an came to the door and helped them
| into their hats and coats in one end
of the attic room. and then saw them
| to the head of the stairs, and with
| word of announcement to each one,
with a BE sure and come next week,
| Becky to one, and a Il hope the
| baby will be better soon, Rachel for
another. sent them down stairs.
| Then the young woman whom Wad-
| ley saw al a glance, even in the gloam-
| ing of the late afternoon, was young
| and graceful, came back to the door.
| He came up to her as she went into
| the door of the little apartment.
She greeted him with little start.
| 4 did not see you," she said. Have
! you been here long?"
| Wadley told her that he was just look
| ing about, that he had been watching her
| class from the outside. The young woman
| was eager to explain things to him. She
| said that the apartment, as he called it,
was a model flat. 1t consisted of three
rooms of the sort that the young girls
| of the neighbornood would probably have
| to go to housekeeping in. and it fitted
/ up with inexpensive furnishings.
THE girls all do marry here she said,
| 80 the best work we can do is to show
! them how to make good Wives
so you teach these east side people
how marry and live on their little.
and the poor young bankers and lawyers
| on the other side of town with. ten times
! young women they would marry can't
| manager
The young woman laughed. THAT is
| about the situation she said, land yet
| these people are happy BY this time
they had gone into the apartment and
| Wadley was delighted with its comfort
| ably furnished rooms.
Il saw the curtains and the flowers
| from the outside he said. They look
very pretty.
They aren't real windows" she ex-
| planned. They are just solid glass, but
| they are where the windows ought to be-
| The real light and air comes in through
the skyIsht And with each of Wadley's
! INQUIRIES she explained details of the little
/ HAT She told him that she was Miss
| Ciarlce HardWick. that she was a voIun-
teer worker, and that she wished she
/ mad enough money to make a generous
! gift to the settlement house
Wadiey felt that it was time for him
| m
here for way to spend some money
/ not my own. OF course, but some of nv
| Chiefs He explained that he was a
young member of the firm of a prom
1inent financier and that he was often sent
! on the thankless job of looking I'D in
sutut1ons to which the financier thought
OF giving money He had been thoroughly
| discouraged when he arrived at the house
| he safd but now he was glad he had
come.
Clarice was interested and. laughing
SAID she wouldn't let him go till he had
promised to get little of the money for
| her to spend on model flats.
| All this explanation had taken half an
hour, and when they started to the door
| they found it was locked. Clarice remem-
| bered that the janitor always came I'D
! and locked it from the outside after she
| had gone. and kept the key. Apparently
| he had thought she had gone at her
| usual time.
| Wadley suggested the inside windows
| but Clarice reminded him that they didn't
! open We could break one through" she
| suggested but Wadley protested and
Clarice assured him that some one would
=, come to their rescue before long, as there
! was a boys club on that floor at and
j they would hear their call for help. In
| the meantime Clarice laughed and Wadley
| laughed. and neither seemed to be sorry
| You can prove to whether you
i really do deserve the endowment" he
said And C1arice started the fire in the
little stove and began to heat the water
for the supper that she was going to get
This supper-coffee with condensed
milk. breakfast food and creamed chip
| peQ Deel dIlu JdHi-lUeSe were ali TIE sup
| plies that CIarice had on hand In the
| model lSitchen-served on the bare white
| table in the model flat was the most
| royal feast that Wadley had ever had
| Once out of the Scott Street settlement
| house, iostled by the Scott street popu-
laion. Wadley asked if he might see Miss
! 1.ardwicl1 home, and she accepted his
| escort with relief.
| u hope" said Clarice, as she left him
! at the door of her house in the other side
| of the city. "that you will have some in
! fluence with your chief, and that YOU
will use that influence in favor of model
| flats
| wadley stood and took her outstretched
| hand asYes'' he said. but wont you