The San Francisco call., 1904-10-30

filled quickly with the swift shock of
gratitude.
IF you had made a study Of woman
kind through ten lifetimes instead of
a part Of one, you could not know when
and how to strike truer and deeper"
SIZE said; and then, softly: Why can't
you make me love you. Brookes?"
He took his foot from the brake
pedal, and for ten seconds the released
car shot down the slope unhindered.
Then he checked the speed and an
swered her.
"A little while ago I should have said
] didn't know; but now / do know It
is because you love David Kent: you
loved him before I had my chance"
She did not deny the principal fact.
but she gave him his opportunity to
set it aside if he could-and would.
Call ii foolish, romantic sentiment,
II you like Is there no way to shame
me out of it?"
He shook his head slowly.
You don't mean that"
But if / say that 1 do; if I insist
that I am willing to be shamed, out of
it."
His smile was that of a brother who
remembers tardily to be loving-kind.
I shall leave that task for some one
who cares less for you and for your
true happiness than / do, or ever shall.
And it viii be a mighty thankless SER
vice that that some one will render
you"
But I ought to be whipped and
sent TO bed" she protested, almost
tearfully. do you know what l have
done?-how I have"
She could not quite put il in words,
even for him, and he helped her gener-
ously. as before.
Il know what Kent hasn't done;
which is more to the point. But he
viii do it fast enough if you will give
him half chance"
NO" she said definitively.
L say yes. One thing, and one thing
only, has kept him from telling you
any time since Last autumn: that is a
sort OF fnical loyalty to me. saw how
matters stood when he came aboard of
our train at Gaston-I am asking you
TO believe that 1 didn't know it before
and 1 saw then that my only hope
was 10 make a handfast friend of him.
And I did it
II believe you can do anything you
try 20 do" she said warmly.
This time his smile was a mere
gTfInace.
You Will have TO make one exception
after this and SO shall 1. And since it
is the first of any consequence il all
my mounting years, it grinds. ! can't
throw another man out of the window
and take his place"
If you We're anything but what you
are, you would have thrown him out of
the window another way" she rejcined.
That would have dago's trick; not
q white mans" he asserted. Il sup
pose j might have got in his way and
played the dog in the maqger generally,
and you would have stuck to yoII.
promise and married me, but 1 am not
looking for that kind of a winning. l
don't mind confessing that 1 played my
last card when l released you from
your enga agement. / said to myself:
If that doesn't break down the bar
riers nothing WILL
She looked UP quickly.
You viii never know how near il
came to doing it, Brookes."
But it 6'dn't quite?'
'.No. II didn't quite"
The brother-smile came again.
Let's paste that leaf down and turn
the other; the one that has David
Kent's name written at the top. tie is
going to succeed all around. Elinor. ard
l am going to help him-for his sake
as we'll as yours
No, she dissented. He is SCing
TO fail; and 1 am to blame for it"
He looked at her sidewise.
SO you were at the bottom of that.
were you? / thought as much, and
tried to make him admit it. but he
wouldn't What was your reason 2''
I gave it to him; | can't give 1t to
you"
Il guess not he laughed at was
not born on the right side of the BerK-
shire Hills TO appreciate it. But really.
you mustn't interfere AS / say. we
are going to make something out Of
David: and a little conscience-of the
right old Pilgrim Fathers brand-goes
long ways in politics"
But you promised me you were not
going to spoil him-only it doesn't mat
ter; you can't"
Ormsby chuckled openly, and when
she questioned "What?" he said
I was just wondering what you
would say if you knew what he is into
now; if you could guess, for instance.
that his hackers have put up a cool
hundred thousand to be used as he
sees ftp
oh" she exclaimed: and there was
dismay and sharp disappointment in
her voice. You don't mean that he is
gcing TO bribe these men?"
NO" he said, relenting. "As a mat
ter Of fact, 1 don't know precisely what
he is doing with the money, but 1
guess it is finding its way into legiti-
mate channels. I'll make him give me
an itemized expense account for your
benefit when it's all over. if you like -
1T would be kinder TO tell me more
about it now" she pleaded.
NO; I'll let him have that pleasure,
after the fact-if we can get him par
dcned out before you go back East
She was silent so long that he stole
another siGewise look between his
snubbings of the brake-pedal. Her face
was white and still, like the face of one
suddenly frost-smitten, and he was in
stantly self-reproachful.
Don't look that way" he begged.
1T hurts me; makes me feel how heavy
my hand is when I'm doing my best
To make it light. He is trying rather
desperate experiment, TO be sure, but
he is in. no immediate personal dan
ger. believe it or I shouldn't be here;
I should be with him."
She asked no more questions. being
unwilling to tempt him to break con-
fidence with Kent But she was
thinking of all the desperate things a
determined man with temperamentaI
unbalancings might do when the tour
ing car rolled noiselessly down the final
l-frF -. IL. -, IL ,f