Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1923-09-20
FLOWING GOLD
BY REX BEACH
CHAPTER V

|
start that meal time was near and that
the menfoks would soon be home. Leav-
! ing Allie to entertain the guest, she hur-
ried out, and the sound of splitting kind
| ling, the clatter of stove lids, the rattle of
utensils came from the kitchen.
Gray retired to the patent rocker, Miss
Briskow settled herself upon straight
backed chair and folded her capable hands
| in her lap; oppressive silence fell upon
| the room. Having exhausted the usual COM
monplace topics in the course of mon
ologue that induced no reaction whatever,
! Gray voiced a perfectly natural remark
about the wonder of sudden riches. He
was, in a way, thinking aloud of the
changes wrought in drab lives like the
Briskows by the discovery of oil He
was surprised when Allegheny responded:
Ma and me stand it all right, but it's
an awful strain on Pa" said she.
| FIndeed?"
The girl nodded. Hes got more nutty
notions"
Gray enedavored to learn the nature of
Pas recently acquired eccentricities, but
Allie was flushing and paling as result of
her sudden excursion into the audible.
Eventually she, trembled upon the verge
Of speech once more, then she took an
other desperate plunge.
HE says folks are going to laugh at
us or with us, and-and rich people have
got to act rich. They got to be elegant"
She laughed loudly, abruptly, and the eX-
plosive nature of the sound startled her as
greatly as it did her hearer. Hes got to
get somebody to teach Buddy and me how
to behave"
Now that the girl was beginning to lose
her painful embarrassment, she showed to
somewhat better advantage and no longer
impressed him as bovine, stolid, almost
stupid.
First off. Ma and me are goin' over 10
Dallas to do some tradin'," the girl was
saying. CATER that we're goin' to the
mountains"
"Your mother mentioned mountains"
"Yep. Her and Pa have allus been
crazy about mountains, but they never seen
be named Allegheny and Ozark. But we
never expected to see 'em. The drought
burned us out too often"
Gus BriskOw was a sandy, angular man;
ring of air holes cut in the crown of his
faded felt hat showed head of hair
faded to match the color of his headgear;
his greasy OYerals were tucked into boots,
and ragged Joseph's coat covered his
flannel shirt.
He came directly in to greet his visitor,
then said: Il never expected you'd come
way out here an bring your plumber with
you. Ma says you got a hull gripful o.
dimon's."
Il have indeed" Gray pointed to the
glittering display still spread out upon
the yari-coIored Counterpart.
'I)IIShOW dppTOdCn6Q Jne ped ana gaZed
curiousy silently down at the treasure
then his face broke into sunshiny smile
He wiped his hands upon his trousers legs
and picked up a ring. But instead of ex-
amlnIng the jewel, he looked at the price
mark, after which his smile broadened
Ozark had entered behind his father,
and his sister introduced him now. He was
a year or two younger than Allegheny, but
cast in the same heroic mold
The lelder Brislow spoke first and it
was evident that he feared to betray lack
of conservatism, for he said with admir-
Bud?"
Bud grunted. After moment he in
quired of Gray. How much is that hull
lot with, Mister?"
"Close to a hundred thousand dollars"
IS glances; the father considered brief
ly, then he said, with oil at three
an a quarter, it wouldn't take long for
a twelve hundred barrier to get the hull
cabOOdle, would it?"
rs your well producing twelve hundred
barrels a day?
Huh" Briskow, junior, grinned a. his
sister, exposing a mouth full of teeth as
white and as sound as railroad crockery.
out his next words were directed at Gray:
we got four wells and the poorest one
is maxim twelve hundred bar'l."
The guests mental calculations as TO
the Briskow royalties were interrupted by
an announcement that dinner was ready
WhereupOn the father announced:
Mister, it looks like you'd have to
stay overnight with us. cause [ got i'm
portant business after dinner an [ would
trust Ma to pick out no jewelry by her
seIf-them prices would skeer her to
death. We're ignorant people and we amt
used to spendin money, so it'll take time
for us to make up our minds Kin you
waltz"
I'll stay as long as you'll keep me-"
Gray declared, heartily
a moment later, having learned that
place at the table had been set for his
driver as we'll as himself, Gray stepped
Gus to summon the man and to effect the
necessary change in his arrangements He
was not surprised to find the chauffeur
with nose flattened against a pane of the
frOnt-rOOm window, his hands cupped over
his eyes. ignoring the fellows confusion at
being discovered, Gray told him of his
change of plan and instructed him to drive
lowing afternoon. Then he led the way
toward the kitchen.
That stay at the Briskows' turned out
to be less irksome than the visitor had
anticipated, for the afternoon was spent
with Buddy examining the BriskoW wells
and Others near by.
They got along together swimmingly;
in fact, they grew thicker than thieves Sin
the course of time. The elder man
being studied. analyzed even co,xed-thc
sncerest form of fl8ttery-and it plea.
his vanity.
When Gray offered him a cigarette.
Buddy rudeIy took the sold case out of
his hand and examined it, then he laugh