El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1919-07-24

would quit dreaming Of poetry and
/ FOLLOW with Roscoe and Jim to make
the business and the city bigger.
! Bibbs could not understand why
ger.
"Damnationi" roared Sheridan.
! Did you ever hear the word pros
/ perityr You ninnyi Did you ever
hear the word Ambition Did you
ever hear the word 'Progressr Look
at jim. Just completing two more big
{ warehouses at the pump works in
I half the time the contractors wanted.
/ Jim took the contract himself found
a fellow with a new cement process
and we begin using them next week.
Now, I'm gin TO make a man of you.
I BY God! ami" And Bibbs was given
I Two months to get his mental atti-
tude right for the pump works
Miss vertrees's note went to the
! senior Sheridan. as that afternoon one
7 Of the new warehouse walls COLLAPSED
sending the inventor and James
Sheridan. jr-. to their eternity.
Bibbs had to manage the funeral
and ride from the cemetery with
, Mary Vertrees, but nef tner spoke
Hes not insane" said Mary to her
mother He looks dreadfully i'll,
but has pleasant eyes"
Later Bibbs and Mary met as he
was passing her gate. He apollo
gized: II hate a frozen fish my
self ami that three miles was too
long TO put Up with one I've never
been able TO speak quickly, because If
tried I'd stammer. Ny brother
on his slate pencil. It took me SO
long to tell him it was an accident,
he finished before I did"
Instantly Mary saw his nature and
suffering. They walked on and she
invited him into the church to hear
some Handel music 1t meant. she
said. one thing above all others 10
her-courage.
Thereafter Bibbs went often to the
home of Mary Nertrees. You see"
he confided to her, 1t is all so sim
PIE. am to feed long strips Of zinc
into steel jaws that bite II into lit
tie circles. IS a minute I used to
finch and the workmen laughed"
1t shan't hurt you" exclaimed
Mary All day long III send my
thoughts to you: and you must re-
member that friend stands beside
Bibbs fed the old zinc eater, dis
covered its musical rhythm and sang
his poetry in resonance Herewith.
AT night Bibhs scribbled-
Manual labor is best. Your heart
can sing and your mind can breathe
while your hands are working. What
a turbulence is love! And lovers
are blind. But friendship walks
gently and with open eyes"
Trouble grew in the Sheridan
then quit He had enough few
thousand a year He had been so
busy he had nearly lost his wife. "A
woman has to have something in life
beside business man Now we are
sheridan sent for Bibbs, his only
hope, offered him vice presidencies,
salaries and shares; but Bibbs pre-
ferred happiness and 50 a week
What's the use" he said. "of being
just bigger dirtier and noisier?"
That evening Bibbs and Mary read
Maeteriinck together and he told
her: Tomorrow I'm one OF the hands
OF the pump works and going to stay
one unless 7 am thrown out and de-
eide TO study plumbing
why not give Bibbs 4 chance to
live2" said the family doctor.
There's something finer IN Bibbs
than his physical body. You're half
mad with a consuming fury against
the very self OF law But you want
TO beat the law. So Ajax defied the
.'Yesi And by God. I wilIr' cried
Sheridan al ax was n jackass- If
he'd been half 2 man he'd "a got awav
with II: hitched II IN and made Il
work for him ike a black steer. I'll
have my way with that stubborn fool, Z
Bibos-" But Bibbs still said. No"
Sunday afternoon Bibbs was work I
ing. over = poem He might venture
It upon the editor and perhaps
Then paper and pencil dropped as
he stood IN paralyzed- Through his
half open door he heard Mrs. Roscoe I
sheridan confiding 10 mother Sheri- /
dan: The Eertress's house has been
sold on foreclosure; they are allowed T
TO live there for a little longer. Mr.. 4
Vertrees has been trying to get
position They had been doing 4
their own cooking. Those people were
so hard I'd that Miss Vertrees started
after Bibbs before they knew whether /
he was insane or not She had to get
him If he'd stop to think he'd know ]
he wasn't the kind of a man any
girl would be apt to fall in love with
Bib5s quickly burned papers andi
notebooks. descended and told his
father: III take the job you offered I
me-" and went straight to Mary Yer /
trees and said; VIII you marry /
me?'
Mary drew it all out OF Bibbs, then
sank down kneeling, tears over
whelming her. I can make il plain"
said Bibbs. 7 never dreamed l could
do anything for you, I knew you
never thought Of me except gener-
ously-to give"
We were POOR and I think I did
mean to marry your brother. Eut
something stopped me from such a
1@N7