The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1925-04-24
CHAPTER IX-Continued


sI want to stay here, and work the
farm, and make it pay. I can. I'm
not going to grow just the common
garden stuff any more-not much, any
way. I'm going to specialize in the
fine tilings-the kind the South Water
to drain the low land. Tile it. That
land hasn't been used for years. It
ought to be rich growing land by now,
II once it's properly drained. And
want Dirk to go to school, Good
schools. I never want my son to go
to the Haymarket. Never. Never.
my life doesn't count, except as
something for Dirk to use. I'm done
with anything else. Oh, don't mean
that I'm discouraged, or disappointed
in life, or anything like that. mean
I started out with the wrong idea.
know better now. I'm here to keep
Dirk from making the mistakes !
made
Aug Hempel's tone was one Of medi-
tation, not Of argument. ut don't
work out that way, seems. About mis-
takes it's funny. You got to make your
own; and not only that. IL you try to
keep people from making theirs they
get mad" He whistled softly. through
his teeth following this utterance and
tapped the chair seat with his finger.
"It's beauty!' Selma said then. al
most passionately. Aug Hempel and
Julie. plainly could make nothing of
this remark, so she went on, eager, ex-
planatory. Il used to think that II
you wanted beauty-if you wanted it
hard enough and hopefully enough-it
came to you. You just waited. and
lived your life as best you could.
knowing that beauty might be Just
around the corner. You Just waited,
and then 1t came"
"Beautyw exclaimed Julie. weakly.
She stared at Selma in the evident be-
+ lief that this work-worn haggard
woman was bemoaning her lack of per-
sonal pulchritude.
"Yes. All the worthwhile things in
life. Work that you love. And growth
growth and watching people grow.
Feeling very strongly about things
and then developing that feeling to-
10 make something fine come of it,
She threw out her hands In a futile
gesture. THAT'S what / mean by
beauty. Lwant Dirk to have It."
"For PHYS sake!" pleaded Julie, the
: literal, "let's stop talking and do some
thing. Pa, you've probably got 1t all
fixed in your mind long ago It's time
we heard 1t. Here Selma was one OF
the. most popular girls in Miss listers
school, and lots of people thought the
prettiest. And now just look at her :"
A flicker of the old flame leaped up
in Selma. "Flatterer !" she murmured.
Aug Hempel stood up. IF you think
giving your whole life to making the
boy happy Is going to make him happy
YOU amt SO smart as took you for.
You go trying to live somebody else's
life for them.'
"T'm not going to live his life for
him. l want to show him how to live
{ It so that he'll get full value out Of
it,"
Keeping him out Of the Haymarket
II the Haymarket's the natural place
for him won't do that. How can you
tell! Monkeying with what's to be.
I'm out at the yards every day, In and
out of the cattle pens, talking to the
drovers and herders. mixing in with
the buyers. l can tell the weight Of a
hog and what he's worth just by look
at him, and steer. too. My son-in-
law, Michael Arnold. sits up in the Of
fee all day in our plant, debating let
tiers. His clothes they never stink Of
the pens like mine do. Now l
amt saying anything against him,
Julie. But l bet my grandson Eu-
gene'-he repeated it, stressing the
name so that you sensed his dislike of
Eugene, if he comes into the bust
ness at all when he grows up, won't so
within smelling distance of the yards.
His Office, bet, will be in new Office
building on, say Madison street, with
view of the lake. Life! You'll be
hoggin' it all yourself and not know
it,"
~AAu oupPOoSs AStOttSu A'ChaoI
spiritedly, that when your son-in-law,
Michael Arnold. is your age he'll be
telling Eugene how he roughed 1t In
an office over at the yards in the old
days These will be the old days"
August Hempel laughed good-humor-
eddy. THAT can be, Selma. That can
be-" He chewed his cigar and settled
to the business at hand.
you want to drain and tile. Plant
high-grade stuff. You got to have a
man on the place that knows what's
what, not this Rip Van Wrinkle we saw
In the cabbage field. New horses. A
wagon. / will get you the horses, a
argain, at the yards" He took out a
long fiat check book. He began writ
ing in 1t with pen that he took from
his pocket-some sort of marvellous