Evening star., 1932-01-24
BY W. BOYCE MORGAN.
INSTALLMENT i.

vm OR more than week Barrie Moreland
had been expecting-and dreading-
l. that letter from his father. Now he
found it in his mail box, and instead
OF going to lunch with his fellow
students at Bellaire Academy, ne hur-
rted to his room in the dormitory ana tore
open the envelope.
Dear son." 1t began, "once more must
write bad news to you. 1t seems I've written
nothing else for the last few months but this
la about the worst yet.
I'm sorry, but you'll have to leave school
and come home I simply haven't the money
to keep YOU there any longer. / have fnaly
got things pretty well settled up here In Larks-
burg but there isn't much left.
'They took the store away from me recently
I hope to be able to borrow enough to start
new shop, but don't know yet. People III
this town haven't much confidence In me any
more.
"r,ve taken a little house on Maple street,
and have a woman coming in to look after 1t.
You'll be comfortable here but it's nothing
like the old place, which managed to sell only
at terrible loss. I've had talk with Prof
Barker, and you can start in high school as
soon as you get here"
There was more but Barrie got no farther.
He dropped into a chair and stared with un-
seeing eyes at the opposite wall
OUTSIDE, the snow fell softly on the bare
~ trees that, in Spring, made the grounds
around Bellaire Academy place OF cool,
shady beauty. Below in what the boys sang1ly
called "the chow hail." his fellow students were
noisily eating their MONDAY meal. But Bar
rie's mind was hundred miles away, in Larks-
burg and there was lump in his throat.
"Poor Dad!' he said, half aloud. "They GER
tainly are making 1t tough for him. Thats
the way-they bow and scrape to you when
you're up, but they all nave KICK lot you
when you're down"
Now that it had come, the dreaded letter
wasn't such a shock, because he had been ex-
pecting it. He had had time to prepare HIM
self for what was the greatest change that had
ever come into his life. The Morelands had
always been well-to do Barrie's father owned
the towns largest store, he was chairman OF
the towns biggest bank, and he was interested
in dozen other businesses In the vicinity In
the language Of Larksburg, John Morelano
owned the town"
Things had always been that way, and Bar
rie had taken them as a matter OF course lie
didn't know much about Larksburg, 1t Is true
He hadn't spent more than month tnere al
any one time in five years. 1t was merely the
place where his Dad lived, where the weekly
checks came from, and where ne coulo take
O couple of the fellows from school II they hao
no more exciting place to go during vacations.
True, the big house on Round Hill was the
only real nome ne knew, Dut loiiiC oA~ii AiNe'A
much to Barrie. His mother had been DEAD 1or
q number of years, and he had been In Beiialre
Academy ever since her death. During sum-
mer he went to some camp or up 10 tne
mountains with one of his rich friends. One
Summer there had beer trip to Europe. An
other, it had been the Maine woods
IA THAT was Larksburg like? Barrie didn't
w have very clear idea. town with
few factories rather busy main shopping
street and rows and rows Of modest little homes.
The important people-the only ones that
Barrie knew much about-lived on Round
Hill. Those boys and girls went away to
school, and only saw each other during va
cation. They never mixed with the other
young people of the town.
But now Barrie was going back to harrisburg
TO enter high school there. He groaned. What