"My grandfather advised my father to stay in the hardware
business out in Indiana. That was thirty years ago. And here we are
to-day," she concluded, with a wide sweep of her hand that took in the
forlorn landscape. She said more in that expressive gesture than the
most accomplished orator could have put into words in a week.
"But there is always a to-morrow, you know."
"There may be a to-morrow for me, but there are nothing but yesterdays
left for dad. All of his to-morrows will be just like his yesterdays.
They will be just as empty of success, just as full of failure.
There's no use mincing matters. We never have had a chance to go broke
for the simple reason that we've never been anything else. He has been
starring for fifteen years, hitting the tanks from one end of the
country to the other. And for just that length of time he has been
mooning. There's a lot of difference between starring and mooning."
"He may go down somewhat regularly, Miss Thackeray, but he always
comes up again. That's what I admire in him. He will not stay down."
Her eyes brightened. "He is rather a brick, isn't he?"
"Rather! And so are you, if I may say so. You have stuck to him
through all--"
"Nothing bricky about me," she scoffed.
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