Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1889-03-01
TRAVELLING DAYS OVER.

Morgan had been on the road for one
| house about twenty years. This is a long
/ period Of travel. In less time than that
most men work up or work down. No
man can continue on a dead level as a
/ salesman during that time, even if his
/ habits are good. If he has ability he is
sure, with rare exception, to work himself
/ oil the road. If he is mediocre no one
house can afford to carry him for twenty
/ years. Morgan was the rare exception
/ just mentioned. He was an excellent
/ salesman, and his ability and success but
! served to weld him the closer to his work.
| The house had made him a partner long
since, but the business he controlled was
so large and so profitable that they all
knew, and he best, that to withdraw him
| and experiment with a new man would be
but playing with fire over magazine of
powder. So he went on his way year
after year, making no plans for the future
that would change his work or his life.
But his family, consisting of his wife
and their one daughter, Mary, a rompino
girl of twelve, was not of his disposition,
These two could not see husband and
father start off without a protest. The
wife had always on her heart burden of
anxiety about him; of dangers on rail-
roads, of his possible robbery and murder;
of the discOmforts of hotels, and the fear
u lis Ldi4lllS SICK among strangers. OQG
was naturally t1mld woman, and the re-
spOnsibility of the house weighed upon
her. The whole burden of Mary's growth
in body and mind her training, her COM
paniOns, and her pleasures were matters
the mother would gladly have shared with
the father, but she was generally COM
PEELED to decide them alone.
The fathers continued absence was
constant pain and grievance to Mary
There was never week but that she felt
deprived of some special outing because
he was not at home TO go with her. Sat
urday night and Sunday if he was where
he could run home, were so many solid
hours of happiness to them all, but to
Mary they were full of perfect bliss.
Morgan was known to all his friends as
q man who never worried. IF a train was
late he sat down and waited; if a customer
failed he always signed a compromise; if
he didn't get the best room in the hotel
he took what he could get; and he lost no
sleep in picturing how his competitors
might get ahead of him. He always left
home with the assurance that everything
would go on all right until he returned,
and when he went away ne thought Of the
two he loved as being happy and we'll.
But as he started on the trip he could
not shake of a slight feeling of anxiety
that had possessed him all the night, and
had grown since he aWOke. Their talk the
previous day had been about the entrance
of diphtheria into the neighborhood, and
Of the fatal case but two blocks away from
their door. Mary had complained of
slightly sore throat, but on Monday morn
ing declared it was entirely we'll again,
kissing him good-by with more spirit than
usual, as if trying to convince him of the
truth of her words, and send him away
assured and happy.
When he was seated in the cars the
shadows came over his spirits again and
began to torture him with doubts and pos
sibilities. 1t might be, he thought, that
her sprightliness of the morning was due
to fever, rather than health. He wished
he had looked into her throat, and he re-
GREETED that he had not cautioned his wife
about her. He nursed these fears until
he felt himself becoming wild with appre-
hension, and then he resolutely put the
thoughts aside, declared he was foolish
and would have no more of it. and devoted
himself to a companion and to his papers.
Men cannot always govern their minds.
These are Kingdoms that frequently rebel
against all government. Several times
during the day Morgan caught himself
going back to his morning thoughts and
he resoIuteIy changed the current. But
at night, try as he would, he could not
conquer them. Even his dreams took up
the forebodings of the day, exaggerated
and intensified them, and tortured him.
Next morning found him ont of sorts,
nervous and miserable. He had a long
drive to take In the country, but he shrank
from it as If he saw danger in the track.
All his intuitions seemed to be crying to
him to 60 home, but what he thought was
his common sense kept insisting that he
should 90 on with his business, and not
cross the bridge Of trouble until he came
90 It.
The day was one OF the loyeliast Octo-
Der days he had ever seen. His drive was
through twenty miles Of the best corn land
In Illinois. The black road was as dry as
a board, and as level as only q prairie can
be. The first effect Of the beautiful day
and pure air was invigorating. He en-
loved the drive through the street into the
country road. Then the broad fields, the
pleasant farm houses, the herds of horses
and cattle, the long Ossge hedges. the
perpetual but always surprised rabbit at
the road side, all these attracted and en-
tertained him, and his ride was successful
IN driving away his blues. His customer
seemed especially glad to see him; took
him to his house to dinners talked with
him Of important personal matters, and
gave him a large order for goods. He
burned back to the railroad feeling as
happy as he had ever done; took oat his
order-bock and figured up the amount Of
the bill and the profit as was mis- custom,
and then began to sing
Suddenly there came across MIN 3 wave
OF anxious worry and al his thoughts
new beck 20 the daughters sore throat and
the funeral he saw last Sunday. He