THE DOLLAR BILL

Daddy and Jenny had gone to town that Wednesday afternoon in midsummer for weekly Drawing Day. All the merchants in town would pool their resources for a five hundred dollar give away. A section of the main intersection would be roped off and there would be a truck parked right in the middle with a big platform, which was the center of the activity. There was entertainment from the platform, which all enjoyed, but the biggest attraction was the drawing. A cylindrical screen basket stood on the platform, with the names of all those who had paid a dollar for the chance to win the prize. A small child would be chosen from the crowd to draw out a name. People stood around in nervous anticipation, each hoping that he or she would be the lucky winner. Times were hard in 1935 and such an amount of money would go a long way toward getting them out of debt.

Jenny was wearing her crisp blue and white dotted Swiss dress with the wide sash, her neatly whitened Mary Jane shoes and light blue anklets. She felt very dressed up. She and Daddy stood close to the platform and she held tightly to his hand to keep from getting lost in the crowd. There were speeches, singing, comedy acts, magicians, tap dancing, and finally the long awaited moment for the drawing.

“We need a helper,” said the man at the megaphone. How about this pretty little girl right here?” and he pointed to Jenny. Daddy proudly lifted Jenny up to the platform. She smiled shyly and everyone clapped.

“What’s your name?” he asked.

“Jenny Jane Barnes,” she said softly.

“How old are you?”

“I’m five years old.”

“Five! Well, Jenny Jane Barnes,” the man said, his voice coming loudly through the megaphone,
“I’m going to give the basket a few turns and when I stop, you draw out one of those names.

Jenny knew how to read and thought if she saw Daddy’s name she would draw it, but she could not see it. She picked out a name and handed it to the man who read the name. There was a faint audible sigh of disappointment from the crowd. The joyful winner stepped forward to claim his prize. There was more applause. Each person thought, that maybe next week, he would win.

“Now Jenny Jane,” the man said, “for being such a good girl and helping us out, I’m going to give you this to take home.” He handed her a crisp green dollar bill and lifted her back down to Daddy. Jenny felt that she was rich. Her Calumet Baking Powder bank on the pantry shelf held only pennies. She couldn’t wait to get home and show Mother and Margaret her dollar and tell them what had happened. When they got home. she put the dollar bill in the can with the pennies. She hoped no thief would come and steal her money. When company came to visit, she would importantly go to her bank and show them the wonderful dollar.