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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6833f05 --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,3 @@ +* text=auto +*.txt text +*.md text diff --git a/5405.txt b/5405.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..9495823 --- /dev/null +++ b/5405.txt @@ -0,0 +1,15402 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Ne'er-Do-Well, by Rex Beach + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: The Ne'er-Do-Well + +Author: Rex Beach + +Posting Date: May 2, 2013 [EBook #5405] +Release Date: April, 2004 +First Posted: July 7, 2002 +Last Updated: August 16, 2005 + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE NE'ER-DO-WELL *** + + + + +Produced by Charles Franks and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team. + + + + + + + + + + +THE NE'ER-DO-WELL + +By REX BEACH + +Author of "THE SILVER HORDE" "THE SPOILERS" "THE IRON TRAIL" Etc. + +Illustrated + + + + +TO + +MY WIFE + + + + +CONTENTS + + I. VICTORY + + II. THE TRAIL DIVIDES + + III. A GAP + + IV. NEW ACQUAINTANCES + + V. A REMEDY IS PROPOSED + + VI. IN WHICH KIRK ANTHONY IS GREATLY SURPRISED + + VII. THE REWARD OF MERIT + + VIII. EL COMANDANTE TAKES A HAND + + IX. SPANISH LAW + + X. A CHANGE OF PLAN + + XI. THE TRUTH ABOUT MRS. CORTLANDT + + XII. A NIGHT AT TABOGA + + XIII. CHIQUITA + + XIV. THE PATH THAT LED NOWHERE + + XV. ALIAS JEFFERSON LOCKE + + XVI. "8838" + + XVII. GARAVEL THE BANKER + + XVIII. THE SIEGE OF MARIA TORRES + + XIX. "LA TOSCA" + + XX. AN AWAKENING + + XXI. THE REST OF THE FAMILY + + XXII. A CHALLENGE AND A CONFESSION + + XXIII. A PLOT AND A SACRIFICE + + XXIV. A BUSINESS PROPOSITION + + XXV. CHECKMATE! + + XXVI. THE CRASH + + XXVII. A QUESTION + +XXVIII. THE ANSWER + + XXIX. A LAST APPEAL + + XXX. DARWIN K ANTHONY + + + + +THE NE'ER-DO-WELL + + + + +I + +VICTORY + + +It was a crisp November night. The artificial brilliance of Broadway +was rivalled by a glorious moonlit sky. The first autumn frost was in +the air, and on the side-streets long rows of taxicabs were standing, +their motors blanketed, their chauffeurs threshing their arms to rout +the cold. A few well-bundled cabbies, perched upon old-style hansoms, +were barking at the stream of hurrying pedestrians. Against a +background of lesser lights myriad points of electric signs flashed +into everchanging shapes, winking like huge, distorted eyes; fanciful +designs of liquid fire ran up and down the walls or blazed forth in +lurid colors. From the city's canons came an incessant clanging roar, +as if a great river of brass and steel were grinding its way toward the +sea. + +Crowds began to issue from the theatres, and the lines of waiting +vehicles broke up, filling the streets with the whir of machinery and +the clatter of hoofs. A horde of shrill-voiced urchins pierced the +confusion, waving their papers and screaming the football scores at the +tops of their lusty lungs, while above it all rose the hoarse tones of +carriage callers, the commands of traffic officers, and the din of +street-car gongs. + +In the lobby of one of the playhouses a woman paused to adjust her +wraps, and, hearing the cries of the newsboys, petulantly exclaimed: + +"I'm absolutely sick of football. That performance during the third act +was enough to disgust one." + +Her escort smiled. "Oh, you take it too seriously," he said. "Those +boys don't mean anything. That was merely Youth--irrepressible Youth, +on a tear. You wouldn't spoil the fun?" + +"It may have been Youth," returned his companion, "but it sounded more +like the end of the world. It was a little too much!" + +A bevy of shop-girls came bustling forth from a gallery exit. + +"Rah! rah! rah!" they mimicked, whereupon the cry was answered by a +hundred throats as the doors belched forth the football players and +their friends. Out they came, tumbling, pushing, jostling; greeting +scowls and smiles with grins of insolent good-humor. In their hands +were decorated walking-sticks and flags, ragged and tattered as if from +long use in a heavy gale. Dignified old gentlemen dived among them in +pursuit of top-hats; hysterical matrons hustled daughters into +carriages and slammed the doors. + +"Wuxtry! Wuxtry!" shrilled the newsboys. "Full account of the big game!" + +A youth with a ridiculous little hat and heliotrope socks dashed into +the street, where, facing the crowd, he led a battle song of his +university. Policemen set their shoulders to the mob, but, though they +met with no open resistance, they might as well have tried to dislodge +a thicket of saplings. To-night football was king. + +Out through the crowd came a score of deep-chested young men moving +together as if to resist an attack, whereupon a mighty roar went up. +The cheer-leader increased his antics, and the barking yell changed to +a measured chant, to the time of which the army marched down the street +until the twenty athletes dodged in through the revolving doors of a +cafe, leaving Broadway rocking with the tumult. + +All the city was football-mad, it seemed, for no sooner had the +new-comers entered the restaurant than the diners rose to wave napkins +or to cheer. Men stepped upon chairs and craned for a better sight of +them; women raised their voices in eager questioning. A gentleman in +evening dress pointed out the leader of the squad to his companions, +explaining: + +"That is Anthony--the big chap. He's Darwin K. Anthony's son. You've +heard about the Anthony bill at Albany?" + +"Yes, and I saw this fellow play football four years ago. Say! That was +a game." + +"He's a worthless sort of chap, isn't he?" remarked one of the women, +when the squad had disappeared up the stairs. + +"Just a rich man's son, that's all. But he certainly could play +football." + +"Didn't I read that he had been sent to jail recently?" + +"No doubt. He was given thirty days." + +"What! in PRISON?" questioned another, in a shocked voice. + +"Only for speeding. It was his third offence, and his father let him +take his medicine." + +"How cruel!" + +"Old man Anthony doesn't care for this sort of thing. He's right, too. +All this young fellow is good for is to spend money." + +Up in the banquet-hall, however, it was evident that Kirk Anthony was +more highly esteemed by his mates than by the public at large. He was +their hero, in fact, and in a way he deserved it. For three years +before his graduation he had been the heart and sinew of the university +team, and for the four years following he had coached them, preferring +the life of an athletic trainer to the career his father had offered +him. And he had done his chosen work well. + +Only three weeks prior to the hard gruel of the great game the eleven +had received a blow that had left its supporters dazed and despairing. +There had been a scandal, of which the public had heard little and the +students scarcely more, resulting in the expulsion of the five best +players of the team. The crisis might have daunted the most resourceful +of men, yet Anthony had proved equal to it. For twenty-one days he had +labored like a real general, spending his nights alone with diagrams +and little dummies on a miniature gridiron, his days in careful +coaching. He had taken a huge, ungainly Nova Scotian lad named Ringold +for centre; he had placed a square-jawed, tow-headed boy from Duluth in +the line; he had selected a high-strung, unseasoned chap, who for two +years had been eating his heart out on the side-lines, and made him +into a quarter-back. + +Then he had driven them all with the cruelty of a Cossack captain; and +when at last the dusk of this November day had settled, new football +history had been made. The world had seen a strange team snatch victory +from defeat, and not one of all the thirty thousand onlookers but knew +to whom the credit belonged. It had been a tremendous spectacle, and +when the final whistle blew for the multitude to come roaring down +across the field, the cohorts had paid homage to Kirk Anthony, the +weary coach to whom they knew the honor belonged. + +Of course this fervid enthusiasm and hero-worship was all very +immature, very foolish, as the general public acknowledged after it had +taken time to cool off. Yet there was something appealing about it, +after all. At any rate, the press deemed the public sufficiently +interested in the subject to warrant giving it considerable prominence, +and the name of Darwin K. Anthony's son was published far and wide. + +Naturally, the newspapers gave the young man's story as well as a +history of the game. They told of his disagreement with his father; of +the Anthony anti-football bill which the old man in his rage had driven +through the legislature and up to the Governor himself. Some of them +even printed a rehash of the railroad man's famous magazine attack on +the modern college, in which he all but cited his own son as an example +of the havoc wrought by present-day university methods. The elder +Anthony's wealth and position made it good copy. The yellow journals +liked it immensely, and, strangely enough, notwithstanding the +positiveness with which the newspapers spoke, the facts agreed +essentially with their statements. Darwin K. Anthony and his son had +quarrelled, they were estranged; the young man did prefer idleness to +industry. Exactly as the published narratives related, he toiled not at +all, he spun nothing but excuses, he arrayed himself in sartorial +glory, and drove a yellow racing-car beyond the speed limit. + +It was all true, only incomplete. Kirk Anthony's father had even better +reasons for his disapproval of the young man's behavior than appeared. +The fact was that Kirk's associates were of a sort to worry any +observant parent, and, moreover, he had acquired a renown in that part +of New York lying immediately west of Broadway and north of +Twenty-sixth Street which, in his father's opinion, added not at all to +the lustre of the family name. In particular, Anthony, Sr., was +prejudiced against a certain Higgins, who, of course, was his son's +boon companion, aid, and abettor. This young gentleman was a lean, +horse-faced senior, whose unbroken solemnity of manner had more than +once led strangers to mistake him for a divinity student, though closer +acquaintance proved him wholly unmoral and rattle-brained. Mr. Higgins +possessed a distorted sense of humor and a crooked outlook upon life; +while, so far as had been discovered, he owned but two ambitions: one +to whip a policeman, the other to write a musical comedy. Neither +seemed likely of realization. As for the first, he was narrow-chested +and gangling, while a brief, disastrous experience on the college paper +had furnished a sad commentary upon the second. + +Not to exaggerate, Darwin K. Anthony, the father, saw in the person of +Adelbert Higgins a budding criminal of rare precocity, and a menace to +his son; while to the object of his solicitude the aforesaid criminal +was nothing more than an entertaining companion, whose bizarre +disregard of all established rules of right and wrong matched well with +his own careless temper. Higgins, moreover, was an ardent follower of +athletics, revolving like a satellite about the football stars, and +attaching himself especially to Kirk, who was too good-natured to find +fault with an honest admirer. + +It was Higgins this evening who, after the "cripples" had deserted and +the supper party had dwindled to perhaps a dozen, proposed to make a +night of it. It was always Higgins who proposed to make a night of it, +and now, as usual, his words were greeted with enthusiasm. + +Having obtained the floor, he gazed owlishly over the flushed faces +around the table and said: + +"I wish to announce that, in our little journey to the underworld, we +will visit some places of rare interest and educational value. First we +will go to the House of Seven Turnings." + +"No poetry, Hig!" some one cried. "What is it?" + +"It is merely a rendezvous of pickpockets and thieves, accessible only +to a chosen few. I feel sure you will enjoy yourselves there, for the +bartender has the secret of a remarkable gin fizz, sweeter than a +maiden's smile, more intoxicating than a kiss." + +"Piffle!" + +"It is a place where the student of sociology can obtain a world of +valuable information." + +"How do we get in?" + +"Leave that to old Doctor Higgins," Anthony laughed. "To get out is the +difficulty." + +"Oh, I guess we'll get out," said the bulky Ringold. + +"After we have concluded our investigations at the House of Seven +Turnings," continued the ceremonious Higgins, "we will go to the Palace +of Ebony, where a full negro orchestra--" + +"The police closed that a week ago." + +"But it has reopened on a scale larger and grander than ever." + +"Let's take in the Austrian Village," offered Ringold. + +"Patiently! Patiently, Behemoth! We'll take 'em all in. However, I wish +to request one favor. If by any chance I should become embroiled with a +minion of the law, please, oh please, let me finish him." + +"Remember the last time," cautioned Anthony. "You've never come home a +winner." + +"Enough! Away with painful memories! All in favor--" + +"AYE!" yelled