Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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RflHTTKKDU'GDa.aTrAW CLQCT1 Third ddjPtx ^CHARLES KLEIN * v ^ AND T w ARTHUR HORNBLOW Y ILLUSTRATIONS bY RAY WALTERS - t?0?. 0T C W DHL iMflMAM COnMMY CHAPTER I. ?2 ? N. O - ? th?fii a cinch! The m I chuck It the better!" Caught In the ewlrl of Che busy oltj ? midday rush, engulfed rn I< road? way's ewlft moving flood of hustling Immunity, jostled unceremoniously ey the careless. Indifferent crowds, discouraged from stemming further the tide nf pushing, elbowing men and women who hurried up and down the dpreat thoroughfare. Howard Jeffries, tired and hungry and thoroughly die gmsted with himself, stood still at the oorner of Fulton street, cursing the which had brought him to his A plight ft wee the k'wn hour, the Important of day * eon nature loudly claims dae. when business affaire, no how presetng, moot bs tem? porarily Interrupted so that the K?? gen* machine may lay la a free a r.t ore on* cerecus energy. From under the of precipitous office but1 dings. La hlvee of human Industries, which ta right and left soared dlsslly street to sk>, swarmed thoir of employee ot ooth sexei ? I? stenographer*, shop girls, n es ?? boie all moved by a common goseoleo to satisfy without further de? lay the aatsaal crarloge of their phys fteal naturae. They strode along with guiek. nervous etep. each chatting and iing with his fellow. Interested the noaee la the day's work, ma plans for well earned recreation _ni fire o'clock should come and the uptown stampede for Harlem and home begin The young man sullenly matched 1 the scene, envious of the energy and activity of all about him Each one ta then Carrying throngs, he thought bitterly to himself, was a valuable It m the prosperity and welfare of big town No matter bow humble or her position, each played a la the business life of the great etty. each was an aneeen, unknown, yet indispensable cog la the whirling, compile^ted mechanism of the rest world metropolis Intuitively he felt ?hat he was not ens of them, that he heel no right srpn to consider himself aeetr equal He was utterly useless te anybody He was without position m money Re was destitute even of a ef self respect Hadn't he Annie not to touch liquor asjaia befe * he found a Job? Yet he vhad sirs* <y imbibed aH the whisky which the little money left In his ?jacket would buy. ^^laroleatarilr. instinctively, he earnsk back into ths shadow of a Ji? way to let the crowds past. The feeemeet* were how Ailed to otef Bwwing and each moment newcomers from the side streets came to swell Jffce human street^. He tried to avoid eoeervatlon rearing that some one might rcoogntte him, thinking all jew 14 read on hin face that he was 4 sot, a self ^confessed failure, one of ?fla's tncompetssts In his pslnful jjstt-coasclsusness he believed himself "Sues eynoouro of every eye and he wtsced as he thought ks detected on faces side glances of curiosity, gwarettcs and contempt. War was ks altogether mistaken, thee one passer by turned to look la his direction, attracted by mis peculiar appearance. Hit was a ^farps not aeea ersry day In ths com per Hal wistrlct?the post graduate esalege maa out at elbow 1 He was am 11 nth faced and apparently about 25 of age. His complexion was sed his fnce refined. It would Jkavs aeea handsome but for a droop teg. Irresolute mouth, which denoted then average weakness of char The face was thin, chalk like Its lack of color and deeply seamed 1 the tell tale lines of dlsslpntlon. ? circles under his eyes and a | aeonlLar wstery look suggested lats >omr? and ovsrfondnsss for nlcohollc refresh mert His clothes had the cut en* expensive tailors, r?ut they were ahsbby and needed pressing His linen was soiled and hia necktie disar? ranged Hin whole appearance was tless nnd suggested that reckless Of mind which somes of general slemoraliiatlon Hownrd Jeffries knew that he was a fclture* yet like most young men Mentally weak, he insisted that he could not be held altogether to blame, tretly. too. he despised these sober, itrlou* people who seemed coa> with ths crumbs of comfort thrown to them What, he wond? red lily, was their secret of getting on? Hew were they sbls to lead such well regulated Uvea when he. Marling out with far greater advantages, had failed? Oh, he knew well *here the trouble lay In his damnable weak aess of character his loee for drink. That wee responsible for everything Bet was It his fault if he were bom weak? These people who behaved tie dum res st n get on. In were calm, commonplace t? inn-ri. fcvsnts whs fo D I ro diftVulty In cofl troll:ig their baser laetlacta They did right simply because ?h*y found ft easier than to do wrong Their vir tne> was nothing te brag about H was eaey to be g od when not ex fieed to temptation. Ban for Maegf hjrn with lue devil in them It canu