The West Virginian. [volume] (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1914-1974, 1918-12-11
THE DAILY
SHORT STORY
For Service.

BY s. 3. HAcKLEY.
tfOpyrIght, 1913, by the Mcclure

sSr BY 8. B. HACkLEY.
tGopyright, 1913, by the Mcclure
Newspaper Syndicate--)
CROSS the window OF Pierre Ca
~ bins tiny fruit shop there went
flash OF brihgt red and a shadow
Of dark blue The fash was the
bunch Of red gladioN tia: Bessie Da-
mours carrie5: the shadow was Peg
I1e6thman, fo.yerinS healthy brown
Giant above tte viVacious little lam
dry yorker, Win whom, when 4" was
: on duty as cnLtneer on the r " Rail-
.oad. he n.a1aged to spend rGca CT
lbs spare time
As the red a2a the blue vaoIs'ct
Pierre was seized With a great tremb'
IiHg Gle k3elt IL haste benin ::'
gyas:e-cCv ercd COUNTER, and, !-aning
SIS head on a crate OF fragrant musk
as!onS. spread out his hands in weart-
(ssess OF soul
Babette: Barette:" he whispered in
French My petite-how love--how
love-and she with no care for me
In her heart!"
In her fourth year in America with
her aunt and uncle. julie and Louis
Flavin-twenty years away from
FFance-the girl had come to Marsh
vile, to work in the big laundry there.
and at the same time Pierre Cabin.
armed with the scI IL stock OF English
and money he had acquired in his six
months stay in the United States. nae
"set up in business for himself his
dream before he had left France
For two years now Pierre had loved
: Babette, or Bessie. as she called her
self Ia her g!Tiish desire to be Amer
lean, and Bessie had seemed to care
NSpr him until Bob Heathman began To-
,=stay in Nashville
Bob spent his engineers wage reck-
Iessly on the bonbons. flowers. plays
and auto rides that Bessie loved. and
Pierre had to save money each month
to put back in the trade and to add
to the li$tle sum toward the home he
had planned to buy for her ever since
he'd first seen her in the little Cath.
Ole church IN the tow
But now every time he ventuze3
timifly to ask her to go out with him.
she'd AN engagement with Rober!
; Heashman." or Terry Thatcher the
young linenan, OF Charlie HensIey a:
the telephone exchange
y But the little desmotsslies going 20
schco1 would be along directly VITA
their pennies for apples: one could Eoi
ne5lect. cne'= business even though
the heart vas breaking Pierre got ~
and rearTanSed his shelves and coun.
tars At noon dozen girls from thc
laundry on MagoIia street poured in
the little shop. demanding grapes and
bananas There was another fruit
shop just across the street from the
eundry building. but Tony Ferraroj
Was middle aged and married Pierre
was neither. and IN addition possessed |
a handsome face. very fine eyes and
the most diGniaed manners
Mrs Adelaide Mercer. the richest
and proudest lady on Maple avenue. !
who bought her baskets Of fruit from
the young Freedman. was not accord |
ed more Difference or courtesy than
! Nelly Sem:ns the home!iest Of the
laundry girls, when she bought her
daily five cents worth
The girls fingered and chartered as
they went GU.
int he na1dsome?'' he heard the
1ed-haired one sayin "Do vou think
he's as good loolin as Bob HeatLnan.
Lou?"
"A hundred times better looking"
the dark girl answered positively. "and
n thousand times more polite If he'd
only take notice Say. Nan. believe
Bob Heathmsn's going TO narGy that
p1atty Bessie he's going with
you believe that had few hopes |
that way myself
After the girls disappeared up tho
street Pierre sat very still. stupidity |
starting at nothing He did not want
to live II Bessie. his Babetre, became |
Heathman's wife
A tarantUIa hidden IN bunch OF
bananas had bitten him the summer
before A customer had discovered
him lying fl a faint He'd called for
help and a doctor. and they'd revived
him and found and killed the giant
spider
Pierre wished that they had IL: him
die 4e had meant to write IN the fail i
to his cousin in France. Earbe Piar.
Diet, his nearest relative. that he was
told him to marry. rather than an
American, who might also be good
girl. but who would not have any mem
cries OF La Patrie
But now he'd nothing OF happiness
TO write to good old Barbe When i |
was dusk and there were no more Gus
toners he shut the shop and took out
OF the drawer the little revoTver Bayne
Carly, the towns chief Of police. had
persuaded him he ought to keep IN the
little shop T
he brought It back In his tiny be6.i
room and laid it down on his pillow
One shot and his heart would cease its
awful ache Surely the Bon DieI would
pardon-Would pardon
It was hot night. he had closed
only the SCREEN door and hts cat was
It now
English that way He opened and real
had forgotten lay on the steps He
claw1nS at this He opened the door
TO let the cat In The morning daily no
always read the paper He had learned
English that way He opened and read
St noW
had forgotten lay on the steps He
EFance-Belgiuna invaded" read the
headlines Further details OF that evil
advance stared up at him
FFance-la belle France-invaded BY
the old enemy: The paper dropped to