The Raymer enterprise., 1920-06-03
By VICTOR ROUSSEAU
lllnstrations BY Irwin Myers


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at his elbow when he went In. followed
him inside the room. and took a chair
beside him.
Hilary looked at him with q whim-
sical smile. "We're finished. Lafe.
This affair, coming on top Of the can
ceiling Of those jobbers' leases. has
ended me-"
Lafe scratched his chin. but said
nothing to this
You see" said Hilary, according to
my reckoning We shall have about for
ty thousand dollars on hand about
September first. That will last US till
Christmas. On the first Of the year
we shall be up against it. We need
another sixty thousand to carry NJ
through the winter. till navigation
opens and we call sell our cutting. No
banks going to lend rs anything with
our record"
Eve can ship six thousand cords by
December first" said Lafe.
'Thirty-fiye thousand dollars-per-
haps less
1--WE could get more ont Of those
river bottoms" suggested Lafe.
"And shut down In the middle Of
March,"
''As far as can see," Lafe blurted
out. you'll be about ten thousand shy,
Mr.. Askew. assuming things 80 fairly
well. That's why l came here. You
see. it's uke this. I've got nearly eight
thousand in the First National bank
at Shoeburyport. Mass. Clarice-Mrs-
Connell. that is-wouldn't let me buy
her a house on the installment plan
as I wanted to. She said a. I'd never
know when we'd need the money. and
II couldn't pay up on time they'd GET
1t away from us somehow. no matter
what the contract said. 1t seemed
mighty unreasonable to me. Mr.. As
kew. but I'm glad now--I sure am
glad"
'Lafe." said Hilary, "are you crazy
enough to suppose I'm going to take
the money that you and Mrs. Connsl1
have been saving up for a home. an0
put II into this bankrupt concern?"s
"Oh. shucksw said Lafe. "Why
that amt nothing. guess ! know a
good thing when l see one. I'm loan
ing II to you, Mr.. Askew, at--any rate
you want to pay me-"
"Lafe. you're a fool" said Hilary.
trying to keep his voice steady: I'm
tempted But I'm not going to take
IT,"
"Then guess I'll take the next boat
homer shouted Lafe. II amt going
to work for a busted concern what's
going to leave me stranded up here In
mldwInter. not drawing cent. and
Clarice-my wife-and the kids In
Shoeburyport. No. sir! You take
that or I'll leave. 1t aln't so crazy
as you think. It'll give me an interest
In getting the last ounce out Of the
men-and l guess Clarice will ap-
prove. And when the concerns on its
own legs. you-why, you can raise my
wages"
"Connell, you're a trump" said Hi
airy. am take it. Yes. I'll take 1t. be
cause / know now that am going to
succeed. We can't fall, Lafe, when
we're as much In earnest as we are.
Good Lord. what respondent fool
I've been!r
"Same here" said Lafe. Il was Just
hopeless, till you made me see
straight"
"Why, 1t was you made me see
straight" said Hilary. "Now. Con-
nell, we'll push things hard from this
very minute. Wen start In cutting
along the river. and wen float the
logs right down stream to the mill, and
we'll keep Dupont and his schooner
coming and going till navigation closes,
even IL we make Riviere Rocheuse
look as bare as our bank account was
looking just now. Baptiste will bs
worth score when he understand"
He broke of suddenly. and the two
men, struck by the same thought.
looked at each other.
Il wonder why Baptiste went of as
soon as he'd dynamited the JAM" said
Hilary.
He felt ashamed Of his suspicious.
Yet. remembering that day when
Baptiste was comforting with Pierre,
he could not wholly rid himself Of
them.
"Lafe," he said. ''what was II you
heard those men saying after the ac-
cident? You started"
"Why, guess that wasn't nothing,
Mr. Askew. You know how excited
these people get 5ver tribes. They're
just like a focx Of geese gabbling
around"
"What was II. Lafef"
"Just nonsense sir. Not worth rv-
peating, but-well, you see, It's this
way. Some darned fool said chat some
body had sawed part way through the
logs Of the BOOM"
Then for the first time the words Of
Madeleine Rosny came back to Hilary:
Look to your boom! Look to your
b0Om!"
He hung his bead end flushed WITH
shame. 1t seemed impossible to asso-
ciate that act Of treacbery with her.