第6章

"Victor！"cautionedMissColton。

"Hush，Mabel！Thisisridiculous。YouandIsawtwoboatsgostraightoutfromthebeachthismorning。Wewentoutthatwayourselves。Hereyou——Paine，orwhateveryournameis——we’vehadenoughofthis。I’vehiredyoutotakeusashore，andIwanttogothereandnotahalfmileinanotherdirection。WillyoudoasI

tellyou？"

Whenthedingyandtheotherboatscrossedtheflatthetidehadbeenhourshigher，ofcourse；butIwasinnomoodtoexplain——tohim。

"No，"Isaid，shortly。

"Youwon’t？ThenyougivemeanoarandI’llrowtherestofthewaymyself。"

Therewereonlytwooarsintheskiff，butIcouldgetonperfectlywellwithone。Anditwouldservehimbeautifullyrighttolethimgo。Buttherewasthegirl。Ihesitated。

"Givemethatoar，"herepeated，angrily。"Youwon’t？Then，byJove，I’lldowithoutit。Stop！Stopwhereyouare！doyouunderstand。Wedon’trequireyourservicesanylonger。"

Heturnedandbeganuntyingthetowline。Istoppedrowing。

MissColtonlookedtroubled。

"Victor！"shecried。"Whatareyoudoing？"

"IknowwhatI’mdoing。Can’tyouseethisfellow’sgame？Thelongertherowthehigherhisprice，that’sall。Hecan’tworkme。

I’veseenhiskindbefore。Don’tbefrightened。Ifwecan’tdoanythingelsewecananchorandwaituntiltheyseeusfromthehouse。"

Idiot！Atthatpointthechannelwasdeepandthebottomsoftmud。

Idoubtedifhisanchorwouldtouchand，ifitdid，Iknewitwouldnothold。Ibackedwaterandbroughttheskiffalongsidethedingy，therailofwhichIseizedandheld。

"Keepoff！"orderedVictor，stillfumblingwiththerope。"Wedon’twantyourhelp。"

Iwastednobreathonhim。Iaddressedmyremarkstothegirl。

"MissColton，"Isaid，"willyoulistentome，please。Youcan’tanchorherebecauseyouranchorwillnothold。Andyoucan’tcrossthatflatatthisstageofthetide。Icangiveyouanoar，ofcourse，butitwon’tdoanygood。Myoarsaretoolightandsmallforyourboat。Unlessyouwishtodriftbackwhereyouwere，orbeyond，youmustletmetowyouaroundtheheadofthisflat。"

Idon’tknowwhatanswershemighthavemade。None，perhaps；

althoughIamsureshewaslistening。ButVictor，whohadsucceededinuntyingthetowline，cutinaheadofher。

"Mabel，"hewarned，"don’tpayanyattentiontohim。Didn’tyourfathertelluswhathewas？There！"throwingtheendoftheropeoverboardandaddressingme；"now，youmayclearout。We’vedonewithyou。Understand？"

IlookedatMissColton。ButImightaswellhavelookedataniceberg。Islidoneofmyoarsoverintothedingy。

"Thereyouare，"Isaid，grimly。"ButIwarnyouthatyou’reinfortrouble。"

Iletgooftherailandtheboatsfellapart。Victorseizedtheborrowedoarwithatriumphantlaugh。

"Yourbluffwouldn’twork，wouldit，Reuben，"hesneered。"I’llsendyoutheoarandyourpaylater。Now，Mabel，sittight。I’llhaveyouashoreinfifteenminutes。"

