“Mine, originally, but now he wants to go there, too. Penn is inbred, Morris.”
“I don’t see how you can say that. You went there knowing nobody, and you made Zeta Psi and The Ruffes.”
“I made Zeta Psi because they thought I was one of the other Lockwoods. I never denied it. I let them go on thinking it.”
Morris Homestead laughed. “No. They let you go on thinking they were thinking it. We always knew you weren’t one of those other Lockwoods. So Zeta Psi must have known it too.”
“Are you sure? All these years?”
“I’m sure about us, and I’m almost sure about Zeta Psi. With us it was the first question that came up. ‘Is he one of those Lockwoods?’ All we had to do was to inquire, and we found out that—well, we found out too much, I guess.”
“About my father?”
“Yes.”
“You’ve known that all these years and never mentioned it to me?”
“Well, I shouldn’t be mentioning it now, and I wouldn’t if you hadn’t first. I have never repeated anything that was said in The Hall.”
“Zeta Psi took me in in spite of that. I’m very touched.”
“So did The Ruffes.”
“Did all the Ruffes know about my father?”
“Some of them did. Those that belonged to St. Anthony certainly did, and I imagine those that belonged to Zeta Psi. Does this change your wanting to send your boy to Princeton?”
“It would have, but it’s too late now. The boy wants to go to Princeton and not to Penn.”
“You never quite understood some things, Locky. Shall I speak frankly?”
“I wish you would. We have been.”
“Then I shall. Some years ago I made a few very tentative inquiries about putting you up for the Philadelphia Club. I wasn’t very hopeful, but I thought you might like to be a member there. Well, the answer was no, so I never mentioned it to you.”
“Morris, will my boy make it?”
Morris Homestead spoke gently. “No, Locky, he won’t. You can spare him that, at least. I’d be very glad to help him elsewhere, but if he ever mentions the Philadelphia Club, discourage him. Memories are too long. When he has a son, the son will stand a good chance. The old-timers will be dead and gone, but some of the same men that don’t want you will still be around to oppose your son.”
“You all knew about my father, all these years.”
“Yes. It’s so easy, you know, Locky. We know all about each other, so that when someone like you comes along our curiosity is aroused and in a very short time we pool our information. I’m sure the same thing happens in Swedish Haven and Gibbsville.”
“Indeed it does. Well, thank you, Morris. I don’t think I ever had any illusions about myself, but I could have embarrassed George.”
“I’m very fond of the boy, Locky, and I wouldn’t want to see him embittered over a thing like that. Too many good qualities.”
“How do you know about his good qualities, Morris?”
“Well, I could say that I’ve seen him take all these prizes here today. And I’ve noticed that he has good manners. Nice-looking. But best of all I like what he did for Sterling Downs.”
“You astonish me, the things you know. Where did you ever hear that?”
“Oh, Philadelphia gossip isn’t always mean, Locky.”
“But Sterling Downs will get in the Philadelphia Club, won’t he? His father was a crook, a liar, and had a mistress in New York. My father—well, I guess I see it.”
“Harry was a bad egg, but that’s the way he turned out. That isn’t the way he was born. If your father had been one of those other Lockwoods, we wouldn’t be having this conversation. You do see that, don’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Furthermore, a lot of us liked Harry, and I was one of them. We don’t like what he did, but we still like him. That’s one of the nice things about Philadelphia. Some day your grandsons will benefit by that. Make haste slowly, Locky.”
“Why did you say that?”
“Because you’re right. We are inbred, and George or at least his son may furnish us some new blood.”
“That is not what I have in mind for him, Morris.”
“How interesting. Would you care to tell me more?”
“No.”
“But there is a lot more. I feel sure of that.”
“Indeed there is, my friend. Indeed there is.”
“Well, good for you, Locky. Good for you.”
It was as though all of Abraham Lockwood’s plans were laid out on the lawn before them, the whole Concern exposed to view, and Morris Homestead was too much of a gentleman to steal a look.
“Adelaide is looking well,” said Morris Homestead. “She must be very proud of George, too.”
“Yes, she is looking well.”
“Can’t say the same for Martha, but then Adelaide’s life and Martha’s don’t bear comparison.”
“No, I guess not.”
Morris Homestead smiled. “I should hope not. Martha’s getting a little old for that sort of thing.”
“What sort of thing?”
“She has an affinity, and everybody knows who it is but nobody will come right out and say it.”
“Then how do they know?”
“That’s the great mystery, how those things become known. My own theory is the way they sit together, and the way they avoid each other. An irregularity in conduct would cause talk, of course. Martha and her affinity would never go away together—on the same train, that is. But I’ve watched these two. At a party he’ll never sit with her first, always with others first. Then when he does finally sit with her they’re much too formal for two people that have known each other all their lives. When they’re alone together at a party they seem to have nothing to talk about, but they have to sit together for a little while, because not to would be too obvious, too.”
“I wouldn’t know what to talk about with Martha.”
“But you’d find something, and in any event I’d expect you to have to make conversation with Martha. Not so with those two, who’ve known each other for over forty years.”
“How are her finances?”
“Why did you ask that? You’ve touched on the very thing.”
“Just curious. Why?”
“Well, Martha’s finances took a sudden upturn. That’s how I happened to know about her and her affinity. It corroborated my other evidence, my observations. But I also happen to know that Martha has all the money she needs to meet her expenses.”
“How much, for instance?”
“Well, I can only guess, but on her present scale of living, she must spend close to a thousand a month.”
“Would the gentleman give her, say, a large settlement? Securities? Twelve thousand a year is two hundred thousand at six percent. Would he settle that much on her? Two hundred thousand?”
“He could. I don’t know that he has. In our small world it might be wise to, instead of paying her by the quarter or semi-annually. A good-sized settlement, a quarter of a million, would be better than having to pay her bills several times a year. No use reminding people to be suspicious.”
“What if she took that money and then told her affinity to go to hell?”
“Oh, never! He can do that to her, but she wouldn’t dare do it to him. No one would ever speak to her if she did that. She’d have to move away, to New York. Harry was a crook, but we were and still are fond of him. But for Martha to do a thing like that would be unthinkable. Unthinkable. Not very practical, either.”
“Oh, I don’t know,” said Abraham Lockwood.
“The bird in the hand? No, Locky. There may be more than two birds in that bush. What I’m implying is that she may stand to get more than twice two hundred thousand, eventually.”