Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1922-11-14

Dorh0od said. The man who once owned
nev.r se: nss.s ssm. r:ns s:c !o South America and
South America. Bancroft stirred un.
easily, conscious Of q chill.
Seems he turned over everything he
had to 2 friend to play the market on
Z % suss thine, borrowed q money .s On .s his
everything ga and beat Il. when the crash
came the poor dub was thousands Of
miles away from home. The shock
killed his wife. There was some talk
about a kid. but I never got TIE rights
o. that. But this poor come .On"-wav.
ing the door plate-''sot news some
way and jumped overheard. Anyhow,
be never came back. He didn't mort.
gage the house, but borrowed on thirty.
day notes; and when they fell due the
bank closed In, with an auctioneer to
clean. out the inside stun. But this
towns full o. tales like this. Queer,
that door plate on the cellar wall oil
"i.et me see IT," said Bancroft. bis
?Ts Tse doom ssne psts HsSy wss ., copper. In the
center was craven simply :
Kennedy.
Bancroft walked the streets far into
the night; and there was a gesticuiative
frenzy. to his despair that drew the
curiosity Of passersby. He was indii. :.
ferent TO alleys and all they might hold
Of bodily injury. He did not. care
whether he lived or died. That house
The ghostly miseries that still paraded
those hallways! He understood every.
thing now; the puszle had ceased te De
and had become an open page IN bold
type. The blow he had been expecting
from the beginning had fallen. His
father had, somewhere In the past, com.
mitted an abominable act.
1t was Of no matter that since the
association with Smell & Pride his
he had betrayed and ruined this poor
in full" had significance now. Snt-
isfied vengeance had caused the under.
scoring of these words. Years after.
ward his father in an idle moment had
written and underscored them In con.
temptation OF a deed accomplished ut.
terly. It went back to something Ken.
netly had. done, trivial or serious; and
Silas Bancroft, still pretending to be
his friend, had smashed him by damn.
able trickery. Even If Kennedy had
wrcnsed him, such u reprisal was hor.
These millions of his, then, were
based upon the blood and bone Of a
poor dupe md the complete ruin Of his
family. Oh, he, Bancroft, would have
none Of that money; he would never
touch apothcr dollar Of It. What he
had given In legacies should stand good
a penny. He would 20 to work at
Ltnv hn uo,1I v,,,t hic houi tn-ris.k
and shovel, if need BE-,
lie was incapable of realizing at this
moment that he could not ignore off.
hand these millions simply by willing II,
that 1t would take him years to give
them away without bringing himself
under the interest Of the lunacy com.
mission. His thoughts were focused
upon the discovery that his father Ind
robbed, morally II not legally, q trusting
man. The utter knowledge that hiS
father had been thoroughly honest
man all his life was the one thing
needed by which the son could forgive
tile years Of GOODNESS and neglect; and
now he must hold his fathers memory
forever in contempt. A memorial win.
dow! He laughed aloud, brokenly, AMI
a policeman eyed him doubtfully.
Those Forlom Years
The blow had two edges. and pres.
emily he felt the cut Of the second.
lie had lost all hope Of Nancy, for
no,t he had absolutely nothing to
offer her. lie would have to leave
that house, too, where he had known
his first happy hours. Oh, no; he
could not remain there with the black
deed of his father filling the halls
and rooms with pitiful ghosts.
The highly developed imagination
knows but little Of the happy levels
Of ordinary mortals; today It Is the
height, tomorrow 1t is the abyss. Such
must acquire the balanc.
ing philosophy of worldliness and Ban.
croft had SO little that 1t was negli- 4
giblc.
All those forlorn years, and this to
cap them! AS he walked on aim.
upon his recollection the Serene face
Of his father, touched by the setting
sun; a face upon which he had never
seen any emotion, any agitation, the
craven calm of one who had struck
out Of his life all things but money
Bancroft stopped, as II some in.
visible barrier had reared itself In
his path. Blind fool! Why, Of course |
that was It.. The Great Adventure |
GiS%hps,ny! is,har,I y,i.,,!, And he was to pay his
Tomorrow he would see Smell. He
would tell the old fellow Of the in. |
fanny he had stumbled upon and do. |
clare himself as regarded the money.
And Smell CHILLED him Il fool, or
words to that effect.
"How are you going to get rid Of
IT, cried the old lawyer wrathfully.
III you start any real damfOolery III
npply for trusteeship on the ground
hat you are not capable Of handling
YOUR affairs. You'll refuse to touch
! dollar Of It, you say? What then?
Money doesn't rot like vegetables. tn
keeD on growing and mounting; and
some far.oR relatives will come into
t and blow 1t like sailors on leave.
II there is any taint In 1t take 1t
,ut doing good with 1t to the com.
nunity at large. Take the st. Law.
'ence River where 1t leaves Lake On.
tariO. 1t is drinkable; and yet 1t
las drained great cities. 1t becomes
'urs by contact with air. Well, put
'our money out in the air. and it will
become pure enough for all earthly
purposes. And ! tell you l don't
Iive tinker's dam what you have
discovered. III hold until the crack
II doom that your father never rocked
anybody, and that he was as honest
. man as ever walked this earth. You,
his son, may doubt him. but I. his
awyer, never will.'
but why did no hide?"
How do you know hc hid?"
mo Office Of his own. The secret
Knocks on his door. as II he feared some
me, and, all that"
nd all thot ~ {o,,,I Coal |