Hebeganrowingtowardtheweed—coveredflat。Isaidnothing。I

wasfuriouslyangryanditwassomemomentsbeforeIrecoveredself—possessionsufficientlytogetmyremainingoarovertheskiff’ssternand，bysculling，holdheragainstthetide。ThenI

watchedandwaited。

Itwasnotalongwait。Victorwasindifficultiesalmostfromthebeginning。TheoarbelongingtothedingywasafootlongerthantheoneIhadgivenhimandhezig—zaggedwildly。Soonhewasintheedgeoftheeelgrassand"catchingcrabs，"firstononeside，thenontheother。Thedingy’sbowsliduponthemud。Hestooduptopushitoff，andthesternswungaround。Gettingclear，hetookafreshstartandsucceededonlyinfoulingagain。Thistimehegotfurtherintothetanglebeforehegrounded。Thebowroseandthesternsettled。Therewasamightysplashing，asVictorpushedandtugged，butthedingystuckfast。AndthereshewouldcontinuetostickforfourhoursunlessI，orsomeoneelse，helpedheroff。

Ididnotwanttohelp。Infact，IlookedallupanddownthebaybeforeImadeamove。Butitwasdinnertimeandtherewasnotanothersoulafloat。Morethanthat，Inoticed，asIhadnotnoticedbefore，thatbrownclouds——windclouds——werepilingupinthewest，and，ifIwasanythingofaprophet，wewouldhavesquallsanddirtyweatherlongbeforethosefourhourswereover。

Andthedingy，inthatposition，wasnotsafetofaceablow。No，asthesmallboyssay，itwas"uptome。"Iwisheditwasnot，butitwas。

SoagainIwenttotherescue，butthistimeinanentirelydifferentframeofmind。Myangerandresentmenthadsettledtoacolddetermination，andthistripwaspurelybusiness。Iwasnotatadisadvantagenow，asIhadbeenwhenIfirstmetthatgirlandherfriend，in"BigJim"Colton’slibrary。IwasmasterofthissituationandmasterIintendedtobe。

Isculledtheskiffstraightintotheedgeoftheflat，atapointwherethebankslopedsharplytodeepwater。Ithrewovermyanchor，shortenedtheropeandmadeitfast。ThenIsteppedoutintowaterabovemyshoetopsandwadedtowardthedingy。Thewaterwasicycold，butIdidnotknowitatthetime。

Isplashedthroughtheeelgrass。Victorsawmecomingandroaredanangryprotest。Hewasstilltryingtopushtheboatoffwithanoar。

"Here！"heshouted。"Youkeepaway。Wedon’twantyou。"

Ididnotcarewhathewanted。Isplashedalongsidethedingyandlookedatherandthepositionshewasin。Mymindwasmadeupinstantly。

"You’llnevergetheroffifyoubothstayaboard，"Isaid。"Lettheladymoveamidshipsandyougetoutandwade。"

HeglaredatmeasifIwereascrazyasColtonorLutehaddeclaredmetobe。Thenhelaughedcontemptuously。

"Yougobackwhereyoucamefrom，"heordered。"I’mrunningthis。"

"Yes，I’venoticedthat。NowI’llstatethefactsasplainlyasI

can。Thisboatisfastagroundinthemud，thetideisstillgoingout，andtherearesquallscoming。Shemustbegotoffortheremaybedanger。Youcan’tgetheroffuntilsheislightened。Willyougetoutandwade？"

Hedidnotanswer；insteadhecontinuedtopushwiththeoar。I

turnedtothegirl。

"MissColton，"Isaid，"Imustaskyoutostandup。Becarefulwhenyourise。"

Shemadenomove，nordidshereply。Thelookshegavemewasenough。

"Youmuststandup，"Irepeated，firmly。"Eitheryour——thisgentleman——mustgetout，asItellhimto，orIshallhavetocarryyoutomyskiff。Wehaven’tanytimetospare。"

Shegazedatmeinblankastonishment。Thenthecolorflamedinhercheeksandhereyesflashed。

"Wedon’twishyourhelp，"shesaid，icily。

"I’msorry，butthatmakesnodifference。I——"

Victorwhirledonme，theoarinhishands。Ithoughtforaninstanthewasgoingtostrikemewithit。

"Youblackguard！"heshouted。"Willyougoaway？"

Ilookedathimandthenather。Ithadtobedone，andmymindwasmadeuptodoit。Iwadedinuntilthewaterwasalmosttomyknees，andIwasabreastthesternofthestrandedboat。

