The Snowflake herald., 1922-01-13
CHAPTER xIx-continued.

They thought that, in a week or So
Its effect would pass and that Illinois
would then resume its triumphal
march toward its high destiny. Not
even Samson TraylOr had a correct
notion of the slowness of Time.
The effect of the panic paralyzed
the city. Men whose ''red-dog money"
was in every ones pocket closed their
shops and ran away. The wild adven-
turers cleared out. Their character
may be judged by the words of one
Democrat:
81 failed for q hundred thousand
dollars and could have failed for
million, if Jackson had kept his hands
off,"
Hard times hung like cloud over
the city. It's population suffered some
diminishment in the next two years, in
spite of its position on the main high
way of trade. Dream cities, canals
and railroads built without hands be-
came part of the poetry of American
commerce.
That autumn, men and women who
had come to Mrs KinZie's party in
jewels and in purple and fine linen
had left or turned their hands to hard
labor. The Kelsos suffered real dis
tress, the schools being closed and the
head of the house having taken to his
bed with illness BIN went to work
as a seamstress, and with the help of
Mrs. Kinzie and Mrs. Hubbard was
able to keep the family from want.
The nursing and the care OF the baby
coon broke the health of Mrs. Kelso,
never a strong woman. BIN came
home from her work one evening and
found her mother i'll.
Cheer up, my daughter" said Jack.
can old friend of ours has returned
to the city. He is rich nan-an
oasis in the desert of poverty. He
has loaned me hundred dollars In
good cOin."
"Who has done this?" BIN asked.
'Mr. Lionel Davis
1--WE must not take his money" said
BIN.
ST had a long talk with him." KelsO
fortunate incident of the horse. It
was a bit of offhand folly born. of an
anxious moment"
''But the man wants to marry me-"
"He said nothing of such a pur-
pose"
''He will be in no hurry about that"
said BIN. "He is q shrewd operator.
Every one hates him. They say that
he knew what was coming when he
sold out"
That evening BIN wrote long let
ter to Samson Traylor, telling him
of the evil days which had come to
them. This letter, now in possession
Of a great grandson of Samson and
Sarah Traylor, had a singular history.
1t reached the man to whom it was
addressed in the summer of 1874. 1t
was found with many others that sum-
mer in Tazewell county under a barn
which it's owner was removing. 1t
brought to mind the robbery Of the
stage from Chicago, south of the syca-
more woods, in the autumn of 81, by
a man who had ridden with the driver
from Chicago and who, it was thought,
had been in cOlluSion with him. A
curious feature of the robbery had
been revealed by the discovery of the
nail sack 1t was unopened, its con-
tents undiSturbed, it's rusty paddock
still in place. The perpetrator of the
crime had not soiled his person with
any visible evidence of guilt and so
was never apprehended.
Then for time BIN entered upon
great trials Jack KelSO weakened.
Burning with fever, his mind wan
dered in the pleasant paths he loved
and saw in its fancy the deeds of
Ajax and Achilles and the topless tow
ers of nlium and came not back again
to the vulgar and prosaic details of
life. The girl knew not what TO do.
A funeral was a costly thing. She
had no money. The Kinzies had gone
on a hunting trip in Wisconsin. Mrs.
Hubbard was I'll and the Kelsos al
ready much in her debt. Mr.. Lionel
Davis came.
He was a good-looking young man
of twenty-nine, those days, rather
stout and of middle stature, with dark
hair and eyes. He was dressed in the
hsight of fashion. He used to boast
that he had only one vice-diamonds.
But he had ceased to display them on
his shirt-front or his fingers. He car
ried them in his pockets and showed
them by the glittering handful to his
friends. They had come to him
through trading in land where they
were the accepted symbol of success
and money was none too plentiful.
He had melted their settings and
turned them into coin. The stones he
kept as a kind of surplus-a half hid
den evidence of wealth and of superi-
ority to the temptation Of vulgar dis
play. Mr.. Davis was calculating,