The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1931-12-11

is really just the wife for him. But
this is the question they always ask
the kid, What are you going to live
on? while you're waiting for the
profits to come int"
They're coming In now" Edward
told him, though they haven't begun
to show very much in the bank bal
ance. We don't pay ourselves any
real salaries, of course, until the BUSH
ness has found its feet. I've got a
little left over, anyhow. / may have
to ask the boy to use his own money
to finish out this year at college, and
pay it back to him next fall"
Bert's only comment on that was
nod. It might have meant agreement,
or it might have meant, Edward real
lied, no more than recognition Of
familiar points about a story. His
next question struck Edward as
rather irrelevant.
"Do you know anything about Mari
ner, except what he's told you about
himself? Ever looked him up at all?'
mot very thoroughly" Edward ad-
mitted. He felt for the first time
touch of evaporation. "Bradstreet,
and Dun, I suppose you mean. They
wouldn't know anything about him.
You'd pass him up as shabby vision
airy. Well, he is shabby and he sees
Visions He'd never succeed by him.
self. But with me to help him do the
spade work, he'll succeed, because his
vision happens to be true"
s'Tell me more about it," Bert COM
manded. "Just what it's supposed
to do and how it does it."
"Pn tell you what I'd rather do.
I'd rather equip your cars with it.
One of them, anyhow. I'd like to have
you see for yourself"
Bert said, but little reluctantly Ed
ward thought, that he'd be glad to do
that.
swell, I certainly hope you're right
about 1t, and it's perfectly possible
that you are. Those things do work
sometimes and make fortunes for the
man who goes into them. But" His
fingers drummed for while on Ed
wards desk. "But I want you to re-
member what I'm going to say.
"You haven't completely cleaned
yourself out. Before you do, before
you borrow on your life insurance or
mortgage your house, come to me and
give me look-in. Let me go over
your books, see how you really stand.
And then listen-that's all I have to
ask-to what I've got to say. 1t won't
necessarily mean that the things
failure because it wants more money.
I may tell you to go ahead and put
your shirt on it. But if the thing isn't
right, IL there's joker in it some
where :"
He didn't finish the sentence. Ed
ward got up and thumped him on the
back. "All right, I'll remember" he
said.
He hadn't the faintest idea of bor-
rowing on his life insurance-he'd seen
enough Of that from the other side,
heaven knew-nor even Of mortgag-
ing his house. The business wasn't
He got his Overcoat and hat from
the cupboard and put them on. Bert
was still sitting solidly in the chair
beside his desk. you've been here
a long while, Ned" he said.
Deliberately Edward let his gaze
run over the familiar room and dwell
upon the vista of the outer office he
could see through the half-open door.
'Pve come to loathe this place." he
said. ''It's had twenty years of my life,
and / haven't lived in it at all! /
never even knew till lately what it
was to be alive. do know now. I'm
happy in this thing, Bert. don't
care a d-n whether it makes me
fortune or not. I've never done any,
thing! Never had run for my
money. But this thing-why, it's CIV
ing me real air to breathe" He drew
in great deep breath and then shut
down the window. "Come along to
lunch," he said.
They went on by tacit understand
ing and little self-consciously to talk
Of other things. 1t was not until they
had finished luncheon that Bert turned
back to the topic of his friends great
adventure.
"What does Julia think about it7"
he asked.