There was not the slightest alloy of self-interest in
his friendship, and he was careful not to have it appear that there
was. He never initiated me into the details of his speculations, lest
I should offer him a loan. He was quite squeamish about it
One day I offered him a hundred-dollar check for The Pen, the
Hebrew weekly with which he was connected and upon which I
knew him to spend more than he could afford
"I don't want it," he said, reddening and shaking his head
"Why?" I asked, also reddening
I was sorely hurt and he noticed it
"I know that you do it whole-heartedly," he hastened to explain,
"but I don't want to feel that you do it for my sake."
"But I don't do it for your sake. I just want to help the paper. Can't
I--" He interrupted me with assurances of his regard for me and
for my motives, and accepted the check.
Was he dreaming of Anna ultimately agreeing to marry me--and
my money? He certainly considered me a most desirable match.
But I felt sure that he was fond of me on my personal account and
that he would have liked to have me for his son-in-law even if my
income had not exceeded three or four thousand dollars a year.
Pages:
737
738
739
740
741
742
743
744
745
746
747
748
749
750
751
752
753
754
755
756
757
758
759
760
761