Plentywood herald. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1908-current, 1929-03-07
By
Alta May Coleman

ton.
She began to map out tentative adj
vertiSementS which. with the proper
diffidence, she asked Thompson to criti-
cize. Very soon the advertising man.
ager was established as her tutor, be-
slowing out OF his years of experience
the technical advice she needed. Youth
full ambition usually has an appeal to
the veteran. And. besides, no mar can
resist the JOY of explaining in minute
detail Just how wonderful he is to an
apt. appreciatiVe and very pretty girl.
OF her daily routine, however, Mar
gerry found the proof reading an in
creaSing trial. Heretofore she had not
thought it difficult to run over a page
advertisement and note any errors.
With the consciousness that w. j.. was
watching, waiting to pounce on her. she
developed nerves.
Throughout July. w. j. combed the
Stuart advertisements. Twice he found
a misspelled word which he blue PEN
ciled and sent in TO Thompson. Both
times the advertising manager. without
comment, sent back proof that the
printers were at fault in resetting. On
a third occasion Thompson went to
lunch at the advertising club to put
out feelerS for a new job.
Il am in no great hurry" he told
his friend Gibbons. Young Stuart
may take a turn for the better. But
at present he's driving us crazy. We
never thought he'd wade into things
like this. In his fathers time he never
came near the store except for money.
But now that it's his, he's set out to
run it.. He's swallowed a lot Of books
on efficiency which have got him and
all the rest of us riled up. The clerks
are quitting right and left. And his
sister tells me he's just sold off his polo
ponies. So the store is his only hobby,
heaven help us. If he'd only let up
ON himself, get some new outside in
terest to balance him, he'd come
through all right, for he's got some of
the old mans brains. But l won't stand
his nagging indefinitely, I tell you"
w. j.. certainly had the old mans
persistence. Early in August he spotted
a capital letter incorrectly placed in
the middle of a lower case word. Again
the composing room of the paper, not
Miss Bonner of the advertising depart
men, was responsible for the mistake.
At the Monday noon talk Margery
grinned at him as fixedly as the
Cheshire cat. And, like that cat, it
seemed possible that soon there would
be nothing left of her but the smile.
DllC Ndo SCttAllS tllliillSl.
Each day she rechecked the morrow's
advertisements three times, four times
and even five times. before sending it
off to the paper. Her messenger boy
fidgeted as she held him nearer and
nearer the closing hour of the store.
Desperately, at the last possible mo-
ment, she would affix her O. K.
She formed the habit of taking her
duplicates and the typewriter original
home with her. The hot summer sun
made the city a walled oven and sell
dom now, was Margery's sleep deep and
u%ntroubled. 1t was a comfort when
she woke to switch on the light beside
her bed. check the proof once more
and reassure herself that she had not
made the error she dreamed Of.
w. j. was no longer funny.
On Wednesday afternoon, Oct. II, as
Margery was slipping on the paper
cuffs with which she had learned to
protect her sleeves, Thompson called
her into his private office and babe
her sit down. The day had already
been eventful-during her lunch hour
she had bought a new dress. 1t was
by no means a worthy successor to the
black wisp Of imported simplicity she
had worn ever since she started to
work. Still, the purchase Of even a
special value" if rare enough, a
create ONE stir. And Thompson'S
manner seemed to indicate further I'M
usual happenings.
"Margery," he said when she obedi-
emily sat facing him, I'm afraid I'll
have to let you co." She knew he didn't
mean just that. She and Thompson
had become good friends and his voice
now was genial. To-day" he con-
tinued, Il went to lunch with Gibbons,
who runs the Craig and Cover Adver-
Using agency. He happened to ask me
whether I knew of a bright ambitious
girl who could do seventy-five dollars
worth of work provided he paid her
fifty. 1 told him I'd let him have you.
The job is made to order for you right
now. You'll work on dozens of diff
ferent advertising accounts and pile up
more experience in n month than you
can here in six. A year under Gibbons
and you ought to be able to step out
for real money.
"Of course it means a lot OF grief
for me, breaking in a new girl. But
you've been working like sixty. 1t
seemed a shame not to let you have
your chance when it came asking for
you" He waited for Margery's ava
lanche of thanks.
Continued next week.
Copyright: 1928. BY Alta May Coleman.)