hard. It waa all a mattsi < 1 heredity It seems that now 1? the time thi a tin" Influence. One s Tlces as well as 1 one's virtues are handed down to ua ready made. He had no doubt that in the Jeffries family somewhere in the unsavory past there had been a weak, vicious ancestor from whom he bad Inherited ali the traits which barred his way to success The crowds of hungry workers grew bigger every minute. Every one waa elbowing his way into neighboring reetauranU, crowding the tables and buffets, all eating voraciously as they talked and laughed. Howard was rudely reminded by inward pangs that he, too, whs famished. Kot a thing had passed his lips since he had left home In Harlem at eight o'clock that morning and he had told Annie that he would be home for lunch. There waa no use staying downtown any longer. For three weary hours he had trudged from office to office seeking employment, answering advertise? ments, asking for work of any kind, ready to do no matter what, but all to no purpose. Nobody wanted blm at any price. What was the good of a man being willing to work if there was no one to employ him? A nice look-out certainly. Hardly a dollar left and no prospect of getting any more. He hardly had the courage to return home and face Annie. With a muttered exclamation of impatience be apat from his mouth the half con su nod cigarette which was hanging from his Up. and crossing Broadway, walked listlessly in the direction of Park place. , He had certainly made a mess of things, yet at one time, not ao long .go, what a brilliant future life seemed to have in store for him! No boy bsd ever been given a better ?tart He remembered the day he left home to go to Tale; he recalled his father's kind words of encour- | sgement his mother's tears. Ah, if his mother had only lived! Then, maybe, everything would have been different. But she died during his freshman year, carried off suddenly by heart failure. His father married again, a young woman lC years his Junior, and that had started every ' thing off wrong. The old home life had gone forever He had felt like an Intruder the first time he went home and from that day his father's I roof bad been distasteful to him. Tea, < that was the beginning of his hard | luck. He could trace all his misfor* tunes back to that. Hs couldn't stand for stepmother, a haughty, self fish, i supercilious, ambitious creature who . had little sympathy for her preoeces* t sor's child, and no scruple in show? ing U, i Then, at college, he bad met Robert j Underwood, the popular upper class? man, who bad professed to take a , great fsncy to hiru. He, a timid young freshman, was naturally flattered by ' the friendship < f the dashing, fatciuat'! ing sophomore and thus commenced i that unfortunate intimacy which had brought abjut the climax to hia trou-1 bles. The suave, aml.ble Underwood, i whom hs soon discovered to be a gen- ' tlemanly scoundrel, borrowed his ( money and introduced him into the "sporty' b<*V in exclusive circle into ! which, thanks to bis liberal allowance j from home, ie was welcomed with | open arms. With a youth of his pro? clivities and inherent wea uess the outcome was inevitable. A no tlm* ove.rfond of ntudy. he regsided resl- * deuce lu coil- ge as a most desirable I emancipation from the r .raint of, I sldeied a pose and he sioffed at I he I men who took their reading seriously. The university attracted him mostly by Its most undesirable featuns, its sports. Its secret societies, its petty cliques, and Its rowdyism. The broad spirit and the dignity of the alma mater hs Ignored, completely, Directly he w*nt to Yale he Started in to en Mmself and with the sophigth ated i'ndcrwood as guide, went to tbo devil faster than any man before him in the entire history of the univ. i ilf.jp ){.* adlng, attendance at ioctures, be came only a convenient < loak to con real his tin pitiirle?. Poker playing, automobile )ov rlglg, hard linking became the daily curriculum In town rows and orgies of s?cry d^m-rip tjou he wss soon a recognised leaeler, Scandal foTrowe* scandal until to "was threatened wirb cxpulsisn. Then his father heard eff it and there wan a terrible ecene. Je.Trles, 33r., went im? mediately to New Haven and there followed a stormy interv?ew in which Howard promised to reform, but once the parent's back was turned things went on pretty much as before. Tb^re were freeh scandals, the smoke .of which reached a* far as New Yufk. This time Mr. Jeffries tried the plan of cutting down the money supply and j Howard found himself financially em- i barrassed. Put this had not quite j the effect desired by the ifather, tor. I rendered desperate by hi* inability to secure funds with whirl: to carry ? on his sprees, the young man started j in to gamble heavily, giving notes for his losses anj pocketing Hub readj money when be won. Then can** the supreme scandal ' ?which