Evening star., 1923-02-18
IT HAPPENED TO FANNIE
Slow in
But She Gets Under Certainly Reunion
TnbyM Nav SeaYO

~elI, Gays !, 0ou hiio"
whether it could be done or not, but
it would do no harm to try. and 1t
might be more or lAes fun Now
forget Denny, wipe him OH the slate.
and buck yourself UP while plan
out q scheme"
A cTUALLY. though, it was Inez
n who sketchsd out the plot of the
who sketchsd out the plot OF the
piece. when I consulted her about
Fannie.
'She's q mess. all right" says lnez.
"and she don't know no more about
what kinda clothes to wear or how
to wear 'em than . hen does ABOUT
usin' a toothbrush. I tell you what:
II she could ever learn it would be
to get 4 place in one of them SVEN
shops where even the East Side
bundle girls get to lookin' like they
had a Paris label sewed on 'em some
where"
Soak her in style. ch?" says J.
| well, It might work. But I can't
feature Fannie as being very help
full about one Of those "Robes ct Man
teaux' joints, unless they took her on
as floor scrubber. or something like
that"
HUH says Inez. You don't know.
They have all kinds OF cheap nelp
in the back rooms-sewin' on beaos'
buttonholin' and such. Bet IL / went
to the forelady up at that Maison
Noir. where was model once, couid
get her in. But they wouldn't give
her enough to live on"
"That'll be all right" says ]. II
finance her for . few months. just
out Of curiosity. I'd like to sec II
Fannie really could bloom out. You
land the Job for her. 1nez, and We u
let her keep her room here and give
her her meals for what little she can
do after hours. / need another malo
anyway; a real one.
So, inside OF rty-eight hours, Fan
nie found herself in one Of the work.
rooms of the Maison Noir, where the
wives and daughters OF the oily rich
60 TO be stung four prices for Poiret
tagged gowns that have never been
nearer the customhouse than west
57th street. She was to rip hastings,
run errands to the stockroom, sweep
IN and make herself generally use
fu, And she was allowed to come
and 60 through the basement entrance
only.
After she had been there week,
with no visible improvement, l asked
her how she was getting on.
"Oh, all right" says Fannie only
7 don't like 'em much up there. All
such snippy. girls. They treat me
like / was dirt under their feet. Ihey
make jokes about me behind my back
And that woman boss-she's a terror.
I think she cusses me in French. /
don't know why"
r COULD guess, but l said not a
/ word. II the plan was to work.
Fannie must find out for herself And
it wasn't until she was well along IN
her third week that she seemed to
have a CLEAN of intelligence.
You ought to see the way them
girls dress up there, Miss Dodge"
stockin's and silk things just like
the customers. Even the ones that
do plain sewin' in the shop. And when
they get ready to start for home
why, you can hardly tell 'em from the
young ladies that roll UP in limou-
sines out front They got fur coats
and stylish hats and dresses like they
~{, k~ Mono
will walk with me, not as far as the
corner
"Yes?' says /, encouraging
There's one that talks to me some
times when we eat our lunch" she
goes on She's a fat girl. Rosa Blum.
Know what she told me yesterday?
You poor sap. she says, if had your
figure I'd be down in the model room.
stead Of up here workin' at bench
She asks me why I dress like I'd just
been turned loose from Ellis Island"
And what did you tell her, Fan
nier asked
why" says Fannie, Il said l was
no rich girl and on s12 a week !
couldn't do no different. She says I'm
d d
down on Grand street where could
get some swell things and pay for
'em 50 much every Saturday. She says
she could make me look like something
for $50"
"well?" says 1.
'I wisht ! had that much,'' sighs
Fannie. I'm sick of havin' 'em all
look at me the way they do. I'D
let her take me there if l had the
price,
Go with Miss Blum, then" says !.
'I'll stake you to fifty, or even twice
that"
"You-you will" gasps Fannie.
Say, IL you would maybe could pay
it back some time. I'll tell her to-
morrow"
Evidently Miss Blum knew what
she was talking about, for two days
later there appeared from Fannie's
room a y>ung person that Inez and
I hardly recognized; slim, graceful
young woman in. a clinging black
dress that brought out long. smooth
lines, which we never suspected Fan
ME Of having. For it was Fannie.
Oh, yes. There was still the mud
colored bobbed hair to identify her
But nearly all the slump had gone
from her shoulders. and there was
animation in the gray eyes.
rs it all right?" she asked.
Its almost q miracle" says /.
IT bet freeze when 90 out" says
Fannie. IL amt got much on be-
sides this"
Never mind" says +. 'Ill let you
have that squirrel coat ] wear so
little. And you must let me know