Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1922-11-09
r,,s Mohun Family

The Mohun Family
.,Hr Mohun family had emerged from
martial obscurity IN the years imHe, .ns e.,
s;steiy preceding the Great Mar. w9sm s.,
im Sfohun's frst million doi.aIs ns ~, Wy
ns s odds the hardest to get nna W. uto.
Smsed. through fortunate ventures mt san,i o.nIf
ssiiiions almost overnisnt. ine r,t.s' '
sowns: from % which the Mohuns had
v9n...;.d TO New York. was verv proud
nien'e e.chieyeInents Of It's native son:
s"ss so"se in which the, Mohuns had
Tnsa Tnsa "V' " sn,iare. frame AFFAIR, with a
Mvec; a. The ton Of its seomctric cen.
!er. was s.!r.iSencc rGiSiar Of Jim Niohun, the
ioins,., ioimeI, wizard. And the cast.iron
S.. which faced the beholder on each
oS' oS' the eraveled path that led t0
~ .uort norch Of the old house. still
s.s.d sne % cxnectant as though awaiting the
srest mans return.
put Tim Mohun had long. ago out;
..a,rn those provincial shades. And
c," Mohun looked back from the
A.,sni,i perfcction Of her SHOW. place
Sp.r v"TS Oyster Bay with gentle shutlder.
inss % at the memory Of those expec'an'
II was true that. when they were
a.st married, the house Mt Lieperviiie
Ssd seemed a very splendid place. tos
lin Mohun's fortune was thcn tateu @
snly in the thousands and In very lew
~ those. But Mrs. Mohun was very
croud Of the fact that her mother was
Van wyck and later. when social
ambition became the actuatins motye
Of her life. managed to use tnat tam hi,
Sovsd Tho way that her husband g grow.
|rr fortune had already blasted through
a. social wilderness.
The move to Long Island had been q
shrewd one, for this was the backdoor
Into New York society. and before the
chi'dren XIV had grown through adde's.
ssncs s % The progress Of this family was
Suiy noted and the name Of Mohun re-:
corded as being "among those present
A. the dinner tables OF the elect. Alicia
Eohun made few mistakes. She had
IA social instinct and she had beauty
s-assets Of Importance, when re.en.
ibrced by a steadily growing income
md a desire to please. The value OF
beauty In a woman's face, when added
Ia other personal charms, can never be
Eshtly considered. A beautiful woman
AZ once creates an audience. She takes
the center Of the stage. Hostesses want
her as q mart Of the decoration OF their
dinner tables. and any man has a dead
SON. indeed, who isn't gratified at being
IN her presence. II she sparkles for
bim. he feels that he has a part In en-.
Ser smile, or her blush, he sees in these
manifestations new beauties which he
himself has painted. Beauty In q
woman Is in Itself almost equal to
power. but clever beautiful woman is
emnipotent.
Realizing the full value Of these rs.
Sets with which nature had endowed
her. Alicia Mohun played the social
game with skill which at times some.
what bewildered her husband. who
found himself, almost before be was
aware Of It. habitue Of the houses
Of the near. great and member OF at
least one exclusive club. His own
knowledge Of the world did something
for him here. for. though he had none
Of the finer perceptions which distin.
euished his wife. he was manly, good.
looking In rather q heavy way and had
Sense enough. when at disadvantage,
% remain silent.
But It was his wife who bridged these
dihcnlties. ignoring with graceful
confidence the snubs of the snobbiSl,.
mounting the social lad Ter BY climbing
nimbly over the shoulders Of various
circles OF acnunintnnces. cOnOuerine "
preiudices and winning new favors with
. tireless attention to the amenities and
q succession Of subtle campaigns OF ad.
!ertisine which kept her name and face
IN evidence at bazaars. show ring and
hunt 'meets: She cultivated the society
writer's. did them iudicious favors. al.
ways consented to be interviewed and
provided the poor things with copy with
On air OF comforting a favor. There
Ttre pictures. too. Of herself, Of the
sniidren. nov, grown very handsome
700: OF the place at Oyster Bay, ex.
Hrlor and interior: Of the stables and
the hunters which her son Jack and |
her daughter Margot rode to the bounds.
Very prettily. in the familiar chat OF |
society MAGAZINE which devoted q
part OF Its pages eacl, month to we'll. !
tnewnn neople. was told the story Of
now Marsot. the daughter. had been
called Cherie by her French governess
Snd how that afectionate app~llation
nsd been Americanized to "Cherry" by
members OF the family and the circle OF |
immediate friends. a title to which she
seemed so suited that II clung to her
through NIL the adolescent years.
Jim Mohun watched with good mn.
ssrsd tolerance this surprising progress
o. the family upward through the fringe
oI society and at last into its yery
woof and warp. but he intcrposed no
objections. footing the bills growing
greater each year. He realized that the &.
ssoclal Affiliations which b;s wife was
plinclne him had added value to his
ous!ness connections. which increased
yearly In prestige. But, az the years
vent on and the demands Of his many
sau serests grew more exacting. he was
sSG'ent to leave the control Of his so.
sH a. aestlnies entirely In the hands Of
smd Se suthor OF them and to devote more
tna thu more OF his time to the accumula.
sos Son Q. tne large sums OF money which
Ss Sw b,T te,Slred lure to pay, the new obligations
~, sometimes. 1 perhaps. memories of the
Asepervllle assailed him. II bnH h.sn
vety quiet there. He had ~ s,wovs voen
Nosted hard in his PittsbMrrb "S% oftics
pot not 90 hard that he couidm't vJ; ra"ch;
3oms s N time for a romp with the aI chii"
yea before dinner. And there had
srsns evenings then which he couiI
tau ~ With the whole family around
sw,S SSvenlns lamp. 20 to bed early and
sSHate n. refreshed the next mornin,% %
~ business Of the day.
t"w, u seemed, he was hardlv .vsr
AZ sss'aed. His nights as we'll q. his
~. were dlled with business consors
Nsss sNSes ana. when these were lacIiuc
6sn 6 was bis wife waiting Ia conI"ct
~. ~ some formal dinner or IN so,Me
Na. - .me opera. when all he wanted