The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1920-04-08

For fully minute Bryce stood
dumbly gazing upon the sacrilege be
fore his rage and horror found vent In
words. IAN enemy has done this
thing" he cried aloud 10 the wood
goblins, And over her gravel"
II was a burl tree. At the point
where Bryce paused malignant
growth had developed on the trunk
Of the tree, for all the world like a
tremendous war1. This was the burr.
so priEed for table-tops and panelling
because OF the fac; that the twisted.
wayy, belier-skelter grain lends TO the
wood an extraordinary beauty when
polished. Bryce noted that the work
Of removing this excrescence had been
accomplished very neatly. With q
eross-cut saw the growth, perhaps ten
feet In diameter. had been neatly
sliced of much as housewife cuts
slice after slice from loaf Of bread.
He guessed that these slices. practi.
cally circular In shape, has been rolled
out OF the woods 10 some conveyance
WhIIiuK 10 REVIVE them.
What Bryce could not understand.
however. was the stupid brutality OF
the raiders In Telling the tree merely
for that section OF burl. BY permit
ting the tree to stand and merely
building staging up 10 the burl, the
latter could have been removed with
out vital injury to the tree--whereas
by destroying the tree the wretcbes
had evidenced all too clearly 10 Bryce
q wanton desire 10 add insult 10 in
jury.
"Poor old Dad!" he murmured.
I'm glad now he has been unable TO
get UP here and see this. II would
have broken his heart. I'll have this
tree made into fence posts and the
stump dynamited and removed this
summer After he Is operated on ard
gets back his sight, he will come up
bere-and he must never know. Per.
haps he will have forgotten how many
trees stood In this circle"
He paused Peeping out from IN.
der a chip among the litter at his feet
was the mOldy corner Of white !
envelope In an instant Bryce had il |
in his hand. The envelope was dirty |
and weatherbeaten, but To certain |
extent the redwood chips under which |
il had lain hidden had served TO pro |
tect H. and the writing on the face
was still legible. The envelope was |
empty and addressed to jules Ron
deau. care Of the Laguna Grande
Lumber company, Sequoia, California.
Bryce read and reread that address.
"Rondeau - be muttered Jules
Rondenul I've heard that name be
fore--ah, yes Dad spoke Of him last
night. He's Penington's woOds-boss
and"
An enemy had done this thing-and
IN all the world John Cardigan had
but one enemy-Colonel Seth Penning
ton. Had Pennington sent his woods
sheer spite3 Hardly. The section Of
burl was gone, and this argued that
the question Of spite had been purely
a matter Of secondary consideration.
Evidently. Bryce reasoned, someone
had desired that burl redwood greatly.
and that someone had not been Jules
Rondeau, since woods-bOss would not
he likely TO spend FIVE minutes OF his
eisure time In consideration Of the
,eauties Of n burl tabletop or panel
Hence. II Rondeau had superintendent
he task Of Telling the tree. II must
ave been at the behest OF superior
md since woods-boss Acknowledges
10 superior save the creator Of the
,ay-roll, the recipient OF that stolen
,uri must have been Colonel Penning.
on.
Suddenly he thrilled. II Jules Ron
Ieau had stolen that burr 10 present
/ TO Colonel Pennington. his employer.
hen the finished article must be- IN
'enningt0n's home And Bryce had
cen invited % that home for dinner
he following Thursday by the Colonel's
iece.
"I1l 20. after all" he told himself
r1l go-and III see what shall see"