The L'Anse sentinel., 1922-10-06

was closed. The light still burned In
THE factors room and he saw Molly
crpss toward him and fiing herself on
her knees beside him.
He clenched his fists; but somehow
the violence that relieved his feelings
usually seemed to have no place here
He couldn't understand. He went
home slowly across the portage.
The factor looked up when Molly en-.
tered, and was astonished to see the
tears upon her face. When she kneeled
down he put his hand clumsily upon
her hair.
.'What has happened, lass?" he
asked. "Was 1t VIII Carruthers ys
quarreled with?"
Gle will never come here again,
said Molly.
A dull fire burned In the factors
eyes. He seemed to be struggling be-
tween two impulses: One was to CON-
fort his daughter; the other, his grati-
fieation.
+. "Ah weel, lass, yen find another" he
said.
I But he abased his head before her
Indignant glance. At that moment the
girl felt that her father and she were
farther apart than they had ever been.
When Wilton reached his shack he
took off his coat and flung himself
down on his bed. He would not specu-
late on Nolly's motives. Hewoufd not
think Of her at'all He, would neither
condemn her nor pity himself.
He forced his mind back to his task.
The trestle-he. would lay down q
corduroy-he would drive the men all
the summer, II need be, for yoe's sake.
Poor Joe! The presence OF the dead
man seemed to fill the camp just al
Of old. Joe was the guiding spirit of
this work. He had loved Joe more
truly than It seemed possible to love
any woman.
He completed the few routine dutiea
Of the Office and went to bed. He had
dozed off to sleep when something
made him start up in bed and listen In
tently. He thought he had heard q
slight sound in the office.
1t was so slight that even his trained
ears sent the message to his brain
doubtfully. But II came again. Some
one had very softly clicked back the
catch Of one Of the windows.
He had the sense Of listener be.
meath II, and, all alert, Wilton crept
noiselessly to his feet and stood listen.
ing In the darkness. Now there was no
doubt. The window was being pushed
very softly open. It was the window
between the safe and his bedroom
door. In the moonlight Wilton could
see that It was opening by inches.
His own door was slightly ajar, and,
inch by inch, he pushed 1t open, too
He saw a pair of hands, white, moi
work-roughened, placed against the
bottom Of the window-frame. A face
appeared and was thrust cautiously in
side the room In reconnaissance. Will
ton recognized Lee Chambers.
Satisfied, apparently, that Wilton
was asleep in the next room, Chambers
began to climb over the sill. Wiltor
waited till he was balanced there, apt
then, leaping forward, he drove his fist
with all his force into his face. III,
felt the bone Of the nose smash under
his hand.
With a muffled cry Lee Chamberl
flung up his hands, slipped backward
and fell. AS Wilton ran to the window
the ex-engineer leaped up and raced
toward the trees. The thought Of hi
treachery came into Wilton's mind ant
turned his sardonic humor into re,
rage. He reached into his desk drawe
and pulled out the loaded revolve
which he kept there. But by the tim,
he was at the window again Chamber
was gone.
Three months later an engine pushe,
two ballast trucks from the west I,
the east shore Of Big Muskeg. Tn
swamp was spanned. The corduro.
had been laid upon the sink-holes, an,
had borne the ballasting. The trestlini
ran from bank to bank and carried tn
metals firmly, but the foundation wa
only as yet laid halfway, and the fina
proof had yet to be made.
However, Wilton had no doubts o
the result. He had tried out the dan
ger-spots. The trestle would contain
the ballast. His work had been accom-
plished.
After the subsistence he had paid
flying visit to Clayton. He had no
seen Kitty, and Kitty had not returne'
to the camp, but he had had a storm,
meeting with the directors and, as h
had foreseen, had been given hi
chance to try once more. There waa
indeed, nothing else to be done. Bow
yer had made the most of the disaster
but Il was to Bowyer's interest tina
wilton should try again and fail. Tha
would put the Missatibi promptly Int
liquidation.
Il