The Breckenridge news. (Cloverport, Ky.) 1876-1955, 1907-07-17
CHAPTER VIII.

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others is characteristic of the
genius and virillty Of the American
people-New York, with its congested
polyglot population and teeming mil
lions. is assuredly one of the busiest, as
II is one of the most strenuous and
most noisy places on earth. Yet, de-
spite its swarming streets and crowd
ed shops, ceaselessly thronged with
men and women eagerly hurrying here
and there in the pursuit Of business or
elusive pleasure, all chattering. laugh
ing. shouting amid the deafening, null
tisonous roar of traffic incidental to
Gotham's daily life, there is one part
Of the great metropolis where there Is
no hustle, no noise, no crowd, where
the streets are empty even in daytime,
where a passerby is a curiosity and a
child a phenomenon. This deserted
village In the very heart of the big
town is the millionalres' district, the
boundaries Of which are marked by
Carnegie hill on the north, Fiftieth
street on the south, and by Fifth and
Madison avenues respectively on the
west and east There is nothing more
mournful than the outward aspect or
these princely residences which, aban-
doned and empty for three-quarters OF
the year, stand I'm stately loneliness, as
II ashamed of their isolation and utter
uselessness. Their blinds drawn, af-
fording no hint Of life within, envel-
oped the greater part Of the time in
no cff1 Al nf
they appear to be under the spell Of
some baneful curse. No merry voiced
children romp I'm their carefully rallied
off gardens, no sounds Of conversation
or laughter come from their hermetic-
ally closed windows, not a soul goes
In or out; at most. at rare intervals.
does one catch a glimpse Of n gorge
ously arrayed servant gliding about in
ghoStly fashion. superciious and suspi-
cious and addressing the chance visitor
III awed whispers as though he were
the guardian Of a house of attiictiOn.
IL is. indeed, like a city of the dead
So it appeared TO jefferson as he
walked up Fifth avenue, bound for the
Ryder residence. the day following his
arrival from Europe Although he still
lived at his fathers house, for at no
time had there been an open rupture,
he often slept i'm his studio, finding it
more convenient for his work, and
there he had gone straight from the
ship He felt, however. that il was his
duty 10 see his mother as soon as pos
sible. besides he was anxious to fulfill
his promise TO Shirley and find what
his father could do to help Judge Ross
more. He had talked about the case
with several men the previous evening
at the club. and the general impression
seemed to be that, guilty or innocent,
the judge would be driven off the
bench.
Europe, thought jefferson as he
strobe quickly along, pointed with en-
Wy TO Americas unparalleled prosper
lty, spoke with bated breath Of her
great fortunes. Rather should they
say her gigantic rObberies. her colossal
frauds, As nation we were not
proud Of our multimillionaires. How
many OF them would bear the search
light of investigation? Would his own
father? How many millions could one
man make by honest methods? Amer
tea was enjoying unprecedented pros
perty not because Of her milliOnaireg,
but in spite of them. The United
States owed its high rank in the family
Of nations to the COuntrys vast natural
resources, its ineXhaustible vitality, its
great wheathelds. the industrial and
mechanical genius Of its people. 1t
was the plain American citizen who
had made the greatness Of America;
not the milliOnaires who, forming a
class by themselves Of INSCRIPTIONS
capitalists, had created an arrogant
olgarchy which sought to rule the
country by corruptng the legislature
and the judiciary. The plutocrats-
these were the leecheS the sores i'm the
body polite An organized band Of
robbers. they had succeeded i'm dOmi-
mating legislation and in securing con
troll of every branch of the nations In
Iustry crushing mercilessly aud lille
gaIIy au competition.
jefferson turned abruptly and went
up the wide steps of an imposing white
marble ed.hae which took up the space
of ualr q city block. A fine example
Of French renaissance architecture,
with spire roofs. round tuTets and
mu.Ioucd windows dominating the
neigh5oring houses, this magnificent
home of the plutocrat. with its fur
uishings and art treasures had cost
John Burkett Ryder nearly S1O,OOOOOO
1t was one of the show places Of the
town, and when the "rubberncck"
wagons approached the Ryder man
sion and the guides through their meg
aphOnes eXpatiated in awestricken
tones on its external and hidden beau
ties, there was a general craning Of
yertebrae among the seeing New
Workers to catch a glimpse of the
abode Of the richest man in the world.
Only a few privileged ones were ever
permitted to penetrate to the interior
Of this Si00O0,000 home. Ryder was
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