The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-12-02
By ". B. MAXWELL, Auth.r of ssfhe Guarded Fiame.- The RaGged MessengeR,S
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HoMo slHds sab9 91Au ElHo IllM Ea yMZ ZM2 2hlgL used the masonic form of address:
 brother Crunden, give me chance" Drotner Crunden. extremely embar- rassed, said he would think it over and Srotner Vincent might call again. He discussed the extraordinary request first "ian Mr. Bowling and then with Lizzie.
 He says he can make himself use- useful?"
 Useful" cried Mir. Bowling. with enthusiasm. Hell be worth his weight in gold. Give him anything he asks. but get held of him. Don't you see--having him on our side merely to exhibit him. let people know nes with us--will be worth any money. Hes the very man to help us--to act as go-between. smooth things over. ana cure all the soreness against us" Tn this notion, as events proved, Mir. bowling was far too hopeful. But at the time he was confident that if Mir. l vincent publicly joined hands with them, their present disfavor with the community would soon blow over. Then, after a day or two, Crunden spoke about the matter to his daugh- ter. Lizzfe's thought now was only | for her father. He had embarked on l vast and dangerous enterprise; his whole fortune was at stake: toll and anxiety lay before him. When she heard his unfortunate outbreak at the | meeting. guilt and remose possessed l her. More bitterly than hitherto she hated herself for the childish folly that had been the first cause of all his | subsequent action. The folly had | faded. been washed away with tears. | burnt out by hotly repentant tn houghts all of it. she believed, was gone | from her; but its wide-reaching con- .-t- A 1 stung her faather into anger Against l the Hill. he would never have planned | it's destruction. She was sure of this I although he told her always that she | was in no manner connected with the | reasons that had moved him. Nonsense, Liz. I never thought of | all that again. It was over and done ! with-something we both meant to | forget. No, this scheme. was in my l mind from the moment MT. Bowling l put 1t before me. Then, while you | were in Cornwall. I went into it and 1 began to see my way clear. If kept l it secret from you, 1t was only be- | cause I knew you'd be against 1t. But | nothing could have shaken me. You remember what I told you-that per- l haps should need all your help. Well, l my mind was almost made up then" l And Lizzie-cured of her day-dream- | ing-vowed herself to a good daugh- l ter's task
 "I shall need" said Crunden. "all tn e l help l can get from you. and others. 1 It's a big thing--a very big thing I'm in for. But it's not too big--don't let | any one persuade you that it's more than can carry through"
 l And then he told her about Jack 1 Vincent's pressing request.
 l MT. Bowling, he says he'll be worth l his pay--and of course there's no doubt l of Sir Johns upset--and MT. Vincent he has made his appeal to me very | strong. Well, he's made 1t on reasons I that lie between him and me-that are | not business-and that I don't think l he should have brought into 1t. But now, my dear, give me a true answer. l Will it make any difference to you?" Lizzie said firmly that 1t could not make the smallest difference to her. l Quite sure? Of course you won't have to take any notice of him. I'm l getting rid of Stevens out of the yard end of week, and hope to have his mess 1 and nth cleaned away and the yard
 ready to open by end of next week
 and it's at the yard I shall mostly l keep Mir. Vincent. But won't do it. | unless you can say honestly that I
 shant be doing wrong"
 | And Lizzie, only thinking of what was good for her father. said he would | uo riBnt, not wrong, III duOpLlng MT. l Dowling's advice and employing MT. | Vincent.
 i've thought 1t over, sir,," said Crunden to Jack when he presented
 himself again. i've thought 1t over and the answer is. Yes."
 Thank you. sir-youre a trump
 and good Mason"
 Mir. Jacks sleek face shone with ex- citement and pleasure. But the wages I hnho-Unrn fan
 No. sir." said Crunden. That's
 what you ought to get-if you're any
 value at all-and it's what I should Il give to any one else"
 Thank you, sir"
 From the moment that Jack was
 engaged. he called his employer Sir; and now it was curious to hear each
 saying Sir to the other.
 T would like" said old Crunden
 ito mention, sir, that I am sorry to
 hear of this upset of Sir Johns af- 1 fairs"
 Thank you. sir."
 T never expected such a thing. l
 had no idea of 1t. sir" MT. Crunden
 continued with visible reluctance. Tn
 meeting, sir-weu. as to my
 opinion of the Town and the
 Hill-which I gave frank for once there's not word I'd wish to draw
 back. But in anything I said which might seem disrespectful or short to Sir John-well. if so, I wouldn't have said 1t, if I had guessed that Sir John
 was 2 gentleman down on his luck as one may term it."
 ''Oh. that's all right. sir. If you
 couldn't say. Yes. it didn't much matter how you said No. And you said noth :
 ing disrespectful to my father that I heard-or I shouldn't be here now, sir.'
 Well answered, sir. No. meant no disrespect to Sir John-only meant to
 say No plain and firm. How did
 1t come about, sir-the upset?"
 Well" said Jack. smiling. Sir John tells me he has been muddling things for a long time-and, as far as I can
 make out, that hits the right nail on the head"
 "Ah! You see, sir, a gentleman like
 your father soon gets adrift in finan-
 cial operations. It's a special business
 training. sir, straight. up from the bot
 tom; and gentlemen high placed from
 their birth can't be expected to master
 it sufficient to protect themselves 1 When it comes to money questions l hound tn ha OtIfr1oa n -it