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* V~1 r ?? Damon, Pythias 6L Co. How It Became a Corporation With Limited Capital and T T 1- _ | rv J J. Unlimited uiviaenus i '; By F. A. MITCHEL Copyright by American Press Association, 1911. II M "Mr. Clarksou, I am happy to see you. Be seated. Will told nie that you would coll. Indeed, he showed nie the letter which said you were coming." The gentleman grew red in the face. "He showed you the letter. Mrs. Field?" "Certainly. Do you suppose men can receive letters that their wives ore not permitted to read?," "But?but Will is only just married, you know." "Certainly. The day before marriage and the day after marriage are very different. During the fiisU-i? is single; duriug the second he is lUftibic." "Good gracious! I d jyfaot know that j marriage turned an taouorable man i into a dishonorable one." "If we cau't be honorable toward i two persons we rcnst decide in favor ' of the one t<> whom we have made j definite pledges?that Is the wife. However. 1 will do Will justice t>? snv that he did not show me your letter. I learned of its contents in another way." "How?" "I am not prepared to make that clear just now. But enough of my having become aware of your feelings toward the woman who has robbed you ' of your friend. I can understand those feelings and have a proposition to make. 1 will divide Will with you. Instead of you and he beiug Damon and Pythias, we will make the firm Damon, Pythias & Co.. I to be the company." "Two men and a woman!" "Why not? Will loves you. and you love Will. Will loves me, and I love Will. It only remains for me to love you and you to love me to make a delightful trio." . Clarkson drew a f"w <'mrt breaths and looked about him like one fearing to be caught in a trap. ''Oh. bnt Will!" he rejoined. "Would an arrangement please hfm?" ^ h* ~'tu "How do yoh know that?" 1? "Before he went away"? "Went away? Has he gone away?" "For a month." Clarkson looked rroro frightened than ever. The lady continued: "We had a talk about this letter of yours In which you mourn your friend as lost to you and speak so bitterly of the woman who has taken him away from you. It was decided between us that we should take you into the co partnership." "Take me in?" The tone and expression on his face | when he said this were so comical that the lady failed to repress n smilp. "Yes. take you in," she repented. An idea seemed to strike him, and. j he brightened. "There's an advantage i in that." he sa'd. "Another woman j couldn't"? He checked himself. "Kitrht! I will see that no other worn-1 an jrets you away front us." "I rather like that. Rut tell me about Will. Don't newly married men usually po away on honeymoon trips?" "They do." "Well?" She thought a moment before reply- 1 ins. "Will's affairs are now in his j ? lfnnnlnrt ntwl CnTRO nf - I ? lit: 3 IVlTj'HJf,, (I iiu ?-ww.v vMV? | this one particularly?are not to be dl- j vulged." -But I thought I was admitted into ' the firm." "So you are. But there Is reason in all things. 1 am to know Will's secrets - and yours. You are not to know Will's nor Will yours." "Well. I like that: To you call it reason?" "Certainly. What else would you call it?" "Oh, I suppose it is?since you say j "Now I propose n> make up for lost time. You and Will have loved each other since boyhood. Will and 1 have loved each other for several years. The chain hotweeu you and me is alone wanting. It was agreed between Will and me before lie left that I was to take you in and form this bond between us." Mr. Clarkson started and again looked wildly about him. "I don't know." lie said, "that I ever heard of ;::i arrangement like this." "There's always a tirst time for everything." "There's one advantage in it." tmisJugly. "that I have already mentioned. To he frank with y a. I'd rather steer clear of women matt inn nlal'y I in "\:i. It's till r!g''t f.>r Will to to in for lint port of thins.