The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1899-07-25
CAREER OFF A
CAPT. i Ais
The Capital Was Acquired, but g
Tender Heart Prevented Its
Profitable Investment.


a
Z Tender Heart Prevented Its
4 Profitable Investment.
l had long had desire to become a
capitalist Lucille seemed to think It
smart to laugh at me for this extreme
ly laudable and perfectly natural am
bition. AS for her, she wasted her sub
stance In riotous living, spending ev-
cry cent of her salary on opera tickets.
imported toilet articles and tortoni bis
cult with q reckless disregard for the
future that could only mean one thing
namely, matrimonial hopes.
And, to tell the truth, Lucille was
attractive enough to warrant her hav-
ing some hopes in this direction and
could have had her pick any time
from half dozen young fellows, each
one of whom got almost as much sal
airy as she did.
But that has nothing to do with my
own ambitions, which were of very
different sort. say were, for I'm not
SO sure about them now, my first expe
rience as capitalist having rather I'M
settled my views of life for the time
being
l was very young indeed when l
first formed my ideas as to the desir-
ability of wealth. 1t was way back in
my childhood when old Mr.. Higgin-
son used to come to church in his great
So. Hf,.krr
l observed how the minister and the
elders crowded around him to shake
his hand, when he was such a hateful
old curmudgeon that / had privately
thought the Lord ought to have made
some sort Of public apology for per-
petrating him on the community.
"Oh, Higginson has got a lot of
money out at interest" my father
would say when ventured to wonder
why people made such fuss over a
dirty and disagreeable old man.
What marvellous power money out
at interest" must be, thought, when
it can transform even Mr.. Higginson
into an acceptable companion.
And so at that early age 1 was made
acquainted with the potency of wealth,
and l resolved that some day 1, too,
should have money out at interest"
When was made head stenographer
in big law office, considered my am
bition as good as realized. 1t had
seemed so far away before that I'd
never tried to save very much, but now
that it was fairly within my reach l
began to lay up money at frantic rate.
III you get another raise in your sal
airy, you'll be so stingy you'll take to
lunching out of the mucilage bottle and
wearing your bicycle suit to church."
declared Lucille in disgust
But just let her jeer and kept on
economizing, and at last there came a
day when / had $500 in the bank.
Mr.. Adams, friend of my fathers, in
vested it for me in a first mortgage on
a suburban cottage, and when the pa
pers were signed l went home flushed
and triumphant.
Congratulate me, Lucille" cried,
throwing myself into a chair and my
hat on the couch. 81 hat Investigated
mein moneys"
Lucille was trimming hat to wear
to the theater that night, one of those
silly white tulle anairs that a single
shower will transform into an imita-
ton custard pie before your very eyes.
''Huhp' she exclaimed, 81 believe you
think you've done something really
fine. Sara Dunning, if you don't look
out, your nose will grow hooked just
like Mr.. DunkelspiePs down at the
pawnbroker's shop"
what do / careY / retorted gayly.
'I've got money out at interest, Luz
ellie. Do you realize what that means"
ut means that you've worked like
slave and denied yourself all pleasure
for a year and a half to get it, and
you're thin as q shad and yellow as a
lemon. Come on and go to the theater
tonight, and forget that you're cap
italist long enough to enjoy yourself,
that's a dear"
But the fever was in my blood, and
wouldn't listen to her.
So went on putting money in the
bank and looked forward eagerly to
the time when the interest from my
investment would begin to come in.
1t was paid promptly enough the
first quarter and the second. Then it
lapsed. Six months went by and no
interest.
at seems to me-" remarked Lucille
one day, that you'd better 'investi-
gate that money in dead earnest"
"Oh, don't worry Yourself" l retort-
ed snappishly. / was nervous of late,
and besides. Mr. Higginson was al
lowed to be as cross as he liked, re-
membered.
well, it's great thing tC have mon
ey out at interest" she responded air.
lily, fitting her sailor hat over her nose
and shaking out her rustling skirts
preparatory to going out. She was
really outrageousiy pretty.
At the door she met some one COM
ing in. A pale. forlorn looking old wo-
man, with a pinched face and an ap-
pearance of having cried for six
months.
SIS this Miss Dunningg she asked
1 assured her it was, and she pro-
ceeded timidly, 81 called to see you
about that mortgage"
"Ah, yes" l said. Fastening to shut
the door on Lucille. who was lingering
in the hall in an unprincipled fashion
which l could not approve.
We've been unable to meet our
payments lately" went on my visitor
in a depressed tone, land yesterday
your agent sent me word you intended
to foreclose Oh. Miss Dunning, don't!
Please don't be hard on us. My poor
husband has been sick In bed for a
year, and If we lose our little home it
will kill him.
Here the poor creature burst out
crying, and reached for my handker-
chief. feeling somehow that being a
capitalist wasn't such fun as I'd imag-
ined.
"Oh, Miss Dunning," proceeded my
guest as soon as she was able to speak,
''if you knew how hard we worked to
build that housed We put the savings
of years into it, thinking that in our
old age we'd have a roof over our
heads. And now we must lose 1t all"
A fresh burst of sobbing interrupted
her, and / swallowed a succession Of
what seemed to be cobblestones.
tried to think what Mr.. Higginson