"MissColton，"Isaid，"Iamgoingtocarryyoutomyskiff。Areyouready？"

"You——Why！——"shebreathed。

Istooped，liftedherinmyarms，andploughedthroughtheweedsandwater。Themudwassoftandmyfeetsankintoit。Shestruggled。

"Youmustkeepstill，"Isaid，sharply，"orIshalldropyou。"

Shegasped，butshestoppedstruggling。FrombehindmeIheardaroarofragefromVictor。

Icarriedhertotheanchoredskiffand，plunginginstilldeeper，seatedheronthesternthwart。

"Sitthere，please，anddon’tmove，"Isaid。"IshallbebackassoonasI’vegotyourboatafloat。"

Iwadedbacktothedingy。Victorwasfrantic，buthedidnotdisturbme。Theworstofmyunpleasantjobwasover。

"Nowsitdown，"Iordered。"Doyouhearme？Sitdownandsitstill。"

"You——you——"hestammered。

"Becauseifyoudon’tsitdown，"Icontinuedserenely，"you’relikelytotumbleoverboard。I’mgoingtopushthisboatoff。"

Thefirstpushhelpedtomakeuphismind。Hesat，involuntarily。

Ipushedwithallmymightand，slowlyandjerkily，thedingyslidofftheshoal。Buttherewereothersallabout。WithonehandonthebowIguidedherbetweenthemandtotheedgeofthechannel。

Then，wadingalongtheslipperybank，Ibroughthertotheskiff。

Mypassengerhadbeenmakingremarksintransit，butIpaidnoattentiontothem。

Imadetheropefastfortowing，tookmyoarfromthedingy，pulleduptheskiff’sanchorandclimbedaboard。

"Sitwhereyouare，"IsaidtoVictor。"MissColton，pleasekeepasstillaspossible。"

IventuredtolookatherasIsaidthis，butIlookedbutonce。

AllthewayhomeIkeptmygazefixedonthebottomboardsoftheskiff。

Imadethelandingjustintime。Infact，thesquallstruckbeforeIwasabreasttheColtonplace。Thechannelbeyondtheflat，whichwehadsolatelyleft，waswhippedtowhitecapsinamomentandminiaturebreakerswerebeatingagainstthemudbankwherethedingyhadgrounded。

Underthehighbluffitwascalmenough。Thetidewastoolowtomakeuseofthelittlewharf，soIbeachedtheskiffanddrewthetowedboatinbytheline。IofferedtoassistMissColtonashore，butshe，apparently，didnotseemyprofferedhand。Victorscrambledoutbyhimself。Noonesaidanything。Iuntiedtheropeandpulleditin。ThenIpreparedtopushoff。

"Here！"growledVictor。"Waitaminute。"

Ilookedup。Hewasstandingattheedgeofthewater，withonehandinhispocket。MissColtonwasbehindhim。

"Well？"Iasked。

"Ihaven’tpaidyouyet，"hesaid，sullenly。"Howmuch？"

"Whatdoyoumean？"Iasked。Iknew，ofcourse，butitpleasedmetomakehimsayit。

"Why，howmuchfortowingusin？What’syourprice？Come，hurryup。"

"Ihaven’tanyprice。I’mnotinthesalvagebusiness。"

"Not——Say，don’tbargain。What’syourprice，Iaskyou？"

"Nothing，ofcourse。Verygladtohavebeenofassistance。"

Itookupmyoars。

"Here！"heshouted。"Stop！holdon！Confoundyou！doyousupposewedon’tintendtopayyouforthis？"

Ishookmyhead。"Ithasbeenapleasure，"Isaid，sweetly。"Goodday。"

Irowedoff，butallthewaydowntomyboathouseIsmiledcontentedly。IhadseenthelookonMabelColton’sface。IratherthoughtIhadevenedtheaccountbetweenus；atleastIhadreducedthebalanceatrifle。ThistimeitwasnotIwhoappearedridiculous。