the diners, whereupon a stampede ensued that caused the +waiters in the main dining-room below to cease piling chairs upon the +tables and hastily weight their napkins with salt-cellars. + +But the crowd was not combative. They poured out upon the street in the +best possible humor, and even at the House of Seven Turnings, as +Higgins had dubbed the "hide-away" on Thirty-second Street, they made +no disturbance. On the contrary, it was altogether too quiet for most +of them, and they soon sought another scene. But there were deserters +en route to the Palace of Ebony, and when in turn the joys of a full +negro orchestra had palled and a course was set for the Austrian +Village, the number of investigators had dwindled to a choice +half-dozen. + +These, however, were kindred spirits, veterans of many a midnight +escapade, composing a flying squadron of exactly the right proportions +for the utmost efficiency and mobility combined. + +The hour was now past a respectable bedtime and the Tenderloin had +awakened. The roar of commerce had dwindled away, and the comparative +silence was broken only by the clang of an infrequent trolley. The +streets were empty of vehicles, except for a few cabs that followed the +little group persistently. As yet there was no need of them. The crowd +was made up, for the most part, of healthy, full-blooded boys, fresh +from weeks of training, strong of body, and with stomachs like +galvanized iron. They showed scant evidence of intoxication. As for the +weakest member of the party, it had long been known that one drink made +Higgins drunk, and all further libations merely served to maintain him +in status quo. Exhaustive experiments had proved that he was able to +retain consciousness and the power of locomotion until the first streak +of dawn appeared, after which he usually became a burden. For the +present he was amply able to take care of himself, and now, although +his speech was slightly thick, his demeanor was as didactic and severe +as ever, and, save for the vagrant workings of his mind, he might have +passed for a curate. As a whole, the crowd was in fine fettle. + +The Austrian Village is a saloon, dance-hall, and all-night restaurant, +flourishing brazenly within a stone's throw of Broadway, and it is +counted one of the sights of the city. Upon entering, one may pass +through a saloon where white-aproned waiters load trays and wrangle +over checks, then into a ball-room filled with the flotsam and jetsam +of midnight Manhattan. Above and around this room runs a white-and-gold +balcony partitioned into boxes; beneath it are many tables separated +from the waxed floor by a railing. Inside the enclosure men in +street-clothes and smartly gowned girls with enormous hats revolve +nightly to the strains of an orchestra which nearly succeeds in +drowning their voices. From the tables come laughter and snatches of +song; waiters dash hither and yon. It is all very animated and gay on +the surface, and none but the closely observant would note the +weariness beneath the women's smiles, the laughter notes that +occasionally jar, or perceive that the tailored gowns are imitations, +the ermines mainly rabbit-skins. + +But the eyes of youth are not analytical, and seen through a rosy haze +the sight was inspiriting. The college men selected a table, and, +shouldering the occupants aside without ceremony, seated themselves and +pounded for a waiter. + +Padden, the proprietor, came toward them, and, after greeting Anthony +and Higgins by a shake of his left hand, ducked his round gray head in +acknowledgment of an introduction to the others. + +"Excuse my right," said he, displaying a swollen hand criss-crossed +with surgeon's plaster. "A fellow got noisy last night." + +"D'jou hit him?" queried Higgins, gazing with interest at the +proprietor's knuckles. + +"Yes. I swung for his jaw and went high. Teeth--" Mr. Padden said, +vaguely. He turned a shrewd eye upon Anthony. "I heard about the game +to-day. That was all right." + +Kirk grinned boyishly. "I didn't have much to do with it; these are the +fellows." + +"Don't believe him," interrupted Ringold. + +"Sure! he's too modest," Higgins chimed in. "Fine fellow an' all that, +understand, but he's got two faults--he's modest and he's lazy. He's +caused a lot of uneasiness to his father and me. Father's a fine man, +too." He nodded his long, narrow head solemnly. + +"We know who did the trick for us," added Anderson, the straw-haired +half-back. + +"Glad you dropped in," Mr. Padden assured them. "Anything you boys want +and can't get, let me know." + +When he had gone Higgins averred: "There's a fine man--peaceful, +refined--got a lovely character, too. Let's be gentlemen while we're in +his place." + +Ringold rose. "I'm going to dance, fellows," he announced, and his +companions followed him, with the exception of the cadaverous Higgins, +who maintained that dancing was a pastime for the frivolous and weak. + +When they returned to their table they found a stranger was seated with +him, who rose as Higgins made him known. + +"Boys, meet my old friend, Mr. Jefferson Locke, of St. Louis. He's all +right." + +The college men treated this new recruit with a hilarious cordiality, +to which he responded with the air of one quite accustomed to such +reunions. + +"I was at the game this afternoon," he explained, when the greetings +were over, "and recognized you chaps when you came in. I'm a football +fan myself." + +"You look as if you might have played," said Anthony, sizing up the +broad frame of the Missourian with the critical eye of a coach. + +"Yes. I used to play." + +"Where?" + +Mr. Locke avoided answer by calling loudly for a waiter, but when the +orders had been taken Kirk repeated: + +"Where did you play, Mr. Locke?" + +"Left tackle." + +"What university?" + +"Oh one of the Southern colleges. It was a freshwater school--you +wouldn't know the name." He changed the subject quickly by adding: + +"I just got into town this morning and I'm sailing to-morrow. I +couldn't catch a boat to-day, so I'm having a little blow-out on my own +account. When I recognized you all, I just butted in. New York is a +lonesome place for a stranger. Hope you don't mind my joining you." + +"Not at all!" he was assured. + +When he came to pay the waiter he displayed a roll of yellow-backed +bills that caused Anthony to caution him: + +"If I were you I'd put that in my shoe. I know this place." + +Locke only laughed. "There's more where this came from. However, that's +one reason I'd like to stick around with you fellows. I have an idea +I've been followed, and I don't care to be tapped on the head. If you +will let me trail along I'll foot the bills. That's a fair proposition." + +"It certainly sounds engaging," cried Higgins, joyously. "The sight of +that money awakens a feeling of loyalty in our breasts. I speak for all +when I say we will guard you like a lily as long as your money lasts, +Mr. Locke." + +"As long as we last," Ringold amended. + +"It's a bargain," Locke agreed. "Hereafter I foot the bills. You're my +guests for the evening, understand. If you'll agree to keep me company +until my ship sails I'll do the entertaining." + +"Oh, come now," Anthony struck in. "The fellows are just fooling. +You're more than welcome to stay with us if you like, but we can't let +you put up for it." + +"Why not? We'll make a night of it. I'll show you how we spend money in +St. Louis. I'm too nervous to go to bed." + +Anthony protested, insisting that the other should regard himself as +the guest of the crowd; but as Locke proved obdurate the question was +allowed to drop until later, when Kirk found himself promoted by tacit +consent to the position of host for the whole company. This was a +little more than he had bargained for, but the sense of having +triumphed in a contest of good-fellowship consoled him. Meanwhile, the +stranger, despite his avowedly festive spirit, showed a certain reserve. + +When the music again struck up he declined to dance, preferring to +remain with Higgins in their inconspicuous corner. + +"There's a fine fellow," the latter remarked, following his best +friend's figure with his eyes, when he and Locke were once more alone. +"Sweet nature." + +"Anthony? Yes, he looks it." + +"He's got just two faults, I always say: he's too modest by far and +he's lazy--won't work." + +"He doesn't have to work. His old man has plenty of coin, hasn't he?" + +"Yes, and he'll keep it, too. Heartless old wretch. Mr.--What's your +name, again?" + +"Locke." + +"Mr. Locke." The speaker stared mournfully at his companion. "D'you +know what that unnatural parent did?" + +"No." + +"He let his only son and heir go to jail." + +Mr. Jefferson Locke, of St. Louis, started; his wandering, watchful +eyes flew back to the speaker. + +"What! Jail?" + +"That's what I remarked. He allowed his own flesh and blood to languish +in a loathsome cell." + +"What for? What did they get him for?" queried the other, quickly. + +"Speeding." + +"Oh!" Locke let himself back in his chair. + +"Yes sir, he's a branded felon." + +"Nonsense. That's nothing." + +"But we love him just the same, criminal though he is" said Higgins, +showing a disposition to weep. "If he were not such a strong, patient +soul it might have ruined his whole life." + +Mr. Locke grunted. + +"S'true! You've no idea the disgrace it is to go to jail." + +The Missourian stirred uneasily. "Say, it gets on my nerves to sit +still," said he. "Let's move around." + +"Patiently! Patiently! Somebody's sure to start something before long." + +"Well, I don't care to get mixed up in a row." + +Higgins laid a long, white hand upon the speaker's arm. "Then stay with +us, Mr.--Locke. If you incline to peace, be one of us. We're a flock of +sucking doves." + +The dancers came crowding up to the table at the moment, and Ringold +suggested loudly: "I'm hungry; let's eat again." + +His proposal met with eager response. + +"Where shall we go?" asked Anderson. + +"I just fixed it with Padden for a private room upstairs," Anthony +said. "All the cafes are closed now, and this is the best place in town +for chicken creole, anyhow." + +Accordingly he led the way, and the rest filed out after him; but as +they left the ball-room a medium-sized man who had recently entered +from the street caught a glimpse of them, craned his neck for a better +view, then idled along behind. + + + + +II + +THE TRAIL DIVIDES + + +Inspired by his recent rivalry with Mr. Jefferson Locke, Anthony played +the part of host more lavishly than even the present occasion required. +He ordered elaborately, and it was not long before corks were popping +and dishes rattling quite as if the young men were really hungry. Mr. +Locke, however, insisted that his friends should partake of a kind of +drink previously unheard of, and with this in view had a confidential +chat with the waiter, to whom he unostentatiously handed a five-dollar +retainer. No one witnessed this unusual generosity except Higgins, who +commended it fondly; but his remarks went unheeded in the general +clamor. + +The meal was at its noisiest when the man whom Locke had so generously +tipped spoke to him quietly. Whatever his words, they affected the +listener strongly. Locke's face whitened, then grew muddy and yellow, +his hands trembled, his lips went dry. He half arose from his chair, +then cast a swift look about the room. His companions were too well +occupied, however, to notice this by-play even when the waiter +continued, in a low tone: + +"He slipped me a ten-spot, so I thought it must be something worth +while." + +"He--he's alone, you say?" + +"Seems to be. What shall I do, sir?" + +Locke took something from his pocket and thrust it into the fellow's +hand, while the look in his eyes changed to one of desperation. + +"Step outside and wait. Don't let him come up. I'll call you in a +minute." + +Ringold was recounting his version of the first touchdown--how he had +been forced inch by inch across the goal line to the tune of thirty +thousand yelling throats and his companions were hanging upon his +words, when their new friend interrupted in such a tone that Anthony +inquired in surprise: + +"What's wrong, old man? Are you sick?" + +Locke shook his head. "I told you fellows I'd been followed this +evening. Remember? Well, there's a man down-stairs who has given the +waiter ten dollars to let him have his coat and apron so he can come in +here." + +"What for?" + +"Who is he?" + +The men stared at the speaker with a sudden new interest. + +"I'm not sure. I--think it's part of a plan to rob me." He let his gaze +roam from one face to another. "You see--I just came into a big piece +of coin, and I've got it with me. I'm--I'm alone in New York, +understand? They've followed me from St. Louis. Now, I want you boys to +help me dodge this--" + +Kirk Anthony rose suddenly, moving as lightly upon his feet as a dancer. + +"You say he's below?" + +Locke nodded. It was plain that he was quite unnerved. + +Ringold rose in turn and lurched ponderously toward the door, but Kirk +stepped in front of him with a sharp word: + +"Wait! I'll manage this." + +"Lemme