The Owosso times., 1921-06-10

4 sItai p~Uuicin "a a .-~...l.@.. o i.Au. /.
must make my own decision, and make
II out of my own heart and my own
mind. / have made il"
Joyce, don't say that 1t is mol"
"No, Garrett, 1 will not say that. II
would be as unfair TO me as to you.
My decision is this: You must take
two years-twO full years. While you
are out there you may write and 1 will
answer; but there must be no renewal
Of this subject during that time.
Then, Garrett, If you have really and
truly succeeded, If you can show me
that you are q man in whose hands
l can safely entrust my life. and that
you are beyond the possibility of fail
ure, II shall be as you wish If you
still want me for your wife"
That was In August. In September,
two years later, the Asiatic mail
brought TO Joyce Allerton the most
tragic epistle she had ever received
In her Life. II was dated at Shanghai,
on the anniversary OF the day when
Hume 50 joyOusly announced the ar
rival of his great opportunity. Joyce
read:
"This Is the last day. In the face
of every misfortune, of each bitter
disappointment / have fought down
despair and clung desperately to hope
until now. 1t is the end, Of course.
Instead Of having made the success
you so rightfully demanded, instead
Of having attained to position and
fortune and the assured capacity for
protection which q girl like you has
every logical reason TO expect In her
husband, 1 have to confess myself not
only a failure, but failure 80 COM
plete and disastrous as to present, In
contrast to my cOcksure Dragging on
that last day at home with you,
spectacle Of sprawling cOmicality like
one of those slapstick clowns that
everybody used to buffet In the movies.
'I've told you good deal in my
letters, JOyce-how poor Neville's
concession turned out to be only half
baked after all and how his luck
didn't stick to him AS it did in the
Argonne and how his fine New York
friends stood out from under when
the Japs diplomatized his railroad in
to their own hands and left him fiat
broke; how he offered to send me
home with his last five hundred-and
his wife sick unto death at Chicago;
how / obtained a position" In Hong
Kong and how l hoped for something
better very soon and all that kind of
thing. But 1 didn't tell you that the
Hong Kong position was that of
porter in an English hotel; l didn't
tell you that l stuck to that Job for a
solid year because I couldn't get any
thing better. l didn't tell you that
lost it by thrashing a cOckney who
Dragged that England would have won
kept out Of it-and for the next six
months earned my living typewriting
English letters for a tea exporting
firm of Chinamen-which is consid-
cred the objectionable sin out here
for white man. didn't tell you thst
the superior employment which
came here to take was miserable
clerkship for the treaty court. You
never would have guessed that 1t has
taken me all this time to earn and
save my passage money homeland
now that / have 1t I'm not going, but
am going to stay here In the land Of
my failure and invest those few hun
dreds in an American soda fountain
in a desperate attempt to wiring a
ridiculous little pigmy Of success out
Of my colossal failure.
God bless you, Joyce, and give You
a happy life. You had rare sense"
And this is the expensive cablegram
Joyce sent in reply
"Pecuniary success nothing to me.
Have too much money myself. Feared
failure in tenacity Of purpose. Regard
you as true success. Answer Is yes.
Please come home"
1t was a Thanksgiving day wedding
and Joyce said. TO her husband, 81
think, dear, that what we have to be
most thankful for, after all. is that
great opportunity Of yOurs-to prove
yourself just a man."