DorindasawmewhenIenteredthekitchen。Herhandswereupraised。

"Mysoulandbody！"sheexclaimed。"LOOKatthempants！LOOKat’em！AndIain’thadtimetoputaneedletoyourotheronesyet！"

CHAPTERVI

Therain，whichIexpectedwouldfollowthesquall，didnotcomeuntillatethatnight，anditwasstillfallingheavilythenextmorning。Itwasawarmrain，however，and，afterbreakfast，I

walkeduptothevillage。Isaidnothing，eventoMother，aboutthehappeningsinthebay，andDorinda，whohadaskedmanysarcasticquestionsconcerningthestateofmybluetrousers——ifI

had"mistook’emforabathin’suit"andthelike——seemedsatisfiedwithmyhurriedexplanationthatIhadgottenoverboard。"Thoughhowyoufellinfeetfust，"sheobserved，"Idon’tsee。"Shehadmendedmybrownpair，sittingupuntilaftertwotodoso。

Luteinformedmethathehadbeenuptothepost—office。

"Everybody’stalkin’aboutthemColtons，"hedeclared。"Iseetheirautomobilelastnight，myself。TheColtongirl，shecomeintothestore。My！she’sastunner，ain’tshe！Simwaitedonher，himself，andgaveherthemail。Shewantedtobuysomecheese——forarabbit，shesaid。Ineverheardoffeedingarabbitoncheese，didyou，Ros？"

"No，"Ireplied，laughing。Itwasnotworthwhiletoexplain。

"Nornobodyelse，buther！Iguess，"continuedLute，"likelyshewasjustjokin’。Anyhow，Simwasalloutofcheese，buthehadsomeniceprintbutter，justin。Shedidn’twantnobutter，though。"

"Humph！"sniffedDorinda。"DidSimEldredgecal’lateshewantedtofeedtherabbitbutter？WastheColtongirlalone？"

"No。Therewasayoungfellerwithher；theonethat’svisitin’

’em。Carverhisnameis——VictorCarver。Didyoueverhearsuchanameinyourlife？AforeI’dnameachildofmineVictor！"

"Um—hm。Well，Iwouldn’twastetimeworryin’aboutthat，ifIwasyou。Lookhere，LuteRogers，youdidn’tsayanythingaboutRoscoe’stalkwithMr。Colton，didyou？"

"No，no！no，no！CourseIdidn’t。"

"Yousure？"

"Yes。’TaintlikelyIwould，wouldI？Cap’nJedwasonhand，asusual，andhewasfullofquestions，buthedidn’tgetanythingoutofme。’WhatdidColtonsaytoRos？’hesays。’HowdoIknowwhathesaid？’saysI。’Iwan’tthere，wasI？’’Wherewasyouthatforenoon？’hesays。’Forenoon！’saysI，’thatshowshowmuchyouknowaboutit。’Twasthreeo’clockintheafternoon。’Oh，Ihadthelaughonhim！"

Dorindalookedatmeandshookherhead。

"It’stoobad，Roscoe，"shesaid。"ButIwasafraidofitassoonasIfoundhe’dsneakedofftothepost—office。Ical’lateit’sallovertownbynow。"

"Whatdoyoumeanbythat？"Lute’sdignitywasoutraged。"Allovertown！Inevertoldhimnothin’。"

"No。OnlythatRosandMr。Coltonweretogetherand’twasthreeo’clockintheafternoon。Andgoodnessknowshowmuchmore！DObequiet！SeemssometimesasifIshouldlosepatiencewithyoualtogether。IsthisCarvertheColtongirl’syoungman？Aretheyengaged？"

