Читать книгу Fighting Stars - H. A. Cody - Страница 3
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Although Charles Stanfield was a wealthy man he was far from happy. Everything that money could buy was at his command. He had merely to give the order and it would be fulfilled without delay. From a worldly point of view he was an outstanding example of a prosperous man who had fought his way to the top of the ladder of success. By many he was admired for his keen business qualities; by others he was feared and hated. He was considered a hard man, and merciless in any transaction where money was the object of his pursuit.
But as he sat on the spacious veranda of his noble and luxurious suburban house, thoughtfully smoking an after-dinner cigar, his life to him seemed an utter failure. The evening was balmy and refreshing, a pleasant contrast to the intense heat of the day. The air was redolent with the scent of rare and old-fashioned flowers from the well-kept gardens surrounding the house. Smooth velvet lawns sloped gently to the street beyond, over which arched the outspreading branches of lordly maple and elm trees. It was an entrancing spot, and the admiration of all who looked upon it. But it was too trim and neat. Seldom did any weary wayfarer rest beneath the shade of those old trees, and never did little children wander along the gravelly walks nor tumble and play upon the grassy lawns. It was a paradise sealed so far as any touch with the outside world was concerned, and it had been so for years.
By Stanfield's side sat a man, somewhat younger, silently smoking. His strong intellectual face betokened the deep student. And so he was, for William Radcliffe, besides being the president of Strongbow University, was an authority on botany, and his lectures were always an outstanding feature of the college curriculum. Twenty years before when he had been called to his present position, the university was weak and tottering to its fall. But through his ability and the generous gifts of his friend, Charles Stanfield, a marked improvement was soon effected, and the institution ere long became one of the strongest in the entire country. Stanfield had endowed several chairs, and also had given large sums chiefly for the sake of his friend. Radcliffe was most grateful for such assistance, and he hoped that Stanfield in his will would make further liberal contributions. Of course, he had not even suggested this, although it was often in his mind. So when he had been invited to take dinner with his friend for the purpose of considering a very important matter, he cherished the idea that his hopes were at last to be realized. He confided this to his wife that afternoon.
"Charles is greatly changed of late," he remarked, "and since his serious illness he does not seem to take much interest in financial matters. Why, I was with him last week for over an hour and he never once referred to money."
"It was his sickness, no doubt, which made the change," Mrs. Radcliffe replied. "When he has regained his former strength he will be the same as before. He needs cheering up a bit. Ask him over here for dinner to-morrow."
"I am afraid he would not consent to come, dear. He seldom goes anywhere now. I know that the sight of our happy family only intensifies his loneliness. He told me so once, and said that he would gladly give all he possesses to have such a family of his own."
"I wonder who will get his money, William? Perhaps he will leave something to our children as he is so fond of them."
"No doubt he will remember them. But my opinion is that he will leave most of his wealth to the university. He has taken a great interest in it, and has received several honors in recognition of his gifts."
Radcliffe was thinking of this as he sat on the veranda by the side of his companion. Stanfield was unusually silent this evening, and several times he sighed. At length Radcliffe felt that he could endure the silence no longer.
"What a beautiful place you have here, Charles," he began.
"Beautiful, do you say?" Stanfield asked, arousing himself and turning his eyes upon his friend's face. "Yes, I suppose it is beautiful, but what is the use of beauty if you cannot enjoy it?"
"But what is there to interfere with your enjoying it?"
"Many things, William, and it is to talk over this very matter that I have asked you to spend a few hours with me this evening. I wish to apologize for taking you away from your family."
"Oh, do not mind that, Charles. They can get along very well without me for a while. We shall have the whole summer together, as this is just the beginning of vacation."
"You are a fortunate fellow, William." Stanfield again sighed as he knocked off the ash from his cigar into an ash-tray near by. "You can enjoy life because you have others to enjoy it with you. But with me it is different. What does all this beauty amount to?" He waved his hand toward the flowers, lawns and trees. "I have been so engrossed for long years in making money that I have lost all sense of the beautiful things of nature."
"But why did you have all this done then? Why did you not let your grounds grow up in weeds and bushes?"
"Partly for the sake of appearance, and partly in the hope that I might learn to enjoy it. But it's no use. It means little or nothing to me. If I had others to enjoy it with me, it might make a difference, but the very sight of it is almost like gall and wormwood to me now."
"You surprise me, Charles."
"No doubt I do, and perhaps I am foolish to talk in this manner to-night. But I am getting along in years, and since my serious illness I look upon life from an altogether different point of view. Until I was laid aside, I considered the making of money the only thing worth while. Ever since I left home as a poor boy I gave my whole mind and soul to that. And I have succeeded, but at what a cost! For the sake of money I sacrificed all the finer instincts of my nature, and all my family ties have been so severed for so many years that I do not know how many relatives I have living. My two brothers died childless, and my only sister left several children, so I heard at the time of her death. But how many, and what they are like I have not the remotest idea. They know nothing of me, I suppose, whether I am dead or alive, for my sister was a proud, high-spirited woman, who naturally resented my neglect of her. She married a worthless fellow, a drifter through life."