turned his father's heart tc , ?steel. Jeffries, Sr., could forgive rauch ! In a young man. He had been young himself once. None knew better than j he how difficult it is when the blood I hi rich and red to keep oneself in [ control. But there was one offence ! which a man proud of his descent could not condone. He would never forgive the staining of the family name by a degrading marriage. The newe came to the unhappy father like ? thunder-clap. Howard, probably in a drunken spree, had married secretly a waitress employed in one of the *' porty" restaurant^ in New Haven, anu to make the mesalliance worse, the girl was not even of respectable parents. Her father, Billy Delmore, the poolroom king, was a notorious gambler and had died in convict stripes. Fine sensation that for the yellow press. "Banker's Son Weds Convict's Daughter." So ran the "scare heads4' in the newspapers. That' was the last straw for Mr. Jeff? ries, Sr. He sternly told his son that he never wanted to look upon his face again. Howard bowed his head to the decree and he had never seen his father since. All this the young man was review? ing in his mind when suddenly his re? flections were disturbed by a friendly hall. "Hello. Jeffries, old sport! Don't you know a fellow frat when you see him?" He looked up. A young man of athletic build, with a pleasant, frank face, was standing at the news stand under the Park place elevated station. Quickly Howard extended his hand. "Hello, Coxe!" he exclaimed. "What on earth are you doing in New York? Whoever would have expected to meet you in this howling wilderness? How's everything at Yale?" The athlete grinned. "Yale be banged! I don't care a [ d?. You know I graduated last June. I'm fn business now?In a broker's of? fice in Wall street. Say, it's great! We had a semi-panic last week. Prices went to the devil. Stocka broke 20 points. You should have seen the ex- 1 cltement on the exchange floor. Our ] football rusheB were nothing to it. I tell you, it's great. It's got college I beaten to a frazzle!" Quickly be added: "What are you doing?" Howard averted his eyes and hung ' his head. 1 "Nothing." he answered gloomily. Coxe had quickly taken note of hia former classmate's shabby appear? ance. He had al*o heard of his es? capades. "Didn't you bear?" muttered How- j ard. "Row with governor, marriage and all that sort of thing? Of course," he went on, "father's damn? ably unjust, actuated by absurd pre? judice. Annie's a good girl and a good wife, no matter what her father was. D?n it, this is a free country! A man can marry whom he likes. All these ideas about family pride and family honor are old world notions, \ foreign to this Boil. I'm not going to give up Annie to please any one. , I'm as fond of heT now as ever. I haven't regretted a moment that I | married her. Of course, it has been hard. Father at once shut down I money supplies, making my further | stay at Ya!e impossible, ard I was | forced to come to New York to seek ^ employment. We've managed to fix up a imall flat in Harlem and now, like Mirawber. I'm waiting for some* t thing to turn up." j Coxe nodded sympathetically. "Come and have a drink," he said cheerily. J Howard hesitated. Once more be I remembered his promise to Annie, but j as long as he had broken U once be 1 would get no credit for refusing now. Hi was horribly thirsty and de- | pressed. Another drink would cheer j him up. It seemed even wicked to , decline when it wouldn't cost him anything. They entered a bar conveniently close at hand, and with a tremulous hand Howard carried grecdP.. to his bps thi Insidious liquor which had undermined bi* health ami stolen ;iu;iy his manhood. "Hare another?" said Coxe with ? ?mill i ? a* sw Iks ll*si emptb d at a gulp. ? I |on'( care if 1 do,' replied How? ard, Bicretly gshamsd of ub- weak* ncss, be shuffled uneasily on his feit. "Willi what tri you going to do, j nid man?" demandid ' oxo as he i pushed thi whisky bottle over. 'Tin looking for a Job." stammerod Howard awkwardly. Hastily hi went on: "It isn't so easy, II H was only myself I wouldn't mind I'd yet along somehow. Bui there's thi little girl. She wants to go to work, and I won't I,?ar of it I couldn'l stand for that, you know " Coxe feared ;> "touch." Awkwardly he said: ? ; i ,. i could help you, old man. As it Is. my own salary barely serves t0 1, , , me In neckwear, Wall street'i i but it doesn't pay much; ment, ?f it \.