Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1915-01-16
CHAPTER XIV.
In the Mold.


Then began what promised to be-
come rake's progress. Mark sought
out new companions and got himself
invited to join their revels. He tried
hard. at first recklessly, then deter
minedly and then wistfully to enter
into the spirit of dissipation. The at
tempt was a fiat failure. The thor
oughgoing habit of mind that looked
unerringly for the last result saw
through at once to the dregs in the
cup. His companions privately laughed
at the spectacle of this hard serious
man awkwardly essaying the role of
devil of a fellow; but for the humor
he thus unwittingly provided they
would soon have got rid of him as
death s-head at their feasts He sue
ceeded only in still further impairing
his health, in acquiring a bad taste
in the mouth and relaxing all along
the line his habit of rigid abstemious-
ness.
After a few months he returned to
the old routine.
Il hear" Henley interrupted a con-
sultation one day to remark. you've
been sowing wild oats. Got 'em all
harvested"
Mark nodded, grinning sheepishly
Crops in the barnard for sale
cheap. l agree with the prophet that
all is vanity
What made you do it?'
L don't know To see what it's
like, 1 guess. But l didn't have the
knack of it.
Trouble at home,'' thought Henley
shrewdly
Aloud he said: Il imagine not You d
better stick to business, where you
fit in
L sometimes think that's all vanity,
too"
AT least we have something to be
vain over And on the whole there's
more romance in making steel than in
helping to support the Tenderloin.'
Mark made a gesture of disgust
After a frowning pause, he answered:
Il don't know The trouble is, I've
lost the romantic point of view. To
me the business is nothing but a
money-making machine now-and
something to do. l wonder why we
work SO hard to get money we don't
need We get no good out of it. Tim
othy Woodhouse gets more pleasure
out CT his flying machines that won't
fly"
Just wait" said Henley dryly, ''un
til somebody tries to take it away from
you. Nearly every man of unusual vi
taIity goes sooner or later through
the stage of questioning the existing
scheme of things. Things are, is al
the answer he gets. The sooner ht
quits asking questions, the better fol
his peace of mind"
They returned to the matter in hand
which was the fleeing of Timoth.
Woodhouse.
No one would have been more sur
prised than Timothy to learn that b.
had any fleece worthy of the atten
ton of such shearers as Henley an,
Truitt But years before a Lochinva
had come out of the West with stocl
to sell in the IroQuois Iron Ore Mir
ing, Development & Transportatio
company. He had gifted tongue. H
departed sor his own place, a richie
and doubtless a wiser man, havin
received a profitable lesson in tn
credulity OF his fellows. Later inspet
ton revealed that the long
company's properties consisted of a
immense field of admittedly good or,
but its development work only of tn
extraction of the sample so proud
exhibited by the promoter and il
transportation facilities of a franchis
to build a railroad through 300 mile
of wilderness. In those days the bull
ing of railroads was not lightly unde
taken. The investment seemed to ia
short of Lochinvar's prospectus.
Naturally Timothy once said ru
fully. since invested"
But a time had come when makes
of steel began to operate on largi
scale and to look far ahead into Il
future. The MacGregor company CO
ceived the project of buying that O
field and building that railroad.
commenced secretly and ieisurely pic