Smyrna times., 1903-06-24
AN ~ ~
Eminent
Blockhead

0N4 WV OOliCS0 l6llOW5 Idll W AAhu
when the real struggle begins. Take
Ingham, for instance, he was the star
OF every year from freshman to gradu-
ating, a football hero and a man
among the many men of his year. And
yet when he left college and started in
ION his own hook" SO to speak, he
didn't seem to be appreciated. His
mother said he was too modest; his
father said he was a dreamer, aud
Marie Franz, who had worshipped him
at school, said; "Give him time; he's
a bit slow, but he'll get there"
She went to Chicago to study music
the same week that saw Ingham in
stalled as clerk in the Bank of Cres-
ton. A clerkship in a country bank
isn't calculated to emblazon the genius
OF any man, but the job looked allur-
ing to Ingham, who was poor, and he
took it because he loved his mother
and wanted to nurture her in her old
age. He wrote queer rambling letters
to Marie every week, and in answer
got words of cheer, praise and en-
couragement. She told him that
Chicago was the "place" and that half
the successful men might go to school
to him with profit.
When Ingham's mother died he had
a few hundred dollars saved up, and
the funeral expenses left him enough
to pay his way to the city. 1t took
him three weeks to find employment
and then he was bit ashamed of his
position. Bill clerk in a soap factory
is not the situation calculated to thrill
the vanity of a college graduate, but
Ingham could have borne his humilia-
tion better if visit to Marie had not
been a necessity of his life. He con-
cealed from her the fact of his pres
ence until he had found work, and
then, with a swelling heart and a
sense of his degradation, he called at
her address in Woodlawn.
"What are you going to dO-Joe?'
she asked
81 don't know exactly" he said,
flushing with the memory of the soar
factory. "You know, Miss Franz, T.
"Miss Franz she calculated
''since when, pray? Here l am calling
you Joe and you come back will
Miss Franz Now don't do that
JOe."
''WelI, then, Marie" he resumed
the pallor of hope whitening his goOt
face. "Well. you know, haven
much choice. It's a case of work will
me. 1 haven't sou, you know, anC
whatever I do-at first, anyway-mus
be for the money there is in it. Iv,
got place.
"Good for you, she laughed. "GooC
boy. And you just came. 1 told yoI
it was only question of nerve"
81 think have that" he was say
ing, but she ratified ahead.
Look at Charley Hughes. He
here, already a rising say
brilliant-young lawyer. Why yol
always excelled him at college, didn'
you, Joe? OF course, he's a Lowell.
fellow"-Ingham WINGED agaln-''an
1 like him ever so much, but the poin
is, he's no smarter than you, is he?"
"Why 1 didn't know Hughes wa
here" said the diffident Joe, his gOrg
rising at the thought perhaps Mari
had seen so much of his old classmat
that her interest in himself was secor
dary; ''do you see much of him?"
eyes, we're great friends, yo
know; that is-well, he calls abOu
twice a week, and her big blue eye
studied the carpet until she felt tht
Joe was looking at the clock. The
she resumed:
"By the way, can't you come to oil
Browning Club meet, Thursday
Char-Mr. Hughes is to be there, an
you ought to begin to mix a little,
they call it. He's going to give
reading of some sort. You and | cf
co.
Twill you go with me?" Joe W
alert now.
''You may be sure L will.
So they agreed to go to the Brow
ing symposium, and Ingham we
home with a new hope and an
domitable determination in his gull
less heart.
They were in the west bound cal
radiant, expectant and happy, goii
to the Club, and sure of the old cal
eraderie, when Ingham seeking fol
topic, said:
''By the way, Miss Marie
"Just Marie will do, she correcte
"All right, Marie, but talking
Hughes-you said he was on to-nigh
programme-do you remember
medal he got for that essay juni
year?"
eyes. indeed, it was about womi