The Yale expositor., 1906-09-21
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XSERtALA
GE2STORY@z9
A FOOL
FOR LOVE
By FRANCIS LYNDE
Author OF The Grafters. Etc.
> K &
(Oopyright, 1905, by ]. p. LipplncOtt Col


She turned upon him quickly.
'Was it an accident, Mr.. Jastrow?"
"How could it be anything else?"
he inquired, mildly.
81 don't know. But there was an
explosion: | heard it, Surely Uncle
Somerville wouldn't"
The secretary shook his head.
mo; | think you may exonerate Mr..
Darrah, personally; in fact l am quite
sure you may"
but someone planned 1t. You
knew it was going to happen-you
were out here watching for It,"
WAS II" The secretary's smile was
A mere barring of the teeth. His blood
was the sycophantic lymph which
flows in the veins of those who do
murder at great mans nod.
"It is horribly unfair" she went on.
81 understand the sheriff is here.
Couldn't he have prevented this?"
Jastrow's reply was an evasion.
"Oh, it's all legal enough. That bare
place up there is a placer claim. Sup
posing the owners found 1t necessary
to put in few sticks of dynamite to
loosen the frozen ground. 1t is Mr..
Wintons misfortune If his railroad
happens to be in the way, don't you
think?"
But 1t was planned beforehand, and
you knew of it," she insisted. Her
eyes were flashing, and the secretary's
desire for possession warmed into
something like admiration.
did II"
"Yes, you did"
at would te impolite to contradict
you"
''It is more impolite not to answer
my question. Couldn't the sheriff
have prevented it?"
''Supposing he didn't want to pre-
vent it? .Supposing he brought the
men who did it over on his train last
night?"
Then say again it is horribly un-
fair"
The secretary's rejoinder was a
platitude: Everything is fair In love
or war"
But this is neither" she retorted.
Think not?" he said, coolly. wait
and you'll see. And a word in your
ear, Miss Carteret: you are one of us,
you know. and you mustn't be dis
loyal. know what you did yesterday
after you read those kilograms"
Virginia's face became suddenly
wooden. Until that moment 1t had
not occurred to her that Jastrow's mo-
tive in showing her the two kilograms
oh hou tt1I of tad
81 have never given you the right
to speak to me that way, Mr. Jas
strow," she said, with the faintest pos
sible emphasis on the courtesy prefix;
and with that she turned from him
to focus her field glass on the con-
struction camp below.
At the Utah stronghold all was ac-
tivity of the fiercest. Winton had
raced back with his news of the catas-
trophe, and the camp was alive with
men clustering like bees and swarm
ing upon the fiat cars of the material
train to be taken to the front.
While she looked, studiously ignor-
ing the man behind her, Virginia saw
the big octopod engine come clamor-
fore 1t, losing itself quickly in the
doubling of the gulch loop to reappear
presently on the scene OF the disaster
In a twinkling the men were off and
at work, and the frosty morning air
rang with the battle shout of labor
triumphant-or meaning to be.
Virginia's color rose and the brown
eyes filled swiftly. One part of her
ideal-her masculine ideal-was cour-
age of the sort that rises the higher
for reverses. So the prompt counter
stroke filled her with JOY, and at the
moment Winton was as near gaining a
partisan as the Rajah was to losing
one.
In tho open compartment of the
Rosemary the waiter was laying the
plates for the early breakfast, and
Bessie and the Reverend " allan were
at the window, watching the stirring
industry battle now in full swing on
tSs opposite slope. Virginia Joined
thSm.
isn't it a shamei" she said. "Of
course, want our side to win; but 1t
seems such a pity that we can't fight
fairly"
The fiaxen-haired cousin looked her
entire lack of understanding, and CAL
vert said: isn't what a shame?'
thereby ellciting a crisp explanation
from virgini in which she set we'll
founded suspicion in the light of fact
touching the cause OF the landslide.
The Reverend Billy shook his head.
1t was his meter to deprecate vio-
lence, and he did II.
"Such things may be within the law
of business; but they will surely
breed bad blood and leao to reprisals.
/ hope"
The interruption was the Rajah in
his proper person. bustling out fierce
ly to a conference with his myrmi-
dons. BY tacit consent the three at
the window fell silent There was
battle and murder and sudden death
in the Rajah's eye.
The event for which they waited did
not linger There was a hasty muster
ing of armed men under the windows