*. hut I don't. Hi is arrangement will be a barrier for lue, wou't it?" ' "I'll guarantee that no woman shall couie near you. To facilitate matters we will let them all know that you belong to the firm of Damon, Pythias & Co. by making yourself at home here. For a starter Will left a pair of tickets to the theater for tomorrow evening. Have you any engagements?" "X-n-o." "Oh. if you don't care to go I can dispose of the tickets." She looked a trifle milled. "I shall be delighted." "Very well. Now we will talk of other matters. It has been quite warm lately, hasn't it?" "Yes?no. I haven't noticed. How long did you say Will is to be absent?" "A month." "Won't you miss him very murb?" "Of course. 1 love him dearly, as he loves me. But here comes in the advantage of a trio. I shall have you." Clarkson started as if a bomb had fallen on the floor before him and was sputtering ready to e:;;?lode. If he had Ii-nl-lnor .it ]i|< COP111.1 llion lie wouid have seen a very animated expression on her face. "I was jiot aware. I didn't know," he stammered, "that a lady married to the man she loves could let him go away a few days after the wedding and he contented with the company of his best friend." "Von forget that this is a tripartite arrangement, wherein 11 tree persons are made one. Ilut cease to bother yourself about that. The secret of remaining comfortable in t his world is not to worry. By this arrangement Wiii and I have endeavored to obviate the necessity of you and he loving each other. It behooves you to accept the situation ard be content." "Yoa have both ccrt.il::Iy been very kind. I shall endeavor to prove myself worthy of your confidence and conduct myself"? "Conduct yourself! Of course you will. Now don't trouble yourscif any more about trifles. Just fall into the situation naturally and nil will be well." lie left her. wondering what it all meant. Surely the e < .:s some mistake. Was tills woman so juiocent that she supposed such a partnership as she proposed could endure with, ut danger' The head of the firm of Damon, I\vth las & Co. remained away quite Ion? enough to produce a volcano in the breast of the Junior member. The lady maintained the same position she had taken at the first meeting with Clarksou, talked about love existing betweeu the three of them Just as Innoceutly and bore herself Just as clrcumSpecTIy" at the lasts as at The first of Damon's absence. The only difference In her bearing from what be might expect of his friend's wife was a growing disposition to sensitiveness with regard to his treatment of her. In one respect the intimacy was a success. N'o other woman was permitted to get near enough to Clarksou to endanger his single state. As for the purity of the junior member of the hrm and her loyalty to the head of it there was 110 question. Vevertheless before liis friend Da mon returned Clarkson was in lore. Indeed, the even in? before the arrival of the man who bad permitted this unique arrangement Mr. Clarkson made two statements to the lady. The first was that he loved her madly, the second that he proposed to retire at once from the firm and uever see her again. lie then left her with an expression on her face denoting an internal upheaval, but whether she was offended with him for making the avowal he could not tell. The suest day. while Clarksou was packing a trunk preparatory to a long journey, he received a telephone message from his friend I-'ield, inviting him to a meeting of the firm of Damon, Pythias & Co. at dinner. Clnrkson tried to beg o!T, but failed, and. after numerous excuses which seemed to surprise and offend his would he host, at last consented. On his arrival Field took him into Ids sanctum uud su'd to him seriously: "Ih.b. before we dine something needs to be straightened cut." Ciarksoti shudder* !. "licfore my departure 1 was struck by your letter. We both regretted the separation that must naturally result between you and tac on account of my marri vc. for you know in two bos" ' - ' ?' . .'mi nffor OIII Il'H'ilUS ' .liiin'i nr iiir . i ... ....... I lit* tuarri ? ' - i'v*v e-n-,? before. \ .? . ; ? I !' * . I asked !m' linvv V..* I... . .i I...1. ; .U proposed t?> luarry y<>n . her sister Cynthia. She euj posted ! w!:ilo wc v. r.? <?u our we Mil tr hp Cynthia should i-Iny wlMi y ;n .1: t' r ? < f I>an: m. I'vMi.'.is ?v Co. j i.i.-i what I h<. r "' o ;.;.r !i ?r i art well. 1 ut n> w l!nt ;vo have arrived at the climax .<! "hi: InoIkmi <1 . !i com >!elely. She i. t.rror stricken le-1 joti ui.'