The citizen. [volume] (Berea, Ky.) 1899-1958, 1906-11-29


can, how far these fair-fghting scru-
Piles of yours go. You have made It
perfectly plain that II a thief would
steal your pocketbook, you would suf-
fer loss before you'd compromise with
him to get 1t back. But suppose you
should catch him at Il: would you feel
compelled to call a policcman-or
would you"
He anticipated her.
"You are doing me an injustice on
the other side, now. I'll fight as furi-
ously as you like. All ask is to be
given weapon that won't bloody my
hands"
Good" she said spprovingly. Il
think I have found the weapon, but
It's desperate. desperatel And o
David. you've got to have a cool head
and a steady hand when you use Il.
II you haven't, II will Kill everybody
within the swing of it--everybody but
the man you are trying to reach"
Draw It and let me feel its edge"
he said shortly.
Her chair was close beside the low
swung hammock. She bent to his ear
and whispered a single sentence. For
a minute or two he sat motionless,
weighing and balancing the chance OF
success against the swiftly multiplying
difficulties and hazards.
"You call II desperate" he said at
length, IF there is a bigger word IT.
the language, you ought to find and
use IL. The risk is that of a forlorn
hope: not so much for me, perhaps.
as for the innocent-or at least
ignorant-accomplices I'll have to en-
list"
She nodded.
THAT is true. But how much is
your railroad WORTH"
1T is bonded for. fifty millions first,
and twenty millions second mortgage"
"well, seventy millions are worth
fighting for: worth a very considera-
BILE risk. | should say"
YES" And after another thought
full interval: How did you come to
think OF it?"
1T grew out Of a bit OF talk with
the man who will have put the apex
on our pyramid after We have done
our part"
'Win he stand by u.s. II he doesn't.
we shall all be no better than dead
men the morning after the fact"
She clasped her hands tightly over
her knee. and said;
That is one of the chances we must
take. David; one OF the many. But II
is the last of the bridges to be crossed.
and there are lots of them in between.
Are the details possible? That was
the part l couldn't 20 into by myself"
He took other minutes for reflection.
Il can't tell" he said doubtfully. III
I could only know how much time
we have"
Her eyes grew luminous.
David. what would you do without
me," she asked. Tomorrow night.
in Stephen Hawks ONCE in Castor,
you will lose your railroad. MacFar-
lane IS there, or II he isn't. he'll be
there in the morning. Bucks. Guilford
and Hawk will 60 down from here to-
morrow evening; and the Overland
people are to come up from Midland
City to meet them"
There was awe undisguised in the
look he gave her. and It crept into his
voice when he said:
"Portia. are you really a fesh-and-
blood woman"
She smiled.
Meaning that your ancestors would
have burned me for a witch? Per-
haps they would: | think quite likely
they burned women who made better
martyrs But | didn't have 10 call
in Flibbertigibbet. The programme Is
a carefully guarded secret. to be sure;
but II ia kncwn-lt had to be known
to a number of people outside of our
friends the enemy. You've heard the
story OF the inventor and his secret.
haven't you?"
mo"
well, the man had invented some
thing, and he told the secret OF II
to his SON After little the son want
ed to tell It to a friend. The old man
said. Hold on; know it-that's one
holding up one fnger-'you know l.
that's overwhelming up another
finger besides the first; and now IL you
tell this other fellow. that'll be one
hundred and Overwhelming up three
fingers. That is the case with this
programme. One OF the one hundred
and eleven-he is a person high up
in the. management Of the Overland
Short Line-dropped a few words In
my bearing and picked them up.
That's ALL"
1T is fearfully short-the time,
mean" he said after another pause.
I'VE can't count on any help from
any one In authority. Guilford's
broom has swept the lrigh-salaried Of
fetal corners clean. But the wage
people are mutinous and ripe for any
thing. I'll go and find out where
we stand" And he CROPPED on the
floor of the veranda for his hat
mo, wait a minute" she interposed.
I'VE are not quite ready to adjourn
yet. There remains little matter Of
compensation--your compensation-to
be considered. You are still on tse
company's pay-rolls?"
I'm a way, yes: as its legal Ee5fe-
sentative on the ground"
THAT won't do. If you carry this
thing through successfully it must be
ON YOUR own account and not as the