Ceredo advance. [volume] (Ceredo, W. Va.) 1885-1939, 1914-12-23
CHAPTER discontinued.

RATHER idly. now. he drew a pad TO-
ward him and. taking up a pencil
made the figures seventeen and TWEEN
fy-seven. Then he made the figures
fhirty-two and forty-two. He black
-ened them with repeated tracings as
ne mused. This done, he put seven.
teen under twenty-seven and thirty.
two under forty-two. He made the
subtraction and studied the two tens.
A swing door opened softly and his
executive clerk reappeared with soft
stread
Some papers for your signature.
'sir. he said as he slipped them on the
Iolotter In front OF Westerling: And
the l32d-no order about that, sir?"
the asked.
None. 1t remains!" Westerling re-
piled.
Tho clerk went out impressed. His
chief taking to sums of subtraction
and totally preoccupied The 132d to
remain! He, too. had questionmar
in his secret mind.
Westerling proceeded with his math-
'ematics. Having heavily shaded the
tens. he essayed a sum in division. He
FOUND that ten went into seventy Just
seven times.
One-seventh the allotted span of
Hfe! he unused. Take off fifteen
years for youth and fifteen after fifty
hve-nobody counts after that, though
mean to-and you have ten into
forty. which is one-fourth. That is a
good deal But it's more to a woman
tnan 10 man-yes. a lot more to a
woman than to a mani"
The clerk was right in thinking
Westerling preoccupied: but it was
not with the international crisis Over
MS coffee the name of Miss Marta Gal
iand. In the list of arrivals at a hotel.
had caught his eye in the morning pa.
per. A note to her had brought an
answer, saying that her time was lin.
Hed. but she would be glad to have
him call at five that afternoon.
Westerling realized that the oues
ZION or marriage as social REQUIRE
ment might arise when he should be-
come officially chief of staff with the
retirement OF His Excellency the field
marshal. For the present he enjoyed
mis- position as a bachelor who was
much to think OF marriage.
II was little surprising that the
bell that the girl OF seventeen had
rung In his secret mind when he was
on one Of the first rounds OF the lad
der. now lost in the mists OF a lower
stratum OF existence. should ever
tinkle again Yet he had heard its
note in the tone of her prophecy with
sach step in his promotion: and while
the other people whom he had known
at La Tir were the vaguest shadows of
personalities, her picture was as def
mite in detail as when she said You
have the will! You have the ambi-
tion!' She had recognized in him the
power that he felt; foreseen his ascent
20 the very apex Of the pyramid. She
was still unmarried, which was
strange; for she had not been bad
looking and she was OF n fine old fam
lily. What was she like now Com
monplace and provincial. most likely.
Many OF the people he had known in
mis- early days appeared so when he
met them again. But, at the worst. he
looked for an interesting halfhour.
The throbbing activity of the streets
of the capital. as his car proceeded on
the way to her hotel. formed an ener
getlc accompaniment to his gratifying
backward survey OF how all his plans
had worked out from the very day OF
the prophecy. Had no heard the re
mark of a great manufacturer to the
banker at his side in a passing Iimnus-
Inc. There goes the greatest captain
OF Industry OF Us ALL" Westerling
would only have thought. Certainly
am chief OF star am AZ the head
Of all your wOrkmen at one time or
another" Had he heard the bankers
answer. But pretty poor pay. pretty
small dividendsi" he would have
thought, Splendid dividends the diu-
bends OF power"
lie had a caste contempt for the men
OF commerce. with their mercenary
talk about credit and market prices.
and also for the scientists. doctors. en-
gineers. and men Of other professions.
who spoke OF things In books which
ne did not understand Reading books
was one OF the faults OF Turcas. his as-
sistant. No bOokish soldier ne knew
had ever been n great general Tie re-
scented the growing power OF these
leaders Of the civil world. taking dis
tinCtiOn away from the military. even
when. az a man OF parts. he had %
court their influence. Ills was the
profession that was and ever should
be the elect A penniless subaltern
was a gentleman. while he could never
think OF a man In business as one.
All the faces In the street belonged
90 a strange. busy world outside his In
, terest and thoughts They formed
what was known as the public. often
making clatter. about things which