Evening capital news. (Boise, Idaho) 1901-1927, 1917-10-02
TOO MUCH
EFFICIENCY
A CLEVER SERIAL STORY.
BY e. J. RATH.
Author of When the Devil Was
Sick" One Cylinder' SAM" etc.
CHAPTER III (Continued,

ner closely, then Billy. Mr.. Hedge
brought up in the rear. making swift
note of his surroundings and occa-
sionally frowning slightly.
The dining room in the Brooke man.
sion was all that Fifth avenue dining
room should be. 1t was almost a BAN
quet hall. Mr.. Brooke had paneled it
In walnut because he could easily af-
ford to; he had placed no check upon
his architect, either in this or any 9TH
er apartment under his roof,
The family table, always employed
when there were no guests, seemed abb
surdly small in the great room. It was
not placed in the center, but drawn
close to an open fireplace, wherein n
few logs of high priced driftwood. were
burning with strange flames of green
and blue and yellow.
1t was quite a long walk to the ia
bic, and the procession moved in sin
gle file, Mr.. Hedges active glance fit
ting from side to side. Even Horace,
the butler, from his place behind Con-
stances chair, could discern that the
stranger was completely at ease. He
neither hurried nor loitered: he did not
carry his hands in his pockets nor rub
his nose furtively, nor straighten his
tie. He moved as nonchalantly toward
the table as John w. Brooke himself.
My fathers chair" said Constance
with brief gesture.
Mr.. Hedge seated himself in it,A
You may serve dinner, Horace"
murmured Constance.
yes, Miss Brooke" and Horace,
wrenching his glance from the face of
the stranger, disappeared on his err
rand.
There was half minute of silence
broken only by an embarrassed cough
from Billy. Then Mr.. Hedge spoke.
Now that we've all plunged in, the
water isn't so cold, after all, is it?"
The three Brookes looked at him
sharply and with obvious surprised
faces. Constance and her brother ex-
changed fleeing chances. Alice pursed
her lips. The observation had sounded
rather human, quite different from the
Hedge of the library. He was smiling,
too.
You see," he continued easily the
first shock was not in the fact that /
arrived on the scene, but in the fact
that your father didn't"
Constance was not wholly sure of
this.
Il can readily understand your sur
PRISE" said Mr.. Hedge. 1T Is entirely |
natural. We are all more or less crea-
lures of surprise. But surprises are
not necessarily unpleasant or attended |
by any unfortunate consequences"
Constance made note of the fact |
that the stranger thought well of him
self
I'm simply your fathers agent for q
short time. I've no doubt in the world
that you will all take keen interest
in the experiment as soon as the ma
ture of it is clear to you."
Experiment! The Brookes look ed in
terested. What sort of an experiment?
But if Mr.. Hedge was aware Of the
interest he did not at that time crafty
Instead, he branched off
into things that were quite irrelevant,
things that ordinary folks talk about.
He was rather good talker, yet he
did not do all the talking. He man
aged to lead the Brookes into 1t, and
they found themselves con-
versing with this strange person as
though he were actually a familiar
Of the household.
Still mystified beyond measure at the
extraordinary disappearance of Brooke,
senior, the younger Brookes, with the
inevitable viewpoint of youth, did not
fail to perceive the element of adven-
ture.
They were still shocked, but no long
er alarmed. The appeal of novelty was
not lost upon them. Perhaps it was
really joke, after all; perhaps Father
Brooke was hiding behind the door,
laughing at them and ready to pop into
the room as hilarious climax. AS for
Hedge himself, even Constance, who
had well developed streak of caution,
was beginning to admit that he might
not prove so utterly impossible as his
abrupt introduction had presaged.
More than once Alice found herself
laughing at his remarks.
Dinner was proceeding with aston
Ishing ease. Billy had thawed to the
point where he took up his favorite
amusement Of teasing his sisters.
by the way. Connie" he asked.
have you dads letter there?"
She produced the letter, and her
brother read 1t with solemn face.
a.'Down here 1t says, Treat him as
you would me-" quoted Billy.
There was a look of quiet amusement
IN Hedges face.
We'll, why don't you. ConnieT" de-
handed her brother.
Il don't quite understand" she
,tammered.
There was a flush in her cheeks,
partly anger, partly confusion. Some
hing was coming, she knew; she could
iave annihilated her brother.
Don't understand" echoed the de-
non. We'll, you know how you al
ways treated father when he sat down
It the table,"
Constance was blushing furiously. OF
course she knew! 1t was her invari-
lble custom to kiss John w. Brooke on