AUTHOR OF ~~
}
SYNOPSIS.
—12—
Bheridan's attempt to make
tan of his son Bibbs by # n
the machine shop ends ir bh
4 sanitagium, a nervous
turn Bibbs finds himself
able and unconsidered fAgur
House” of the Sheridans. T
old-town famil
ished, calls
and Mary
parents’
one of the
encourages Jim Sheridan's
tells Mary Bibbs is not a luna
queer.” Je proposes to Mary,
accepts Him Sheridan tells
must go back
Soon as he is
Bibbs’ plea
Bibbs’ sists
wife, q
Roes
from n
her in
to his
death
int
mast
meets
Bibbs
bet w
Edith t
Ing love Ros
finds Ribhs well
ma in $10}
a business |
n in
on (he Sheri
afterward put
mnspoken wish
Sheridan boys
father
All
ETief,
of he
Mary n
lit
all
&#coa Sh
desperately
Koes to
hig hand
over [a
premises by
tment actif snifosipsdf reise
Old Man Sheridan was a
slave-driver though he didn’t rec-
ognize himself as such. He
drove his wife. He drove his
sons. He drove his daughter.
He drove himself. His wife was
like putty. o much
of himself,
Edith and
died easily.
situation,
break into
driver. This .instaliment
real thriller,
There was to
too much iron, in
in Bibbs to be han-
Growing out of this
two tragic incidents
the hfe of the slave.
is a
EAA BEARD rl Be Ge Ee
EE ia
i
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4
.
CHAPTER XXill
Bib
of his
days
no pat
Lie seomed
present
aware th
git, faintly
linings and
own, while batt
and her father
loosed jeremiad
drank
was
who
He
for Roscoe
Coe,
them
and
ibyi, but
seemed
their sufl
far away
Sibyl was u
coe had sent f
not long
doned wraps: and dur!
of Sibyl's {lit
nder Gurney
wr him or
after Bibba return:
necess »e Fo 1
And
re.
patient nn
and to
whether
ceived
variety
would
family 1
n
By § 48
hil
#1
it }
Come in, Roscoe,”
\ mured,
change in Bibbs, and why the zinc
eater was not putting a lump in its
operator's gizzard as of yore
Sibyl! was not delirious--she was a
thin Httle ego writhing and shrieking
In pain. Life had nurt her, and had
driven her inte hurting herself: her
condition was only the adult's terrible
exaggeration of that of a child after a
ud brulse—there must be screaming
She Mur
and telling mother all about the hurt
Siby! babbled
herself hoarse when Gurney withheld
She
to the end
went
in
from the begin
No pro
stopped her
ought to | die!”
“What harm have I ev
to anybody that you
Just look
ning renth
“You she
ar
want to Ks
my
op me
lite! I
way
at
to
wh
irried Roscoe t
and
I wanted to have a
could 1? Where's any
these Sher
ge
home, look at it got me into!
00d time
good
They
Vertrees
ped
tirt her
her
to show her
I wa
1% eed
wer hush
an effective
to telenl
hard, ever her
father, and kept}
to let him
done to her
ever
or bed |
see wh
mere
ng fast,
sald pitiably that she might bear
if it was
to be in the same town with
Lamborn and not think always of him.
Perhaps in New York she might forget
She had
sight of he to breatl
she
her trouble she went away
impossible
a little
friend,
aunt in
#80 of theaters
bring
relief;
written to a school
etly with an
and a month or
restaurants might
peace Sheridan with
gave her a o cheek,
and she left upon a Monday morning.
wearing violets with her mourning.
and having kissed everybody goodby
except Riby! and Bibbs [he might
have kissed Ribba, but he failed to
realize thet the day of her departure
had arrived, and was surprised, on re-
turning from his zine eater that eve
ning, to find her gone. “lI suppose
they'll be married there.” he sald, cas-
ually.
Sheridan, warming hig stockinged
feet at the Tire, jumped up, fuming.
“Lither you go out o here, or 1 will,
Bibbs!” he snorted. “I don't want to
be In the same room with the particu.
lar kind of idiot you are! She's through
with that riffraff;: all she needed was
to be kept awny from him a few
weeks, and 1 kept her away, and It
did the business. For heaven's sake,
go on out o' here!”
