The Glenwood post., 1923-01-18

or upon the completely powerless and
poor; the unconscious man in the
berth could belong only to the first
class of CARTS clientele The sur
geon's gaze again searched the fea-
lures in the berth; then 1t shifted to
the men gathered about him in the
aisle.
who did you say this was?' he de-
manded of Avery.
II said his name was Nathap
Dorne," Avery evaded.
mo, no" Sinclair jerked out I'M
patiently. Isn't this" He hesi.
tated, and finished In voice suddenly
lowered: isn't this Basil Santoine?"
Avery, if he still wished to do so.
found it impossible to deny.
Basil Santoine !" Connery breathed.
To the conductor alone, among the
four men standing by the berth, the
name seemed to have come with the
sharp shock Of SURPRISE with it had
come an added sense of responsibility
and horror over what had happened
to the passenger who had been con-
fided to his care, which made him
whiten as he once more repeated the
name to himself and stared down at
the man in the berth.
Conductor Connery knew Basil San
tome only in the way that Santoine
was known to great numbers of other
people-that Is. by name but not by
sight.
Basil Santoine at twenty-five hao
been graduated from Harvard, though
blind. His cornectlons-th family
was of well-to-do southern stock-his
possession of enough money for his
own support, made It possible for him
to live idly If he wished; but Santoine
had not chosen to make his blindness
an excuse for doing this. He had
at once settled himself to his chosen
profession, which was law. He had
not found 1t easy to get start in
this. and he had succeeded only after
great effort in getting place with q
small and unimpcrtant firm. Within
a short time, well within two years,
men had begun to recognize that in
this struggling law firm there was
powerful clear, compelling mind.
Santoine, youth living In darkness,
unable to see the men with whom he
talked or the documents and books
which must be read to him, was be-
ginning to put the stamp of his per-
sonality on the firms affairs. A year
later his name appeared with others
of the firm; Mt twenty-eight his was
the leading name. He had begun to
specialize long before that time, In
corporation law; he married shortly
after this. AT thirty the firm name
represented to those who knew Its
particulars only one personality, the
personality of Santoine and at thirty
five-though his Indifference to money
was proverbial-he was many times
millionaire. But except among the
small and powerful group of men who
had learned to consult him, Santoine
himself at that time was utterly un-
known.
Consulted continually by men con-
cerned in great projects, immersed
day and night in vast affairs, capable
of living completely as he wished-he
hnd been. at the age of forty-six, great
but not famous. powerful but not pub
llcly known. At that time an event
had occurred which had forced the
blind man out unwillingly from his
obscurity.
This event had been the murder of
the great western financier, Matthew
Latron. There had been nothing In
this affair which had in any way
shadowed dishonor upon Santolne. So
much as In his role Of mind without
personality Santoine ever fought, he
had fought against Latron; but his