The Bellefontaine Republican. [volume] (Bellefontaine, Logan County, Ohio) 1855-1905, 1903-02-13
The RefOrmer.
Continued from first page.

was the vision of n whole lire tnat Ior
fifteen years had flung itself down into
the tragedy Of humanity to save 1t re-
gardless Of suffering TO itself.
Miss Andrews he said quietly, but
his soul was shaken with the passion
of his long repressed feelings, is to
NV mind the most gifted, most useful,
most Christian woman in this whole
city. She is today suffering more. CIV
ing more and doing more to right the
wrongs of our boosted civilization than
any other woman of my acquaintance.
The man who says she Is dangerous to |
society does not know what he is say |
ing. Miss Andrews is the superior of |
every person here at this table in all
the gifts and graces of the highest de-
veloped womanhood."
He need not have said that last SEN
tence 1t was not at all necessary. But
his spirit was at high tension. The
contrast between the selfish, heartless,
luxurious, even vicious social life rep
resented by some OF the persons at that
table in addition to Archie Penrose
and the patient, loving sacrificing life
of the head of Hope House voiced his
indignant assertion. Luella did not
look up. She sat as cold and still as
statue.
Mrs. Penrose with tact that did
her great credit, broke the silence by
asking just the right question. Just
what II was Gordon himself did not re-
member when he went all over the
scene afterward; but whatever it was.
Il IL Al aftnra 1It- IN a n
| ton of Hope House settlement. and
John Gordon found himself doing what
he had declared to Mrs. Penrose he
| would not do-he was soon pouring out
| the story of Bowen street and Tommy
Randall and Mrs. Caylor and Louie
and all the heartbreaking conditions
OF the pale dwellers in the tenements.
Had ever man such an audiencei Ii
is not often the reformer can reach the
men and women of society. He talks
to the crowd, vaguely conscious all the
time that the rich, cultured, leisure
classes either do not care or do not
know or do not understand and never
go to hear him.
But for over half an hour Gordon
said his say. He spared not one sylla-
BILE of horrors. The guests paled at his
description of the fire and sEuddered
| at the picture of the child's arm thrust
I'D out of the ruins and circling Bar
tons neck in a convulsive death agony
!, Luella looked up once. Her eyes
glowed with a feeling that John Cor
don interpreted into deep compassion
) and his heart bounded. For moment
1 Ii. T1arn n
went on steadily.
When he was through, Mrs. Penros'
quietly signaled for the company t.
rise. In the other rooms. as the guest
seated themselves at card tables TO
the rest of the evening, different one
: took up the topic and certain unusua
. hush pervaded the perfumed atmos
phere that was a stranger to the gos
siping company.
I'll Mrs. Penrose passed out by Gordon
"You made a deep impression" sh
: aid half admiringly, half seriously
II had no idea you could talk SO well.
"I did not intend
"Of course not. All the better. Ar
: chic got his answer. So did we." Sh
laughed little cynically. 1T will d.
I us good. Did / not tell you we neet
reforming than the slumsT
III To Gordon's great relief Mary CAIN
up and said she felt uneasy for he
I father, and begged Mrs. Penrose to ex
I tuse her.
"You will go home with me, John
won't you? 1 came with the Cranstons
l Tot dc 10 mol vol
when he came home this evening"
I 1T must be serious If Mary is read
!. to leave this early" he thought. Blu
I he was glad to escape the formality o
the rest of the evening. AS he wen
I out with his sister he had view Q
Luella seated listlessly at the tabl
where young Penrose was.
/I On the way home Mary seemed VI
= easy. She was suffering also from
headache and sharply accused he
brother of Juggling his reform bushes
y into the company's talk. John Gordo
= was silent. Afterward he learned tha
!. young Penrose's attention TO Luell
Y was the real source of Mary's ba
y feelings.
As they mounted the familiar steI
he felt strangely oppressed, as if som
new or unexpected trouble was aboJ
Il to come into his life. The excitemeI
incident. to his defense of Miss AL
drews had given way to n dull depre
sion that weighed him down and CAV
him a foreboding.
One of the servants was in the hal
He said that .Ir. Gordon had gor
into the library early in the evenin
and had given orders not to be di
turbed.
John and Mary went into the receptio
room. The library was next. They ei
tered II side by side.
What was that form lying half on I'll
floor, half ON one of the leather cusl
Toned chairs7
Gordon sprang forward as Mary erie
out. They lifted him and laid him O
the couch. A frightened servant Al
peared at the door. But John Gordo
knew as he looked into the stern ol
face that the soul of Rufus Gordo
had gone to God, who gave it, to Civ
account of the deeds done in the bod.
whether they were good or wheth,
they were bad.
To be continued.
Inflammation of the bronchi
tubes, or even the lobes of the lung