The Beaver herald. [volume] (Beaver, O.T. [Okla.]) 1895-1923, 1908-09-10

] DlE JlIU iIduitudubu dVpIlstu lAS
widow OF her. bereavement.
What am a-goin' to do?" walled
he widow.
"Now. don't you worry, Missus Nc
! 5affney," said big Jim Cradlebaugh
,stentatioasly, the townll see that
| sou don't suffer. I'll see to II. I'll
! make the boys shell out" He laid
,cin down on the window-sill. There's
! laf a dollar for your immediate
leeds. Missus Mccartney" he told her.
and don't you worry. III make the
boys do theI- part, too"
He started in to do 1t. Down in the
Office of the Donaldson Daily they
were waiting for him-the boys.
Now, boys" he said, as he hustled
.nto the Office of the Daily, gimme a
sheet of paper. This here is for con-
tributors for Sarah Mccartney. the be-
reaved. There you are. There's my
name at the head, where It always is
in this here togn. | subscribe half a
dollar, do you see? Come, now, put
your names in. Don't be afraid. The
list II be printed in the Daily just as
/, usual. give half a dollar. Who'll
give more?"
Young Bill Mathewson, the hard
ware man, stepped forward. "Mr.
Cradlebaugh," heS said. and his lip
curled as he said II, I'm worth about
one-tenth the sum that YOU are. Put
me down for five dollars--I'll give ten
times as much as YOU"
Jim Cradlebaugh was never feezed.
"Hurrah," he said, example is conta-
gious. ] give so cents, and the next
man gives five dollars. Who'll give
more? Come. now, your names'll all
be printed. don't you know. Won't
they, Bartlett?"
Bartlett, editor and proprietor of
the Donaldson Daily, nodded. "As
usual" he responded. But his lip
curled just n little, too. For the only
thing that the town could give Jim
| Cradlebaugh credit for was that he
could make other people give. He was
the originator of the published lists in
| the Daily. He had started them dur
ing the smallpox scare some three
years before, and the editor acknowl-
edged to himself that the idea was a
good one. Charity Is a pleasant weak
ness, but II becomes much more at
tractive when 1t is set before the eyes
of men, with names and amounts in
full
But Cradlebaugh-the town was dis
gusted with Cradlebaugh; the Donald
son Daily was dsgusted with him,
though 1t did not dare to say so. Jim
Cradlebaugh could have bought and
sold many men In the town of Don
aldson; he was fat with prosperity.
But never yet had be given a five-dol
lar bill on any one occasion, though
when he gave the whole town knew
It. Cradlebaugh took care to let them
know IL. He was more than a laugh
lng.stock in the town; he was the sub
iect of bitter jeers. But he never
realized It, so 1t seemed.
The Mccartney subscription was
ended by $500 gift from "a friend"
Old Terwilliger, who lived at the
end of the street, was comparative
stranger in the town of Donaldson. He
had lived there for 15 years. No one
knew whence he had come. All that
knew. Every six months he made sub.
gsantial deposits In the First National
and in the Dime Savings bank At the
end of each six months the deposits
iwindled to n cipher The banks did
not know where the money went-cer-
;ainly old lean Terwilliger did not
spend 1t on himself. And he had no
vices, no luxuries. He was a plain.
simple, unsophisticated old man. But
the eyes OF Editor Bartlett always
twinkled when the name of Terwilli-
ger was spoken, and sometimes moist.
ened. Then they would harden when
he thought of Cradlebaugh.
What a difference between two
men" he thought to himself Cradle.
baugh, blatant, ostentatious egotist.
Terwilliger, gentle, shrinking
man."
But II Terwilliger had secret, and
IL Bartlett knew, it, he never divulged
II to his best friend,
And as time went on, and the char.
ity lists in the Donaldson Daily multi
piled, 1t was invariably Cradlebaugh
| WIN htdbNu NilN iot--Nili
and 1t was invariably Constant Read.
er," or PRO Bono" or "A Friend"
who closed 1t out--with hundreds.
But the small town of Donaldson
never knew what fate had in store for
ber. She had given bounteously TO
all her neighbors. She little knew
how much she would need charity her.
self
II was the Widow Mccartney who
started IL. BY night the rising little
town of Donaldson lay in ruins-ruins
black and stark and uncompromising.
Donaldson was city without a home.
Yes, there was one home that es-
capped. II was Jim CradleDaugh's big
house. upon the hill. And there was
another home-the home men seek in
their extremity. The Donaldson First