The Tomahawk., 1917-06-28
The Bad
1uckSign
*
BY ALICE E. IVES
copyright, by w. G. Chapman.)

asylum?'
"Marini,' corrected Mrs. Briscoe.
II call it Marino," snorted Mrs. Clay
with an emphasis on the 90" that was
meant to definitely settle the matter.
"And I'm asking if you've done it"
II have" answered Mrs. Briscoe
with a slight show of defiance. my
dressmaking has been coming in thick
err and faster; and it stands to reason
that when woman gets to be my age
that trying to do all the house work,
and your regular business besides, is
just about one too many
Eyes, that's so. But there are plen-
ty of girls right here in this village
that would have been glad to come,
and you wouldn't have been taking any
risk
"What do you mean about taking
risk" asked Mrs. Briscoe.
"Well, what do you know about her
father or mother?. what's bred in the
bone stays long in the fesh.'"
Il know something about her moth
err" said Mrs. Briscoe with a mild tri-
umph at being able to get even with
Melissa Clay.
swell, what?"
':Her mother came to me, poor,
pale-looking little thing with that
child just a baby in her arms, asking
for work. T couldn't hire her, and
the next thing I heard she was dead,
and the child put into the asylum
"But you never saw the father, and
!, h1
low-down furriner. Like as not she'll
steal from you, or burn the house
down.
II amt got that kind of opinion of
Foreigners said Mrs. Briscoe. II
know some that are all right. And
when you get right down to it, you've
got to allow that all our forbears-
yours and mine-were foreigners in
this country
''Well, that's too fur back to talk
about retorted Mrs. Clay with wither-
ing fnality. "You'd better be on the
lookout fur bad luck"
Mrs. Briscoe seemed to be thinking,
and scarcely to hear the last words.
"It's just about fifteen years ago that
girl came to me with that baby. 'Ligah
was living then, and I must say lit
tie thought I'd have to be taking in
sewing, and Shaving for a living the
way have.'
s.Nobody else did either. Every one
supposed that 'Ligah Briscoe was a
rich man. It was awful queer where
the money went to-
ut was more than queer" said Mrs.
Briscoe in a creepy, mysterious tone.
"When 'Ligah sold out the store, he
says to me: I'm going to put that
money into bonds. The interest on
'em will be keeping us, while I'm look
ing out for something else And l
says: You'd better take 'em straight
to the bank, and put 'em in strong
box there And I supposed he had:
'Ligah was awful close-mouthed about
his business, and I never knew just
how much money he had"
"You bet I'd have knowed," put in
Mrs. Clay with biting decision.
"Mebbe not if you'd had 'Ligah to
deal with. He didn't think it was
women's place to NEEDLE with bust
ness. He was dreadful good to me,
ing the kind that wasn't always ask
ing for things. Right after he talked
about the bonds, he was took so sud-
den with that stroke he couldn't speak.
Well, after he died, I supposed the
bonds were in the bank. But they
never heard Of 'em nor nobody else,
and that money was never found. 1t
just sort of disappeared off the earth. y
"How much was it?'
GAS near as I can reckon, it must
have been about eleven thousand dol
lars"
sMy land!' cried Mrs. Clay. "Mebbe
somebody fleeced him."
''He told me they were government
bonds and the surest kind"
Just then a slender girl of about
sixteen entered with her arms full of
parcels. She was far from pretty.
Her thin little face was colorless, and
her features irregular, but her dark
hair was thick and shining, and her
large, brown eyes beautiful and ex-
pressive. There was character and
distinct personality in every turn of
the thin figure. Mrs. Clay eyed her
searchingly, then she said without any
preliminaries, and with evident disap-
prevail: you're a foreigner, amt
you?"
ssWhy, no." answered the girl. II
was born in this country"
"Huh!" shifted Mrs. Clay, 'you don't
look like it!' And with another dis
approving look, she took her departure.
"Is it such an awful thing to be a
foreigner?" asked the girl.
mo, it amt" said Mrs. Briscee.
"YOu needn't mind Mrs. Clay. She
thinks she knows more'n some whole
families But there are times when
she don't. That's a good match" she
went on, holding one Of the girls pur-
chases, a spool Of silk, against a sam
Die. 'Now hurry up, and get some