go," expostulated the centre-rush. "Locke's a good fellow and +this man wants to trim him." + +"No, no! Sit down!" Ringold obeyed. "If he wants to join us, we'll have +him come up." + +"What?" cried Locke, leaping nervously from his chair. "Don't do that. +I want to get out of here." + +"Not a bit like it." Kirk's eyes were sparkling. "We'll give this +fellow the third degree and find out who his pals are." + +"Grand idea!" Higgins seconded with enthusiasm. "Grand!" + +"Hold on! I can't do that. I've got to sail at ten o'clock. I don't +dare get into trouble, don't you understand? It's important." Locke +seemed in an extraordinary panic. + +"Oh, we'll see that you catch your boat all right," Kirk assured him; +and then before the other could interfere he rang for the waiter. + +"Give that chap your coat and apron," he ordered, when the attendant +answered, "and when I ring next send him up. Pass the word to Padden +and the others not to notice any little disturbance. I'll answer for +results." + +"I'm going to get out," cried the man from St. Louis. "He mustn't see +me." + +"He'll see you sure if you leave now. You'll have to pass him. Stick +here. We'll have some fun." + +The white-faced man sank back into his chair, while Anthony directed +sharply: + +"Now, gentlemen, be seated. Here, Locke, your back to the door--your +face looks like a chalk-mine. There! Now don't be so nervous--we'll +cure this fellow's ambition as a gin-slinger. I'll change names with +you for a minute. Now, Ringold, go ahead with your story." Then, as the +giant took up his tale again: "Listen to him, fellows; look pleasant, +please. Remember you're not sitting up with a corpse. A little more +ginger, Ringie. Good!" He pushed the button twice, and a moment Later +the door opened quietly to admit a medium-sized man in white coat and +apron. + +Had the young men been a little less exhilarated they might have +suspected that Locke's story of having been dogged from St. Louis was a +trifle exaggerated; for, instead of singling him out at first glance, +the new-comer paused at a respectful distance inside the door and +allowed his eyes to shift uncertainly from one to another as if in +doubt as to which was his quarry. Anthony did not dream that it was his +own resemblance to the Missourian that led to this confusion, but in +fact, while he and Locke were totally unlike when closely compared, +they were of a similar size and coloring, and the same general +description would have fitted both. + +Having allowed the intruder a moment in which to take in the room, Kirk +leaned back in his chair and nodded for him to approach. + +"Cigars!" he ordered. "Bring a box of Carolinas." + +"Yes, sir. Are you Mr. Locke, sir?" inquired the new waiter. + +"Yes," said Kirk. + +"Telephone message for you, Mr. Locke," the waiter muttered. + +"What's that?" Anthony queried, loud enough for the others to hear. + +"Somebody calling you by 'phone. They're holding the wire outside. I'll +show you the booth." + +"Oh, will you?" Kirk Anthony's hands suddenly shot out and seized the +masquerader by the throat. The man uttered a startled gasp, but +simultaneously the iron grip of Marty Ringold fell upon his arms and +doubled them behind him, while Kirk gibed: + +"You'll get me outside and into a telephone booth, eh? My dear sir, +that is old stuff." + +The rest of the party were on their feet instantly, watching the +struggle and crowding forward with angry exclamations. Ringold, with +the man's two wrists locked securely in his own huge paw, was growling: + +"Smooth way to do up a fellow, I call it." + +"All the way from St. Louis for a telephone call, eh?" Anthony sank his +thumbs into the stranger's throat, then, as the man's face grew black +and his contortions diminished, added: "We're going to make a good +waiter out of you." + +Jefferson Locke broke in excitedly: "Choke him good! Choke him! That's +right. Put him out for keeps. For God's sake, don't let him go!" + +But it was not Kirk's idea to strangle his victim beyond a certain +point. He relaxed his grip after a moment and, nodding to Ringold to do +likewise, took the fellow's wrists himself, then swung him about until +he faced the others. The man's lungs filled with fresh air, he began to +struggle once more, and when his voice had returned he gasped: + +"I'll get you for this. You'll do a trick--" He mumbled a name that did +not sound at all like Jefferson Locke, whereupon the Missourian made a +rush at him that required the full strength of Anthony's free hand to +thwart. + +"Here, stand back! I've got him!" + +"I'll kill him!" chattered the other. + +"Let me go," the stranger gasped. "I'll take you all in. I'm an +officer." + +"It's a lie!" shouted Locke. "He's a thief." + +"I tell you I'm--an officer; I arrest this--" + +The words were cut off abruptly by a loud exclamation from Higgins and +a crash of glass. Kirk Anthony's face was drenched, his eyes were +filled with a stinging liquid; he felt his prisoner sink limply back +into his arms and beheld Higgins struggling in the grasp of big Marty +Ringold, the foil-covered neck of a wine bottle in his fingers. + +The foolish fellow had been hovering uncertainly round the edges of the +crowd, longing to help his friends and crazily anxious to win glory by +some deed of valor. At the first opening he had darted wildly into the +fray, not realizing that the enemy was already helpless in the hands of +his captors. + +"I've got him!" he cried, joyously. "He's out!' + +"Higgins!" Anthony exclaimed, sharply. "What the devil--" Then the dead +weight in his arms, the lolling head and sagging jaw of the stranger, +sobered him like a deluge of ice-water. + +"You've done it this time," he muttered. + +"Good God!" Locke cried. "Let's get away! He's hurt!" + +"Here, you!" Anthony shot a command at the speaker that checked him +half-way across the room. "Ringold, take the door and don't let anybody +in or out." To Higgins he exclaimed, "You idiot, didn't you see I had +his hands?" + +"No. Had to get him," returned Higgins, with vinous dignity. "Wanted to +rob my old friend, Mr.--What's his name?" + +"We've got to leave quick before we get in bad," Locke reiterated, +nervously, but Anthony retorted: + +"We're in bad now. I want Padden." He stepped to the door and signaled +a passing waiter. A moment later the proprietor knocked, and Ringold +admitted him. + +"What's the--" Padden started at sight of the motionless figure on the +floor, and, kneeling beside it, made a quick examination, while Anthony +explained the circumstances leading up to the assault. + +"Thief, eh? I see." + +"Is he badly hurt?" queried Locke, bending a pale face upon them. + +"Huh! I guess he's due for the hospital," the owner of the Austrian +Village announced. "He had his nerve, trying to turn a trick in my +place. I thought I knew all the dips, but he's a stranger." With nimble +fingers he ran through the fellow's pockets, then continued: + +"I'm glad you got him, but you'd better get together and rehearse +before the police--" He stopped abruptly once more, then looked up +curiously. + +"What is it?" questioned the man from Missouri. + +Padden pointed silently to the lapel of the fellow's vest, which he had +turned back. A nickeled badge was pinned upon it. "He's no thief; he's +a detective--a plain-clothes man!" + +"Wha'd I tell you!" Higgins exulted. "I can smell 'em!" + +The crowd looked nonplussed, with the exception of Jefferson Locke, who +became calmer than at any time since the waiter had first whispered +into his ear. + +"We didn't know who he was," he began, hurriedly, "You must square it +for us, Padden. I don't care what it costs." He extended a bulky roll +of bank-notes toward the gray-haired man. "These boys can't stand this +sort of thing, and neither can I. I've got to sail at ten o'clock this +morning." + +"Looks to me like you've croaked him," said the proprietor, ignoring +the proffered money. + +"It's worth a thousand dollars to me not to miss my boat." + +"Wait a minute." Padden emptied the unconscious man's pockets, among +other things of some telegrams and a legally folded paper. The latter +he opened and scanned swiftly, then turned his little eyes upon Locke +without a word, whereupon that gentleman, with equal silence, took from +his inside pocket a wallet, and selected a bill, the denomination of +which he displayed to the proprietor before folding it inside the +bundle he held. + +"Here! It may cost you something." + +Padden nodded and accepted the money, saying: + +"Oh, I guess I can fix it. I know the right doctor." He regained his +feet, then warned the onlookers: "But you'll have to keep your traps +closed, understand?" + +"Will he die?" asked Ringold, fearfully, his back still against the +door. + +"Not a chance. But if he does he'll never know who hit him. You see, we +picked him up in the alley and brought him in." Padden winked +meaningly. "It happens right along in this part of town. Do you get me? +I'll keep these." He indicated the badge and papers in his hand. "Now +go out as if nothing had come off. Drop in again the next time you're +in town. I'll take care of the supper checks." + +As the partly sobered visitors struggled into their overcoats Padden +drew Locke aside, and, nodding toward Higgins, who was still talkative, +said: + +"If you want to catch that ten o'clock boat you'd better stick close to +your friend; I know him." + +"Thanks!" Locke glanced at the prostrate figure, then inquired in a low +tone: "On the level, will he make it?" + +"Hard to tell. Just the same, if I was you I'd change my sailing--he +might come to." + +"You chaps have done me a big favor to-night," said Locke, a little +later, when he and his companions were safely out of the Austrian +Village, "and I won't forget it, either. Now let's finish the evening +the way we began it." + +Anderson, Rankin, and Burroughs, to conceal their nervousness, pleaded +bodily fatigue, while Anthony also declared that he had enjoyed himself +sufficiently for one night and intended to go home and to bed. "That +episode rather got on my nerves," he acknowledged. + +"Mine, too," assented Locke. "That's why you mustn't leave me. I just +won't let you. Remember, you agreed to see me off." + +"'S'right, fellows," Higgins joined in. "We agreed to put him aboard +and we must do it. Don't break up the party, Kirk." + +"I don't want to go home," Ringold muttered. + +"It's a breach of hospitality to go home," Higgins insisted. "Besides, +after my bloody 'ncounter with that limb of the law I need a stimulant. +You must look after me." + +"I shall tuck you in your little bed," Kirk told him. But Higgins would +hear to nothing of the sort, protesting that he was in honor bound to +conduct his old friend Locke to the steamer, and Anthony feared that +without his protection some harm might befall his irresponsible and +impulsive companion. Candor requires it to be said that he did +hesitate, arguing long with the limp-legged Higgins; but Locke was +insistent, the others grew impatient of the delay, and in the end he +allowed himself to be persuaded. + +It is often through just such sudden, inconsequent decisions, +influenced perhaps by the merest trifles, that a man's life is made +great or small; just such narrow forkings of the trail may divert him +into strange adventurings, or into worlds undreamed of. Kirk Anthony, +twenty-six years old, with a heritage at hand, and with an average +capacity for good or evil, chose the turning that led him swiftly from +the world he knew into an alien land. + +Numbed as they were by the excesses of the evening, it did not take the +young men long to lose all clear and vivid remembrance of this recent +experience; for the time had come when Nature was offering her last +resistance, and their brains were badly awhirl. Of all the four, +Jefferson Locke was the only one who retained his wits to the +fullest--a circumstance that would have proved him the owner of a +remarkably steady head had it not been for the fact that he had +cunningly substituted water for gin each time it came his turn to +drink. It was a commentary upon the state of his companions that they +did not notice the limpid clearness of his beverage. + +Dawn found them in an East Side basement drinking-place frequented by +the lowest classes. Ringold was slumbering peacefully, half overflowing +the wet surface of a table; Anthony had discovered musical talent in +the bartender and was seated at a battered piano, laboriously +experimenting with the accompaniment to an Irish ballad; Higgins and +Locke were talking earnestly. It was the slackest, blackest hour in an +all-night dive; the nocturnal habitues had slunk away, and the day's +trade had not yet begun. Higgins, drawn and haggard beneath his drunken +flush, was babbling incessantly; Locke, as usual, sat facing the +entrance, his eyes watchful, his countenance alert. In spite of the +fact that he had constantly plied his companion with liquor in the hope +of stilling his tongue, Higgins seemed incapable of silence, and kept +breaking forth into loud, garbled recitals of the scene at Padden's, +which caused the Missourian to shiver with apprehension. To a sober eye +it would have been patent that Locke was laboring under some strong +excitement; for every door that opened caused him to start, every +stranger that entered made him quake. He consulted his watch +repeatedly, he flushed and paled and fidgeted, then lost himself in +frowning meditation. + +"Grandes' fellow I ever met," Higgins was saying for the hundredth +time. "Got two faults, tha's all; he's modesht an' he's lazy--he won't +work." + +"Anthony?" + +"Yes." + +Locke stirred himself, and, leaning forward, said: "You and he are good +friends, eh?" + +"Best ever." + +"Would you like to play a joke on him?" + +"Joke? Can't be done. He's wises' guy ever. I've tried it an' always +get the wors' of it. Yes, sir, he's wise guy. Jus' got two faults: he +won't work an'--" + +"Look here! Why don't you make him work?" + +"Huh?" Higgins turned a pair of bleared, unfocusable eyes upon the +speaker. + +"Why don't somebody make him work?" + +The lean-faced youth laughed moistly. + +"Tha's good joke." + +"I mean it." + +"Got too much money. 