The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1907-01-24
work r. he said pleasantly.

4
The little man showed instant, al
most ridiculous, relief. "Good morn
ing, SIR" he said. ''You, too, are early.
I rather feared your nerves troubled,
you after left last night, for ] found
your letters still unopened this morn
ing. But am glad to see you look so
well''
Loder promptly turned his back to
| the light. ooh, last nights. lettersv'
he said ''To tell you the truth, Green
ing, my s7ife"-his hesitation was very
slight-"my wife looked me up after
you left, and we gossiped. I clean for
got the post" He smiled in an ex-
planatory way as he moved to the
desk and picked up the letters.
With Greetings eyes upon him there
was no time for scruples. With very
creditable GOODNESS, he began opening
the envelopes one by one. The letters
were unimportant, and he passed them
one after another to the secretary, ex-
periencing slight thrill Of authority
as each left his hand. Again the fact
that power is visible in little things
came to his mind.
"Give me my engagement book,
Greenlng," he said when the letters
had been disposed Of.
The book that Greening handed him
was neat in shape and bound, like Chill
eote's cigarette case, in lizard skin.
As Loder took it the gold monogram
II. c." winked at him in the bright
morning light. The incident moved his
sense of humor. He and the book were
co-operators in the fraud, it seemed.
He felt an inclination to wink back.
Nevertheless he opened it with proper
gravity and skinned the pages.
The page devoted to the day was al
most full. On every other line were
jottings in Chilcote's irregular hand,
and twice among the entries appeared
prominent cross in blue penciling.
| Loder's interest quickened as his eye
| caught the mark. 1t had been agreed
between them that only engagements
essential to Chilcotes public life need
be carried through during his absence,
and these to save his confusion were
to be crossed in blue pencil. The rest,
for the most part social claims, were
to be left to circumstance and Loder's
| inclination, Chilcote's cratic memory
| always accounting for the breaking of
trivial promises.
But LOder in his new energy was
| anxious for obligations. The desire for
fresh and greater tests grew with in
| diligence. He scanned the two lines
| with eagerness. The first was an in
| terview with Gresham, one of Chill
cote's supporters in Wark; the other an
the idea of the former his interest
quickened, but at thought of the latter
| it quailed momentarily. Had the entry
| been a royal command it would have
affected him infinitely less. For a
space his assurance faltered. Then by
| coincidence the recollection of Eve and
Ewes words of last night came back to
him, and his mind was filed with a
new sensation.
Because of Chilcote he was despised
by Chilcote's wife! There was no de-
nying that in all the pleasant excite
| ment Of the adventure that knowledge
had ranked. It came to him now link
ed with remembrance of the slight, re-
luctant touch of her fingers, the family
evasive dislike underlying her glance.
It was Il trivial thing, but it touched
his pride as man. That was how he
put it. to himself. 1t wasn't that he
valued this wOman'S Opinion-any WO-
mans opinion. It was merely that it
touched his pride. He turned again to
the window and gazed out, the engage
| ment book still between his hands,
What if by his own personality cloak
ed under Chilcote's identity he forced
| her to admit his capability? 1t was
| matter of pride, after all-scarcely even
| Of pride; self respect was better
| word
Satisfied by his own reasoning, he
| turned back into the room.
"See to those letters, Greening," he
said. "And for the rest of the morn
ing's work you might go on with your
Khorasan notes. I believe We'll all
| want every inch of knowledge we can
get in that quarter before we're much
| older. I'll see you again later" With
| a reassuring nod he crossed the room
and passed through the door.
He lunched with Fraide at his club
and afterward walked with him to
| Westminster. The walk and lunch
were both memorable. In that hour he
| learned many things that had been
sealed to him before. He tasted his
| first draft Of real elation, his first drop
Of real discontinue. He saw for the
| first time how a great man may con-
descend-how unostentatiously, how
fully, how delightfully."-. He felt what
tact and kindness perfectly combined
may accomplish, and he burned in
wardly with sense of duplicity that
| crushed and elated him alternately.
He was John Loder, friendless, penni-
less, with no present and no future, yet
he walked down Whitehall in the full
light of day with one of the greatest
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