Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-09-19


lorn Valley settlement through his bank.
He schemes to build dam and control the
Eden Valley. He first aims to sscure the he
heavily encountered lands Of Rance Kerr
Shaw'S daughter, Lorry.
INSTAL.LMENT v.
~ HORTLY after the bank opened
crippled Rance Kershaw limped
in to borrow q thousand dollars
~ to meet his monthly pay roll.
Babson demurred to loaning 1t,
but finally compromised with a warn
ing that such indiScriminate borrowing
would have to cease very soon.
by the way" he said, as he initiated
his approval on the note, "are you GO
ing to retain your lease Of the Bar H
ranch2"
II think not" Kershaw replied. at
expires next month, but I'll be hanged
il I know where I can get the money
to pay for a year in advance"
Better retrench," Babson advised
LET the Bar H ranch go, sell of half
your cattle, get out of debt, quit pay
ing interest and be happy: Where does
Nate Tichenor reside now?"
st don't know. I only know his law
yer's address. Why do you ask?"
There was q man from San Fran
cisco in here some time back. He'd
been looking at the Bar H ranch and
had a notion he'd like to buy 1t.
thought perhaps might get in touch
with Tichenor, negotiate sale of his
ranch for him and clean up few
dollars in commission. And yet, If you
renew the lease it may initiate against
q sale"
GO ahead" Rance Kershaw replied
sadly. I'm not going to renew the
lease. You've been pretty good to me,
Silas, and I won't stand in the way
o. your turnin' a profit. !,
'"Thanks," Babson murmured. "And
this lawyers address2"'
Kershaw gave 1t to him, and a week
later an attorney in San Francisco
wrote Nate Tichenor, In care Of the
latter's attorney, requesting q price on
the Bar H ranch in behalf OF client
of his.
Ten DAYS later Babson knew that the
Bar H ranch was not for sale; whereat
the banker had an immediate return OF
his former nervousness and depression
and went home at noon. The situation
was thoroughly beyond his comprehen-
sion; he had decided Nate Tichenor
would sell the Bar II ranch, and Nate
Tichenor had disappointed him.
OF course. in a larger sense, Nate
Tichener's decision not to sell could
not affect the interests Of the For
lorn Valley Irrigation District (Mr.
Babson had decided to call 1t that,
since the district could acquire the
property via the condemnation-suit
route
Immediately after church the follow
ing Sunday he notored up to Eden
Valley, ostensibly to fish, but with the
intention of spending several hours in
speeding the dam site and lake site. To
his signal perturbation he discovered
In the gorge camp Of three tents, a
motor chuck wagon and i've shirt
sleeved young men he had never seen
under the shade of a cottonwood tree.
Under an adjacent tree field drafting
table stood; it had q sheet Of tracing
paper tackled to 1t, and hard by this
table a surveying instrument was
set up.
"7ello!" Babson hailed them cheer
fully, confident that his rod and creel
would excuse him Of undue inquisitive-
ness IN penetrating to the camp. What
are you boys doing here?"
Playing poker, sir. How about TAX
ing hand? Twenty -five-cent ante and
a dollar limit"
Mr.. Babson, not being accustomed to
such gentle rebukes, flushed and passed
on down the creek, leaving the engi-
neering crew to their non-sabbatical
pleasure.
Evidently Tichenor had sold. or was
about to sell, his dam site and lake site
to a power company, which had sent
an engineering crew to make pre-
liminary survey and report before de-
Gliding to close the deal His curiosity
aroused, Babson crossed the creek,
climbed the side of the hill and was
by finding the stakes Of the
engineering party. He followed them
readily; they led him over the ap-
proximate route which any man with
q fair eye for contours would have Sc
lected for the ditch to lead the water
to the penstocks.
AS a country banker Silas Babson
had far better knowledge Of the law
than most laymen; hence he realized
now that II Nate Tichenors dam site
and lake site had been acquired by e
power company, which is a public serv-
ice corporation, no other public service
corporation could condemn its property
Hence once more the Babson soul was
stepped in despair.
The following morning Mr.. Henry
Rookby, his cashier-paying -teller-re-
ceiving and confidential man, came to
Babson's desk and laid upon it a copy
of the latest edition of the Gold Run
Nugget. Mr.. Rookby had marked, in
blue crayon, an item under the head OF
Real Estate Transfers.
The item recorded the transfer, by
deed Of gift, of four thousand acres,
more or less, of certain lands from
Ranceford Kershaw to Lorraine Ker-
shaw.
Cant be a portion of the Circle X
ranch" Babson decided. and drew down
from its case a map of the county.
Mr.. Babson made a most surprising
discovery. He had always assumed that
Rance Kershaw owned no land east OF
the fence that divided the Circle X
from the Bar H. To his amazement
he had now discovered that Lorry Ker-
shaw was the owner Of four thousand
acres, more or less, in that portion Of
Eden Valley which, in the event OF a
dam being built in the gorge, must
constitute all or the greater portion OF
the area that must be inundated when
the dam filled upi And Babson had
always thought Nate T1chenor owned
that land
He could have cheered. No matter
what Nate Tichenor might do with his
dam site now, he would have TO con-
suit Lorry Kershaw before selling 1t to
q power company, and Babson thought
he knew what the girls answer would
be--a deadlock between the two sur
vivors Of the feud!
Got to get that four thousand
acres, more or less" Mr.. Babson ex-
ulted THE girl will sell to me. You
bet she will. And then I'll Go some
trading with Nate Tichenor."
Within the week he had arranged his
personal finances and purchased from
the Savings Bank of San Francisco the
first mortgage that the latter institu-
ton held on the Circle X ranch. With
the mortgage in his possession, Babson
dictated to Ranceford Kershaw letter
as firm as granite and as cold as q pen
gums tail. He informed Kershaw that