The Silent Harp by Gilbert Morris

Author:Gilbert Morris [Gilbert Morris]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
ISBN: 9781441270573
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Clayton Takes a Fall

Leland Winslow leaned back in his chair and studied the beautiful landscape that lay before him. March had come in gently, and already the mild weather had coaxed the grass into a beautiful emerald green on the estate of Leland’s good friend, Vernon Wells. The lawn was as level as a pool table, and Leland watched as a man on the far side of the lawn worked assiduously in a flower bed. Turning to his host, Leland said with admiration, “Vernon, I do believe you’ve got the most beautiful grounds in America.”

Vernon Wells was a diminutive man in contrast to Leland’s height. The only thing large about him was his head—and according to many, his oversized head was stuffed with more brains than the entire working force of the New York Stock Exchange, where he had made his fortune. Wells had a rather sharklike expression, and he now exposed his small, perfectly formed teeth as he said, “It should be. It cost enough.”

Stirring in his chair, Leland’s mind went back to October 1929 when Black Tuesday, the darkest day in American economics, hit. That had been more than five years ago, but he would never forget it. He thought of how he himself had nearly gone under, but Vernon had helped him, keeping him out of bankruptcy court. He pondered the last several bitter years of depression America had been suffering. A chill came over him at how close he had come to being out on the streets. He had learned of the tragic downfall of a distant cousin of his whom he had never met, even though both families lived in New York. Lewis Winslow had lost everything and been forced to take his family south to live on a farm in Georgia.

“Vernon, you might get tired of hearing it, but I think so often of how you saved my bacon when the stock market fell in twenty-nine. If it hadn’t been for you, I’d probably be in the poorhouse.” He flashed a smile at the smaller man. “I’ll never forget that.”

Wells waved his hand in a gesture of dismissal. “You don’t need to ever thank me again. You’ve done that. It’s ancient history.”

“Maybe for you, but sometimes I still wake up in a cold sweat when I think of where I’d be if it hadn’t been for you. I might have jumped off a building.”

“No, I can’t imagine you’d take your own life over money, Leland. And leave your family to suffer alone? You’re a better man than that.”

The air was filled with the smells of spring, the verdant earth releasing its odors that had lain frozen all winter long. With the snows gone, spring flowers were beginning to peep out from beneath the crust of dead leaves, proclaiming the advent of another year. From one of the ornamental pear trees close to where the men sat, a small brown bird began trilling a sweet sound.

“What kind of bird is that, I wonder?” Leland murmured.

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