-* lo be used this year. - ?tu*.. . m. m Chat is, not unless you pla-y tnc gauio y?urself." Howard .nmiled feebly as Use re? plied: "Nonsense?I wouldn t accept help of that sort. I'm not reduced to so? liciting cbartly yet. 1 guess l\i pre? fer the river to that. But if you hear of anything, laeep me in mind." The athlete made no response. He was apparently lost in thought >> hen ? suddenly he blurted out: "Say, Jeffries, you haven't got any money, have you?say., a couple ol thousand dollars?" Howard stared at the questioner as if he doubted his sanity. "Two thousand dollars!" he gaspwi. "Do you suppose that I'd be wearing out shoe leather looking for a job. if I had $2,000?" Coxe looker disappointed as he re? plied: "Oh, of course, I understand you haven't it on you, only I thought you might be able to raise it*' "Why do you ask?" inquired How? ard, his curiosity aroused. Coxe looked around to see If any one was listening. Then In a whis? per he said: "It's a einen. If you had $2,000, you and I could make a snug little fortune. Don't you understand? In my office I get tips. I'm on the inside. I know in advance what the big men are going to do. V. hen they start to more a certain stock up, I'm on the job. Understand? If you had $2,000, I OOUld. raise as much, and we'd pool our capital, starting in the business ourselves?on a small scale, of course, j If we hit it right we might make a | nice income." Howard's mouth watered. Certain- 1 ly that was the kind of life he liked best. The feverish excitement of gambling, the close association with rich men, the promise of a luxurious style of living?all this appealed to him strongly. But what was the use? Where could he get $2,000? He couldn't go to his father. He shook his head. "I'm afraid not. old sport," he said as they left the saloon and he held out his hand to say good-by. "But I'll bear it in mind, and if things improve, I'll look you up. So long!" Climbing wearily up the dirty stairs of the elevated railroad, he bought a ticket with one of the few nickels re? maining in his pocket, and taking a seat in a north-bound train started on his trip back to Harlem. The day was overcast, rain threat? ened. A pall of mingled smoke and mist hung over the entire city. From the car window as the train wound its serpentine course in and out the maze of grimy offices, shops and tene? ments, everything appeared drab, dirty and squalid. New York was seen at its ugliest. Ensconced in a 1 cross-seat, his chin leaning heavily j on his hand, Howard gazed dejectedly j out of the window. The depressing outlook was to keeping with his own state of mind. I How would the adventure end? j Reconciliation with his father was out of the question. Letters sent home remained without response. He ' wasn't surprised. He knew his pater too well to expect that he would re? lent so soon. Besides, If the old man was so infernally proud, he'd show him he had some pride, too. He'd drown himself before he'd go down on his knees, whining to be forgiven. His father was dead wrong, anyway. His marriage might have been foolish; Annie might be beneath him socially. She was not educated and her father wasn't any better than he ought to be. She did not talk correctly, her manners left much to be desired, at times he was secretly ashamed of her. But her bringing up was her misfor? tune, not her fault. The girl herself was straight as a die. She had a heart of gold. She was far more In? telligent, far more likely to make him a happy home than some stuck up, idle society girl who had no thought for anything save money, dress and show. Perhaps if he had been less honorable and not married her, his father would have thought more highly of him. If he'd ruined j the girl, no doubt he would have been t welcomed home with open arms, i Pshaw! He might be a poor, weak fool, but thank God. they couldn't re? proach him with that. Annie had been loyal to him throughout. He'd stick ? to her through thick and thin. As the train swept round the curve at Fifty-third street and started on its long, straight run up the West side, his mind reverted to Robert Under? wood. He had seen his old associate only once since leaving college. He ran across him one day on Fifth ave? nue. Underwood was coming out of a eurlo shop. He explained hurriedly that he had left Yale, and when asked about his future plans talked vaguely of going In for art. His matter was frig'd and nervous?the attitude of the man who fears be may be ar proached for n email loan He was evidently well aware of the change In his ol 1 associate's fortunes, and hav? ing squeezed all he could out of him, had no further uae for him. Tt nag only when he had disappeared that Howard suddenly remembered a loan of $250 which Underwood had never repaid. Borne time later Howard learned that he occupied apartm. nts nt tlie exclusive and expensive A8? trurla, where he was living In great style He wont there determined to sro hin. and demand his money, but the card always came back ' not at home." Underwood had always been a niys i frrv to Howard He knew him to be pii inv< t< rate gambler and a man < n tlrely without principle. No one knew who his family* were or where he , nm. His Bource of Income, ? nh ny? a pussle. At college ? i hard up, borrowing nd foi ft Ming to pay. . ci ed< d In living on v.. her bus