Arizona state miner., 1926-09-04

AdCC was PCtOAdAb1 AOAO OA
disinclined to count the cost Caleb
idly fancied that the eyes held possi-
bilities Of storm that would be more
than just a rain of tears on occasion,
that the mouth could become hard and
sullen If its owner were crossed.
He had breakfast alone in the apart
ment house dining room It was Sun
day. He thought Of visiting Ell Nido
but old custom precluded the idea Of a
Lords day social call. He wondered
if the public library would be open.
thinking that he would like to read up
the water history Of Golden, Of Oak
vile and Los Angeles, and then he re-
membered the card in his pocket The
club library should prove adequate.
The Altruists was a literary as well as
an artistic institution. So he walked
down town, to find the place almost de-
serted. Everyone in Golden, it seemed
made the most of holidays out-of-
doors.
There was no one in the library
with it's easy chairs and big tables, It's
desks and deep lounge in front of a
mammoth fireplace. The walls were
lined high with books, we'll arranged,
so that it was little trouble to find
what he wanted. Soon he was deep In
the history of Golden, with a big map
! of the Bay region close beside him.
He went to bed early. Sometime in
the night Baxter came home Caleb
found him sleeping the next morning,
i his head tucked on a forearm, hand
some but jaded, settled until noon.
Caleb waited until Cox should have
had time to answer his mail and then
presented himself at the offices Of the
| Crystal Springs company. Cox's greet
ing was cordial.
"Do you mind waiting a few mo-
ments?" he asked. He pressed a desk
! button and a shrewd-appearing young
chap entered whom Caleb rated as
| Cox's secretary.
Send ME a stenOgrapher, Harry,
will your" asked Cox. II have given
you all you can handle and / want to
| get out some Instructions on that
cement matter The stuff Is far from
standard or contract quality"
The stenographer entered, a girl,
| quiet dressed in a dark business suit,
deftly taking the dictation given her
by Cox in low, unhesitating voice.
Caleb, looking over an engineering
| journal, hardly noticed her.
Take this letter." said Cox, then
turned to Caleb, as the girl changed
IN hnr nntohnn1y nd haf
Hinckley, our engineer in chief, is not
coming in this morning He will be at
! Crystal Springs tomorrow, so I am
| going to give you a letter to him. A
car will be here for you in the morn
ing at eight-thirty, if that suits you.
am sorry cannot give the time to
go with you myself"
1t was said graciously, with a GER
tain air of assurance that Cox would
actually have gone with Caleb if he
could have spared the day.
"Now, Miss Morgan said Cox. "To
r. II. Hinckley, introducing Mr.. Caleb
Warner"
The girls poised pencil wavered for
a second, while her face lifted and her
eyes gazed wide at Caleb, then 1t
dipped and automatically inscribed
stenographic characters. They were
blue eyes and the face one he had seen
before Where? The dress was more
demure, the blond hair less fancifully
arranged, but there was no mistaking
the features, the general expression,
startled from business calm to personal
interest.
Miss Morgan was Baxter's peach"
the girl whose photograph now occu-
pied one of the silver frames on Bax-
ter's bureau. Baxter was home, asleep,
the girl was on duty. There were
shadows under her eyes but there was
a flush in her cheeks as she stared at
Caleb with an Interrogation that was
/ almost a challenge, before she bent to
her work as Cox went on with the
| letter.
Caleb imagined what she was won
dering. He had been mentioned to her
| by name by Baxter. She was trying to
guess whether Baxter had done the
same by her, whether Caleb had seen
| her photograph, what chance had
brought him to the private Office and
! her into it on the same occasion?
Caleb's face showed nothing and,
when the letter was ended he was
| again reading the journal. Nor did he
look up when the girl left at Cox's
that is all, Miss Morgan" He did
not wish to embarrass the girl What
she did In her own time was, If it did
not prove detrimental to her duties,
her own affair-most certainly not his.
She did not return. A few minutes
later the secretary came quietly in
with the letter of introduction which
Cox read, signed, slid into it's unsealed
envelope and passed to Caleb.
l iii