The Rice belt journal., 1914-05-22

There's enough of US drops in Bel
mont TO fill pretty big bucket'-oh,
it can't be my father! 1t can't be my
lather!-He has daughter-Its all
a horrid mistake. There must be an
! other David Kerr. Pm sure"
Gloria sprang from her chair and
seized the sleeping woman roughly by
he arm.
Listen to me. Tell me something
, more OF David Kerr"
She shook Little Ella into con-
scious state and repeated the question.
Which David Kerr is it?"
There's only one l know Of" an
swered Ella. He's got a real estate
Office on Fifth street"
What"
! The net of circumstances was be-
ing drawn tighter and tighter about
one man, and that man her father.
Are YOU sure he's the man, girl?"
Gloria asked the question in as sub
dued a manner as possible. Suddenly
she had become afraid She did not
wish to arouse suspicion.
Sure, he's the man" 1t tried ones
patience to be reused from sleep, and
then to meet with contradiction was
enough 10 make one petulant To set
tie the question so that she could go
back to sleep, little Ella added:
Look on my bureau and you'll see
a program of the Dave Kerr DENNY
cratic club ball"
Gloria walked over to the bureau
with its tumble of odds and ends, and
began to turn over the things me-
chanically.
No, not that Look behind that
photygraft. That's It, That's his pic
ture on the front"
Gloria gave one look The picture
was that of her father.
For a time Little Ella chartered
drowsily, but Gloria did not hear She
was Frustrated by grief that numbed
her every faculty The foundation of
her faith had been swept away.
What she beheld seemed to burn It,
self into her brain. On the cover of
the program were the words: Annual
Ball. David Kerr Democratic Club, +"
and the picture of her father 1t was
the truth; her father was the boss of
Belmont So different was her posi-
ton from that pinnacle on which she
had thought herself to be that the
whole world would have to go through
a revolutionary orientation There was
nothing in her life which would not
have to be adjusted anew because OF
this revelation.
AS she turned the pages of the pro
gram, pages filled with liquor and sa-
loon advertisements, her thoughts
were all of herself. Resentment and
anger there were, directed toward her
father, but now in the first moments
, when she saw herself as Belmont saw
her humiliation conquered all other
emotions. Her first thought of Joe
= | "IiRuj was Jtiott llS Idu hSPI bhC ~ hIh
from her. She could not grow more
sick at heart, comparatively feeling
was out of the question because she
was completely crushed, but she saw
as In a book that had been written anC
laid away as finished, the sacrifice
he had made for her, the supreme re
nunciation he had made because hi
would not denounce her father before
her
The thought of how different he
homecoming had been from what sh'
had planned made her laugh hysteric
ally. Then when she recalled the few
staunch friends she had made sh
0 clutched wildly at the hope that afte
all it was untrue.
ITS lie, every word of it, lie hi
t enemies invent. What big man bu
|. has about him enyious wasps tha
l. prick and sting? Judge Gilbert, M,
l. Kendall, Doctor Hayes, they'll all sa,
= that he-Joe Wright! What of him
II What will he say?'
n She put this man that had loved he
# in one balance and the other men il
the other. He outweighed them al
!" and the momentary hope was gone
/? She could see it all now. AS the bal
!" fling attitude of Belmont revealed il
q self to her bit by bit she buried he
a face in her arms and sobbed.
e, And | was so proud, oh, SO proud!
n moaned the daughter of David ker1
4. Joe, Joe! You did love mel sen
b him away. and / never understood
.e Now | can see it all. The social slight
the cold disdain | could not unde
le stand-the whispers that died ava
il before they reached my ears-all al
ali because was David Kerr's daugl
70 ter David Kerr, the boss of Belmont
a. Her fathers name exercised fasc
d nation over her. Again and again sh
er repeated it, her lips curling wit
Of scorn.
II David Kerr, the boss OF Belmont!