Читать книгу Other Worlds - Lena Jane Fry - Страница 5

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“Tom,” Geron said, after arising and moving around aimlessly, “you are going to waste your time. The trusts are too strong for any one man to undertake to down them.”

Tom, who had been sitting with his chair tipped back, reached out to the table to balance himself before he answered, then he stood up, stretching out his arms and yawning, said, “I am not trying to down them. You remember the story of the lion and the mouse, don’t you, Geron?”

“Yes.”

“Well, for the sake of the case at point, I will liken the masses to the lion; I will merely pose as the mouse, as it nibbled the cord that let the lion go free.”

Just then Mrs. Vivian, who had been looking after the comfort of the room by poking at the fire in the grate, asked: “What lion are you talking about, Tom?” This caused all the family to roar with laughter.

“He is trying to convince Geron that he is as harmless as a mouse,” Scoris replied.

The two men left the room laughing, Geron saying that he was going out to smoke.

Then Scoris explained it to her mother: “Geron thought that Tom was trying to break the trusts, and Tom took that way of explanation, for he is merely showing the people how to live independently of the trusts.”

“Tom promised to explain to me what you are all doing in the society, but he has not had time yet,” the mother said. “I wish you would tell me something about it. Geron says it will fail, he knows it will.”

“Well, it will not,” Nellie answered, her eyes flashing, as she changed her seat to get nearer to Mrs. Vivian, “Tom never fails.”

“No,” Scoris exclaimed, she also resenting Geron’s idea; “and if he did, some one else would take it up! The people are ready now to free themselves from the trusts. They have only been waiting for a leader, and Tom is that man.”

Nellie had arisen and was standing by Scoris. Helen raised her head, for she had been absorbed in a new poem, and Nellie’s voice had actually sounded sharp.

Geron’s wife looked apologetic. She stood up, then sat down, not knowing exactly what was expected of her, for it looked for a second as if there was going to be a family dispute. Mrs. Vivian looked distressed until Scoris laughingly asked:

“How much do you know about it, mother?”

“Not much,” she answered; “only Geron says that each member pays only one dollar per year for membership, and that no society could be kept up on such a cheap basis; that Tom intends to build immense hotels and factories, and he can’t see where the money is coming from to do it all.”

“Mother, dear,” Scoris answered, “you only know a very small part of it. The fee is small so as to reach the very poorest class. They can start as members on twenty-five cents per week, after the membership fee is paid, ’tis true, but it is not their money that we value, but their labor. They can become members by their labor alone. The poorest member must secure one share each year, which only amounts to twelve dollars. We have two hundred such members, but we have one hundred that are securing twelve shares yearly, besides two hundred more that are ranging from twenty shares each year to many thousands, invested already. Considering that the society is only one year old that is encouraging. The society also owns a number of automobiles that we have been using instead of cars. I am sure that don’t look like failure. We employ a large number of men to manufacture bricks, and what is more, they did it by hand labor, the old-fashioned way, using horses to turn the machinery. The men were those that had been crowded out of employment by the age limit. Two men, seeing the advantages of the society, advertised for such men, explained the advantages of the society to them, then secured the clay land suitable for bricks. The results are that there is enough to start the first apartment house in the spring. They have also made artificial stone to beautify the buildings. Another man has been burning lime stone on his own place. These are the principal building materials and they are either found already or will be by some member, for all are contributing either their labor or money to secure the success of the society. Mother, dear, you cannot imagine how many poor souls were glad to get the work to do, especially when they knew they were not expected to work more than six hours each day and that they were provided with shelter and food besides being able to save for the future. Some who had always been accustomed to digging and hard work will dig the foundations in the spring. Now this is the strange thing about it. The men who gave them the work did not have to pay them one dollar in money. They were only too glad to secure a permanent home for at least this winter. Every one of them has scrip and shares in the society as a result of their summer’s work.”

“Well, that is a good thing for poor men, but how did the society get the benefit of those two men’s labor who superintended the work, as well as using their capital in paying the rent for the brick-clay land, buying horses, and feeding them as well as the men?” her mother asked.

“The society bought the bricks from them, exchanging farm produce, and shares as well as scrip, in payment for two-thirds of their value. The balance was paid in money; don’t you see?”

“Where did the society get the money?”

