Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1913-06-10
Evening Story.
HER BEST STORY.
1y Catherine N. Patterson.
Copyright, 1918, by the Mcclure
Newspaper Syndicate.) "..

at the column of figures she held In
her hand, then at the various bills
lying on her desk. 1t was plain to
be seen that her liabilities were
greater than her assets. A deter
mined look came in her usually smil-
ing face. She would remedy this most
deplorable state OF affairs. and that
right soon, unless Providence ruled
otherwise. Ann couldn't boast Of a
grain Of religion in her whole makeup.
but she did have wholesome re-
spect for what she termed the gods OF
fate, and to her, these were Prov1'
dence.
Her friends, even some Of her enc.
mies-and she had few believed
implicitly in her ability to write, and
most of them had told her so, not
once, but often. Ann had received
these evidences Of faith with much
soothing and they never had i'm.
pressed her greatly. one way or an
other. When the spirit moved her to
write, she did so, with indifferent
success, but she had never taken the
matter seriously But today things
seemed different, and she realized
that the time had come for her to dc
! something for herself.
The small income left by Mr.
Laurence was barely sufficient for
his widow, and It was now AIMS
painful privilege to hH6p herself out
of the financial depths in which she
found herself. Hence her determine
! ton. With Ann, to determine was to
do. so the afternoon found her at her
desk, writing steadily a few minutes,
then gazing out into the apple tree
in full bloom just outside her win.
dow, Ann always worked where
there were flowers. She declared she
could "sniff out" her plots and plans
best when flowers were on or near
her desk.
Her story finished the next day,
she pushed 1t aside, Ito cool for forty
eight hours" as she expressed 1t,
before giving the final pruning, re-
furnishing and putting into tiptop
shape for perusal by some editor or
fiction reader. Three days later the
story typed, folded, ready to be put
into the envelope she had addressed,
Ann paused, holding aloft the dup]i-
cate amount Of postage she had in
closed for the probable return of the
manuscript. Her story was to be
entered in faction contest being held
nv a magazine in the city near AIMS
home town. This she had deter.
mined on at the last minute. In an
instant a smile went over her face.
"Ill take it in myself" she said
aloud to the apple blossoms. "They
tell me there is a new editor on the
magazine, and that he is In charge
OF this contest. They tell me also
that he is young and good looking"
and Ann laughed aloud In glee, then
sobered suddenly.
"For shame, Ann. Laurence. Any
one in such financial hot water as
you are should be properly cast down
instead of shouting with Joy because
you are going to see a good looking
man" 81
But the Ann in the mirror. thus
addressed. only smiled and showed
her dimples beneath the becoming
hat, the latter, by the way, having
done it's share Of the swapping Of
Ann financially.
Arrived at the magazine office,
Ann was confronted by a stern and
quite unapproachable dragon office
how who, In some miraculous way,
neither Ann nor the boy himself
knew lust how. was quite impervious
to AIMS Establishments and dimpled
smiles.
mo. Miss Laurence could not pos
sibly see the contest editor"
AIMS intelligence having finally
grasped this crushing fact, she en-
trusted her story to the dragon-boy.
the latter assuring her that it would
be delivered very promptly into the
proper hand
SERVES you right muttered Ann
to Ann, "for getting so excited over
your thinking that smile from you
could possibly have any effect on
oh. / beg your pardon, Billy. ! beg
your pardon again, Mr. Hawley-I
cont know didn't mean-Oh, I
don't know what do mean" said
a very confused and very pink Ann.
She was breathless after her ex-
tremely sudden meeting with very
tall. road-shouldered masculine per-
son, who had turned the hall corner
near the elevator.
II believe you,' grimly replied the
RAN addressed as Billy" then "Mr.
Eawley.' "If you will come into my
office perhaps we can unravel this
mystery, likewise several others"