Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1905-07-11

cry Brewster had regarded her
4 / quiet. old fashioned home IS
his own. The house had once been her
grandfather's. and it WAS one of the
pioneers in that part Of the town. 1t
was there she WAS born. in its quaint
OLD p6E.or Size was married, and All her
girlhood. her brief welded life ANA ler
widcWh0od Wcfe connected with it.
Mrs. Gray and montgomery mother
bad been schoo!nates and playmates,
and their friendship endured. When
old Edwin Peter Brewster looked about
for a place to house his orphaned grand
son, Mrs. Gray begged him to let her
care for the little fellow. He was three
years olGer than her Margaret. and the
children grew up as brother and sis
ter. Mr.. brewster was generous in
providing for tie boy. While he was
away at college. spending money in
manner that caused the old gentleman
TO marvel at lis own liberality, Mrs.
Gray was wtl] paid for the unused but
well kept apartments. and there never
wac murmur of complaint from Ed
win Peter Brewster. He was hard, but
he was not niggarlly
1t had been something of struggle
for Mrs Gray to make both ends meet.
The property in Fortieth street was
her only possession. But little money
had come to her at her husbands
death, and an unfortunate speculation
Of his bad swept away all that had
fallen to her from her father, the late
Judge Merriweather. For years size
kept the Old home unincumhcred,
teaching French and English until
Margaret was we'll into her teens The
girl was sent to one of the good cid
boarding schools on the Hudson and
came out we'll prepared to help her
mother il the battle to keep the wolf
down and appearances up. Margaret
was rich in friendships, and pride
alone stood between her and the ad
Vantages they offered. Good looking,
bright and cheerful. she knew no natu-
raj privatiCns. With a heart as light
and joyous as a May morning she
faced adversely as though it We're a
pleasure, and no one would have sus-
pected that even for a moment her
courage wayered.
Now that Brewster had come into
his splendid fortune he could conceive
no greater delight than to share it
with them. To walk into the little
drawing room and serenely lay large
sums before them as their own seemed
such a natural proceeding that De re-
fused to see an obstacle. But he knew
1t was there. The proffer of such a
gift to Mrs Gray would mean a
wound to the pride inherited from
naughty generations of men sufficient
unto themselves There was a small
but troublesome mortgage on The
house, a matter Of two or three thou
sand dollars, ana Brewster ti'!e,l 10
evolve plan by which he could as
sumo the burden without giving tie2p
and lasting otense. a hundred wild
designs had come to him, but they
were quickly Ie!e"ated to The growing
heap Of s;!t.ertUges and preteXts con
domnei b. his m.erness for tEe pride
Of these two women who meant sc
much o b H.
Leaving the bank, he FASTENED by
electric car to E9..ie;h street and
Broadway and ihen w,.!Ned eagerly Oh
into the street Of the hume II. He hal
Nc, yet c3.ne TO the )i4t where he 1@.
like &co:l:ng the clrs even tlouI'l q
roll Of bank notes was tucked snuglN
away in 4 l9..iet that seemed to sHc.
with sC,.l.ua atiiuence. Ola lieuaick
faithful serYltor through two genera
toBs. WAS sWeSi -, t4e IutullA !3iE@2
frcm the sidewalk when Mont ga.l.2,'l
came UP to the house.
Hello. He,llriek," was the youn:
mains ch>eiy greeting. Nice lot o
leaves you have there.
So" ebbed from Uendrick. who dit
not even so much as look up from hi
work Hendrick was human clam.
Mrs. Gray in:"
A grunt that signifed yes.
you're as loquacious as ever, Her
drick'
A mere nod.
Brewster let himself in with his ow
latchkey, threw his hat on a chair an
unceremoniously bolted into the librf
ry. Marg lret was seated near a VIII
dow, a book in her lap. The first ev
dence Of unbiased friendship he la
seen in days shone i'll her smile 81
took his hand and said simply, I'VE al
glad to welcome the proGigal TO u
home again
Il remind myself more of the fatte
calf"
Her first self consciousness had gon
II thought of that, but l didn't dal
say it," she laughed. Zone must (