Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1898-09-01
How Bingham uisSed His Chance

man. said Jack Bingham's friends,
one after another, as they saw his
ruddy cheeks turn pale, his springy,
elastic tread become dull and drag
ging, and heard less and less often his
CHEEKY if not exactly tuneful Whistle.
But to all their good advice ana ear
nest protests Jack turned deaf ear,
smiled a little, and kept at his tasks
the steadier.
None of his friends properly appre-
ciated Jacks unusual devotion to Ia
Dor, for none of them knew it's lncen-
tive-that he was in love. She was
dainty little thing, always admired by
men and rather looked down upon and
at the same time envied by her own
sex; at home the pet of her parents
and in society an imperious and eX-
acting young belle. Just the KING CT
girl, in short, with whom it WAS the
height of folly for Jack to be in love,
and consequently the object Of the
most ardent alteration ON his part.
Preserving a measure Of clear-head-
edness even in his worship, Jack plain
ly realized that as the head OF a
household where economy was neces-
sary his idol would prove melan-
choly failure. Resolving, therefore, to
earn enough money to prevent her
from worrying as to ways and means,
he worked early and late, steadily and
hopefully. The copy he turned out
was good in spite of it's volume; his
regular salary from his paper was in
creased, together with his duties; and
his income from outside work reached
an astonishing figure.
Still, the money did not come fast
enough to suit the impatient lover,
who thereupon began to worry and
fret. Now the man who works with
his brain sixteen hours day. and
worries and frcts in addition, has not
a long career of usefulness before
him, be his motives what they may.
Jacks eyes gave way first. Specks
and blurs floated in them, and through
them jumped pains that drew his head
down on his folded arms in spite of
himself His feet and hands grew
heavy, as if his blood had turned to
lead. Six months before he had gone
UD OF GOWN lllb once SldlIS III tuIcC
jumps. Now they seemed to grow
longer every day and often he stop
ped half way with a queer little eaten
in his side. Presently the pain that
gnawed at the back of his eyeballs re-
fused to yield even to sleep. Then
Jack grew afraid, but did not let his
fear keep him from his work.
In of him, sn1f in those
days and adopted the precaution of
reading over aloud whatever of i'm
portance he had written. One day it
came about that as he read, his
tongue seemed suddenly swollen and
useless. and he could not utter the
words his mind framed. He turned
to his typewriter and placed. as he
thought. the heading he desired on
the article he had written but could
not read
When the foreman in the composing
room saw 1.-The Love of Ethel intro
ducing a column of interviews on the
tariff, he laughed at first, and then,
remem bering Jacks looks of late,
grew grave. Soon he made pretext
for consulting Jack-but not about
the tariff article-and saw in a mo-
ment that the mischief was not caused
by whiskey.
Soon the managing editor came and
Jack was led away to a cab. babbling
thickly about Ethel, his work and the
money he had saved: money thas
proved a godsend in the long months
that followed For Jack was an or
phan. his friends We're careless, happy
ao-lucky bohemians, and brain fever
is an illness that demands the moss
skilLful of physicians and the most
caiHful of nurses. SO when Jack
came to himself again, very pale and
thin and quiet, he knew that his pre-
cious store must be drained low.
That troubled him little, however,
compared with his torturing doubt OF
Ethel. Why did he not hear from
her? Why did not she come to him
now that he was so much better! The
At q Taafyeo frnu-