The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1900-06-11
THE BURDEN OF CHRISTOPHER.

'.
by Florence Converse
Christopher Kenyon had college ed
ucation and profitable shoe factory,
the latter being inherited from his
father after providing means for the
former. Something of a dreamer HING
self, he ran across Agnes Gillespie
whose father is a professor Of moral
philosophy. From HIM she had inher-
tied. and had developed on her own
hook. ideals. industrial and social. The
upshot was that Christopher under
took TO turn his profitable business
into cooperative Industry, to equal
lie social and economic conditions as
between himself and his workmen with
view to enteripg little wedge that
should even up things between the em-
ployer and the employed generally
The experiment was not successful.
Christopher swung u sturdily for
decade or more buoyed up by the faith
full Agnes whom he had married mean
time. Somehow his profits OF twenty
five thousand or so a year dwindled
and oddly enough his workmen were
not much better off by his loss. He
grew poorer but none of them became
richer. The evening up process resulted
only in making Christopher as poor as
his poorest workman and nobody was
getting 10 be any better off. A clergy
man, who il very fine fellow, the
professor and the wife all assisted TO
further the experiment with their
ideas but II persisted in working to-
ward failure. Incidentally Christopher
tried to buoy IL up by using trust funds
which amounted to a crime.
Meantime. old Peter Watson. who
ran a rival shoe factory. grew richer
and richer and founded churches.
schools and hospitals and did other
good works that contributed substan-
TALLY to the well being of the commu-
nifty although he indulged no coopera-
tive fancies but tried TO make all the
money he could. As a rule he was able
to undersel Christopher's factory and
had resources enough To comfortably
survive a strike as well az TO be help
ful I'm the community. The reader is
likely 10 be confused as to the propo-
sItion which the author may have in
tended, whether to indicate that social
ism lacks the elements or success or
whether the world is wrongly organ
ized. or whether II was only Christie
piers fault that the thing worked
wrong. But the Burden of Christo-
pher" Is a highly readable novel. pre-
senting a number OF we'll drawn char
acters and holding the miryor up to
some OF the pathos and some of the
comedy of industrial conditions. In
most OF the familiar examples OF actua,
experience such as the failure Of the
Dodge commonwealth community. IL
is quite as hard 10 discover the actual
causes OF disaster az II IL In the nc
titlous case of Christopher's burden
and the dreamers have the satisfaction
of knowing that after all failures are
the rule In business that Is not con-
Quoted on cooperative plans as well as
| IN socialistic industrial experiments.
published by Houehton. Miffiln &
Company. Price Si.5o)
AS THE LIGHT LED. by James New
ton Basket t. So -.
This IL a romance Of some interesting
folk resident I'm n Missouri section OF
the Mississippi valley. Its chief charac-
| ters are n young man and woman TO
| the manner born. whose fortunes are
followed together With the develop
| ment Of their characters tO middle life.
| As "A character study the reader feels
| that his author is telling him about real
people and tho life and local color are
| undoubtedly a faithful reproduction. IL
| II n homcly sort n - story. verp sweet
and convincing I'm its smiles and tears.
| Rent Hickman. who may he called the
hero. since he Ia the principal male per-