LOST AND FOUND

Lucy locket lost her pocket
Kitty Fisher found it
But ne’er a penny was there in it, 
Except the binding round it.

Margaret had three pocket books . There was one of bright blue corduroy with a clock face, another of black leather that snapped shut loudly, and a red and white checked bag with a drawstring. Jenny had none at all. For weeks she had been talking about wanting a pocket book. Mother said that maybe next Saturday, when they went to town, they’d look for one. Jenny thought Saturday would never come, but at last it did. The minute they got to town she asked,

“Mother, can we look for a pocket book for me now?”

“We’ll see,” said Mother.

They went to the variety store, also called the five and ten, where you could buy so many wonderful things.

“What can I do for you?” the red haired girl behind the counter asked in a sing song voice.

“Do you have purses for little girls?” Mother asked.

“We haven’t anything except these coin purses,” the sales girl told her.

“Well, I don’t think--” Mother began.

“Let me see,” begged Jenny. She stood on her tip toes to look. There was a brown satchel shaped purse and a shiny green rectangular one of imitation alligator skin with a silver diamond shaped snap. Jenny pointed to the green one.

“I want that one,” she said.

“But it isn’t cute at all,” Mother said, “like little girl’s purses should be. It’s just a plain old coin purse for ladies.”

Jenny thought the little green coin purse was beautiful. A pocket book was a pocket book And a pocket book of your own was wonderful.

The sales girl said they might have some pocket books for little girls during the holiday season, but the holiday season was months away and Jenny didn’t want to wait that long. She’d be so happy if only she could have the green coin purse today.

Jenny said emphatically, “But that’s the one I want. That one right there.” So Mother gave the sales girl a nickel and gave the pocket book to Jenny.

Jenny clutched it tightly in her hand. It was all hers. She thought the inside of it had an important smell. Now she had a pocket book to carry like everyone else. All that afternoon, as they went to different stores, Jenny would stop and and look at her pocket book from time to time and feel it nestled snug and warm in her hand. She didn’t even mind today when Mother stopped for a long time to chat with friends. She had her pocket book. And so the afternoon passed.

Their last stop was the grocery store. and then it was time to go home. They started toward the car and Jenny gave a happy skip when she thought of how surprised Margaret and Daddy would be when she showed them her new little green purse. Then she looked down at her hands and saw and felt that they were empty. She was suddenly shaken with sobs, right there in the sidewalk in front of their car, where everyone could see her crying. Mother wanted to know what the matter was.

“My pocketbook! It’s gone!” Jenny managed to tell her, and cried the harder for having divulged her loss.

“Well, stop crying. Such a big girl as you to cry like that. Where did you lose it?”

“I don’t know,” and when she saw Margaret and Daddy, the sobs began anew.

“What’s wrong with Toots?” Daddy asked.

“Oh, she lost her new pocketbook,” Mother explained. “It wasn’t a very pretty one anyhow. We’ll find a better one next time.”

Margaret was truly sorry. She had lost things and knew what it was like.

“Let’s go back and look for it,” Margaret suggested.

Jenny’s small world had collapsed, but now she was hopeful. She supposed they would have to look all over town. As they walked over the sidewalk grating, she peered downward, thinking maybe it had fallen way down there, but she didn’t see anything but cigarette butts and gum and candy wrappers.

“Did you have it when we went to the grocery store?” Mother asked.

Then Jenny remembered. While Mother selected the groceries, she had gone over to the place where the fresh fruit and vegetables were. She had lain the pocket book on a basket of apples so she could put her hands under the fine cool mist that sprayed the celery.

“I left it on a basket of apples,” she said. They hurried to the grocery store. Jenny ran to the apple basket, but the pocket book was not there.

“We’ll see if anyone has turned it in to the desk and then we will have to go home,” Mother said.

Margaret spoke up when they got to the high desk. “Have you seen a little girl’s pocket book?” she asked Melba, the lady behind the desk.

“Why no, I don’t believe so. Just a minute.” She looked in the drawer. It took the longest time.

“Nothing but this little green coin purse,” Melba said.

“That’s the one,” Mother said, much relieved, and handed it to Jenny. “Now, hang on to it this time.”

Jenny trembled a little as she squeezed the pocket book in her hand. She felt refreshed, but tired, just as the earth must feel after a heavy storm.