Gunnison news-champion., 1920-07-23
Love In the
Cobbler Shop
3, JANE OSBORN


ole paiF ~ -aa-s. fur uLsu you 20 to
b4s- them msuI"d yuu rau wing along
,g th,. cufli"r shop wlrh the d.i,onalr
Dir NJ one ruEurl~g-I hy the bundl.
-uu'a-H.uS the other la.r-if you had
one
F"- % o.. "nrs alien you are down ro
-. lll~ that gug allI wear the worn
pa.r ro the shop and -.t there IN the
old rocker % front ~ rhc cDhbIsr's
b.nch r-ld.a- much h.-=r med copy ~
rhr Saturday Eysu'n- Post FOR s0tns
time .u July. 1918. and u,ar.uE-tha'
T. The rather dreadful part q 1.-THE
CARPET sIri-.rs provided fnr such n
y"u.
Ea Na'houIsE IN his w.lI-brushai
.itpuch somewhat shiny serge suit. his
carefully rl.d though mayhap thread
h1r~ rrava'. and last years hat well
I-r..-t "n lrrrpr"achabiy arranged
I"sk, stepped rather jauntIiy into the
ruNHlcr's shop. bent on couC'allng fr'.
The world any resentment that he en-
'crfulu.t toward fortune for not having
made him millionaire or 'ovnrd his
slr~rl"rs NJ the plant" Tor not having
Increased his sBlary more rapidly.
For Nathaniel had n mother and
some sisters down state somewhere
vho had To- ae provided 'fnr, md living
wrs very high in Burtontown. where
his plant was located. Yon surely
never would have guessed hnd you seen
him that he VAS man with one pair
~ shoes. n man crossed IN love and
fully determined sine" IN" on" giri In
'h" world could never Do" his that he
uuId .-uHIn = bachelor for life.
When Nathaniel pui on those old
slippers D" rurued the rocking chnir
So tha' thns" who pnSS"d tn. cohblsT
shop might not -" his fac. and rcc"e
nlgr him Not that II mufter.d much
iur he would rather 40; have had hia
associates nj the plant know this De
tail ~ his Isuyerty. And ihcn-jld not
she. the luconparnhl" she, live In
country place not far distant from
Burtontowu. and Nigh; she not pass
In her limousine and see him sitting
there,
He WAS Just ponderinE the nrtless
nc-s Of a highly Culured ilthogruph
crl"ndar. m advertisement for sho"
polish, that gruc-d the cubbler's wal
when h. heard f"Itst-p on the cob
tiers floor that somehow thrilled him
The door closed behind someone, and
then:
Il want to get some-Some shoe
strings, please" II was m" inconpar-
able voice. 1t must bo HGth Biilhrrs.
Nathaniel seized the out-of-tn,e week
ly md began reading an advertisement
TOR the 1915 model cf Il well known
automobile as n Il were Of absorbing
Interest. He felt that she was look
Ing towHrd him. II. could see the
cohblcr get the strings.
II would he short transaction, he
thought. and she would soon he out.
Could anything be worse than tn have
Ruth Bllthcrs see him sitting there.
with his toes thrust In the worn car
pet slippers. waiting for his on" pair
OF shoes? Somehow he felt u,rr-
whclmlngiy ashamed of those hare
stocking feet of his. yet there was
nowhere Ia tuck. them. II was m
agonIzing moment, but II would s,-'n
BE- over. and then:
"Comc to think of IT" said Ruth.
"rll have my shoes repaired. Can I
sit here7 It's 50 convenient having
Ihem done while you walt"
Somewhat surprised. the C"bller
l'ointed to Il pair OF carpet slippers
that lay on the floor and to little
bench. and then cast dark glauces
from his Italian eyes AT Nathaniel for
not pronering his more comfortable
rocking chair to 50 charming u lady
But Nathaniel appeared 10 be deep
in pcrusnl OF the maca dine. He also
sppearel To be nearsiei.ted. for he held
Il remarkably close To his face.
Thanks to the industry OF that same
cobbler the repairs were completed on
NathanIcl's shoes In Is minutes. but
II wns the longest, most agonizing is
minutes that Nathaniel had ever spent.
Meantime the cobbler's assistant took
the hec,.S from Ruth's shoes and re
placed them with some made OF rub
ber. OF course Nathaniel realized that
he would have to speak to her. So
ie looked up, but by that time Ruth
-as s-p in the perusal OF sheet
mat mad fallen from the 1915 period
ical. Then occurred TO Nathaniel the
reaSSuring thought.
When he had met Ruth the summer
before when on one exiravnsant two
weeks vacation nj "A fashionable yya,ar
ing place-before he had ever gone
to Burtoutown-he had not told her
M first of his poverty. II was the
old story.
He wanted TO "mS,Se believe" for
the space of the vacation. But Ruth.
whom he danced with at the hotel,
walked with and swain with on the
beach and in the surf. ioitered with on
the boardwalk and filrted with in the
moonlight. had shown herself to be 50
much more generously provided with