Petaluma High School - Trojans Yearbook (Petaluma, CA)

Page 27 text:

(First Prize) H ENDRICK GRATON, or more commonly hailed as “Hen” Graton, was struggling with a collar, which by some mistake had found a place among his own, and he was sweetly uttering words of condemnation on “that square headed” French laundryman. After working himself into a white heat, he suddenly thought of getting a larger size, and he laughed to think he had not thought of it before. At this moment the butler appeared. “ Beg pardon, sir, but your father desires that you come down immed¬ iately, sir. Also, your breakfast is waiting, sir.” “Well, show it around the library till I come down,” and Hen reach¬ ed for another collar. As he came into the dining-room, John Graton gazed steadily at him with admiration in his eyes. He was a good-looking, typical college- bred specimen of an American youth. There was nothing to distin¬ guish him from the average son of a New York bank president, unless it was his well developed physique. His father was proud of his only son, but no one else knew it. “Good morning, Dad,” said Hen cheerfully. “Good morning, my son.” “James said you wished to see me,” he remarked after a time of silence. “Yes,” answered his father, “I do. Hendrick, do you realize that you are twenty-two years old tomorrow? And do you realize that you have been out of college exactly five months and in that time you have not worked five minutes? Also, do you realize that it is time you were doing something?” ‘‘ W liy. Dad, l—1-. ’ ’ “Wait until I am through please. Now understand, I’m not lectur¬ ing you, I’m only leading up to what I want to tell you, which is this: I’ll wager that you can’t take twenty-five dollars, see one strange land, and, before a year has passed, return home with a thousand dollars and a wife. If you win there will be a two thousand dollar bank check for you and a two hundred and fifty a week position waiting down at the New York National. But if you lose, you will be compelled to keep on work¬ ing and supporting yourself until my death. What 1 ask you to do is nothing exceptional. Now if you have something to say, say it.” Hen had a hundred things to say, but what he said was not one of the hundred, for he found himself telling his father, “Dad, I’m beginning to realize that I’ve been about as lazy and shiftless as a coon in a water¬ melon patch, and I — well, I — Dad, I’ll go you on that bet!” .— 27 —-