Prev | Current Page 99 | Next

McCutcheon, George Barr, 1866-1928

"Mr. Bingle"

Grimwell.
Having once disinherited his children, he was then in the mood to
reconsider his act, being alive to the fact that his days were
numbered. But he went about the business with the sagacity of an old
dog who has been kicked hard by some one who was not his master.
Instead of proclaiming himself to be the Midas-like Joseph Grimwell,
he appeared before his son and daughters, as poor old Joseph Hooper,
their long lost father, as poor--nay, even poorer than when he went
away, for he had lost the rugged health that was his only possession
at the beginning of his vicissitudes.
Assuming a condition of abject, though genteel poverty, he went to
each of them in turn. He wanted to give them a chance to reconsider,
as he had done. But they would have none of him! Vastly dismayed by
the failure of his nice little scheme to trick them into filial
responsibility, he was on the point of shouting his denunciations from
the house-tops when he suddenly remembered Tom Bingle: he wondered if
Tom would receive him--an old derelict--with open arms.


Pages:
87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111