Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1894-08-30
PAIR OF THEORISTS.

! When Nine. de Stael declared, in
| the generalizing method peculiar to
! the feminine mind, that to know
everything was TO forgive everything,
she swept condemnation and, to n
large extent, criticism out OF her hori-
zon, and made the loye-lighted out
look of charity limitless.
! To certain rigid natures the French
woman's epitome of the Christian
creed bears no appeal and to the
honorable soul of one, John Thorpe,
it would, If presented to him. have
appeared as valuelesS as that valu-
| able equir lent in the making of per-
! sonal histo y-an unbounded ambition.
UneXpectcd heir to a distant rela-
tiye's fortune-a relative of whom
ugly facts had come to light as to dis
honorable speculationsJoh Thorpe
refused to benefit by the Will. Old
Anthony Thorpe, who, in the amass-
ing of his fortune, had given his con-
science such liberal license. would
have smiled sardonically had he
known the powers of the inward mon
itor in his heirs Quixodc soul.
When questioned as to his career,
Thorpe said he preferred to live on
his wits. These commodities were not
such as might be termed brilliant in
the brain OF this deyotee to his own
particular view of right theory, and
his friends predicted sack-cloth for
apparel and ashes for fires of coal.
Some years after the termination Of
John Thorpe's college career his father
had heavy losses, and shortly after
ward died, when the allowance which
had made the son Independent and
enabled him 70 follow his amateur.sh
taste in art melted into thin air.
Within month or two from the
date of these universities Thorpe found
himself acknowledged heir of old An.
thony. Fate had indeed Haunted her
fickleness In the face of the faithful.
but she was In a measure defied when
this John-o'-Dreams, with little care
for the pinchlngs of poverty. took up
his abode in garnet. with his paint
box, his easel and his dog.
Thorpe's appearance. his length and
lankineSs Of stature, had an oddly
almost fantastic, which was also not
without a certain distinction. He re-
sembled a Vandyke portrait suppos-
ing that painter of style to have sur
veyed his sitter through the medium
OF convex mirror, thereby exagger.
ating at every point his leanness and
lengthiness The long oval of the thin,
refined face might have been accused
of feminity but for the lire of the
tirm-lipped mouth and the reserve OF
the kindly eyes. These were yirile
enough
The singularity of Thorpe's appear
ance had its own fascination for ut
least two Of his friends. Their gaze
Of untiring admiration was as fcryent
as that which might have shone in
the eyes of the ancients when they
worshiped the beauty of a Greek god.
These two loye-bllnded beings were
no other than shaggy terrier, known
by the unbaptismai name Of Toddles,
and sick child, who lived under the
Snlht AOOl5 anu was at lHt mercy VI
the same shiftless landlady.
'Toddles." said Thorpe one day tthe
dog was lying with ears cooked, listen
ing for the landlady's foot on the
stairs with the approaching meal, III
| were little more gifted and you
were little less hungry, there would
be more money between US, my
friend
Toddles was unabashed by this SUR
on his gastronomic powers; he even
cheerfully assented, by wagging his
tail, which, in his reeumbent position,
made a topping. sound on the bare
floor.
In a few moments the door opened,
and the landady's head thrust itself
forward.
Please. sir, Matte Smiths dying"
"All right" said John Thorpe quiet
", without, however, removing the
pipe from his mouth or his eyes from
the mixing Of hake-white on his pal
cite; I'll come"
His apparent eallousnass was due
to his landlady's popularity He had
discovered long since that "a pas
sionate prodigality of expression was
her usual method Of speech.
He found the child much exhausted
with violent fit Of coughing, but