Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1902-03-04
BY DICTATION
ny SAMUEL SAW rAauIN.

(COpNrlgll lsVv ny LrisF f2eD'y ~ ~ I
There come moments in the life Of |
every man when he stops and thinks.
This does not mean merely that he
gives careful attention to some prob
lem Of the hour, but that he takes a |
serious view Of life as whole; sur
yeys it; analyses it; tries to riddle its
meaning.
Such moment had come to Henry
Merton. Really there was cause for
him to view life with satisfaction, but
close study of his face would have
told any keen observer that hewas not
altogether satisfied The day marked
an epoch in his life-one on which his
friends were dropping in now and
then to.congratulate him-for he had
Just been promoted to the position of
general manager of the Western Star
Fire and Marine Insurance company,
q concern in which he had climbed up
from a start as Office boy Is years be-
fore.
But as he viewed his progress in
retrospect. his mind ran on something
Hike this:
eyes. l have doneit l have reaped
| the success l set out to win but what
does it amount to after all? 1t has
| been along fight, and 1 have sacrificed
a great deal to whit Perhaps have
sacrificed too much. When | began
as a messenger boy Jim Perkins had
| the start of meby year. Ihave often.
smiled up my sleeve at Jim since be-
gan to climb up past him. First spe-
cial agent, then general agent. and
now general manager, and poor old
Jim is still at his desk as a clerk. But
! reckon Jim is happier than l am for
! all that. l thought so yesterday when
his wife came in with that pretty boy
, of theirs, Just to see papa's new desk
in the new office Somehow it made
me feel as if Iwere missing something
that a man needs to make his life com
plete."
Then Merton's line Of thought was
! interrupted He had been standing
beside his desk with his hands crossed
i, under his coat-tails, watching the
t sign-writer who was putting gold let
: tiers. on the windows Of the company's
handsome new offices. The sign
writer was marking on the glass in
letters bigger than those that spelled
the company'sname: Henry Merton
General Manager"
"Here, my good fellow; that DOM
dc" said Merton, stepping forward tC
the mans side.
elbow will you have it, sir?"
"Just put that name in small let
tiers, and little off at one side" sale
& Merton, quietly. cit will look bet
: ter"
v That was just like Henry Merton
= Few men in his business had more rea
a son to pride themselves on the attain
X ment of marked success, for he haC
4 made his way in the world unaided
But there wasn't a grain Of vanity il
him. He was a modest, subdued, un
assuming sort of a man. One would
guess it by looking at him. He wa
\ tall, shapely, handsome; but it wa
r plainly to be seen that he was oh
s. liyious to his own comeliness as
q man. Vanity can be seen more read
m ily in a man than in woman.
Is This over, Merton began thinking
again, his thoughts taking a ney
4 tangent, and one that surprised him
Q Il wonder if ambition is a selfsl
thing? I've done well enough in
business way, and have no one t
thank for It but myself; but how man
people are there who have anythin,
re TO thank me for? There's Miss Trav
50 ers, who is the best stenographer
:y ever had in my office. She does NOR
nSdi good in q month than I've done in l
d. years. She doesn't know that / kno'
% it, but the reason I raised her salar
~ last month was because overhear
- one of the other stenographers sa
she is supporting her younger brothe
in college. She's a fine girl, too. It
wonder some man doesn't MARI
that girl"
Then Henry Merton whistled as
to himself long, low whistle. Th
very thought OF some other man MAJ
3 rying Alice Travers had made hin
IN Clinch his fists. buttill thatminute b
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