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Jbut he is such a dear, he is always
vianting me to have more than I will
allow him to get Now he wants to
buy me a diamond pin and bracelet,
but I'd rather have a car that we
both can enjoy."
To say that Mary Beard had
something of a "jolt" would be put
ting it mildly. She went home think
nS hard. "Diamonds, automobiles,"
while she, the other partner's wife,
was pinching a dime in two. She had
found the nine years of economiz
ing, which seepied to grind closer
each year, nerve and soul wearing,
but she had tried to do the best she
could, believing it was neecssary in
order to make both ends meet. She
had come to know that her husband
was Extremely economical, but she
now realized it was a clear case of
unadulterated stinginess.
"What should she do? Should she
leave him? But John had many good
traits and she loved him. Still she
had no intention of letting things go
on as they were. She said nothing
to John but continued to think.
, One "evening, as Beard entered his
apartment he heard the sewing ma
chine busily clicking. At this hour
Mary was generally getting the din
ner or smilingly awaiting him in the
dining room. Entering the 'living
room he found the chairs piled with
men's trousers and waistcoats, in va
rious stages of completion, books
and. paper cleared from the table to
make way for thread, buttons, etc.,
and Mary hard at work at the ma
chine. So noisily was it going, that
Mary did not even seem to hear him
enter. Dumfounded he stood in the
middle of the room, looking from the
r piles of sewing to the figure bent over
the machine and back again. Finally
he exploded with: "Mary! What does
this mean?"
His wife looked up, smiled pleas
antly and blandly answered! "Why,
John, dear, I'm just doing a little
work to help you along, that's all."
"But this is not at all necessary."
"Oh, yes it is. Why the work I,
have here win make the first pay
ment on a rug. I can get it on the
instalment plan, you know."
"But," he began, "I don't want you
to do this!"
"Now don't say a word!" she
coaxed. "I know, darling, how hard
you have to work and how worried
you are over the business going
badly."
"But it's not 'going badly,' he
snorted. "Don't tell any one that."
"Why, of course not I know you
haven't wanted to worry even me by
saying anything. I am not going to
ask for thing. I'm going to try to
help you by earning them so (you
won't be bothered."
It was quite useless for John to
bluster and protest She was so
cheery and smiling over it all that
he was, entirely nonplussed. Besides
she ran the machine at top speed
while he was speaking.
Not seeing his wife make any move
toward the dining room, and not be
ing able to make much conversa
tional headway above the clatter of
the sewing machine, Joe went up to
her and'touchfed her on the shoulder.
"Come, Mary! Do drop that and let
us have dinner."
She paused long enough to look up
very sweetly and say: "You'll find it
all ready for you on the table. I can't
stop now or I won't have that work
finished when I promised. You know
you say you're not businesslike if
you're not prompt."
"But you must "
"Listen, dear," she interrupted, "I
know you won't mind just taking
some cold scraps when I'm so busy.
And I've saved quite a bit on the din
ner, too. Oh, I'm learning to econo
mize," she laughed.
"Economize," he growled. "Come
to dinner."
He even tried to drag her from her
wgrk. After he had gone into the
other room she shook so with laugh
ter she almost broke a needle. She
would have given something to see
his face when he sat down to those
