The relation of Keturah Smiley to the events in Lucius Brown’s office
was fairly simple; at least, she and Mr. Brown seemed to find it so.
They met later in the day. Miss Smiley was unaccompanied.
“Now about this money,” she said, in her most decided tones. “Most of
it must go to Hosea Hand. It will be the sum Dick Hand withheld from
him, with interest at 6 per cent. for more’n a quarter of a century. If
Hosea knows where it came from he won’t take it,” she told Mr. Brown
with a grin. “Fix it up. Left him by a cousin several thousand dollars
removed.
“I’ll take the $1,000 for the option on my land and run the risk Dick
Hand’ll exercise it. He hasn’t enough money left for _that_. How much
do you want?”
Mr. Brown, without affecting embarrassment, named a fee.
“Too little,” Keturah commented. “I have, besides the money for the
option, $5,000 for the leases, the money I lent that old fox. That’s
$6,000. I figure it’ll take $12,000 to set Hosea right. That leaves
$2,000. Take it. You deserve all of it. I’m not saying you don’t
deserve more. It’s worth that to me to take the hair and some of the
hide off that man.”
“About the patents, Miss Smiley?” Lucius Brown suggested.
“I’m not forgetting them,” answered Keturah. “But they didn’t cost me
anything and I don’t want anything for them. I once fed and housed a
crazy inventor--that is, he was crazy some ways but his inventions seem
to be all right. He left ’em to me for his keep and out of gratitude,
maybe. Anyway, I’ve had ’em, along with other odds and ends, these many
years. I saw enough to convince me that they were worth something;
so did you. Just how much I don’t know; I was never one to monkey
with those things. But it won’t hurt Richard Hand to part with a few
thousands for them. They’re all in good shape and order. If he goes
ahead and makes a mint o’ money with them I’ll be sorry!”
“He hasn’t the necessary capital,” said Brown.
“And he can’t get it,” finished Miss Smiley. “And he has no more
nerve than a hen crossing the road. It takes a young man to do those
things. Some day that boy of his might make something out of them--if
he’s got any stuff in him besides the Hand meanness!” she concluded,
thoughtfully.
“I don’t know why I’m so generous with Dick Hand,” she continued,
after a moment. “Twelve thousand dollars of this money represents an
accumulated sum unrighteously withheld from his brother. Two thousand
dollars represents your fee. That’s fourteen thousand--and for it he is
getting patents that may be worth ten times that. But we had to give
him something,” she said, half humorously. “I wish I had a little less
conscience so’s to use him as he’s used others!”
A knock sounded on the door. Mr. Brown called out, “Come in,” and
Mermaid entered. She wore a dark green tailored suit, and her skirts
had lengthened. Her abundant coppery red hair had been “put up,” and
she looked an astonishingly mature young lady. The three freckles
remained in place and the dimples had deepened.
“Aunt Keturah,” she said, using a new form of address, “time to go
home! Dickie Hand is outside waiting for me. Have you heard the news?
His father told Dickie and his mother that he’d broken a tooth and lost
all his money. Must have been his wisdom tooth,” surmised the girl as
Miss Smiley rose to go with her.