Belington progressive. [volume] (Belington, W. Va.) 1912-1927, 1913-01-09

mfnded-informed the family that
King Fergus was as much myth as
Dido. and innocently brought forth
] printed facts to corroborate her state
ment. One OF the ladies Hambleton
! crushed Mrs Van Camp by stating,
In tone of deep personal conviction.
with her cap awry. so much tie
worse for Dido"
| A salient strength persisted In the
I ffambletons-a strength which re-
tanned its character in spite of cross
currents The Hambleton tone ana
the Hamoleton ideas retained their
family color, and became% whether
worthily or NJ. part Of the Ham
bleton pride Msre than one son hao
lost his health or entire fortune
which was apt not to be large. In at
tempts to carry on country place.
"A Hambleton trait" they ohuckled,
with as much satisfaction as they con
sidered it good form to exhibit IN
Lynn, where family pride did tot
bring in large returns this phrase De
came almost synonymous with gen1*a
toolishaess.
This F&z Camp fortsane, which came
near but g@ner actually into the fam
lily. was generally understood to have
been made in shcea, though in reality
1t was drugs.
People say shoes tf@ minute they
hear the word Lynn, and I'm tired OF
explaining" Mrs Van Camp put IT.
She was third in line from the sue
cessful druggist, and could afford, II
anybody could, to be supercilious
toward trade. But she wasn't, even
after twenty years of somewhat rest
less submission to the Hambleton
yoke. And it was she who. during
her last visit to the family strong
hold help up before the young James
the advantages of commercial ca
reer.
You're nice boy, Jimsy. and
can't see you turned into poor law
yer. You're not hard-headed enough
to be good one. AS for being min
lister, well--no. Go into business, dear
boy, something substantial, and you'll
live to thank your stars"
Jimsy received this advice at the
time with small enthusiasm, and a res.
ervation of criticism that was a credit
to his manners, at least. But the
time came when he leaned on it.
Her own child, however. Mrs. Van
Camp encouraged to a profession from
the first "Aleck isn't smart enough
for business, but he may do some
thing as a student" was Mrs Van
Camps somewhat trying explanation;
and Aleck did do something as a stu
dent. Extremely impatient with any
exhibition of laZiness, the mother de-
manded good accounting of her sons
time. Aleck and Jim, who were born
in the same year, ran more or lesa
side by side until the end of college
They struggled together in sports
and in arguments. rushed" the same
girl in turn or simultaneously and
spent their long vacations cruising
up and down the Maine coast in 2.
thirty-foot sail-boat. Once they made
more ambitious journey all the way
to Yarmouth and the Bay of Fundy IL
! good-sized fishing-smack.
| But when college was done, their
ways separated. Mrs. Van Camp. IL
the prime of her unusual faculties,
having decorated the Hambleton
scutcheon like a gay cockade stuck
airily up into the breeze. She haze
no part nor lot in the family pride.
but understood it, perhaps, better
| than the Hambletons themselves Her
crime was that she played with it,
Aleck, full-fedged biologist, went
to the Little Hebrides to work out
his fresh and salad theory concern
ing the nerve system of the clam
James, third son of John and Edith
Hambleton of Lynn, had his eyer
thoroughly opened in the three monthr
after Commencement by a considers
ton of the family situation. 1t seemed
to him that from babyhood he had
been burningly conscious of the pinch
ing and skimping necessary to main,
tain the family pride. The two Older
brothers were exempt from the
scorching process, the eldest being
the family darling and the second q
genius Neither one could rationally
/ be expected, Just at present." ts
take up the family accounts and MAXI
the income square up with even u
decently generous outgo And there
were the girls yet to be educated.
Jim had no special talent to bless
himself with, either In art or science.
He was Unfortunately fond of the sea-
but that did not help him in choosing
a career He had good taste in books
and some little skill In music. He
was, indeed, thrall to the human voice
especially to the low voice in woman
and he was that best of all critics
a good listener His greatest riches
as well as his greatest charm, lay ir
a spirit of invincible youth; but hs
was no genius, no one perceived thxt
more clearly than himself
CTO BE CONTINUED