The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1899-09-06
A STORY OF
TWO CIPHERS
When tho Old Man Wrote His
Check He Got Mixed with
His Figures.
BY w. II. ROSE.


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Obed Jarrett was II hard man. He
rather gloried In his hardness. A hard
man was man who couldn't be fool
cd. Obed Jarrett never was fooled.
In his private opinion the world was
made up of few honest men and n
great many fools and knaves. An
honest man was one who paid his way
and neither asked nor gave faVors.
Fools might call him hard, and knavcs
mignt snarl because he wasn't gullible,
But what cared Obed Jarrett?
The honest man snt ut his desk that
June afternoon with his pen loosely
dangling In his fingers and his check
book open before him. He was In no
hurry. To give away money WAS so
new Il sensation that he felt justified
In prolonglng it-not but that he could
amply afford 10 give the sum he had
fixed upon; 1t was the principle of the
thing that held him irresolute.
He was worth close to $4,000. There
was IL memorandum slip In the upper
right hand drawer that showed this
total In round figures. He could have
told the amount within IA dollar or two.
1t was II gilt edged property stocks,
mortgages, cash and little real cs-
tate.
III | was sold out tomorrow" said
Obed, smiling grimly, at would bring
every penny that I've totaled II at"
lie had won this comfortable prop
crty by shrcwdness rather than hard
work. For more than % years he had
,so.ss,.t .-.uvtrusvs- ana ioaned money
and snapped up unconsderod tlDan-
cial triilcs IN that same old office. He
slept In the rooms above II, and some
times fof days together he didn't leave
the building. There had been few
episodes to enlivcn the dullncss of this
money grubbing life, but tomorrow
one OF them was TO take place. To-
morrow his son, his only child. was to
be married.
InstnctIvcly his eyes turned to the
portrait above his desk-thc portrait
of Il brown haired young woman, with
smiling eyes and slightly parted lips.
AS he looked upon the gentle face he
felt n little tightening about the heart.
Dead four ana twenty years. Their
son was four and twenty, ana he mar
rled tomorrow. Their son. Had he
done his duty by their SOM He
thought 30. He had certainly given
him good schooling. The boy had
gone through college with credit TO
himself and his father and had helped
TO pay his way too. Obcd had wanted
him to study law, but he had love
for chemistry and, In company with n
fellow student had set UP nm Office OF
his own. They stnrted In as consult
Ing chemists and assaycrs and were
from all Obed could learn building up
fairly rcmuncratlve business. lie
was certainly a good boy, though per-
haps little lacking In that respect
for his father which begcts confidence.
1t seemed but day or two ago that
he had come to him and said:
Father, am going to marry"
1t was like IL blow TO Obcd.
swell, well" he presently said In his
testy way. "slncc It's MI settled, why
do you come 10 mci'
because think you should know
about It," said Arthur stoutly.
"You didn't think to consult me be
fore you took this step" said the old
man grimly.
you couldn't expect that, father"
said the son. 81 am no longer n
boy. Besides, you can't help but APP
prove Of her. She's the dearest girl.
Her name Is Alma Truman, and her In
Their Is chief accountant with Fancher
4 Co She's the eldest Of six, and
they're nwfully broken up at the Idea
Of her going That's the kind of girl
to marry, father the kind that Is miss
ed at home. But you must see her"
"IIow do you expect to support hcrW
inquired Obed dryly.
with these two hands and the cx-
replied Arthur
The boy had taken him around TO
the Trumans' house one evening, but
there were 80 many Trumans, and II
was only short call and he had
scarcely caught n glimpse of the girl.
And now the boy was going to marry
and leave him, he felt, forever.
Their boy. Had he always rcmcm-
bered that Arthur was their boy?
Would things have been different If
she had llycdi Would he himself have
become the dry, old, money making
machine he wasI God only knew
How happy they had been that brief
year. How ambitious he was for her
sake. How he toiled and planned.
And he remembered how she would
come to him and lay her soft, cool
hands on his and draw the pen away
and turn him round In his chair and
command him TO rest. Was she smil-
Ing down on him now as she had smil
ed down upon him then and as she al
most seemed To smile upon him from
the lifeless canvas?
Four and twenty years, and here he
sat, an old man. preparing n wedding
gift for their son who was to be mar
ried tomorrow. A gift for their son!
Yes, yes. 1t was custom-foolish per-
haps. He would give him check for
800. 1t was tidy sum and pretty
nearly as much cash as the boys fa-
ther had when he married. A hundred