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Show HIS FATHER'S OLD FRIENDS. The Introduction That Brooch ThuughtlMa Youth to llii Sense. . The old gentleman played a queer trick on me the other night," he said, as he lit his cigar after dinner. "It was rather awkward forme at first, bu" I guess it was a good thing after all. You know 1 used to think I had done myself an injustice if I did not go to the theater about five or six nights a week. Maybe it wasn't always the theater, but if it wasn't that it was 8 stag party or a poker game. I needn't explain; you've been with me frequent- "Well, you also know how I'm fixed in the line of business. I work for ray father, and I have to be at the office at 8:30 In tho morning just as tho rest of tho family are sitting down to broak-fast. broak-fast. In consequence I get my breakfast break-fast and leave the house before they are up. Hut I can't eoifiplain of that. I'm doing exactly what the man who had my place before mo did, and between be-tween you and me I think I'm draw ing more salary than he did. "Hut that's neither hero nor there. It's tho evenings. I used to finish work about (i. get. dinner down-town, and go to tho theater or somewhere else. Heen doing it for about six months, and I swear when I figure back about the only times that I have seen my mother and sister havo been at Sunday dinners. Nothing unusual in that, of course; the same thing is true of hundreds of young men in Chicago. Chi-cago. "Hut they haven't fathers like mine. He came to me ono afternoon hist week and asked me if I had an engagement engage-ment for that night, " 'Yes,1 I said, T've promised to go to tho theatre with Will Brown.' " -How about tomorrow night, ho asked. " -Havn't figured ahead that far.' I replied. ' -Well, I'd like to nave you go somewhere with me.' " 'All right,' I said; -whore'll I meet you?' "You seo he leaves the ofiiee about an hour before I get through, "He suggested the Tremont House at 7:Ii0, r,nd 1 was there, prepared for thethealre and a quiet? lecture on late hours. He had combined the two on several previous occasions. Hut when he appeared he said he wanted me to call on a lady with him. " 'One I knew quite well when I was a young man,' he explained. "We went out and started straight for home. " 'She is stopping at the house,' h'e said, when 1 spoke of it. 1 T thought it strange that he should have made the appointment at the Tremont house under those circumstances, circum-stances, but I said nothing. "Well, we went in and I was introduced intro-duced with all due formality to my mother and my sister. "The situation struck me as ludicrous ludi-crous and I started to laugh, but the laugh Clod away. None of the three even smiled. My mother and my sister sis-ter shook hands with me and my mother moth-er said she remembered me as a boy, but hadn't seen much of mo lately. Then she invited me to be seated. "My, it wasn't a bit funny then, although al-though I can laugh over it now. I sat down and sho told ono or two anecdotes anec-dotes of my boyhood, at which we all laughed a little. Then we four played whist for a while. When I finally retired re-tired I was courteously invited to call again. I went up-stairs feeling pretty small and doing a good deal of thinking." think-ing." "And then?" asked his companion. "Then I made up my mind that my mother was a most entertaining lady and my sister a good and brilliant girl." "And now?" "Now I'm going to call again, as I have been going quite regularly for the last week. I enjoy their company and propose to cultivate their acquaintance." acquaint-ance." And the young man he was only about 22 put on his coat and started for his car. |
