The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1928-08-31
ONE OF
MRS. BUCKLY'S
BOARDERS
0SSSOSS00OSS0
ia by D. ]. Walsh.l

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wv 7HEN old Doctor Buckly died
A he left a wife who was all
Wv ing and whom he had mar
ried late in life and a daugh-
ter, Madge, who was twenty and just
out of high school. He also left a
big, rambling house set in fair-sized
grounds and several books full of ac-
counts which would hardly pay for
the trouble they would take to try to
collect. His last sickness and death
used up nearly all the ready money
there had been, and as Mrs. Buckly,
who was wont to defer to her hus-
band in everything, was not much of
an asset for young girl to lean on,
poor Madge found herself facing a
situation which was almost appalling.
But Madge was of good courage and
whenever she found herself just on
the point of giving up she would look
at her delicate little mother and
gather fresh courage. Surely she, a
great girl of twenty, ought to be able
to wrest living for two out of a
world which hitherto had only turned
its friendly side to her. For days
she pondered the aforesaid living and
finally decided to keep boarders.
The following week a neat appear
ing and well-worded little notice APP
peared in the weekly Tattler, an
nouncing that in one week Mrs. Imo-
gene Buckly would open her home to
few paying guests. Rates might be
had on making personal application at
the Buckly home evenings.
Needless to say, house so attrac-
lively and conveniently situated as
the old Buckly house was to the
business section of the town was soon
booked to its fullest capacity. And
such cleaning and arranging as
went on the few days before the
house was opened! Everything was
beaten, busted and scrubbed until
not an atom of dust could be found
in the whole place. Madge was busy
supervising the cleaning, smudges of
dirt appeared on her pretty nose and
great callOuses burned on her hands,
which hitherto had never done any
thing more arduous than play golf or
WELD tennis racket Needless to
say, Mrs. Buckly spent the greater
part of her time sitting in her room
weakly bemoaning the past glory of
her fallen estate. Yet loyalty to her
brave little daughter prevented one
word passing her lips to anyone save
Madge.
A month later the household had
quite fallen into a daily routine which
might have run smoothly If it had
not been for the little daily differ
ences and jealousies which were sure
to arise between some of the boarders.
There was Miss Pitkin, for instance,
who taught school and who had, in
fact, taught too long and had become
quite grabbed in her disposition. She
watched the other bOarders and
Madge to see whether Madge or her
mother showed any favoritism. If, for
instance, Mrs. Jedkins, who sat on
Pitkin's right, seemed to have been
helped to little better portion of
Miss Clawsen, who was head of stock
at WOoley's department store, had a
mite more whipped cream on her
piece of shortcake Madge was accused
of partially. And Miss Pitkin would
sulk. At times Madge found the wom-
en- quite difficult to manage. Always
some one complaining of lack of
towels or that certain ones had held
the bathrooms longer than the stipu-
lated twenty minutes which was al
lotted to each boarder for the morn
ing bath.
Madge grew quite distracted at
times when she was commanded to be
on three floors at once, but she al
ways sighed with satisfaction when
the weekly balance was struck and
she saw she was somewhat ahead
financially.
The men she found were more rea-
sonable. They almost never COM
planned. They were seldom in the
mousse lOuScT THAN " cat lLelI uItdlS
and sleep. Madge was several weeks
learning about her man boarders, and
then caught only bits of what was
passing between the women, who
spent their evening talking in the one
big parlOr.
Thus matters went on for weeks
until one day plainly dressed, little,
old woman sought board at the
"Buckly," as Madge had named her
boarding house. The little old woman
came beautifully recommended by a
former boarder as to character, but
nothing was said as to her circum-
stances. She took the best room n
the house, which happened to be va
cant, and settled herself to be COM
Portable. She was no trouble at all,
she did not mix with the other board
ers save to pass friendly greetings,
and she even cared for her room ex-
cept for the weekly cleaning. Madge
found her quite refreshing and soon
learned to love her dearly. And as
for Mrs. Buckly and Mrs. Heron, as
the little old lady called herself, they
struck up friendship which was very