'S old man puts up reg'lar." + +"Listen! It's a shame for a fine fellow like him to go to the dogs." +Higgins nodded heavily in agreement. "Why don't you send him away where +he'll have to rustle? That's the joke I meant." + +"Huh?" Again the listener's mind failed to follow, and Locke repeated +his words, concluding: "It would make a new man of him." + +"Oh, he wouldn't work. Too lazy." + +"He'd have to if he were broke." + +"But he AIN'T broke. Didn't I tell you 's old man puts up reg'lar? Fine +man, too, Misser Anthony; owns railroads." + +"I'll tell you how we can work it. I've got a ticket for Central +America in my pocket. The boat sails at ten. Let's send him down there." + +"Wha' for?" + +Locke kept his temper with an effort. "To make a man of him. We'll go +through his clothes and when he lands he'll be broke. He'll HAVE to +work. Don't you see?" + +"No." Anthony's friend did not see. "He don't want to go to Central +America," he argued; "he's got a new autom'bile." + +"But suppose we got him soused, went through his pockets, and then put +him aboard the boat. He'd be at sea by the time he woke up; he couldn't +get back; he'd have to work; don't you see? He'd be broke when he +landed and have to rustle money to get back with. I think it's an awful +funny idea." + +The undeniable humor of such a situation finally dawned upon Higgins's +mind, and he burst into a loud guffaw. + +"Hey there! Shut up!" Anthony called from the piano. "Listen here! I've +found the lost chord." He bore down with his huge hands upon the yellow +keyboard, bringing forth a metallic crash that blended fearfully with +the bartender's voice. "It's a great discovery." + +"I'll get him full if you'll help manage him," Locke went on. "And +here's the ticket." He tapped his pocket. + +"Where'd you get it?" + +"Bought it yesterday. It's first class and better, and he'll fit my +description. We're about the same size." + +"Ain't you goin'?" + +"No. I've changed my mind. I may jump over to Paris. Come, are you on?" + +Higgins giggled. "Darn' funny idea, if you can get him full." + +"Wait." Locke rose and went to the bar, where he called loudly for the +singer; then, when the bartender had deserted the piano, he spoke to +Anthony: "Keep it up, old man, you're doing fine." + +For some moments he talked earnestly to the man behind the bar; but his +back was to Higgins, Anthony was occupied, and Ringold still slumbered; +hence no one observed the transfer of another of those yellow bills of +which he seemed to have an unlimited store. + +Strangely enough, Mr. Jefferson Locke's plan worked without a hitch. +Within ten minutes after Kirk Anthony had taken the drink handed him he +declared himself sleepy, and rose from the piano, only to seek a chair, +into which he flung himself heavily. + +"It's all right," Locke told his drunken companion. "I've got a taxi +waiting. We'll leave Ringold where he is." + +Twenty-four hours later Adelbert Higgins undertook to recall what had +happened to him after he left Muller's place on East Fourteenth Street, +but his memory was tricky. He recollected a vaguely humorous discussion +of some sort with a stranger, the details of which were almost entirely +missing. He remembered that dawn had broken when he came out of the +saloon, but beyond that he could not go with any degree of certainty. +There was a hazy memory of an interminable ride in a closed vehicle of +some sort, a dizzy panorama of moving buildings, bleak, wind-swept +trees, frosty meadows, and land-locked lakes backed by what were either +distant mountain ranges or apartment houses. This last, however, was +all very blurred and indistinct. + +As to who was with him on the ride, or what took place thereafter, he +had no memory and no opportunity of learning, owing to certain +unexpected and alarming occurrences which made it imperative for him to +terminate his connection with his college, as big Marty Ringold had +done earlier in the day, and begin to pack his belongings. Partly out +of deference to the frantic appeals of his widowed mother, partly owing +to the telephoned advice of Mr. Michael Padden, of Sixth Avenue, who +said the injured man had recognized one of his assailants, he booked +passage to Japan by the next steamer out of Vancouver. He left New York +that afternoon by the Twentieth Century Limited, taking with him only +one suit-case and a determination to see the world. + + + + +III + +A GAP + + +Strictly speaking, Kirk Anthony did not awake to a realization of his +surroundings, but became conscious of them through a long process of +dull, dreamy speculation. He never knew the precise moment when his +eyes opened and sleep left him, but at cost of considerable mental +effort he finally brought himself to the conviction that hours had +passed and another day had arrived. More than once after long, white +nights in New York City, he had awakened amid strange surroundings and +had been forced to wait upon his lagging memory; but this time his mind +refused to work, even after he knew himself to be fully roused. So he +closed his eyes with the admonition: + +"Now, begin all over again, Kirk. When you left Padden's place you went +to Maxim's and listened to the fat quartette, then to the place where +the waiter held out a dollar. After the trouble at that point, you +tried to get into Tony's rathskeller and couldn't, so you started for +the East Side. Ringold was very drunk. Good! Everything is clear so +far. Next you were playing a piano with yellow teeth while somebody +sang something about a 'Little Brown Cot.' After that--Lord, you must +have been drinking! Well, let's run through it again." + +But his efforts were vain; he could recall nothing beyond the piano, so +fell to wondering what hotel this could be. + +"Some East Side joint," he decided, "and a cheap one too, from the size +of this stall." He noted another brass bed close at hand and reasoned +that Ringold or Higgins must have risen early, leaving him to finish +his sleep. That was considerate, of course, but--Good heavens, it must +be late! And he was due to motor to New Haven at noon! He raised +himself suddenly, and was half out of bed when he fell back, with a +cry, as if an unseen hand had smitten him. He clapped both palms to his +head, realizing that he was very sick indeed. The sensation was unlike +anything he had ever felt before. His head was splitting, he felt a +frightful nausea, the whole room was rocking and reeling as if to pitch +him out of bed. It was terrible; so he arose blindly and felt his way +toward the telephone. Failing to find it, he pushed a button instead, +then tumbled back to bed, reviling the luck that had brought him to +such a miserable place. He closed his eyes tightly and calmed his +stomach by an effort of will. At last he heard the door open and a +voice inquire: + +"Did you ring, sir?" + +"An hour ago. Haven't you more than one bell-hop in this place?" + +"I'm sorry, sir." + +"And I'm sick, mighty sick. I'm going to die." + +"I think not, sir; the others are sick, too." + +"That's good! I was afraid they'd dressed and gone." It was some +consolation to know that Ringold and Higgins had not escaped their +share of suffering. "How is Hig--the bony fellow?" + +"Do you mean the gentleman in thirty-two?" + +"How should I know his number? That's not Hig's description, +however--even you could tell that he is no gentle--Oh, Lord!" + +"Can I get you something, sir--a little champagne, perhaps, to settle +your stomach?" + +"NO, NO! Get me a taxicab. I want to go up-town." + +"Rather a long drive, isn't it?" snickered the bell-boy. + +"Never mind the comedy." Anthony opened his eyes. "Hello! Are you the +clerk?" Instead of the bell-hop he had expected he beheld a man in +white jacket and black trousers. + +"No, sir, I'm the steward." + +The invalid shook his head faintly. "Funny place I've got into. What's +the name of it?" + +"This? Oh! The SANTA CRUZ." + +"Never heard of it. Why didn't they give me a good room? This is +fierce." + +"Suite A is considered very good, sir. It is one of the best on the +line." + +"Line?" Kirk grunted. "So this is some dead-line dump. Well, I'm going +to get out--understand? Hand me my trousers and I'll slip you a +quarter." + +The steward did as desired, but a blind search showed the pockets to be +empty. + +"Give me the coat and vest." But here again Kirk found nothing, and was +forced to apologize. "Sorry, old man, but I must have left it at the +office. Now be a good fellow and hustle up that taxi. I'm getting +sicker every minute." + +"Perhaps you had better have the doctor?" + +"Is there a good one handy?" + +"Yes, sir." + +"Here in the hotel?" + +The steward seemed undecided whether to treat the occupant of Suite A +as a humorist or a lunatic, but finally he observed, "This isn't a +hotel, sir." + +"That's what I though-t-more like a roadhouse," "This is a ship." + +"A--WHAT?" Anthony raised himself and stared at the white-clad figure +over the foot of his little brass bed. + +"This is a ship, sir." + +"You get out of here!" yelled the infuriated young man. He cast his +eyes about for some missile to hurl at this insolent menial, and, +spying a heavy glass pitcher upon a stand beside him, reached for it, +whereat the steward retreated hastily to the door. + +"I beg pardon, sir. I will send the doctor at once." + +"Must think I'm still drunk," mumbled Anthony, dazedly, as he once more +laid his head upon his pillow with a groan. + +When his dizziness had diminished sufficiently to permit him to open +his eyes he scanned his surroundings more carefully; but his vision was +unreliable. His head, too, continued to feel as if his skull were being +forcibly spread apart by some fiendish instrument concealed within it. +His mouth was parched, his stomach violently rebellious. In spite of +these distractions he began to note certain unfamiliar features about +this place. The wall-paper, for instance, which at first glance he had +taken for the work of some cheap decorator, turned out to be tapestry, +as he proved by extending a shaky hand. The low ceiling, the little +windows with wooden blinds, the furniture itself, were all out of +keeping with hotel usages. He discovered by rolling his head that there +was a mahogany dresser over by the door and a padded couch covered with +chintz. There were folding brass clothes-hooks on the wall, moreover, +and an electric fan, while a narrow door gave him a glimpse of a tiny, +white-enamelled bath-room. + +He took in these details laboriously, deciding finally that he was too +intoxicated to see aright, for, while the place was quite unlike an +ordinary hotel room, neither did it resemble any steamship stateroom he +had ever seen; it was more like a lady's boudoir. To be sure, he felt a +sickening surge and roll now and then, but at other times the whole +room made a complete revolution, which was manifestly contrary to the +law of gravitation and therefore not to be trusted as evidence. There +were plenty of reasons, moreover, why this could not be a ship. The +mere supposition was absurd. No, this must be a room in some up-town +club, or perhaps a bachelor hotel. Kirk had many friends with quarters +decorated to suit their own peculiar fancies, and he decided that in +all probability one of these had met him on the street and taken him +home for safe-keeping. He had barely settled this in his mind when the +door opened for a second time and a man in uniform entered. + +"The steward said you wanted me," he began. + +"No; I want a doctor." + +"I am the doctor." + +"I thought you were the elevator man. I'm sick--awful sick--" + +"Can you vomit?" + +"Certainly! Anybody can do that." + +The stranger pulled up a stool, seated himself beside the bed, then +felt of Anthony's cheek. + +"You have a fever." + +"That explains everything." Kirk sighed thankfully and closed his eyes +once more, for the doctor had begun to revolve slowly, with the bed as +an axis. "How are the other boys coming on?" + +"Everybody is laid out. It's a bad night." + +"Night? It must be nearly daylight by this time." + +"Oh no! It