TEN DOLLARS by Joyce Lutz ELLEN had just finished mopping her kitchen floor. It was a hot June day, and beads of perspiration were on her forehead. She bent over the mop bucket and tiredly rung her limp mop out of the once clean water. As she did so she paused a second and recalled the day when she was a bride, and how enthusiastic she was about mopping her new kitchen floor. Yes, it was new then, and her joy was great in doing the work. It was not that she minded doing her regular routine today, it was just because she was tired out and needed a rest. For a long time she had felt the need of a rest. She felt too tired all of the time. She looked at her worn out hands as she wiped them on her front apron. Her fingernails were chipped and uneven, and the flesh on her hands was calloused and red. She turned and as she did so she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror; how old she looked perhaps her hair was somewhat grayer. Ellen took the mop bucket and put it on the back porch under her wash bench. She spread the mop cloth out on the bench to dry, and then weht into the house, brushing the flys from the screen door before she entered. The linoleum on the floor was worn, but the air in her kitchen smelled sweet, very sweet, and clean. She went to the kitchen sink, washed her hands, and then began the process of making a "batch of bread". As she went about her task she heard footsteps on her front porch. She paid little attention to them the children usually ran upon the porch after school and left their books. She moulded the loaves of bread and put them in the oven. She would go out on the front porch now and get cooled before getting supper. No one was around, but from one corner of the mailbox she could see the corner of a letter. Lifting the lid of the mailbox she took the letter from it. It was addressed to Mrs. Ellen Banks. The post mark was stamped New Haven, and she then knew it was from Phil. Ellen seated herself in the porch rocker and Page Ten gently opened the letter, and as she unfolded it she found a ten dollar bill. Completely overcome she sat back and began to read the letter. "We know you are tired and can use a few weeks rest. It is guiet here and you could rest all you wanted to rest. The family is old enough to mind themselves, and Marion is capable of taking your place for that long. Please try to come as soon as you can; we want you so." Love, Phil. She read it over and over again. She Ellen Banks, going to New Haven? No, it just didn't sound right. The money was put away in safe keeping, and all through supper she was just bursting to tell someone but she kept the matter to herself; it needed considering. After the night meal was over she and Marion did the dishes while the two boys, Roy and Ed read the paper. She could see that Marion was very sober and not as cheerful and talkative as she usually was. She asked her what was the trouble, and Marion told her how very badly she needed a new dress for a future party. That night in bed Ellen could not sleep for thinking of her excitement, nor could she sleep for thinking of Marion, who really did need a new dress. As she laid there she thought of her day's work and how the letter, which was so unexpected had come to her, and how she wanted to take that trip to New Haven. She had never been there before. Jim, her husband, had promised her the trip just before he died. Phil was so good and thoughtful; he was so much like Jim. Marion flashed into her mind again, she did so need that new dress. The last one she had bought for her was for her birthday, which was in February. Now, if she took three dollars for Marion's dress, she thought she could manage. Five dollars for bus fare and the three remaining dollars would see her through; besides, her last summer's hat would do. Mrs. Hastings had fixed hers over with new ribbon and she could do the same. That is what she would do. Next morning Ellen got up and prepared breakfast. She went to where she had hid her money the night before to see if it was still there yes, it was there, all of it. She called to Marion and told her to get ready and they would go to town. They bought Marion a dress; a pink flowered one, and she bought a dime's worth of ribbon for her hat. That was the extent of her shopping but Ellen was happy, she knew she had made her daughter happy, and the green ribbon for her hat would look "right smart." They arrived home and Ellen took her apron from behind the pantry door and tied it around her. She went down to the basement and got a pan of potatoes and the last of the bushel of apples. The potatoes were scrubbed and put into the oven to bake. She Page Eleven