Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1907-01-29

now the cohort was narshalled in de-
fence of the railroads against the at
tacks on the new Rebate bill. In fact,
Ryder managed to keep the Senate
busy all the time. When, on the other
hand, the senators wanted anything
and they often did-Ryder saw that
they got it, lower rates for this one, a
fat job for that one, not forgetting
themselves. Senator Roberts was al
ready very rich man, and although
the world often wondered where he
got it, no one had the courage to ask
him.
But the Republican leader was
stirred with an ambition greater than
that of controlling majority in the
Senate. He had a daughter. mar
riageable young woman who. at least
in her fathers opinion, would make a
desirable wife for any man His friend
Ryder had son. and this son was the
only heir to the greatest fortune ever
amassed by one man, fortune which,
at it's present rate of increase, by the
time the father died and the young
couple were ready to inherit, would
probably amount to over six billions of
dollars. Could the human mind grasp
the possibilities Of such colossal for
tune? 1t staggered the Imagination.
It's owner, or the man who controlled
it, would be master of the world! Was
not this prize any man might well
set himself out to win. The senator
was thinking of it now as he stood
exchanging banal remarks with the
men who accosted him. If he could
only bring off that marriage he would
be content. The ambition of his life
would be attained There was no diff
Guilty as far as John Ryder was con
cerned. He favored the match and
had often spoke of it. Indeed, Ryder
desired it, for such an alliance would
naturally further his business interests
in every way Roberts knew that his
daughter Kate had more than liking
for Ryders handsome young son.
Moreover, Kate was practical, like her
father, and had sense enough to real.
ize what it would mean to be mistress
of the Ryder fortune. No, Kate was
all right, but there was young Ryder to
reckon with. 1t would take two in this
case to make a bargain.
Jefferson Ryder was, In truth, an
entirely different man from his father
1t was difficult to realize that both had
sprung from the same stock. A college.
bred boy with all the advantages OF
his fathers wealth could give him, he
had inherited from the parent only
those characteristics which would have
made him successful even if born poor
activity, pluck, application, logged
obstinacy, alert mentality. To these
Qualities he added what his father sore.
ly lacked-a high notion of honor, a
keen sense of right and wrong. He
had the honest mans contempt for
meanness OF any description and he
had little patience with the lax So
called business morals of the day. For
him a dishonorable or dishonest action
could have no apologist, and he could
see no difference between the crime OF
the hungry wretch who stole a loaf OF
bread and the coal baron who system
atically robbed both his employees and
the public. In fact, had he been on
the bench he would probably have &C
quilted the human derelict who, in de
spair, had appropriated the prime nee
essary of life, and sent the over-fed
conscienceless coal baron to Jail.
do unto others as you would have
others do unto YOU" This simple and
fundamental axiom Jefferson Ryder
had adopted early in life, and it had
become his religion-the only one, in
fact that he had. He was never pious
like his father, fact much regretted
by his mother, who could see nothing
but eternal damnation in store for he1
son because he never went to church
and protested no orthodox creed. She
knew him to be good lad, but to heI
simple mind conduct of life based
merely on system of moral philoso
ply was the worst kind Of paganism
There could, she argued. be no re
Eligion, and assuredly no salvation, out
side the dogmatic teachings of the
church. But otherwise Jefferson was
model son, and with the exception
of this bad habit of thinking for him
self on religious matters, really gave
her no trouble When Jefferson left col
lege his father took him into the Empire
Trading Company with the idea of his