The San Francisco call., 1908-10-11

ing Of and so succeeded In securing
Miss Adair for a companion on the
short walk across to the Grand Pacific.
You Were about to ask me some
thing when Uncle Sidney interrupted
you, she prompted. when they were
clear OF the thrOng in ehe ss.tiOn yes
tibuls.
Yes; I was going to ask IL you
don't think IL was unnecessarily cruel
to send me that note of thanks un-
signed"
'Cruel?' she echoed. and her laugh
: was so exactly a replica of her broth
er's that Ford wondered why the remt-
niscent arrow had not gone at once to
its mark. How absurd! WHAT pos
sible difference could it make?"
1T made lot Of difference to me-
said Ford. refusing to be brushed
aside. How did you expect was ever
going to be able TO find you again.
without even your name as a clew?'
She glanced up at him with un-
feigned interest. The men OF her world
We're not altogether unappreciative;
neither were they so primitively
straightforward as this young industry
captain out of the west
1T is not impossible that I never
thought of your finding me again, she
said, and only the tone saved ii from
being a small slap in the face.
Ford took the rebuff as a part of the
days work.
But I mean TO go on hoping that you
did"
The ideal" she sconed but this time
she blunted the keen edge of the re-
buke by adding; L Thought, perhaps.
we might meet again, sometime. You
see. we are all stock holders in the
Pacific Southwestern; my brother, Aunt
Hetty and I; and Uncle Sidney had
shown us a letter-it was from Mr.
North, 1 think-saying that you were
likely to come to New York with some
kind of a plan OF reorganization So
when you gave me your card l knew
at once who you were.
The short walk to the hotel, Where
Kenneth was waiting to go to break
fast with the presidents party, came
to an end and the social amenities died
of inanition. For one thing, President
CoIbrfth insisted upon learning the
minutest ins and outs of the business
matter, making the table talk his ve-
hicIe; and for another. Miss Adair's
place was on the. opposite side of the
table and two removes from Ford s
Time and again the young engineer
tried to sidetrack business, in the in
terests of something a little less banal
to the two women; but the president
was implacable and refused to be pulled
still running mOnOtOnously and raSp-
ingIy at it when Kenneth glanced at
his watch and suggested that the time
for action had come
After breakfast the party separated.
Mrs. Adair and Miss Alicia were to
spend the day with friends in South
Chicago and Mr.. CO1brith carried the
attorney off to his room to dig still
deeper into the possible legal cOmpli-
cations which might arise out OF the
proposed transfer of the three short
roads. Ford and Adair sat in the lobby
and smoked while they were waiting
for the president and the general coun-
sci to conclude their conference. and
the young millionaire gave his COM
panion the story of the fight in the di-
reetory.
I'VE have Brewster to thank for the
lift which finally pulled our wheel out
of the mud. said the young man, mod
estly effacing himself in the summing
up. "Or rather 1 should say that we
have the enemy to thank for stirring
Brewster into action Brewster's got
some copper mines out in Utah that he
nurses like a sick child. Just at the
critical moment some of the people who
control the TranscOntinental began TO
worry his copper stock. In the hot
part of it he came to me and said
Adair, will that western extension OF
yours be able to fry any fat out Of
TranscontinentaI? / told him it would.
most assuredly; that next to making
money for ourselves, and. incidentally.
saving the Pacific Southwestern from
going to smash. our chief object was
to give the Transcontinental whole
some drubbing.
You are progressing rapidly" said
Ford. with a grin of appreciation Did
that fetch him?"
1T did, for fact He looked like
one of those old bushy bearded vikings
when he said. BY thunder. I'm with
you, young mani And I'll answer for
Scott and Magnus and Harding. Get
your board together. and Wen settle
it today"
Ford looked up quickly. 'Tf Mr.. Col
birth wasn't the chief of your family
clan, Adair, 1 could wish that we had
this Mr.. Brewster at the head of
things
The rejOinder was heartily prompt.
'You don't wish it any more fervently
than 1 do. Ford. That is why I am
here today The board. in spite of all
that our handful of revolutiOnaries
could do, has armed Uncle Sidney with
almost dictatorial powers in this stock
purchasing deal; and if he doesn't con-
trive to strangle things by the slow
process. it will be simply and solely
because you and Kenneth and I are
here to see that he does not Do you
know what the men call him out on
: the main line? When they see the Nadia
trundIing in. they say, Here comes old
Automatic Airbrakes.' And it fits
him.
But I don't quite understand why
he should want to put the brakes on
here. and now," Ford interposed. II
know he is against the scheme, per-
sonally; but he is here as a representa-
tive of a majority which has commit
ted itself to the expansion measure.
isn't hep
"Oh, yes; and he has no thought OF
playing the traitor-yOu mustn't think
that of him. But it isn't in his nature
to facilitate things. In the present
crisis he will feel that he IS personally
responsible for the expenditure OF five
million dollars. He will examine and
investigate, and probe and try. and
will want TO worry through every
+ pen scratch which has been made up
to date"
Wen, there is one comfort; he
can't take much time for his worry
ing" said Ford Some Of the options