His marriage to Birdie Smelts had been
the fiery furnace in which his soul had been softened to receive the
final stamp of manhood.
For his hour of indiscretion he had paid to the last ounce of his
strength and courage. After that night in the lodging-house, there seemed
to him but one right course, and he took it with unflinching promptness.
Even when Birdie, secure in the protection of his name and his support,
lapsed into her old vain, querulous self, he valiantly bore his burden,
taking any menial work that he could find to do, and getting a sort of
grim satisfaction out of what he regarded as expiation for his sin.
But when he became aware of Birdie's condition and realized the use she
had made of him, the tragedy broke upon him in all of its horror. Then
he, too, lost sight of the shore lights, and went plunging desperately
into the stream of life with no visible and sustaining ideal to guide
his course, but only the fighting necessity to get across as decently
as possible.
After a long struggle he secured a place in the Ohio Glass Works, where
his abilities soon began to be recognized. Instead of working now with
tingling enthusiasm for Nance and the honeysuckle cottage, he worked
doggedly and furiously to meet the increasing expense of Birdie's
wastefulness and the maintenance of her child.
Year by year he forged ahead, gaining a reputation for sound judgment and
fair dealing that made him an invaluable spokesman between the employer
and the employed.
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