- The Button Hardware store takes off, and Benjamin and Hildegarde are soon quite wealthy.
- Naturally, they are welcomed with open arms into the social scene because of their money.
- But fifteen years after their marriage, Benjamin has gone through some more changes.
- He finds himself full of energy and vitality, as he is getting younger.
- Unfortunately, Hildegarde has aged in the other direction, and Benjamin is no longer attracted to her.
- Not only has she aged physically, but also she’s less energetic and more boring than when he met her. At this point she is thirty-five, and they have a fourteen-year-old son named Roscoe.
- In 1898, the Spanish-American War breaks out and Benjamin leaves home to join the army. He advances, is slightly wounded, and receives a medal for his valor.
- It is with regret that he finally returns home to his wife and son.