.y think v];<> r?ii? i rately set out to catch you. wlesvas she lvaliy eniertd 1*1 ou it fur sport." When i'i-M beyan to impart this knewiedtre <'iar:;s;.:i was l. okk g .at him !Ik" a bet's* at i::!v. As i'ienl proceeded this u ch".u;td to s::rprise. curiosity. !: pe, and dually broke into a beautiful stnile^ \ 7 I ' Well, to shorten a loner story, they finally told tue they believed I was their son. The woman was more eer tain nbcut it than the man and insisted on hugging me. The man made a journey and brought back an Apache with him who identified me as a for nier member of his tribe and told when and where I had been captured, proving conclusively that I was the sot; of the man and woman who \vre interested In me. , The lives o' all the gang w^r* s: and I was taken in hand by ' ' and mother. They made r citizen of me, but they : time doing it. To a i:a?: owe most of my reform. Silent Lawyers. It is almost a maxim nowadays that a lawyer's real importance at the bar is in inverse ratio to his prominence j in the papers. The truth is that lawj ycrs of great Importance seldom nowadays appear in court. In the old days the great lawyer was the eloquent lawyer; today the gl'eut lawer Is the silent one. Then bar reputations were made literally at the bar. Today they .?r.? inmio in the offices of the sky scrapers neighboring on Wall street, i In England a visit any day to the law courts will be repaid by the sight of souie famous K. C. assisting the court in a dramatization of the trial chapter ' from "Alice In Wonderland." But you might prowl for a mouth within the precincts of the New York courthouse without encountering a lawyer whose name would signify anything remarkable to the historian of the New York [ bar.?American Magazine. Bottomless Tarpon Springs. , The great body of water which gave the name to Tarpon Springs, Fla., Is classed by all of the old citizens as bottomless. The center appears to be ! a hole curbed with jagged rocks. , Sometimes the weight has lodged and , then dropped on to the extent of the sounding line afterward. Many citl! zeus say that they know the depth to be in excess of 700, 800 and 900 feet Once when a depth of 200 feet was | reached an obstruction wns enconnter, ed; then it was dislodged, dropped on farther, and the line broke. A very . heavy weight has to be used on ac, count of the depth, and when divers are sent down In the springs, as they huve been recently, they report the same great jagged hole, which, so far as they can find out, is without bottom. The spring is supposed to be the principal outlet of that beautiful jLape Butlef Whlth lied just a mlia east of the town. Tidewater comes up into the spring, and it has acquired the name because it was the playi ground of the silvered king of fish, the tarpon.?Manufacturers' Record. Preferred to Be a Quack. A quack at a fair near Paris was f driving a roaring trade selling nostrums, drawing teeth and beguiling the crowd in the usual ways, says the British Medical Journal. The letter of the French law against unqualified practice is very strong, 1 hough owing to the indifference of the magistrates ,! it is not strictly carried out. This, , however, was a particularly flagrant > case, and the police felt compelled to I intervene. The quack was therefore accosted by the guardians of the law, . taken to a tent at the back of his staud and requested to show his diploma. To the stupefaction of the gend; urines he exhibited a perfectly authentic degree of doctor of medicine of th ? University of Faris. They were j profuse in tueir apologies, wnicn me | doctor cut short with an urgent entreaty that they should say nothing about what they had seen, "for," he said, "if the people know that I am a qualified doctor I shall have no more . customers." A Marvel of Insect Mechanism. The sting of a certain Indian fly ofi fors us marked an example of design : in nature as can well be imagined, i When seen through a magnifying glass j it is found to be composed of three j sharp blades folded into one with I their cutting edges outward and running down to one fine point. When I the fly inserts this up to the hilt In its j victim the three blades fly apart, and j then it is seen that each inr.er edge Is | a beautiful saw, worked by six sepi nrate muscles, so that when withthe instrument rips its way out wiili a gusli of blood, lint now comes the most curious provision of all. It would not do to fold up tV???? blades with the blood adhering lo unui. so en< it b.....c ?s ]uo..dc.i at hs base with ! a fine brush of hairs growing out of ! an oil pianu, wnicii proViiies an iinu septic secretion to keep the blades , clean. ? Ucft For the Library. Architect (sliowlntr piansi?This room wi:l he your library. Mr. Xewrich? My library? Oh. yes, of course. 