Newspaper Page Text
vXspaMBHPMi
Hardy'* Beven Lay*." Etc.
Copyright, tao l, bvChtrUtU.gluUon
chapter nil.
OHN GORDON was
reading the ttvo
letter* tbnt David
Bartou hnd received
from the eld lady.
Mrs. Captain George
Effingham. The fu
neral service had l>csn held In obedi
ence to Barton’s request. Gordon, Har
ds, Williams and a smr.ll troop of
newspaper men had come up to the
rooms. Falmouth read a simple son-
lee, nml he and Gordon and Harris and
,Williams afterward went out to the
cemetery. When It was all over, Gor
don, lu accordance with his friend's
wishes, came hack to the rooms. Bar
ton's will left most of his personal ef-
fiects to Ills friend. The furniture ami
Hooks he nave to Hope House, A small
. sum of money was divided nmong a
few of the Colorado people who had
been helped by Hnrton and were still
In need.
After Gordon hnd attended to these
simple details, his heart still burning
aver the events that had become his
tory after the lire, lie at last came to
Bartou's desk hnd the dls|>osul of Its
contents. There was almost no cor
respondence. A simple formal note ad
dressed to Miss Andrews asked her
to 'accept the furniture, pictures mid
hooks and use them In whatever wny
seemed best to her. Any stranger
might have written It. As Gordon read
the cold, formal statement he said to
himself, “She will never know—I sup
pose It's nil right—but oh, David, to
think of dying or hunger!"
One of the letters from Mrs. Efflng-
tam bud been opened. It was dated
sight days earlier than t hoot her, which
bad come to Barton on tb" day of bis
druth, and still rciuntned Unopened.
The firs! letter was written lu n line,
close stylo, but remarkably legible ami
free from wavering or uuccrtulu end
ings.
Mr. IhreM n«rtcn:
My Dear * he promise 1 made to
jour friend Mr. Uotxlon thut t would
write you utter seeing my grn^tron Is s
premise I lake pleasure hi fuiilPhig here
with.
My grnndedti hue recovered hie health
to n lurge degree, but the physicians ssy
he must remain In this pllmste or he will
he ki danger of a collapse. This is n dis
appoint.n, at to me perednally, ae I had
hoped to take him back with me to Sa-
lent. The Cord and sometimes the phyet-
elans know better than we do. ttnd 1 am
snatched to the Lord's will anyhow and
to the doctors' unless thts Is a scheme
-on their part to make something out of
my grumlson'e case. 1 shall stay here un<
tU 1 and out.
Mr. Pnrton. sir. words of mine cannot
•ay to you the deep gratitude 1 feel for
the groat kindness you showeiPnty poor
-tnudi't'lng grandson. When you stopped *
want to
see my name over a doorway. “The Mrs.
Captain OeOrge Effingham Retreat" or
"The Mrs. Captain George . Effingham
Free Reading Room and Library.” Aside
from that I don't cars what le done with
the money; only I want to know how
much will do something real -well. 1 Ilka
the Idea of putting tt'into something that
will help children. Why on earth any
one wtnte to live In a city If ho can live
anywhere else te a pussls to me, but after
they once get there I suppose we can't
ask too many questions about It; at
least asking the questions will not relieve
the situation that has already been mode.
I am sure the captain will be pleased
with the use mado of'hie money, If he
asks you any questions about It, toll him
J have saved enough to bury my |»or old
body decently and left the house and fur
nishings tn the East India Marine mu
seum. tie need not worry about any
thing!
If you are not able to answer this, turn
the whole cutter over to your friend. I
shall await a- letter from him or from
Hiss Andrews. The Lord bless you; sir,
and may ho meet you himself ns you pass
over. With respect and affection, your'
friend,
MRS. CAPT. GEORGE EFFINGHAM.
John Gordon reread this letter with
glistening eyes. The bund of David
Barton seemed to reach out of the
shadows and grasp bis own with bis
old hearty benignant cheerfulness.
“God bless you. David!" Gordon Said
reverently as he put' the letters Id bis
pocket and hastened down to Hope
House to show them to Grace An
drews.
