The toiler. [volume] (Cleveland, Ohio) 1919-1922, 1920-04-09
Unbuyable Things.
Chap. XIV.

Unbuyable Things.
Gus Anderson sat in his old arm
chair with his feet propped upon the
library table, his face buried IN a
news paper and his mouth filled with
an enormous chew of tobacco. He was
all alone, as was his habit when Olive
was not in the house. Except at meal
time, Mrs. Anderson and her spouse
never shared each other s company.
There was good reason for this. Their
minds ran in entirely different chan
nels. She would sit by the hour in the
dining room and read the Bible or
the Rams Horn or 'The Christian
Herald, while he would sit in the
front room smoking his pipe and
reading the Police Gazette or Smart
Set magazine, that is. if he was not
reading the stock reports. This evening
he was thus engaged when Olive en-
tered. He noticed now what he had
been noticing FOR several days that the
girls mental attitude had been en-
tirely changed. She no longer ran to
him with that childlike playfulness
that he'd always been the Joy of his
life. She had become diguified, distant,
almost to stiffness. Hc resented this
characteristic. II reminded him of the
ways of tcc mother. lie had always
bOasted that she was his child with
none of her mothers faults, and now
that she evinccd some of his real
characteristics he was unable to re.
cognize them, but averred that they
came from the mothers side of the
family. Before he. thought he com,
planned of it. "Olive, don't act like
to your omther," he said almost pee
vishly. TO which she answered that she
was trying to act like him. That she
was going to be business woman,
as her father was a business man, and
as he had many times said that bust
ness was a dog eat dog life and that
there was no sentiment in business,
that she was trying to blot all senti,
mcnt from her veins. FI want to be.
come as much like you as possible
papa,' she finished.
This was the unkindest cut of all.
Yet Anderson could not help but smile.
lie wanted his little girl to be IN
angel and at the same time TO be
like him. He saw the conceit of it
and laughed go forget it." he said.
81 wanted you to be like you used to
be. Just my little girl"
"That's what mamma used 90 be.
too, as long as she was what Won
wanted her to he, but when she be-
came what she wanted to be then I
became your title girl Mamma learn
cd to love her church more than she
loved you. You will have to love bust.
ness.' Then with a saucy toss of her
head "I'll be second fiddle to no man
or no thing. I'm new woman. l am. ("
' Yah, you're new freak. Plum
full of crazy notions" her father
roared. "Why can't you be pleasant
with me? I've never robbed you"
"NoY You have admitted hiding
the truth from me and now that it is
thrown in my face from every direc-
tion and try 10 reconcile myself, you
don t like it, SO saying she walked
over to the piano and instead of her
usual sacred hymns she began to paly
" She Stood and Chewed Her Gum.
"Oh, for God sake, cut that out.
What S got into you?" her father cried
boistrously.
''l am the new woman. am through
with old fashioned hymns. am going
TO play modern music So saving she
switched over on the FShade of the
Old Apple Tree.
"Why don't you play hymns' Play
me that one you played the other
night. That one about the dark night. !"
FThat is sentimental. I'm live wo-
man now And life and sentiment can t
90 together. Beside whose night is
dark And you don't care if any body
is far from home" Then she broke
into singing "Wben the Guinea Plays
the Organ on the Side Walks of New
York"
Gus Anderson's hands dropped by
his side. A great big tear rolled down
his fat faorid face. 1t was perhaps
the first time that his daughter had
ever seen tear in his eyes. 1t was
more than she could bear. She jumped
up from the piano stool and threw
herself into his lap entwining both of
her arms about his neck. "I was just
foolin Daddy" she cooed into his
ears. "l was teasin you. Just show
ing YOU that you do not mean the life
you pretend to live. That's ALL I want
to be Daddy's little girl. Only I
want Daddy to let me know life as
it is. Don't feed me on lies Just be-
cause you love me-"
And old Gus entwined her in his
heavy arms holding her close to his
breast. "I'll be damned if we are not
MI sinners. Even when we try to do
good we raise hell. But little one
mustn't dissapoint her Daddy. Always
be good and Daddy will give her every
thing he can. No matter what she over
does, Daddy is goin' to be his little
girls best friend. Do anything for
her."
He had no sooner said this than
Olive disengaged herself from his
embrace and ran her fingers through
his hair. "I is goin to ask you for
something right now, and if you do
it I'll comb out all your dandruff with
a nice new comb
"Shoot! I'm ready for slaughter! +"
said her father. "What is it you
wants"