Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1923-09-27
CHAPTER xvI.-continued.

a furious beating on the temper gong.
Take that, will your? Lettie would
cry, addressing a spirit within herself
often addressed before. "Lordy, I'll
beat you. You make me-tired-all
time trying to-get mel Now how DO
you feel?"
The temper gong had long since
ceased to be thing of wood. Lettle's
imagination had endowed it with a
fraction of her own nature, the unde-
sirable fraction, and she scolded and
threatened and pounded it with a fury
that was sharper because of the per-
sonification.
Mrs. Penfield traced the frequency OF
these demonstrations to undue exer-
tion. "Lettie, dear, don't work so hard"
she demonstrated.
'Penzie, darling, 1 gotta" replied
Lettie firmly. ''There amt much time,
and the old thing balks on me-"
But in the middle Of the second fore
noon Lettie came into the house with
impressive triumph. Her steps were
measured, her head high.
"She works." announced the child,
with a brief nod toward the contriv-
ance she was carrying. 1t was long,
slender stick with wires at one end,
but Lettie gave no explanation of its
purpose. Instead, she took it into the
bedroom and hid it jealousy behind
her own sleeping box.
She scrubbed her face and hands to
the full capacity of soap and water,
brushed her black curls with conscien-
tious vigor, and put on her better ging-
ham dress. For a moment she stared
IN dismay at her shabby shoes. Mrs.
Penfeld had bought them when Lettie
first arrived, but they had necessarily
been cheap ones, and the inevitable
had happened.
ST don't care !" decided Lettie, with
a toss of her head. "The upper part of
mes as good as anybody, and I'll keep
folks busy looking at that. Some day
I'll have lots Of shoes-lots of EN-"
Upheld by the redundant luxury of
the future, Lettie set forth Her OBJ
jective had been in mind from the
first. Part of the information which
she had picked up in her open-air life
was the system by which advertising
material is distributed. She had
known more than one boy who was en-
ployed by The Wideawake Advertising
agency, and her present visit was to
headquarters.
The Office was an informal affair, a
narrow room on the ground floor. The
company consisted of one man and an
Office boy. 1t was the latter who
stepped forward when Lettie entered.
She Rugged tight to the counter by
way Of concealing her shoes from the
view Of the critical, but her head was
very high.
SIS the manager in?"
The manager was undeniably in.
Lettie herself could see him, a stout
man with heavy eyebrows, sitting at a
desk behind the counter. But the
young man was a person Of evasion.
"What can / do for your" he said,
with a lazy smile.
"You can let me see the manager"
informed Lettie, coolly. II got bust
ness with him."
''Have your" drawled the young man.
eWho'll l tell him?"
Lettie considered swiftly. This was
a business errand. 1t was a time for
dignity. One could not be too careful.
'sTell him Miss Penfeld," she replied,
proudly.
The young man laughed aloud, but
Lettie stared at him with unflinching
composure. The room was so small that
every word uttered In it was distinctly
audible to ali it's occupants. Therefore
the stout man at the desk was accu-
rately posted on the interview to date
Nevertheless, his assistant turned to-
ward him, seemingly by pivotal
movement of his elbow on the counter,
ind inquired:
''NHr. Abbott, feel like seeing Miss
Penfeld2"
Mr.. Abbott faced about, appraised
Lettie without any indication of Joy,
and shrugged bored shoulder.
''Let her come In" he said indiffer-
emily.
Lettie went.
Mr.. Abbott smiled lazily at the small
creature who had settled into the chair
at the side of his desk. He was evil
IDENTIFY inclined to underrate the seri-
BUSINESS Of the impending interview.
whats eating you, kid?" he in
CURED good-naturedly.
Lettie shot him a glance of seornful
reproof. 81 come to talk business"
she announced coldly.
"WeH, talk it then. What's the
hitch?"
Thus encouraged, Lettie jumped
straight from the shore into the mid
die of the pond. 81 gotta scheme
grand scheme that'll save you heaps OF
money. Heaps and heapsI' she added,
waving her lean arms to indicate
sum approaching dazzling proportions.
"You don't say! What's the
schemeY
"WeIl-" Lettie squirmed to the
edge of her chair in expansive excite
ment. "Well, / been watching your
boys, how they all time walk, walk
hike up steps-hike down And-and
faint necessary. l gotta scheme that
CUTS out the steps. It"
"Oh! Sort of wrecking machineT
Lettie stamped her feet, first one and
then the other, in a staccato perform
ance highly compelling in its own way.
"Quit laughing! / got it all doped out,