Evening star., 1919-04-13

uiu.
They had called her Rose. fatuously,
as parents do their first-born girl
No doubt she had been normally pink
and white and velvety. And now. an
unwed woman. grown heavy about
the hips and arms, as houseworking
B. women do. though they eat but little,
moving duly about the sixtroom nat
on Sangamon street. Rose was as
much a slave as any wench OF planta-
tion days.
There was the treadmill Of endless
dishes dirtied as fast as cleansed;
there were beds. and beds, and beds:
eravies and soups and stews. And
always the auerulous voice OF the sick
woman in the front bedroom demand
ing another hot water bag.
A spinster nearing forty. living
thus must have her memories-one
precious memory. at least-or she
dies. Rose had hers. She hugged
It close. The /. trains roared by, not
thirty feet from her kitchen door.
their noises to her. The life or chi
cago's millions yelped at her heeis.
On Roses face was the vague, mute
look of the woman whose days are
Gpent indoors. at sordid tasks.
At $50 every night that look,
hnme-F,oss, and All, aud pa--their
faces stamped with the marks that
come from a day spent in snop anu
efactory. They brought with them the
crumbs and husks of the days hap
penings. and these they flung care
lessly before the lfe-starved Rose
and she ate them gratefully.
They came in wi a rush, hungry
tagged grimed. imperious, smeiing
Of the city. There was slamming
ho of drawers a
clatter Of tongues, qualleling, laugh-
ter. A brief visit to the sick wom-
ans room. The thin. complaining
voice reciting it's tale of the day $
discomfort and pain. Ihen s"pper, ",, ",
Guess who l waited on 1ooay'
Floss might demand.
Rose. dishing up, would pause IN
terested. "Who?' -
"Gladys Moraine! l knew heT lhe
minute she came down the aisle. saw
her last year when she was playing IN
His Wives She's prettier off than
: on, l think. waited on her, ana the
other girls We're wild, She bought a
dozen pairs Of white kids, and made
me give 'em to her huge so she could
shove her hand right into EN-, like a
man does. Two sizes too big. Al,
the swells wear 'em that way. ana
only or = S,ms Hne rins-a" emerald the size
or perhaps AL would descend from
his heights to mingle brief mo,
ment In the family talk. AL clerked
s6n. His was the wisdom of the
snake, the weasel and the sphinx
strangely silent young man, this A.
thin Tipped. smooth checked per
fumed: Slim OF waist. nat @ OF sll,,re 4,p, mao oe
the born fox-trotter. He walked llSnt-
ly, on the balls Of his feet, like an m
dian, but without the Indians dignity.
Some excitement ourselves rhe souay, ai,
mans SON started in to learn the re-
tail selling end of the business. Back
Of the showcase with the rest OF US.
waiting on trade. and looking like a
Yale YELL"
Pa would put down his paper to
stare over his reading specs at AL.
'Mannheim's son! The president!
"Yep! And guess ne loves II, nun
The old man wants him to learn the
business from the ground up. III pet
he'll never get higher than the first
floor. Today he went out to lunch at
and never shows up again TIL :.
brand Of cigarettes we don't carry"
Thus was the world brought to Rose.
Her sallow cheeks would show faint
hint of color as she slipped her tea.
ing in late April. Rose smothered her
alarm clock at the first warming
snarl. She was wide awake at once,
asv are and h9ss wnSss sss s sXe
Rose never opened her eyes to the
dim, tantalizing half con sciousness OF
thing narrowing in store for her that
day. For one to whom the wash
womans Tuesday visitation is the
event of the week and in whose
bosom the delivery boys hoarse
"Groceries!' as he hurls soap and
cabbage on the kitchen table arouses
4, wild furry there can be very little
thrill on awakening.
Rose slept on the davenport couch
self fixes her status In the family: ny.
eyes with what might be called q
heroine Something had happened:
o'clock steam Missing, in the radiator.
rattle OF the L trains. and the milk
as does the chirping of the birds the
D.. yes, familiar; delicious, yet aLn painful
lying there. Her gaze, wandering
blanket, fixed upon a small black OBJ
1ect trembling there. The knowledge
that came, to her then had come;
subtle and exquisite ways, to those
who dwell in the open places.
Craftily,. stealthily. she sat up, one
hand raised. Her eyes still fixed on