Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1933-08-24
The Penny *.
BY ELoISE BENNETT
@. by Mcclure Newspaper Syndicate.
WNU Service.

"YoU may go home, now, Thomas"
Laura McElroy settled her
small and aged body back comfortably
against the taupe velOurs Of her car,
surveying with satisfaction the assert
ment Of small packages by her side.
Between the thin. veined forefnger
and thumb of her left hand she held
a penny. After her eyes had wandered
appraisingly over the packages they
turned on the penny.
1t was an Indian head penny. II
had come into Mrs. McElrOy's posses
sion not two minutes before in the
change from the jig-saw puzzle she
had bought. 1t would do for the days
gift to ten-year-old Bobby.
Every afternoon, unless extreme
weather interfered, Thomas, the Nc
Elroy chauffeur for twenty years, took
Mrs. Anthony McElroy, senior, on q
shopping expedition from the house
where she lived with her son and her
grandson. On this expedition she did
such small errands as the various busy
members of the family needed. And
always, at the end of the trip. there
was one final errand, some knick
knach for Bobby. her great-grandson.
Thomas fidgeted slightly. quite
sure you're finished, Mrs. McElrOy 2"
he questioned.
"Yes, thank you, Thomas. Oh
you're thinking of Bobbyi Yes. I've
an Indian head penny for him. He's
collecting coins. you know"
Thomas chuckled. "Yes'm. And
stamps and cellophane and old pipes
and"
Mrs. McElrOy went on: Eyes. And
specially Indian head pennies. He
wants to make q fortune with them.
He's heard they're worth more than
a cent now and he's trying to corner
the market so that when they go up
he can sell them"
Thomas, relieved, let the car out
a bit and Mrs. McElroy turned the
penny over in her fingers and looked
at the date. An old one, 1866. She
closed her eyes. r
She had been-let's see, ten years
old, in 1866. On a June day in that
year she had found penny, too. She
remembered that she and John Martin
had been walking home together from
school. How the city had changed
since then! There had been country
lanes where there were city pave
ments now. And where she had lived,
up near Fifty-ninth streets, there had
been little pond that all the children
loved. Clicked under cement, now. of
course, the springs and streams that
fed 1t. She and John had loitered In
the shade at the side of the pond on
their way home. - an
II wish we had some candy" John
had said.
"Would you divideT' she had asked
"I'd give you more than halfe' John
had said. IL
would you, John? Oh thank you.
Oh, look! Some money" "a
And there in the grass at their feet
she had spied a penny-bright and
new and shining. Look, John. Wen
go buy some candy. You carry the
money" &
So John had taken charge of their
find. ITS our special penny" he had.
said. an mark 1t for ours" And
then they had sat on the grass while
he scraped away with his knife at
the edge Of the penny to mark 1t for
their own. j
'Tt's brand new" he had said5
"Look-it has this years date!"
He let her feel the ridge with her
finger nail, right in front of the tin
of the Indians nose. snow let's go
buy some candy"
Laura" John had Dragged, "Tm
going to be rich some day when grow
up I'm going to have piles and piles
Of money. And I'm going to marry
You and give you half of it. And
wen have candy each day."
John Martin-well, he'd been right.
He'd laid the foundation of the great
fortune that his grandsons were work.
ing 50 hard to hold together today.
She turned over the worn old coin in
her fingers. Her nail caught in
worn ridge at its edge. She opened
her eyes and looked, with a little
breathless start of interest. There II
was-the deep ridge, right at the point
Of the Indians nose, worn smooth and
even.
This was the same coin.
John hadn't forgotten. He had gone
West to win his wealth. He had asked
her to wait for him and she had half
promised. But then Anthony McElroy
poor, then, too. though he did well
enough later On-had come along and
she had forgotten John and her half
promise. And when he had come back
from the West with small fortune al.
ready his, he had found her promised
to Tony.
But there was that coin in her hand,
a part Of Johns struggle. The very
same coin.
Thomas" Mrs. McElroy said 10 the
chauffeur. perhaps you'd better no.
go home get. Go back to Winships'
and I'll buy Bobby that new stamn
album he wants. I'll keep this old
nannv