To Richard Richard there was nothing inconsistent in his sudden consuming desire to take up his inheritance. So long as one was honest with his desires nothing could be inconsistent to this young man. One might as well be disturbed over an eclipse of the moon. The law of his individual life was operating without flaw, he assured himself; and he was glad that he had never tried to impose artificially upon the perfect mechanism. Yesterday he was a communist; to-day he was a champion of property. Very well; and to-morrow he might be a Buddhist—it was all in the hands of the gods.
For that reason, perhaps, or for reasons deeper than he knew, he felt only the slightest undercurrent of disappointment over his failure in the conquest of Jerry. It would come out all right, was the burden of his faith. He would wait and try, in this as in other high matters, to accept cheerfully the predestined course of things.
The week slipped by more smoothly than either Richard or Jerry had expected. Richard was busy with his new interest, the financial rehabilitation of “Red Jacket,” and Jerry threw herself into the arrangement of a lawn dinner-party which should signalize, as she thought, her farewell to Jerusalem township. With characteristic singleness of mind she could launch all the preparations without a thought as to what she should do after the curtain had been rung down. In many respects she was true to the traditions of her family: they had always lived in the immediate present. It is interesting to note that difference between Massachusetts and Virginia, even more noticeable if one contrasts Maine and Georgia: the North has looked ever towards the future, while the South has lived. The one has grown thrifty and has paid the penalty of prosperity, while the other has paid many times over the penalty of unpreparedness.
Mitchell Lear was Northern in his sense of future values. He had a long head, as we say, meaning that he did not deceive himself as to the eventual outcome of things; and, as well, that he knew the game of bargaining. Hoskins sold eagerly; he had bought the Wells’ apple land because it was offered at a low figure; his main object was to sell at a profit. Fennill and Holloday sold because they were in need of cash, and because they had no knowledge of the real value of orchards properly cared for. To this lot was added a valuable tract of young trees not yet bearing which a wealthy summer visitor had started in the frenzy of a sudden interest and which he had grown tired of with equal suddenness.
On the day before the first yacht race—it took three wins to achieve the Lake cup—Richard sought Jerry out to present her with a summary of operations.
He explained that a friend of his in New York, Davis Clarkson, had bought in the mortgage and the notes and was willing to give unlimited time. In addition his friend had lent money for the purchase of apple lands in order that the estate might employ all the negroes and offer some chance for a return. These lands were held in Clarkson’s name and not charged against the estate at all—not very business-like, but friendship will do wonders at times. Richard was not so clear in his explanations, but his summary was understandable.
| Debts | ||
|---|---|---|
| Mortgages, Notes and other debts | $86,000 | |
| New apple lands | 15,000 | |
| ———— | ||
| Total Indebtedness | $101,000 | |
| ——— | ||
| Income | ||
| Grapes (with G. A. in charge) | $8,000 | |
| Apples— | ||
| Hoskins’ tract | 6,000 | |
| Fennill & Holloday | 10,000 | |
| New orchards (in 2 yrs.) | 4,000 | |
| ———— | ||
| Total Income | $28,000 | |
| ——— | ||
| Annual Payments | ||
| Interest | $5,050 | |
| Wages, Taxes and up-keep of “Red Jacket” | 10,000 | |
| Sinking Fund (running 20 yrs.) | 5,000 | |
| ———— | ||
| Total | $20,050 | |
| ——— | ||
| Summary | ||
| Total Income | $28,000 | |
| Annual out-go | 20,050 | |
| ———— | ||
| Yearly Balance | $7,950 | |
“The sinking fund, you see,” he explained, “will pay off the whole indebtedness in much less than twenty years, because every year the interest will grow less. And we have nearly $8,000 a year above all expenses—to provide for accidents and pin-money! Mitchell Lear says that George Alexander and young Bolivar should be given four times their present wages and put absolutely in charge of the orchards and the grapes. Those two men know fruit by instinct, but even at that you ought to be willing to pay out about two thousand a year for expert advice on soils and spray mixture. We’re calculating, you see, on getting every cent out of those lands.”
Jerry studied the report for a long time. She was searching for some act of charity, the tiniest morsel of which would have meant repudiation of the whole scheme.
“That means,” she spoke at last, “that we keep ‘Red Jacket,’ and make the attempt to pay off the debt against it?”