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TTosBum thank you John Edward was recovering a little Thoro aint anything else youdlltto to change about mo is thorn

Thoro is probably a lot that ought to boohnngod but not running a kindergarten andyoud butter bo running nlong little man orJonoay ovor thoro will bo bawling you out goodand plenty And uho rolnpsod Into an nrotlb attontlon to business

For two wooks John Edward watohod in vainfor a sign from tho little cashiers desk but ap-parently as far as sho was concerned Billy IwoJohn Edward had fallow into tho waste basketof hor momory and ho grow sulky Tho moro nosulked tho hardor ho worked and whon ho workedho couldnt obsorvo tho satisfaction with whichtho littlo cashior watohod things from hor oago

counters awayHo was smoking at tho side ontranoo ono drizzly

ovonlng aftor hours whon sho oarao bustling outand stopped to fuss with par umbrolln John Ed-

ward took it from her raised it and handed ItbackThanks aha said approvingly thon as shogathorad up hor skirts If aomo nice girl onlyhad tho time she could mnlco a right nice followout of you

You wouldnt want tho Job would you JohnEdward jeered after hor She stopped to takehim in with ono businesslike inventorying glance

Oh I dont know sho replied thon disappearedaround tho corner

In tho days that followed John Edward foundhimself rehearsing tho little scone ovor and overagain during slack times behind tho counter Hooven went so far as to imagine her in tho variousphases of matrimony as ho had observed themand ho was surprised to find how well she fittedinto each of thorn At first the idea amused himthen it interested him and he formed a habit ofsmoking and waiting around tho side entranceafter the gong had sounded at night

In the meantime ho had been making goodThe neat orderly habits of the service began totell in his favor The floorraan got into the habitof stopping to chat with him occasionally whentimes were dull on the floor Sometimes he found

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A 12inch WaistThough this woman is tall andJunoesque in proportion shewears a

invented by her husband

a prominentLondonRECENT

LY

waist-band

Will yCu kindly tell what the devil a man needsof experience to sell cwtfaws

a small addition in his onvolopo on Saturdaynights both of which signs may be regarded asakin to getting something to woar on tho uloovo

But ho was not content Ho somethingand it made him uneasy whon ho realized thattho something ho wantod was coolly counting outchange and totting tip balances in her little ctigowith every indication of perfect content As asafety valvo he pitched in and worked until hocame to bo regarded as a sort of a human wondor who worked whether tho boss was looking or

notSix months later it happened John Edwardfound himself with ono foot on the ladder and hisfirst move was to go around and talk earnestlywith the little cashier This time she was neitherfrigid nor indifferent She merely handed In herresignation and went with John Edward to a Ilktie place around the corner aftor which theywent together to a little fourroom flat uptown

Success went to John Edwards head After a

wanted

The Smallest Waists in the WorldI

This young woman can wear a 13inch corset with case ordinarily shewears a Idinch corset and 4 12inch heel shoes

worlds onnmclaim for a young English woman that no one Inthe United States has yet arisen to dispute name-ly the worlds champion small waist

It is almost beyond belief that any woman ofmature years could live and have her being with-

a waist measuring only twelve Inches in circum-ference yet a bit of tape a brief twelve Inches inlength is ample to go around tho wasp waist ofthe English woman put forward as the womanWith the smallest waist in the world This womanIs tall and of Junoesque proportions but she wearsan unstretchable metal walat belt just an eventwelve inches in circumference Incidentally thepride of her husband in her slenderness is reflected in the fact that he exercised his ingenuity inthe Invention of an unstretchable metal belt forlife wifes use

Other slender women were produced by thisLondon newspaper originally to combat the claimof a Parisian woman to the smallest waist in theworld One of thorn can wear 13inch corsets stillanother 13Inch corsets The former is a youngwoman who ordinarily wears 15Jnch corsets andshoes with heels and says she is nonethe worse for it The latter is a married womanwho has been a tight lacer from girlhood

p Ion s it i P

4 inch

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A 13 34inch WaistThis woman has been a tightlacer from girlhood and canwear a 13 34inch corseteasily

From Vienna comes thestory ot a young wait-ress 01 a prominent cafeIn that city whoso waist

was tho envy of all Viennese women who desiredextreme slenderness One night before her marriage to a rich patron of the cafe this youngwoman to win a bet to prove her tenuity removedher collar measuring a trifle over 12 inchesaround clasped it about her waist and then tiedher neck ribbon around it to the astonishment ofthe assembled company