is not midnight yet." + +"Not midnight? Why, I didn't turn in until--" Anthony raised himself +suddenly. "Good Lord! have I slept all day?" + +"You certainly have." + +"Whose room is this?" + +"Your room, of course. Here, take one of these capsules; it will settle +your stomach." + +"Better give me something to settle my bill if I've been here that +long. I'm broke again." + +"You're not fully awake yet," said the doctor. "People have funny ideas +when they're sick." + +"Well, I know I'm broke, anyhow! That's no idea; it's a condition. I +went through my clothes just now and I'm all in. I must get back to the +Astor, too, for I had arranged to motor up to New Haven at noon." + +"Let me feel your pulse," said the doctor, quietly. + +"The boys will think I'm lost. I never did such a thing before." + +"Where do you think you are?" inquired the physician. + +"I don't know. It's a nice little hotel, but--" + +"This isn't a hotel. This is a ship." + +Anthony was silent for a moment. Then he sighed feebly and said: + +"Doctor, you shouldn't make fun of a man at the point of death. It +isn't professional." + +"Fact," said the doctor, abstractedly gazing at his watch, while he +held Anthony's wrist between his fingers. "We are one hundred and fifty +miles out of New York. The first officer told me you were considerably +intoxicated when you came aboard, but," he continued brusquely, rising +and closing his watch with a snap, "you will remember it all in a +little while, Mr. Locke." + +"What did you call me?" + +"Locke. You haven't forgotten your name, too?" + +"Wait!" + +Again Anthony pressed his throbbing temples with both hot hands and +strove to collect his whirling wits. At last he began to speak, +measuring his words with care. + +"Now, I KNOW you are wrong, Doctor, and I'll tell you why. You see, my +name isn't Locke; it's Anthony. Locke went away on a ship, but _I_ +stayed in New York; understand? Well, he's the fellow you're talking to +and I'm asleep somewhere down around the Bowery. I'm not here at all. +_I_ didn't want to go anywhere on a ship; I couldn't go; I didn't have +the price. That supper was a hundred and seventy." + +"Nevertheless, this is a ship," the physician patiently explained, "and +you're on it and I'm talking to you. What is more, you have not +exchanged identities with your friend Anthony, for your ticket reads +'Jefferson Locke.' You'll be all right if you will just go to sleep and +give that capsule a chance to operate." + +"Ask Higgins or Ringold who I am." + +"There's no one aboard by either of those names." + +"Say!" Anthony raised himself excitedly on one arm, but was forced to +lie down again without delay. "If this is a ship, I must have come +aboard. How did I do it? When? Where?" + +"You came on with two men, or rather between two men, about +eight-thirty this morning. They put you in here, gave your ticket to +the purser, and went ashore. The slim fellow was crying, and one of the +deck-hands had to help him down the gangway." + +"That was Higgins all right. Now, Doctor, granting, just for the sake +of argument, that this is a ship and that I am Jefferson Locke, when is +your next stop?" + +"One week." + +"What?" Kirk's eyes opened wide with horror. "I can't stay here a week." + +"You will have to." + +"But I tell you I CAN'T, I just can't. I bought a new car the other day +and it's standing in front of the New York Theatre. Yes, and I have two +rooms and a bath at the Astor, at fifteen dollars a day." + +The physician smiled heartlessly. "You must have been drinking pretty +heavily, but I guess you will remember everything by-and-by." + +"I can't understand it," groaned the bewildered invalid. "What ship is +this--if it is really a ship?" + +"The SANTA CRUZ. Belongs to the United Fruit Company. This is one of +the bridal suites; it is 11:30 P.M., November 21st. We are bound for +Colon." + +"Where is that?" + +"Panama." + +"Panama is in Central America or Mexico or somewhere, isn't it?" + +"It is. Now, do you remember anything more?" + +"Not a thing." + +"Well, then, go to sleep. You'll be all right in the morning, Mr. +Locke." + +"Anthony." + +"Very well, Mr. Anthony, if you prefer. Is there anything more you +would like to ask me?" + +"No." + +"Of course, there may have been some mistake," the medical man +observed, doubtfully, as he opened the door. "Maybe you intended to +take some other ship?" + +"No mistake at all," the sick man assured him. "I'm beginning to +remember now. You see, I lost my hat and decided I'd run down to Panama +and get another. Good-night." + +"Good-night. That capsule will make you sleep." + +When the officer had gone Kirk mumbled to himself: "If it turns out +that I AM in New York, after all, when I wake up I'll lick that +doctor." Then he turned over and fell asleep. + +But morning showed him the truth of the doctor's information. He awoke +early and, although his head still behaved queerly and he had moments +of nausea, he dressed himself and went on deck. The shock he had +received on the evening before was as nothing to what he felt now upon +stepping out into the light of day. In spite of his growing conviction, +he had cherished a lingering hope that it was all a dream, and the +feeling did not entirely vanish until he had really seen for himself. +Then his dismay was overwhelming. + +A broad deck, still wet from its morning scrubbing and lined with +steamer chairs, lay in front of him. A limitless, oily sea stretched +out before his bewildered eyes; he touched the rail with his hands to +verify his vision. The strangeness of it was uncanny. He felt as if he +were walking in his sleep. He realized that a great fragment had +suddenly dropped out of his life's pattern, and it was intensely +disquieting to think of all it might have carried with it. + +He began to pace the deck mechanically, falling in with the other early +risers who were out for a breath of morning air, striving to adjust +himself to this new state of affairs. But even though the solid reality +of his surroundings soon brought him back more nearly to a normal state +of mind, he felt an ever-present expectancy of some new shock, some new +and abrupt transition that might yet bring him back to his +starting-point. But this obsession gradually left him, as the brisk sea +breeze brought him to a proper perspective and braced him to face the +full consequences of his long, restless night's orgy. + +No man is so systematic, none is so well ordered in his affairs, that +he can cut out a slice of his life at a moment's notice without +suffering many kinds of loss and inconvenience. Although Anthony was a +youth of few responsibilities, he awoke suddenly to the fact that there +were a thousand things that needed doing, a thousand people who needed +to know his whereabouts, a thousand things that were bound to go wrong. +For instance, there was his brand-new French car, standing with motor +blanketed beside the Forty-fifth Street curb. + +What had happened to it, and to the urchin he had left in charge of it? +He owed a thousand dollars on its purchase, which he had promised to +pay yesterday. Then, too, he had neglected his house account at the +University Club, and it was long overdue. That remittance from his +father had come just in the nick of time. Suddenly he recalled placing +the check in his bill-case, and he searched himself diligently, but +found nothing. That reminded him that he had won a bet or two on the +football game and the money needed collecting. There was the shooting +trip to Cape Cod as well. He was due there to-day for a week-end among +the geese and brant. What would Benny Glover think when he failed to +show up or even telegraph? Benny's sister was coming down from Boston +with some friends and--oh, it was simply imperative that he get some +word ashore. + +He let his eyes rove over the ship in desperation, then a happy thought +came to him. + +"The wireless!" he said aloud. "Bonehead! Why didn't you think of that +long ago?" A glance at the rigging showed him that the Santa Cruz was +equipped with a plant, and a moment later he was hammering at the +operator's door. + +"I want to send a message right away!" he cried, excitedly; but the +"wireless" shook his head with a smile. + +"I'm sorry, but--" + +"It's important; awfully important. I'll pay you anything!" Kirk rammed +a hand mechanically into his empty pocket. + +"We're installing a new system," said the operator. "The old apparatus +wasn't satisfactory and it's being changed throughout." + +"Then you-you can't send a message--possibly?" + +"Nothing doing until the next trip." + +Kirk strode forward and stared disconsolately down upon the freight +deck in a vain endeavor to collect his thoughts. How in the devil had +he managed to get into this mess? Could it be one of Higgins's +senseless pranks, or was there something deeper, more sinister behind +it? He recalled the incidents of that wild night and began to have a +disquieting doubt. Did that chance meeting with the chap from St. Louis +have anything to do with his presence here, or had he really decided in +some foolish, drunken whim to take a trip to Central America? He hardly +knew what to think or where to begin his reasoning. He recollected that +Jefferson Locke had not impressed him very favorably at the start, and +that his behavior upon the appearance of the plain-clothes man had not +improved that first impression. It seemed certain that he must have had +his hand in this affair, else how would Anthony now find himself in +possession of his ticket? What had become of the rightful occupant of +Suite A? What had become of Higgins's unfortunate victim with the +cracked head? What did it all signify? Kirk sighed disconsolately and +gave it up. In five days more he would learn the answer, anyhow, for +there must be a cable from Panama to the States. Meanwhile, he supposed +he must reconcile himself to his condition. But it was tough to have +two weeks of valuable time snatched out of his eventful life. It was +maddening. + + + + +IV + +NEW ACQUAINTANCES + + +The sound of a bugle, which Kirk interpreted as an invitation to +breakfast, reminded him that he was famished, and he lost no time in +going below. Upon his appearance the steward made it plain to him in +some subtle manner that the occupant of Suite A needed nothing beyond +the mere possession of those magnificent quarters to insure the most +considerate treatment. Kirk was placed at the captain's table, where +his hunger was soon appeased, and his outlook grew more cheerful with +the complete restoration of bodily comfort. Feeling somewhat less +dissatisfied with his surroundings, he began to study the faces of his +fellow-passengers. + +"Getting your sea legs, Mr. Locke?" inquired the man at his right. + +"My name is Anthony." + +"I beg your pardon! The passenger list said--" + +"That was a mistake." + +"My name is Stein. May I ask where you are bound for?" + +"I think the place is Panama." + +"Going to work on the canal?" + +"What canal? Oh, of course! Now I remember hearing something about a +Panama Canal. Is that where it is?" + +"That's the place," Stein replied, dryly. + +"I'm not going to work. I don't work--don't know how." + +"I see. Pleasure trip?" + +"Purely a pleasure trip. I'm having a great time. By-the-way, this +canal affair is something new, isn't it?" + +"It was begun about thirty years ago." Mr. Stein regarded the speaker +with puzzled inquiry, as if undecided in what spirit to take him. + +"What's the idea? Why don't they finish it up?" + +"I thought you were an American," returned the other, politely. "You +have no accent." + +"I am an American. I'm the fellow who was born in Albany, New York. If +you look on the map you'll find the town has a little ring around it." + +"And really don't you know anything about the Panama Canal?" + +"Oh, I've heard it mentioned." + +"Well, you won't hear anything else mentioned down here; it's the one +and only subject of conversation. Nobody thinks or talks or dreams +about anything except the canal. Everybody works on it or else works +for somebody who does. For instance, that white-haired man at the other +end of the table is Colonel Bland, one of the commissioners. The man +over there with the black beard is one of the engineers at Gatun." + +Stein, who seemed a gossipy person, ran on glibly for a time, pointing +out the passengers of note and giving brief details about them. +Suddenly he laid his hand on Anthony's arm, and said: + +"See this fellow coming down the stairs?" Anthony beheld a slender, +bald-headed man of youthful appearance. "That is Stephen Cortlandt. +You've heard of the Cortlandts?" + +"Sure! One of them pitched for the Cubs." + +"I mean the Cortlandts of Washington. They're swell people, society +folks and all that--" He broke off to bow effusively to the late comer, +who seated himself opposite; then he introduced Kirk. + +Mr. Cortlandt impressed Anthony as a cold-blooded, highly schooled +person, absolutely devoid of sentiment. His face was stony, his eyes +were cool, even his linen partook of his own unruffled calm. He seemed +by no means effeminate, yet he was one of those immaculate