Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1909-03-26

Look here. Harry" he began, you
were a good fellow In the old days
I'm sorry I never paid you the money
I borrowed. l would have but for
what happened. But you won't go
back on me now, will you? l want to
get out of the country and begin over
again somewhere. VIII you loan me
the money to do it?"
Hugh was eager and voluble now.
The man to whom he appealed was his
forlorn hope. He had come with no
intention of throwing himself upon his
fathers mercy. He had wished to see
anybody in the world but him.
"If you will, III never forget II. Har-
ryl" he cried. 'Never. the longest
day l livei I'll use every dollar of it
just as l sayl l will. on my honorr'
"HonorT' he said. "Have you enough
to swear by? You are what you are
because You are a bad egg, You were
born a gentleman, but you choose to
be a rogue. Do you know the meaning
Of the word honor or right or Justice1
Have you a single purpose of mind
which isn't ,crooked?"
You're just like the rest, then"
Hugh retorted. Just because | did
that one thing you'll give me no more
chance. Yet the first thing l did with
that money was to square myself.
paid every debt of honor l had. That's
why I'm in the hole now. But l get
no credit for 1t. even from you. l wish
you could put yourself in my place."
Harry had been looking steadily at
the sallow face with its hoof print OF
the satyr, not seeing 1t, but hearing
his own voice say to Jessica: 81 was
my brothers keeper. l see it now"
And Out of the distance, it seemed. his
voice answered:
put myself in your place! l wish !
could l wish to God l couldp'
The exclamation was involuntary,
automatic, the cumulative expression
of every throe of conscience Harry
had endured since then, the voice of
that remorse that had cried mistakenly
for reparation, DINING In his ears the
fateful question that God asked of
Cain. Suddenly a whirl of rage seized
him, unmeasured, savage, malicious.
He had despfsed Hugh, now he hated
INUNDATED him because he was Jessi
cas- husband and, more than all, be
cause he was the symbol of his own
self ~abasement. A daredevil side OF
the old Satan Sanderson that he had
chained and barred rose up and took
him by the throat. He struck the oak
w~ainscoting with his fist, feeling a red
mist grow before his eyes,.
$50 you paid every debt of honor
you had, eh? You acknowledge a
gamester's honor, but not the obliga-
ton of right action between man and
mani Very well. Give me that pack
Of cards. You want money-here 1t
isr'
He swiftly turned the clicking com
bination of the safe, wrenched open
the door and took out two heavy can
vas bags. He snapped the cord from
the neck of one of these, and a ring
ing stream of double eagles swept
jingling OF the table. He dipped his
hand in the yellow pile. A thought
lu oo IL W luna way OISt
was careening through his brain. FL
felt an odd lightness of mind, a tense
tingling of every nerve and muscle.
Here is two thousand dollars-yours
if you win it-for you shall play for it,
you gambler, who pays his debts of
honor and no other! You shall play
fair and straight, If you never play
again!"
Hugh gazed at Harry in a startled
way. This was not the ministerial
Harry Sanderson he had known-this
figure with the white, infuriate face.
the sparkling eyes and the strange.
yelled look. This reminded him of the
reckless spirit of his college days, that
he had patterned after and had stood
in awe of.
"How can l play" he said, "when
you know very well l haven't a sou
markee?"
Harry stuffed the gold back into the
bag. He snatched the cards from
Hugh's hand and a box of waxen en-
velope waters from his desk. There
was a strange light in his eye, a tremor
In his fingers.
at is | who play with money! he
said. MY gold against your coun-
tiers! Each of those hundred red disks
represents q day of your life-a day.
do you understands red day of your
sin! A day of yours against a double
eagle! What you win you keep. But
for every counter l win you shall pay
me n straight, white day, a clean
day, lived for decency and for the
right"
Hugh's eyes were fastened on the
gold in Harry's fingers. Two thousand
dollarsl If luck came his way he could
go far on that-far enough to escape
the nameless terror that pursued hir
in every shadow. Money against rec
waters? Why, it was plenty If he won.
and If he lost he had staked nothing
What a fool Harry wasl
Harry saw the shrewd, calculating
look that camo In his nvea He cauoht