The Emmett index. [volume] (Emmett, Idaho) 1893-1925, 1916-03-23
THE CITY OF NUM-
BERED DAYS
Continued from preceding page)
town contradicting the rumorw

town contradicting the rumor%
oWhy should you? It's true. The
congressional party will be here next
week. and nobody has made any secret
of it."
"Still, might have been taken in,
persisted Brouillard suayely. You'll
surely want to give me my instruc-
tions a little beforehand, won't you?
Just think how easily things might get
tangled Suppose / should say to some
body-to Garner, for example-that
the town was hugely mistaken; that
no congressional committee had ever
been appointed; that these gentlemen
who are about to visit US are mere
complaisant friends of yours, coming
as your guests, on a junketing trip at
your expense. Wouldn't that be rather
awkward"
The mayor of Mirapolis brought his
hands together, fist in palm, and for a
fitting instant the young engineer saw
in the face of the father the same ex-
preston that he had seen in the face
of the son when Van Bruce Cartwright
was struggling for second chance to
kill a man.
Damn you!" said the magnate say
agely; you always know too muchl
You're bargaining with mel"
well, you have bargained with me,
first, last and all the time" was the
cool retort "On each occasion l have
had my price, and you have paid it.
Now you are going to pay it again.
Shall go over to the Spotlight Office
and tell Harlan what l know"
"You can't bluff me that way, Brouil-
lard, and you ought to sense it by this
time. Do you suppose l don't know
how you are fixed?-that you've got
money-money that you used TO say
you owed somebody else-tied up in
Mirapolis investments?"
Brouillard rose and buttoned his
coat.
There is one weak link in your
chain, Mr. Cartwright" he said even
ly; you don't know men. Put on your
coat and come over to Harlan's Office
with me. 1t will take Just about two
minutes to satisfy you that I'm not
bluffing"
For a moment it appeared that the ]
offer was to be accepted. But when /
he had one arm in coat sleeve, !
Brouillards antagonist in the game of |
hardihood changed his tactics.
Forget it," he growled morosely. |
What do you want this time?"
Il want you to send wire to Red /
Butte telling the smelter people that
you will be glad to have them handle
the Little Susan ore"
And if l do?"
IF you do, two things otherwise due
to happen adversely will go over to
your side of the market. I'll agree to
keep out of the way of the sham Wash.
ington delegation, and l think l can
promise that Harlan won't make a
scarehead of the facts concerning the
Coronida land titles"
Mr.. Cartwright thrust the other arm
into the remaining coat sleeve and
scowled. But the rebound to the norm
of brusque good nature came almost
Immediately.
You are improving wonderfully,
Brouillard, and that's no joke. l have
a large respect for a man who can out
bid me in my own corner. You ought
to be in business-and you will be,
some time. I'll send the wire, but !
warn you in advance that can't make
the smelter people take Massingale's
ore If they don't want to- All can do
is to give the old man free field"
That is all he will ask-all I'll ask.
except one small personal favor: Don't
rub your masquerading Washington
delegation into me too hard. A fine
quality of noninterference is about all
you are buying from me-"
Tell me one thing, Brouillard:
What is your stake in the Massingale
game? Are you silent partner in the {
Little Susan'?" {
NO"
Then why are you so anxious to |
make old David a rich man at my ex- '
pense? Are you going to marry the
grip"
The engineer did not resent the ques- I
ton as he would have resented it a q
few weeks earlier. Instead he smiled l
and said; "A little while ago, Mr.. l
Cartwright, l told you that you didn't q
know men; now I'll add that you don't Q
know women" S
CONTINUED NEXT WEEK) Z