FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   75   76   77   78   79   80   81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97   98   99  
100   101   102   103   104   105   106   107   108   109   110   111   112   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   >>   >|  
d, "Mis' Farley she's been havin' so much trouble wid her roomers. Yestuhday dat young lady on de second flo' front, she lef. She's gwine wid some troupe on the road. She owed her room for three weeks, and jus' had to leave her trunk. My! how Mis' Farley did scold her. Mis' Farley let on she could have paid dat money if she wanted to, but, somehow, Ah guess she couldn't----" She was carrying the pillows round the table, when suddenly she stopped talking and stooped to inspect the letter, which was still lying there. Laura happened to look up. Indignantly, she exclaimed: "Annie!" The negress looked confused, but was not otherwise abashed. Going on with her work, she continued coolly: "--For if she could, she wouldn't have left her trunk, would she, Miss Laura?" "No, I suppose not," replied the actress guardedly. After a pause, she asked: "What did Mrs. Farley say about me?" The negress picked up the kimona from the chair and carried it to the wardrobe. With some hesitation, she said: "Oh, nothin' much." She needed encouragement, and Laura gave it to her. "Well, what?" Thus coaxed, Annie went on: "She kinder say somethin' 'bout yo' bein' three weeks behind in yo' room rent, an' she said she t'ought it was 'bout time yuh handed her somethin', seem' as how yuh must o' had some stylish friends when yuh come here." "Who, for instance?" "Ah don't know. Mis' Farley said some of 'em might slip yo' enough jest to help yuh out." Stopping in her work, she looked curiously at the actress. "Ain't yo' got nobody to take care of yo' at all, Miss Laura?" Laura shook her head despondently. Sadly, she replied: "No! No one." "Dat's too bad." "Why?" The negress grinned. Significantly, she said: "Mis' Farley says yuh wouldn't have no trouble at all gettin' any man to take care of yuh if yuh wanted to." Laura averted her head. A chill ran through her. Only too well she knew what the girl meant. She wished she would stop gossiping and go. With some display of irritation, she said: "Don't talk that way, Annie--please." But the negress was not to be put off so easily. In her coarse, brutal way, she felt sorry for the pretty young lady, and aware that in some quarters good looks are negotiable, she felt chagrined that such valuable assets should not be realized upon. Playing nervously with a corner of the table-cloth, she continued: "Dere's a gemman dat calls on one of de ladies from de Circu
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   75   76   77   78   79   80   81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97   98   99  
100   101   102   103   104   105   106   107   108   109   110   111   112   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   >>   >|  



Top keywords:
Farley
 

negress

 

replied

 

actress

 

looked

 
wouldn
 
continued
 

trouble

 
wanted
 

somethin


gettin

 

averted

 
curiously
 

despondently

 
grinned
 

Significantly

 
Stopping
 
chagrined
 

negotiable

 

valuable


assets

 

pretty

 

quarters

 

realized

 

gemman

 

ladies

 

Playing

 

nervously

 

corner

 

brutal


wished

 
gossiping
 

display

 

easily

 

coarse

 
irritation
 

instance

 
hesitation
 

talking

 
stooped

inspect
 

letter

 
stopped
 
suddenly
 

couldn

 

carrying

 
pillows
 

exclaimed

 
confused
 

abashed