Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-10-18

And l suppose. she continued, it helped
out your plan tor me to keep him out there
under the trees for hour"
Well, her father admitted. Il thought it
would work out that way; but it wasn't Your
fault nor mine. No, it wasn't even his: it was
just an element in the situation
SHE did not speak at once: but it was evident
~ to him that she still had something to saw
Christabel had, of course. only very i'm
perfect ideal of what constituted her fathers
activities during his Office hours From him
directly she knew nothing. She was accus-
toned to see his name in newspaper headlines
in connection with transcontinental railroads
and public service corporations. The one
cent papers always abused him soundly; but
this abuse, by virtue of its violence, lost all
power to waken single misgiving in her mind
She knew, however, that his business life was
strenuous one, and frequently militant, and she
had experienced no great shock of surprise when
Smith told her that matters had come that
night to declaration of war between them.
Nothing that Smith had said had convened
any suggestion to her that there was right
and wrong side to these fights. Perhaps the
nearest analogy in her own mind to the struggle
that was about to take place between her father
and this new found friend of hers, was to a
tournament in the old days of chivalry. In
the present case she did not know which of the
two men it was who had thrown down the
glove, or which had picked it up.
oh don't know how to put it, d" she said at
that you and Mr.. Smith should have to fight"
What makes you think are going to
fghtl" he asked rather abruptly.
He told me tonight
Beaumont started halfway out of his chair
and then sank back into it again. HIM he
grunted Il suppose he told you pretty cock
and bull story and tried to make you believe
all sorts of dreadful things about your old
father But l don't believe he more than half
succeeded, did her" His manner had changed
-, IF he 1,,
saw in the girls face leading him to turn an
angry sheer into rather lame joke.
"Of course" she said, "he wouldn't have
tried to tell me his side of it when l didn't
it. He just said that each of you had tried to
make the other see thing his own way. and
both of you had failed: SO YOU would have to
fight it out. And it seemed to me a sort of
pity, that all. l thought, perhaps, if it
wasn't so very important, you might be able
to see it his way. as he says l suppose it's an
awfully silly idea of mine; but You don't mind
my having spoken of it. do your"
BEAUMONT had swung round in his swivel
- chair He was frownng and tugging rather
impatently at his closely cropped mustache
Smith had been shrewder than he had thought
him. This high minded. chivarous attitude of
his in talking to the girl about his approaching
struggle with her father had. of course. served
his purpose far better than INSCRIPTIONS
attempt to present his own side of the case
would have done Beaumont was by no means
ready to admit to himself that he was a rogue
So, without being quite aware of the reason,
he resented intensely the something that made
the difference between the managers tactics
and his own.
MY dear" he said at last, Il am not going
to tell you the whole story of the matter at
issue between myself and Mr. Smith There
ism t time for it now: you wouldn't understand
if l did tell you. But it is he who is forcing
this matter, not l. He confessed to me in so
many words tonight that he had deliberately
mis1ed me- that he had induced me to come
over here on false pretense His present plan
is nothing less than this: To sail away in the
Orpheus tomorrow morning before we are up.
and leave us here marooned while he goes to
New York and tries to wreck a certain plan of
mine which he conceives to be against his per-
sonal interest. l discovered his plan, and am
meeting it by the simple expedient of getting
the start of him instead of permitting him to
get the start of me.
AS to the importance of the matter at issue
between us-we1l. don't know how much it
would cost me to let him have his way: but
well into the millions at any rate. l don't COM
plain Of his tactics,-I suppose he thinks they
are admissible,-but really the matter is too
important to admit of my walking straight
into his trap with my eyes open. There, that
is all we have time for now. Can you be ready
in quarter of an hour"