Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-08-05
when be and the doctor were again In the

when he and the doctor were again In the
buggy.
They are said DR.. Gordon. ''even the
old woman herself. who knows well enough
that she has not long to live DID you ever
think that the desire OF distinction was one
of the most. perhaps the most intense
purely spiritual emotion of the human SOUR
Lock at the way these people 1--we here.
gTubbing away at the soil like ants. The
most OF them have In their lives just three
ways of attracting notice, the momentary
consideration of their kind-Oirth marriage,
sickness and death. With the first they
are hardly actively concerned. even with
the second many have nothing to do. There
are more women than men as usual. and
although the women want TO marry, all
the men do not. There remains only SICK
ness and death for q standby. so TO speak.
II one OF them is really sick and dies, the
people are aroused to take notice The sick
person and the corpse have a certain state
and dignity which they have never at
tanned before. Why, bless you, man, have
one patient. middie-aged woman. who
has been laid up for years with rheuma-
tisrn, and she is fairly vainglorious and
so Is her mother. She brags of her Invalid
daughter II she had been merely an old
maid on her hands, she would have been
ashamed OF her. and the woIAan herself
would have been sour and discontinued.
But she has fairly married rheumatism 1t
has been to her as husband and children
l tell you, young man, one has to have
his little footstooi of elevation among his
fellows, even Il it is a mighty queer one.
or he loses his self-respect. and seIf-reSpect
is the best jewel we have,
They were now out IN the road again,
the team Flooding heavily through the
red shale Its a id SOIL said the
doctor for the second dime. He looked
down at the young man beside him, and
James again felt that resentful sense OF
youth and ineSperfence. Il don't know
how you've been brought up" said the
elder man. u don't want TO infuse hereto
notions into your innocent mind.
James Strengthened himself. He tried TO
give the other man knowing look. y
have been about good deal he said.
You need not be afraid OF corruptlng
me-"
DR.. Gordon laughed. We'll. I shall not
try" he said AT least shall not mean
to corrupt YOU am pessimist but you
are young that you ought not tc be in
fluenced by that. Lord only think what
may be before YOU. You don't know. L
am so far along that I know Ear as
am concerned. did not know but you had
been brought up to think that Whatever
the Lord made was good and that in say
ing that this red, gluey New Jersey soil
was darned bad l was swearing the worst
way. / don't want to have milistones and
that sort of thing about my neck. ! was
quite up IN the Scriptures at one time.
You need not be afraid" said James
with dignity; Il think the soil darned bad
myself" He hesitated little over the
darned, but once 1t was out, he felt proud
of it.
Yes, it is" said DR.. Gordon. "and If
the Lord made it, he did not altogether
succeed and I see no earthly way of trac-
ing the New Jersey soil back 10 original
sin and the garden of Eden
That's So said James.
DR.. Gordon S face grew sober, his
jocular mood for the time had vanished.
He was his true self. did it ever occur TO
you that disease was the devil?'' he asked
abruptly. THAT is. that all these internal
microbes that burrow in the human sys-
tenn to it's disease and death were his yeri-
+cf,I Ia ffovn Xn-ar RIP
James shook his head. and looked curious
ly at his companions face, with it's gloomy
corrugatons.
'eWen. 1t has to me" said the doctor, and
let me ask you one thing. You have been
brought up to believe that the devils par
ticular residence was hell haven't you?"
James replied in a bewildered fashion
that he had
.sWen" said DR.. Gordon, 'if the devil
Hives here, as ne must live, when there's
such failures In the way of soil and such
climates and such fiendish diseases, and
crimes, why. this is hell"
James stared at him.
DR.. Gordon nodded half-gloomily, half
whimsically. It's SO he said. I'VE call
it EARTH but it's he'll.
James said nothing. The doctor gloomy
theology was too much for him. Besides,
he was not quite sure that the elder man
was not chatting him.
We'll" said DR. Gordon presently,
hell 1t Is. but there are compensat!ons.
such as apple-jack and now and then
there's something doing that amuses one
even here I am going TO take you to
something that enlivens hell this afternoon,
If somebody doesn't send a call / am try
ing to get my work done this morning the
worst of 1t, so as to have an hour this
afternoon"
The two returned n little after u,
and found luncheon waiting for them. Mrs.
Ewing took her place at the table. and
James thought that she did not look quite
so Ill as she had done the evening before.
She talked more and ate with come appe-
tite. Dr. Gordon's face lightened, not
with the false gayety which James had
smoke affectionateIy to his sister.
what do you think, Tom" said she.
has come over Clemency? I don't know
when there has been a morning that she
has not gone for a tramp, rain or shine,
but she has not stirred out today. She