Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1888-07-15
s.Upon my couscnence"- repeated Low

''Oh, very well, then. let your conscience
feed you till next market day. I have moth
ing to give you for dinner Nine Lovets
declared.
Lovets hung his head, for he knew this was
an argument to which he had no answer
He took of his oyercoat, and Immediately
his ideas changed entirely. Conscience re-
manned in the pocket of the coat hung upon
the wall, and Lovets at once felt light and
free and more like himself Once more il
seemed to him that nothing in the world
belonged - other people; that it was all his
by right. The aptitude for appropriating
and consuming everything came back to
him.
''Ah! All! my good friends, now you won't
get off SO easily" he cried, rubbing his hands,
and he promptly put on his coat again to
hasten back to the market.
But, strangely enough, he had scarcely got
it on when his impulse stopped short. He
seemed to himself to be two men. One, with
out the overcoat, impudent and unscrupu-
lous; the other, with it, timid and modest.
Although he found himself animated by
the best intentions he did not give I'D his
idea Of going back to the market. "Per-
haps," he thought, 81 may end by getting. the
better OF it.''
But the nearer he got to the market the
faster his heart beat, and the more he felt
impelled to show somo kindness to all these
/ poor people who worked in the rain and
mud from morning to night to gain two
copecks. He no longer thought of taking
other peoples property. On the contrary,
he felt his purse burden to him now he
realized that it contained, not his money,
but his neighbors'.
| "Eere are fifteen copecks for you, friend"
he said to a peasant, giving him the money.
"Why do you give it to me, simpleton?"
at is to make up for my former injus-
tices. Pardon me, for the love of God"
| "May God forgive you, then"
/ In this way he went through the market,
/ giving away all his money, and when it
came to an end he no doubt felt great
weight lifted from his mind. Nevertheless
/ he became very thoughtful.
"I have certainly caught some Illness" he
said again to himself 81 had better go home,
and can take the opportunity of collecting
together all the poor meet by the way, and
giving them meal:H and he proceeded to do
as he had said. He picked up numbers of
beggars on the road, and brought them into
his courtyard At the sight of them Nine
Lovets held up her hands in horror, asking
what he would do next. Lovets came up to
her and said in a caressing tone:
"Just see these good people have brought
you, my little Theodosia Feed them, for
the love of God" But he had hardly had
time to hang his coat upon the peg when he
again felt clear of all impediments. Seeing
from the window all the beggars of the town
! assembled in his courtyard, he could not I'M
derstand what they meant by coming there.
What were they come fora Would he have
to 90 out and beat them all'
''What are all these people doing here?" he
asked, going toward the courtyard.
What All these people9 They are the
worthy vagabonds you have just told me to
feed replied Nine Lovets, dryly.
"Let them be turned out this minute" he
cried angrily. and he rushed about the house
like mailman. He paced up and down the
rooms long time, repeating necessarily,
what can have happened to me!"
How Yves it that man who used to be ex-
act, even fierce, in the fulfllment of his
professional duties had suddenly become
hmpas rag?
''Theodosia Petrovna, my good woman, for
heavens sake have me tied up" he entreated.
81 feel that today l am capable of COM
uniting follies which it would take year to
repair"
Nine Lovets saw that her husband must
be very i'll indeed. So she put him to bed
and made him swallow a hot draught.
After about quarter of an hour it oc-
Cured to her to go and search the pockets Of
her husbands coat, to see if he had copeck
left. One of them contained an empty purse;
in the other she found scrap of dirty, oily
paper As soon as she had unfolded this
paper, she cried out:
''Ah, here's an explanation of the tricks he
has been playing US; he had Conscience in
his pocket" and she began to think. What
puzzled her was how to get rid of Conscience,
and TO whom she could pass it on. She did
not wish to crush with one blow whoever she
should choose as the victim, but only to cause
him a little temporary Inconvenience. After
some consideration she made up her mind
that she had better bestow Conscience upon
the Jew banker, Brjotski, the promoter of
great commercial enterprise, and director of
innumerable railway companies.
''His back is broad enough, at any rate"
she said to herself, sit won't hurt him"
Having decided this, she slipped Conscience
carefully into a stamped envelope, upon
which she wrote Brj otSki's name and address,
and then threw it into the letter box.
"Now," she said, going back to her hus-
band, you can go to tho market boldly"
Briotski was seated at dinner surrounded
by his family. One of his sons, boy 10
years old. was next him; this child was pom
dering over banking transactions.
''What would happen, father" he said, eff
Invested the money you have given me at
20 per cent. a month? How much should L
have at the end of the year!'
SAT simple or compound interestf' asked
Brjotski.
''Oh, compound interest, Of course"
CAT compound interest that would come to
forty-fye roubles and seventy-nine copecks,
not counting the fractions.
Then. father, | shall invest it Like that"
''Invcst it by all means, my boy, but be
careful that you get a very good security"
On the other side of the table sat another
of Brjotskis sons, who was years Old. He
also was occupied with an elementary prob
lem in mental arithmetic. Further off sat
two more, who were both engaged in calcu-
lating the amount of interest one owed to the
other on loan of sugar candy.
Opposite Brjotski his beautiful wife sat in
state, holding in her arms her baby girl, who
already clutched instinctively at her moth
er's gold bracelets. In short. BrjotsN was
happy man
he was Just tasting new sauce, so deli
cious that he would willingly have had the
sauce tureen decked with old lace and ostrich
feathers, VIXEN a servart handed him the let
ter Re had hardly taken it when he became