Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1910-11-11
CHAPTER l.

Receiver at ear, Spaulding OF
Messrs. Atwater & Spaulding, import
ers of motoring garments and acces-
sories, listened to the switchboard
operators announcement with grave
attention acknowledging it with
toneless "An right; send him IN.
Then. hooking up the desk telephone,
he swung round in his chair to face
the door of his private office and in
brief ensuing interval painstakingly
ironed out of his face and attitude eV-
erv indication of the frame of mind IN
which he awaited his caller. 1t was,
as a matter of fact, anything but
pleasant one. He had a distastetul
duty to perform, but that was the last
thing he designed to become evident.
Like most good business men, ne
nursed a pet superstition or two, ana
of the number of these the first was
that he must in all his dealings pre-
sent an inscrutable front, like poker
players. Captains of industry were
uniformly like that. Spaulding under
StOOu. IL lllCN SllNSA NehiAiNN
was strictly in private.
Occasionally this attitude deceived
others. Notably now it bewlldered
Duncan as he entered on the echo OF
Spaulding's "Come!" He had appre-
hended the visage of a thunderstorm
with a rattle of brusque complaints.
He encountered Spaulding as he had
always seemed-a little, urbane figure
with a blank face, the blanker 1or
glasses whose lenses seemed always
to catch the light and, glaring, mask
the eyes behind them; prosperous
man of affairs, well groomed both as
to body and as to mind, a machine
for the transaction of business with
all machines vivacity and tempera-
mental responsiveness. 1t was just
that quality in him that Duncan en-
We'd, who was vaguely impressed that
if he himself could initiate, however
minutely. the phlegm of a machine he
might learn to ape something Of its
efficiency and so ultimately prove him.
self of some worth to the world and
incidentally to Nathaniel Duncan.
Good afternoon, Mr.. Spaulding," he
said, replying to a nod as he dropped
into the chair that nod had indicated.
A faint smile lightened his expression
and made it quite engaging.
cd afternoon" Spaulding survey
ed him swiftly, then laced his fat little
fingers and contemplated them with
detached intentness. Just get in,
Duncan"
"On the $50 from Chicago. l got
your WIRE" he resumed. Il mean IT
got me-overtook me at Minneapolis"
You haven't wasted time"
'I fancied the matter might be ur-
gent. sir 1 gathered from the fact
that you wired me to come home that
YOU wanted my advice"
A second time Spaulding gestured
with his eyebrows, for once fairly sur
prised out of his pose. Your advice?'
Yes" said Duncan evenly, las to
whether you ought to give up your
customers on my route or send them a
man who could sell goods
"Wen?" Spaulding admitted.
"Oh, don't think I'm boasting of my
acuteness. Anybody could have guess
ed as much from the great number OF
heavy orders l have not been sending
you"
you've had bad luck"
You mean you have, Mr.. Spaulding
1t was good luck for me to be draw
ing down my weekly checks. bad luck
to YOU not to have a man who could
earn them"
His desperate honesty touched
Spaulding a trifle. At the risk of not
seeming a business man to himself he
inclined obviously to relent, to give
Duncan another chance.
Duncan" he said, what's the trou-
ble?"
Il thought you knew that; | thought
that was why YOU called me il with
my route half covered"
You mean
Il mean l can't sell your line"
why"
God only knows. want to badly
enough. It's just general incompe-
tenCe. | presume"
What makes you think that"
Duncan smiled bitterly. "EXperi-
ence." he said
'YOu've tred-what else?"
A little of everything. all the jobs
open to a man with a knowledge OF
Latin and Greek and the higher
hcmatics-shipping clerk, time
keeper. cashier. all of EN-"
And yet Kellogg believes in YOU"
Duncan nodded dolefully. "Harry's
a good friend. We roomed together at
college. That's why ne stands for
me-"