Gunnison news-champion., 1923-02-02

after giancing about the room. she re
moved the books In front of wall
safe TO the right Of the door. slid
back the movable panel. opened the
safe and took out a bundle Of CORE
sp0ndence. She closed safe and panel
and put back the books; and carrying
the correspondence 10 her fathers
dc>k. she began TO look over II.
This currespondence-a consider
able bundle Of letters held together
With wire clips and the two envelopes
bound with tape which she had put
into the safe the day before-made u2
the papers Of which her father had
spoken to her. These letters repre-
seutei the contentious OF willful. pow
erflil and sometimes ruthless and viO-
lent men. Ruin of one man by an
oihpr-ruIn financial, social or moral.
"r all three together-was the inten-
iiun NJ the principals concerned in
this correspondence: too often. she
knew. one man or one group had ear
ried out fierce intent upon another;
and sometimes, she was aware, these
bitter feuds had carried certain OF
her fathers clients further even than
personal or family ruin: fraud. vio-
lcnce nnd-twice nnw-cyen inurde.
were represented by this correspond
ence: for the papers relating to the
Warden and the Latron murders werv
here. She had felt always the horror
~ this violent and ruthless side OF
the men with whom her father dealt:
but nAw she knew that actual appre-
citation OF the crimes that passed as
business had been far from her. And.
strangely, she now realized that II was
not the attacks on Mr.. Warden and
her fafher-overwhelmin with horror
MS these had been-whIch were bring.
Ing that appreciation home to her II
was her understanding now that the
attack was not meant for her father
bur for Eaton.
Though Harriet had never believed
that Eaton had been concerned In the
attack upon her fathert her denial Of
II had been checked and stihed be
cause he would not even defend him
self. She had not known what to
think; she had seemed TO herself to
b waiting with her thoughts In abey-
anee: until he should be cleared, she
had tried not to let herself think more
about Eaton than was necessary.
Though he was involved with her IA
tber in some way she refused to be-
ueve he was against her father, but
clearly he was not with him. How
could he be involved. then. unless the
injury he had suffered was some Such
act Of man against man as these let
ters and statements represented She
looked carefully through all the con-
tents Of the envelopes, but she could
not md anything which helped her.
She pushed the letters away, then.
and sat thinking. Mr.. Warden, who
appeared to have known more about
Eaton than anyone else, had taken En-
toms side; II was because he had been
going to help Eaton that Mr. Warden
had been killed. Would not her father
be ready to help Eaton, then, II he
knew as much about him as Mr.. War
den had known? But Mr. Warden,
apparently. had kept what he knew
even from his own wife: and Eaton
was now keeping It from everyone
her father included. She felt that her
father had understood and appreci-
ated all this long before herseif-that
II was the reason for his attitude
toward Eaton on the train and, in part.
the cause Of his considerate treatment
of him an through.
So. instead Of being estransed By
Eatoo's manner - her fAther. she fat
IN impulse a fesltAs toward HIN
AeeAAg hse. . Bsellns Which shs tried
70 explain to hsrself - sympatAS. But
ri was ~ jsse 1vnUathg she wSu1d
nee ~ even - AsFself vhaf It wnA
- Ut ~ SsddeAay Anl wens to
tAs dese ma lssAsd hte u han: Q
s0saa1 eGlss = ~.
70 II. xvse, I'm Va II. sas-
NnAmnVp - 49,