Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1874-01-29

mo, indeed, !" said Bryan, coldly, for
him. "Why, father does not care abou,
wealth; he would give all the gold that
ever was coined for one ounce of good
blood-an honorable name Is his strong
est passion"
Annie sbrank little from her lover
| felt little that he did not understand,
! perhaps that he undervalued her; then,
| with little culver in her voice, which
went to Bryan's heart, she said, softly:
"Was not my fathers an honorable
name. He was called Honest John
/ Bell"
ayes, indeed, noble name; something
to be proud of. / shall tell my father
that, Annie"
Robert Bell, well pleased with his sis.
ter's engagement, was strangely angry
with her for insisting on the postpone
ment of the marriage until Randolph
BRYAN could see his father, obtain his con
sent, and return.
"Obtain his consentW he said, with a
sheer; "you talk as If that was certain;
YOU know little of the pride of these
| Southern dons."
Annie grew little pale, but she an
swered, steadily:
1.-THE more danger there is Of Mr..
Bryan's refusal, the more necessity there
| is that his son should not take his consent
for granted"
Robert was silenced, but by no means
pacified. He fastened to his wife, who
was reclining on d couch In her dressing.
room, resting after round Of visits.
"How have things gone to-day9" she
asked, quickly. .
"Worse and worse. have had TO call
in everything we could get"
"Annie's one hundred thousand dol
lars?'
SWALLOWED up long ago, poor child
That is what makes me half mad at the
| idea Of her letting Bryan 60 home with
out her. He would never miss that hun
dred thousand dollars; he has more
wealth now than he knows what to do
with-as his wife Annie would have been
splendidly provided for, and she would
| have owed it to me, so that If had never
been able to pay her cent, / should not
have been troubled. Now-well, / can
not help it, | could not command For.
tune; have done as well for her as for
myself"
"Is it too late to make some provision
for herr The place at Newport is safe
| you bought that in my name. If this
| house could only be secured to Annie"
"Capital! will see to it at once. To-
morrow everything may be discovered,
| and then it will be too late. II Is only
| four O'Clock, and Emmonds never leaves
his Office before five. Make an excuse
| for me if am late for dinner''--and
Robert Bell hurried away.
For months he had been living the
| feverish life OF one who knows that more
than fortune, reputation, his right to a
place among honorable men, rested as
much on chance as does the stake which
the desperate gambler has just thrown
upon the fatal red or black. His fathers
fortune had long been sunk-his own
earnings had gone before-his wife's
dover had been expended in furnishing
the house at Newport, and the yet more
extensively arranged house in the city.
Sarah had been reared in luxury, and
must not be asked to sacrifice her accus-
toned surroundings. They must live up
the income which her family supposed
! them to possess--to be suspected Of being
in any strait would be fatal. Expensive
houses, rich furniture-these were the
capital on which he traded-these gave
confidence to depositors. And when
| losses followed losses, and nothing that
was properly their own was left-what
there Why, credit was more than ever
necessary to them-and confidence makes
credit--and so on to the end--the bitter
end of ruin and shame. Am sketching
a strange, fanciful picture? Is the picture
not portrait the truth of which every
days experience may verify? Must il,
shall 1t be ever thus? 0 mothers, to
whose honored hands the Giver of life
has committed the first guardianship,
the first guidance of the future man, will
you not sacrifice your little vanities to
the grand possibilities of your position
Will you not become, as you may, the
regenerators of society, by teaching your
children to prize unsullied honor above
wealth? to think the gaze and envy of
their fellow creatures a poor exchange for
mind at peace, and a heart on which
rests the sunlight of Gods favorY We
speak to mothers, because we believe that
in the nursery often the mold has been
cast that shapes the future life; but we
must not linger-the end is near.
For few weeks longer Robert Bell was
able to stave off the coming ruin. Its
shadow was upon him during all those
weeks, and perhaps none but the simple
Annie, who had seen the deep depression
of his lonely hours and his reckless gay.
ETY. in society, could have been surprised
when the last blow fell. To her the sur
prise was utter. No dream, no faintest
suspicion Of the truth had ever dawned
upon her. How could the daughter of
Honest John Bell suspect poverty,
ruin, where all the appliances Of luxury
were SEEM 1t was yet early. Annie had
taken her breakfast alone-by no means
an unusual event in that selfindulgent
household. The French maid of Mrs.
Bell came to ask that "mademoiselle
would have the bonts to come to the cham
Der of madam" Annie found her sister
in-law surrounded by trunks half packed,
while both bed and couch were covered
with laces, silks, and boxes of jowelry.
Sarah, where are you going" ex-
claimed the astonished Annie.
"Hush-sh.sh, Annie!--close the door.
cannot trust a servant except Fanchette."
"And now the door is closed, what Is
the matterY-where is Robertw
1.-THE matter Is, Annie, that Robert has
failed. He and his partner have lost
every thing. They cannot pay sixpence
on the dollar
"Cannot payl 0, Sarah, what will be-
come of their creditors 7" cried Annie.