beings upon +whom one can scarcely imagine a speck of dust or a bead of +perspiration. His hair--what was left of it--was parted to a nicety, +his clothes were faultless, and he had an air of quiet assurance. + +"By-the-way, we're getting up a pool on the ship's run," Stein told his +new acquaintance. "Would you like to join?" + +"Yes, indeed. I'm for anything in the line of chance." + +"Very well. I'll see you in the smoking-room later. It will cost you +only five dollars." + +Kirk suddenly recalled his financial condition and hastened to say, a +trifle lamely: + +"Come to think about it, I believe I'll stay out. I never gamble." +Chancing to glance up at the moment, he found Mr. Cortlandt's eyes +fixed upon him with a peculiarly amused look, and a few minutes later +he followed Mr. Stein to the deck above. + +Once in his own stateroom, the young man began a thorough exploration, +realizing more keenly than before that without baggage or money his +plight might prove distressing. But, look as he would, he could find no +trace of either, and an inadvertent glance in the mirror betrayed the +further fact that his linen was long since past a presentable stage. +Another despairing search showed that even his watch was gone and that +his only asset, evidently overlooked by the hilarious Higgins and his +co-partner in crime, was a modest three-stone finger ring. He was +regarding this speculatively when the purser knocked, then entered at +his call. + +"I've just heard that there's a mistake about your ticket," the +new-comer began. "It is made out to 'Mr. Jefferson Locke,' but the +doctor says you insist your name is something else." + +"That's right. My name is Anthony." + +"Then how did I get this ticket?" + +"I'm sure I don't know." + +"Have you any baggage?" + +"I don't know." + +"What is your destination?" + +"I don't know. You'll pardon my limited vocabulary?" + +"Are you joking?" + +"Do I look as if I were?" + +"But I don't understand." + +"Neither do I. But I must have some luggage--a fellow wouldn't make a +trip like this without baggage, would he?" + +"I should think not. I'll look it up for you if you wish. But about +this ticket--" + +"My dear man, don't bother me with that. I have worries enough as it +is. What I want now is a clean shirt and collar." + +"Yes, but this ticket says--" + +"Please! Look at my linen. I'll create a scandal this way." + +"Mr. Locke--" + +"Anthony." + +"Very well, Mr. Anthony. I must straighten out this ticket affair. +Really, I must." + +"All right, straighten away." + +"If you are not Mr. Locke, it is no good." + +"Hurrah! Put me off." + +"You don't understand--the ticket is good, but--See here, there's +something mighty strange about this. You say your name isn't Locke, you +have no baggage, you even thought this ship was a hotel--" + +"I did. It was a great disappointment. And now I want a shirt." Anthony +began to laugh. "Funny, isn't it?" + +"You will have to buy another ticket," said the purser, with dignity. + +"A bright idea!" Kirk smiled grimly; then, turning his pockets wrong +side out, continued lightly: "You look me over and if you can find the +price of a ticket I'll give you half." + +"Then you have lost your money as well as your baggage and your +identity?" + +"So it would seem." + +"Impossible!" + +It was plain that the officer was growing angry, so Kirk made haste to +say: + +"Now let's be friends, at least. By-the-way--pardon the personal nature +of the question--but--what size shirt do you wear?" + +"Seventeen." + +"Saved! Let me have about six, will you?" + +"Certainly NOT," returned the other. "I need all I have." + +"Miser! Then you must help me find some one my size." + +The purser, however, seemed in no mood to go shirt-hunting, and backed +out of the door, saying: "I'll have a look for your baggage, +Mr.--Anthony, and I'll see the captain about this ticket, also. I don't +know whether you're making fun of me or not, but--I'll look you up +later." + +He departed, shaking his head as if this were a form of insanity he had +never before encountered. A moment later Kirk followed him and made a +round of the deck, staring at each man he met and mentally estimating +the girth of his neck; but it seemed that the male passengers of the +Santa Cruz were all of medium size, and he saw no one whose appearance +held out the slightest hope. He did observe one fellow whose neck +seemed as large as his own, but the man looked surly and not too +cleanly, and Kirk was not yet desperate enough to bring himself to the +point of approaching such a fellow for such a favor. He thought of +appealing directly to the captain, but promptly remembered that he was +a small, wiry man whose wardrobe could by no possible chance afford him +relief. At last he made his way toward the smoking-room, determined to +enlist the help of his new acquaintance, Stein. + +Midway aft, he paused. A girl had emerged from the deck-house ahead of +him, whose appearance was sufficiently striking to divert him, +momentarily at least, from his quest. She was well above the usual +height, quite slender, yet of an exquisite rounded fulness, while her +snug-fitting tailor-made gown showed the marks of a Redfern or a +Paquin. He noted, also, that her stride was springy and athletic and +her head well carried. Feeling that friendly approval with which one +recognizes a member of his own kind, Kirk let his eyes follow her, then +retraced his way around the deck in the hope of meeting her face to +face. + +A woman frequently betrays her beauty by the poise of her head, by the +turn of her neck, or the lines of her figure, just as truly as by a +full glimpse of her features. Hence it was that Anthony felt a certain +pleasurable expectancy as he crossed in front of the deck-house, +realizing that she was approaching. But when they had met and passed he +went his way vaguely disappointed. Instead of a girl, as the first +sight of her youthful figure had led him to expect, he had seen a woman +of perhaps forty. There was little in her countenance to reveal her age +except a certain settled look that does not go with girlhood, and, +while no one could have thought her plain, she was certainly not so +handsome as he had imagined from a distance. Yet the face was +attractive. The eyes were wide-set, gray, and very clear, the mouth +large enough to be expressive. Her hair shone in the morning sun with a +delicate bronze lustre like that of a turkey's wing. It did not add to +the young man's comfort to realize that her one straight, casual glance +in passing had taken him in from his soiled collar to his somewhat +extreme patent leathers with the tan tops and pearl buttons. + +Being very young himself and of limited social experience, he classed +all women as either young or old--there was no middle ground. So he +dismissed her from his thoughts and continued his search for a number +seventeen shirt, and collar to match. But he did not fare well. He +found Mr. Stein in the smoking-room, but discovered that his size was +fifteen and a half; and there was no one else to whom he could apply. + +For a second time Stein importuned him to buy a chance on the ship's +run, and, failing in this, suggested that they have a drink together. +Had not Kirk realized in time his inability to reciprocate he would +have accepted eagerly, for his recent dissipation had left him +curiously weak and nervous. At the cost of an effort, however, he +refused. It was a rare experience for him to refuse anything, being, +like many indolent youths, an accomplished guest. In fact, he was +usually as ready to accept favors as he was carelessly generous when he +happened to be in funds. The technique of receiving comes to some +people naturally; others cannot assume an obligation without giving +offence. Kirk was one of the former. Yet now he felt a sudden, strange +hesitancy and a self-consciousness that made graceful acquiescence +impossible. He continued firm, therefore, even when Stein gibed at him +good-humoredly: + +"I suppose it's against your principles to drink, as well as to gamble?" + +"Exactly." + +"That's good, after the way you came aboard." + +"How did I come aboard?" + +"Oh, I didn't see you, but I heard about it." + +Kirk flushed uncomfortably, muttering: "The acoustics of this ship are +great. A man can't fall asleep but what somebody hears it." + +Stein laughed: "Don't get sore; all ships are alike--we have to talk +about something. Sorry I can't help you with the shirt question. Deuced +careless of them to lose your luggage." + +"Yes! It makes one feel about as comfortable as a man with a broken arm +and the prickly heat. Something's got to be done about it, that's all." +He glared enviously at the well-dressed men about the room. + +Over in a corner, propped against the leather upholstery, was Mr. +Cortlandt, as pale, as reserved, and as saturnine as at breakfast. He +was sipping Scotch-and-soda, and in all the time that Anthony remained +he did not speak to a soul save the waiter, did not shift his position +save to beckon for another drink. Something about his sour, +introspective aloofness displeased the onlooker, who shortly returned +to the deck. + +The day was warming up, and on the sunny side of the ship the steamer +chairs were filling. Two old men were casting quoits; a noisy quartette +was playing shuffle-board. After idling back and forth for a time, Kirk +selected a chair and stretched himself out; but he was scarcely seated +before the deck steward approached him and said: + +"Do you wish this chair for the voyage, sir?" + +"Yes, I think so." + +"I'll put your name on it." + +"Anthony, Suite A, third floor, front." + +"Very well, sir." The man wrote out a card and fitted it to the back of +the chair, saying, "One dollar, if you please." + +"What?" + +"The price of the chair is one dollar." + +"I haven't got a dollar." + +The steward laughed as if to humor his passenger. "I'm afraid then you +can't have the chair." + +"So I must stand up all the way to Panama, eh?" + +"You are joking, sir. I'll have to pay it myself, if you don't." + +"That's right--make me as uncomfortable as possible. By-the-way, what +size collar do you wear?" + +"Sixteen." + +Kirk sighed. "Send the purser to me, will you? I'll fix up the chair +matter with him." + +While he was talking he heard the rustle of skirts close by and saw the +woman he had met earlier seating herself next to him. With her was a +French maid bearing a rug in her hands. It annoyed the young man to +realize that out of all the chairs on deck he had selected the one +nearest hers, and he would have changed his position had he not been +too indolent. As it was, he lay idly listening to her words of +direction to the maid; but as she spoke in French, he was undecided +whether she was telling her companion that bad weather was imminent, or +that the laundry needed counting--his mind, it seemed, ran to laundry. + +Then the purser appeared. "Did you send for me?" he inquired. + +"Yes. There was a strange man around just now, and he wanted a dollar +for this chair." + +"Well?" + +"I want to establish a line of credit." + +The purser grunted. + +"And say!" Kirk ran on, seriously. "I've been all over your little +ship, but the passengers are boys' size. I can't wear this collar any +longer." + +"And I can't find any baggage of yours." + +"Then there isn't any. I never really expected there was. Come now, be +a good fellow. This is my 'case shirt." + +"If you really wish some clothes, I'll see what I can find among the +stewards." + +"No, no," Kirk hastily interposed, "I can't wear a shirt with soup +stains on it. Let me have one of yours--we're twin brothers." + +"I have no more than I need," said the purser, coldly. He opened a +cigarette case, at which Anthony gazed longingly. It seemed ages since +he had had a smoke; but the other seemed disinclined for small +courtesies. + +"I've seen the captain about that ticket matter," he went on, "and he +says you must buy another." + +Kirk shook his head languidly. "Once more I tell you there is nothing +doing." + +The officer broke out with some heat: "If you are joking, you've +carried this thing far enough. If you are really strapped, as you say +you are, how does it happen that you are occupying the best suite on +the ship?" + +"It is a long story." + +"Humph! You will have to give up those quarters and go forward." + +"Why? You have your money for that ticket?" + +"Yes, but you're not Mr. Locke." + +Kirk smiled meditatively. "How do you know?" he queried. + +"Good heavens! You've told me so a dozen--" + +"Ah! Then you have nothing except my word. Well, sir, now that I come +to think it over, I believe my name is Locke, after all." He grinned. +"Anyhow, I love my little room and I think I'll keep it. Please don't +be peevish. I want you to do me a favor." He removed the ring from his +finger, and, handing it to the Purser, said "I want you to get me two +diamonds' and a ruby's worth of shirts and collars; and also a safety +razor. My mind has stopped working, but my whiskers continue to grow." + +The officer managed to say with dignity: "You wish to raise money on +this, I presume? Very well, I'll see what