Western liberal. (Lordsburg, N.M.) 1887-1919, 1917-11-30

broken clothes had been exchanged for
working khaki, with lace-bOOts and leg
gings, and the campaign hat Of the en-
gineers. Though he had been less than
a month on the Job, he was already be-
ginning to tan and tougher under the
healthy outdoor work-to roughept %
well, bis late fellow members 81 the
Lawreheevilie Cotlilon club might have
said, since he had fought three pitched
battles with as many Of the camp bull.
lies, and had in each Of them proved
himself q man of his hands who could
not only take punishment, but could
hammer an opponent swiftly and neat,
ly into my desired state OF subsection.
"Come in here and sit down; I want
to talk to you," was the way Williams
begun It; and after Smith had found
a chair the chief went on "Say, Smith,
you're too good a man for anything I've
got for you here. Haven't you realized
that2"
Smith pulled n memorandum book
from his hip pocket and ran his eye
over the private record he had been
keeping.
"Tve shown you how to effect a few
little savings which total up something
like 10 per cent of your cost Of produce
ton and operation" he said. Don't
Son think I'm earning my wagesY,
That's al right; I've been keeping
tab, too, and l know what you're do
Ing. But you are not beginning to earn
what you ought to, either for yourself
or the company" put in the chief
shrewdly. And then: Loosen up,
Smith, and tell me something about
yourself. Who are you, and where do
you come from, and what sort of a job
have you been holding DOWN."
Smiths reply was as surprising as II
was seemingly Irrelevant.
"If you're not too busy, Mr.. Williams,
I guess you'd better make out my time
check" he said quietly.
81 suppose by that you mean that
you'll quit before you will consent to
open up on your recordT" he assumed.
You've guessed It," said the man
who had sealed the book of his pnst.
Again Williams took a little time. II
was dlscouraging to have his own and
the c%olonel's prefgurlngs as to Smiths
probable state and standing so prompt
ly verified.
II suppose you know the plain infer
ence you're leaving, when you shy a
thing like that2"
Smith made the sign of assent. 1T
leaves you entirely at liberty to finish
out the story to suit yourself" he adj
mitted, adding: 1.-THE back numbers
my back numbers--nre my own, Mr..
Williams. I've kept a file of them, as
everybody does, but 1 don't have to
produce It on request"
"Of course, there's nothing compul-
sorry about your producing 1t. But I'M
less you are what they call in this
country q crooked crook, you are
standing in your own light. You have
such a staving good head for figures
and finances that 1t seems a pity for
you to be wasting 1t here on an under
graduates job in c~ost-cuttlng. Any
young fellow Just out Of a technical
school could do what you're doing in
the way Of pairing down expenses"
The c~ost-cutter's smile was mildly
incredulous.
Nobody seemed to be doing 1t be-
fore 4 came" he offered.
mo" williams allowed, that's the
fact. To tell the plain truth, we've hat
bigger things to wrestle with and we
have them yet, for that matter-enougl
Of them to go all around the job twice
and tie In q bOwknot."
"Finances2" querled Smith, feellnl
some Of the back-number instincts stir
ring within him.
The chief engineer nodded; then HI
looked up with a twinkle In his CLOSELY
set gray eyes. "If you'll tell me why
you tried to kill Burdell the other day
maybe I'll open up the recoTd-oul
recorder you"
, This time the cOst-cutter's smile wal
good-naturedly derlslve, and it Ignored
the reference to Burdell.
/ "You don't have to open up you
recorder me; It's the talk Of tn,
camp. You people are undercapital
\ lLeu-lO Doll IL uOWh lulO oho NOlN
) Isn't that about the way it sizes upf
, "That is the way It has turned out
: though we had capital enough to begil
! with. We've been bled to death b,
; damage suits"
v Smith shook his head. "Why haven
/ you hired a hrst-class attorney, Mi
I WIIiamsT'
"We've had the best we could FIND
but the other fellows have beaten u
to It, every time. But the legal end O
It hasn't been the whole thing or tn
biggest part of 1t. What W. are neet
n ing most is a man who knows a littl
e something about corporation fights an
high finance" And at this the eng
g neer forgot the Smith disabilities, rel
or ~inferential, and went on to explai
Y in detail the peculiar helplessness {
e the Timanyonl company as the antal
onist OF the as yet unnamed land an
e irrigation trust.
Some real opportunities come