Montana oil and mining journal. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1931-1953, 1935-03-09
The Magic Fluid By Msl'a Russell Afscal'A"

out the formula for q restorative. The
preparation had won the respect Of the
medical profession. but daddy hadn' :
known how 10 capitalize CA Is
AS Nellie locked at her father her
conscieuce smOte her. He wss 80 1raaL
She fastened to divert him. Forrest
always had the most imagination OF
as all. Do you remember how, when
we were little things. we used to love
to get IN your laboratory2 can see lt
yet-smell Il, too. All the mortars and
spatulas and bottles. And the row OF
little dark bottles that held your f0rnu-
Ia medicine. remember how you i'm
pressed It on us that we mustn't touch
those bottles, because just as soon as
the seal was broken the medicine De-
/ gan working. and soon after that It
wasn't any good. Forrest got SO ex-
cited about It. Remember how he named
IL the magic fluid?' And he fixed up
q formula Of his own out OF mud and
water, and cured my doll. He'd say,
Madam, your child is dying. There Is
| Just one chance And he'd uncork the
bottle right over the dolls nose, and
the mud would spin out. Then he'd
make q dramatic gesture, and say,
There, madam-your child viii live"
And away he'd go to play with some
thing else-while washed the mud off
the doll"
Daddy Belts was smiling. Eyes. Yes,
can see you all. You were great chill
dren."
Nellie got up, put her arms around
him and kissed the top of his head.
There's only one thing want be-
fore die, Nellie. want you children
to be friends. And unless can bring
it about shan't rest easy IN my
grave"
That winter Daddy Belts failed fast
He never complained, except to say that
he was tired. Nellie cared for him
tenderly, and so did Rita. Daddy Belts
delighted in his 17-year-old grand
daughter, and still followed with in
terest her high school activities. Rita
was dark and vivid like her mother.
only softer, as yet untouched by Bit
terness.
At Christmas, Forrest sent his father
ring with square green stone. Nellie
sighed about the ring. Forrest hadn't
sent his share of Daddy's board money
for ages. Rods Christmas present was
an extra five dollars, which came In
handy but which, in Nelie's opinion, |
might just as easily have been ten.
The basement of the Cooper house
was comfortable place containing the |
dining room, kitchen, and Daddy Belts
snug bedroom He never left that floor |
except on Sunday afternoons when |
John Cooper carried him up to the |
parlor so that Rita could play the piano
for him.
Rita didn't play as well as Forrest,
who had never taken a lesson in his
life. When Forrest came home he made
the old piano ring. There was one piece
of Forests that daddy liked parkice-
larly, the overture to The Merry Wives
Of Windsor. He used to sit near the
piano when Forrest played the Merry
Wives, and watch the long, quick fin
gers swoop over the keyboard, now IN
delicate bits Of melody that made you
smile, now in gorgeous crashes that /
sent shivers through the old house.
Rita couldn't play like that-but daddy
never made comparisons.
When five O'Clock came, and It was
e4AAAC III VQiAAl NfRStLA ~ AO W MO4AsI
he would carry Daddy Belts downstairs
again. John Cooper was night engineer
in q big loop building; q silent, static
man, whose inability to get up in the
world had given him a protective
veneer Of harshness.
o 8
In January Daddy Belts suffered a
second stroke Of paralysis and died
quite suddenly, before his sons could
arrive.
Rodney Belts and his colorless wife,
Ina, came next morning from their
home in Flint, Michigan. They kissed
Nellie, and the women cried a little.
Nellie helped Ina off with her new /
beaver coat, and showed them vacant
room on the second floor. Ina, who said
she hadn't slept wink on the train, /
went right to bed. Rod installed him
self as master Of ceremonies. He was ;
q building contractor, a sturdy framed ,
man with a poker face. No one knew
how much he was worth. He and Ina ]
had no children.
There we're flower deliveries and j
callers that morning. It touched Nellie /
10 know that IN that poor and tran I
sient neighborhood her father had
made friends Her roomers had dubbed !
together and sent a spray Of carna-
ions and lilies The dooroen rang so 1
many times she wondered II John was ]
able TO sleep. Several kilograms came. /
and a floral Offering from daddy's old /
medical association IN Michigan. Rod {
handled everything with quiet eff 9
;iency. She found herself admiring Rod
Then she remembered how he had '
never sent penny more than neces- {
sary toward daddy's expenses, had I
never offered to make up Forests I
ieficit. b
Forrest Ardmore, born Belts, young J
st Of the three children, arrived later {
n the forenoon, with debonair smile /