"Idon’tknow。Iguesshe’skeepin’companywithher，bythelooks。Igotasnighto’emasIcould，butIdidn’thearmuchtheysaid。Only，justastheywasgoin’out，hesaidsomethin’

aboutgoin’foralittlespininthecar。Shesaidno，herfatherwouldwanthisletters。Carver，hesaid，whynotsendOscarhome——

that’sthechauffeur，youknow——withtheletters，andhe’drunthecarhimself。Shekindoflaughed，andsaidsheguessednot，she’dtakenonetripwithhimalreadythatdayandshedidn’tbelieveshecaredforanother。Heseemedkindofputoutaboutit，Ithought。"

IhadbeenfeelingratherprovokedatLuteforgivingCaptainJedtheinformationconcerningmyinterviewwithColton；but，somehow，thisotherbitofnewsrestoredmygoodhumor。WhenIstartedforthevillageIdidnottaketheshortcutacrossthefields，butfollowedmyregularroute，thepathbythebluffandtheShoreLane。Iwasnolongerfearfulofmeetingmynewneighbors。Thememoryofthehappeningsinthebaywasadelightfulsolacetomywoundedself—respect。IchuckledoveritasIwalkedthroughthedrippingpinesofthelittlegrove。Nomatterhowcontemptuouslyindifferentthatgirlmightpretendtobeshewouldnotforgetwhathadtakenplace；thatshehadbeenobligedtoobeymyorders；thatIhadcarriedhertothatskiff；thatIhadsavedherfromadanger——notagreatdanger，andagainstherwill，ofcourse——butsavedhernevertheless。Shewasunderanobligationtome；shecouldnothelpherself。Howthatmustgallher。IrememberedthelookonherfaceasIrowedaway。Sweetwasrevenge。AndVictor——

Victorwasajoke。

WhenIreachedtheLaneIlookedoverattheColtonmansion。Therainhadgiventhecarpentersandpaintersanenforcedholiday，and，exceptforthechauffeur，whomIcouldseethroughtheopendoorofthegarage，therewasnooneinsight。IthinkIwasalittledisappointed。If"BigJim"hadappearedandhailedmewithanotherofferforthelandIshouldnothavedodged。Iwasreadyforhim。Butneitherhe，oranyoneelse，appearedandIwalkedon。

AttheCorners，SimEldredgeshoutedtomefromtheplatformofhisstore。

"Hi，Ros！"heshouted。"You！RosPaine！comehereaminute，willyou？"

Ididnotwanttoseehim。Ihadintendedavoidingthepost—officealtogether。ButIcrossedtotheplatform。

"Say，Ros，"heaskedeagerly，"what’sthisaboutyouandMr。Colton？"

Iwasannoyed。

"Whatdoyoumean？"Iasked。

"Why，youknow，don’tyou？Hecometoseeyouandyouwenttoseehimovertohishouse。Youhadareg’larargument，Iunderstand。

AbouttheShoreLane，wan’tit？"

"Whotoldyouthat？"Iinquired，sharply。

"Why，nobodytoldme，exactly。LuteRogersandCap’nJedwasherelastnightandtheygota—goin’asusual。TheCap’ndoeslovetostirupLute，andhecommencedhintin’aboutsomethin’ofthekind。

Idon’tknowastheywashints，either，butLutethoughttheywas。"

Hegrinned。Iunderstood。

"Isee，"Isaid。"Well，whatdidLutesay？"

"Isupposehe’dsayheneversaidaword，butafterhe’dgonetherewasakindofgeneralsentimentthatColtonwantedtobuytheShoreLanelandoffyou，andthatyouandhehadsomewordsaboutit。

Anyhow，youdidn’tselltheland，didyou？"

"SupposeIdid，ordidn’t；whatofit？"

"Why，nothin’，nothin’。Only，Itellyou，Ros——"helookedcarefullyabouttomakesurenoonewaslistening；"Itellyou；

it’sjustthisway。Icanunderstandhowyoufeelaboutit。YouknowDeanandsomeoftheothersaresoreonMr。Colton’causehe’sgotmoremoneythantheyhave，andtheywanttomakeallthetroubleforhimtheycan。Jed’sgotanideathathe’safterthatLane，tocloseitoff，andhe’sstirrin’upsentimentagainstitsbein’closed。He’stalkin’aboutthetownbuyin’it。NowofcourseIknowyourposition。Youwanttogetjustashighapriceasyoucanaforeyousell。"

