Indiana daily times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1914-1922, 1921-06-04

| to those who were about him during the
! last illness of his only child.
The commissioner had been a widower
| for years, and his life, outside his of
| fetal duties, had been so devoted to lit
| tie Georgia that people spoke of 1t as a
| touching and admirable thing He was a
reserved man, and dignified almost to
austerity, but the child had come below
| it all and rested upon his very heart, so
| that she scarcely missed the mothers love
that had been taken away. There was a
| wonderful companlonship between them
for she had many of his own ways, being
| thoughtful and serious beyond her years.
One day, while she was lying with
the fever burning brightly in her cheeks,
she said suddenly:
Papa, l wish l could do something
good for a whole lot of children!"
What would you like to do, dear?"
asked the commissioner. Give them a
party?"
"Oh, don't mean those kind. 1 mean
poor children who haven't homes, and
aren't loved and cared for as 1 am.
| tell you what, papaP'
| What, my own child 2"
| IF I shouldn't get well, III leave
them you-not give you, but just lend
| you, for you must come to mamma and
me when you die, too. If you can find
| time, wouldn't you do something to help
/ them, if l ask you. papa?"
| Hush, hush, dear, dear child" said the
| commissioners, holding her hot little hand
soon, and you and I will see what we
can do for them together"
! But in whatsoever paths OF benevolence,
/ thus vaguely premeditated, the commits
| sioner might tread, he was not to have
| the company Of his beloved That night
/ the little frail body grew suddenly too
! tired TO struggle further, and Geogia' S
! exit was made from the great stage when
/ she had scarcely begun to speak her lit
| tie piece before the footlights. But there
must be a stagemanager who under
stands. She had given the cue to the
one who was to speak after her.
! week after she was laid away the
| commissioner reappeared at the office, a
| little more courteous a little paler and
srerncr, with the black frock coat hang
ing a little more loosely from his tall
/ figure.
His desk was piled with work that
| had accumulated during the four heart
breaking weeks of his absence. His
chief clerk had done what he could, but
there were questions Of law, Of fine ju-
! dicial decisions to be made concerning
the issue Of patents, the marketing and
leasing OF school lands. the classification
into grazing, agricultural, watered and
| timbered OF new tracts TO be opened to
| settlers.
The commissioner went TO work silently
, and obstinately, putting back his grief
/ as far as possible forcing his mind to
attack the complicated and important
| business of his office On the second
| day after his return he called the por-
| ter, pointed to leather covered chair
/ that stood near his own. and ordered IL
4 removed to a lumber room at the top
OF the building. In that chair Georgia
| would always sit when she came 10 the
office for him Of afternoons.
As time passed, the commissioner
seemed to grow more silent, solitary, and
| reserved. A new phase OF mind devel-
! oped in him He could not endure the
/ presence of a child. often when a clat-
/ tering youngstaF belonging to one of the
clerks would come chattering into the
/ big business room adjoining his little
| apartment, the commissioner would steal
softly and close the door. He would
always cross the street TO avoid meeting
the school children when they came dane
/ ing along in happy groups upon the
/ sidewalk and his firm mouth would
close into a mere line
1t was nearly three months after the
! rains had washed the last dead flower
petals from the mound above little Geor-
gia when the '1and shark" firm of Ham
| LIN & Avery filed papers upon what they
considered the --latest" vacancy Of the
year.
1t should not be supposed that all who
were termed '7and marks" deserve the
| name. Many cf them were reputable men
/ of good business character. Some of them
could walk into the most august cOun-
| ellis of the State and say: Gentlemen,
we would like to have this and that ana
/ matters 90 thus" But, next to q three
| years drought and the boil worm, the
Actual Settler hated the Land shark. The
| land-sha haunted the land Office. where
all the land records were kept, and hunt
/ ed vacancies that is. tracts Of unap-
propriated public domain, generally in
visible upon the official maps, but actu-
ally existing upon the ground" The
law entitled any one possessing certain
| State scrip TO file by virtue Of same
upon any land not previously legally ap-
Propriated. Most of the scrip was now
in the hands Of the land sharks. Thus,
at the cost OF a few hundred dollars,