anything been heard tb* fat of the land. Hia opartments in 4ho Astruria coat a small fortune: he -dressed well, drove a smart turn? out and entertained lavishly. He was not Identified with any particular busi neei or profession. On leaving col? lege he became interested in art. He frequented the Important art sales and soon got his name in the news? papers as an authority on art matters. His tpartment was literally a museum of European and oriental art. On all sides were paintings by old masters* beauthful ruga, priceless tapestries, rare ceramics, enamels, statuary, antique furniture, bronzes, etc. He passed for a man of wealth, and moth? ers with marriageable daughters, con- i sldering him an eligible young bach- : elor, battened to ir.vit. him to their homes, ixrae of them conscious of the danger of letting the wolf slip into the Jambs' fold. What a strange power of fascina? tion, mused Howard as the train ! jogged along, men of Underwood's bold and reckless type wield, espe? cially over women. Their very daring and unscrupulousnesB seems to render "I Wish I Could Help You, Old Man." them more attractive. He himself at college had fallen entirely under the man's spell. There was no doubt that he was responsible for all his trou? bles. Underwood possessed the un? canny gift of being able to bend peo? ple to his will. What a fool he had made of him at the university! I He had been his evil genius, there was no question of that. But for meeting Underwood he might have ap? plied himself to serious study, left the j university with honors and be now a respectable member of the community. He remembered with a smile that it was through Underwood that he had met his wife. Some o' the fellows hinted that Underwood, had known her more intimately ttmn he had pre? tended and had only passed her on to him because he was tired of her. He bad nailed that as a lie. Annie, he could STv^ar. was as good a girl as ever breathed. He couldn't explain Underwood's ( influerce over him. He had done with him what ho chose. He wondered why j he had not :ried to resist. The truth j was Underwood exercised a strange,' subtle powe" over him. He had the j p^wer to make him do everything ho wanted him to do, no matter how fool? ish or unreasonable the reauest. Every j one at college used to talk about it. One night Underwood invited all his | classmates to his rooms and made him i cut up all kinds of capers. He gt first rotated, point blank?but Underwood got up and. standing directly in front Of bim, gazed steadily into bis eyes. Ag< in he commanded him to do these ' ridiculous, degrading things. Howard felt himself weakening. He was sud? denly seizt.d with the feeling that he sangt obey. Amid roars of laughter . he recited the entire alphabet stand ing on one leg, he crowed like a rooster, he hopped like a toad, and he crawled abjectly on tis belly like a snake. One of the fellows told him afterward that he had been hyp- I notlzed. He bad laughed at it then 1 as a good joke, but now he came to think of it, perhaps it was true. Pos? sibly he was a subject. Anyway he was glad to be rid of Underwood and his uncanny influence. The train stopped with a jerk at his station and Howard rode down in the elevator to the street. Crossing Eighth avenue, he was going straight home when sudd, nly he halted. The glitter and tempting array of bott'es in a corner saloon window tempted him. He suddenly felt that h* there was one thing JQ needed in the world above all others It was another drink. True, he had had more than enough already. But that was Coxe s fault. He had invited him and made him drink. There couldn't be nny harm In taking another. He might as well he hanged for a sheep as a lamb By the lima he emerged from the saloon his Speech w:;s thick and his stcn uncer? tain. A f< w minutes later he WBS painfully Climbing up the rickety stairs j Of ft cheap 1 "king flat house As he i renchod the top floor ? cheerful voice call d out: "1, that you, Howard, dear?" CHAPTER II. A y< tng woman hum. d out of onp of the apartments to gree! Howard. She \y as <? vivacious brunette ol me- j dlum height, Intelligent looking, with good features nod fine teeth. It was i ot a doll face, but the race of a woman who had experl need early the | ha' I knocks of the wo Id, yet in whom adversity hau not succeeded in | j wholly subduing ft naturally buoyant. amiable disposition. There was de j termination In the lines above her ! or.th. li vns a face full of character, j th. lace of * woman w ho by sheer {dm dogged perseverance might ac j c>0, :jd ii > \ taak she cared to set ; ],. , v'.f A mile of welcome gleamed \u h< p v he inquired ?Mg? rly: about the hose wagona and otht r ?"Well, dear, anything doing?" Howard shook his haad for all re? sponse and a look of disappointment crossed the young wife's lace. "Say, that's tou*;h, ain't it?" she exclaimed. "TLe janitor