Mower County transcript., 1903-08-19

RefO, / n g
By CHARLES N. SHELDON
Author Of SIN His Steps, Robert
e Hardy's Seven Days," !" Etc. N
Copyright, 1901, by Charles a. Sheldon

Copyright, 1901, by Charass A. Sheldon
33*a I 7 i 4 ! - :
''You have never done anything.
What have you ever done, Archie PEN
rose, to dignity or ennoble the name
you bear. To your fathers credit, if
he was a money grubber he at least
had business. He actually did some
thing besides hunt for pleasure all the
time. Youyou have no business.
You waste every energy Godsg gave you
in senseless expenditure Of time and
means. And, in addition to- all the
rest, you are fool enough to think Luel-
la Marsh will be the wife Of the most
useless man in the city,
t"If am a fool to think it, am q
fool to wish for it? l$ s$, 81 x5.5 aS
Mrs. Penrose stared. u {$S6
"You don't mean to say you actually
love Luella ?"
II do. love her with all my soul.''
That's not saying much. Your soul
has been reduced to the smallest COM
mon denomina tor.'' 45 g n 5sz 55S
"Aunt Constance!' The young man
came out from the bow window and
stood in front of her, his hands
clinched and his eyes, angrily blazing.
"What right have you to talk so to
me? How big is your own soul What
do you ever do for anybody but your
self? When it comes to wasting ener-
gy, who wastes more than you in what
you call senseless ways? l may be
useless and all that, but l. don't toady
to lot of good for nOthings like the
Journeys and the Carlisles and the
Cranstons just to get into Washington
circles next season." He was treading
on dangerous ground now, for he had
touched his aunt's real weakness as
society woman, and she was in the
mood to be deeply angered at what he
said. But he went ON recklessly, and
before he finished Mrs, Penrose had
settled back again into the easy, care
less attitude habitual with her. i.
II know what you invited the Four
neys here for the other night when
that ass Emory and Gordon got off
their stuff about the slums. But all
that is of no account to me. You have
no business to interfere with my af-
fairs with Luella. That's my own
business. If I can get her consent, I
am going to marry her, 81 ID
1T is kind of you to get her consent,
Archie" his aunt said, with quiet
irony. .%... a*ss' -
"You have no right to interfere he
said sullenly. X don't mind saying j
love her, and am going to have her
for my wife if it is possible :E
"She will never have you. She loves
q far better man than you ever can be,
AFchie Penrose.'s @s 45 zl,ss5.
"Who? John Gordon? He's a crank.
Luella has broken with him.
''Yes, her eyes looked it the other
night Did you see how her eyes fol
lowed Gordon all the EVENING"
Penrose was in torture of jealousy.
He almost cried: :3 3G, s5s$ s.s
mo, she didn't! I tell you she's
broken with him. E.,
IF she has, she will never marry
you. Luella Marsh has too much sense
to put her life into the hands of a man
who never lifted his finger to help
make better world" s5 #s y
"You have set me the example by
your own conduct" the young man
sneered feebly. he walked back into
the bow window and sullenly turned
his back. on his aunt. D. @g.5 fs
you're right, Archie," she replied
calmly. ats practicallyya case Of pot
and kettle. One is as black as the
other. The guilt Of nearly all unjust and
wretched conditions in this city can
without doubt be laid at the door OF us
rich people, who have the power that
wealth can use, and use it for our am
bitions. 1t is probably true that the
judgment day will rightly condemn us
as the cause Of most of the misery
Grace Andrews and John Gordon are
living to relieve. We have it absolute
" in our power to change political and
social conditions that create nearly all
the human wrongs that exist In sOci-
ETY., and instead of exercising that
great privilege we go our ways with
colossal egotism and monstrous selfish
ness, shirking all duties and burdens
Of citizenship and finging our money
into riotous and demoralizing luxury
Of life that inflames the passions Of the
poor and keeps constantly in sight the
vast inequality Of human existence.
lis a fact, Archie, that we rich
people, with a few noble exceptions So
rare as to excite constant newspaper
4 comment, are as a class the cause Of
practically all the misery Of the city,
We have no place for service In our
y programme Of life. We neither know
nor care for the brot hood. We exis,
for our own pleasure And i suppose il
will be no more than fair that I'm TIL
other world we shall long for a drop so
water to cool our tongues while til,
Lazarus we despised here shall reclin,
A inAbra aham's bosom. Do you ever think
Archie, Of the time coming when thing
are going to be eYened up, when th
first shall i be last and the last first
4 OF course God will never permit al
this human injju ustice to- cont tinue fol
ever, and he VIII see sto III. that on