The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1915-07-30
Dr( H4fzEJ ,SCel6hz12J sons

for the realizing of ideals. was now
safely assured. He could 60 whittier
he pleased and DO what seemed right
in his own eyes, and there was none
to say him nay.
In this minor city of his hasty selec.
ton he would find the environment
most favorable for q rewriting of his
book and for renewal Of his studies.
Here. too, he might hope to become by
unostentatious degrees the beneficent
god-in-the-car of his worthier ambition,
raising the fallen, succoring the help
less and fighting the battles Of the
oppressed.
Further along, when she should have
quite forgotten the Belle jules deck.
hand, he would meet Miss Farnham
on an equal social footing; and the
conclusion Of the whole matter should
be triumphant demonstration to her
by their irrefutable logic Of good deeds
and a life well-lived that In his case,
at least, the end justified the means.
The train Of reflective thought was
broken abruptly by the seating Of two
other supper guests at his table; q
big-framed man in the grizzled fifties,
and q young woman who looked as II
she might have stepped the moment
before out Of the fitting rooms of the
most famous of Partisan dressmakers.
Griswold's supper was served. and
for time he made shift to ignore the
couple at the other end of the table.
Then an overheard word, the name Of
the town which he had chosen as his
future abiding place. made him sud.
denly observant
It was the young woman who had
named Wahaska and he saw now
that his first impression had been at
fault: she was not overdressed. Also
he saw that she was piquantly pretty;
bravura type, slightly suggesting the
Rialto at its best. perhaps, but equally
suggestive of sophistication, travel and
serene disregard of chaperonage.
The young woman's companion was
undeniably her father. Gray. heavy.
proved, and with face that was a
life-mask of crude strength and ele.
mental shrewdness. the man had be.
queathed no single feature to the alert
ly beautiful daughter; yet the resem.
blance was unmistakable. Griswold
did not listen designedly, but he could
not help overhearing much Of the talk
at the other end of the table. From
1t he gathered that the young woman
was lately returned from some F1ori-
da winter resort; that her father had
met her by appointment in St. Louis;
and that the two were going on to-
gether; perhaps to Wahaska, since
that was the place name oftenest on
the lips Of the daughter.
1t was at this point that the apex Of
Philistine contentment was passed and
the reaction set In. He had been
spending strength and vitality reck.
lessly and the accounting was at hand.
The descent began when he took him.
self sharply to task for the high.priced
supper. What right had he to order
costly food that he could not eat when
the price of this single meal would
feed family for a week?
After that, nothing that the obsequi-
GUS and attentive waiter could bring
proved tempting enough to recall the
vanished appetite. Never having
known what 1t was to be sick, Girls
void disregarded the warning, drank
cup OF strong coffee and went out to
the lobby to get a cigar, leaving his
table companions in the midst of their
meal. To his surprise and chagrln the
carefully selected "perfecto" made him
dizzy and faint, bringing a disquieting
recurrence of the vertigo which had
seized him while he was searching for
his negro treasure-bearer on the levee.
1--WE had an overdose of excitement,
I guess" he said to himself. flinging
the cigar away. "The best thing for
me to do is to go down to the train
and get to bed"
He went about 1t listlessly, with a
curious buzzing in his ears and GER
tain dimness Of sight which was quite
discuncerting; and when a cab was
summoned he was glad enough to let
respectfully sympathetic porter lend
him shoulder to the sidewalk.
The drive in the open air was suffi.
GENTLY tonic to help him through the
details of ticket-buying and embarka.
ton; and afterward sleep came so
quickly that he did not know when the
Pullman porter drew the curtains to
adjust the screen in the window at his
feet. though he did awake drowsily
later on at the sound of voices in the
aisle. awoke to realize vaguely that
his two table companions Of the Hotel
Chouteau cafe were to be his fellow
travellers In the Pullman
The train was made up ready to
leave, and the locomotive was filling
the great train shed with stertorous
hissings. when q red-faced man slipped
through the gates to saunter over to
the Pullman and to peek inquisitively
at the porter
much Of load tonight, Ceorge?"
mo, sab; mighty light; four young
ladies' goin' up to de school in Fari.
bault, Mistah Grierson and his daugh.
ter, and a gentleman from de Chou.
teau."
"A gentleman from the Chouteau!
When did he come DOWN."
The porter knew the calling of the
red-faced man only by intuition; but
Griswold's tip was warming in his
pocket and he lied at random and on
general principles.
Been heah all de evenin'; come
down right early afte' suppeh. and