Bridgeton pioneer., 1914-09-03
A Good
Match
But Not One Usually to
Be Expected
By F. A. Mitchell


unlimited ability, for instance, as a
trader. He considers money making
something that any fool should be able
10 accomplish. He is ambitious to play
The piano, and it worries him that he
s can't tell one note from another.
There is worse phase of such freak
ashness than this. A man with single
gift, not recognizing its value. will
Imagine he has another gift that he
doesn't possess at all. 81 fell into q
business life by mistake" says Jones,
who easily captured half million dol
lars. What was made for is farm
ing" He puts his accumulations in
a farm, and in a few years there is
nothing left of them. Yet no one can
convince Jones that he is not a natural
farmer. He explains his failure on
the ground that there were happenings
In his case which would not occur once
In a hundred years.
Norman Alsop at school was a per-
Recf scholar. When his report cards
came to his parents there was a string
1f AS against every study, the whole
booking like company Of soldiers all
or equal height, without a single little
fellow In the lot. All he had to do
was ITO read his lessons over once, and
esen he could go out and play. It
pleased him that he could do this, for
n reason. He was ambitious to be
nne tennis player, twtrler, an oars
man-indeed, anything and everything
That was athletic. But while he was
revered by his schoolmates he was
looked down upon by them on the
Fields of sport. Tommy Green, who
stood at the other end of the class
: from Norman, would make ball do
The stunts Of a boomerang. Norman
would stand looking at Tom wrapt In
admiration and wish he could exchange
sUme of the AS on his report cards for
Toms curves.
When Norman was at college it was
the same. He took all the prizes away
from the other students and was grad
sr1ted at the head of his class, a dis
appointed man. Why? Because he
had failed to get on a..y OF the athletic
teams. He was not big enough or
strong enough for football, but he tried
Dor all the rest without ghost of a
show in any of them.
One would suppose that these fail
ures would have cured iln of his am
mtion to be an athlete. On the con
9rary, after graduating lie went off to
u summer resort affordlng every fa-
~Cility for sports. with the determine
2 don 80 make something of himself"
&s he expressed it AS for his college
course, in his heart he regarded 1t
Failure. At the Pennant, hotel built
asu a site expressly fitted for water
and land sports, he found just the
place that suited him. There were golf,
Aennis and boating, to say nothing of
mountain climbing.
AT the Pennant Norman fell in with
Tnlia Damon. She had no business to
aae at such a hotel, for it was expen-
sfve, and she hadn't a cent in the
world. The truth is an aunt of hers
Rent her there to give her a chance to
scatch a husband. There was no hope
: That she would snare an intellectual
: 1zIan, for she was inordinately stupid.
zSnt her aunt thought it possible she
might mate with some rich mans son
whose only ambition was to attend
horse races and other spectacles,
where he would have nothing to do
hut look on.
Norman was introduced to Julia at
fhe xtennis courts. He asked her to
Tfay, and she beat him love set. But
Norman was nice young man and
seemed so cut up by his failure that
IN subsequent games she played off, =
permitting him to beat her most of
1fse games OF the last set. This made
2sfm not only well pleased with him
zelf, but with Julia.
The same afternoon Norman con-
sEznaed to take row on the river. He
hired boat and was pulling out into
Ehe stream when the current took him
IA among some tall grass. His oars be-
~oEame clogged, and In his spasmodic ef-
Z Norts to disentangle himself he upset
= the boat. He was In no danger, though
&Ae could not swim. for the water
"sxSkere he was dumped was only three
3 Deet deep. But he presented lu-
: xubraeus spectacle. Pulling himself
: I'D ON his feet, he stood looking about
4 kim as If fer an inspiration as to what
3 % do next, when he saw Julia stand
ing On the landing.
sShe had the good sense not to laugh
MT 'hin.
-sIf I were you," she said, II would
walk back here with the boat. where
Io1 can rip it on its side and let the
vwgter rpa cut
''rliS is Shr worst place for starting
~ Ss.sg " he ';.:sl inologetically. Il ever
zsaw. 1 T'oader they put the landing
sasre'
Zt's the current and the grass to
. 2pther," she replied soothingly.
He managed to get the boat, which
was fufi of wafer. near enough to the
iRnding for her to get boatheok on it.
9Ezad- she did the rest. Norman went to
ms room. changed his clothes and spent
1Ezse evening with her. He could not