Bibbs obeyed the gesture of a hand
stili bandaged. And the black silk
sling was still round Sheridan's neck.
but no word of Gurney's and no exeru-
clating twinge of pain could keep Sher.
fdan’s hand In the sling. The wounds,
slight enough originally, bad become
infected the (rst time he had dislodged
the bandages, snd healing was long
delayed. Sheridan bad tha 'wbit of
established qu
apartments
shouted
he pious
gesture: he eould not “take time to re
he sald, that he must
careful, and he had also a curlous in
dignation with his hurt: he refused to
pay it the compliment of admitting its
existence,
The Saturday following Edith's de
be
tn
talk
dress the wounds apd
with Sheridan which
had become necessary
Httle
building
have a
But
he wa
i ft before the
obliged to walt a
anteroom-—there
of
me and was
minutes in
directors’
an
meeting some sort In
wr was slight.
woke and ora
. amd Gur.
he heard
and then
into thunder, “I tell you NO!
You'd
God
breaking
Some 0 make me sick!
in Almighty
flipped his bh
ght all
what ir It
to be
to keep our
You men
ur confidence
1
doodlebu
vou! You
sh
ie
money's t
Wel
r Te @s
i resson
for
ind It's not
10 mone
ght! ¥
runnin’ t
ir nickels
fool
irket's a little sReery!
raoer
here
goin’
u're
to hide y¥¢
always
crack because some newspaper
Says the no You
Hata +
iften io
nnd
to so
street.
ne and
every
then ant and try
thing
I tell
times,
times,
other
re mie ont of n hig
n this—understand?
You there never was belter
These
ind 1
kind o' talk
es and big
stand
are good tin
won't for na
ny
This country's on its feet
Be it ne
on its feet to stay there!”
And G
and
timea?
and goin’
the
vociferated,
desk “Bad
with
thumps upon
Kheridan
accompanying thumps. “Rabbit talk!
These times are gl! I tell you!
We're in the promised land, and we're
goin’ to stay there! That's all, gentle-
men. The loan goes!”
The directors came forth, flushed
and murmurous, and Gurney hastened
in. His guess was correct: Sheridan
had been thumping the desk with his
right hand. The physiclan scolded
wearily, making good the fresh dam-
iron
what he had to say on the subject of
Roscoe and Ribyl, his opinion meet.
ing, as he expected, a warmly hostile
reception. But the result of this cen-
versation was that by telephonic com-
mand Roscoe awaited his father, an
hour later, in the library at the new
house.
1"
travel,
came in,
had become his habit, “Yes, she is."
Sibyl thinks she'll have to, too!"™
“Oh, 1 wouldn't put it thht way,”
“No, I hear you wouldn't!” ‘There
and he added: “It's a good thing she's
shouldn't think any of us want her
here any more-~you least of al}!
“It's no use your talking that way,”
sald Roscoe. “You won't do any good.”
“Well, when you comin’ back to your
office?’ Bheridan used a brisker, kind.
or tone, “Three weeks since yon
showed up there at all. When you
goin’ to be ready to cut out whisky
start in again?
lot o
whit
thken
yon
and
aione
herself out of the way
of
father
and all the rest
“It's no use,
us
1 tell wi
know what Gurney ‘was going f«
I'm ne
I'm done!”
“Wait a minute before you talk
way!" BRheridan
and down room »]
you know it's taken two pretty
men about sixteen hours a day to set
things stralght and
right again, down in your office?’
to yon, it going back to the of
that
began his
the suppose
good
get ‘ew
“They must be good men.”
nodded indifferently. “1 thought [ was
doing about eight men's work. I'm
glad you found two that could handle
it ”
“Look here! If I worked you it was
There are plenty
do, and--
that break
drive harder'n |
There are
of men
“Yes. BOMme
‘em. They either die, or go crazy, or
of their
guess
Hves. The lust's my
‘complicated by domestic
"oa
culties!
“You set
diffi
there and tell
RBheridan's
did the
me yon giv
shook,
hand whi
volee
gesticulating
“Don't
say it!
spondent figure
Don't
ain't trouble
The
you haven't got
to
work ain't
goin’
more goin’
if
and you can ge
you her
whisky-guzzlin'; it al
Don't say—""
“It’s no use on earth
“No
“100i
use on
It
“1 know
‘Gurney
ney
don’t
¥ overwork
strain [hey always
work in if th
yon
and
You'l
gone
- te
make ye
ey see g ol
you? H
“I've got I
"
Ww
tween sev
thousand a year clear of ms
side the salary That
whether [ work or not
while
it y from 3 :
nickel and let it be x
He whirled abx
other end of the ro
]& moment Then
“Listen. If you go
me in the | ‘
yet
nt in
113
el
earth
brother
I've depende
Jim die]
dam’ doctor
won't ever be
were, and that certainly you won't
ably more
that's all a lie. Men don't break down
that way at your age. L
And I tell you,
thing off. All you need is a little got
up and a little gumption Men
go away for years and then come back
into moving businesses like ours—thes
lose the strings.
ook me
youu can shake this
now, 1 won't—and because
you lay down you prove you ain't the
man I thonght you were.” He cleared
hig throat and finished quietly
coe, will you take a month's vacation
and come back and go to 11
No." ligtloanly,
through.”
