Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1915-08-31
CHAPTER XIX.
pitfalls.


Raymer angrily jubilant. had rescued
his imperiled stock, it was pretty gen.
orally known that Kenneth Griswold,
the writing man, had become the
fourth member in the close corpora
ton Of the Raymer Foundry and Ma
chine works, and Wahaska was eager
ly discussing the business affair in all
its possible and probable bearings up
on the Raymers, the Griersons and the
newly elected directory Of the Pine
boro railroad.
Of all this buzzing Of the gossip bees
the person most acutely concerned
heard little or nothing. Digging deeply
in the inspiration field, Griswold speed
ily became oblivious to most Of his en-
compassments; to all Of them, indeed,
save those which bore directly upon
the beloved task. Among these, he
counted the frequent afternoon visits
to Mereside, and the scarcely less fire.
quent evenings spent in the Farnham
home. He was using each OF the
young women as a foil for the other
in the outworking Of his plot; and he
welcomed it as a sign Of growth that
the story in its new form was acquir-
ing verisimilitude and becoming CRATE.
fully, and at times, he persuaded him
self, quite vividly, human.
When he got we'll into the swing Of
it and was turning out a chapter every
three or four days. he fell easily into
the habit Of slipping the last INSTALL
ment into his pocket when he went to
Mereside Margery Grierson was add
ing generously to his immense obliga-
ton to her. hoping only to find a
friendly listener he found a helpful
collaboration. More than once, when
his own Imagination was at fault, she
was able to open new vistas in the
humanities for him, apparently draw
clusions compared with which his own
hard bought store Of experimental
knowledge was almost purile.
II wish you would tell me the secret
of your marvellous cleverness," he ex-
claimed on one Of the June afternoons
when he had been reading to her in
the cool half shadows. Of the Mereside
library. You are only a child in
years; how can you know with such
miraculous certainty what other peo-
pie would think and do under con-
ditions about which you can't possibly
know anything eXperimentally? It's
beyond mel"
There are many things beyond you
yet, dear boy; many, many things"
was her laughing rejoinder; from
which it will be inferred that the epi-
sode in the Farnhams' and Merchants
burglar-proof had become an episode
forgotten-or at least forgiven. You
know men-a little; but when it comes
to the women we'll, II l didn't
keep continually nagging at you, your
two heroines-with neither of whom
you are really in love-would degen-
crate into rag dolls. They would, ac-
tually.'
That's true; I can see it clearly
enough when you point it out" he ad-
mitted, putting his craftsman pride
underfoot, as he was always obliged to
do in these talks with her. Il should
be discouraged if you didn't keep on
telling me that the story, as a story,
is good"
1T is good; it is a big story" she
asserted, with kindling enthusiasm.
The plot, so far as you have gone
with it, is fine; and that is where you
leave me away behind. I don't see
how you could ever think it out. And
the character drawing is fine, too,
some of it. Your Fleming is as far
beyond me as your Ffdelia seems to
be beyond you"
You don't know Fleming yet. Have
you ever met Ffdelia?"
Not as you have drawn her-no.
She is too unutterably fine. If she had
a single shred Of humanity about her,
should suspect you Of meaning to
fall in love with her, farther along
Joan, who, as you say, is a mere
daughter Of men,"
but how about Joan?" he fretted
rs she out Of drawing, too?"
Yes: you are distorting her the
other way-making her too inhumanly
worldly and insincere." Then, with an
abruptness that was like a slap in the
face: IF you didn't spend so many
evenings a Doctor Bertie's, you would
get both Fidelia and Joan in better
drawing"
He flushed and drew himself up
with stabbed amour propre prompting
him to make some stinging retOrt con-
trasting the wells of truth with the
brackish waters of sheer worldliness
Then he saw how inadequate it would
meet this charmingly indicative young
person upon any grounds save those
of her own choosing.
That is the first really unkind
thing have ever heard you say" was
the mild reproach which was all that
the reactionary second thought would
sanction.
"Unkind to whom?-to you, or to
Miss Farnham?"
ASK yourself" he countered weak
ly, and she laughed at him.
Griswold did not reply to the laugh
He was gathering up the scattered
pages Of his manuscript and replacing
them in order When he spoke agair
it was of a matter entirely irrelevant.
"I had an odd experience the Other
evening" he said II had been dining
with the Raymers and was walking
back to Shawnee street. A little news
boy named Johnnie Fergus turned uI
from somewhere at one of the stree,
crossings and tried to sell me paper
at eleven o'clock at night! / bought
one and joked him about being out Sc
late; and from that on / couldn't gel
rid of him. He went all the way home
with me. talking a blue streak an6
acting as if he were afraid Of some
.l;,r o- I remembered af