The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-08-20
Our Daily Short Stories )
TO BE ACCOUNTED FOR
BY DAVID H. TALMADGE.
Copyright. 1901, by Authors. syndicate,

q When a miracle happens (Which it
,over does), or when man who is ear
doan in love with a woman passes over
one of her requests rather than sacri-
fee a business principle (Which has
,onnened at least once since the world
naoan). the circumstances is certainly
,,.orthv of mention. A mere mention is
s,ficient. 1t is not necessary that ev-
arvthing, including the miracle and the
triumph of the business principle, be
accounted for and explained. Some
things are spoiled by such process.
Now please do not misunderstood
mo | do not mean to insinuate that
tho story of David Cutter and Susan
Cross and the business principle and
the miracle is in any respect a creation
of fancy, for it is not; it is composed
Of tacts-good hard solid facts, which
are none the less factful because they
cannot be readily accounted for and
explained.
David Cutter. junior of Messrs. Bit
man & Cutter. railway contractors,
found in his mail on a certain morning
two letters, neither of which would
have created any unpleasant commo-
ton in his breast had 1t not been for
the other. One of these letters was
from his partner, Mr.. Bitman, then
personally experimenting a piece of
line construction in the Suffolkville re-
sion: the other was from Susan Cross.
the only girl with whom Mr.. Cutter,
during his forty years of somewhat
strenuous life, had felt drawn to ire
sistibly, then sojourning during the pc
riod of summer heat at well-known
and popular resort in the Redstone
Hills.
Mr.. Bitman's letter was of purely
business nature. "Scurry around" 1t
said rather arbitrarily, land get us
five thousand pounds of giant powder.
Dynamite and the other terroTs won't
do. See to it yourself and have it
shipped without fail tomorrow"
Susan Cross letter was longer and
touched another spot. MY darling"
it said, from which the reader may OBJ
tain a more or less definite idea of the
point which Mr.. Cutter had reached in
his courtship, 1.-The Wigglethorps are
going to Europe the day after to- NOR
row, and they wish me to run over
back. Papa says l may go. Can't you
come up here on the ten-thirty to-
morrow morning? We can have a nice
long visit if you come, and then you
can go with us to Boston tomorrow
night and see me off. You must,
love-" There was more than this in
the letter, but what 1t was is nobodys
business. Mr.. Cutter purred audibly
as he read it. Then he transferred his
spat And then he arose from his re-
volving chair and paced the floor for
a term of six minutes by the clock.
A mighty struggle took place within
him during those six minutes. He
wanted to visit with Susan Cross. and
he told himself that Susan Cross
would not listen to any excuses, which
was probably true. But business is
business, and he knew perfectly well
that Mr.. Bitman meant precisely what
he said. He knew further that the
work then in progress was not pro-
ceeding so rapidly as the terms of the
contract required and that not only
was tidy little sum of money in the
balance, but the reputation of the firm
as we'll Really there was no two ways
of looking at the case from a business
standpoint The powder must go for
ward, and he must not leave his post
until 1t had gone. After that-well, he
could run down to the junction, where
the railway branched off towards Bos-
ton and Suffolkville, and meet the girl.