COMMENCEMENT
At precisely eight o’clock on a warm June evening a long line of boys
walked sedately into Martin Hall and marching to the front to the
inspiring strains of “The Stars and Stripes Forever,” played by the
store orchestra, filed into the rows of seats ribboned off in white
which had been reserved for them. There was a buzz of expectation from
an audience which packed the hall. A bell tinkled. Then the great
curtain rose, disclosing a palm-decorated stage. There was a sudden
hush. Then a slender, blue-eyed lad walked serenely out on the stage,
as though utterly unconscious of the sea of upturned faces directed
toward him. The boy was Harry Harding. He had come before this large
and interested assemblage to deliver the welcome address.
“Dear friends,” he began in a clear, earnest voice that carried to
every part of the crowded room, “we are here to-night to do honor to
the man who has proved, and is proving every day, his interest in
the welfare of the messenger boys of Martin Brothers’ store. To Mr.
Edward Martin we owe our lasting thanks in that he has given us not
only a chance to become useful business men, but to attain an education
as well. Many of us have been obliged to leave the public schools in
order to help those at home who need our assistance. It is a wonderful
thing for us to be able to go on with our school work and earn money
as well. We are glad to welcome you here to-night because we wish you
to know that we appreciate the splendid opportunities that have been
given us. We have tried earnestly to make the most of our good fortune
and we shall continue to try to prove ourselves worthy in every respect
of our privileges. We are young, and we must pass through many trials
and experiences before we become men. But surely, with the help and
guidance of those whose effort is given to directing and moulding of
our character, we must finally become useful, thoughtful men, striving
only to reach the highest and hold it fast.
“In the name of Martin Brothers and the boys of their store messenger
service, we extend you our heartiest welcome and thank you for your
attendance to-night.”
Ungrudging applause burst forth as Harry Harding bowed. As he was about
to leave the stage the leader of the orchestra reached up and handed
him an immense bouquet of pink roses. This time Teddy had taken up a
collection, and honors were even.
There was more applause, and Harry retired, considerably more
confused than when he had stepped forth to make his speech, while a
brown-haired, happy-faced woman in the audience wiped tears of sheer
joy from her loving eyes at the triumph of her boy.
The exercises proceeded with a smoothness that was a supreme
satisfaction to Mr. Keene, Mr. Marsh, Miss Verne and all those who had
helped make the occasion one long to be remembered by those present.
The graduates were at last called to the stage and presented one by
one with the diplomas that marked the end of their course in the day
school. To all of them it meant an increase of salary, promotion in the
store, and night school during the coming year.
At last it was over and the audience had dispersed in leisurely
fashion. Two radiant-faced boys made their way to where two proud
mothers awaited them. Teddy’s mother had equal reason to be proud of
her son, whose sweet voice had added much to make the entertainment
memorable.
“Here, Mother, you must carry my roses,” laughed Harry, handing the
huge bouquet of fragrant flowers into his mother’s keeping.
“Oh, Harry, dear, Mother is so proud of her boy,” the little woman
whispered as they walked arm in arm to the street corner to wait for
their car. Teddy and his mother were just behind them.
“I guess we won’t walk home to-night, Harry,” grinned the irrepressible
Teddy. “We deserve to ride home for once. We’re some folks. My, but I’m
glad you won the prize. I felt the shivers go up and down my back when
you made the address. It was a welcome one, all right.”
“It wasn’t half so welcome as the money. Isn’t it splendid, Ted, to
think that we are all going on that vacation together?”
The Burkes and the Hardings had arranged to rent a bungalow in the
suburbs for two weeks. By joining forces Harry’s twenty dollars would
be sufficient to pay his and his mother’s share of the expenses. The
boys’ vacation was to begin the following week. As the store was to
be closed on Saturday they would not return to work until after their
vacation.
“I can never be thankful enough that we went together to Martin
Brothers that day to look for work,” returned Harry; his eyes were
bright with the memory of that never-to-be-forgotten morning when he
and Teddy Burke had joined forces.
“You can’t be any gladder than I am,” was Teddy’s serious answer. “It
looks as though you and I were going to be business men for sure,
doesn’t it?”
“We’ll get there after a while, I hope. It won’t be long until we’re
salesmen.”
“And after that we’ll be buyers,” declared Teddy eagerly. “Perhaps
we’ll own a store like Martin Brothers’ some day, Harry.”
“Perhaps we will. At least, we’ve started on the long road to business
and success, and it rests with us to keep in the middle of it. There’s
a lot of hard work ahead of us.”
“I’m not afraid of hard work,” boasted Teddy. “Just watch me wade into
it when I come back from my vacation.”
“I won’t have time,” retorted Harry, laughing. “I’ll be too busy
myself.”
“My boy, I was very proud of you to-night!” a deep voice sounded at
Harry’s elbow, causing him to turn quickly. His color rose as he
recognized the pleasant tones of Mr. Rexford. He had scanned the
audience anxiously during the evening, wondering if the man to whom
he owed so much had been present at the exercises. He could not know
that Mr. Rexford had learned beforehand from Mr. Keene that he, Harry
Harding, had been chosen for the honor of delivering the welcome
address. The book-buyer had lingered in the hall just long enough to
hear the boy’s earnest little speech, then retired to his office to
write letters. The task had taken him longer than he had expected,
and he had left the store just in time to encounter the little group
standing on the corner.
“Oh, Mr. Rexford! I’m so glad you happened to come this way!” cried
Harry, extending his hand to meet that of his employer. “I tried to see
you this afternoon to say good-bye, but couldn’t find you. I looked for
you in the audience to-night, too, but I didn’t see you. This is my
mother, and Mrs. Burke, and my chum, Theodore Burke.” Harry welcomed
the opportunity of presenting his dear ones to the man he so greatly
respected and admired.
“Allow me to congratulate you on your son, Mrs. Harding,” were Mr.
Rexford’s first words after acknowledging the introduction.
“Thank you, Mr. Rexford.” Mrs. Harding’s brown eyes shone in
appreciation of this praise of her boy. Although Harry still kept the
secret of those dark days, long since passed, locked in his heart, she
had daily heard him voice his gratitude for Mr. Rexford’s interest in
him. “I must thank you, also, for your goodness to Harry,” she added.
“I consider myself fortunate in having him in my department. I wish he
were _my_ son,” smiled the buyer. Then he bade them a kindly good night
and walked on, leaving a happy-faced quartette behind him.
“Here’s our car,” called Teddy. “Come on, Mother. Good-bye, Martin
Brothers. I’ll see you after vacation.” He waved his hand at the huge
building which had sheltered and schooled the two boys and which held
the promise of a future for them both far greater than they could then
dream or know.
Yet Harry and Teddy knew only too well that in order to become
successful business men they must, as boys, lay a sure foundation on
which to build their careers. They must be ready to greet each day
with a smile and live it for all it was worth. To do the little things
cheerfully and well, in the hope of greater things to come was to be
their watchword. The story of their return to Martin Brothers’ store
after their hard-earned vacation, and what befell them on the field of
duty, remains yet to be told.
Those who have followed the two lads through their first year as
business boys will meet them once more and learn just what happened to
them next in the second volume of this series, “HARRY HARDING’S YEAR OF
PROMISE.”
THE END
Transcriber’s Notes:
--Text in italics is enclosed by underscores (_italics_).
--Printer's, punctuation and spelling inaccuracies were silently
corrected.
--Archaic and variable spelling has been preserved.
--Variations in hyphenation and compound words have been preserved.
End of Project Gutenberg's Harry Harding--Messenger "45", by Alfred Raymond