The Raymer enterprise., 1919-07-10
tCopyYishs Bobbs- MssFiIl Company,

towns ana the Crossing; q director OIL
the Desert Reclamation company. and
the head of small subsidiary com
pany which had been created to pro
tect rights and keep harmonious rela.
ton with the sister country. Rickard
found him full of meat. and heard. for
the first time consecutvely. the story
Of the rakish river. Particularly In
terestlng to him was the relation OF
Hardin to the company.
"He has the bad luck. that man y
exclaimed Estrada's soft. musical
voice. Everything is in his hands
captal Is promised. and he goes to
New York to have the papers drawn
up. The day he gets there the Maine
is destroyed. OF course capital Is shy.
He's had the devils own luck with
men: Clifford, honest but mulish
Sather. mulish and not honest-oh,
there's string Of them. Once he
went to HermosIllo to get an option on
my fathers lands. They we're already
covered by an option held by some
men In Scotland. Another man would
have waited for the three months 10
pass. Not Hardin. He went to Scot.
land. thought he'd interest those men
with his maps and papers. He owned
all the data then. He'd made the sur
vey."
Estrada repeated the story Brandon
and Marshall bad told. with little dis.
crepancy. A friendly refrain followed
the narrative. "He has the bad luck.
tha. man.
"And the Scotched optionf" remind.
ed Rickard. smiling at his own poor
joke.
1T was Just that. A case Of Hardin
luck again. He stopped off In London
to interest some capital there: follow
ing up lead developed on the steam
er. He was never a man to neglect a
chance. Nothing came of II, though.
and when he reached Glasgow he
found his man had died two days be
fore-or been killed. I've forgotten
which. Three times Hardin's crossed
the ocean trying to corner the oppor-
tunity he thought he had found. II
isn't lazlness. Is his trouble. It's Just
internal luck"
"Or over.astuteness, or pr0crastina.
tion,' criticized his listener to himself
He knew now what 1t was that had
so changed Hardin. A man cannot
travel, even though he be bounding
down a quick scent. without meeting
strong influences. He had been thrown
with hard men. strong men. II was
an Inevitable chlsellng, not a miracle.
II want to hear more OF this some
day. But this map. don't under
stand what you told me Of this BY
pass, Mr.. Estrada.
Their heads were still bending over
Estrada's rough work bench when the
japanese cook announced that dinner
was waiting In the adjoining car.
MacLean and Bodefeldt and several
young engineers Joined them.
1t had been outwardly a wasted day.
Rickard had lounged, socially and
physically. But before he turned In
that night he had learned the names
and dispositions of his force. and
some of their prejudices. Nothing he
summed up, could be guessed from the
gentleness OF the Mexican's manner
Wooster's antagonlsm was open and
snappish. Silent was to be watched.
and Hardin had already shown his
hand.
The river, as he thought of It. ap-
pearcd the least formidable of his op-
ponents. He was imaglng 1t as a high
spirited horse, maddened by the FUN
bling Of its wouldbe captors. His task
IL was to lasso the proud stallion, lead
1t In brdled 10 the sterile land. No
wonder Hardin was sore: his moose
had slipped OF one time too many
Hardins luck