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th  Carolina; or a revised list of General Lee's body…servants; or what?〃

〃You are disposed to be facetious;〃 said Colonel Telfair; calmly。   〃The article is from the pen of a thinker; a philosopher; a lover of  mankind; a student; and a rhetorician of high degree。〃

〃It must have been written by a syndicate;〃 said Thacker。  〃But;  honestly; Colonel; you want to go slow。  I don't know of any eight… thousand…word single doses of written matter that are read by anybody  these days; except Supreme Court briefs and reports of murder trials。   You haven't by any accident gotten hold of a copy of one of Daniel  Webster's speeches; have you?〃

Colonel Telfair swung a little in his chair and looked steadily from  under his bushy eyebrows at the magazine promoter。

〃Mr。  Thacker;〃 he said; gravely; 〃I am willing to segregate the  somewhat crude expression of your sense of humor from the solicitude  that your business investments undoubtedly have conferred upon you。   But I must ask you to cease your jibes and derogatory comments upon  the South and the Southern people。  They; sir; will not be tolerated  in the office of The Rose of Dixie for one moment。  And before you  proceed with more of your covert insinuations that I; the editor of  this magazine; am not a competent judge of the merits of the matter  submitted to its consideration; I beg that you will first present some  evidence or proof that you are my superior in any way; shape; or form  relative to the question in hand。〃

〃Oh; come; Colonel;〃 said Thacker; good…naturedly。  〃I didn't do  anything like that to you。  It sounds like an indictment by the fourth  assistant attorney…general。  Let's get back to business。  What's this  8;000 to 1 shot about?〃

〃The article;〃 said Colonel Telfair; acknowledging the apology by a  slight bow; 〃covers a wide area of knowledge。  It takes up theories  and questions that have puzzled the world for centuries; and disposes  of them logically and concisely。  One by one it holds up to view the  evils of the world; points out the way of eradicating them; and then  conscientiously and in detail comments the good。  There is hardly a  phase of human life that it does not discuss wisely; calmly; and  equitably。  The great policies of governments; the duties of private  citizens; the obligations of home life; law; ethics; moralityall  these important subjects are handled with a calm wisdom and confidence  that I must confess has captured my admiration。〃

〃It must be a crackerjack;〃 said Thacker; impressed。

〃It is a great contribution to the world's wisdom;〃 said the colonel。   〃The only doubt remaining in my mind as to the tremendous advantage it  would be to us to give it publication in The Rose of Dixie is that I  have not yet sufficient information about the author to give his work  publicity in our magazine。

〃I thought you said he is a distinguished man;〃 said Thacker。

〃He is;〃 replied the colonel; 〃both in literary and in other more  diversified and extraneous fields。  But I am extremely careful about  the matter that I accept for publication。  My contributors are people  of unquestionable repute and connections; which fact can be verified  at any time。  As I said; I am holding this article until I can acquire  more information about its author。  I do not know whether I will  publish it or not。  If I decide against it; I shall be much pleased;  Mr。  Thacker; to substitute the matter that you are leaving with me in  its place。〃

Thacker was somewhat at sea。

〃I don't seem to gather;〃 said he; 〃much about the gist of this  inspired piece of literature。  It sounds more like a dark horse than  Pegasus to me。〃

〃It is a human document;〃 said the colonel…editor; confidently; 〃from  a man of great accomplishments who; in my opinion; has obtained a  stronger grasp on the world and its outcomes than that of any man  living to…day。〃

Thacker rose to his feet excitedly。

〃Say!〃 he said。  〃It isn't possible that you've cornered John D。   Rockefeller's memoirs; is it?  Don't tell me that all at once。〃

No; sir;〃 said Colonel Telfair。  〃I am speaking of mentality and  literature not of the less worthy intricacies of trade。〃

Well; what's the trouble about running the article;〃 asked Thacker; a  little impatiently; 〃if the man's well known and has got the stuff ?〃 Colonel Telfair sighed。

