The Lamar register., 1922-07-05

against the sunlight
.DThar's what / was thinking. VII
ton" he said But it's got TO be done
somebody1l build 1t some day II the
hlssatibi doesn't"
That was the nearest speech to de-
speir that Joe invincible, exuberant
optimist that he was had ever made
Weeks, months Of resurvey must en-
sue. with work halted and the Misss-
ubis precar1ous capital diminishing to
vanishing point. while the story OF the
great blunder percDlated through the
Hobbies of the provincial legislature.
nlled with bland. Jeerlng, ill-condi-
toned men to whom one days tramp
such as their labor-rs performed
would mean apoplexy.
Their faces haunted Wilton He re-
membered half dozen whom he had
approached when the Missatibi scheme
was rrrt bruited abroad There was.
In particular. Tom Bowyer Of the New
Northern line his many interests en-
trenched behind the bulwsrks Of po-
nticsl influence. Joe BOstock had ~ug
gested an HmnlsHmation In the belief
that Tom Bowyer could wreck the bill
10 the legislature. But Tom had
laughed In Joe's face. and had not
even opposed the measure
so ahead with your muskrat line.
Joer' he had said Il won't hinder
you"
The surveyors who made the pre-
nminary reconnaissance had shirked
taA
ed that most OF them had heen In Bow
yer's pay. Bowyer and Bostock were
old rivals. They had reported Big Mus
keg TO be an Insignificant swamp with
a nrm underbed about the portage II
could be crossed. Of course. In the
end. since nature always yielded to
man But the Misssribi must either
swing huge loop around II. through
territory un-urveyed. or set 10. itself
the task OF nlling those unsounded
depths with thousands Of tons Of rock.
"D-n you said Wilton. shaking
bis INST toward the valley Wen beat
you yet. We've made a bad blunder.
Joe. Crooked work. without doubt
though ! cant imagine why Bowyer's
gang should take the trouble TO hurt
Us unless. Of course they guess"
Joe Bostock shook his head. No.
they haven't guessed that. wilton"
he answered "I'll stnke my hat On
that. There amt nobody except me
and you and Kitty knows It's Jest
had luck. Wilton"
Joe could never sense treachery nor
bring himself To believe In Its posi-
biiity and II that weakness had kept
him. In the main. a poor man. 1t had
bound his friends TO him with unbreak-
able bonds
"At the best it's gross negligence"
said Wilton. Those surveyors
scamped their work. | accepted their
reports. | couldn't go out with the
transit and aneroid and follow them
all up to check their results. But I
might have sounded Big Muskeg I
didn't" His voice choked Joe. II
you have any SENSE. you'll rire me
nrst," he said
Joe Bostock laid his hands Oh the
"ther mans shoulders and THE humoE
Gus smile came IN his face We'll. |
guess not. Wilton" he said. You
amt to blame. You've done all that
mortal man could do. The Missatibi
couldn't have been built at all with
out you. Fire youf Why. Kitty'd have
my nfe II dared suggest such a
thing
Wilton frowned involuntarily at the
reference 10 the pretty Young wife
whom Joe Bostock had married In
Winnipeg the year before. Joe's first
marriage had been unhappy 1t had
been long ago. and Wilton knew there
had been separation, though Joe
was always reticent about that
Kitty was ave and thirty years
younger than Joe. and she had inter-
vened into a fast friendship OF more
than decade between Joe and VIII
ton. II made difference a. ii always
does, though Joe had sworn u >!,",s.t
not. and Kitty thought the w"rld Of
Wilton.
Wilton could never understand his
secret feeling about Kitty. She was
devoted to Joe. Perhaps that was
what lay beneath his latent antago-
nism toward her. He was jealous OF
her. He WAS Jealous Of Il womans