The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1923-02-07
by BOOTH HARRINGTON


is, nobody could tell the difference. and
don't know as there is any differ
ence except in these improvements
I'm making. OF course, the improve
ments do give me pretty near a per-
feet right to it, as a person might
say; and that's one of the things 1
thought Of putting in my letter to
him; but / was afraid he'd just think
l was trying to make up excuses, so
left it out. I kind of worried all
the time was writine that letter, be-
cause if he thought I was just MAX
ing up excuses, why. It might set him
just so much more against me-"
Ever since Mrs. Adams had found
that she was to have her way the
depths Of her eyes had been troubled
by a continuous uneasiness; and, al
though she knew it was there, and
sometimes yelled it by keeping the
revealing eyes averted from her hus-
band and children, she could not al
ways cover 1t under that assumption
Of Observation-Disclosures The uneasy
look became vivid, and her voice was
slightly tremulOus now, as she said.
But what If he should be against you
although I don't believe he is. of
CoUrse-you told me he couldn't do
anything to you, Virgil"
No" he said. slowly. q can't see
how he could 90 anything. 1t was
just a secret. not a patent; the thing
amt patentable. I've tried TO think
what he could do-supposing he was
to want tO-but can't figure out any
thing at all that would be any harm
to me. There isn't any way In the
world it could be made a question of
law. Only thing he could do'd be to
tell people his side Of 1t, and set 'em
against me. been kind Of waiting
for that to happen, all along"
She looked somewhat relieved. $50
lie I expect it." she said. II was
dreading it most on Alice's account;
it might have-well, young men are
so easily influenced and all. But so
far as the business is concerned, what
If Mr.. Lamb did talk? That wouldn't
amount to much. 1t wouldn't affect
the business; not to hurt. And be-
sides. he isn't even doing that"
NO. any now lOL YET II SGtAilS.
And Adams sighed again. wistfully.
But I would give a good deal to
know what he thinks
Before his surrender he had always
supposed that if he did such an I'M
thinkable thing as to seize upon the
glue process for himself. what he
would feel must be an overpOwering
~Lo,,,o Io,,t ~Lo,,a &c tho ,.aras+
thing in the world; what he felt was
this unremittent curiosity about his
cid employers thoughts. It was an
obsession, yet he did not want to
hear what Lamb thought" from
Lamb himself for Adams had a sec
ond obsession, and this was his dread
of meeting the old man face to face.
Such an encounter could happen only
by chance and unexpectedly; since
Adams would have avoided any DELHI
crate meeting. so long as his legs had
strength TO carry him, even if Lamb
came to the house to see him. But
people do meet unexpectedly; and
when Adams had to be downtown he
kept away from the wholesale dis
tract" One day he did see Lamb,
as the latter went by in his car. i'm
passive. going home to lunch; and
Adams, in his crowd at a corner, knew
that the old man had not seen him.
Nevertheless, in a street car. on the
way back to his sheds, an hour later,
he was still subject to little shivering
seizures of horror.
He worked increasingly, seeming to
keep at it even in his sleep, for he
always woke in the midst Of a plan
ming and estimating that must have
been going on in his mind before con-
seriousness Of himself returned More
over. the work. thus urged, went rap
idly, in spite of the high wages he had
to pay his laborers for their short
hours. "It eats money" he com
planned. and. in fact, by the time his
watts and boilers were in place it had
eaten almost all he could supply; but
in addition to his equipment he now
owned a stock Of raw material" raw
indeed; and when operations should
be a little further along he was con
fdent his banker would be willing to
carry" him.
Six weeks from the day he had OBJ.
tanned his lease he began his glue
making. The terrible smells came out
Of the sheds and went writhing like
snakes all through that quarter Of the
town. A smiling man, strolling and
breathing the air with satisfaction
would turn a corner and smile no
more, but hurry. However, colored
people had almost all the dwellings
of this old section to themselves; and
although even they were troubled,
there was recompense for them. Being
philosophic about what appeared to
them as in the order of nature, they
sought neither escape nor redress,
and soon learned to bear what the
wind brought them. They even made
use of It TO enrich those figures of
speech with which the native impul-
ses Of colored people decorate their
communications; they favored meta
phor, simple, and invectlve with It:
and thus may be said to have enjoyed
it. But the man who produced it took
a hot bath as soon as he reached his
home the evening Of that first day
when his manufacturing began. Then
he put on fresh clothes; but after
dinner he seemed to be haunted, and
asked his wife If she noticed any
thing"
She laughed and inquired what he
meant.
Seems to me as If that glue-works
smell hadn't quit hanging to me-" he
explained. Don't you notice it?'
NO! What an idear'