Kingsbury County independent. (DeSmet, Kingsbury County, S.D.) 1894-1929, 1904-12-09

q special tram was to take the party
the twenty-five miles out OF Boston. BY
an unavoidable accident I missed the
train, and in driving over the road In
q bleak rainstorm, caught a violent
cold. / was about three hours late.
but we went TO work with a will and by
Z o'clock, q little before dinner, our
contracts had been dictated to the stem
~ographers and would be typed. ready
to sign, BY the time we came to cof-
fee.
That dinner was a thing to be re-
membered. No one in New England
understands more admirably the art OF
dining than Parker Chandler, and this
was a feast worthy TO celebrate the
brilliant new combination which was 10
end all u troubles, and lead us out
OF darkness into the light. AS the;
cheese was being served l was seized
suddenly with a most terrific pain,
which was followed by commissions.
They carried me 10 a bedroom. lawyers
and capitalists went scurrying after
doctors, and the documents which were
ali ready awaiting execution were put
aside in confusion. 1t was obvious that
at this juncture | could not O. X. them.
AT last specialists from Boston arrived
and 1t was diagnosed that / was In
the midst OF ar aggravated attack OF
appendicitis. At 2 o'clock I'm the morn
ing, after a prolonged consultation. the
consensus of opinion was that my next
field of operation would be in another
world.
II must have been some time a little
later when | awoke to a brief interval
of consciousness, that / noted a scene
the memory OF which invariably rises
to my minds eye whenever / try 10
mitigate or subdue my feelings OF
hatred and disgust for Addicks. The
room was dimiy lit; the two doctors
We're at the foot OF the bed; Addicks.
standing there beside them, was look
ing ixedly at me. / caught his eye,
doped as / was With opiates I saw the
cold, calculating expression OF his face,
which told me as plainly as words that
he felt IL was all up with me, that my
usefulness to him was at an end, ana
that without a thought for my interests
or a scintilla OF regret, he was caleu-
lating how TO turn my death to his
advantage. An amused conviction or
the mans heartlessness crept over me
and then / passed out into the land Of
dreams.
From that night until one bright
morning ten days later, / was visiting
other worlds than those OF finance and
gas; but on the tenth day they told me.
| had eluded the grim ferryman AID,
barring accident, might get out into the
world again in five weeks. The sus-
picion h a Addicks' expression that
fateful night had awakened at once re-
CURED TO my mind, and the following
day ! sent for my principal attorney
and demanded an exact statement OF
what had happened in the interval Of
my illness. He had kept close track
OF all that o transpired. and the facts
he revealed, calloused as | was TO the
thought of Addicks' b~asenesa, Mortified
me by their cold blooded villainy. MY
associates had gone ahead with a VEN
geance, without waiting q minute to see
whether l should live or die. My offer
TO the Legislature had been with
drawn; Addicks had substituted his
name for mine in all the documents.
and then he had traded with Rogers.
1t had been arranged between them
that Whitney should go and get the.
charter, which was TO allow the CONF
pany to sell gas at any price. for IL
was not TO be under the supervision
OF the a commissioners. who had
pledged the public that the price OF gas
in Boston should not ever be more
thar 81 per 1000 feet. This obtained,
a new corporation was to be organized,
into which Rogers would merge his
companies and Addicks our Boston
properties, in sue a way as to leave
Bay state stock and b~ondholders high
and dry, while Addicks, Whitney and
Rogers @reaFea tremendous profits.
H1oE dlutdDit plains were pEfnH Hdll-
mered into shape at top speed, and
unless l could get into harness at once.
my friends and l would most certainly
be ground up. Headquarters had been
opened CT the Algonquin club. and there
Addicks, Whitney. Towle and the law
yers and lobbyists We're holding day
and night sessions.
There was but one thing for me to
do, n / lost not q moment. | sent for
my doctors and EniA so Will ahunirxfnIy
give up today, tomorrow and next day
TO getting we'll; but on the fourth day
l VIII be moved IN a special car To
Boston and then TO the Algonquin
club" / explained the situation and
showed them that regardless OF all con-
sequences this must be lone
/ shall never forget the expression on
the faces OF these loyal associates of
mine-Addicks, Whitney and others
when dropped In upon their delibera-
tons Saturday morning. four days
later. My doctor. a nurse and my law
yer accompanied me. and / was
swathed in nannels and shawls. /
got TO a chair, dismissed my
attendants and launched in. What
little / had 10 say would be
"edgy" / told them, but brief. 1t was
all that. / insisted that we go right
back TO our old bargain exactly at the
place we left 1t the night / was strick-
an-If4tha aid saat naunlp ,ralaId
make application for a receiver OF the
Bay State company and give TO the
afternoon papers the inside facts OF the
affair from beginning to end. No one
doubted either my ability or my de-
termination to carry OUT my threat.
We sent for the documents that had
been prepared at Parker Chambers,
and inside Of three hours these had
been substituted and the several agree
ments entered n with Rogers formal
ly renowned. / retired TO bed that
night with n chuckle OF dissatisfaction
and q full sense of appreciation of the
force OF the axiom / have referred
TO.
The low down treachery and double
dealing characteriZing this transaction,
the utter ~caIlousness to sacred, obIiga-
lions IL exhibits In men Of presumed
high standing and personal honor, may
surprise my readers. / assure them
that several such episodes will be told
in the forthcoming pages OF this his
tory, and that among a certain school
of eminent financiers. loyalty Is no
more han devotion TO the opportunity
Of making the highest profit.
The immediate results or my reap
pearance were not startling. Rogers
raved at Addicks and especially at
Whitney. but he was too old a student
of men, N the monkeys Dame
Fortune makes OF them, to sulk over
the facts he could not remedy So he
resumed his former attitude OF waiting
for something TO turn up. which indeed