Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1910-01-22
THE EVENING STORY
THE RIGHT THING.
BY JOANNA SINGLE.
Copyright, 1910, by Associated Ii

!, airy Press. .a
Henry Hart hurried from an over
late breakfast to reach the Office OF
Carson & Jones, architects, where, in
the absence of the heads of the office
he was supposed to keep the force
tremendously at work. He was tired
and a little disheartened. He wonder
ed, being already at his limit of ex-
pense for delicate wife and four ro-
bust children, how he was going to
send Katherine, aged IA, to the ex-
pensive private school Mary had de-
cided was the right thing, and which
she had awakened him In the night to
discuss. He had not opposed her---he
never did. What was the use? And
probably she was right. She herself
had been to private school; was Just
out of it when he married her.
When the office work was running
smoothly and he was going over the
plans for the Parsons mansion his
mind still ran on the private school.
And, for the first time, it came over
him that he was approaching middle
age and was on salary. generous
enough, but which was not like being
in business for himself Once, ten
years ago, he had turned down such a
chance for a partnership. He could run
no risk of not succeeding. There was
his family. On the New Years eve
when he married his girl-wife he made
to himself the sincere VOW to do al
ways the right thing by her. He kept
the vow, and he renewed 1t yearly and
at the birth of each child. Because of
this he belonged to no clubs, did not
smoke, denied himself any friendships
that would cost money, for otherwise
he could not have carried heavy life
insurance without restricting house
hold expense. He wondered If other
men had this limp, gray, grimly des-
pondent feeling to fight? He tried to
shut his mind to it.
But the private school required. 1t
would eat into the money he had been
putting aside for capital if ever he saw
chance to get into business for him
self. He had said nothing about this
fund, but it had meant self-denial. He
supposed, however. that the grades she
had just finished were enough of the
public schools for his super-refined lit
tie daughter, his pride, and the chief
pawn in Mary's carefully planned So
cial game. But he worked on with that
steady reliability, that evenness that
held him in his place when logically a
younger and more brilliant man would
long ago have replaced him. Some
times he had an uneasy feeling that
the firm would be glad if he gave
| them good reason to let him go.
He thought now of Sorter, little
younger than he, of "Sorter & Sorter''
across the hall in the big office build
ing. He liked this go-ahead young fell
low. his zeal and ability, his self-con-
fidence. He. had Ionged to accept his
proffered friendship, but he could not
afford it. He could not afford to lunch
where Sorter did, to belong to his
clubs, to share his amusements.
When noon came Hart dismissed the
working force-it was to be half
holiday but with the force Of habit he
continued going over the parson IS
plans Young Doty had made mis-.
take here-another there. His quick,
practiced, conscientious eye missed
nothing.
1t must have been one o'clock when
Sorter himself put his head in at the
door, saw Hart and, coming over be-
hind him, took hold of his fine but