Los Angeles herald., 1910-12-11

In the dusk they were silent for several minutes.
Below the river slipped quietly by, with the lights
of a tow passing steamer making the surface
visible in streaks.
Joseph, I'll tell you a business secret l haven't
announced it formally as yet, but l have bought
build a quarry here I tired of loafng and
don't like the city any better than you do. This
is trap rock and it's worth ten cents cubic foot
now Would you like to work for me-
The glimnering stars seemed to dance, and the
moon, (which had just peeped over the river bank,
wonderfully bright. To Joseph the face OF the
"man in the moon" seemed to be in a broad sn,le.
He tried to speak, but his voice trembled Mr..
Morton put out his hand quickly
That's all right, Joe. Wen make start to-
morrow. There is plenty OF work to be done. and
it may be good chance for both OF us; There
isn't anything like this rock near New York for
railroads, streets, building and all sorts OF tounda-
tons"
Mr.. Morton told Joseph of the big crushers, of
the scows and the tug he would build OF the blasts
and the loading and measuring and all that night
Joseph's rang with the whrr of the machinery
and the crunching of the stone,
The responsibilities which were thrust upon Jo-
seph from the first enough to upset Mr.. Sea-
bury's theory of life, had not that gentleman been
firmly convinced that by no possible means could
any boy ever grow into useful manhood and reach
that goal of all worldly ambition, wealth. without
working tip from the bottom As It was he drew
up his horse day by the roadside office where
Joseph busy with his stone records In the
two years that had passed, Mr.. Morton's energy
had changed the wild. woodland shore into busy
quarry where great breakers took the stone that
was blasted from the cliff and mauled and pounded
it until the sifters had carried it away to the storing
bins to the at the dock. 1t was a busy
place and Joseph the busiest of all the people
there. He observing Mr.. Seabury'S rules, uncon
sciously-but he was doing much more He was
"Wel, Joseph, do they keep you busy" Mr.. Sea
bury asked
But before Joseph could answer Mr. Morton came
into the office with his easy swing
4 NJ h;-a !,
lad away from me?'
MIR. Scabury shifted for there was something in
the su2ye cqnddence OF Mr. Morton which neted 11s
climber He had not started at the bottom rung.
'Ill tell you what think, Morton think it's a
shame, yes, sir, crime, to spoil that boy You'll
make him conceited and he'll never be worth
penny. You'll spoil him"
Spoil him." echoed Mr. Morton, genially.
Yes, spoil him. said spoil him! You
spelling him now. He hasn't any ground work,
any underpinnng, and house that's mostly top
story won't stand very long"
Top stories very useful i'll modern business
Mr.. Morton replied with a smile, and deliberately
turned to Joseph. Mr.. Seabury drove away in dis
gust
Joseph can you get out ten thousand feet of
stone week with this machinery"
could arrange ' for mornSg Blast doing the drill
ing at night and keep all the grinders busy day and
night"
"Theres big contract in the air Just now which
we might get l am afraid we won't though, for
our rivals are getting anxious to make start But
we've got to try for it..
They couldn't begin to do that" Joseph answer
ed They are not nearly ready to commence cut
ting"
Il know. but they think they are and am afraid
going to New York about it tomorrow to the
governing board. You and bennett can pay off the
men,"
And so it had been from the start. Far from
gauging Joseph boy, Mr. Morton had accepted
do this or that, but always told him to go ahead,
Just if there not the slightest shadow of
doubt And, like quick. level-headed boys every
where, Joseph equal to what he was asked to
do From the very first he had been Mr.. Morton's
right hand man in the details of records and ship
ments and Joseph's opinion had often been asked.
But the events of the day fell out otherwise than
Mr.. Morton had planned. He meant to go TO
New York by the evening train but lie did not
ankle sharply that the grinding pain would not
leave him. So instead Of his flyer to New York TO
meet the directors OF his new railroad, he dragged
himself to a couch and lay there in great agony for
hour. When the doctor had eased the pain
bit, Mr.. Morton's mind snapped back to business
He sent for Joseph.
"Joseph, have an important appointment in New
York tomorrow and the doctor says | can't go.
I shall have to send you down" g.
And he outlined the details Of the big contract
which he had hoped to make. But you'll find COM
petition Schwartz Bros. will sell their stone at
below cost to cut us out and get their plant going
And I think Dean Z Wentworth will offer it at
pretty close prices. The job at fair price, means
all the stone we can turn out of the larger sizes,
"And one thing Seabury is director. He
ought to be friendly to our town, but l am afraid
deal though, and we need his influence"
Joseph sent his card in to the meeting Of the
Railroad Directors with good deal of rumpus
going on under his coat He saw big, heavy
faced German come out, smingly, with his coun-
terpart behind him, and he guessed that these were
e he knew % be Mr. 1s a e on and @ en
came his turn. The President OF the railroad was
away and Mr.. Seabury had been chosen that day
-, -11,,s JIo ~1r-I, %t,o
opened, expecting Morton to follow the card OF
The Morton Trap Rock Co. You could have
knocked him from his chair with feather duster
when Joseph entered and stood hesitatingly by the
door Joseph slender clean limbed boy with
face that was wideawake and eyes that seemed
to see everything There other directors who
looked up in surprise when Mr.. Seabury exclaimed:
"Why Joseph, where's Mr. Morton?"
Joseph had been wondering whether his throat
would let word out edgewise. He gained courage
when his voice served him in his explanation. Mr..
Seabury tapped his pencil in evident yexation. So