The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1917-07-13
"Mr. Meade, What Is the Matter?"

| and this letter had been handed to
his father. His first mind had been to
tear it up after he had read 1t and
had overborne the objections contained
therein, but on second thought he had
carefully filed 1t away with the origi-
nal drawings. 1t was, Of course, in the
younger Meade's own handwriting.
He went to his private safe, opened
the drawings and found the letter at
tached to the sheet Of drawings. He
put back the other drawings and
closed the safe without locking it.
Then he went back to the desk and
considered the document. He had been
blind, mad. He laid the paper down
on his desk and put his hand to his
heart.
Of course he would submit those pa
pers to the public at once. Was there
anything else he could do? Yes. He
sat down at the desk and drew a sheet
Of paper before him and began to
write. Slowly, tremblingly, he perse-
vered, carefully weighing his words be-
fore he traced them on paper. He had
not written very long before the door
of the outer Office opened and he heard
the sound Of soft footsteps entering
the room. He recognized the new
conner. It was old Shurtliff, a man
who had been his private secretary
and confidential clerk Tor many years.
He stopped writing and called to him.
Shurtliff was an old bachelor, gray,
thin, tall, reticent. He had but one
passion-Meade, ST.; but one glory
the reputation Of the great engineer.
Yes, and as there is no great passion
without jealousy, Shurtliff was filed
with womanly jealousy Of Bertram
Meade because his father loved him
and was proud Of him. Shurtliff knew
all about the private affairs of the two
engineers, father and son. He knew
all about the protest Of the younger
Meade. The father had told him just
what he intended to do with it.
Shurtliff might have been a great
man If left to himself or forced to act
for himself. But pursuing great pas
sion so long as he had, he had merged
himself in the more aggressive person
atty Of his employer and friend. He
had received good engineering edu-
cation, but had got into trouble over
failure, rather bad mistake In his
early career, too big to be rectfed, to
be forgiven, or condoned. The older
Meade had taken him up, had been
kind to him, had offered to try to put
him on his feet again, but his big fall
ure had increased his natural timfdity.
so he stayed on. He had become a
part Of the old mans life.
Young Meade had never been able
to get very far into the personality of
Shurtliff, but he liked him and respect
ed him. He realized the mans devo-
ton to his father, and he understood
and admired him. Aside from that
jealousy the old man could not but like
the young one. He was too like his
father for Shurtliff to dislike him. The
secretary wished him well; he wanted
to see him great engineer. OF course
he could never be the engineer that
his father was. That would not be in
the power Of man. But still, even if
he never attained that height, he could
yet rise very high. Shurtliff would not
admit that there was anything on earth
to equal Meade, Sr.
The secretary was greatly surprised
as he stopped beside his own desk to
hear his name called from the inner
office. He recognized his employers
voice, Of course, yet there was
strange note in it which somehow gave
him a sense Of uneasiness. He went
into the room at once and stopped
aghast.
"Good God, Mr.. Meadaw he ex-
claimed.