The Democratic advocate., 1908-12-04
bunting a
Dof11ennaker.
By LULU JOHNSON.
Convrighted, 1908, by Associated
Literary Press.


IN less than forty-eight hours that
stora tossed by a baby hand, had
ssrov.n Wall street and the money
.,arl,et of the country into a panic.
The single track Of the little western
rood afforded rough travelling. Not
-oonr Of the travellers aboard that par.
tinrIor train even noticed the somewhat
harder Jolt when the car wheel struck
the stone
put Gilbert Fairbain, smoking a
.rood night" cigar as he leaned alone
o9oirst the railing of the observation
aors platform. felt the jar-and then
foIt nothing more.
And it was two weeks before Wall
stropt learned that Fairbain, the one
man who could have stopped the panic,
Lod hppn found beside the tracks and
removed to a farmhouse on the quarter
section nearest the road.
For ten days he had been uncon-
scious. ard for two days or more ne
had been in no condition to be left
alone There was but one inmate Of
tbot farmhouse besides himself, and
shn had been too busy nursing him to
make the trip to the nearest town to
ronoft that he had been found.
is soon as his whereabouts had been
discovered the lonesome. little town was
ovrrrun with people. Grave and learn
nd nlvsicians from the east were hur-
rnd westward on special trains and q
rocimcnt Of nurses attended them, but
Tairbain waved them all away.
81 don't need you" he said irritably.
little Mrs. Bodington pulled me
tfrough without lot Of palaver or
thousand dollar doctors to help her.
Leave Il couple Of nurses to wait Oh
her. and the rest of you go away
There is an excellent hospital not
ffrv miles from here" suggested the
family physician. Il can look after
you with better assurance of success
ful treatment
'Sugden, you're an ass declared
Fairbain irritably. This little woman
nursed me single handed through an
attack Of brain fever. l guess she can
attend to the convalescence."
Il will not undertake to be respon-
sbe for the consequences" said Sug-
den. with ponderOus emphasis.
"You don't have to be-" was the acrid
response. You are going to be packed
out Of here, the whole lot of you. I've
spent most of my life with q doctor Oh
one side of me and a lawyer on the
other. I'm sick of it all, and I'm en-
titled to a rest"
He looked contentedly about the tiny
room. The outlook from the narrow
paned windows was dreary, and the
room itself was walled with rough
plaster and decorated with cheap prints
in homemade frames.
The bed Oh which he rested was a
wooden affair with cotton mattress
and coarse cotton sheets, but the
sheets were Immediately clean, ana
there was an air of nominees about
the place that Fairbain had not known
in years.
He closed his eyes contentedly and
doZcd off. Sugden, mindful of his fat
fees. waited in deferential silence dur
ing the half hour the nap lasted.
Fairbanks glance fell first on him as
his eyes opened again.
You still hcrew he cried. "Sugden,
if you don't take the first train back
to New York III make you sue for
whatever l owe you and I'll take it on
appeal and appeal until you spend
every cent you ever made off Of me-
Now get out of here
Sugden took his departure, yowing
that his patient was insane, but Fair
balm only smiled contentedly and
turned to the sweet faced woman who
sat beside the bed.
That's the way to talk to those
sharks" he declared. II have head
ache, and Sugden gives me something
to make it worse. Then he doctors me
Tor the new disease and sends in q
Dill yard long. This is the time
fooled him."
1 am glad that you were not
moved" said the woman softly. 81
mink that the excitement would have
been bad for YOU"
1t IS not the trip l was dreading,"
admitted Fairbain frankly. 81 like it
mere, and l want to stay little while.
MY secretary will stay over in town
anu bring my important mail every
Jay and the two nurses will relieve
YOU OF the watchful nights.
II you want anything else, buy it
Vt hire it or something. Wilson will
give You what money l need. Wilson
% nne fellow" he added. HE came
-uVo my Office this fall as q clerk, and
"oE fancy to him and made him
~ CONFIDENTIAL man. He took to the
'oO as though he had known me and
NY affairs since he was born.''
II must be very nice to have some
Vue 10 do your work the way you want
~ uone" she said softly. II am glad
4aI u, you are so pleased with him.
81. III pleased with him." said Fair
D"t D".n meaningly, $50 long as you are
' 700 we'll pleased with him. You
os "Vu be pleased with him?" he plead
is,a Ao more than am now," she prom
toS4 u' ana with that Fairbain was con-
mt ' de was convinced that money
ta 0nlllpotent and that even here on
NJ a. prairie 1t could purchase the love
~ ae little woman who had made him
80 comfortable.
for" ,oaln was in love with his newly
tba ~ nome comforts rather than with
knn. "0ihan herself, but this he did not
hnn.. aItnough. when there was no
stoe eet any pretext for prolonging the