SHORT STORIES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2892, 11 August 1909, Page 90

SHORT STORIES.

OF TWO EVILS—.

By May Packard. Beth Carter was troubled. T« describe it in her own words, she felt "out of it." In fact, she was in the state of mind when, if given the choice •f that which would give her most pleasure, she would have said: "I do not (want anything, thank you. There is nothing worth having." The week had been wet and dreary ; and it was six days sine© she had spoken to a friend on an equality with herself. To put it briefly, living in the midst of a town she was suffering from a bad attack of social starvation. Drearily her thoughts meandered on their giey-coloured path : "If I never marry this is a sample of what my life ■will always be like. I shall live in the midst o! other people's interests, their gaiety and their ambitions, their loves and even their troubles, and my life will be made up of the overflow from their lives. I want to be as other girls — I want to feel free.'' Then she gave a nervous jump, for a loud, pleasant voice called : "Hullo ! Beth Carter- Where did you spring from? You do look gloomy." "Lena, you are a sfcranjrer." "Stranger yourself. How is it you are at large to-day? Left your place" "No, I have the afternoon off. Are you out of work?" "Me ! Good gracious, no. Old Kennett to wed me yesterday, and work is slack, so I stayed away. Can't see a soul I know," she went on. Then added as an afterthought: "Are you doing anything particular?" "}\o, only going to the 'Economic to get some calico." "Good life, how interesting! I say, Beth, come with me. I haven't seen you for an a,ge. We can take a car to Wonderland, then go back to Graham's for afternoon tea."' "All right, J wall," decided Beth in a tone that showed her doubt as to the wisdom of the proceeding. "A little life will do you good" Lena told her. "You don't look co tired, though, as you did." "Oh, no, I'm -betteT," answered Beth quietly. "Do you like being there?" queried Lena curiously. "Was it true the doctor said yoa would die if you kept on at Skinusr's ?" "Not exactly. He said my life would be shortened by a good many years if I kept on at machinist's work. Then mother kept on at me to get a 'place' instead. It might be worse. But don't let us speak of it now, and I'll think that I am back amongst you all, and that we are both off for the day. Here's a car. Quick!" A minute later, breathless and laughing, they were seated in the car. Beth drew vitality from Lena at every breath, and quickly gained a feeling of mild intoxication. "Everything is lovely. The sun is glorious. Don't you hate days when the sun doesn't come out properly? How pretty the shops look. I love light dresses." Lena laughed. "You talk as if you had been shut up in prison. Don't you ever get out?" "Oh. yes ; but I never go anywhere much, and in the evenings it is not worth while to go td any of the girls' houses, as they are generally out." Lena looked half-jwt-.vingJy, half-con-temptuously at the girl who could not keep a mistress in her place. "You poor thing, you do not Hve — you exist. I wouldn't be you for world*." "But everyone says factory life is bad for girls," objected Beth. "Of course," said' Lena sarcastically, "because they want us for servants. No, you don't. Not for this chicken. If you mean to take- notice of what everyone says, why Lady Colin wrote that girls over here dress too much ; that they ought to wear more print and less jewellery ; t/hat we don't speak properly to our pa-rents. Isn't it like her cfheek? I wrote a letter to the paper; all the girls helped me." "What did you say?" questioned Beth eagerly. "Oh," answered Lena airily, "I asked •why Lady Colin didn't make her own children behave before she wrote about factory girk. There, now, talking to you I nearly missed our stooping place. You get out first." An hour at "Wonderland"' satisfied them, when they -'carred" it back to town, Lena leading the way to a crowded tearoom, gay with the "constantly changing crowd. Beth's enjoyment was fcon spoilt by the fact that one of her nvi«tr€.-s's friends ■was at a table neai*, evidently regarding her with surprise. "If I were a factory girl it would not matter," she thought, miserably, "but now •Mrs Bowen and she will laugh about I»ena's pointed shoes and say her dress is too gay. Besides, Mrs Bowen will ask ane who was my friend." Noting that Beth had apparently finished her tea, Lena suggested that they should meet "the gdrls" after work, and 'do their shopping at once, which proposal Beth nailed with pleasure, as A enabled jher to escape. Instead of the sober calico, Beth bought nainsook and insertion, and the afternoon aprons 6he wholly abandoned, deciding that another time would do if she needed ■them, buying instead a light blouse and lace tie, after which both girls reluctantly left the shop. "Hurry up, Beth, or we shall nxies 'the girls/ and I want to hear what old Kennet* said when I didn't turn up this jyv»ning. If he put Ruby on that machine

