Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1916-03-31

1elt assured Oh. Dut $500
ences must be at work against him.
He suspected Capelle, still a board
member and a continual intriguer.
Capelle was a master worker In I'M
derground effects and besides being
Seagrue's own attorney, was himself
heavily interested in opposing enter
prises of the Coast line. To throttle
Rhinelander in the construction effort
begun by Helen's own father before
his death, was to advance his own in
terests as well as those of his client.
R~hinelander's decision as to what
must be done to meet this opposition
was prompt.
He consulted a timetable, called his
foreman, asked for a man to carry his
handbags to the station and began
changing his clothes for a trip.
Not far away, and at about the same
time, Seagrue was reading his W
mail. It contained this note:
Unsuccessful report concerning
pass submitted. Persuaded hackers
to withdraw support on the first.
This will stop operation ON Rhineland-
er's cutoff, as we know he cannot
produce survey. CAPELLE."
In Seagrue's hut a party Of newspa-
per men from Oceanside were waiting
to be taken on an inspection trip over
the construction.
I'm ready for you, boys" said Sea-
grue, In high spirits, to the journalists.
"Well look over the work near here
first" he announced, ripping open a
box of cigars.
Hold it, Mr.. Seagrue," cried a cam
era man, focusing IN the manager.
I'VE want you, first, right there where
you are, at your desk. Hold it,"
The picture was taken, a copy prom
Used to Seagrue within an hour and the
party started out. Had he left his hut
two minutes earlier he might have
seer Amos Rhinelander, followed by
Seagrue's own Spike with Rhineland-
er's bags, entering the waiting room
door of Signal station.
Helen, looking up from her table,
perceived R~hinelander's anxiety re-
fiected in his manner.
bad news, Helen" he said, plung-
ing at once into the unpleasant sub
ject. 81 am on my way to Oceanside,"
he added, when she had read Bowers
note. 1.-THE directors meet tonight.
Someone is trying to undermine us.
But whether I succeed in changing
their views or not, I'm going to fight
if l have to fight all night"
Helen was too upset to speak for a
minute. For her, SO much depended
on the success of her W road in
reaching the mountains with a cutoff
first. Rhinelander, worried though
he was, tried to cheer her up. Spike
outside, listening, gathered that Rhine.
lander was, on his way to the city.
He hung around the platform till the
local passenger pulled in, watched
Rhinelander board it., and, mingling
with S%eagrue's men, walked unob-
served over to the latter's camp. He
found his boss with the journalists.
What is it?' demanded Seagrue,
seeming news in Spikes appearance.
"Rhinelander has just gone to
Oceanside.".
Seagrue smiled. did he get a let
ter this morning?"
He did"
Their confab was broken in on by
n of the newspaper men who had a
print of the photo he had taken of
Seagrue at his desk. Seagrue inspect
ed this with the greatest pleasure.
"Fine!" he exclaimed. Good pic
turei"
A whimsical idea seized him. He
wrote a word or two across the back
of the print and recalled Spike. Take
this over to Helen Holmes. Give it
to her with my compliments" So
saying he turned to the photographer.
Spikes reception at the station was
always a chilly one. This time Helen
took his message and dismissed him
before she opened the envelope. When
she saw what Seagrue had sent she
vas angry. Her first impulse was to
tear the hateful print in two. In
stead, she contemptuously impaled it
on a steel file near at hand. A mo-
ment later, removing the print to file
a message, she looked at the picture
again. Her attention was attracted
TO a paper lying on Seagrue's desk.
1t had been caught by the camera
lens. The longer she looked the more
carefully her eyes fixed on this OBJ
iect revealed in the photograph. Very
curious now, Helen opened a drawer,
took from it a reading glass and
studied the contents of S%eagrue's
desk. Her heart almost stopped beat
Ing as she realized that her suspicious
must be correct. With the aid of the
ordinary glass she could plainly see
the survey that had been stolen from
her fathers library.
Helen locked toward Seagrue's
camp. 1t was there even now, and if
she could ecove the precious find it
was not too late to save her own in
terests as we'll as those of her own