The diamond drill. (Crystal Falls, Iron County, Mich.) 1887-1996, 1914-10-17
JaStOm JOSIin'S
Luck
A Fortunate BIunder.
By REINETTH LOyEwELL
Copyright by Frank A. Munsey Co.
By REINETTE LovEwELL
Copyright by Frank A. Munssy Co

sadie kiernan sat staring ~vacantly
out OF the window.
Before her on the table lay a small
yellow envelope with the figure Z. a
period and two zero marks inscribed
In n corner. This had been hurled
there ten minutes before by the presi-
dent OF the Acme Knife company and
was in fnal settlement OF her account
with his house.
Sadie had lost her Job.
she paid 81 a week TO Mrs. Tierney
for her board, and the Saturday be
fore. by special dispensation, she had
been permitted to delay for seven
days the remittance of this amount
Hence there was now due Mrs. Tier
ney. payable on demand. the sum OF
IS, and the contents OF the envelope,
augmented by Al cents In her tarnish-
ed mesh purse. would lack so cents
OF the board bill.
Agitated by the thought OF confront
ing Mrs. Tierney in explanation OF her
breach Of promise, Sadie permitted a
large and dishguring drop OF ink TO
fall upon a ledger In which she was
making a few 6nal entries prior 10
her leave taking.
All the while the Acme Knife com
pany sat at its desk with a frown on
its face. The Acme Knife company
was MI. Arthur Lawton.
He was a young man OF mild man.
ners and had never before experienced
the pain OF firing n stenographer. AS
he heard a sti6ed little sniff from the
typewriter table where Sadie sat he
grabbed his hat and left the Office TO
seek diversion.
His stenographer usually received
from Mr.. Lawton's lips four or five
short letters each day. She knew her
shorthand system as a Mohammedan
knows the Koran. and she had v
yet made a crook or a hook that she
could not decipher. The marks she
made stood for the words Mr.. Lawton
said, and she never got them wrong.
1t was only when she started 10
spell them that she encountered diai-
Guilty.
Fortunately for his s~tenographer, the
president was out soliciting orders
most OF the eight hours Sadie was on
duty, and there wasn't much TO do.
so she had abundant opportunity for
photographic research.
Her Handy Dictionary and Ency-
clopedia OF Useful Information was
worn very thin and shabby, for Sadie
faithfully found In its columns about
ninety Of every hundred words she
wrote upon the machine.
But today there was no dictionary
In the office. With dark suspicion she
recalled that Annie Flynn, who work
ed In a real estate Office down the hall,
had looked e~nviously upon that trusty
friend many a time.
The address OF the letter she was to
write was plainly printed on the letter
head Mr.. Lawson had given her, so
that much was smooth sailing. There
seemed to be nothing she could do
about the body of the letter except to
spell the words as they sounded. This
method was much quicker and simpler
and required far less concentration than
the process OF dictionary research.
Sadie was a touch operator, and there
were never any errors In her typewrit.
ing. Once written she did not find il
necessary 10 read IL over
Her work ended. Sadie dreamed.
Mr.. Lawton usually came IN a little
before closing time TO read and sign his
correspondence, however limited IL
might be, but at ten minutes OF 8 on
this eventful day he had not appeared.
AZ two minutes Of the hour the tele
phone rang sharply, and Sadie took
down the receiver and recognized her
employers voice.
Miss Herman he called, II shall
have to ask you TO sign that letter TO
Andrews Il Andrews. can't get back.
and l want It to 60"
She signed for the Acme Knife com
peny, by its president. hastily, troubled
by a sense OF doubt about the spelling.
and she stuck down the dap with u
feeling OF relief that Mr.. Lawton would
nut STE IL anu u Hlm DISQUALIFICATION W
get a dictionary from somewhere be
fore morning.
The carbon she hurried TO hle, push
ing Il far down In the folder. so thar
no casual examination would reveal
any defects to persons who were sure
Of their spelling.
There Il had remained until Friday.
when, quite without warning. Mr.. Law
ton had appeared with the pay envelope
and the hidden carbon.
There was a wild look In his eye. and
his face was flushed.
He laid the yellow sheet out before
her:
Andrews and Andrews.
Attorneys at Law.
Bushnell Building.
Rochester. NJ. ".
Attention. Mr.. q. Andrews:
Dear Slr-Rcplying TO your favur OF the
9th ult. I beg TO staff that 1 have nothing
ferthur 70 say IN the mater OF which you