Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1909-11-01


simple plan. especially as he had so
easily and quickly won Mrs. Durant
over to his side. Frances he did not
look on as a serious obstacle, for he
was shrewd enough to know that with
his splendid start and opportunity for
working on her sympathieS he had
everything in his favor. The big
brother attitude he knew was fatal.
She must not look on him in that light.
He must be the confidant. the friend,
the guide, but not the big brother In
any sense This attitude he had care
fully established while she was yet a
child. He was always ready to go to
any lengths to please her, and at first,
with the trustfulness of young girl,
she took everything he did at its face
value. Her mother, too, worked per
haps unconsciously in Pinckney's
favor. She made Frances believe that
everything Edward did was right and
smoke of the time when he should man.
age the Durant steel works as matter
of course. Frances from her father
had inherited strong mechanical bent,
so there was that additional bond of
sympathy between them.
So matters had drifted along through
her school days and Pinckney's college
course until, when he came back from
college to take up his life'S work In
the steel plant, the train was all laid
and the odds were 100 to in favor of
the schemer coming off victorious, mar
rying the daughter of his benefactor
and settling down as the right hand
man of the steel magnate and the ul-
innate owner Of the great plant.
Frances was barely fourteen when
he entered the works, and he at once
began to make her conf1dant Of his
plans and aspirations for the good of
her fathers business. The eagerness
and enthusiasm Of the young man
quite won the heart Of the steel mag
nate.
Edward is a wonder" he was &C
customed to say. Never saw such a
hard worker. I thought I was a hus-
tier, but that boy viii sooner or later
be showing me tricks"
How little the millionaire realized
the truth of what he was saying so
proudly! Such energy and enthusiasm
as Pinckney displayed must have
brought his advancement in any bust
ness, and when his benefactor was
also his chief and he lived in the house
success was necessarily rapid In
three years he had worked up from
place in the draughting room to the
post Of manager. In each new position
he made good, and Durant more than
ever congratulated himself on his fore
sight in taking up the orphan son Of
his friend.
But Pinckney's love affair had not
progressed so rapidly. Frances was
glad of his success. but somehow she
had ceased to be 50 interested in
the man as she had been when a girl
BY the time she was seventeen all the
glamour had worn off. Instead of TAX
ing him in a sentimental way she had
begun in her own mind to look on him
as a sort Of big brother. Pinckney did
not know this. He felt that he was
not coming ahead as fast as he had
hoped, but he felt that there was time,
especially as his hold on the rest of
the family increased daily.
Durant himself now looked forward
to the time when his daughter and the
protege whom he had come to regard
as a son should decide to marry. He
trusted Pinckney more than ever. and
he rubbed his hands with satisfaction
at the thought that some day both
Frances and the Durant works would
be well taken care of after he was
gone.
Frances realized this and by the
time she was nineteen had begun in
vague sort of way to accept the sitU-
alton. Her friends teased her and
then took the attachment for granted.
She knew that she did not love Ed
ward, but she did trust him. and she
had met no one whom she could care
for.
Edward had spoken to her mother
and father. and both had agreed that
whenever he chose to ask Frances he
had their permission.
Then during the summer of Fran
ces' nineteenth year her father went
abroad. leaving the entire manage
ment OF the big plant on Pinckney's
hands This had brought the man
and the girl closer than ever together.
and Pinckney was just debating how
soon he should make his attempt when
he received notice from the govern
ment that the Durant Steel works
would have the task of casting new
cannon which a Lieutenant Sommers
of the navy had invented and that
Lieutenant Sommers had been detailed
to stay at the steel plant until the
work had been done. There was an
other gun, the "Rhinestrom gum" in
which Pinckney had more than cas-
ual interest, but business demanded
that the government work be accept
ed promptly.
One week after the notice from
Washington Lieutenant Sommers ap-
peared. and then Pinclzney's troubles
really began.
From the moment of their first meet
ing Frances DGrInt and Lieutenant
Sommers had seemed mutually drawn
to each other. To each the other was
an entirely new type. Frances had
never met a man just like the young
naval lieutenant. Up to that time her
experience had been with men like
Pinckney who thought apparently only