The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1919-04-16
EVENING STORY
Burton Halls Cinderella.
BY JANE OSBORN.

mined that II he ever became a rlcn
man-and that was his anbition-he
would fall in love with some poor Gin
derella, some charming seamstress or
shop girl, who shivered IN winter be-
cause she could not afford a coat. and
perhaps sent all her small savings
home to a crippled mother. or some
thing of the sort. When rich man
married a girl like that his riches
counted for something. Forty years
of age found Burton one of the half
dozen iweaithiest men of his state but
still unwed. Then, when the too
obvious angling of society mothers.
with charming daughters suggested to
him that he was regarded as one of
the most eligible bachelors availa BILE,
he remembered his early fondness for
the Cinderella idea. The question wa )
to find her.
Burton followed up several false
trails. Then he decided that he would
have to. carry his project thru incog-
nito. Sc he went to a fair-sized city
some thousand miles away from his
home, where it happened he had no
acquaintances. and to make his dis
guise all the more complete he got
position as bookkeeper in a wholesale
grocery concern and decided to seek
the future partner of his life under
the name of James Monroe, so that
she mightsnot by any chance be in
clined to favor his suit because she
suspected him to be the well-known
financier.
..If you haven't picked out your
boarding place." the 1ank young man
who worked at the next desk said to
him the second day of his presence in
the grocery office, II don't mind rec
ommending the place where 1 get
breakfasts and dinners. Say, man, but
those are some meals. How they do it
for the money in these days is more
than can tell. They can't always
make room for new people, but guess
could fix you up. I've been there
a long WHILE
"Any nice. girls?" asked James
Monroe.
why, as to that I can't say there
are. You see, few of us fellows at
the rooming house I go to got next to
this place up as a mealing place and,
WE'LL we've brought in other fellows
and there's scarcely ever a girl there.
Except, of course, Bernice-she's the
landlady's daughter. - Awfully nice
girl, and, say, but she is pretty. Not
and white. Poor kid. 1 guess she
doesn't have much fun. Only has
what clothes her mother can make
her, and guess they've had a pretty
hard time. A girl like that ought to
marry some rich fellow and have ev-
erything lovely. But the only fellows
she meets are like me. Any one of
US almost would marry her if she'd
have US. but she's g. proud little thing,
and ] doubt if any one would dare to
ask her. I'm putting you WISE"
laughed the young man, $50 you won't
feel it too hard when she refuses to
go to the movies with you when you
ask her. "a
'sWen, if the eats are good" said
James Monroe It'll be glad to go
room in the neighborhood that isn't
too high priced And as he spoke
somehow the conviction. came over
him that here at last was the veritable
Cinderella.
Singularly proud and singular1y
pink and white was the charming Ber-
nfpe and from feeling that he had
anything to offer insthe way of a life
si3Rrse in his dozen or so millions Bur-
tonSIIall felt convinced when he first
saw her that to girl like that no man
coul Id SSever have the satisfaction of
n1akingS any girl or any offering, so
great would she hold the boon of Civ
ing her love. Still, even if she would
that he had wished, there would be
joy in showering on. her all the things
that his wea1thscoufd buy; things that
clearly she was longing for.
Z How that white necksof hers would
glow under the string of pearls that he
would give her, and how that mother
of hers would rest! Burton did not
approve of mothers-in-law on general
principles, but he determined that he
would make generous settlement on
her, so that she might find the reward
for the years that she had worked Sc
hard to keep her fair daughter from
drudgery.
Altho Burton had gone no farther
in his courtship than to linger after
dinner occasionally-aIways with
ent-to talk with Bernice in the old
fashioned, gloomy drawing room. and
occasionally to meet her for a five
minute tete-a-tete. he felt that he
would have no great difficulty in win
ming her affection. There was some
thing in her expression toward him
that he did not see when she talked to
the others.
s'Is Miss Bernice homer" he asked
the maid of all work who answered
his ring early one afternoon when he
had determined to have a little talk
with her away from the rest, and the
maid unceremoniously told him that
the young lady was in the kitchen.
Burton felt a thrill of happiness.
1t had bothered him a little that
Bernice never appeared to be helping
this patient mother of hers, but now
1T occurred to him that she really did
help with the cooking, tho she was al
ways at leisure at meal times and after
dinner. So butte unceremoniously he
followed the maid back into the
Bernice, lovely in a new, half-made
frock, with the patient mother on her
knees before her adjusting the ruffles
and flounces that embellished it.
+ Bernice beat a hasty, retreat with an
ooh. Mr.. Monroe at being thus dis
covered and then Burton saw the
mother for the first time. She was
not the worn, tagged, oldish person
he had expected. Her hard work had
apparently rather added a cheerful ro-
tundity to her figure, and tho there
were tired shadows under her eyes.
there was no look of actual exhaustion
there. She started to her feet and
Burton, laughing. put out hand to
help her.
There was the flavor of cooking ap-s
pie pies, upeloyed by any of the other
scents of close kitchen, for Mrs Pur-
don was noted for her immaculate
housekeeping. 4 And somehow Burton