The Penn's Grove record., 1921-07-15
Sheridan buildinq was the

gest bank, and Sheridan himself, the
biggest builder and broker, and truster
n buster under the smoke of a dirty
and wonderful midland city that piled
tower on tower and spread itself out
over the plain of a fair country.
Bibbs Sheridan was his "odd one !"
the family failure. He grew up only
~lengthwise, and at twenty-five was the
dry scaffolding o. a man. Six months
In his fathers pump works made nee
esSary two years in a sanitarium. He
returned to the "new house" on the
outskirts of the city in time for the
hOuse-warming party. To this came
Mary Vertrees, whose family next door
m~alntained the highest air of respect
ability upon a vanishing fortune. She
came under home prOmptings that led
her to dazzle with her wit and beauty
both Sheridan and James Sheridan, Jr.
When young Jim had proposed, Mrs.
Roscoe Sheridan, his sister-in-law, of
fered to help Mary in return for help
in an affair of her own. Mary saw
that in bartering, she was to be bar
tered with. Her soul rebelled and she
declined to marry young Jim Sheri-
dan. He never got the letter.
Sheridan demanded of Bibbs If he
would quit dreaming of poetry and
follow with Roscoe and Jim to make
the business and the city bigger. Bibbs
could not understand why anybody
#anted to make things bigger.
Examination :" rOared Sheridan.
did you ever rear the word pros
perity!' You ninny! Did you eve
hear the word ambition! Did you
even hear the word progress Look
at Jim, just completing two more big
warehouses at the pump works in half
the time the contractors wanted. jim
took the contract himself, found a fell
low with a new cement process and
we begin using them next week. Now,
I'm gOin' to make a man of you. By
God! I am ~ And Bibbs was given
two months to get his mental attitude
wight for the pump works.
Miss Yertrees' note went to the
senior Sheridan, as that afternoon Cne
81 the new warehouse walls collapsed
sending the inventor and James Sheri-
dan, Jr., to their eternity.
Bibbs had to manage the funeral
and ride from the cemetery with Mary
Vertrees, but neither spoke. Hes
not insane" said Mary to her mother.
"He looks dreadfully i'll, but has pleas.
ant eyes"
Later Bibbs and Mary met as he
was passing her gate. He apologized !:
ii hate a frozen fish myself, and
that three miles was too long for you
to put up with one. I've never been
able to speak quickly, because if ]
tried I'd stammer."
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 to her
courage.
Thereafter Bibbs went often to the
home of Mary Vertrees. "You see"
he confided to her, sit is all so simple.
1 am to feed long strips Of zinc into
steel jaws that bite it into little cir
cles, 6S a minute. l used to finch and
I the workmen laughed"
SIT sha'n't hurt you," exclaimed
Mary. "All day long, I'll send my
thoughts to you; and you must re-
member that a friend stands beside
you"
Trouble grew in the Sheridan house
hold. Roscoe took to drink then quit.
He had enough-a few thousand a
year.
Sheridan sent for Bibbs, his only
hope, offered him vice presidencies,
salaries and shares; but Bibbs pre-
ferred happiness and nine dollars a
week. "What's the use" he said, "of
being just bigger, dirtier and noisierF"
That evening Bibbs and Mary read
Maeterlinck together and he told her
TOMORROW, I'm one of the hands OF
the pump works and going to stay one,
unless I am thrown out and decide to
study plumbing"
'Why not give Bibbs a chance to
liver" said the family doctor. There's
something finer in Bibbs than his, ply
steal body. You're half mad with a
consuming fury against the very self
Of law. But you want to beat the
lawl So Ajax def1ed the lightning"
"Yes! And, by God, I will !" cried
Sheridan. ajax was a jackass. If
he'd been half a nan he'd "a got away
with it; hitched 1t up and made it
work for him like a black steer. I'll
have my way with that stubborn fool,
Ribbs." But Bibbs still said, mo"
Sunday afternoon Bibbs was work
ing over a poem. He might venture 1t
,sSS,n an editor and perhaps
Then paper and pencil dropped as
he stood up paraIyzed. Through his
balf-open door he heard Mrs. Roscoe
Sheridan confiding to Mother Sheri'
dan: "The Vertrees' house has been
fhnxr nr.n n11nUnG