The Newark journal., 1906-12-28

voice, namely, of MT. Arthur Jastrow.
 What a bowling wilderness, to be sure, isn't it?" said the secretary, twirling his eyeglasses by the cord and looking, as he felt, interminably bored
 No, indeed; anything but that" she retorted, warmly. Tt is grander than anything I ever imagined. I wish there were piano in the car. It makes me fairly ache to set it in some form of expression, and music is the only form I know"
 sI'm glad 1T it doesn't bore you," he rejoined, willing to agree with her for the sake of prolonging the interview. But to me it is nothing more than a dreary wilderness, as I say; a barren, rock-ribbed gulch affording an indif- ferent right-of-way for two railroads"
 For one" she corrected, in quick upt1ash of loyalty for her kin.
 The secretary shifted his gaze from the mountains to the maiden and smiled. She was exceedingly good to look upon-high bred, queenly and just now with the fine fire of enthu- siasm to quicken her pulses and to send the rare flush to neck and cheek
 Jastrow, the eold-eyed, the business automaton set to go off with a click at MT. Somerville Darrah's touch, had 1 ambitions not automatic. Some day he meant to put the world of business under foot as conqueror, standing triumphant on the apex of that pyra- mid of success which the MT. Somer- vile DarrahS were so successfully up- rearing. When that day should come, there would need to be an establish ment, menage, queen for the king dom of success. Summing her up for the hundredth time since the begin ming of the westward flight, he thought Miss Carteret would fill the require ments passing we'll.
 But this was a divagation, and he pulled himself back to the askings of the moment, agreeing with her again without reference to his private con- victions
 For one, I should have said," he amended. We mean to have it that way, though an unprejudiced onlooker might be foolish enough to say that there is a pretty good present pros pect of two."
 But Miss Carteret was in a contra dictory mood. Moreover she was a woman, and the way to womans confidence does not lie through the neutral country Of easy compliance.
 If you won't take the other side will, she said. There will be two."
 Jastrow acquiesced a second time.
 .'I shouldn't wonder Our compet- itor's road seems to be only a ques- tion of time-a very short time, judg- ing from the number of men turning out in the track gang down yonder."
 Virginia leaned over the railing to look past the car. and the dovecote sta tion, shading her eyes to shut out the snow-blink from the sun-fired peaks.
 Why, they are soldiers!" she ex- claimed 'At least, some of them have guns on their shoulders And see they are forming in line."
 The secretary adjusted his eye glasses.
 By love! you are right; they have armed the track force. The new chief of construction doesn't mean to take any chances of being shaken loose by force. Here they come
 The end of track of the new line was diagonally across the creek from the Rosemary's berth and short pistol shot farther down stream But to advance it to a point opposite the private car, and to gain the altitude of the high embankment directly across from the station, the new line turned short out of the main canyon at the mouth of the intersecting gorge, de- scribing long, U-shaped curve around the head of the lateral ravine and doubling back upon itself to reenter the canyon proper at the higher ele- vation.
 The curve which was the beginning of this U-shaped loop was the morn ing's scene Of action, and the Utah track layers, 200 strong, moved to the front in orderly array, with armed guards as fankers for the hand-car load of rails which the men were push ing up the grade.
 Jastrow darted into the car, and moment later his place on the observa- tion platform was taken by wrath ful industry colonel fresh from his dressing-room-so fresh, indeed, that he was coatless, hatless, and collarless, and with the dripping bath sponge clutched like a missile to hurl at the impudent invaders on the opposite side of the canyon.
 "Hah! wouldn't wait until man could get into his clothes!" he rasped,