The Albany register. [volume] (Albany, Or.) 1868-18??, 1875-01-29
McyEY,s VENTURE.

McvEY,s VENTURE.
It is a year ago this November since
McVey gave mp the editorship of the
Tarrytown NetOs. He says it doesn't
pay" said Squire Brice at Potts drug
shop that night. "Why, he took up
that paper when he left college, and
bought house and lot on it. Doesn't
pay, indeed u "I think Mac would
have liked us to run him into Con-
gress," said Potts, spreading pitch
plaster. "He'u take leading part in
politics in New York, you'll see. T"
"Well, Mac'n make his mark, there's
no doubt of that" said the Squire.
But Tarrytown was out of temper with
McVey. Everybody had subscribed
their own county. 'It was none of
your tuppenny village sheets" as the
Squire said tonight. "The serial
stories and poems on the first page
were of A l order; and as for the
leaders, you might look over the New
York dalies o long time before you
found political matters dealt with as
vigorously. Mac handles the other
party without gloves, in n way which
makes the articles of those city fellows
0onfoundedly lame. Where else will you
the sly ailusions to the doings of the
ancient god and goddesses Macs
classical education tells there That
magnificent piece of his, now, on the
Credit Mobilier business, that ended
with 'Quis custodiet ipsos custodes p
That was neat, sir, neat. I'm not sur
prised New York has got him. It swal-
lows up the brain of the country,
SIR"
McVey, sitting in his dismantled
Office (he was to leave in the midnight
train), felt it was time that his brain
found it's true work in New York. He
was quite assured of the vigor of his
logic, the delcacy of his taste, the
breadth of his culture. Men," he
told his wife, stwith half NV ability
have coined fortunes in New York and
Philadelphia. The kings of journalism
began without shoes to their feet.
Here am j, grown gray-headed with
doling out ideas to these village folks,
and what has it paid? The house cost
81, 500, and that with the S., 900 in
bank is the sum total of my life's work. +"
"We have lived very comfortably, ;"
ventured Mary. 90 TIE children have
always been well fed and clothed, and
now the boys are through college and
ready to go into business. Gould you
have done better ia New York ?' '' You
shall see, yeu shall see |" smiling 81
settled the house and bank, stock on
you today. Molly. Its but drop
in the bucket compared to what we will
have two years from now" McVey
meant to leave his wife and children
behind for the first year of his venture.
By that time the golden food would
would have begun. New York would
have discovered the quality of man who
had come to It at this late day. He looked
about his Office nova large, airy
room, opening at the back into gar
den where he had raised vegetables ;
Dicky, the local editor. and three
printers going out to weed with him
when slack of work. In the closet still
lay some mammoth pumpkins, two or
three sacks of -four and barrels of po-
tatoes. which old Durborow had brought
in TO pay for his advertisement. A
ssliserabIy petty way of doing business II
he Thought. He took up a copy of
the NeDs5; there were the funeral
verses, kept in type to serve for every
death there were the glaring head
IncendiariSm stalks rampant in our
midst 49, the report of Miss Prices
school examination and the soul-stirring
pathos of the va1edictory the jokes
about our gallant friend Joe Dutton's
visits to Crows creek, and a certain
Young lady there. How small it was
stale. provincial No wonder his brain
had contracted In such jail bounds.
'sNo, God knows it hasn't pai1 r. cried
McVey, tragicany, thinking of the ten
talents buried in this napkin.
McVey did not come to this city as do
the majority of adventurers, with but
the chance Of good luck or work. Wood
(who left Tarrytown twenty years ago,
and who was reputed to have acquired q
princely fortune hefe) had obtained q
position for him on the Clarion, new
paper lust started, Z. with an immense
capital to back it, he wrote, s' and
party influence" Wood met him at
the ferry. Come up- Wen give you
d shake-down," he said. Our girls
are at boarding. school, SO we can afford
To keen house in town" The house -
turned out to be two rooms IN the third
story of q snowy looking building. fur
nished with sofas that turned into beds,
and tables that were wardrobee, and
bookcase that resolved itself into gas
stove and canned soups, rancid butter,
and meat, with which Mrs. Wood
cooked their supper. washing up the
dishes and then seating herself IN full
dress. What would Mary, with her
great cellars and pantries full OF stores
for winter use, think of this sham show.
this tid-bit, hand to-mouth way OF lie
We have to economic" said Wood
stmy income doesn't run over $4,000,
and what with the girls schooling and
rents, etc" McVeyss salary had never
been e-tenth that sum but compared
to this his home had been luxurious as
that of am Irish king. Wood handed
him q little newsPaper. g Ia that the
Clarion 90 cried McVey in dismay.
ssThere is no room there for q man to
show ability" ."You've no idea OF the
this x s;za e. Is is to be terse, brilliant,
epierammatic. - McVey, in the dusty,
stidinR Office Of the Clarion, found him
self showed about as the New Zealander
in London. He had been wont to lu-
bricate for days over his weekly lead
nrc "a I,n,a The manager thrust dis