Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1915-09-09

TEN, GrlerSOn interest predOm1nateQ
in every considerable business venture
in 1t, save and excepting the Raymer
Foundry and Machine works.
He was president of one bank, and
the principal stakeholder in the other,
which was practically an allied institu-
ton; he was the sole owner OF the
grain elevator, the. saw and planning
mills, the box factory and dozen
smaller industries in which his name
did not appear Also. 1t was his money.
or rather his skill as promoter, which
had transformed the Wahaska & Pine
boro railroad from a logging switch,
built to serve the sawmill, into an i'm
portant and independent connecting
link in the great lake region system.
In each of these commercial or in
dustrial chariots the returned native
sat in the drivers seat; and those who
remembered him as loutish young
farmland overlooked the educative re-
suits of continued success and mar
veled at his gifts. wondering how and
where he had acquired them.
While the father was thus gratifying
a purely Gothic lust for conquest, the
daughter figured, in at least one small
circle. as beautiful young Vandal,
with passion for overturning all the
well-settled traditions. At first her at
titude toward Wahaska and the Wa
haskans had been serenely tolerant:
the tolerance of the barbarian who
neither understands, nor sympathizes
with. the homely virtues and the Gus
toms which have grown out of them.
Then resentment awoke. and with 1t
soaring ambition to reconstruct the
social fabric of the countrified town
upon a model of her own devising.
In this charitable undertaking she
was aided and abetted by her father.
who indulgently paid the bills. At her
instigation he built an imposing red
brick mansion on the sloping shore of
Lake Minnedaska, named it-or suf-
fered her to name it-"Mereside,' had
an artist Of parts up from Chicago to
design the decorations and superintend
the furnishings, had landscape gar
dener from Philadelphia to lay out the
grounds and, when all was in readi-
ness, gave housewarming to which
the invitations were in some sense
mandatory, since by that time he had
finger in nearly every commercial
and industrial pie in Wahaska.
But there were still obstacles to be
surmounted. From the first there had
been a perverse minority refusing
stubbornly to bow the head In the
house of-Grierson. The Farnhams
were of it. and the Raymers, with q
following of a few of the families
called "old" as age is reckoned in the
middle West. The men of this minor
ity we're slow to admit the omnipo-
tence of Jasper Grierson's money, and
the women were still slower to accept
Miss Grierson on terms of social equal
ity.
At the housewarming this minority
had been represented only by various
ly worded regrets. At a reception.
given to mark the closing of Mereside,
socially, on the eve Of Miss Margery's
departure for the winter in Florida.
the regrets we're still polite and still
unanimous. Miss Margery laughed de-
family and set her white teeth on a
determined resolution to reduce this
inner citadel of conservatism at all
costs Accordingly. she opened the
campaign on the morning after the re-
ception; began 1t at the breakfast Ia
BILE when she was pouring her fathers
coffee.
t"You know everybody. and every
body's business, poppa: who is the
treasurer of st. John's?" she inquired
How should known" grumbled the
magnate, whose familiarity with
church affairs was limited to certain
writings of legal nature concerning
the Presbyterian house of worship
upon which he held mortgage.
"You ought to know" asserted Miss
Margery, with some asperity. Isn't it
Mr.. Edward Raymer?"
Jasper Grierson frowned thoughtful
ly into space. why, yes; come to
think of 1t, ] guess he Is the man.
Anyway. he's one of their-what do
you call 'em--trustees?"
"Wardens," corrected Margery.
Eyes, that's it; knew 1t was some
thing connected with a penitentiary.
What do you want of him?"
Nothing much of him; but want
a check for five hundred dollars pay
able to his order"
Jasper Grierson's laugh was sug-
gestive of the noise made by rusty
door hinge The fitting of the golden
cornucopia had made him ruthless
money-grubber. but he never ques-
toned his daughters demands.
Going in for the real old simon
pure, blue-ribbon brand Of respectable
ity this time, amt you. Madgie?' he
chuckled; but he wrote the check on
the spot.
Two hours later. Miss Grierson's cut
ter driven by herself, paraded in Main
street to the delight OF any eye es-
thetic. When the clean-limbed Ken
tuckian had measured the length Of
Main street he was sent on across the
railroad tracks into the industrial half
of the town, and was finally halted in
front of the Raymer Foundry and Ma
chine works.
Raymer was at his desk when the
smart equipage drew up before the Of
fee door; and moment later he was
at the curb, bareheaded, offering to
help the daughter Of men out OF the
robe wrappings.
Raymer held the ONCE door open
for her. and in the grimy little den
which had been his fathers before
him. placed a chair for her at the