The Dermott news., 1917-08-23

ranks, would have chafed against the position of subordnation and would have resented the humble duties with which he was charged. But Meade was happy to be following, even in this extremely modest way. the profession 1 that he loved. And he did his unim- portant work with zeal and care. It is not much to say, but he was the most efficient of the junior engineering force on the dam.
 It was not because Meade was un- social that he kept to himself-not at all. From his own galyanlzed-iron quarters he used to stare lonsingly at the men grouped around the big camp 1 fires, for the nights were growing chill, smoking and laughing, exchanging ex- perienees and telling stories. Nothing would have pleased him better than to have joined in. and he could have told stories and related experiences that would have been unique even In that gay crowd of young adventurers. But he did not dare. He feared to betray himself What he wanted above ev- erythlng was to preserve his ineognito. It would be fatal to his chances of ever working up to anything worth while If they found out who he was.
 And he had tremendous pride to sustain him. They respected him now. As n matter of fact, they put his with drawai of himself down to vagaries of temperament or causes they could not imagine and they grew rather to like him even as they left him alone. And few of the men of the humber sort | to whom he had been kind on occasion, and helpful. were stoutly devoted to him.
 The idlenesS of m aimless life did not appeal to him even in his of-duty periods Doing nothing had nc attrac- tion. He could not get relief that way. Even rambling alone about the hills would not serve. So quick and active man, so vigorous and buoyant a | spirit. so strong body and mind were not calculated for aimess wandering
 Meade was very accomplished en- l gineer indeed. There was no branch of the art about which he did not know little, although hydraulics and struc- 1 tural steel were the things that most appealed to him. He got relief in the duality of his affections for these branches of his profession. Neither one of them ever palled on him because he did not work monotonously at either of them. He had q natural instinct for ! topography, and instead of purpose lessly strolling about the country, he made careful inspection of the valley which was to be converted into huge reservoir by the dam.
 The dam itself was, perhaps. an eighth of mile long Ut the bottom and 1 touched the recedlng hill on one side and the spur of Spanish mesa on the other at the top-a huge mound of earth with clay core extending from side to side at the narrowest part of ! the valley. When completed it would l be 125 feet high above the old river bed. with roadway 20 feet broad on l top of 1t. Below the dam and on the | low ground between the mesa and Baldwin's knob the camp, with it's gal vanized iron shops, bunkhouses. dining 1 halls, kitchens and officers quarters, had been erected. The confguration of the ground was such that, although it was unusual to put them there. con venience had rendered it desirable in this case.
 It was intended to complete the dam before the early spring of next year, l yhiah if fimn In tho country could be so characterized, the rainy season. Of course, just as soon as the dam had begun to rise, the flow of the Picket Wire below 1t had been stopped, except when an occasional freshet had been allowed to pass the undersluice. It was known that the run-off of the river In the rainy season of some years was so small as scarcely to fill the res ervoir, and 1t had been decided to store all the flow of the autumn and winter so that even if the spring rainy season
 were deficient, the beginning of the next summer would find the reservoir full and the new irrigation systeU
 fullys
 Vandeventer, like the lost Abbott of
 the International. was also driver,
 who spared neither his men nor him-
 self The work had proceeded with as-
 tonishing rapidity, although this was partially accounted for by the fact
 that the spillway. which should have
 occupied their attention, had as yet