The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1893-08-23

You know just as we'll as do, Henry,
that I've stood by you and paid every
thing from having n dollar beefsteak
ready to put on your eye whenever you
got into trouble even to getting you
properly matriculated. l don't blame
you, you know, that you accept hospi-
talities from wealthy people to come and
spend your summers with their sons,
learning to smoke big French brier
pipe with stem that makes rising on
your cheek, but in that part of your let
ter where you ask for moro means you
pierce me to the heart.
Could you not come homo and spend
your vacation where there's naught to
make afrald-where we will give you
your victuals and exercise for nothing?
There with the wealthy, as You say, you
have to spend some money to keep up
your end Of the business. OF course, if
they ask yon what you'll have, I'd like
to have you ask them what they'll have.
But now, honest, don't it look kind of
scandalons for Inc and your mother to
be here, year i'll and year out, eating
plain victuals and wearing out your old
clothes while you are having sort OF
hiteyttey time of it with the wealthy?
Naturally you are Il good, solid boy. and
not bad looking nor bad behaved, and
you've got good blood too
What l mean by that is that You've
got no inherited traits whatever. Your
father never took Il glass of liquor Till he
was ono and twenty, AMI then purely bv
accident. and your mothers folks are all
abstainers. liiever see such moral people
as they are. They never use tobacco i'm
form, on1 ,.,,,, i,,,,,,.. ,I,,,t
have taken liquor myself wa; when Won
was born, when peace was declared in
1860, ana when Sullivan was dlll.gcd lv
Corbct; and then drug out Of the ring iy
the heels I've hal to take Il ycarto con
vince Your moth"r's folks that was not
continually under the influence of ruu,.
Your mothers family is SO good That
they'd be real good if they didn't knew
they was so blamed good.
But You must not try to be ST. good us
they are. have been happier and better
since gave ii up. One day great JOY
came TO me. a voice said inside of me:
''Be Of good cheer, You cannot be so
good as your wife's folks. No man was
ever so good as his wifc's folks. Give it
up. 1t will drive you to drink Do the
best You can, and, verify, you will be
surprised" So a great wad of peace
seemed to settle down on me, and am
indeed blessed.
All of our folks, though. have been
plain, honest, hand to mouth people.
You are the first one to go to college and
find out the weak places i'll the Scrip
tnres.
You are the smartest young man that
we have seen in many of our monotonous
generations, and knew more about things
when you was Il freshman than any one
III the whole history of our race, nclud-
ing your mothers folks, for quite bunch
of centuries. For 1000 years we have
called the whale fish in our family.
though there was three generations of
whalers on my side and two on your
mothers that didn't know any better.
You speak in your letter Of two mat
ters that are bothering you-frst, the love
of very beautiful girl, whose daguerre-
otype you inclose, and, second, tho need
of 500 10 buy 4 rowing machine with.
Possibly it would be as well to refer to
the money matter first.
You have always been frank with me.
Henry. especially about money matters
That has made me hustle more than |
otherwise would have done. So | will
be frank with you. If you can get along
without the rowing machine | wish Won
would. make no bones of telling you
chat times was never scarcer than at
present.
Bank after bank departs.
Who hath not lost bank2
have already begun to economiZe in
every possible way. Last winter went
without an overcoat and wore yonr
sweater to church. This summer I've
wore your tennis cap when went out
anywhere, AID it is not always appropri-
ate. 1t looked odd on old man Taylors
coffin when was pallbearer last week,
but love to make sacrifices for my boy
IN order that he can get refined and ma
circulated and graduated and hazcd All
these things fit you in future life for
keeping store and an inside job, whereas
have had to work in the hot sun and
the frost for 30 years come April next.
The question Of finance have studied