As she read her blue eyes grew
thoughtful. It seemed r.t Inst as if
some part of her desire for the people
was going to he gratified.
“She does not say how much she
wants to give,” Hiss Andrews re
marked as ske finished reading. „
“No. only she says. T want to know
how much will do something, rial
well.' ”
“Wo ronld use almost any amount,”
the words were uttered softly nnd the
gaze of the blue eyes was on the scene
visible from the library windows.
The district burned over was ahar,t
three blocks on one side of Hope House
and two blocks on the other. Com
pared with the entire tenement district
It was only n blnek speck on tlio city
mnp. The people who were burned
out were now crowded into the other
tenement!,. ' If conditions of over-
crowdlng before the fire were Inde
scribable. they were now beyond en
durance even to the wretches who
hnd before endured the Indescribable.
The city had begun the work,of clean
ing away the debris hi Bowen street,
but progress was glow. Curts were
going by. tilled with rubbish. Hope
House Itself contained still many vic
tims whose condition was so precarious
tlint they couhl not yet he removed
to the hospitals. The resources of the
building bad been taxed to Its extreme
limit. But the outside scene was wbat
Miss Andrews saw now with some
gleam of promise shining out of those
letter/. Groups of children gathered
over the burned area, .poking lu the
ashes or among the bricks and lime
for trifles that were eagerly treasured
as souvenirs of the tragedy. The whole
dreary, tllsimil. melancholy wretched
ness of the scene had not one ray of
comfort anywhere, except that which
lay 111 the two letters In her hip. And
even with that what could ho done?
“If that desert of ashes could bo
transformed Into a park. Miss An
drews." Gordon suggested. They bad
both reached the same conclusion at
the same time.
Turks and playgrounds, the two
sweet 'P's' of my life," she said wist
fully, "hut It would cost"—
"How much do you suppose Mrs.
Captuln George Effingham Is worth?''
"I have no Idrii, have you?" „
"Not the least. Why 1 Uqt write nnd
give her a frank account of the facts?
If the old Indy wants to add some of
the spicy fragrance of life to children,
here is her opportunity. I.et Ford scud
her photographs of the burned district.
Including the swarms of children like
those out there now, nnd let us leave
It to her to give what she will."
"That Is good. Will you write the
letter?"
No; you write It She knows you
by reputatlou. 1 nrn n nobody to her."
"Very well. I will write the letter.
You nnd Mr. Ford secure the photo
graphs.”
Gordon and Ford went out that aft
ernoon and secured several photo-
him th'at'cighi anil put your {unit onVta f graphs taken by newspaper men at
otioulu'.r and raid a loving word to him. the time of the fire Itself. In two
you saved him from something won ... nni .
than Onun of tho body. He was on the i tlu. group wits mam up and. to-
point of cursing God and dying. The Lord | gether with Miss Andrews letter, sent
bless you, sir, nr.d give you peace. I on to Mrs. Captain George Etilngham.
aofcVw mitre rewmrd'| n " n g* J”* n,lU *»£•
%Ul«h come* to ov«.ry fcrave nouI that does ; Rounds ®** human luilglinRO And til©
Sts duty, but I am a rlcjt old women, with ' camera ever presented. I!union read
no relative* tscopt thts boy out horc. nnd ' the letter nnd marveled nt It. It set his
i^ U, ?oTo n ioa i ;,Srn*riuh r a ,0 po»lo P n tf o l J I ««re. It qiatlc him lung fur mil-
air means In some wny that you might I lions to give, to buy up city deserts nnd
aaggest. la a city like yours there are. of i truusform them Into paradise. It was
oourse, very many causes that appeal to ' ., -..ji,,,. of rat. i„, t ., r ...... .... usw i
your hurr.unity. What makes your heart . U “' K , ,u ", ,l “ lr csu5ea
ache tttu hardest? Let n.o know where a him to wonder with Increased amaze-
yew thousand dollars will do the most ment nt the oxtmvngntit and heart-
good. I have looked Into your face, sir, | (egg wickedness of a luxurious clvillza-
SKwe:i'L a t"'£ “m.'h'ere “th ySS°U tion t *‘" t on “><-• things It
Uriel. Th.mk God, air. It ha* been brave.
