Iron County news. [volume] (Hurley, Wis.) 1913-1950, 1921-09-17
MISS MARTHA
BY ELIZABETH V. MfNAUGHT.

IeoE seemed weighted WITH irons as
she climbed the incline Of the narrow
street leading to the small lonely
Apartment that she called home.
Tor over twenty years life had been
but 2 round Of work. Ia what should
have been her playtjme Of life she had
awakened % fnd her fran shoulders
buv.leneyi with responsibility so
gr~at that she must seek the city,
enter q great store. become a nonentity
Ike So many other girls, and IL she
felr tile usual pangs Of longing that
fills the very heart Of the poor girl as
she sells 10 her more fortunate sisters
the pretty silks and laces that she, too,
Graves but can never have. no one was
the wiser.
Vow She had reached the splnster-
hood Of life. She craved nothing
fragile or pretty and found her only
ioy in watching q small nest egg grow
year by year. each year bringing a
fresh assurance Of at least an indie
pendent old age.
The responsibility was now gone.
self to look after However. the hab-
It's Of lifetime are not easily broken.
and the instinct for saving had been
instllled far too deeply for any change
to take place in her mode of living.
Saving she had been. saving she was
ana would be to the end. Where 9TH
ers counted dollars She counted pen
nies-where others saved pennies. she
saved dollars. To her. nickels were
as sovereigns and to be boarded. To
spend a fve-cent piece in order TO ride
a distance that her feet could carry
her would be sacrilegious.
She lived alone. Every winter morn
ing the wind buaeted her small figure
around the corner and the hot. muGey
nights Of summer found her dragging
along, coat in hand. warm and per
spring, after a long walk from her
place Of employment
To the neighbors she was a pity and
mystery They pitied her In her
loneliness and they marveled at her
seeming good nature. for She had
ready smile for anyone who glanced
her way.
The house IN which she lived was
divided into a score or more Of beehive
apartments.
Each evening on entering Miss Mar
tina hahitually stepped into the phone
booth, not to answer the phone, nor
vet to make 4 call, but simply to see,
# by any chance. n fve-cent piece
might have dropped back from the
coin box and lay in the open slot.
Economist was Miss Martha Find
ing was keeping. II was not stealing.
Such would be her replies to a ques-
tloning conscience. and. to be sure. a
nickel was 4 nickel.
On this particular July evening she
had just emerged from the booth as
young woman, flushed and apparently
excited. faced her inquiringly. Miss
Martha began to mount the stairs The
young woman inspected the booth,
then raced after the retreating old fig
ure
MY money, my money. You have
IT." she screamed. gesticulating wildly,
and a small child Juggling at her skirts
began to cry In fright
Miss Martha was almost too over
come to speak. Feebly. trembling. she
made denial. Later an inspector
called, but after fruitless questioning
went away struggling his shoulders.
But a thousand dollar bill had mys-
teriously disappeared. It had been
handed TO the young woman by her
husband just a few minutes previous.
On hearing the ring Of the phone bell,
and being accustomed to answering 1t,
she had slipped the bill into her apron
pocket and missed the money just a
few moments after returning to her
apartment. She had hurried to the
booth. discovered Martha, and-of
course the der woman had found the
bin and was cOnceaiing 1t.
For days and weeks tongues wagged
and meaning glances followed the sus-
pected woman. To all appeals Miss
Martha was adamant. Her spirit was
proud she would not let these crit
icaI people into the one secret Of her
life.
OF course She was innocent, the bHl
having been discovered the following
day serving as a blanket on the wee
crib in which the mothers small child
laid her doll, the little girl admitting
that she had taken II from her moth
e-'s pocket the day previous How
ever. this bit Of news 40 not travel
as fast nr as far as its predecessor.
One evening a few weeks later, Just
ms the gathering dusk was assuring
the Sci and the couvalescent of the city
hospital that another day had come TO
its close Miss Martha was weakly re-
peatns the whole sad story 20 a sym
pathetic nurse.
"'Twaul't stealing" she asserted IN
her queer nasal and as her eyes shift
ed from the scenes of this world TO
those ~ the next no doubt. the soul
OF Miss Martha repeated the same as
sertion 70 its Creator