The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1917-05-11

am Save6!"
 ruined his president, his friend, his countryp'
 And I nearly did, Mr. Jeffersonr' broke out Meriwether Lewis. s'Do not praise me too much. I was tempted"-
 The old man turned toward him, his face grave.
 You are honest. value that above all in you. You are punctilious to have no praise not honestly won. Listen, nowr He leaned toward the young man, who sat beside him. 'I know. knew all along-how you were tempt ed. She came here-Theodosia- very day you left"
 Lewis nodded, mute.
 'tIn some way, knew, the conspir- ators fought against your success and mine. I knew what agencies they in- tended to use against you. It was this woman. Had you failed should have known why. know many things, whether or not you do. I know the character of Aaron Burr well enough. He has been crazed, carried away by his own ambitions. God alone knows where he would have stopped. He has been man not surpassed in duphcity. He would stop at nothing. Moreover, he could make black look white. He did So for his daughter. She believed in him absolutely. And, knowing some what of bis plans, I imagined that he would use the attraction of that young lady for you-the power which, all things considered, she might be sup posed to possess with you. I knew the depth of your regard for her, the deeper for it's hopelessness. And, more than all, knew the 1ntentness and res olut1on of your character. It was hon. or saved you, your personal honor; that was what brought us success. No country is bigger than the personal honor of its gentlemen"
 The bowed head of Meriwether Lew is was his only answer. The keen faced old man went on:
 ''I knew that before you had left the mouth of the Ohio river he would do his best to stop you. knew 1t before you had left Harpers Ferry. But I placed the issue in the lap of the gods. I applied to you all the tests-the se- verest tests-that one man can to an ~S~ASA' ASS yOo dAO4Ct II VI 6 yCAA, two years, three years, I did not know. But now do know, and the answer is wonder flag which you have carried from one ocean to the other The an- swer is in this map, all these hides scrawied in coal, all those new thou sands of miles of land-our land. God keep 1t safe for us always! And may the people one day know who really secured 1t for them. It was not so much Thomas Jefferson as 1t was Neriwether Lewis.
 Each time I dreamed that my sub tie enemies were tempting you I pray ed in my own soul that you would be strong; that you would go on; that you would be loyal to your duty, no matter what the cost. God answered those prayers, my boy! Whatever was your need, whatever price you paid, you did what I prayed you would do. When the months passed and you did not come back I knew that not even the woman you loved could have called you back. I knew that you had learned the priceless lesson of renunciation, of sacrifice, through which alone the great deeds of the world always have been done"
 Mer4wether Lewis stood before his chief, cold and pale, unable to complete much speech. Thomas Jefferson look ed at him for a moment before he went on.
 My boy, you are so simple that you will not understand You do not un- derstand how well understand you. These things are not done without cost. If there was punishment for you you took that punishment-or you will. You kept your oath as an officer and your unwritten oath as a gentleman. It is great thing for a man to have his honor altogether unsullied." (To be continued.)