1 ! must have a place to smoke.?Boston j Transcript. No man can do nothing. and no man can do everything.?German. /' WASN'T QUITE SURE " MSk&bjp' Effle?Wasn't It Tennyson, mam ma. that wrote ' In Memoriam?" Mrs. Quickrich?I don't know ex; actly if that was the place, but It waa i somewhere In England, I believe. . i The Fatal Ring. An amazing story Is told by the late 1 head of the Paris morgue. Five times , within his experience ('cad bodies ! brought to the morgue were found to be wearing a certain ring easily dlsI tinguishable by Its strange design. It bore In Eastern characters this le' gend: "May whosoever wears this ring die a miserable death." M. Mace, late chief of the Paris police, vouches the truth of this. Forestry In Palestine. Palestine is exceptionally fitted for 1 forestry. On its sand surface, as on 1 lto chalk hills, trees flourish and bear ' fruit in an extraordinarily short time. I ' , fi^= 1 p * 1 t ^ y IT I 2 Never Leak?Never Need D proof?Handsome?Inerpcns buildings. For further detail CHERAW Hi! 1 * ^ Q/!clx very qaickl/ Makes rich, red, pur pi 3 system?dears the brain ? str< A positive specific for Bloc Drives out Rheumatism and ; y is a wonderful tonic and body-1 LIPPMAN, I j 4 or 5 Good Co Cash or on I Appl^ J. A. SE Cheraw !l ; ___ I s/Ok j u jBuy now. Cheaper (! son of the year. ! H. L. J j Cheravt i / Saved by Beer Barrels. If Telix Medell, a flve-yearold patient in a New York hospital, lives he can thank a pyramid of beer barrels in the rear yard of his tenement house home. He fell five stories from the roof last night while playing leapfrog and struck the apex of the beer barrel pyramid. The barrels rolled away under bin. breaking his fall, and he 6lid down gradually. ourne w/ritc. A spring poet, whose specialty Is cynicism, dashed off the following: "The man who is brave enough to desire to marry the modern girl needs no further test of his courage." HOW TO CURE RHEUMATISM It I* An Internal Dlneaae And Required An Internal Ilemedy. tko nmtoa nt rheumatism and kindred diseases is an excess of uric acid In the blood. To cure this terrible disease^ this acid must be expelled and the system so regulated that no more acid will be formed in excessive quantities. Rheumatism is an Internal disease and requires an internal remedy. RUBBING* with Oils and Liniments WILL NOT CURE, affords only temporary relief at best, causes you to delay the proper treatment, and allows the malady to get a firmer hold on you. Liniments may ease the pain, but they will no more euro Rheumatism than paint will change the fiber of rotten wood. Science has at last discovered a perfect and complete cure, which Is called Rhcumaclde. Tested in hundredsof cases, it has effected the most mdrvelous cures; we believe it will cure you. Rheumacide gets at the joints from the inside, sweeps the poisons out of the system, tones up the stomach, regulates the liver and kidneys and makes you well all over. Rheumacide strikes the root of the di?? ease and removes its cause. This splendid remedy is sold by druggists and dealers generally at 50c. and $1 a bottle. In Tablet form at 25c. and 50c. a package. Write to Bobbitt Chemical Ce., Baltl more, Md. Booklet free. Tablets sent by mail. Ladd's Drag Store. gw . ' Sinpypfl ~ 1 Repairs?Fireproof Stpnart- p ive?Suitable for all kinds of I . .. V , ed information apply to lrdwabe oo. /' * Hh, Poke Root and Potassium) . B Powerful Permanent B Stubborn cases Good results are tfj vill i to P. P. P. lasting?it cures t when other trecli- you tosiaycureci ( nu ciac" rro useless V3 PD. % ? 9 P c blood?cleanses the entire ingthens digestion and nerves, rj* id Poison and skin diseases. Lb Stops the Pain; ends Malaria; fl builder. Thousands endorse it. Kg SAVANNAH, GA. I ttages For Sale ?asy Terms j to LLERS . s. c. ! AL ian at any other seaPOWE r, s. c.