Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-08-04


"Why not Tonight"
Because YOU are not yourself y
That's just what l ami cried Maurice,
actively volcanic once more. Its only when
one is really moved that he IS himself. l must
tell you tonight -
Shifting his cigar to the extreme corner OF
his mouth, Courlander stepped down to the
waters edge, drew the PROV of the gondola
toward him, pressed up the bottom OF the
Chinese lantern, and blew out its candle.
:" see no reason why that should burn itself
away he murmured "Well2 Where chill
dren are concerned | am fatalist. What is it
you must tell me-" He smiled bengnv.
There was in old Courlander calm and
frgid detachment which often had startled
Maurice. Tonight it frightened him. He
that, despite their mutual affection, he
had never known his father. None had ever
known his father. The man was absolutely
mysterious. 1t never possible to be quite
sure what thoughts were in his fathers mind.
He seemed always to be gently preoccupled,
withdrawn, secretly meditatlve. And yet
his gift of organization was amazing. He had
announced at breakfast that morning that he
would give dinner in the statue, as though
giving dinner in the air, with only one
elevator, and no appliances handy, was the
simplest trife. Neither Lady Mary nor Mil
licent had troubled herself; they had not
even offered a comment. They had been
serenely sure that the head of the house would
arrange and carry out his dinner in brief in
tervas snatched from affairs, and that there
would be no hitch. The dinner was very elab-
crate, and there had been no hitch. The Cour-
lander family might have been dining in the
statue for generations, to judge by the smooth
ness of the domestic machinery.
And here the enlgmat1c man, on the
night when he had inaugurated his monstrous,
inscrutable, and staggering statue on the
night when he had made inevitable dlsas-
trous war-here he was placidly extlngulshing
candles in Chinese lanterns!
Maurice began feverishly to roll a cigarette.
Look here, dad!' he said. I'm twenty
eight next month Up to now have done all
well educated. | have lived in Paris, Berlin,
St Petersburg, New York, and Buenos Ayres,
and according to your plan l ought to be
ready to join you in the business.
You are going to inform me that after all
YOU don't want to join me in the business.
There was note of mild amusement in the
voice.
Yes" said Maurice in low and gloomy
tone. His father was certainly, astounding.
You don't appear to care much, dad.
81 care a great deal, my boy said Cour-
lander; but the chief thing that l care for
is your happiness. Besides, it would have
been too much to hope that an only son who
had spent ten years in preparing to go into an
absolutely first class business, should ult-
mately 90 into that business. That would
have been ideal. And as l never expect the
ideal, have always been prepared for dis
appointment. What do you mean to do in
You are awfully decent over it! the son
exclaimed with an impulsve gesture OF tender
ness.
Il am merely sensible said the father
tremely quiet. What do you mean to do
instead?"
Il haven't decided. l should like TOTO
consult you"
And when did you decide to throw away
all the work of the last ten years.
Il have been thinking about it a lot-ever
since it dawned on me what the success of
business like yours meant to the world.
Dad" he pleaded suddenly, with passionate
earnestness, you can stop this war. Stop it j.
Maurice, you guilty of rudeness."
"Rudeness2
Eyes You assume that all these facile
humanitarian considerations which have
CURED to you in the space of a few weeks,
have not occurred to me in the space of forty
years You assume that you alone have
proper standard of morality. IS that polite?
NV child, you are only child, | perceive.
You think yourself educated. You are not,
in spite of ali our trouble, for you don't under
stand life. A thousand years hence, perhaps
a hundred years hence, war will be barbara,
but to-day it is part of the scheme of things
an instrument OF progress And what harm
does it do? A hundred thousand men killed
Two hundred thousand widows and orphans!
What of that9 1t is nothing in the sum of
human suffering. And let me tell you that of
all instruments of progress, suffering IS the