Anadarko daily democrat. [volume] (Anadarko, Oklahoma) 1908-191?, 1910-10-20
Was He a Coward?
By CARL JENKINS
Copyright, BY Associated Literary Press

ocated Literary Press
81 was the one to have leaped in
after him"
Poor boy, We should not have
come to the water"
With that she turned away and
commenced taking her garments down
OF the hooks and folding and packing
them.
When the son could control his
voice he stepped to the telephone and
asked for his bill and ordered car
riage for the depot Two hours later
mother and son we're on their way
home. When they talked It was not
of what had happened on the wharf
Don't you sec he couldn't have
done anything else?' queried Dr. Har.
graves at lunch, when some one said
that the coward had departed
He passes out OF our lives, Of
course"
And IT so comes about When the
doctor again visited the safe deposit
company he saw young Mr.. Parker.
but neither bowed. Some one else
waited on the patron. People who had
met the young man socially at the
doctors residence inquired about him
in careless way, and were as care.
lessly answered. Now and then the
father wondered II the daughter had
been interested enough to care or be
disappointed. but he could not make
up his mind. The affair had never
been referred to again after the first
day
A whole year passed. Father and
daughter were again bound for the
same hotel. but this time they were
motoring a part of the way, the car
being driven by a chauffeur.
In the middle of the afternoon. on
broad highway, four foreigners who
had struck work in a quarry not far
away and were rire for mischief.
halted the auto to commit highway
robbery. The chauffeur was pol.
troon. lie could have run them down,
but he halted the machine.
The doctor was not armed. but he
refused to leave the car, and struck
at the fellows who sought to pull the
daughter out Such one-sided con
llict could not last long, and must
terminate In a victory for the attack.
crs. They were pushing the advan.
tage of numbers when n second auto
rolled up quietly behind them and
young man leaped out. Without any
weapons but his bare fists he sailed
INTO the four. They drew knives on
him, but he struck one after another
and fought fercely and silently. Tho
battle ragged up and down the road for
FIVE minutes, and then the used-up
men retreated TO the woods
The doctor and his daughter had
watched it without a word They
knew the attacker, and they saw blood
on his face and hands as he waved to
them that the road was clear and
walked back to his own machine
1T is Mr.. Parker!" whispered Miss
May.
Hanged if 1t isnt!" replied the
father.
But folks said he was a coward"
I'm! was among those who said
so Guess we made mistake some.
where"
II nope 20!
"Eh? Eh? You hope what?"
The words were not repeated.
A week later. at the Harbor hotel.
the doctor called his daughter into
his room to say.
Il wrote to friend of mine i'm the
city and asked him to do me a favor.
He had an interview with Mr.. Parker's
mother Say, dear, while the public
has a notion that your father is a
great doctor, | want to admit to you
that he is a great fool"
why, what is it,"
"l ought TO have suspected some.
thing of the kind from the first. When
MIR. Parker was child of two his
nurse let him fall into the water. lie
had close call from drowning. II
gave him a dread and a horror of the
water. and it will always be with him.
He's no coward. lie simply fears the
one thing. Plenty of cases like 1t.
I'm writing him very abiect letter
This afternoon. Don't you want to in
close something? II he'll be sensible
and forgive, I'll take him for son.ln.
law about a year hence. Eh? Eth?
That makes you blush, doesn't Il?
believe you've been his champion right
along!'