Middletown transcript., 1915-11-06

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of relief
Hello, Alllson.' called the Hearty
voice of Jim Sargent You're looking
like youngster tonight
81 feel like one" replied Allison
smiling. I'm on vacation" He was
either vain enough or curious enough
to glance at himself in the big mirror
as he passed it. He did look younger;
astonishingly so; and he had about him
a quality of lightness which made him
restless. He had been noted among
his business associates for certain
dry wit, scathing, satirical relentless;
now he used that quality agreeably'
and when Lucille and Ted, and Arly
and Dick Rodley Joined them, he was
quite easily a sharer in the gayety. At
the theater he was the same. He par
ticipated in all the repartee during the
intermissions, and the fact that he
found Gail studying him, now and then,
only gave him an added impulse. He
was frank with himself about Gail. He
wanted her, and he had made up his
mind to have her. He was himself a
little surprised at his own capacity of
entertainment, and when he parted
from Gail at the Sargent house, he
left her smiling, and with softer look
in her eyes than he had yet seen there.
Immediately on his return to his
library, Allison threw of his coat and
waistcoat, collar and tie, and sat al
the table.
What is there in the icebox?" he
wanted to know.
well, sir" enumerated Ephraim
carefully; "Mirandy had a chicken
potpie for dinner, and then there's"
THAT will do; cold" interrupted AL
lison. Bring it here with as few
service things as possible, bottle OF
Vichy and some olives"
He began to set down some figures
and when Ephraim came, shaking his
head to himself about such things as
cold dumplings at night, Allison
stopped for ten minutes, and lunched
with apparent relish. At seven-thirty
} he called Ephraim and ordered a cold
plunge and some breakfast. He had
been up all night, and on the map oi
the United States there were penciled
: two thin straight black lines, one from
New York to Chicago, and one from
Chicago to San Francisco. Crossing
them, and paralleling them, and an
Cling in their general direction, but
quite close to them in the main, were
lines of green and lines of orange;
these three.
. Another day and another night he
! spent with his maps, and his books
l and his figures; then he went to his
broker with list of railroads.
l "Get me what stock you can o.
: these" he directed Pick it up al
3 quietly as possible"
J. The broker looked them over RnC
. elevated his eyebrows. There wal
9 not a road in the list which was i'm
4 portant strategically, but he hat
s ceased to ask questions of Edward
0 Allison.
t Three days later Allison went int
3 the annual stockholders meeting o
r the L. and c. railroad, and registered
d majority of the stock in that insig
nifcant line, which ran up the short
e opposite Crescent island, Joined thu
8 Towando Valley shortly after its emeT
r gence from its hired entrance int
d New York, ran for fifty miles over th'
n roadway of the Towando, with whicl
It 1t had longtime tracking contract
e and wandered up into the country
), where it served as an outlet to ceI
d tain conservatively profitable terri
d tory.
e The president reached for his gave
r. and called the meeting. The stock
d holders, gray and grave, and som
/; with watery eyes, drew up their chair
s. to the long table; for they were direC
r tors, too. They answered to thei
r. names, and they listened to the mir
e utes, and waded mechanically througl
3, the routine business, always with thei
n gaze straying to the new force whicl
l. had come among them. Every mai
It there knew all about Edward e. ALI
It son. He had combined the traction in
If terests of New York by methods a
logical and unsympathetic as geon
d etry, and where he appeared, no mai
ter how pacific his avowed intentions
b. there were certain to be radical VI
heavings.
u Election Of officers was reached il
f. the routine, and again that solemn in
quiry in the faded eyes. The 'ofhcia
of slate" was proposed in nomination
Edward e. Allison voted with the rest
d, Every director was reelected
'r New business. Again the solem
10 inquiry.
Move to amend Article Three, SeC
N ton One Of the constitution, relatin
ID to duration of Office" announced All
IL son, passing the written motion to tn
ID secretary. "On call from the majol
IN ity of stock. the stockholders of tn
"a L. and c. railroad have a right t
ly demand a special meeting. on on
weeks notice, for the purpose of It
ut organization and reelection"
Id They knew 1t. 1t had to come.
a Edward E. Allison waited just Ion
at enough to vote his majority stock, an
n left the meeting in a hurry, for h
n. had an engagement to take tea wit
Is Gail Sargent.
Id CTo BE CoNTINUED)
10
er Fools ofttimes rush in and wi
xe while wise men investigate