"When yen and 1 met on the other aide,
the fifty ar.d ftv* odd year* difference In
•ur Uvea will not be any gulf between us,
for my heart has never Frown old, and t
cats thut me unnecessary in ouc dry
than It wives to feed starved childhood
In a -year. If Jesus were, here on the
earth-again, would he not say to the
•han »►* rejoiced to count you among the rich men and women In the cities:
aobja friends who have mad. life wont. -Woo unto you. hypocrites! Calling
yourselves, many of you, by my Dame.
while. The captain will be glad to meet
jou. Tell him i have not forpatten how
lie locks nnd hope he has not changed
and cratliede. faithfully yours.
MRS. CAPT. GEORGE KFFINOHAM.
Tike allusion to the captain made
Gordon smile a little. But h!» face re-
yot living In needless luxury, panipcr-
mrermu.h! I am. sir. with great respect lug your bodies, seeking pleasure and
and sratiiede. f.i.hfoiiv eour. ease, while the blood of little children
spatters the wheels of your on triages
as you drive haughtily through the
....,,, , . . — ~ streets! And ye cry;'Lord. Lord, have
S'?*,, .u „ q ? , lou “ l ” “ ' I not gone to church? Have l not paid
be too. Ul. the second lotto, nnd .low, tba iWgIlcIt „ nt bnd tended d|.
vin/ service regularly lu my own
church and given something annually
be took up tie second letter and alow
ly opened ar.d read ft.' ■ ’ »
Xr. bavl4 bnrtOQ; , t \,,
Sly Uutr Ft;fend—! hasten at once to
your reply to ray letter, for your
■^P^mPPPmKPHgmgptTsupport missions ?• Yea. verily, you
word* aurure me tbnt the day® 'are rew‘ haw done thesd things, but for every
fcr you on the earth. God rract you dollar to reunion and charitable work
of mind aud^riL :- , V xvehbndrodfX on your
self ruttstted existence. Verily ye
have received your reward. But the
weeping nnd
you sec 1
entering Into tke kingdom »>f barren
nnd you yodrselve* shut cut and hear
me say: 'D?purt 'from me. I never
knew your”
Before the letter to the old lady had
gone Its way to do Its errand, *rSH* the
settlement workers waited in suspense
for Its results. Miss Andrews received
a letter by messenger. She read It and
quietly placed it lu John Gordon's
hands. The letter was from Lnello.
Mr Dear Miss Andrews-I Inclose a
Cheek for 11,000, which may bo of use to
you In relieving soma of the distress
caused by the recent terrible disaster In
Bowen street I hope to be able soon to
add to this. Will you kindly Inform Mr.
Gordon that my father; returned this
morning and Is at bis office? With best
wishes. I am heartily yours,
LUELLA MARSH.
Gordon read the letter through with
out looking up. Ho knew that Miss
Andrews bad heard of bis former rela
tion to Lnclla through the sensational
accounts printed by the News.
He bunded the letter -back, simply
saying:
"The money will be nsefnl Just now.”
la reality he regarded the gift as con
science monoy. Luella was dlsturlied
over her father's responsibility for the
whole unnecessary horror. She sent a
thousand dollars to ease her feelings.
Bnt would a hundred or even a million
times n thousand dollars ever bring
back to life the ercatmes that went
down to death with the tenement?
Would It ever restore to health nnd Joy
the scores of maimed nnd broken
wretches that lingered on In torture
and lifelong dependence?
Ills heart was cold toward this wom
an who had once been dearer than all
the world to him. At the same time
te know that the sight of her beautiful
face would appeal to the old feelings.
“I am going lo see Mr.- Marsh.” he at
lust said briefly ns If- he felt the silence
was becoming enibareasslng.
“Can yon persuade him to give us
the site of the double decker for n part
of onr proposed pnrk?" ills* Andrews
naked calmly.
"I don't know. Ho bns acted the
coward In running away. I don’t know
Low deep Ills feelings have been
touched, whether they have worked
down to his poeketkook or not, but I'll
go and sec him.”
"You will not lose your temper?"
