The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-12-24

enough.
And perhaps you had better not see
her again, f." he suggested.
VERY well, " 1 replied, without looking
up And when at last 1 did raise my
head / was alone. The man who would
separate two souls because of one mans
error-another's fine sense Of honor had
gone out, silently, leaving me alone with
the heaviest load my hurt heart had been
colled upon 10 bear.
H. 1893 CHRISTMAS OF GAIN.
| Between the time of my fathers death
and the night Of my unhappy interview
with Gen. Lawrence Van Etten 1 had
reached the age of 81 years. I was man
l was ready to face life for myself. And,
| according to the scheduled values of the
several items of my fathers estate,
| counted against the definite claims filed
against it, l could seek the hand of Lucille
| Van Etten, with the approval of her
! father, when l had earned S418, 1865. So.
! When had figured the matter up to
| my satisfaction, if that is the possibly
| correct word to use when a man isn't
| satisfied at all, I thought of several
| things. There was the thought of run
ming away with Lucille, marrying her
| whether her father was willing or not;
| but knew she would never dlsobey him
| in the matter, and l felt that it would
have shaken my love for her to have
found that she would. So that
| solution Of my life's problem was
out of the question There was
the thought Of definitely and
finally giving Lucille up, coupled with the
idea Of making the act irrevocable-if |
could find any good woman who would
marry me under the circumstances, but I
had rather die than do that. I thought Of
going to work to pay off the debt, hopeful
and sturdy and patient under all the dis
appointments that might come, but l
called myself fool for thinking of such
a thing; with such a load as the final set
Element would leave when the property
would be finally sold in December, a fell
low with his legal education not yet COM
pleted would find the interest alone, year
| by year, more than he could pay. I
thought Of repudiating the whole thing
legally the responsibility was not mine; l
| could wait until Lucile's father should
| die-and then
Well, knew Lucille very well. knew
| how she believed in every conclusion,
| every thought, every idea possessed by
/ her father. / know that his grave would
be wider barrier between US than his
| living determination could be. For the
| living voice might soften, the living heart
might relent. But death would build a
wall that would be sternly impossible. l
| thought of suicide. No mere man, in my
| place, could have avoided the thought. 1t
would have seemed natural to many, easy
to some, to have shut the opened door of
manhood and to have dragged open the
CHASTITY gates of death. But put the
thought away. did not even consider it
seriously. And don't know am not
sure-just why rejected the idea. 1 am
uncertain whether / shrank from it be-
cause it would have been cowardly-or
because 1 was too great coward to &C
that way.
| threw myself into woodwork. 1t is
the most blessed thing a kind God has
given to the men who must live in world
in which sin and suffering exist the
curse that followed sin-the most fitting
punishment omnipotence could devise
has proven balm-a benison--a cure.
How WORTHWHILE l waited for De
cember.
And so-even as all things find an end
in time-December came at last. And to-
morrow would see the sale of all the prop
erty that had belonged to Roscoe Wynd-
ham.
There was one piece of property haC
hesitated about placing in the list, trac
of fine land near Lake Superior. When
was boy of II father had given ms
S., 700. He had said I was to trade with
it as pleased, and that what made wa
to be mine. The money went into banl
| Ava bAAOp JOaASs Al my hdAhOy bub AdN
drawn 1t out and purchased this pine
land, only short time before fathel
died. l was not of age. had no lega
document to show that l had done bust
, ness for myself. The money 1 had eX
pended had been gift from my father
Looked at in that way, the land was hi
to go to his creditors.
? But there was another way of lookinl
at the matter The money had been in
lal ac.gr l., f,,1I
f | final sense of the word. 1t was mine
absolutely mine-as much as the half dol
+ lar a clerk hands his boy is the boys own
!. and at the time he gave 1t to me / didn'
; | doubt the gift was no greater, relatively
\ in my fathers mind, than 80 cents from
q man on salary of 81 900 a year woulC
, have been, and had traded for myself
just as the giver had intended. I had no
Z even asked his advice before making tn
! purchase. The man whose advice l hau
: taken had told me the land would brin
/ $1,000 within three years. 1t was hare
I thing to have to give up this property
: this prospect of gain-and | doubt if an,
T Of the creditors would have insisted on
and doubt If they could have held il
against my claim, if they had.
|, had, however, gotten some of the idea
r of Gen. Van Etten pretty firmly fixed il
my mind. Honor seemed a grand thinl
81
would give self-respect, about the onl
= possession | was likely to gain in the i'm
| mediate future Besides, to look at TIN
matter from a worldly standpoint, IS, DOC
1 more or less, didn't matter much to MAJ
1 who must raise more than 100000 befor
v he could hope for marriage with the VIC
/ man of whom he despairingly though
Q every day, deliciously dreamed ever
d night. The land went into the list-a
$1,000
S The auction sales of the real estate tina
e had belonged to Roscoe Wyndham wa
sure to bring together a very large mum
t Der of dealers in that sort of property
Storm u Steele, my lawyers, had tn
Q documents necessary TO give any inquire
: the fullest information regarding an,
g piece of property desired. Deeds, mort
D cages, contracts, abstracts of title map
) and plans and plots, advertisements an(
l newspaper clippings-they were read,
5 and willing -anxious-to make ever,
7 step plain to the intending pur
{ chaser. But, of course, few would
/ go carefully over much of this mass O
4 documentary detail Some had examined
actual tracts for themselves other
4 had general ideas regarding values il
the various localities represented; still
. others would be guided by the advice o
0 those having, or claiming to have defnit,
knowledge, or by the price given in tn,
l inventory as prepared by the appraisers
5 The inventory, condensed and abridged