can be done for you, Mr. +Locke." As he turned away, Kirk became conscious that the woman in the +next chair had let her book fall and was watching him with amused +curiosity. Feeling a sudden desire to confide in some one, he turned +his eyes upon her with such a natural, boyish smile that she could not +take offence, and began quite as if he had known her for some time: + +"These people are money-mad, aren't they? Worst bunch of gold-diggers I +ever saw." Surprised, she half raised her book, but Kirk ran on: +"Anybody would think I was trying to find a missing will instead of a +shirt. That purser is the only man on the ship my size, and he +distrusts me." + +The woman murmured something unintelligible. "I hope you don't mind my +speaking to you," he added. "I'm awfully lonesome. My name is Anthony, +Kirk Anthony." + +Evidently the occupant of the next chair was not a football enthusiast, +for, although she bowed her acknowledgment, her face showed that the +name carried no significance. + +"I understood you to tell the purser your name was Locke," said she, in +a very low-pitched, well-modulated voice. "I couldn't help overhearing." + +"But it isn't really, it's Anthony. I'm the undignified heir to the +stocks and bonds of an old party by that name who lives in Albany." + +"Darwin K. Anthony?" questioned she, quickly. "Is he your father?" Her +face lighted with a flash of genuine interest. + +Kirk nodded. "He's my prodigal father and I'm the fatted son. Do you +know the governor?" + +"Yes, slightly." + +"Well, what do you think of that? He's a great old party, isn't he?" He +chuckled irrepressibly. "Did you ever hear him swear?" + +The woman shook her head with a smile. "I hardly know him well enough +for that." + +"Oh, he's a free performer; he swears naturally; can't help it. +Everybody knows he doesn't mean anything. It's funny, isn't it, with +all his credit, that I can't get a shirt until I put up a diamond ring? +He could buy a railroad with half that security." + +"You are joking, are you not?" + +"No indeed. I never needed a shirt so badly in my life. You see, I +didn't intend to take this trip; I didn't even know I had sailed. When +I woke up I thought this was a hotel. I've got no more baggage than a +robin." + +"Really?" The woman by now had closed her book and was giving him her +full attention, responding to some respectful quality in his tone that +robbed his frankness of offence. "How did it happen?" + +"Well, to be perfectly honest, I got drunk--just plain drunk. I didn't +think so at the time, understand, for I'd never been the least bit that +way before. Hope I don't shock you?" + +His new acquaintance shrugged her shoulders. "I have seen something of +the world; I'm not easily shocked." + +"Well, I was perfectly sober the last I remember, and then I woke up on +the Santa Cruz. I'd never even heard the name before." + +"And hadn't you intended taking an ocean trip?" + +"Good Lord, no! I had just bought a new French car and was going to +drive it up to New Haven yesterday. It's standing out on Forty-fifth +Street now, if somebody hasn't stolen it. Gee! I can see the news-boys +cutting their monograms in those tires." + +"How remarkable!" + +"You see, it was a big night--football game, supper, and all that. I +remember everything up to a certain point, then--curtain! I was 'out' +for twelve hours, and SICK!--that's the funny part; I'm still sick." He +shook his head as if at a loss what to make of this phenomenon. He +noted how the woman's countenance lighted at even a passing interest, +as he continued: "What I can't understand is this: It took all my money +to pay for the supper, and yet I wake up with a first-class ticket to +Panama and in possession of one of the best suites on the ship. It's a +problem play." + +"You say you were sick afterward?" + +"WAS I?" Kirk turned his eyes upon the speaker, mournfully. "My head +isn't right yet." + +"You were drugged," said the woman. + +"By Jove!" He straightened up in his chair. "Knockouts!" + +"Exactly. Some one drugged you and bought a ticket--" + +"Wait! I'm beginning to see. It was Locke. That's how I got his name. +This is his ticket. Oh! There's going to be something doing when I get +back." + +"What?" + +"I don't know yet, but I'm going to sit right here and brood upon some +fitting revenge. After that chap gets out of the hospital--" + +"You did not impress me as a college student," said the stranger. + +"I'm not. I graduated four years ago. I barely made it, but I did get +through." + +"And you have never been to the tropics?" + +"Not since I had my last row with the governor. Have you?" + +"Many times. It will prove an interesting trip for you. At least you +have that consolation." + +"What is it like?" + +Evidently the artless effrontery of the young man had not offended, for +his neighbor talked freely, and in a short time the two were conversing +as easily as old acquaintances. This was due, perhaps, to the fact that +he had appealed to her with the same frankness he would have used +toward a man and, thus far at least, had quite ignored her sex. She was +sufficiently quick to appreciate the footing thus established, and +allowed herself to meet him half-way. Had he presumed in the slightest, +she would have chilled him instantly; but, as it was, she seemed to +feel the innate courtesy back of his boldness, seeing in him only a +big, unaffected boy who needed an outlet for his feelings. In the same +way, had a fine St. Bernard dog thrust a friendly head beneath her hand +she would have petted it. + +When at last she rose, after an hour that had swiftly sped, she was +gratified at the look of concern that came into his eyes. She looked at +him with genuine approval as he bowed and said: + +"Thank you for the pointers about Panama. I hope I may have the +pleasure of talking to you again." + +When she had disappeared he murmured, admiringly: + +"Jove! She's a corker! And she's not so old, after all. I wonder who +she--" He leaned over and read the card on the back of her steamer +chair. "Mrs. Stephen Cortlandt, Suite B," it was lettered. +Straightening up, he grumbled with genuine disappointment: "Just my +blamed luck! She's MARRIED." + + + + +V + +A REMEDY IS PROPOSED + + +By pledging his one article of jewelry Kirk became possessed that +afternoon of several shirts, collars, and handkerchiefs--likewise a +razor, over which he exercised a sort of leasehold privilege. The +purser made it plain, however, that he had not sold these articles, but +merely loaned them, holding the ring as security for their return, and +this arrangement allowed Kirk no spare cash whatever. Even with all his +necessities paid for, it surprised him to find how many channels +remained for spending money. For instance, the most agreeable loafing +spot on the ship was the smoking-room, but whenever he entered it he +was invited to drink, smoke, or play cards, and as he was fond of all +these diversions, it required such an effort of will to refuse that it +destroyed all the pleasure of good company. It was very hard always to +be saying no; and in addition it excited his disgust to learn that he +had inadvertently founded a reputation for abstemiousness. + +Before long he discovered that the passengers considered him an +exceptionally sober, steady youth of economical habits, and this +enraged him beyond measure. Every tinkle of ice or hiss of seltzer made +his mouth water, the click of poker chips drew him with magnetic power. +He longed mightily to "break over" and have a good time. It was his +first effort at self-restraint, and the warfare became so intense that +he finally gave up the smoking-room almost entirely, and spent his +hours on deck, away from temptation. He suffered most, perhaps, from +the lack of tobacco, but even in the matter of cigarettes he could not +bring himself to accept favors that he could not return. In the +solitude of his richly appointed suite he collected a few cork-bound +stumps, which he impaled on a toothpick in order to light them. + +Meanwhile he amused himself by baiting the purser. He dogged that +serious-minded gentleman through all his waking hours, finding a rare +delight in playing upon his suspicion and lack of humor. To him Kirk +was always Mr. Locke, while he insisted upon being called Mr. Anthony +by the others, and the officer never quite got the hang of it. +Moreover, the latter was full of dignity, and did not relish being +connected with a certainly dubious and possibly criminal character, yet +dared not resort to rudeness as a means of riddance. + +The situation was trying enough to the young man at best; for the +ship's hirelings began to show a lack of interest in his comfort, once +it became known that he did not tip, and he experienced difficulty in +obtaining even the customary attentions. It was annoying to one who had +never known an unsatisfied whim; but Kirk was of a peculiarly sanguine +temperament that required much to ruffle, and looked upon the whole +matter as a huge joke. It was this, perhaps, that enabled him to make +friends in spite of his unsociable habits, for the men liked him. As +for the women, he avoided them religiously, with the exception of Mrs. +Cortlandt, whom he saw for an hour or two, morning and afternoon, as +well as at meal-times. With her he got on famously, finding her nearly +as entertaining as a male chum, though he never quite lost his dislike +for her husband. Had she been unmarried and nearer his own age, their +daily intimacy might have caused him to become self-conscious, but, +under the circumstances, no such thought occurred to him, and he began +to look forward with pleasure to their hours on deck. + +The Santa Cruz was four days out before Cortlandt joined them, and when +he did he merely nodded casually to Kirk, then, after exchanging a +polite word or two with his wife, lapsed into his customary silence, +while Mrs. Cortlandt continued her conversation without a second glance +in her husband's direction. + +"That's what I call an ideal married couple," Kirk reflected--"complete +understanding, absolute confidence." And the more he saw of them, the +stronger this impression grew. Cortlandt was always attentive and +courteous, without being demonstrative, while his wife showed a +charming graciousness that was plainly unassumed. Their perfect +good-breeding made the young man feel at ease; but though he endeavored +to cultivate the husband on several occasions, he made little headway. +The man evidently possessed a wide knowledge of current events, a keen +understanding of men and things, yet he never opened up. He listened, +smiled, spoke rarely, and continued to spend nine-tenths of his time in +that isolated corner of the smoking-room, with no other company than a +long glass and a siphon. + +One day when Kirk had begun to feel that his acquaintance with Mrs. +Cortlandt was well established, he said to her: + +"Stein told me to-day that your husband is in the diplomatic service." + +"Yes," said she. "He was Consul-General to Colombia several years ago, +and since then he has been to France and to Germany." + +"I thought you were tourists--you have travelled so much." + +"Most of our journeys have been made at the expense of the Government." + +"Are you diplomatting now?" + +"In a way. We shall be in Panama for some time." + +"This Stein seems to be a nice fellow. He's taken quite a liking to me." + +Mrs. Cortlandt laughed lightly. "That is part of his business." + +"How so?" + +"He is one of Colonel Jolson's secret agents." + +"Who is Colonel Jolson?" + +"Chairman of the Isthmian Canal Commission. Your father knows him." + +"Do you mean that Stein is a--detective?" Kirk looked uncomfortable. + +"I do! Does he know you are the son of Darwin K. Anthony?" + +"Why, yes, I suppose so." + +"Colonel Jolson will be interested." + +"Again I don't see the point." + +"Your father is one of the most powerful and aggressive railroad men in +the country. Perhaps you know something about the railroad opposition +to the canal?" + +Kirk smiled. "Well, to tell you the truth," said he, "the governor +doesn't consult me about his business as much as he ought to. He seems +to think he can run it all right without me, and we've only been +speaking over the telephone lately." + +"One of the strongest forces the Government had to combat in putting +through the canal appropriations was the railroads. Colonel Jolson has +no reason to love your father." + +"Yes, but _I_ don't object to this canal. I think it must be a rather +good idea." + +Mrs. Cortlandt laughed for a second time. "The Colonel's dislike for +your father will not affect you, inasmuch as you are returning so soon, +but if you intended to stay it might be different." + +"In what way?" + +"Oh, in many ways. There are two classes of people who are not welcomed +on the Canal Zone--magazine writers and applicants for positions who +have political influence back of them. The former are regarded as +muckrakers, the latter as spies." + +"That's rather rough on them, isn't it?" + +"You must understand that there is a great big human machine behind the +digging of this canal, and, while it is more wonderful