Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1907-09-19

great sense Of the true responsibility
Of wealth. Your traducers would be
obliged to stop their attacks, for
there'd be no more powder in their
magazine. don't know anything about
1t. Uncle Trafford. That's only tho
way l feel"
"Ah, well!" he sighed. '"Ah welfH'
| He rose and took two or three
1 strides up and down the room
| "Ah, well!"a he sighed again. q
don't mind admitting to you, Laura,
that I'm miserable about the whole
business. When I think of that dear
child crying her brave eyes out. per-
haps at this very minute 4.
Eyes, know Laura interrupted,
"Then you'd make any sacrifice to
save her" &. Il,
She felt she had said enough for
she, too, rose and folded her work.
Wont you come and see Paul have
his support" she suggested. She knew
he liked to see the. boy kick and crow
and splutter, and beat with his spoon
on the table. IS
mo, don't believe will" he re-
| piled, YEARLY. seem to have had
enough of children / begin to wish
| the Lord had never made them."a,
! "If he hadn't, you'd be the first to
pray Him to begin" she smiled, Us
she turned at the door to leave him
| ".You know better than do, that for
| Paula's sake you'd throw everything
you've ever won to the Winds"
81 suppose that's true" he mutter-
| ed to himself, as he went along the
corridor to his office. ~ suppose
that's true. That wife of Georges is
damned clear-headed little woman.
and she doesn't know It."
| Only skillful psychologist could
have followed the evolution OF Paul
| Trafford's thought during the next
| forty-eight hours. Only sympathe-
tic insight could have disentangled
the strands of love and self-love II
egoism and devotion of passionate
effection for his child and of impulse
to make one more appeal to the
great, easily hoodwinked public to In
dorse him as a high-minded, honor.
able man.
Life is only compromise, after all"
was on text on which he muse,l.
Shed go wild with joy; and she'd
| love me more than ever" was another
Laura was right: they would see me
as am-simple, generous, patriotic,
caring nothing for honors or big
name, but only for sterling worth.
They'd come to understand me at
last. That was a fruitful theme Of
meditation. Brave little brick! She
doesn't care what happens to herself
so long as Pm pleased. and saved
from being wounded again. God! ia
lot myself be stabbed all over my
body rather than that she should
shed another tear" That was a sub
ject on which he could dwell only
with eyes blinking. after all, may
be wrong to distrust the man. He
may be. less of a Winship than the
rest Of the lot. The old lust for ven
geance may have died down, by this
time. and the reign of common-senss
begun. Other people seem to sneak
well of him. Wiltshire and Lady
Alice ought to know. Who can tell?
shouldn't be the first father who
has had to make the best of his
daughters choice, and | might even
come to like him. I'm not a monster
in spite of all they say of me-" From
these reflections he took what conf
fort he could,
1t was the third day before he felt
convinced that. of all the chances
against him, he was accepting the
least dangerous. 1t was the fourth
before he felt sure enough to speak.
He waited till evening. till the NOM
ent when Paula came to kiss him
and say goodnight. He drew her
to him and laughed with an afr that
was almost boyish in it's embarrass-
ment.
I've given in" he stammered. "My
little girl is to do as she likes"
She slipped from his embrace and
fell back a pace or two.
II don't understand, papa"
Don't you? Then I'll make 1t
clearer. I'm weak and beaten and
foolish man. You'll see It," he went
on, unconsciously quoting Laura-