The Republican journal., 1920-06-03
CHAPTER xiv.

asked Bryce to obtain for her in San
Francisco arrived on the regular pas
senger steamer on Thursday morning
and Bryce called her up to ask when
she desired it sent over.
Good morning, MIR. Cardigan" she
greeted him cheerily. "How do you
feel this morning? Any the worse for
having permitted yourself to be hui
man being last night?"
"Why, l feel pretty fine, Shirley. l
think it did me lot of good to crawl
out of my shell last night"
"You feel encouraged to go on liv-
ing, eh?''
"Yes."
"And fghting?"
"By all means"
"Then something has occurred of
late to give you new courage?"
"Oh, many things. By the way, Shir-
ley, you may inform your uncle at
breakfast Friday morning about my
connection with the N. G. O. In fact.
think it would be far better for you
if you made it a point to do so.'
"Why?"
Because both Ogilvy and myself
have very strong suspicion that your
uncle has a detective or two on our
trails. judge your uncle will learn
today that you dined with Ogilvy,
Mora and me last night"
"Oh, dear! That's terrible" He
could sense her distress.
ASHAMED of having been seen in my
company, eh?"
"Please don't. Are you quite serious
in this matter?"
"Quite"
uncle Seth will think 1t $3.50
strange"
He'll probably tell you about it,
Better heat him to the issue by Tossing
up, Shirley. Doubtless his suspicious
are already aroused. and if you inform
him that you know | am the real build
err of the N. c. O., he'll think you're a
smart woman and that you've been
doing a little private gum-shoe work
of your own on behalf of the Laguna
Grande Lumber company"
(Which is exactly what I have been
doing" she reminded him.
81 know. But then, I'm not afraid
of you, Shirley-that is. any more
And after Friday morning I'll not be
afraid of your uncle"
81 feel as if I were conspirator."
81 believe you are one. Your dicto-
graph has arrived Shall send George
Sea Otter over with it? And have you
somebody to install it?"
"Oh, bother! Does it have to be in
stalled?"
''It does. You place the contraption
hide it, rather-in the room where
the consprators conspire; then you
run wires from it into another room
where the detectives listen in on the
receivers"
"Could George Sea Otter install it?''
ST think he could. There is a print
ed card of instructions, and l dare say
George would find the job no more
battling than the ignition system on
the Napier"
twill he tell anybody"
mot if you ask him not to-"
every well, then. Please send him
over. Thank you so much. Bryce
Cardigan. You're an awful good old
sort. after all. Really. it hurts me to
have to oppose you. 1t would be so
much nicer if we didn't have all, those
redwood trees to protect. wouldn't it?"
LET us not argue the question. Shir-
ley. I think have my redwood trees
protected. Good-by"
He had scarcely finished telephon-
ing his home to instruct GeorEe Sea
Otter to report with the express pack
age to Shirley when Buck Ogilvy
strolled into the office and tossed a
document on his desk There's YOUR
little old temporary franchise, old
thing" he announced; and with many
a hearty laugh he related to Bryce the
ingenious means by which he had OBJ
tanned 1t. And now if you will phone
up to your logging camp and instruct
the woods-boss to lay off about fifty
men to rest for the day. pending a
hard nights work. and arrange to
send them down on the last log train
today. I'll drop around after dinner
and We'll fly to that jump-crossing."
It'll telephone Colonel Pennington's
manager and ask him to kick a switch
engine in on the Laurel creek spur and
snake those fiat cars with my rails
aboard out to the junction with the
main line" Bryce replied. And he
called up the Laguna Grande Lumber
company-only to be Informed by no
less person than Colonel Pennington
himself that it would be impossible
to send the switch-engine in until the
following afternoon. The Colonel was
sorry. but the switch-engine was in the
shop having the brick in her firebox
renewed, while the mogul that hauled
the log trains would not have time to
attend to the matter, since the fats
would have to he spotted on the side
track at Cardigan's log landing in the
woods, and this could not be done I'M
til the last loaded log train for the day
had been hauled out to make room.
"Why not switch back with the
mogul after the log train has been
hauled out on the main line7" Bryce
demanded pointedly.
Pennington. however. was not
4