The question enmo with n quiet tone
cf gentle caution thut Gordon felt
sounding In bis ears ns ho entered Mr.
Marsh's office. It'gulded him with un
usual Influence to cheek the Indignant
Impulse that otherwise might have
made him say or do the unnecessary
tiling.
Mr. Marsh greeted him with evident
embarrassment
"Glad to see you. Gordon.” he said,
shaking hands cordial!)’.
“Are yon?” Gordon thought. But he
■Imply said:
“I don’t need to tell you wlrnt my er
rand Is. Mr. Marsh.”
“That unfortunate fire; I—yes—of
course—1 know. Business Interests
called me out of town that morning
or I”—
The older man was speaking hastily,
and Ills eye wandered uneasily. Gor
don wanted to say “You lie!” but In
stead lie replied;
“Very sorry you hnd to go away.
For many reasons I wish you might
have seen some things. There are sights
that”—
“For God’s sake, Gordon, don't tor
ture me by enumerating tbem—wll!
you? Just as If 1 bud not seen them l.u
my dreams every night since sending
the account!" the man. ejaculated. "Of
course 1 lied to you Just mAv, 1 hud
no business to call me out of town. 1
simply ran away, from the horror of
the thing, tlmt's all.”
John Gordon rhse up avl his eyes
gleamed; but It was with hope.
"Mr. Marsh, the pant cannot bo
ehanged, but it can he atoned for.
Vlint will you do now?"
I don't know; what can 1 do?”
Give us the site of the old dumbbell
tenement for a playground; or. better
still, help us transform the whole of'
the burned district into n pnrk.”
•Tt will be very expensive”— Mr.
Mnrsh faltered.
It has already been very expensive
In the cost of life. Was Louie's death
necessary? Were all those demths”—
Gordon was beginning to grow ex
cited when the thought of Mins An
drews stopped him. But he had been
—
? What?' /, /} flpB'
;ore"- - y HiJW
interrupted, not v.lfi exq <n
I calmly: elj't-
, t' Ui at mind o
Wbat jvu say about v<
Gorio.t and the work ho ts __
nt exccoot.-u.-iy. I 'have read a
Mnn. and 1 kl|n< nHHHi
IJ either aba cr Yir. Gcnlcn rri.!
mads oner to
Inc property re
Hope Haase."
on • great strain for many days and
nights, and this rich man's evident
hesitation to Incur any financial loss
in the short time he had been at Hope
House, the misdirected energies of
money makers. The lore of humanity
with which he bad begun bis knight
hood was already such n passion lu
him that It leaped with, giant bounds
over all smaller objects. Ho was dot
able to realize the slow steps with
which such men ns Mr. Marah .have to
be coaxed and terrified nnd even
driven toward a . little philanthropy.
John Gordon wasi. beginning to have
the anmc absence of feeling for Indif
ference toward social needs that a per
fectly sound physical nature has to
ward a confirmed dyspeptic or hypo
chondriac. The logic of the situation
around Hope House was so absolul
thought out to John Gordon'
that any slow, cautious, b
steps toward a conclusion
cold blooded Pharisaism.
.‘TU do somutliliig, of col
something,” Mr. Marsh sal
gettcaUy,
“When? What? 1 *■ /
"I 'suppose”—
Gordon
meiit, but
"This is your life oi .
Marsh. Tell me frankly, ifi^oii
to donate to Hope House On:
property where No. 01 stood far
purposes would It seriously cripfjlbj
your business?”
“No, 1 don’t think It would- cripple
me."
“Then, will you'give us that much?"
Gordon asked boldly find aim cat blunt
ly. But lie was not In any mood to
walt-'or coax.
“Do you know bow much that prop
erty Is worth?”
"No."
"It cost me $32,000 to buy the lots
nnd put up the tenement” Mr. Marsh
sold Imperiously.
John Gordon was silent
“So that you practically ask me to
donate $32,000 to Hope House.”
“Minus the insurance on No. 01,"
said John Gordon quietly.
“It was Insured for $00,000.” Mr.
Marsh said, while his face grew a lit
tle rod.
Gordon made no remark, and Mr.
Marah fidgeted In his chair am! dram
med with his Ungers on the edge of the
table.
