Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1915-07-29


AT the club, to which habit had car
ried me, encountered the doctor,
who was dallying over cup of coffee
and a morning paper. He glanced up
and for moment his eyes fingered.
Hello" he said; chow long have
you been gone?"
Little less than year."
"You went away youngish sort of
man and you return with distinguish
ed white temples" he summarized
"There must be story locked UP in
you"
glanced impatiently at the card
and called for eggs.
II haven't been nibbling at life thi.
time," retorted, with some touch OF
asperity.
"I didn't instruct to gluttonize," he
reminded me.
gave him partial history, but he
eyed me. sharply and finally fell into
his old habit of diagnosis.
Something is weighing on your
mind" he declared; "and it isn't the
memory Of cannibals.'
The end was that he decided I
must get my mind active, and, after
vainly trying to bully me back into lit
erary effort, he took a new tack.
"Are you too surely and apathtic to
combine small service to friends
with the augmentinS of your own for
tuner" he demanded; and before ]
could reply he fell into the discussion
of a matter which just now lay at the
front of his interests. There was
Kentuckian in town, with glowing pro-
jects of fortune to be made along
the ridges of the Cumberlands.
He was not mere promoter, hut
man of large means and ability who
was also much the gentleman. His
present scheme of things required the
enlistment of additional capital, and
he had come to men who had interest
ed the doctor as well as themselves.
The Kentuckian had suggested, how
ever, that before committing them
selves in the matter they send one Of
their own number with him to lools
over the options.
None of the others, as it happened,
could go. Here, declared the doctor,
was my opportunity to try the novelty
of useful occupation.
The man, whose name was Weigh
borne, was to lunch with him. Would
l meet him and talk it over, and, IL
was favorably impressed, accompany
him to the Kentucky mountains?
We were sitting by a Fifth Avenue
window. The sky was deary with the
ash gray of autumn. Buses, motor, and
taXies were trailing along in the same
old hopeless monotony. At the thought
of remaining here l sickened. Until
a letter could arrive from Keller. l
could do little here, ard this trip
would take only ten days or two
weeks.
Yes, said, I would meet Mr.. Weigh
borne. Why not?
Having promised to be on hand at
and began a strange quest that came
to nothing. In Times square and Park
Row l spent several dusty hours ruIi-
ming through newspaper files and 60
ing back to dates five and six years
old. / was hunting for a pictorial
section of the same general style as
that which bore the portrait
found one or two printed on SINH
lar paper, but not even Of the exact
size, and although l followed these
through the Sundays of several years.
I came in the end only to the conclu-
sion that the paper had been printed
outside of New York.
Weighborne impressed me. In ply
sique and mind and energy he was
big and virile. One could glance at
him in his carelessly correct clothes
and know that he would be equally az
home in drawing room or camp.
agreed to meet him in Lexington
three days hence and accompany hin:
to the properties which he hoped to
develop.
There was minor element of per
sonal risk, he warned me. We should,
perhaps, encounter the dislike Of GER
tain men who were of The feudist
type. He spoke lightly of this feature,
hut as matter concerning which 1t
was only fairness to inform me.
Later in the day, while glancing
over the papers, / came upon the an
nouncement that new play was to
have its first performance that even
ing at Broadway house, and in the
name of the author l found my inter-
est piqued.
Bob Maxwell was an old friend. He
had fought long fight for success
and had found the goddess cold and
Outstanding. We had been fellows IN
literary aspiration. and he had been,
when last saw him, still floundering
for support in the unstable waters OF
newspaperdom. If his play succeed
| ed, he was made.
1.,.a s..I, Il. Ii