Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1907-04-30
The Edge Of Hazard
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BY GEORGE HORTON
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Copyrighted, 1906 BY The Bo0bs.Merriu Company
XVI Continued
BY GEORGE HORTON

N CHAPTER XxvI continued
Baruch was an intelligent person,
Df. considerable learning, who talked
most Interestingly concerning the con-
dition Of the Jews in Russia, their
habits. folklore, literature and the
like. The fact that he was the only
tnhabitant OF Stryetensk besides
H1fiy himself who had ever been in
America, established bond of
sympathy between the two men, The
American, DESTROYS Of putting in every
possible moment in the practice Of
Russian. frequently had the Jew pres
snts while he was eating, and often
took him along on the shoals in
which he INDUCED for the sake of ex-
ercise. He tried once or twice to uti-
HE Vasili for this purpose, but that
gentleman was too intent on learning
English from Hardy.
Within a month the American was
master Of great number of useful
phrases, and by the first Of Septen-
Der, he had begun to read a little and
to- make his housekeeper understand
him. Baruch. like all other Jews,
poTsessed genius for doing excellent
ly anything that paid him, and he soon
proved himself a most skilful teacher.
Hardy had not been lung in Strye-
Eersk before he received a letter from
I Mrs. Johnny Folkstone, the Boston
society leader, calling him naughty
boy for running away to the end Of
tAe earth and deserving all lis friends
and assuring him that society would
!. nsateehave been able to do without him.
fnon6f or no money, had he seen fit
10 remStn.
"a social favorite like YOU con-
tinned tho fair writer, really has no
need IF money. SO long as some WON
m, who is in the swim, takes him up.
Nobody cares where he lives, SO
long. as he is unmarried, and he can
generally manage to have invitations
!, enough to luncheon and dinner TO
keep him from starving The only
necessities for which he must pay,
are clothes. had no intention Of
Rllyster Biddle-Biddle. She was say
no one now who really knew how to
lead cotillions since Freddy Hardy
went away
i
old, familiar Freddy" then the
thought Of that stern battle on the
Arnur thrilled him, and he read on,
the letter seeming to him as If it
were about somebody. else. or as if
it's sentiments were echoes from a
dead past.
why don't you come back, Fred-
dy? Wen receive you with open
arms. You certainly must have
enough left to keep up appearances
with, so far as is necessary, and we'll
marry you to rich woman, Mrs.
Bfddle- Biddle and will, within the
year. We've one picked out for you
already, the Widow FeAtherIy! What
do you think of that? She has mil
lion and half, and, though trifIe
sss's,- 49, rr,--'v. i a rood sort. Be
sides, she'd fall at the first shake Of
lie sIleg, Some things have happened
since you left which make me think
she was in love with you. For ons
thing, she is entirely too spiteful
about your old fiancee. who, by the
way is perfectly miserable with Sun.
derland, and is flirting desperately
with young ALI. Eberhart;; you re-
member him? She is a weak little
thing, Freddy, and ner family drove
her into breaking with you when you
lost your money. A blessed good
thing it was for you, too, for don't
know what you would ever have done
with her without your fifty thousand
a year. But come back and marry
the Widow Featherly, that's a good
hoy. You won't make a million and e
half out in that country if you stay
there a lifetime, and you weren't cut
out for business man, you know you
weren't Freddy
Frederick Courtland Hardy sat for
some time gazing over the top of the
sheet, dreaming. This mention Of
women brought up the image of. a
woman who Tilted him, neither was it
the mental picture of the dumpy and
glsfly Featherly. 1t was rather that
!, Ola tall and stately lady with straw
acoloredi hair, laughing blue eyes AMI
5aristocratic features, and he saw her
now ia his minds eye as he behed
her that time on the banks Of the
lordly Amur, strolling indolently along
with japanese parasol over her
shoulder and a bunch Of wild tiger
lilies in her hand. K
".She is infinitely above me- he
mused, according to the ideas of this
country, and yet don't believe be-
long to Mrs. Johnny's set any longer.
The Princess has lifted me above
that After all. I shall feel more wor-
thy of her, if / keep my own self-rs-
spect, and that can do best by DO
ing the work that has fallen to my lot,
and by looking fate sauarely in the
eye
hHardy did not get much satisfae-
ton from Mrs. Folkstones letter: He
Wis p1eased, of course, to learn that
his old friends had not quite cast him
Oft but there was no strong appeal
to ,his manhood in the career that they
offered him. and the selfishness and
insincerity of society were too evil
dent He could still make himself use
full TO it, SO it would graciously take
him back even if he had lost his for
tuneH
another letter. received no. long
after his arrival in Styyetensk, gave
him more pleasure
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