〃Mr。  Thacker;〃 said he; 〃for once I have been tempted。  Nothing has  yet appeared in The Rose of Dixie that has not been from the pen of  one of its sons or daughters。  I know little about the author of this  article except that he has acquired prominence in a section of the  country that has always been inimical to my heart and mind。  But I  recognize his genius; and; as I have told you; I have instituted an  investigation of his personality。  Perhaps it will be futile。  But I  shall pursue the inquiry。  Until that is finished; I must leave open  the question of filling the vacant space in our January number。〃

Thacker arose to leave。

〃All right; Colonel;〃 he said; as cordially as he could。  〃You use  your own judgment。  If you've really got a scoop or something that  will make 'em sit up; run it instead of my stuff。  I'll drop in again  in about two weeks。  Good luck!〃

Colonel Telfair and the magazine promoter shook hands。

Returning a fortnight later; Thacker dropped off a very rocky Pullman  at Toombs City。  He found the January number of the magazine made up  and the forms closed。

The vacant space that had been yawning for type was filled by an  article that was headed thus:

                    SECOND MESSAGE TO CONGRESS

                           Written for

                         THE ROSE OF DIXIE

                                 BY

                    A Member of the Well…known

                    BULLOCH FAMILY; OF GEORGIA

                            T。  Roosevelt




THE THIRD INGREDIENT



The (so…called) Vallambrosa Apartment…House is not an apartment…house。   It is composed of two old…fashioned; brownstone…front residences  welded into one。  The parlor floor of one side is gay with the wraps  and head…gear of a modiste; the other is lugubrious with the  sophistical promises and grisly display of a painless dentist。  You  may have a room there for two dollars a week or you may have one for  twenty dollars。  Among the Vallambrosa's roomers are stenographers;  musicians; brokers; shop…girls; space…rate writers; art students;  wire…tappers; and other people who lean far over the banister…rail  when the door…bell rings。

This treatise shall have to do with but two of the Vallambrosians though meaning no disrespect to the others。

At six o'clock one afternoon Hetty Pepper came back to her third…floor  rear 3。50 room in the Vallambrosa with her nose and chin more sharply  pointed than usual。  To be discharged from the department store where  you have been working four years; and with only fifteen cents in your  purse; does have a tendency to make your features appear more finely  chiseled。

And now for Hetty's thumb…nail biography while she climbs the two  flights of stairs。

She walked into the Biggest Store one morning four years before with  seventy…five other girls; applying for a job behind the waist  department counter。  The phalanx of wage…earners formed a bewildering  scene of beauty; carrying a total mass of blond hair sufficient to  have justified the horseback gallops of a hundred Lady Godivas。

The capable; cool…eyed; impersonal; young; bald…headed man whose task  it was to engage six of the contestants; was aware of a feeling of  suffocation as if he were drowning in a sea of frangipanni; while  white clouds; hand…embroidered; floated about him。  And then a sail  hove in sight。  Hetty Pepper; homely of countenance; with small;  contemptuous; green eyes and chocolate…colored hair; dressed in a suit  of plain burlap and a common…sense hat; stood before him with every  one of her twenty…nine years of life unmistakably in sight。

〃You're on!。〃 shouted the bald…headed young man; and was saved。  And  that is how Hetty came to be employed in the Biggest Store。  The story  of her rise to an eight…dollar…a…week salary is the combined stories  of Hercules; Joan of Arc; Una; Job; and Little…Red…Riding…Hood。  You  shall not learn from me the salary that was paid her as a beginner。   There is a sentiment growing about such things; and I want no  millionaire store…proprietors climbing the fire…escape of my tenement… house to throw dynamite bombs into my skylight boudoir。

The story of Hetty's discharge from the Biggest Store is so nearly a  repetition of her engagement as to be monotonous。

In each department of the store there is an omniscient; omnipresent;  and omnivorous person carrying always a mileage book and a red  necktie; and referred to as a 〃buyer。〃  The destinies of the girls in  his department who live on (see Bureau of Victual Statistics)so much  per week are in his hands。

This particular buyer was a capable; cool…eyed; impersonal; young;  bald…headed man。  As he walked along the aisles of his department lie  seemed to be sailing on a sea of frangipanni; while white clouds;  machine…embroidered; floated around him。  Too many sweets bring  surfeit。  He looked upon Het

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