"That’smyposition，isit？"

"Itwouldbethepositionofanysensibleman，wouldn’tit？I

don’tblameyou。Now，whatIwantedtosaywasthis。"Hebentforwardandloweredhisvoicetoawhisper。"Whydon’tyouletmehandlethisthingforyou？Icandoitbetter’nyou。IseeCap’nJedeverynight，youmightsay。AndIseeconsider’bleofMr。

Colton。HeknowsI’mpostmasterinthistownandsortofprominent。Allthesmartfolksain’tintheBoardofSelectmen。

I’llkeepyouposted；see？Youjustsetbackandpretendyoudon’twanttosellatall。Colton，he’llbidandJedandhisgang’llbid。I’lltelleachwhattheotherbids，andwe’llkeepherjumpin’。Whenwegettothelastjump，we’llsell——andnotafore。

OfcourseMr。Colton’llgetit，intheend。"

"Oh，hewill！Whatmakesyouthinkso？"

"Whatmakesmethinkso？Don’tbefoolish。Ain’theamillionaire？

HowcanDenborostandupagainstamillionaire？Itellyou，Ros，it’smoneycountsinthisworld，anditpaystostandinwiththemthat’sgotit。I’mgoin’tostandinwithMr。Colton。ButI’llpretendtostandinwithDeanjustasmuch。Icanhelpawholelot。

Why，Ishouldn’twonderif，betweenus，wecouldget——er——er——I

don’tknowhowmuch，forthatland。Whatdoyousay？"

Ismiled。"It’sverykindofyou，Sim，tobewillingtogotosomuchtroubleonmyaccount，"Iobserved。"Ididn’tknowtherewassuchdisinterestedkindnessinDenboro。"

Simseemedabitputout。"Why，"hestammered，"I——I——ofcourseI

presumedlikelyyou’dbewillin’topaymealittlecommission——or——

or——somethin’。IthoughtImightbeasortof——er——agentforyou。

I’vehandledconsider’blerealestateinmytime——and——youseewhatImean，don’tyou？"

"Yes，"Isaid，drily；"Isee。Well，Sim，ifIdecidetoengageanagentI’llletyouknow。Goodmorning。"

"But，holdon，Ros！I——"

Ididnot"holdon。"Iwalkedacrosstheroadandenteredthebank。AlvinBakermetmeinthevestibule。Heseizedmyhandandshookitviolently。

"Ideclare，"heexclaimed，"itdoesmegoodtoshakehandswithafellerthat’sgotthegrityouhave。Itdoesso！We’reallproudofyou。"

"Muchobliged，Alvin，I’msure。Butwhy？"

Hewinkedandnudgedmewithhiselbow。

"Youknowwhy，allright，"hewhispered。"Wouldn’tsellhimtheland，wouldyou？Tellme：Didhemakeyouarealbidforit？

Luteasmuchassaidhedid。"

Forapersonwhohadtoldnothing，Luteseemedtohave"asmuchassaid"agoodmanythings。Ishookmyhead。

"SoyouthinkIshouldn’tselltheland？"Iasked。

"Courseyoushouldn’t——nottohim。Ain’ttheresuchthingsaspublicspiritandindependence？ButI’lltellyousomethin’more，Ros，"mysteriously。"Youmayhaveachancetosellitsomewhereelse。"

"Indeed？"

"Yes，sir—ee！indeed！There’sotherpublic—spiritedfolksinDenboroaswellasyou。IknowwhotheybeandIstandinwith’emprettyclose，too。I’mgoin’tohelpyouallIcan。"

"That’sverykindofyou，Alvin。"

"No，no。I’mgladtodoit。Shan’tchargeyounothin’，neither。"

"That’skinderstill。"

