The Kinsley graphic. [volume] (Kinsley, Kan.) 1890-1940, 1897-07-09

ho1 dCliuS your pdrC Well aC all. IL
astonished at you!"
"Mr. Longworth, wish to have moth.
ing whatever to say to you. If you
have anything to ask, I wish you would
ask it as quickly as possible. and then
leave me alone"
The chief fault 1 find with you, Ken
yon," said Longworth, throwing one leg
over the other. and clasping his hands
around his knee, 1.-The chief fault 1 have
to find, is your painful lack of a sense OF
humor. Now, you remember last night
l offered you the managership of the
mine. I thought certainly that by this
time to-day 1 should be the owner of it,
or, at least. one of the owners Now;
you don't appear to appreciate the
funniness of the situation. Here you
are, the owner of the mine, and l am out
in the cold-'left,' as they say here in
America. I am the man who is
left"
IF that is all you have to talk about"
said Kenyon gravely, II must ask YOU
to allow me to go on with my packing.
I am going to the mine tomorrow"
Certainly, my dear fellow, 60 at
once, and never mind me. Can be of
any assistance to you? 1t requires a
special genius, you know. to pack a
portmanteau properly. But what I
wanted to say was this-why didn't you
turn around, when you had got the
mine. and offer me the managership Of
il? Then you could have had your
revenge. The more 1 think of that
episode in Won Brent's Office, the more
1 think you utterly failed to realize the
dramatic possibilities of the situation"
Kenyon was silent.
"Now all this time you are wondering
why I came here. Doubtless, you wish
to know what l want"
Il have not the slightest interest in
the matter" said Kenyon.
THAT is ungracious, but nevertheless
I will continue. 1t is better, see, to be
honest with you, if person wants to
get anything out of you. Now 1 want to
get bit of information out of you. 1
want to know where you got the money
with which you bought the mine?"
81 got it from the bank"
"Ah, yes, but L want to know who
sent it over to you"
1T was sent to me by George Went
worth"
"Quite so, but now 1 want to know
who gave Wentworth the money!"
you will have a chance of finding
that out when you go TO England by
asking him."
Then you won't tell meg"
ST can't tell you"
you mean by that, of course, that
you won't"
81 always mean, Mr.. Longworth, OK
actly what 1 say. l mean that l can't
tell you. l don't know myself"
''Really?"
Eyes, really. You seem to have some
difficulty in believing that anybody can
speak the truth"
well, it isn't common vice-speall-
ing the truth. You must forgive little
surprise" He nursed his knee for
moment, and looked meditatively up at
the ceiling. Now would you like to
know who furnished that money!"
II have no curiosity in the matter
whatever"
"Have you not? Well. you are singu-
lar man. 1t seems to me that person
into whose lap G 10000 drops from the
skies would have some little curiosity
to know from whom the money came
81 haven't the slightest"
Nevertheless, l will tell you who
gave the money to Wentworth. 1t was
my dear friend Melville. l didn't tell
you in New York, of course, that Mel
vile and had a little quarrel about this
matter, and he went home decidedly
huffy. 1 had no idea he would take this
method of revenge, but l see it quite
clearly now. He knew I had received
the option of the mine. There was a
little trouble as to what each of our
respective shares was to be, and /
thought, as l had secured the option, 1
had the right to dictate terms. He
thought differently. He was going to-
Won Brent to explain the whole matter,
but l pointed out that such a course
would do no good, the option being
legally made out in my name, SO that
the moment your claim expired, mine
began. When this dawned upon him,
he took the steamer and went to Eng
land. Now I can see his hand in this
finish to the affair. 1t was a pretty
sharp trick of Melville's, and 1 give him
credit for it. He is a very much
shrewder and cleverer man than I
thought
1T seems to me, Mr.. Longworth, that
your inordinate conceit makes you al
ways underestimate your friends, or
your enemies, either, for that matter"
There is something in that, Ken
yon; 1 think you are more than half
right, but 1 thought, perhaps, could
make it advantageous to you to do me
favor in this matter. l thought you
might have no objection to writing
little document to the effect that the
money did not come in time, and con-
scquently 1 had secured the mine.
Then, if you would sign that, could
take it over to Melville and make terms
with him. OF course, if he knows that
he has the mine, there will not be
much chance of coming to any arrange
ment with him.
You can make no arrangements with
me, Mr.. Longworth, that involve sac
rifice of the truth"
"Ah. well, I suspected as much, but
thought it was worth while to try.
However, my dear sir, 1 may make
terms with Melville yet, and then l
imagine you won't have much to do
with the mine"
81 shall not have anything to do
with it if you and Melville have a share