The Clio messenger. (Clio, Mich.) 1907-current, 1921-02-24

WHICH cOntrOiieu MIN. AttllTOuuo WciV
being built, manufacturing developed.
and he took pride In making himself
indispensable in what was going on.
When little Cynthia appeared ut Con-
iston he at once loved her as he would
have loved his own daughter. Her
father was unable to meet his obliga-
tons at the bank. Jethro quietly
bought the mortgage and had 1t as
signed to himself. Cynthia used 10
call him Uncle Jethro and loved him
as she did her father.
After a time the railroad corpora
tons decided to consolidate. Jethro,
whether he feared that they would be-
come too large for the state, or for
him, did not approve of consolidation.
Thereupon they decided to overthrow
him. The fight began over his home
post office. He was known TO favor an
old soldier named Eph Prescott who
had been badly wounded in the VIII
derness and whom he had helped in
his uphill fight as he had helped many
another person. The railroad party de-
cided TO defeat JethrO's candidate I'm
order to weaken his prestige i'm the
state and IL had the support of many
men who had formerly done his bid
ding and of the congressman from
the district" the usual autocrat in the
distribution Of offices Of that class
Tethro went to washington and con-
trivcd TO have an apparently chance
meeting between President Grant and
Enh, Grant WAS attracted by Eph's
simplicity. They talked over the bat(
TIE they had fought together with a
majesty which furnished another in
stance that the noiaicSt patriots are
not always The greatest Grant ap-
pointed Eph. When the news of the
victory reached home, Jethro's pres
tiec was much increased.
TIE placed Cynthia in a finishing
school in Boston. Being @ young wom-
an of high spirit she was not happy
There The TACT that she came from
a remote country place and Of an I'M
known family, very likely had some
thing TO do with the treatment she re-
ceived IN those primitive days before
finishing schools had been made whoi-
~ safe for democracy. One day q pa
per controlled by Isaac Worthington,
the head Of the corporation party,
made a savage attack upon Iothro rs
lobbyist and n ''boss." The paper
found its way into CEnthias hands
and gave her the greatest distress.
She went to Jethro and asked him if
the story was true. He said: "They
hain't put it just as they'd ought to
perhaps. but that's the way / done
1t in the main." His manly confess
/ sion caused her to love him even more
than before. She withdrew from The
finishing school and went to teach ia
Brampton. the town in which Wortii-
ington lived. Jethro. shaken by the
effect on Cynthia, determined to with
draw from politics.
The state was in a fernent. Would
| the corporations he able to down Jeth-
no? For the first time in nearly 40
years Jethro did not appear mt the
Coniston town meeting. The enemy
won by default. The news heartened
the corporations everywhere. Worth
| ington HAD always been an enemy of
| Jethro's, although he had accepted his
| help more than once, and while in
| dulging in very virtuous speeches, had
| practiced essentially the same meth
DDS. His son, Bob, was madly in love
with Cynthia, but she subordinated
her own love for Bob completely to
| her fidelity TO Jethro. Bob proposed
| to her and she refused. He declared
that he would leave his father and
earn his own living and then claim
her on account Of what he had him.
self done. He wrote his father tell
ing him his purpose. When the latter
| received the letter he flew into rage.
Learning that Cynthia was teacher
in his own town, he called the commit
| tee together, the majority Of whom he
controlled. and had them pass a vote
ANONYMOUSLY dismissing her from the
school. This action aroused Jethro
and he straightway took up the battle
again against the corporation magnate
| responsible for the outrage. He
| swooped down upon the capitol like
an eagle. His genius for political gen.
| eralship flashed out with its .old-time
brightness. Messages went to the val.
ley towns and to the north country.
The throne room" was open again.
and although the battle had been APP
parently lost through Jethro's with
drawal, 1t became evident that the
corporations were destined to defeat
Finally Worthington was willing to
surrender and asked Jethro's terms.
Jethro said, Consent to the marriage
of Cynthia and Bob" Worthington CON-
piled in some High flown letters and
the marriage took place. Jethro with
drew from the fight and from politics
and passed his old age near Cynthia,
blessed by her love and that OF her
children. with apologies to Mr.. Win
stOn ChurchilD.
| Copyright. 1919. by the Post Publishing
Co. (The Boston Post). Copyright in the
United Kingdom. the Dominions, its Coll
onies and dependencies. under the copy
right act, by the Post Publishing Co.,
/