“Why, it was taken out of the permanent shares. I forgot to tell you that we issue two kinds of shares. The ones of which all members have to secure at least one each year are the permanent ones. They are paid to the society in money or labor, and the money representing them can only be used for buildings or any kind of permanent wealth. These same men are going to set the workmen to putting up roughly made buildings on the farm we have secured, to store ice in for the summer, as well as a house for themselves to live in. They are not particular where they live, poor fellows, so long as it is a shelter and that their food is sure, as well as clothing. These two men I mentioned have secured materials from the wrecking companies in the city, for the buildings will be only temporary ones, boarded inside and out, and filled in between with sawdust.”

While listening to Nellie’s account Mrs. Vivian had been anxious when Scoris began, but gradually relaxed as the explanation advanced. “How very simple after all,” she remarked. “It is like a broken stitch in a stocking. Stitch by stitch we draw the thread in and out until it is whole again!” But she started up, exclaiming, “Who is going to redeem the scrip?”

“Tom is,” Nellie answered. “At present he has charge of all produce, and the different members are providing for all kind of exchanges.”

“Well, girls,” their mother said, “don’t think me stupid for not understanding all about it, but how is Tom to derive an income from what he sells to the members and redeem the scrip besides?” Scoris and Nellie exchanged glances to see which would explain. Scoris motioned to Nellie to proceed, feeling that she knew more about it.

“Our immediate income,” Nellie answered, “is from what Tom sells to the members, and we have five hundred members besides their families that consume food. Tom has been buying it from the farmers at wholesale and selling at retail. It has been enough to keep us so far, and we take charge of the first farm next week, so then we will be able to buy to better advantage and have no rent to pay besides, for the society provides that by the $1.00 membership fee. You see we have over five hundred members, and they represent that amount. You know Tom sold out his law partnership. Well, he has used the money to buy with. Besides vegetables and fruit, we have charge of the milk which he sells to the dealers, who allow the members a percentage on all they buy. The members bought our scrip, then Tom used the money to secure the milk; he then redeems the scrip as payment for the milk consumed.”

“Well, I hope it will be a success,” Mrs. Vivian declared, with a sigh.

“Why, it has already,” both the girls exclaimed together. “No one had ever imagined that it would succeed so soon. We all hoped it would in a few years, but it is growing so fast that it is taking nearly all of Tom’s time just to manage it. That is how I happened to become his secretary,” Nellie said.

During the conversation some young people had called, and Mira had shown them into the library until her mother and sisters had finished their talk, then joined the rest. Jack Mobray was there and it was hard to remember afterwards how he and Mira could have had a chance to talk over their arrangements to leave the old home as they afterwards did, but when the young are in love they find a way.

In a few days the two girls had returned to the city. Tom and Nellie to the farm that the society had secured to start the colony, and, as the mother had predicted, Mira left her also a few days afterwards, although she had never thought of her child marrying so young, nor did she suspect the attachment between them. She did think that Mira might wish to go to the city. The whole family had become restless as they grew up; even Geron had hinted that he was tired of living all his life on the estate.

Tom and Nellie were settled in the farm house, for though it was in the fall of the year they had decided to take up their residence then so as to get ready for the spring building. Materials were being collected so as to cause no delay. The past year Tom had gone in different directions from the city looking the country over before this place had been selected. In this way it gave him an opportunity of locating just the kind of land needed for the many uses that would be required of it.

A large lake was on one side with clear, cool water, an abundance of large trees on its edge, sufficient to make a pleasant place for a summer resort and yet not interfere with the farm. This lake was not very far from the farm buildings and was not on the road but partly on the next farm adjoining, with sufficient, however, on the society’s property to enable them to control or have the use of it.

They had not intended to take up the land in the fall, but Tom had seen the advisability of securing it while it was in the market. The owner had died suddenly, leaving it to his widow, and she being anxious to go to the next town to her children who were married, it was arranged that the rent would not begin until the following spring. The house was not large or of much account, but it answered the purpose, and the land had been obtained cheaper on that account. It was the land and fruit that had first attracted Tom’s attention after he had proved the nature of the soil. He had secured a lease for ninety-nine years with the privilege of buying the whole of it at any time at a set price, of erecting any kind of buildings that the society might deem proper, the said buildings to belong to the society exclusively.

They enjoyed their new home, these two enterprising people, because they liked to know that they were making a start for many hundreds, if not thousands, of others to live happily and contentedly in years to come.

There, however, I will leave them for the present and go back to the beginning of the society before Tom’s marriage.