Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1929-07-12
AT THE
EIGHTEENTH
HOUSE

.HE house was the seventeenth
one, and she felt a faint stirring
l of the hope which had seemed

one, and she felt faint stirring
l. OF the hope which had seemed
| for the last two hours to be dy-
ing within her breast. Seven was
lucky number. The seventeenth house
could not fail to produce encourage
ment of some sort.
1t was a pretty little house like
dozen pretty little houses on that
street where at the door of each she
had met abrupt refusal. All the
houses were small and pretty except
one, the big white house in the corner.
The big white house was the next one,
the eighteenth.
Lille Moffat approached the seven
teenth house with more confidence
than she had felt before. She mount
ed the steps and touched the bell.
The name on the door was Derry
d. j. Derry. Davld-Daniel? She
wondered what the d. stood for while
she listened for footsteps. But no
footsteps came. Yet she was sure
there was somebody in the house for
she could hear voices. She rang
again and with real disappointment
decided that nobody was coming to
the door Turning she moved away.
AS she went down the steps a voice
spoke from a window above her.
"What do you wantT
Lille looked up. black-eyed,
chubby-chlnned woman, wearing a
boudoir cap, leaned over the sill. The
black eyes seemed to pierce the near
leather side of the bag Lille carried.
"Oh, you're an agent!" said the
woman. II guess It's just as well l
didn't come down then. I don't want
ANY of the stuff you're selling" Sud-
denly she leaned little farther.
"Wby don't you go to work doing
something respectable?" she demand
ed. II don't think much of people
that run around with a bag trying to
swindle folks out of their money, just
because they are too lazy to work.
They're worse than tramps." She drew
back from the window and Lille
heard her humming, off the key, q
strain of 10 Sole MILO"
The color that had been whipped
into Lilies face by the cruel words
vanished and left her as white as 9
faded little woman Of forty-slx may
become when she Is under stress OF
terrible circumstance "Qu1vefed
| She fairly had to feel her way. down
the street
"After that" she thought, ~ might
as well go home"
And yet how could she go home
with all the hope Of her venture out
Of her and look into John Henry's
questioning eyes? She had never hat
secret from John Henry in all tht
twenty-seven years they had beer
married and she could not begin nov
when he was laid up with three bro
ken ribs and a broken collar-bone. II
had been bad enough to have such an
accident befall him, but 1t would be
almost worse to fail in project when
they so needed n little extra money.
And the firm had told her that Fluffs
FaultIess FlavOrs sold like wildfire
people were simply crying aloud for
them: agents were making $40 day
Ten dollars n day She had been q
bit dazzled, perhaps, and John Henry
had said: at will get you out In the
air. It isn't good for you to stay
cooped I'D In here all the time with
me-" The truth was John Henry
couldn't help grooming n bit at the
main of knitting bones, and every
proan distressed her. If she were out
of the house for a little while each
day he could groan as much MS he
pleased.
"No. won't go home" said Lille
IN herself an take the next street
and pretend that I'm just starting In
somebody is sure to buy of me. And
7 won't let what that Mrs. Derry said
hurt me, because She couldn't
have known what It Is to have n bro
ken husband who has never been able
to save much because his mother
lived to be elghty-nine and had to be
doctOred every minute"
She blinked away the tears. Then
she saw that she was close to the big
white house on the corner, the for
midable aristocratic house which
seemed to look down on all the small
or ones. The eighteenth house! No
use I'm going there. Those heavy lace
curtains ut the windows forbade you,
the great front door was barrier
which only the elect might pass. And
the name. Mrs. Lawrence She had
beord of Mrs. Lawrence; she had even
seen her, coldly remote through the
plate glass windows of limousine
No. she couldn't go there, and yet
she had promised herself to take
every house rs she came to It, to be
frightened away by none.
aft can't be much worse than what
I've gone through" she told herself.
She mounted the steps and rang the
hell. A moments walt and then the
door opened. An elderly maid Inter
vened.
"Hayen't you come to the wrong
door," asked the maid, reading LII
lies errand expertly.
I'll don't know" Lille murmured
in dismay. She drew back step
IL beg your pardon"
The door closed automatically, but
II opened again the next instant.
zone moment" said the maid
"Mrs. Lawrence wishes to see you
Please come in" Her tone hat
changed.
Bewlldered, Lille followed the maid
into wide. beautiful room with
glowing fire that the spring chill
made very acceptable. Mrs. Lawrence
came forward from the fire. She was
woman not much older than Lille