"Why would It r.ot he better to put
up a model tenement on the lots?”
"A park would do more good.”
"But the people who were burned
out"—
"They must be cared for. that Is
tree. The Interest excited by the ca
lamity may lead to the tearing down
of other areas nnd the building of good
tenements. But a pnrk the size of the
whole burned area would ho of more
value to Hope House than even such n
model tenement ns yon might put up
hi place of No. 01.”
There was. silence again. Mr. Marsh
got. up and went Into the bank. He
was gone sevenil minutes. Gordon
never moved. When Marsh came back,
he brought some papers.
"I’ll have the property made over to
Hope House.” he said briefly.'
“Thank you.” Gordon answered sim
ply. nnd again there was n silence.
"I want to make some atonement,”
Mnrsh spoko slowly. "Do you think
this will ho so regarded?”
"Yes: It will ho a great help to us."
Gordon rose, and Marsh held out his
hand.
‘TU hnvo the business attended to
at once, nnd—and—I'll bo down to Hope
House some time this weak.”
"Thnnlt you. We shall be glad to
see you." Gordon spoke gravely, and
after slinking hands he went out. As
lie went down the stairs he had n no
mentary tinge of remorse at the thought
of having done Marsh some Injustice
cr of having accepted the gift of the
property churlishly and In :;u ungra
cious spirit.
But as he came back to t!'# icene of
the fire he said to himself: “Is It u cuse
for effusive thanks that thts rich man
takes a fraction of the wealth that be
longs to God aiul reluctantly lets hu
manity get some p\pugure out of ft?
Ho broke.it dozen distinct ordinances
relating to tenement house eonstruc-
tloa when he ordered No. 01 hiillt He
put up a deathtrap nnd received mouey
.r Its use. Ha cowardly absented
Himself from n knov, ledge of the hu-
man misery that Ills building housed,
and when a disaster fell directly trace
able to U!s criminal greed he ran away
from the horrors for which bis own
hand was responsible. Was It. there
fore, In order that he. John Gordon,
and Hope House and the public should
full down at the feet of this man with
effusive and extravagant praise for
atoning In a small degree for a tre
mendous wrong?
Yet thut Is what the public, through
press and pulpit, did when’ It was
known what Mr. Marsh bad done. His
act was lauded as "a most noble ex
hibition of philanthropy," ”n splendid
example to others.” "fine gift outright
to Hope House—Sir. Philo H. Marsh
donate* *23,000 worth of valuable
property.” Mr. Marsh's minister men
tioned the gift from the pulpit nnd
took occasion to use the Incident to
Illustrate the growing habit on the part
of rich men to give sums of money for
philanthropic causes. At what time
had that pulpit‘ever spoken out against
the lawless greed which characterised
this philanthropist when he allowed
bis business methods to sink to the
level of barter lit flesh and blood be
cause other men did the same and the
breaking of ordinances was counted n
trivial thing simply became everybody
did It? Is It not time that the pulpit
said something In condemnation of
wicked and uu-Cbriitlau ways of 'mak
ing money before It says much more
In praise of those who give what they
bare never rightly earned? A philan
thropist Is not one who gives money to
humanity, that be has obtained by
rouging humanity. 8usb s wan jg
ig up a part
of the plunder he has lulqultously stol
en.
When Gordon reached Hope House,
lie found waiting for him a note from
Arable Penrose's aunt, Mrs. Constance
Penrose.
Mr. Penrose was a society young
man xvbo bad no visible means of sup
port aside from the money his father,
recently deceased, bad left him. Archie
Penrose bad-never made a cent of
tlon To TvKch "Gordon found -ulnTseTf
totally opposed.. The professor again
smiled in such an exasperating tnnnner
that Gordon almost lost his temper.
He pulled up Just In time, however.
Ho was so near ft that bo asked a ques-
tion that otherwise he would not have
asked.
“What you say Is good theory, pro
fessor. but have you ever lived among
tbs people and studied them nt first
hand to see If yonr theory will work?”
