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Show H Married Life fl j Helen Sees the Futility of Work-j Work-j ing Herself Up to a Fever- ; ish Rage. j By MABEL HERBERT URNER. j HE Hlpoutnot Silk Stocking 4r 1 1 company," read the gilt- H' lettered sign. j X Helen paused beforo the I window in which was an j elaborate display of sill: hosier-, hut j the striking feature was the two artificial tegs. Over one was drawn a stocking in which ninny stitches j had "dropped." beginning at the ' garter line and running down to the ankle, with the sign; "Do Your Silk Stockings Wear .Like This?" On the A other leg form was ti perfect stock- j ing and the sign: "Try Our $1 ttlp- outnot Silk Stockings. Guaranteed j '-j Xot to Drop Stitches." j It was a convincing advertisc- nicnt. A .silk stocking for $1 that would not drop stitches surely that was worth Investigating. Vet If there were such stockings 1 why did not other stores have them? Why was It left to one little obscure shop to handle such a universally H 1 desirable article? But another glance at the stocking H!! with the ruinous drop stitches and ( the thought of the many pairs in her j own bureau drawer in Just that con- ' ditlon urged Helen into the shop. I "Are your dollar stockings really '. guaranteed not to drop stitches?" 1 she aaked of the young man clerk, l who approached with a brisk "What can I do for you?" Helpless in His Hands. H "Absolutely guaranteed, madam. Black? What size?" "Eight," faltered Helen, who had really not Intended to buy any Just I then, but she felt helpless in the i hands of this salesman. , "Now, here," opening a box and running his hand deftly down a long j black hose, "the only guaranteed H- i n ellk Btocklng on the market. Last five times as long as any other make. Gives you five times the wear and satisfaction. Our specially woven . garter-proof top." . "Garter-proof top?" questioned Helen. "Yes, ifa the garter clasp that '' starts the drop of the stitch, and wc guarantee no run can get beyond j this red line," pointing to a fine red . thread that ran around the stoclc- , Ing about six Inchds from the top. j "We sell thousands of these every week the best wearing stockings on . the market. How many pairs do you : wtehT" r "Oh. m just try one pair," mur- I- mured Helen helplessly, l "Better take a half a dozen, madam. Save you the trouble of coming back. You can't make a t mistake on these stockings." But with determined courage, . Helen placed a dollar bill on the ' i counter and said firmly: . "One pair will do." ' With a shrug that might be in- . ferred as slightly contemptuous, the ij man Bhovcd the dollar and stockings .1 toward the young woman clerk, as ' I though his time was too valuable to devote to only a one-palp customer, ' Helen walked out of the shop with 'J a strong sense of resentment. She disliked that clerk and his swift, j high-handed method of forcing a sale. ,i She wished now she had not bought j the stockings. They did not look a 1 bit better than those she got at War- ' i ner's for 79 cents. H Hl It was Just ten days later that Helen again entered the shop. There V i were two women behind the counter, V the young man was not visible. j "I came to return these stockings." t declared Helen tersely. , The woman's expression changed J from the set smile with which she j greeted prospective purchasers to a cold frown. "What's the trouble?" icily, as she unwrapped them. "You guaranteed the drop stitch would not run below that red line," Helen informed her Just as icily, "and you see it. has." The clerk ran her hand through the tops of the stockings and examined them frowningly. Helen felt she would find some excuse for not mak-ing mak-ing good the guarantee, and was wondering what it would be. "We never have a complaint of our stockings. I can't understand It," with a suspicious glance at Helen. "And. of course, you know we never J exchange anything without the red ticket. Did you bring that?" The Missing Ticket. "Why, no; I don't know anything about a red ticket." "The -ticket that was given you when you bought the stockings." "No ticket was given me and noth-ing noth-ing was said about one." "Oh, yes," with insolent aHsertive-I aHsertive-I neim. "W give a red ticket with j every pair of stockings, and we ex- change nothing without them." "But T tell you T didn't GET a V ticket," repeated Helen hotly. I "Where's the man who waited on me?" ' "He isn't here any more," with a covert note of triumph. J "Then I wiah to see the manager." J ( "The manager won't be in till HHV 3 o'clock. j "Why, It's an outrage!" Helen was now thoroughly angrj'- "T wore these stockings only two or three limes, ' and they did exactly what you guar- j