New-York tribune., 1903-04-19
Career Of His Fathers Son.
BY l.. PARRY TRUSCOI~r.


stood In considerabl BILE awe before dying had con-
siderately bequeathed to her his living image
in a slightly more manageable form. Like
most women Mrs. Hayes prone to concen-
tration. especially in matters of the heart and
two exactly of a kind might we'll have proved
an embarras de riChesse. But, left with only
one, and that a small one she re-establIshed
herself in her native village and contentedly ap-
piled herself to the WaShtub and the ironing
board for the maintenance of herself and the lit
tie Johnnie until he should be of an age to
realize her great expectations of him and prove
himself the man his father was
Just about clever Scholard, too, explained
Mrs. Hayes to any one who cared to listen
None of her friends and relations had seen this
wonderful man of hers in the flesh; She mao
met him in London while in service there. and
had only returned to the country at his death.
But they were not allowed TO forget HIM, ana the
tale Of his numerous attainments was told and
told again. He had left only a very few pounds
worth of furniture behind him, but. according
to his wife, he had been 'most too clever for
money making-one of those men 50 topheaVy
with brains that they cannot conveniently Stoop
to pick up a mere weekly wage. And, then he
had died quite young, before he had been given
his chance" a common Iaborer. a farm hand.
keeps himself from the time he is released from
school, but it is notorious that men of talent
take longer to start themselves in independence;
some times the tWenties see them still only
thinking of doing it, the thiTteS surprise thenl
with the task unaccOmplished. Every one knows
that brains take longer to develop than indus
try-Or. at any rate, all Mrs HaNeS'S intimdteS
knew it, having had the theory st forth to them
in hOmely language many times. And he never
had his chance YOU understand me- she would
end: was just snapped off like Il bud as the
frost catches
But Johnnie, lucky boy. joined his mothers ro
bust constitution to his fathers intellect she
aVerred and the constitution. at any rate,
seemed quite in evidence. And. if they wanted
to what his father looked like let them look
1T Johnnie, said his mother, his living picture
Judged thus by Johnnie. his father seems to
have had a sturdy, Stumpy figure. a round. blunt
featured face, powerful white teeth. shock of
stubby. bleached hair and prominent light
blue eyes that We're wont to stare unblinkingly
during ii conversation at whatever object first
llEt hpi o1Z all add 1pd tn
iuctance to say word more than the absolutely
necessary A common enough type in that
neighbCThOOd yet not even that neighbOrhOOd's
precOnceived idea of a of genius
But, if any smiled, they were kindly folk and
took care to do it only behind the mothers back.
During Johnne,s passage from a heavy baby
into a healthy, hearty boy. Mrs Hayes was
spared half the pangs of motherhood She gave
away the last of his petticoats without sigh
with her own hands. to an accompaniment of
smiles instead of tears she cut close the mop of
hair which had always refused to respond to her
efforts to entiCe it into curls. She in such
hurry for him to attain mans estate. and to
show forth to a wondering world the heritage
his father had left him. that she hurried him
with all her might through his early years John
ME never grew out of his clothes like other boys.
He was forced to turn them up. the trousers
half way to his knees, and the sleeves to his ell
bows. before he could move in Them and they
were always beyond patching before his limbs
overlook them. When he five years old she
publicly announced her intention of calling him
John" as a weightier and more fitting name.
But he so Enthusiastically Johnnie" that 10
one could remember to follow her example and
half her time she only managed it herself to end
q sentence started too nimby with a 'Johnnie''
that had slipped out
As soon as he could todde Johnnie went to
school, and continued to daily until the ex-
treme limit of age when schooling is COMPULSORY
on the youth of England. once laboriousy es-
tabl. shed in a Standard" he showed "a marked
-dIsinclinatiOn to leave it. and the utmost prod
q : never advanced him beyond the borderIand
of the fourth" But his mother blamed the
School and her want of means to send him to a
better one not Johnnie OF course what any
n he 70
- temp her husbands son. Johnnie received
subtle fattery from her instead of blows for his
slow progress. He met il, as he met most things
with the impenetrable stare of his light blue
eyes His opinion of himself would have inter
e5ted good many people by this time but his
silence remained unbroken that point as on
many others
There followed the usual little difficulty in fit
ting the village genius with a means of earning a
livelihood. Mrs Hayes refused to contemplate
anything whereby honest sweat" might be
caused to flow from her sons low, hair thatched
prov Most OF the men about her worked out
II doors. or at some humble trade and nothing of
that kind. she had decided years ago would do
tor johnnie With great difficulty and some de-
lay she obtained him employment at the villa ee
grocer Just while he looked about him He
was to keep the books his chief occupation
ana she made a great deal converse tionaI1y of
me glory of those books. Johnnie made very
little OF them except to blot them freely He
seemed all the while he sat over them to be
struggling hard to do something recurring a
great expenditure of noisy breath but the re-
suit failed to satisfy the grocer
He took his dismissal stody if with a Inper
mo sh0rtneSS of breath
Don't want he bIurtad ont
last: but could you say-could you sav as
iii 1 think heal