The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1910-11-11

an opinion was blandly impressive, and
| convincing to many. Yet Tom was not
| convinced.
"Of course, I came to ask for the
loan, and not specially to justify it," he
| said. in mild irony which was quite
| lost on the philosopher in the presi-
| dents chair. II wasn't sure just how
you would regard it If you should know
! the object for which we are borrowing.
| and this high sense Of personal honor
you speak Of impelled me to be alto
gether frank with you"
Quite right; you were quite right,
Mr.. Gordon" said the banker, urbanely.
You are young in business, but you
have learned the first lesson in the
book Of success-to be perfectly open
and outspoken with your banker. AS
have said, the venality Of these men
with whom you are dealing Is most de-
| plorable but ."
There was some further glozing over
Of the putrid fact, a good bit of 1t, and
Tom sat back in his chair and listened,
outwardly respectful, inwardly hot
hearted and contemptuous. Was this
| smooth spoken, oracular prince Of the
| market-place a predetermined hypo-
critic, shaping his words to At the mon
ey-gathering end without. regard to
| their demoralizing effect? Or was he
only a subconscious Pharisee, self de-
| ceived and complacent? Toms thought
ran lightning-like over the long list Of
the Vancourt Hennikers: men of the
business world successful to the Croe-
sus mark. large and liberal benefactors,
founders Of colleges, libraries and hos
pitfalls, gift-givers to their fellow men,
irreproachable In private life, and yet
| apparently stone blind on the side of
the larger equities. Could it be posi-
BILE that such men deliberately admit
| ted and accepted the Doubt standard
in morals? It seems fairly incredible,
and yet their lives appeared to pro-
| claim it.
Having obtained the sinews of war.
Tom kept the appointment, with Nor
man, and their joint discussion of the
business situation made him too late
for the early dinner at Woodlawn. To
complete the delay, the evening train
| lost half an hour with a hot box at
point mile short of Gordonia. Two
things came Of these combined time
I killings: man in slouched hat and
the brown jeans Of the mountaineers,
who had been watching the Woodlawn
gates since dusk from his hiding place
behind the field wall across the pike
got up stiff1y and went away; and Tom
reached home just In time to intercept
Ardea on the steps Of the picturesque
| veranda.
Been visiting the little mother?" he
asked, when she paused on the step
above him.
"Yes-no; ran over to tell you that
we moved Nancy to-day"
ooh! Well, that's comfortable. She
was willing?"
Yes: almost, at first; and altogeth-
er willing when told her that THAT
She" There was an embarrassed mo-
ment and then the truth came out
Perhaps should have asked you first:
but she was quite satisfied when I told
her that she owed her changed condi-
ton to the person whose duty 1t was to
provide for her.. You don't mind. do
you?"
mo, don't mind" he said, absentIy
and the der-thought dealt savagely
with Nan-with woman who, for the
sake of the loaves and the fishes and
the shielding Of the real offender, would
suffer an innocent man 10 go to the So
/ cial gallows for lack of the word which
would have cleared him. He laughed
| rather bitterly and added, out Of the
heart Of the under-thought: I'm gla
I'm not naturally inclined to be pes
/ simistic."
What makes you say that?"
Because, after hearing'-he changed
his mind suddenly, and transferred the
| hard word from Nan to Mr.. Vancourt
Henniker--"after what I've been hear
ing this afternoon find myself more
! in the notion Of weeping with the an
gels than of laughing with the devils"
What has happened?" she asked,
sympathetically alive to his need IN
one breath. and keenly apprehensive
for her own peace Of mind in the next.
AN exceedingly small thing. as ths
worlds measurements go. I was in
town, and made a business call on Mr..
Henniker. He's a member Of your
church. isn't he? / needed some money
to bride a lot Of political grafters in q
Pennsylvania city where I'm trying to
sell bill Of water-pipe. went to Mr..
Henniker to borrow II"
And, of course, he wouldn't let you
have 1t for any such wretched pur-
pose!" she famed out.
"No, you are mistaken: it's just the
other way around. told him what It
was for, hoping rather vaguely. think.
that he'd sit on me and make the crime
impossible. But he didn't. He took
the trouble to try to explain away my
scruples: made 1t seem quite virtu-
GUS thing before he got through. You
, wouldn't believe 1t now, would your"
but, Tom! you didn't take the mon
| ev2"