Evening star., 1916-03-26

EN-. They re sol don't know Just what
it is-there's something big and free
spoken about them. | tell you, theyv
got the spirit of progress. | can see that"
Mr.. Tibb's declaration was amply JUS
titled by the automobile trip they made
that afternoon in and about the flourish
ing metropolis. Whatever else might be
said about Empire City, the progressive
spirit was apparent.
The actual city was rather disappoint-
ing to Mr.. Tibb. His shrewd Vermont
eye, immune from the effervescent en-
thusiasm of the natives, could see in the
collection of two-story brick and con-
crete business buildings and in the hastily
constructed cellarless dwellings only
half-baked village, a city yet to be. Mr.
Tibb had not been a grocer for nothing.
Ne saw that Empire City was a hope
rather than an achievement, He COM
puted the chances, as he leaned back luXu-
riously in the upholstery of the car, of a
grocery in Empire City; and his un-
spoken conclusion was that he would
rather conduct store in Boxton, where
the sky might possibly not pe cloudless
and azure, but where the patronage would
be greater and more certain.
THEY rode out to the city boundaries
so far as Empire City had any bound
aries. The engineering plans were perfect.
The streets We're all laid out; the land had
all been plotted and subdivided, and there
We're miles of asphalt sidewalks. Nothing
was lacking to make it a populous munici-
pality except houses and people. Here
and there, peeping up on the landscape
as if rashly emerging from the expanse of
ground, was a dwelling.
"What did you say the population is?"
asked MIR. Tibb, leaning over the drivers
shoulder.
Population has increased four hundred
per cent. in the last year." was the reply.
But, | mean, what is it now?" per-
sisted the merciless grocer.
The face of Mr. Noorhis was slightly
saddened at this unreasonable insistence
upon eXacttude; but he replied manfuly:
ave call it seven hundred"
"Seven hundred repeated Mr.. Tibb
to his wife. And they We got it laid out
for seven million! | tell you, Jennie, if
Boxton had the git-up-and-gt that these
folks have. it would amount to something"
He llDDS lldu stOppeu Ol III EH pre-
City quite by accident. Mrs. Tibb had
declared herself worn out by travelling
She had announced that she could not
possibly spend another night in Pullman
sleeper.
"lf Id had any idea that we'd have to go
to bed in public, she said, you'd never
have caught me leaving Boxton, Joel"
But Mr.. Tibb considered that it was no
less than some mysterious guiding power
that had sent them to Empire City. A
tremendous scheme was taking shape in
his brain. OF this scheme he said nothing
to his wife. But in the next three days
every waking moment was crammed with
activity for the BoXton grocer. He went
everywhere; saw everything; talked with
everybody; and everywhere he heard the
same question: "Eiave you met Starr"
Obviously Starr was Empire City, and
Empire City was Starr. People spoke of
this extraordinary man with certain
accent of finality that left no doubt in
the grocer's mind, of STAIRS Importance.
Even the hamboyant Mr.. Voorhis, who
evidently had no mean estimation of HIM
self, invariably shook his head at the deeper