was here again for the rent. He says they'll serve us with a dispossess. I told him to chase himself. I was that mad." Annie's vocabulary was emphatic, rather than choice. Entirely without education, she made no pretense at being what she was not and therein perhaps lay her chief charm. As Howard stooped to kiss her, she said reproachfully: "You've been drinking again, How? ard. You promised me you wouldn't." The young man made no reply*. With an impatient gesture he passed on into the flat and flung bimsest down in a chair In the dining room* From the adjoining kitchen came a welcome odor of cooking. "Dinner ready?" he demanded. "I'm devilish hungry." "Yes, dear, just a minute," replied his wife from the kitchen. "There's* some nice Irish stew, just what you like." The box-like hole where Howard sat awaiting his meal was the largest room in a flat which boasted of "five and bath." There was a bedroom of equally diminutive proportions and a parlor with wall paper so loud that it talked. There was scarcely enough, room to swing a cat around. The thin walls were cracked, the roomi were carpetless. Yet it showed the care of a good housekeeper. Floors and windows were clean, the cover on the table spotless. The furnishings were as meager as they were ingen? ious. With their slender purse they had been able to purchase only The bare necessities?a bed, a chair or two, a dining room tsble, a few kitch? en utensils. When ihey wanted to sit in the parlor they had to carry a chair from the dining room; when meal times came the chairs had to travel back again. A soap box turned upside down and neatly covered wuh chintz did duty as a dresser in tne bedroom, and with a few photographs and tacks they had managed to im? part an aesthetic appearance to tae parlor. This place cost the huge s.im of $25 a month. It might just as well have cost $100 for ail Howard's ability to pay it. The past month's rent was long overdue and the janitor looked more insolent every day. But. they did not care. They were young and life was still before them Presently Annie cam" in carrying a steaming dish of stew, which she laid on the table. As she helped How? ard to a plate full she said: "So you had no luck again this morning?" Howard was too busy eating 'o an? swer. As he. gulped down a huge piece of bread, he growled: I "Nothing, as usual?same old story, nothing doing." ( Annie sighed. She had been given this answer so often that it would have surprised her to hear anything else. It meant that their hard hand to-mouth struggle must go on. She said*nothing. What was Ute use? It would never do to discourage How* ard. She tried to make light of it "Of course It isn't easy, I quite understand that Never mind. dear. Something will turn up soon. Where did you go? Whom did you see? Why didn't you let drink alone when you promised me you would?" "That was Coxe's fault" blurted out Howard, always ready to blame others for his own shortcomings. "You remember Coxe! He wag at Yale when I was. A big, fair fellow with blue eyes. He pulled strok? in the varsity boat race, you remem? ber?" "I t: Ink T do," replied his wife. In* differ l \% Iped kirn to more stew. did ha want? WheCl he dol t in New Ycrk?" "lie - ->t s Cne rl-ice in a broreirH oftice ii til itre* . T alt ssfc ed to let bin bos me >w d< ra he .is. He said tin t I - o il 1 make a good leal of money if only had a 1!t**o cai tal. He knows every hlBf going on in Wall street. If I went In with him I'd be on Easy street." "How much would It require?" "Two thousand dollars." The young wife gave a sigh as she answered: "I'm afraid that's a day dream Only your father could give you such an amount and >ou wouldn't go to him, would you?" "Not if we hadn't snother crust In the house." snapped Howard savage? ly. "You don't want me to. do yruT" he asked looking up at her quickly. "No. dear," she answered caimiy. "I have certainly no wish that you should humble yourself. At the same time I am not selfish enough to want to stand in the way of your future. Your rathe- and Stepmother hato me, 1 know that I ani the cause of fCSgf paratU D from your folks. No doebt our father aovld be very willing to help yon if you would conseni to ave me." Howard larjghed as he replied: "Welt, If that's the price for the $?,000 1 guess PU go without it I wouldn't give you up for a million times $1*000!" Annie stretched her hand across the table. WR? ally?" she said. "Yon knew 1 wouldn't* Annie." he *aid earnestly, "Not one second have I . v. r regretted marrying you?that's honest t<? God!" \ falnl lluah of pleasure lit up the p. v, ;>r<v For all her as gl ti i irtednesa she was badly , this reassureace. If she Howard nourlahed secret re> I ... ,? . mild 1" ak her heart, she inythlng* any hardship* ! she \N ould lea \ ? him at held bei 84 it r< ipogi ? i sen! predtcarc nt She D sense of cuilt eVOJf i orses recently.