Tight lacing has not recently been very muchthe vogue but periodically it is the height of fash-ion to have a wasp waist Most of tho possessors-of extremely small waists began lacing theywere extremely young literally stunting them-selves as far as waist dimensions were concernedThe vogue of tight lacing is always brief and atconsiderable intervals of time because of the gen-

eral crusade against it and because too womensuffer altogether too much inconvenience and discomfort in attaining small waists In a hurry

While it would seem to the uninitiated thattight lacors are physically unwell tight lacers defend themselves and declare that they are notanaemic and suffering The medical profession ispositive however that tight lacing is a curse towomanhood and most of the world accepts thisposition as reasonable

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reluctant surrondor the little oxcashier fguntjl

her greatest delight in humoring him llftck to oJf-

confldonoo at tho store unaon-aoloualy assisted hob by shoving John Edwardalong a little an thorn they overshot tliomark and John Edward had a dangerous rolapiointo tho old Illicit ing spirit Tho result was tillsame old story with tho difference that it did notend with a yollow onvolopo John Edward quit

Explanations woro not necessary whon ho facedhire wlfo in tho llttlo fourroom flat

Wolf she said at length hor oyos oloudodwith anxiety and disappointment I hnd hopedthat you wore grown up by this time but I guassI was wrong

For a moment sho looked sorrowfully aroundthe homo Thou hot old briskness of mannof-roturnqd

I guess Ill flit sho rfnnauncod this wont boany place for mo with you out of work Suohas boon wanting mo to visit her for some timeand I guess Ill start tomorrow You bottor sternthe furniture and take a room somowhoro

The next day sho JUtted but boforo she wontsortie of hor briskness deserted hor You cansand for me as soon as you got back to worksho said as sho bade him goodby and Billy sheadded with a little sob dont hoop mo waitinglong will you boy

By tho end of a month Johi Edward had liverover somo of tho experiences of tho past Hohad even found It noooisnry to resort to tho oldexpedient of smoking cigarettes and tighteninghis bolt as a substitute for lunch At times hisknoeo woro wobbly In tho same old way they hadboon on tho sands of Arizona in addition ho wasbitterly lonely Ho missed his brisk little wlfoas he had never In his life boforo missed

and ho became possessed of foal that shemight novor como back for ho was no nearer aJob had boon whon she wont away

For tho second time in his life ho went off byhimself to think Ho wont ovor tho matter frombeginning to end and no matter how he looked atIt ho bumped his head against the same conclu-sion It was merely tho brig In another formBy the end of six weeks he had digested tho mat-ter thoroughly and was waiting in lino before thoemployment desk at the store

Ah Hucklns the manager greeted him whatrto you want

Anything John Edward repliedWell the manager twirled his pencil and

studied the faco of tho man before him throughnarrowed lids Youll have to begin at tho bot-tom How does that strike you

John Edwards shoulders wont back as holooked tIle manager straight in tho eye Whondo I begin ho asked

Two years passes rapidly whon a man Is busythe hour hand novor lags for tho man who hasno time to watch It John Edward had advancedslowly but it did not worry him Ho was notlooking for decorations on his sleeve and thuquarterdeck was miles away from his thoughtsWhen ho was ot expanding luxuriously under thesmiles of his hUla blackhaired wlfo in their fourroom flat ho was cudgelling his brains for somemeans of bringing up the receipts of the diminu-tive department ovor which ho presided andwhen he found an idea worth trying ho went att with both eyes on tho job

At last there came a time when a place on thequarterdeck was vacant and anxious eyes all ovorhe store were directed longingly upward but JohnEdward couldnt take his off his departmentiad no time He had forgotten everything excopt the balance sheet ho had to turn In at nightand he dropped his work with a gesture of 1m

mtience when they sent for him to como to the

When the manager had finished his littlespeech John Edward realized vaguely thatle had at last climbed the ladder and hadboth feet firmly planted on the quarterdeck Hoookod from ono to the other from the old mano the manager and his hand unconsciously wento his forehead in tho old salute

I thank you sir he stammered I or Ivhatever you say goos

The oth r fellows came around at intervals duing the afternoon to congratulate him and he Ke-

ened to them with ono eye on the clock andthoughts on the little blackhaired wife in the

tiny fourroom flatHer eyes were sparkling and dewey when she

heard the newsBilly she said you dont know how proud 1

ira of you But I know you had it In you fromhe first moment I laid eyes on you You just

needed something to make a man of you thatsill

John Edward took his little wlfo In his armsMaybe so he replied as he joyously mussed hermir Maybe so but you surely had your nerve

vith you when you tackled the job SisSho giggled hysterically as she cuddled in his

trms Pshaw she disclaimed Pshaw I Buthe blushing consciousness of her smile pro

aimed the fullness of her triumph

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