"Is he living?" Radcliffe asked.
"He died years before my sister."
"How did she manage to get along after his death?"
"I do not know, and that is one of the things which is causing me so much trouble now."
Stanfield rose from his comfortable chair and walked slowly up and down the veranda. Radcliffe noted the expression of agony upon his face as he silently watched him.
"Yes, William," he continued, "if I had only gone to her when her husband died and helped her, what a joy it would be to me now, and what a comfort I might have been to her through her years of widowhood."
Wearily he resumed his seat, and leaned his head upon his right hand. His cigar had gone out, but he still clutched it between the fingers of his left hand.
"It all came to me while I was lying in the hospital. Marion seemed to be very near me, and I saw her over and over again just as she looked when we played together as children. Try as I might I could not get her out of my mind, and gradually the longing came upon me to have her with me once more. This increased in intensity as the days passed, and although I knew that such a thing was impossible, I began to wonder if I could not do something for her children, that they in return might prove a comfort to me in my old age."
He paused and gazed out among the trees through the steadily-deepening twilight. Radcliffe sat very still, although his mind was most active. He was not at all satisfied at this unexpected turn in the conversation. His bright vision of a big endowment to the university did not seem so bright, for he saw instead Stanfield's money going to those shadowy and far-off nieces and nephews. They might be a useless lot who would not make good use of the money, but would squander it in a reckless manner. Stanfield should be warned.
"Suppose your sister's children are unworthy of your assistance or are incapable of looking after your money should you leave it to them?" he suggested. "They may be very common and ignorant, and so your bequest would do them more harm than good. Have you considered that?"
"Marion's children could never be ignorant or common, William. With her blood in their veins, and with her teaching and influence they surely must be above the ordinary. While she was alive and with them I am certain that she kept them respectable. But what may have happened since her death is what I fear. They may be married now and have families of their own. They may have gone down in the scale of humanity. Oh, there are many things that may have happened to them. But I am going to find out, and I want you to help me."
"Why, what can I do?" Radcliffe asked in astonishment. "I know nothing about your family."
"That doesn't matter, William. I want you to go with me to find out. This must be kept a strict secret between us two. I have thought out the details, and to tell you the truth, I feel strangely enthusiastic about the adventure. I want to visit the place where my sister spent the last years of her life, and learn all I can about her children. I shall go, of course, under an assumed name, so no one will have any idea who I am. If I should meet any of my nieces and nephews they will have no suspicion that 'Daniel Doncaster' is their uncle, for that is the name I intend to take."
"But what are you going to do with me?" Radcliffe demanded.
"Make use of you as a botanist, of course. If I should arrive in a village alone with my chauffeur, what reason could I give for hanging about the place for several days? But if we go as tourists, traveling through the country for the purpose of studying the plants of the different communities, it would help out a great deal. You will have to do all the necessary talking about flowers, for to tell you the truth, I hardly know one from another."
"And what will you do?"
"I? Oh, I shall keep still, smile, look wise, and pretend to know all about your jargon. But if you will look after the flowers, I'll attend to family affairs. I guess my business training ought to help when it comes to ferreting out information. You can leave that to me. Now, are you willing to undertake this adventure? I want your company as well as your assistance."
"I see no reason why I should not go with you," Radcliffe replied. "I shall enjoy the trip, I know, and may get some rare specimens as well. I have never been to that part of Canada. Your sister lived in New Brunswick, so I believe."
"Yes, on the Saint John River, a stream noted for its beauty, and well named the 'Rhine of America.' We have no river in the United States like it to my way of thinking. It is attracting many tourists from this country every summer. They go not only for the scenic beauty, but for the refreshing coolness of the climate. Just wait until you see and you will then confess like the Queen of Sheba that the half has not been told."
"You have been dinning this into my ears for a long time," Radcliffe smilingly reminded. "I have seen much of Canada, your wonderful British Columbia, the great prairie provinces, and your fine Ontario and Quebec, but I have missed seeing your Bluenose land."
"You have something to look forward to, then, William, and I am going to introduce you to the beauties of Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and New Brunswick. Just wait until you see the noble Saint John River and its tributaries, the far-famed Annapolis Valley, and the Island, then I am sure you will be as enthusiastic as I am."
Stanfield was almost like a boy now as he outlined the proposed tour. Radcliffe listened in silence, wondering what would be the outcome of the adventure. He knew from experience how useless it would be to oppose his companion's plans. But the thought of those nieces and nephews, and what the finding of them might mean to his beloved university was more in his mind than the prospect of seeing new lands, no matter how wonderful.
