The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1913-12-23
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ALL There WAS TO IT
Bv GRACE kERRIoAN.

BY GRACE kERRlGAN.
When Miss Lizzie Carford entered
upon her duties as stenographer and
typewriter with Ames & Co. she didn't
look for any social side of 1t. There
couldn't be any in a business office.
She would ask for the respect that is
due any girl or woman, no matter
whether she has money and social
standing or must earn her living.
Ames & Co. were middle-aged men
and both married. Both were workers,
and both quiet men. They had small
business. but paying one. and their
bookkeeper was also their cashier. He
was young man of twenty-four. and
the newcomer was not favorably i'm
pressed with him. 1t is none of the
stenographer's business whether the
bookkeeper in his den is young or old
goodlooking or ugly-social or surly..
Neither Mr.. Adams nor his partner
were good at debating, and they put,
the work off on the bookkeeper.
Again, they would be the only occu-
pants Of the business for hours at a.
time, and If he was surly and gruf 1t
would make things lonesome.
Mr.. Walter Bardsley, the said book
keeper. was In his den when Miss Car
ford called and was hired. There had
not been girl In that office in the five
years he had been there, but he never
turned from his desk to look She had
a pleasant voice, but he didn't seem to-
hear 1t. After she had gone. and he
the place, his only comment was:
Very well, sir"
She was waiting for him next morn
ing when he arrived
Mr.. Bardsley did not bow He did not
introduce himself He did not look at
her
He picked up the morning mail and
carried it into his den and the girl was
left for half an hour to twiddle her
thumbs. Then he came out and sat
down by the machine and started of
with:
"Mr H o. Wharton-Dear Sir: Your
letter Of the 9Th inst at hand"
Miss Lizzie picked up pad and pen
ell and wrote There were five letters
in all He never paused to say com
ma" period" or paragraph" but
drove straight ahead, and when fin
ished got up without word and went
back to his den. She typed the let
ters and laid them on the desk and
when Mr.. Ames came in they were
signed and sent out to be mailed.
Very well DONE" said Mr.. Ames,
and that's all there was to it.
At noon Mr.. Bardsley went out to
lunch.
When he had disappeared Miss Liz
zie went out to lunch. She was back
first, and when he came In she did not
Look at him nor he at her. He could
have said: Nice day, Miss Carford?"
And she could have answered: Yes.
very nice"
But he didn't say and she didn't say.
From her place by the machine she
could look into the bookkeeper's den
and she his baok-always his back
After she had surveyed that back for
three mortal hours, and could have
drawn a warmap of every line and
wrinkle. she turned and looked out
upon the roof of the adjoining build
ing. There was clothes-line stretch
ed across 1t, and on that line hung an
old red flannel shirt. 1t tapped in the
breeze. 1t huttered like a wounded
bird. There were moments when It.
q RI hrn0fhn
That shirt when new was a blood
red in color. 1t was now faded to the
color of an old brick house in larry
town-the one where General Wash
ington once stopped after licking the
British to ask the owner for the tenn
porary loan of his boot jack The
shirt had four patches on it to cover
four holes. The buttons were missing
and with increasing age it had shrunk.
What was the romance-what the mys-
terry of the old red shirt?
Why, thought you'd gone"
1t was the voice Of Mr.. Ames at her
elbow. The girl had fallen asleep.
The bookkeeper had departed without
awakening her. Wasn't that the trick
of a mean man?
Each day for the next month was
like every other day. Outside of the
dictation not ten words passed be-
tween the stenographer and the book
keeper. They came and went with
out noticing each other. 1t vexed
and annoyed her for the first week
and then she said to herself:
Hes probably mad because some
one he recommended wasn't taken
on instead of me, but If he thinks
he'll get rid of me by playing the
bear he'll find himself mistaken. I'm
real glad to find one man in the city
who isn't Sinking around and brag-
ging how smart he isl"
Then a son of Mr.. Ames' partner
came home on his vacation from col
lege. He was a very fresh young
man. He wanted TO be a high roller
but his father was tight with money
matters. He hung about the office a
good deal, though neither the book
keeper nor the stenographer was
more than barely civil to him.
At the end of a week, Miss Lizzie
noticed that the two partners were
anxious and perturbed and held con-
situations. Some excitement also
seemed to have got hold of the book
keeper There were three DAYS of
this, and then he disappeared and
Mr. Ames took his place 1t wasn't
for the girl to ask why, but she nat
urally wondered over it. The rou-
tine continued about the same. At
noon all went to lunch. The door of
the bookkeeper's den, in which was the
safe, was locked at such times.
AT noon one day, instead of going
out to lunch, the stenographer MUNICH
ed big apple and buried her nose
In book she had brought down. A
quarter of an hour had passed wheu
the door briskly opened and the fresh
young man entered. He looked to-
room. When he was sure no one
was inside he produced a key and
entered the den. He was inside not
over two minutes, and when he re-
appeared he was stufing greenbacks
into his pockets. He locked the door
behind him and then passed out Of
the office without having glimpsed the
watcher
For a moment the girl reasoned
that he was the son of the partner,
and had right to go and come. Then
she scented something wrong and put
on her hat and hurried down to the
street The young man was just en-
tering an auto in which sat waiting
another young man.