The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1931-12-04
twNu service)

marked, "but still it's a tidy little
sum. 1t ought to help"
Mariner read the figures without
reaching to pick up the slip they were
written on. He didn't move at all.
He looked as If he couldn't move. All
the vital force seemed to have gone
out of him. He spoke in a daze. ut
won't do me any good. I'm done for
If can't get more than that.
II didn't tell you that story for
nothing" he went on after another
silence. II told it so that could get
something besides the cut-and-dried
treatment. l know that a big insur-
ance company like this has its rules
and regulations. But know that a
man in your position, If he wants to
do it, can find some rule that will
justify him in dealing with special
case. This is special case; you
can't help seeing that. If you don't
see 1t, come down to my factory.
Take ride in my car out here. Drive
It yourself. My Cd, man, you don't
think I'm going to drop this now!
After three years. When all it wants
is one more push to put it over the
top of the hill. You won't turn me
down without taking at least look
will you"
A queer thing happened to Edward
He began explaining, as he'd explained
hundred times before, that the es
sence of the insurance business was
that it didn't recognize exceptions to
rules. Neither themerits of Mariners
device nor the urgency of his needs
entered into the case at all. He
could have fourteen hundred and odd
dollars if he wanted it, and that was
all.
It was not surprising that a stricken
look came into Mariners wistful brown
eyes. Edward was used to seeing peo-
pie look like that. The astonishing
thing was that he heard himself add
ing, as the man leaned forward to rise
from his chair, However, I'll turn
the thing over in my mind, and If
there's anything more that can be
done.
A sudden blaze Of hope in the in
ventor's face stopped him short. After
a moments pause he added irritably,
you're not to build on that. Prob
ably shouldn't have said it. But I'll
call you tonight or tomorrow morn
ing"
Edwards job had never seemed so
barren or so nearly uncomfortable as it
seemed today. He felt he was an
automaton. He wondered fantastical-
ly whether it would be possible to
build an actual automaton out of cogs
and levers, some sort Of super adding
machine, that could take his job away
from him, do everything that he did.
He gave the notion a further twist of
irony. There was no danger; it would
cost lot of money. He. Edward Pat
terson, the human machine, came
cheaper.
Why did he stick? Why did he
keep up the pretense? What was
there in it for him anyway? A liveli-
hood, Of course; probably his only
one. But what was there in the pros
pect Of his life to make it worth go
ing on with for another twenty-five
years? 1t frightened him to think
thoughts like that. There was no good
to be got from it.
Recurrently, during the day, he Won
dered why he had flung that last scrap
of hope to Mariner. 1t was cruel
thing RI have done rnallv Had he
done it from mere cowardice or from
vanity? It must have been, he thought,
from one or the other. He was sorry
for Mariner. It wasn't often that any
caller broke through to his emotions
like that, and yet, queerly, he had
envied him, too. Mariner had some
thing to hope for. No doubt he was
still hoping. Was he plodding about
the streets, turning into this office and
that, telling his story over and over
again? Or was he waiting beside his
own telephone in the hope that Ed
ward would call him up and tell him
he could have the money?
It was Edwards duty of course to
put him out of his misery. And yet,
when it came to the point of unlock
ing his receiver and calling Mariners
number, his will seemed paralyzed.
Perhaps, if he waited while longer,
he'd learn that Mariner had got the
money. Some one, friend or stranger,
might have turned up with the needed