The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1931-06-26
CHAPTER XIV


maps unique proposal or marriage
marked the end of her moment of
panic. She walked into the room
steadily enough, though still in the
embrace of Martins right arm, and
under the now startled gaze of their
rather unaccountable visitor. How
he'd managed to find her despite
FOrster'S refusal this afternoon to tell
him where she lived wasn't so puzzling
as the consciousness that she'd seen
him somewhere, without knowing who
he was, only little while ago. Even
this minor bewilderment was not what
kept her rooted to the rug while Babe
was stammering out superfluOuS in
PRODUCTION Babe's scrambled condition
was due, of course, to what she'd seen
through the doorway and he, POM
pous yet little embarrassed, stood
waiting, apparently, for a welcome ap-
prOpriate to long-lost uncles. The
really astonishing thing was that he
wasn't an ogre at all. He wasn't much
taller than Martin, and he had per-
fectly normal, human-looking eyes and
teeth. Why had she ever been afraid
of him?
1t wasn't until she heard Martin
murmur again, Its all right, darling"
that she released herself from his arm,
said, "How do you do, Uncle William"
and went up and shook hands with
him. She thought he expected to be
kissed but she couldn't manage that.
He said, heavily, "How do you do,
my dear. I'm very glad to have found
you at last. / thought this afternoon
that l must expect long search, but
this evening just after dinner / saw
you in the lobby of the Worcester
hotel and heard this young man call
you RhOda. There was enough of your
mothers look about you so that /
called up the telephone number / had
heard you give him - (Yes,
that was who it was, of course. The
man who'd been looking at the tele-
phone directory when she and Mar
tin were calling up Babe to tell her
they were all rightly $50 / took the
liberty of coming here and waiting
for you, late as it was. I felt it was
important that see you at once"
"Im glad you did," Rhoda told him.
not in the manner in which one says
something polite but as if she really
meant it. She dimly remembered
something about him and thought she
had an idea. You're lawyer, aren't
you?" she asked.
He seemed little surprised at the
question but answered stiffiy. Eyes,
that is my profession"
"Well them" said Rhoda, you're
just the person we want. You see.
Martin and / :" She broke off
there to remedy an omission by intro
ducing the two men in due form. After
they'd shaken hands, strictly nom
committal ceremony on both sides,
Rhoda went on. "You see, Martin and
l have just found out what really hap
pened to my father-before his trial, l
mean-that made him leave the uni
versity."
Uncle Williams reception of this
statement was not encouraging. He
began to look little more like the
ogre Rhoda remembered. "That is not
matter for discussion" he doomed.
Certainly not now"
But Rhoda was no longer a little
girl of twelve. "It's got to be dis
cussed," she contradicted him crisplv,
60 Sc hn n 81
Martins a reporter but he says the
paper can't print the true story, even
though we know it's true, unless we
have Mr.. Forster indicted"
Forster indictedw Uncle William
exploded. &C. ]. Forster? Perfect
nonsense! What has Forster to do
with it?"
"It won't seem so much like nom
sense" Rhoda said, "when you know
what he's got to with it. Tell him.
Martini
Uncle Williams attitude and gesture
showed that he meant to protest, but
before he could speak Martin cut in.
Forster admitted to Rhoda and me
this evening that the whole case
against her father was frame-up.
The woman was planted on the train
and instructed to pretend she'd lost
her ticket in order to trick Professor
Mcfarland into paying her fare. He
fell for the trick but he didn't fall for
her. She admits that herself. But
she went ahead. under instructions,
and perjured herself On the stand.
Forster's motive was to force Pro-
fessor McFarland's resignation from
the university so that he'd come to
work for him, which is what happened.
Forster never paid the woman the
money he promised her. And it was
her quarrel with him that enabled us
to find out about it. That's the bones
of the story. 1t would take an hour to
give you all the details, but we've got
them and we'll furnish yoI with them
whenever you like-now or later"
Rhoda's gaze from the time Martin
had begun speaking had been fixed
upon her uncle's face. She'd seen him
wilt; she'd have said he actually
sagged and spread little, like part
~ Debated balloon tire. But before
her lover had finished speaking he
managed somehow to pump himself
up again.
He said now, In his booming voice,
81 don't want the details at this or at
any time. There's no possible good to
be gained by raking up that old story.
And it could do harm in more ways