The professor changed color nnd lost r
money by- n stroke of labor of any
kind, bnt that waa nothing , h la bland and condeseendlng manner,
him In the eyes of fond mothers with do not consider that
llelitnrH. 'There were ’ . ».
necessity to the proper discussion; of
the facts. I understand perfectly well
wbat you mean. Nearly all social set
tlement residents make the same mis
take. They think personal contact Is
necessary,to n clear comprehension of
situations. I do not so regard it Not
that I deprecate the service you are
, rendering.” he added hastily, "but you
exaggerate the Importance of youu
contribution to the solution of the
problem.”
Gordon was spared the temptation of
n reply by d voice near by and a band
laid on bis shoulder.
“John, must' I Introduce myself?
Why have yon neglected ns all So
shamefully?”
It was his sister Mnry who had Just
come Ih. Gordon was really delighted
marriageable daughters. -There were
thousands of women ,ln the city who
would have counted themselves or tbelr
daughters as specially favored If
Arable Penrose had come Into the
as a suitor. It made no dSffer-
that bis reputation baj) suffered
various ways. He had looney, lie
of a distinguished family, bis mail-
were regarded as elegant nnd |ie
an aunt who gave the most select
itlons and entertainments In the
In the sight of any man or .wom-
'Ight definitions of manhood this
gurehend of nn aristocratic
s simply one of the ciphers
Izatlon. He made nothing that
humanity's comfort or knowl-
Ept' He contributed absolutely not
grain of helpfulness or comfort or
» to n suffering, stfuggllng, needy
(f.'lil. He lived to get all the pleasure
he 'could himself, much If not all of It
gained with a total disregard for any
one rise's pleasure,-nnd yet lie moved
thrbiigh what Is railed the best society,
courted, admired, fawned on. eagerly
Invited ont to an endless round of so
cial functions which a certain class of
rich people in America make the niost
Important business of their lives.
Mrs. Constance Penrose was a person
of more value than her distinguished
nephew. She was rich, but not given
over altogether to society and Its shal
low enthusiasms. There were other
things in which she was genuinely In
terested. nnd among them was the ca
reer of John Gordon. She had known
him as a hoy, hnd watched him through
his college course nnd his trip abroad,
and, being a woman of very decided
nnd individual opinions, she bad more
than once expressed her interest In the
experiment Gordon tvns making., More
than once she had compared him to
her nephew, to that young man’s great
disadvantage.'
The note which Gordon found at
Hope House was nil Invitation to an
evening nt the Penrose mansion in
Pnrk avenue.
Why have you cut yourself off from all
of your former frlendu? Do you owe
nothing to us ’rich 3lnncrs, as well as to
the poor onc3? Come and reform tho
boulevard If you are really In the reform
business, for wo need It as much as the "Jo/m, must I introduce inuscljT*
alum. Why are there no aoclal settle
ments among ua? It strikes me that peo- to see her. The swift and eventful
pie like your Miss Andrews aro living at! current'of events that flowed around
cauldronly* bTaareVwo have'toe means Hope House had carried him along so
and ability to save the other end; but I tumultuous!}* that he bnd let the old
want you to come and see me and tell me relations xrltli.hls home drift, and yet,
'» sp'to of a!l th!lt Ka<J t0 be counted
love with her? And how about Luella? , . ... ,, . , ..
Young man. come nnd give-an account of j mto n swift receding past, he could
yourself. Luella will be here, nnd Mary not deny the strength of the blood
and the Lowells nnd the Crnnstons and
that graceless nephew of mine. who. by
the wny. now that you nro out of the
way, la pitying court to Luella. You have
neglected us all shamefully. We will for
give you If you appear among us again.
It will not be n large company—about
twenty.five. Surely you have not cut us
all out of your acquaintance forever. If
you don't care for tho rest, corse to satis
fy my curiosity about your future. You
.know I wns one of your best friends when
you were n boy In the university. I have
a real Interest In your future, and I am
r.ot all frivolous or given up to the whir!
of tho world, aa l hope you know. Hop
ing to soo you. I nm your friend and well
wisher, , CONSTANCE PENF.OSE.
Gordon thoughtfully considered the
Invitation nnd Anally accepted It. When
the evening named by Mrs. Penrose
dime, ho went up on the boulevard.
