The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1911-10-21
I rustful
Apolonia

when called upon to describe his char
acteristics and abilities, he would
have accumulated quite little scrap !!
iron heap by the time he was sixty
five. AS 1t was, what he had accu
mulated was the awed dislike of his |
townsmen and collection Of stocks, /
bonds and mortgages that would sink
a ship.
Jed Haymaster could make money !
with his eyes shut and one hand tied
behind him Make 1t he did with no |
quarter for the innocent hystander
Having all these years Of practice
behind him, it was easy for him to in
dite the letter to Mrs. Daw. Apolonia
Daw had come to town few years
before as the bride of Henry Daw, who
had died shortly after. His young
widow had continued TO reside in the
pretty cottage. Daw built for her, her
small income suffcing for her quiet
needs.
Most of this income came in the
shape of dividends from her stock in
the Haymaster engine works This
stock her husband had purchased
| cheap when old Jedediah had started
this, the tenth of his big enterprises.
Iedediah disliked women mixed up
| in his business affair. and entitled to
participate in the annual meetings OF
| stockholders-and, besides. there was
| soon TO be a large extra dividend.
| Whoever held Mrs DAVIS stock at
| that happy time naturally would get
the fat dividend upon it.
Therefore Jedediah wrote her that
| It had occurred to him that she might
like to invest her money in govern.
ment bonds or something else solid
and trustworthy instead of having it
in engine stock, which, while good.
might he seriously affected by some
unexpected disaster He would, in the
generosity of his heart, take her stock
off her hands, now that the dangers
of possessing it had been made clear
to her, and he remained hers respect
fully.
Apolonia Daw wrote back on paper
family scented with violets. She said
she certainly appreciated his deep in
terest in her affairs, because she had
found very little genuine kindness in
O business way since she had been
left alone. 1t touched her greatly
But the fact that he was at the head
of the engine works gave her such a
J sense of security that she had never
worried a bit about her stock The
Haymaster engine works was just as
) solid as the Bank OF England to hel
with his keen Judgment and strong
hand at the helm. So, thanking him
again. she remained his most crate
fully.
Jededlah read this with his face
screwed mp in a tight knot "ThC
woman's more of fool than most OIL
'em!" he said as he dipped his per
in ink she hasn't sense enough tC
get scared"
This time he wrote that her trus'
in him was, indeed, fattering. but thai
he was only weak human man who
did not claim infallible Judgment ant
he could not bear to have II upon hi,
conscience if she should suffer fnan
cially through him. OF course the
engine works were as solid as any
but he begged to point out to her thai
industrial stocks fuctuated uneXpect
eddy sometimes. They were delicate
He considered II his duty to look ou
for her So great was his concern
that he would offer her IS a share
above par value.
Apolonia answered that she wished
there were more men like Mr. Hay
master in this hard world. Things
would take on far different aspect
then. She said there were tears In
her eyes as she wrote and that she
would be less than woman If she fell
the slightest culver of doubt in the
engine works under his guidance
while, if she descended to the depths
Of selling her stock, she would really
be an object Of contempt. No, she
assured him, she never would be I'm
grateful or foolish enough to thinl
She could better herself by getting rio
of her engine stock Again she wal
his most gratefully.
Jedediah gazed at this epistle hos
tilely and breathed hard. yet sh'
can't be as ALFRED smart as sh,
must be II she isn't fool"
So he called on Mrs. Daw that eve
ming on the way home. She hutteret
TO welcome him as though he wer,
her dearest friend and clasped hi
bend warmly. Jededlah. really look
ing at her for the first time In his life
saw how very pretty she was,
Il called, he said, "about that stock
| don't seem to have made mysel
clear in my letters. You worry me
Mrs. Daw. with your sublime woman
Ignorance of business affairs"
Apolonia leaned forward and looket
Jedediah fairly in the eyes. "Dea
Mr.. Haymaster." she said. sweetiy
81 wouldn't have you worry about m,
for the world And you made your
self quite elear think It would hav,
been brilliantly clear even If | hat
been as ignorant as you thought me
Won see, I know all about that extr;