Belington progressive. [volume] (Belington, W. Va.) 1912-1927, 1921-01-06
Where Money Was
By II. LOUIS RAYBOLD

"There goes Professor Latham
again with the Prescott girl ]!
and Ruth Cole drew her COM
panion's attention to the occupants OF
low-hung, maroon roadster, one OF
whom raised his hat as they sped by.
The woman with Miss Cole nodded
pleasantly. She was slim, graceful
person, not at all showing her thirty
four years, nor exhibiting in her at
tractive face any Of the ravages which
might possibly be expected after
twelve years spent instructing gig
Cling. irresponsible girls in the intrica-
eies Of Greek accents and declen-
sions.
Hes rushing her for fair" RAM
bled on Miss Cole, land who can
blame him If he believes in that old
adage, Don't marry for money, but
90 where money ISL Her money must
look pretty good to anybody strug-
Cling along nowadays on the salary OF
professor in woman's college.
But what she sees in him is what gets
me!''
Hilda French turned her head
away to hide an annoying but uncon-
trollable flush. "He's-very interest
ing to talk to-" she returned quite
steadily.
"Well, you ought to know, consider
ing he's the head of your department"
and Ruth dismissed the subject for
something more vital to her own inter-
ests.
But Hilda's thoughts did not change
their channel, even though she man.
aged very creditable replies to the
others inconsequent remarks. And she
wasn't wondering what Celia Prescott
saw in John Latham. What did John
Latham see in Celia? 1t must be
something visible to no other man, for
after six seasons as bud, Celia still
bloomed unplucked from the family
tree, although three younger sisters
had blossomed and gone their way to
adorn homes of their own.
The truth of the matter was that
John Latham's head was temporarily
turned. When a man gets to be forty
unmarried, almost any young thing not
too homely, possessing clothes which
In themselves are lure, and every
kind of device for making the time
pass pleasantly, such as automobiles,
speed boats, wonderful summer and
winter homes, can get in her work
without any help from Cupid.
Hi1Jo xx,o tobfprr tbo a fair NOT dtain-
terestedly, was convinced Celia would
succeed. And when one memorable
afternoon she handed in her resignation
as instructor In Greek and 1t was re-
ceived with just the amount of polite
regret that might be expected, she felt
sure Celia had succeeded.
So Hilda quietly arranged her things
In exquisite order for her successor,
locked her door for the last time, gave
the key to the janitor and went to
live
Well, John Latham did find time in
between his pursuit of the heiress to
wonder where and on what Hilda
went to live.
She had said she wasn't accepting
another position, and her salary had
hardly been enough to enable her to
save sufficient to retire on.
With her departure the man, for
some reason, felt a strange sense of
loss. And as time went on, he real
lied slowly but surely that Hilda
French had been his compensation
for his work-yes, just that Always,
beneath the fret of examinations to
be corrected, of marks to be COM
puted, of students who Numbered cal
lousy through the beauties of his be-
loved Greek, had been the restfulness
Of her serene, dependable personality.
What fool he had been! Blind to her
wonderfulness when he saw her every
day, and only awakened to it when he
no longer knew where to find her. For
he had let her go without ascertainiilg
her address. Finally he approached
Ruth Cole, between whom and himself
waged a perpetual war of the modern
languages versus the classics. Miss
Cole gave the information.
About that time Celia, inheriting
with her sister portion of legacy
from some eccentric uncle out West
who had made a sudden fortune from
an abandoned mine, had devoted a
part of it to the purchase of first edi-
lions in which the dear professor must
help her.
The following evening a middle
aged man, bit stoop-shouldered yet
with undaunted dignity, stood per-
picked at the entrance of the Belle
terre apartments those ultra-fashion-
able, albeit conservative, dwellings on
the windy turn of the Lakeview drive.
John Latham, turning his back on
wealth, was seeking love, expecting to
find it inhabiting humble, out-of-the-
way abode.
| Ushered presently By soft-step-
ping, uniformed maid into a room