The Meridian times. (Meridian, Idaho) 1909-1938, 1914-10-30
CHAPTER XIV.


Then began what promised to be.
come q rake'e progress. Mark sought
out new companions and got himself
invited 10 join their reyels. He tried
hard. at first recklessiy, then deter
minedly and then wistfully to enter
into the spirit OF dissipation. The at
tempt wan d nat failure. The thor
ouxhgoing habit or mind that looked
unerrtngly for the last result saw
through at once to the dregs IN the
cup. Ills companions privately laughed
a. the spectacle OF this hard serious
man awkwardly essaylng the role Of
devil OF fellow; but for the humor
he thus unwittingly provided they
would soon have got rid OF him as a
death's-head at their feasts. He sue
ceeded only In stlll further impaIring
his health, In acquiring bad taste
IN the mouth and relaxing all along
the line his habit OF rigid abstemious-
ness.
After few months he returned to
the old routine.
II hear" Henley interrupted con-
suitation one day TO remark, you've
been sowing wild oats. Got EN- all
harvegtedG'
Mark nodded. grinning sheepishiy.
Crops In the barn--and for sale
cheap. agree with the prophet that
sIl is vanity
What made you do It?''
u don't know. To sec what it's
Ike. guess. But didn't have the
knack OF IT,
Trouble at home thought Henley |
shrewdly.
Aloud he said Il imagine not You'd |
better stick to business. where you |
1T in"
= sometimes think that's all vanity. |
too.
AZ least we have something to be |
vain over, And on the whole there's |
more romance in making steel than ia
helping 70 support the Tenderloin.n
Mark made a gesture OF disgust.
After frowning pause. he answered:
II don't know. The trouble is, I've /
lost the romantic point OF view. To
me the business is nothing but a
moneymaking machine now-and
something to do. wonder why we
work 50 hard to get money we don't
need. We get no good out OF it. Tim.
othy Woodhouse gets more pleasure
out Ct HIS flying machines that won't
n.y.
Just wait, said Henley dryly, .un.
I'll somebody tries to take II away from
you Nearly every man OF unusual VI.
taiity goes sooner or later through
the stage OF questioning the existing
scheme OF things. Things are. ID all
the answer he gets. The sooner he
quits asking questions, the better for
his peace OF mind"
They returned to the matter In hand
which was the fleeing of Timothy
Woodhouse.
No one would have been more sur
prtsed than Timothy to learn that he
had any fleece worthy OF the atten-
ton Of such shearers as Henley and
Truitt. But years before I.ochinyar
had come out OF the West with stock
10 sell in the Iroquois Iron ore Min.
ing. Development L TRANSFORMATION
company. He had gifted tongue. He
feNA ~ 80 AAn 1MA place.. "a FlGDGT
and doubtless wiser man, having
received a profitable lesson In the
eredulity Of his fellows. Later inspec-
ton revealed that the long-named
eompany's properties consisted Of an
immense field Of admittedly good ore.
but its development work only of the /
extraction of the sample so proudly 1
exhibited by the promoter and its /
transportation facilities Of a franchise |
70 build a railroad through 300 miles |
Of wilderness. II those days the build |
ing Of railroads was not lightly under. |
taken The investment seemed 70 fail
short Of Loeninvar,s prospectus
Naturally" Timothy once said rue
fully. Since invested
But time had come when makers |
81 steel began to operate on larger
scale and TO lock far ahead into the
future. The MzcGFegor company cor
eejved the pro1eet 81 buying that ore
kesa and building that railroad. 1t
81 aeoee& secretly and iessprely pick