Evening star., 1924-05-25

was division superintendent, with a
private car, If you please.
From division superintendent he
was promoted to district super
tendent. From district superintend-
ent to assistant general super
intendent. Then, inevitably, general
superintendent There is, after that,
only one step; but it is a momentous
step, d seven-Ieague stride. 1t is not
only the chair at his right hand 1t is
the right hand.
Dan Yard at forty-six was general
manager of the Santa Fe road. The
Yards private car now was a thing
of rosewood and sf1ken hangfngs and
finest steel. They were royalty. Yet,
if you happened to be guest in
this private movable palace Of theirs
and if, peering out of the window
in the darkness. you asked. '@where
are we now, I wonder? What's this
place we're coming to-" Hannah Yard
could close her eyes and, listening
intently for a moment, open them
TO say: We're just coming into
Trinidad. I was here when Dan laid
out these yards"
x x
DURING these twenty years Hannah
had thought of Hilda thousands
of times, and sadly. She took a New
York paper as soon as they could
afford it in the hope of seeing Hilda's
name mentioned in the society col
umns. perhaps. She wrote her often.
When she placed return address
on her letters they came back rubber
stamped. Not at address given
Though Dams position took him
frequently to New York, Hannah
rarely accompanied him. Once she
had tried to trace Hilda there, but
had not succeeded. She thought of
a detective agency. but shrank from
the idea. After all, HiIda had not
wanted her; Hilda had deserted her,
rfdiculed her. The two boys were
at college, the elder at a school of
engineering-"Like his pa laughed
Dan Yard; the other at agricultural
school
The Yard place, a great glowing
creamy Spanish pile situated almost
in the shadow of the purple and
glowingiy mysterious Spanish peaks,
was known throughout the west You
were likely to find as guests there
any one from the President of the
United States to a flock of Harvey
mattresses on a vacation. A sorolla
over the fireplace in the living room:
a gorgeous old vestrnent of brocade
and velvet thrown over this screen
bought in Granada
Come along to New York with
me" said Dan Yard. in tousling mood.
Come on, old girl. Do you good.
They sent me a catalog of that Span
ish stuff to be sold at Barrios'. There's
one old tapestry velvet that sounds
like the thing you want for that
balcony railing exactly. Come on.
Let's take look at it, anyway"
The general managers private car,
summoned casually, like an automo-
bile. Thousands of miles over noun
tain passes, mesaS plains, prairies,
corn fields. Omaha, Chicago, New
York. az wired Barrios," said Dan.
at breakfast in New York. ''and he
just called up to say he was sending
some stuff over here to the hotei."N
A lean, wiry. pugnacious, bow
legged little Irishman, looking, in
spite OF graying hair and his care
fully tailored suit and the dignity
of his Office incredibly like the tough
young brakeman of the San Querto
lunchIoom twenty years ago.
Like a cue in a play then the tele
phone rang. BarrioS represen tative
calling. And "Oh. dear" said Hannah,
giancing down at foamy but in
formal neglige, you talk to him
a minute, Dan. I'll do my hair and
get into something. Don't let him
sell you anything till Irene mber
that terrible table you--"
AS she dressed hurriedly she could
hear him in the adjoining room.
'eWen. say, that's pretty-no, / don't
like that one-I don't know, ! just
don't like it 1t doesn't look Spanish