The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1915-10-05
The Evening Story
Brunette Preferred.
(Ry Hone Ainslie.l

brunette may be jealous, but she
makes a better nurse, 1 assure you.
Here we can't afford to take even so
slight chance. 1 want a girl WHO
can take hold of D cottage and han
die it, Put brunette preferred in
the ad., and I'll pick her out when
they begin to arrive
Nelson drew sigh and typed the
ad. to catch the mail He occupied
several positions at the works. As
sistant superintendent was one, also
general correspondence manager and
first aid to the injured hustler when
any accidents happened That day
two of the brass pourers had got into
a fight just at 4, and stopped their la
dies over each other. The doctor had
nurse from the city to help him down
in the little stuffy hospital behind
the pattern rooms. Three days later,
even while answers by mail were pill
down train from Beauchamp left a
young woman on the platform, and
after one quick survey of the barren
landscape she headed for the low
brick factory buildings down near the
river.
She's got red hair, doc" Nelson
announced gently, as he hunted up
the doctor and told him of his visitor.
She had. Undeniably red. Dressed
in dark blue serge, with the perkiest
kind of a tricorne white felt hat on
her curly red hair, and her hazel eyes
brimful of determination, she over
came the doctors aversion and got
the position.
And she wore, later on, when she
appeared in her uniform, the most
coquettish sort of white lawn cap. 1t
was a sort of double frill. caught in
the middle, that gave her the appear
ance of a disdainful young white pea
cock. She talked little. When she
had occasion to come to the office.
Nalc H. 1111r ir7cr to hnTC
all the way along the corridor.
Now, even Nelson was aware that
he was not an ordinary looking young
person. Six feet two, weighing in at
about a hundred and sixty, was not
so bad. He had rowed in the varsity
winning crew and was nephew to old
Rathburn, the owner of the Rathburn
Malleable Iron Works. 1t had been
hospital department out of the build
ings and build decent cottage out
at the end of the yards, where acct
dent cases could be handled.
DIR. O'Farrell had backed him up.
While he held his own practice in the
small manufacturing town he was I'M
der contract to the works to patch up
the accident cases. Sometimes a week
went by without any. Sometimes, if
work were rushing and the weather
very hot, the men seemed to catch
the contagion of thought worry and
become QuarrelSome among them
selves. rush contract would fill
several beds over in the cottage.
Louise Hall was her name. She
came from northern New York. Mel
son found that much out the day the
big belt caught her dress skirt as she
passed its lower shaft, and he pulled
her away.
Don't use this passa geway," he
told her sternly. zone of our boys
was caught here and landed up
against the wall yonder.''
- 14r II I,NIE
tected,'' she answered coolly. Where |
upon, thinking it over, Nelson went |
to his uncle and had the belt pro- |
tected. So in one way and another |
she introduced a better and more |
careful system into the works. Life |
was precious thing, she taught even
the doctor. while he smiled and |
wished her hair were a few shades |
darker. Red hair was sign of a pre- |
ponderance of executive ability, he |
told Nelson on the quiet. Still she |
was doing better than he had expect |
ed. Then came the day when Big |
Kalmuck, the foreman over In the |
gray iron division, tumbled over with |
the heat and when he came to at |
tackled the doctor.
There was no one in the hospital |
cottage when it happened but the
nurse and a couple of patients, but
somehow a cone soaked in chloroform
was pressed over Kalmuck's nose from
behind. and he dropped in a quiet,
innocent heap at the doctors feet.
BY the time Nielsen answered Miss
Halls phone call the doctor had
slipped down beside him. protesting
that he was not hurt, but Kalmuck's
knife still remained neatly plugged
between the ribs, and he became a
patient at the cottage under the COM
pany's care.
1t was the end of the first week
that Nelson asked her to be his wife.
He had been over every few hours to |
help with the care of O'Farrell, and
had brought down the city surgeon
for him, as well as the local man, but
they all knew it was the care of the
d-haired nurse that was saving his
life.
1t was along about eight, and Mel
son was saving goodnight. The door
into the little side room was ajar, but
the doctor had been sleeping, and she
ter. There Nelson held her hands in
his, and the glass was forgotten while
he told her all she hao been TO him
ever since she hid first come. And
the tears came into her eyes as she
listened to the boy, but she shook her
head.
I'm sorry, Nelson. know it should
be you, but it itsn't- You're everything
that a man should be to win girl,
but that cross, self-opinionated, fault
irritable creature yonder"-i
brought out each word between her
teeth, and each one mad a nod from
the white frill cap-"he's the man
like best, and heaven only knows why.
can't bear myself for even thinking
life, and some way this tangle has
come out of it all Forgive me, won't
you2 I wish I could /.
After Nelson had gone she stepped