anteed they would NOT do! And now you refuse to exchange themJ." "I've told you. madam, we exchange no stockings without the red ticket," and. turning away, she- began Im-pertinently Im-pertinently nummlng a little air. With her cheeks aflame Helen walked out in a furious silence. She was so enraged that she walked two whole blocks In the wronc direction. That insolent girl! Thef way she turned around and began to hum! She would make them take back those stockings no matter what It cost her! It was not often that Helen worked herself up to such a pitch, but now she was consumed with rage at the Ripoutnot Stocking Co. The clerk had said the manager would be back at 2, and promptly at 2 Helen, who had returned homo, called them up. The manager was even more icily disagreeable than the clerk. She curtly curt-ly informed Helen they exchanged no stockings without the red ticket. "But I tell you he didn't give me a red ticket," Helen almost shrieked. "Do you mean to say I'd lie about it for a dollar pair of stockings? 1 think you'll be sorry If you don t " There was a clicking sound in the phone, he woman had deliberately shut her off! The rest of the afternoon Helen was almost sick with a fierce, consuming rage. Just one thought ob- scs6cd her how to make those people lake back those stockings. She Is Vindictive. Visions of lawyers and lawsuits flashed before her. She had just $67 of her own, hut she would gladly spend every cent of It to make the Knickerbocker Stocking- company glvo her another dollar pair of stockings! Never had she waited with such feverish eagerness , for Warren to come home. But when he did come, and when, flushed and agitated, she excitedly told him all about It, he listened with calm unconcern. "Huh! Course you're going to get done when you deal with people like that. Why don't you trade with reliable re-liable shops places you know? "But is there nothing I can do?" demanded Helen. "If you could only see the signs over their counters, Silk btocklngs of Unbelievable Strength,' " for once Helen almost snorted. "unbelievable strength!" And they're not as good as the ordinary ordi-nary 79-cent kind you get anywhere. Oh, there must be some way I can force them to make good their guarantee!" guar-antee!" "How're you going to do it?" "Couldn't I sue them?" fiercely. "There isn't anything I wouldn't do I don't care what it costs! If you only knew how that Insolent manager talked to me! Why, she even intimated inti-mated that I was lying about that red ticket," Helen's eyes blazed, and her voice shrilled with excitement. "I've only about 560 of my own. but I'd give every cent of It to a lawyer if you think he could make them take back those stockings." "Well, vou're not the only one who's felt like that." shrugged Warren with amused contempt. "Lots of people have been willing to spend their last dollar to 'get hack' at some one. But it's darn poor satisfaction. Take my advice and forget it!" "f can't!" vehemently. "It makes me WILD when T think how that woman hung up the 'phone while I was talking- You know, dear," tremulously, trem-ulously, "that Tin NEVER like this. Why. you're always saying I let people peo-ple Impose upon mo that I stand for anything. But this somehow I Just feel VICIOUS about it. Oh. I think you might try to understand!" "I do understand, Kitten," with unexpected un-expected kindliness, patting her tolerantly toler-antly on tho shoulder. "But with those people you're up against It. If they hadn't had the red ticket for an excuse, ex-cuse, it'd be something else. Still If you want me to call 'em up or wrlto 'em a stiff letter why I'm game. Only It seems rather foolish to make a row over a pair of stockings." Wasted Energy. "Yes, I know, and I wouldn't want you to do anything that would seem small or undignified, hut I " "Well, mull It over till tomorrow. Tou may cool down a bit by then." It was needless to tell her to think it over, for Helen could think of nothing noth-ing else. But as ho often happens In such canes, gradually ler feverish rage burnt itself out. The fierce resentment re-sentment and desire to retaliate died down, and in Its place came the realization re-alization that she had wasted n lot of thought and energy over a most trivial thing. It all seemed rather foolish now. and she was Just a little ashamed of having allowed herself to become so wrought up. When, the noxt morning, Warren nsked cheerfully: "Woll, want me to go down and blow 'em up today?" she flushed self-conBcIously. "No no, dear, it isn't worth it. Tm sorry I got so worked up." "Oh, well, we're all apt to got stung, but It's no use setting up a howl. Best way's to grin and take your medicine. Know better next time." |
