Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1911-11-30


movements. interfered. and he held
her hand with the tenderness Of
brother-no more!
REALLY, Elsie. I wish l could have
done more for you." he said. II want
you to promise me that II you get into
difficulties ofIany sort you will let me
smooth them out for you"
II have no one else to 60 to-" she o.
Piled simply. do you know how much
suffering there Is in the world7" she
suddenly asked him.
81 suppose there is great deal Of IT,"
do yon understand what suffering
Isl"
II do" he returned II had my
share of ft-of illness. Of poverty. OF
cold and hunger. Of uncleanliness. Of
the social degradation that belongs
with want Of money. know these
things not as one emerging from them
but as one cast down among them
from luxury. Some people that expert
ence softens. others 1t hardens and
makes bitter. Sometimes I think It
had that latter effect with me-"
''It must not be!'' she said earnestly
'Phillip. what has happened to my
family has happened to three-fourths
Of the people in Hampton. which, as
you may or may not know. is compos-
ed entirely Of poor people. workmen
who in better times try to buy their
own homes, In that village of four or
ave Thousand pedfl hera- are per-
4 haps one han Of them facing actual
starvation at this minute"
"YesT inquired Phillip, waiting.
There are hundreds and hundreds
Of other villages like Hampton. where
thousands upon thousands are in the
same condition. Things were never so
bad as they are now"
"YesY he asked again.
"They say-they say"-she halted
and stopped. and then. with her face
coloring. she stumbled on-"they say
that you brought on this panic and
that you could stop 1t. It isn't true, is
it,"
'Tn a measure l suppose it is" ad-
mitted Phillip. 1.-THE condition was like
a pile of loose gunpowder at the side.
of railroad track. where constantly
passing engines are sending up sparks.
One spark was sure to land in that
gunpowder. and explode it. l merely
happened to be the spark. but with np
more power than that spark to stop
the subsequent destruction" Il,
She recoiled from him with dilating,
eyes. 1T is true. them" she said.
II suppose It is, even in the way you
look at 1t. but I assure you. Elsie,
that 1t was necessary. Out of this
better times will result, and better
times could not be reached except
through this devastation. 1t Is like i
surgical operation. which. painful ana
cruel as 1t. may seem at the start. 3
necessary to save the rest Of the body
from death and decay"
She shook her head. II cannot M
derstand it. but then l suppose couM
never have been a surgeon
He smiled and laid his hand upon
her shoulder mo. dom think yop
could"
She WINGED under that touch and
glance, not because they were repuf-
sive to her-oh, not because of that!--
glance Of a brother.
Rensselaer, was announced Just then.
and the interview closed.
In Phillips touring car. big Sam up
beside the chauffeur. Kelvin and Rens-
selaer bowled along a pleasant country
road, with the latter young gentleman
in a state of stupefaction.
ITO Forest Lakes" Rensselaer, ex.
claimed for at least the twentieth
time. "Why. you old fox. you never
said word about ever having known
Henry Breed or Of ever having been
to Forest Lakesv'
II didn't dare" answered Phillip.
II didn't want my panic to come on
too soon. which 1t would have done
had my connection with Breed been
known"
"How did you happen to fell in
with the old boy?"
Hunted him upw said Phillip, with
sudden fire. "As you know. this same
crowd. of whom Pellman was at that
time the head. led my father into
carefully prepared stock deal. It was
as deliberate plucking as any green
horn ever got at the hands of lot Of
confidence men. and it not only broke
his purse. but 1t broke his heart 1t
left him without ambition. and when
he died he left me absolutely penni-
less. Even as a. boy planned to get
even. but I knew l must wait. Down
south the chance came. l made that
oil strike. then luck poured in on me,
and / began at last to make a lot of
money. One day about year ago I
read In paper of Breeds anger
against this same Wall street coterie.
I had formed some good acquaintances
down there, and among them was q
man who knew Breed personally. He
gave me letter Of introduction.
then went to see Breed and proposed
this n1on 10 roturuad an II m