"No，’tain’t……Holdonaminute，Ros。Don’tgo。AsIsay，I’mgoin’toworktoothandnailtogetthetowntobuythatLanepropertyofyours。I’llstickoutforyou’regettin’agoodpriceforit。I’lluseallmyinfluence。"

"Thankyou。"

"Youneedn’tthankme。It’samatterofprinciple。We’llshowthesecityfolkstheyain’tthewholeship，cargoandall……

Holdonasecondmore。Ros，I——er——Iwonderifyou’ddoalittlefavorforme。"

"Whatisit，Alvin？"

"Why，it’sthisway。I’vegotanotehereinthebank；putittherewhenIboughtthepowerengineformycat—boat。Hundredandfiftydollars，’tis。You’reaprettygoodfriendofGeorgeTaylor，cashierhere，andIwaswonderin’ifyou’dmindputtin’inawordwithhimaboutmygettin’itrenewedwhenitcomesdue。JusttellhimyouthinkI’mallright，andagoodrisk，orsomethin’likethat。"

Icouldnothelpsmiling。Alvinseemedtofindencouragementinthesmile。

"Georgethinksconsider’bleofyou，"hesaid。"AndCaptainJed——

he’soneofthedirectors——hewill，too，nowthatyou’vestooduptoColton。Justputinawordforme，willyou？Anddon’tforgetI’mafriendofyours，andI’mstrongforyourgettin’agood，fairpricefromthetown。Rememberthat，won’tyou？"

"Iwon’tforget，Alvin。Good—by。"

Ilefthimandwentintothebank。HenrySmall，thebookkeeper，wasathisdesk。Iwalkedovertospeaktohim，buthe，lookingupfromhisfigures，spokefirst。Therewas，orsoitseemedtome，adifferentnoteinhisgreeting。Itwasmorehearty，Ithought。

Certainlyheregardedmewithanewandcuriousinterest。

"Morning，Ros，"hesaid。"Well，howareyouthesedays？"

IansweredthatIwaswell，andwasmovingonbuthedetainedme。

"Livelytimesahead，hey，"hewhispered。

"Whatsortoftimes？"Iasked。

Hewinked。"Iguessyouknow，ifanybodydoes，"heobserved。"Allright，you’llhavegoodfriendsonyourside。Iain’tsayinganything，ofcourse，butI’mon，allright。"

Hewinkedagain。Iwalkedbacktothecashier’swindow。Taylorhad，evidently，seenmetalkingwiththebookkeeper，forhewasstandingbythelittlegate，waitingforme。

"Hello，Ros，"hesaid。"Gladtoseeyou。Comein。"

GeorgeTaylorwasatypeofsmartcountryboygrowntomanhoodinthecountry。Histone，likehismanner，wassharpandquickandbusinesslike，buthespokewiththeDown—EasttwangandusedtheCapephrasesandmetaphors。HewasyoungerthanI，buthelookedolder，and，oflate，ithadseemedtomethathewasgrowingmorenervous。Weshookhands。

"Gladtoseeyou，"besaidagain。"Iwashopingyou’ddriftin。I

presumedlikelyyoumight。Sitdown。"

Itooktheprofferedchair。HelookedatmewithmuchthesamecuriousinterestthatSmallhadshown。

"We’vebeenhearingaboutyou，"hesaid。"You’vebeengettingyourselftalkedabout。"

ImentallycussedLuteoncemoreforhisloquacity。

"I’llbreakthefellow’sneck，"Ideclared，withemphasis。

Helaughed。"Don’tdothatyetawhile，"hesaid。"Themarketisinbadenoughshapeasitis。IfhisneckwasbrokethewholeofWallStreetwouldgotopot。"

"WallStreet？WhatintheworldhasLutegottodowithWallStreet？"

"Lute！Oh，Isee！Yes，Lute’sbeendoingconsiderabletalking，butitain’thisneckImean。Say，Ros，whatdidyoudotohim，anyway？Youstirredhimupsome，judgingbywhathesaidtome。"

"Whosaid？What？"