he will wish he hadn't, and won't I give j him a time if it won't work to-morrow." j Beth meanwhile hurried along beside Lena, heartily wishing that the young \ lady would modulate her voice and make herself less conspicuous. "There's Miss Diokson and three or four of them," and breaking into a run Lena narrowly escaped being run down by an irate expressman. "Miss Dickson, j what did old Kennett say:" "Look here, Lena, you deserve to be dismissed altogether. You give too much Impudence," answered' the forewoman severely. "Why, there's Beth Carter, j Coming back to work, Beth? They want another girl." "I don't think so, Miss Dickson. I'm al Mrs Bowen'e, you know." "Do you like it?" "You needn't tell a lie," struck in Lena, before Beth had time to answer — ' "you know you would rather be back to be growled at by old Beetle-brows. Come back, and don't be a fool." "Leave Beth alone," said Miss Dickson decidedly " She is not noisy like you," and she smiled at Beth encouragingly. " Come a little way with roe, Beth ; I am going to walk for exercise to-night." ! " Miss Dickson," impulsively began Beth, " if I wanted to go back to Skinner's, would they take me on again? I like wihere I am ; Mrs Bowen is kind, but she knows she is above me, and it is so much nicer to be witli people who do not think they are dinerent from you, isn't it?" she ended appealingly. " Yes ; I couldn't stand it, and I'm not one of the sensitive kind either. What about your health?" " Oh, I would rather be ill sometimes and work with friends. I am out of every thing ; it is so lonely." " If I had never left the factory I might have been ill, but I should have been able to live my own life and have interests away from my work. When I get a new hat or dress Mrs Bowen knows, and says if she likes it. It does not matter to her whether I approve of her choice or not ; why should she think I care whether she likes my things. It is kind of her, but I would rather feel free and independent of her opinion on my private doings." " You poor little thing ; .you are homesick for us all. Give notice and come back," said Mies Dickson kindly. "Not yet, though I'd love to." Then abruptly : " Good-bye, and thank you ; I'll miss my tram,"' and Beth darted off. Once away from Lena, and her gaiety, the thought of home made her cold and depressed. ''No," she thought drearily, "I shall not see anyone I know for three days, and there's the stove to clean to-morrow and the silver to do in the afternoon. The gii'ls will all be going to 'The Belle of New York,' and I shall be getting supper for a euchre party It isn't fair ; I am. out of everything. I will just wait for two or tliree months, and then I will go back. It is just ?.s if I were in a. strange land, and could not get away I wamt to feel free.'' Such a state of mind is not conducive to i brisk cheerfulness in the house, and Mrs Bowen felt herself justly aggrieved when ler handmaiden did not respond to her idvanees ass readily as usual. "That comes of letting her out, even nrhen I am going to give a euchre party. Well, I shall just tell her how badly she polished the hall to-day." Beth, who had only felt miserable, not >ross, was taken aback at Mrs Bowen's sharpness, and with a decisiveness that surprised herself announced her intention of going back to the factory to work. After vhich announcement there arose the storm. "Well, Beth, I had thought betteT of rou than that. But I might have known. iTou girls nowadays are all alike, perfectly n-azy to be rid of decent i v estraint." Beth' s eyes flashed, and her mouth beame one straight line : " I do not think 'on have ev-er found me wish to be rid of lecent restraint, Mrs Bowen," she said in i voice made monotonous with her effort to jeep it within the bounds of politeness. ' I have always done my best to please 'ou ; but cannot you understand that outiide my wort I want to be free to jxidge or myself." Mrs Bowen spoke haughtily. "I am ure I am not interested enough in my lervanfV affairs to wish to meddle in ,hem." Beth ached with a passionate longing; f she could only make Mrs Bowen see there the injustice lay, not for her own nterests, but for the sake of girls as a dass. " Mrs Bowen, you would not allow a servant to criticise* your private actions, or yen to question them." Mrs Bowen simply glared. " Why should you think it right to riticise' or say what you think of your ervant'g private doings. Surely what rould be impertinent for the one would >c impertinent for the other." ended Jetli, and her indignation and her courage eft her as suddenly as they had appeared. There ws>s •> silence which could be felt; hen Mis Bowen ?poke again with dig- " After what \ou havf» ?aid, I think t will be better for us both if you leave o-morrow. Beth. lam sorry, tor I have iked you." Then Beth felt overpowered by a sense f failure and misunderstanding, and obbed to her.-elf when alone: "1 vu-h I tad not tried to make her understand I lave done no good." Thus it came to pass that Mrs Bowen Dund a very chastened handmaiden p?earing supper that evening ; indeed, she elt almost inclined to let" Beth stay til] he week's end. "Now- that her tempei 3 over, she knows that she was wrong, nd wishes that she had not spoken imperinently ; in fact, I believe that if she had he chance she would etay on." So Mrs k>wen told her husband that night, never inderstanding tha<t what Beth was sorry >r was the way she had spoken, not foi r hat she had said ; for that which she had een unable to make clear to her emloyer, not for her decision to go back > factory life.

! And soni'9 years later, when being com- ' ! miserated with on her hard life, she summed it up concisely: " Yes, factory life is hard and wearing ; but so is the exiet1 ence of a servant, and there lies the whotle difference — one is a hard life, the other .1 hard existence. Ho, of two evils, I chose the leseer." i