“Al right.” said Sheridan. Me pleked
the evening paper from a table,
went to a chair by the fire and sat
down, his back to his son. “Geodbhy.”
Roscoe rose. his head hanging, but
there was a dull relief In his eves
that's
“Ros
gaid Noscoe,
about to depart, yet lingering. “1 fig-
ure it qut a good deal like this” he
said. “I didn’t know my job was any
strain, #nd I managed all right, but
from what Gur-—from savhat 1 hear, 1
was just up to the limit of my nerves
from overwork, and the-—the trouble
at home was the extra strain that's
fixed me the way | am. [ tried to
brace, so [ could stand the work and
the trouble too, on whisky and that
put the fimish to me! [2m not hit
ting It as hard ns I was for a while.
and [ reckon pretty soon if 1 can get
to feeling a little more energy, 1 botter
try to quit entirely—1 don't know
I'm all in—and the doctor says so. |
thought 1 was ranning along fine up
to a few months ago, but all the time
{1 was ready to Tiin't
then, you
Sibyl
speak
becnnuse she
and
in,’
law going
nythin
shock to me, and |
find what had encouraging
that hang around after
he began trying to flirt with her, and
losing her head over him the way sh
did I don't deny it shock and
that it'll always be a hurt inside of me
{I'll never get over But it
fault; I didu't under
pature.,” Poor BR
profound and
“A Woman Craves so
and
traveling Ww
other things,
traveling
Atlantic
way she has, tw
to ha
do a
don’t
done
dei
she
fellow
to lier
was a
was my
stand a
in
earnest
WCOe Spoke
most desolate
ety
meeting attract and
her
her
0
rol - ol & 3 faut
real ing, n Just g
ing to Orleans
the
in her
something
man. And
understood till 1
when
+ bealdes a business
¥ rar
I was I never
her talking WHS
and
Hi
Tan I
“You're My Last Chance.”
provement During Short Absence. Rays
No Earopean City Holds Candle™
(Sheridan nodded approvingly here)
Bibbs came through the bail whis.
ting, and entered the room briskly.
“Wail, father, did you want me?”
“Ves. Rit down.” Sheridan got up,
and Bibbs took a seat by the fire, hold-
ing out his hands to the crackling
blaze, for it was cold outdoors,
“I came within seven of the shop
record today.” bed said. “I handled
more strips that any other workman
has any day this month. The nearest
th me is sixteen behind.”
“There!” exclaimed hig father, great
ly pleased, “What'd 1 tell you? I'd
WORN sending
wot + to hear
faln’'t you ashamed
Aln't
t go at it
fuss about it7
didn’
4
IRRT 11
ated
have! 1
and
hurt you
exactly what
vindi
you it
that so?”
“Looks 1
“Well, I'd
been wrong
hurtin’
yon
first
you, it's
physically
to be
¢
the huskiest
th
don’t
Now
{| different I
Pibbs
| for
amily
say
but y
yourself menta
we phys
help you
Sheridan
Hoe
brough
what 1
e right life
bread, and I'm
My "wages
{ing my dally
! doing it
don't w
don’t deserve any--"
“Damnation!” Sheridan
“You've turned Socialist!
listening 1
and you-
“No, sir. 1 think there's a great deal
in what they say. but that isn't it.”
Sheridan tried to restrain his grow
ing fury. and succeeded partially.
“Thea what is it? What's the mat
ter?”
“Nothing.” his son returned,
ously
tent.
thing”
“Why not?
Bibbs had the incredible folly to try
to explain. “I'll tell you, father, if {
¢an. [ know it may be hard to under.
stand"
“Yes, I think it may be" sald Sheri.
dan, grim%. “What you say usually
is a litde that way. Go on!”
are enoug
int any more mooey, and
spraag up
You been
0 thasa fellows down there,
nery-
“Nothing--except that I'm con.
I don’t want to change any-
Do you think the old man
will heed Binds, or will he put
the young man out of his life
and cut him o¥? ’
RA RA AAA A i
like to hear Gurney bint agaia that |
TO BE CONTINUED) ;