There was uothlng particularly ttn-
usunl In the situation, and yet In some
unexplained manner ns he entered tho
I’rnrcuo mansion ho wns conscious of
a strange excitement, ns If before the
evening wus over events would occur
that would make serious history for
more than one of the guests.
Mr3. Penrose mot him with n genuine
friendliness.
Ah. welcome, Mr. Reformer! I up-'
predate your coming out of your social
dungeon to see us. Y'oti cannot always
be living on heroics. There must be
some comedy to relieve the tragedy,
chV”
"Some kinds of tragedy cannot be re
lieved by any kind of comedy," Gordon
replied grimly. "But I'll promise not
to talk shop unless l nm drawn Into It.
You didn't ask mo to como for thut,
did you?"
Didn’t I? Ybu are the lion of tho oc
casion. Everybody Is talking about
you.”
“Let U3 change the subject then.”
“And talk of Miss Andrews?"
“No,” Gordon said coldly.
“No? Is that forbidden ground?”
She spoke seriously. "I am actually
Interested In her and lu all yon are
doing. Some time yon must tell me.
Will you?”
“Yes," he answered earnestly, a lit
tle ashamed of bis enrtness. "Of
eonrac I believe In It all, only I didn't
wish to seem to tug It In on this occo-
slotv” ,
I understand.” Mrs. Penrose an
swered brightly, and es Gordon passed
on she Introduced him to Professor
Emory of the unlyerslty.
Gordon bod heard of Professor Em*
cry and had read two of his books.
The man wns a scholar and had rend
everything In bis own line of sociology.
Without meaning to do so Gordon soon
found himself deep lu a discussion
with the professor over ono phase of
the social question, which one of the
professor’s books bad touched on—"The
Personal Element of BesponsibtUty For
Belief of Unjust Social Conditions.”
Gordon disagreed totally with the
professor's conclusions and frankly
told Mm so. The professor blandly
smiled and laid down another propotl-
latlonshlp.
He turned from the professor with a
feeling of relief nnd began to chat with
his sister.
Sbe wns the same careless, thought
less, superficial creature she bad ah
ways been, mid yet she had an a (top
tion for her brother that John Gordon
frit wns very real. It touched him,
even while he wns wounded by man)
things sbe carelessly uttered about hit
own choice of life.
"Father Is not very well.” she said
In reply to a question. "He fell one
day Inst week and had to be carried
home from the office. I feel worried
over him sometimes. I wish you were
at home again.”
"Do you miss me?"
"Do I? Y'ou know I do, John. Aren’t
you coming back ever?”
'T don't know. The old life seems
unreal to me.”
"Does this seem unreal?” She tapped
h!s arm with her fan and then de
scribed a little circle with It that in
cluded tho rooibs nnd tbelr brilliant
contents. “It steins very real to me,”
■he added with a light laugh.
John Gordon let I1I3 look go over the
Interior of that princely residence. AU
the soft, easy, luxurious appliances of
modern civilization within the ranch of
lavish wealth were evident on every
side. Velvet carpets, golden decora
tions, the most costly pieces of art,
wood carving from Bavaria, exquisite
medallions, portraits by Sandallo, and
paintings the price of nny one of
which would have been more' than the
life earnings of n. hundred families tn
the tenements—before he was aware h»
was putting flesh nnd blood values up
against all that physical luxury. Then
be suddenly looked into Mary’s face
anij said, with a smile:
To to continued.
Weak
Hearts
Are due to Indigestion. Ninety-nine of tni*
one hundred people who have heart trouble
can remember when it was simple Indiges
tion. It Is a scientific fact that all cases of
heart disease, net organic, are not only
traceable to, but are the direct result of tndU
gestion. AU food taken Into the stomach
which falls of perfect dlgestkm ferments tad
swells the stomach, puffing ft up tgalnstthe
besri. This Interferes with the ccfion of
the heart; and la the course ef time that
delicate bnt vital organ becomes diseased.
Kodot Digests What Yon Eat
and relieves the etomach of all nerrot#
strain tad the heart cf all pressure.
00 “““ ,r -
Prttotred by La DeWlTT« CO.,CHIOAQO.