The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1915-05-11
EARNING 4 1RoUssEAu
BY MAUD BEASLEY.

Simmonds, the owner of the chain
of stores, was a man between sixty
and seventy years of age. He had a
fringe of white whiskers under his
chin, he was not particularly we'll
groomed or spruce; in short, he was
not in the least the kind of elderly
who would attract the af-
fections of a pretty girl of twenty.
Lizzie had secured her position the
first day she looked for one She had
come up from the country, and when
she had saved up the price of trous-
seau-a really elegant one-she meant
to let George Robbins, at present en-
ployed in their home town as mana /
ger of a little local store, lead her |
to the altar.
Simmonds certainly appeared inter- |
ested in Lizzie. Before the girl had
been in the store a month he had !
already ccntrived to have her sum-
moned to his private office at least a |
dozen times.
How would you like to act as my
stenographer, Miss Holt?" he inquired
upon the last of these occasions.
Il don't know much about stenog
raphy,' admitted Lizzie. But 1 could
learn, l suppose, she added, think
ing OF the increased salary and the
improved trousseau that would re-
suit therefrom.
We'll, I'll tell you what I'll do"
said the old man, staring at her i'll a
way that brought the bushes to her
cheeks. IN pay for you to learn at
the night school on the next block.
Then when you are competent, maybe
there will be place for you in here"
The stenography lessons were
failure. Lizzie made no progress at
all. Her vain little head was filled
with the thought of the trousseau, and
the hooks would turn the wrong way.
and the consonants turn themselves
into impossible angles. Meanwhile
Lizzie continued at the store. Sim
mond's attentions were now the talk
of everyone. Lizzie could stand it no
longer.
We'll. I'm going in to resign, de-
Sidieu LiLZie, anu StdihSu 'oNeiu tHS
private office.
The girls waited. Exactly at the
noon hour Lizzie emerged, bright
crimson. by the side of Simmonds,
whose arm was drawn through hers,
Down the aisle they walked, Lizzie
turned on her. So they went into the
street. and Bill, the boy who swept
up, reported at one o'clock that they
were having dinner at Haffney's
Lizzie Hollis vain and childish
mind was fairly turned by her en-
ployer's attentions. She spent the
afternoon careless of the black looks
of all around her She was living
over that delicious hour again. Mr..
Simmonds certainly was a gentleman,
even If he was old. But that night,
when the reaction had come, the girl
faced the problem in her room alone
more seriously than she had ever faced
anything.
She was not SO ignorant of life
but that she could see the meaning
Of her employers maneuvers. But she
was ignorant enough to feel helpless.
She could not face the crowd in the
store again. Either she must be true
to George Orwell, she saw the alter
native quite plainly as the hours wore
away. And to her credit the thought
Of George triumphed.
The next day she left her rooming
house and engaged room in anoth
er. She did not return to the store
She obtained position with Mar
shall's. and in a week she had com
} pletely forgotten the incident, except
! that she felt little proud of herself
as the heroine OF quasi-adventure.
Then one day familiar figure en-
] tered. He was an old gentleman with
: a fringe OF white beard, and he was
: accompanied by very motherly look
3 ing old lady. They came slowly NJ
4 to the perfumery counter. Simmondl
] looked up, to encounter Lizzie's fright
ened eyes fixed on his.
why. bless my soul, it's Mis-
: Holt" Here, mother! This is tn
. young lady was telling you about
who disappeared SO mysteriously from
the store
The motherly woman came up t
= Lizzie.
my husband has been talking t
me SO much about you" she said. 8
am sorry you went away But l Ut
. derstand how you felt. You see, Hell
= man is a little abrupt and strange il
. his ways. Go away, Herman! l ar
going to talk to Miss Holt now
!, you see, my dear" she continued
;, I'VE lost our only daughter a yea
ago, and Herman was passionatel
- devoted to her. And after you got
a working in the store he came HON
a and said to me, Mother, one OF GU
= new young ladies is the very imag
CT poor Lucille.
4 Il told him that it must be imai
l. ination, but he kept talking about yo
and SO | promised him that ! woul
n call and see you You know He
man is always interested in his youn
II ladies, but he really felt like faths
n toward you And he knows how har
a girls life is in New York, and wan
10 ed to do all sorts of things for yo
d. But you mustn't scare the girl,
n kept telling him. He did, thong
10 didn't he? But now you understar
(: the situation, and-you'll forgive He
ar nan, won't you?"
!" And the trousseau was finer ths
Il anything Lizzie had ever dreamed {