The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1919-03-12
EVENING STORY
At Failures Climax.

w tleH hdAOl llliOt SltppSu Oul Ou
the platform to make his ringing COM
mencement speech and Jessamlne
Farra felt the scrutiny of many pairs
of eyes, friendly, curious. sympathetic,
she held her head high. Who wouldn't
be proud to be the sweetheart of bril-
liant promise ~
He wasn't the valedictorian. That
ooEceited, ed-haired Walton Durrett
was that, but Maxon's rank was high.
and with his brown mop of curly hair.
his goodly height and his clear. friend
ly eyes, was he not good to look at? ,
That evening after young Elliot had
gone out with Judge Farra's eldest
daughter, his honor sat a long time in
silent thought For nearly three years
Maxon Eliot had been Jessa mines
humble worshiper, and Durrett, the
self-confident valedictorian, had been
her devoted admirer.
Durrett was one whom one would
naturally expect to do things, and
Eliot was young man of brilliant
promise. The judges preference in
err would have to make good before
he'd give his little girl to him.
| The judge sighed thankfully, Jessa-
mine would always listen to Father"
A little later when she shyly suggested
that at the end of MaXS first school
year in Marion (he'd been given the
principalship of Marion's academy
there would be a wedding, the judge
shook his head.
"A year is all too short, little girl.
Let him prove himself,
Jessamine smiled certainly. Two
years if you think best, papa-but
when Max is university president,
we'll laugh about our caution, won't
we?"
The Marion School Board. at the
end of the year, very quietly asked
Prof. Eliot to resign 1t was not that
he was not liked-his thoughtful con-
sideration. his gentle courteous man
ner, made friends, but somehow he
had failed as the schools principal.
That summer, thru the recommen-
dation of a relative, Eliot secured the
| editorship of the local paper in the
| large town of Hampden. For year
he wrote brilliant editorials, and strug-
gled valiantfy to build up the circu-
| iation of the paper, but at the end CT
| the year the owner asked another man
| to take the editorship.
Then when Jessamine, with her sis
ter and parents, sailed for three years
I of foreign travel, Max understood that
| he was free.
When the three years were at an
end and he heard the Ferras were
| coming home, he managed somehow to
scrape together enough for a ticket
| to New York.
| His was the first face that Jessamine
recognized on the pier For an in
StdHI neT HSdTl DOuUuSd anu QSSpitN
the old-world wisdom she had gained,
she had to fight a foolish impulse to
| lay her head on the shabby decency
of his serge coat and tell him, amor a
| other things, that failure in business
| didn't matter,
| But Fulton NeWboldt, who for six
| months had followed in their wake,
was looking on and presently Eliot was
| forced to step aside to make way for
! their other friends.
Strange that Maxon Elliot should
| have happened to be in New York the
very day. that we landed" the judge
remarked.
Jessamine said nothing. She knew
| it hadn't Just happened" Max had
| Travelled those 500 miles just for q
sight of her! Well he'd had it, and
| she. The day after they reached
| her home Newboldt, who was their
guest asked her to marry him.
Instead of saying, Eyes, please" as
she had contemplated, and as she
knew would delight her father and
! mother. she found herself saying very
earnestly. NO. thank you"
1t was four years before she saw
Max again, and it was at the county
fair.
I've been out west" he told her,
sort of knocking about, but I'm do
ing some bookkeeping work for my
cousin now, at the mills. His regular
man had to stop awhile because OF III
health
He spoke cheerfully, but his mouth
wore a subdued. conquered expression
| that was pathetic.
Rob keeps me very busy, but I
| begged off today to run down here on
the chance of seeing some of my old
college friends" he remarked but
Jessamine looked into his wistful eyes
and translated his words: "On the
| chance of seeing you. dear on the
| chance of seeing you,''
Just then the red-haired va1edic-
torian. now a successful lawyer and
politician, stopped to speak to Jessa-
raine.
PITY about Eliot's being a disap-
pointment," he remarked when Max
on had taken himself off. "All vision
ana no practicability. The wonder is
he hasn't married and dragged some
j woman down, too! His kind gener-
ally do.
Jessam mes heart grew hot with I'M