Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1924-09-03
eLOrd of Thunder Gate

Of his fingers.
Would you like 1t so?" he said.
1T would +. not hurt me. Would
IT, Kayama-SanT
mo"
"Nor you?"
Il cannot be hurt"
would it help you? You have been
good to me-"
why do you wish to help me? Be
cause l have not. because -
mo, Kayama-San. My honored fs-
ther, Tsi-K'ung, said that when there
came into the breast a feeling
that when you felt l do not
understand l want to help ]
feel that it would be worthy"
He half held out his arms to her,
only TO see her, instinctively, draw
back. No words might have withheld
him, he realized-th that his desire must
be a splendid misery of self-denial. re-
pressed, must hug a fetter.
Yet-what more did he need? Sup
pose he told her that he was of her
own kind? That would remove the
barrier If she meant what she
had implied. She would be silent.
surely. An hour, passing wind
through their lives, this it would be if
Kayama himself returned. Why not
fill the hour with blossoms, with per.
fumes and joy?
MY dear my dear :"
he said huskily.
Not only had Ellen never tried to
stem so fierce a torrent Of love in all
her clustered life, nor ever shuddered
under such dry heat in a single word.
she had never dreamed of so much
passion in man. Strangely, 1t moved
her also. Why, she did not know. She
longed to say something. It was pain.
ful, yet delicious; her hood-blind heart
eXulted. For moment there was
nothing to restrain him.
He regretted the words as he ut
tered them. That she did not become
large-eyed and bodeful, horribly nerv-
Gus of him, he put to the fact that she
did not understand. Good Lord, the
girl trusted him. He was
very glad that she had not under
stood. and with hands still unsteady
returned to the papers again.
A curious change came over his
face. The girl saw 1t run the gamut
of detached interest, amazement, in
credulity. His hands shook with ex.
element. His mouth frightened. A
hard line was drawn about the lips
She heard his teeth click together
Up-down. He read the paper be-
fore him quickly. Reread 1t. Turned
to the attached sheet of parchment.
Aochi, one of the inner council of
the Imperialists, had demanded from
Marakito an exact accounting. Had
he not paid many hundreds of ven
into the fund to prevent more foreign
capital from being invested in Japan?
How did the affair progress? Mara
kito told him. There raust be more
money paid into the treasury. The
white man who directed the building
Of the bridges could be bought. The
other was strangely honest for a
seiyo-jin. But there was a plan for
him, also. Marakito assured Aochi
that all would be well.
At the end it was written that TIE
subordinate engineer had departed
upon unknown paths, and that the la.
boring was well beklnd the stated
time. That it would assuredly he
days in arrear of the stipulated length
of the contract.
Wells sprang from his zabutou. His
cheeks were flushing, his eyes bright.
"Would you like to go to the
strange land in which your people
lived?" he asked with careful re-
straint.
The girl bowed. "where you
go
His first actual coherent thought
was what would Uncle Jim say at this
evidence? What was up at homer
Why had Williams done this thing to
him? OF Alberta he thought nothing
at all. except to wonder.
What was going on? Why not re-
turn as Kayama, and find out2 Listen
He would hear. If he went in, blunt
ly, as Robert Wells, with his proof, Il
was unlikely that he would discover
what was happening Should he take
Ellen? The situation became more
difficult She was his wife. AS mat
tiers stood, she did not fear Japanese
Kayama. What If he were her kind7
To take her-must he explain?
Perhaps Alberta loved Uncle Jim's
money. Perhaps this girl would do
the same And she was already his
wife and he'd never know. If he
could trap her into an admission that
If he, Kayama, were but white
1t was worth a chance. Why not risk
It?
Bluntly he faced her.
III Here's a situation that calls II