by far than the +actual machinery of iron and steel, it is subject to human weaknesses. +Men like Colonel Jolson, who form a part of it, are down here to make +reputations for themselves. They are handicapped and vexed by constant +interference, constant jealousy. It is a survival of the fittest, and I +suppose they feel that they must protect themselves even if they use +underhand means to do so. It is so in all big work of this character, +where the individual is made small. You would find the same condition +in your father's railroad organization." + +"Oh, now! My old man is a pretty tough citizen to get along with, but +he wouldn't hire detectives to spy on his employees." + +Mrs. Cortlandt smiled. "By-the-way, when are you going into business +with him?" she said. + +"I? Oh, not for a long time. You see, I'm so busy I never seem to have +time to work. Work doesn't really appeal to me, anyway. I suppose if I +had to hustle I could, but--what's the use?" + +"What is it that keeps you so busy? What are you going to do when you +get back, for instance?" + +"Well, I'm going to Ormond for the auto races, and I may enter my new +car. If I don't get hurt in the races I'll take a hunting trip or two. +Then I want to try out an iceboat on the Hudson, and I'll have to be +back in New Haven by the time the baseball squad limbers up. Oh, I have +plenty of work ahead!" + +Mrs. Cortlandt let her eyes dwell upon him curiously for a moment; then +she said: + +"Have you no ambition?" + +"Certainly." + +"What is it?" + +"Why--" Kirk hesitated. "I can't say right off the reel, but I've got +it--lots of it." + +"Is there no--girl, for instance? Have you never been in love?" + +"Oh, see here, now!" Anthony blushed in a manner to excite the envy of +any woman. "I don't like 'em. I'd rather play football." + +"That explains something. When the time comes you will cease wasting +your life and--" + +"I'm NOT wasting my life," the young man denied hotly. "I'm having a +great time; simply immense." + +"I remember reading an article once by a man who attacked American +colleges with bitter personal feeling, on the ground that they fostered +exactly the attitude toward life which you have just expressed." + +Anthony looked sober. "That was my father," he said. + +"Really! How stupid of me to forget the name. But I don't agree with +him," she continued, gently. "You merely lack stimulus. If you should +meet the right woman--" Then, seeing the amusement in his face; +"Believe me, I know what I am talking about. I know what a woman can +do. Your life has been too easy and placid. You need some disturbing +element to make it ferment." + +"But I don't want to ferment." + +"Why don't you stay in Panama and go to work?" + +"Work? Hideous word! For one thing, I haven't time. I must get back--" + +"You will find great opportunities there." + +"But how about the girl who is to sour the syrup of my being and make +it ferment?" + +"Oh, she may appear at any moment; but, joking aside, you had better +think over what I have said." She left him with an admonitory shake of +her head. + +The SANTA CRUZ was now rapidly drawing out of the cold northern winter +and into a tropic warmth. Already the raw chill of higher latitudes was +giving way to a balmy, spring-like temperature, while the glittering +sunshine transformed the sea into a lively, gleaming expanse of +sapphire. The nights were perfect, the days divine. The passengers +responded as if to a magic draught, and Kirk found his blood filled +with a new vigor. + +A brief sight of Columbus' Landfall served to break the monotony; then +followed a swift flight past low, tropical islands ringed with coral +sand, upon which broke a lazy, milk-white surf. Through the glasses +villages were spied, backed by palm groves and guarded by tall sentinel +lighthouses; but the Santa Cruz pushed steadily southward, her decks as +level as a dancing floor, the melancholy voice of her bell tolling the +leagues as they slipped past. The eastern tongue of Cuba rose out of +the horizon, then dropped astern, and the gentle trades began to fan +the travellers. Now that they were in the Caribbean, schools of flying +fish whisked out from under the ship's prow, and away, like tiny +silver-sheathed arrows. New constellations rose into the evening sky. +It became impossible to rest indoors, with the trade-winds calling, and +the passengers spent long, lazy hours basking in the breath of the +tropics and grudging the pleasure of which sleep deprived them. + +It was the last night of the voyage, and the thrill of approaching land +was felt by all. As usual, the monotony of the first day or two had +given way to an idle contentment and a vague regret at leaving the ship +and severing the ties so newly made. Home, instead of looming close and +overshadowing, had become a memory rather indistinct and blurred, +clouded by the proximity of the new and unknown. + +Kirk Anthony acknowledged to a reluctant enjoyment of the change and +found himself less eager to go back. As he paced the deck after dinner +he felt a lurking desire to defer his return until he had absorbed +something more of this warmth and languor; he even reflected that he +might welcome a stay of some length in the tropics if it were not for +the fact that he had so much to do. + +Mrs. Cortlandt joined him as usual, and they did a mile around the +promenade, chatting idly of many things. The evening was too glorious +to permit of early retiring, and a late hour found them leaning over +the rail, side by side, while Anthony bewailed the fact that he knew +nothing of the country just beyond the dark horizon ahead of them. + +"You are quite right," his companion agreed. "You will miss its best +flavor if you don't know the history back of it. For instance, we are +now on the Spanish Main, the traditional home of romance and adventure." + +"I always wanted to be a pirate," he acknowledged gravely, "up to +fifteen. Then I thought I'd rather run a candy store." + +"The ships of Sir Henry Morgan and the galleons of His Catholic Majesty +Philip of Spain sailed these waters. Over yonder"--she waved a graceful +hand to the north and east--"are the haunts where the adventurers of +old England used to lie in wait for their prey. Ahead of us is the land +that Pizarro soaked with blood. We're coming into the oldest country on +this side of the globe, Mr. Anthony, where men lived in peace and +plenty when most of Europe was a wilderness. I suppose such things +appeal more to a woman's fancy than to a man's, but to me they're +mightily alluring." + +Kirk wagged his head admiringly, as he said: + +"I wish I could make language behave like that," and Edith Cortlandt +laughed like a young girl. + +"Oh, I'm not a perfervid poet," she disclaimed, "but everything down +here is so full of association I can't help feeling it." + +"I'm beginning to notice it myself. Maybe it's the climate." + +"Perhaps. Anyhow, it is all very vivid to me. Did you ever stop to +think how brave those men must have been who first went venturing into +unknown seas in their little wooden boats?" + +"They were looking for a short cut to the East Indies, weren't they?" + +"Yes, to Cathay. And then the people they found and conquered! The +spoils they exacted! They were men--those conquistadores--whatever else +they were--big, cruel, heroic fellows like Bastida, Nicuesa, Balboa, +Pedrarias the Assassin, and the rest. They oppressed the natives +terribly, yet they paved the way for civilization, after all. The +Spaniards did try to uplift the Indians, you know. And the life in the +colonies was like that in old Spain, only more romantic and +picturesque. Why, whenever I pass through these Latin-American cities I +see, in place of the crumbling ruins, grand cathedrals and palaces; in +place of the squalid beggars idling about the market-places I see +velvet-clad dons and high-born ladies." + +"Aren't there any beautiful ladies left?" + +"A few, perhaps." + +"What happened to the cathedrals and the velvet fellows and all that?" + +"Oh, the old state of affairs couldn't last forever. The Spanish +administration wasn't so bad as is generally supposed, yet of course +there was too much rapacity and not enough industry. Central America, +broadly speaking, was known as the treasure-chest of the world, and +there were constant wars and disturbances. The colonies as a whole did +not progress like those in the North, and in course of time +deteriorated. The old cathedrals decayed and were not rebuilt. The old +Spanish stock died out and in its stead grew up a motley race given to +revolt, revolution, and corruption. Even when the provinces became +free, they weren't able to unite and form a strong nation. The Isthmus +of Panama became a pest-hole where the scum of the Four Seas settled. +The people became mean and unhealthy in mind and body and morals, +preserving nothing except the cruelty of their forefathers. Here and +there, to be sure, one comes across the old Castilian breed, like a +silver thread running through a rotting altar-cloth, but only here and +there, and most of those silver threads have become tarnished from +contact with the fabric." + +"It must be a nice place," Kirk observed with gentle sarcasm. + +"It affords one a great chance to moralize, at any rate. Take the +building of this canal, for instance. First, the French came, led by a +dreamer, and poured in the wealth of an empire in order that they might +exact toll from the world. You see, they were all lured by the love of +gain--the Spaniards, who pillaged the natives to begin with, and the +French, who set out to squeeze profit from all the other nations. But +it seems as if the spot were infected. The French lost an army in their +project; corruption gnawed through, and the thing ended in disgrace and +disaster. Spain and France have come and gone, and at last we Yankees +have arrived. It seems to be the will of God that the youngest, +lustiest people on the earth should finally be sent to clean this +Augean stable." + +"By Jove! I never thought of it that way." + +"It is a big task, Mr. Anthony, and the mere digging of the ditch is +the smallest part. There is a great deal more to be done. You see, as +men attain culture, they require more than mere food and drink and +bedding, and in the same way, as nations attain to greatness, they +require more than mere territory--they reach out and absorb power and +prestige. Our decision to build the Panama Canal is like the landing of +another Columbus; the conquest is to follow. After that will come--who +knows what? Perhaps more wars, more pillage, more injustice." + +"You talk like a man," Anthony said, admiringly. "I had no idea you +looked at things in such a big way." + +"You are laughing at me." + +"No, indeed." + +"You see, it is part of my husband's profession. As to the +romance--well, all women are romantic and imaginative, I suppose, and +you've been an inspiring listener." + +"I don't know about that, but--you're a corking good talker. Excuse my +archaic English." Mrs. Cortlandt turned her eyes upon the speaker, and +he saw that they were very bright. "I've been thinking about what you +told me the other day," he ran on, "about myself. Remember?" + +"I'm glad I have the knack of making something besides football signals +stick in your memory," said she. "Have you been thinking about that +girl I spoke of?" + +"Yes," he replied, ingenuously. "I've been making up my mind to ask you +if you happen to have a sister--an unmarried sister, I mean." + +Mrs. Cortlandt laughed appreciatively. "No, I have no sister, but I +thank you for the compliment. I suppose you meant it for one?" + +"Yes. I hope you don't mind." + +"Not at all. I'm quite sure now that my notion about you was right. It +will take a woman to make a man of you." + +"It used to be my wind that troubled me," said the athlete, mournfully. +"Now it seems to be my heart." + +"It doesn't seem to be seriously affected as yet, but it's remarkable +the number of ways in which the heart of man may be reached. I remember +once having breakfast in a queer little restaurant in the French +quarter of New Orleans, famous for its cooking and for the well-known +people who had eaten there. There was a sort of register which the +guests were asked to sign, and in looking it over I read the +inscription of one particularly enthusiastic diner. It ran, 'Oh, Madame +Begue, your liver has touched my heart,' and the story is that the +writer made desperate love to the proprietor's wife." + +"Oh, come, that's rather hard on me. I have some emotions besides a +hearty appreciation of food." + +"No doubt. I only mentioned that as one of the ways, and, seriously, I +am convinced that, however your awakening may come, you will be the +better for it." + +"I do hope the cook will prove to be unmarried," he mused. "Imagine +having to do away with a husband who can handle a cleaver." + +"Oh, I don't mean you should necessarily marry the woman. It would be +quite as good for you if she refused even to look at you. However, let +us hope that you meet some nice American girl--" + +"Why not a senorita? You have inspired me with Spanish romance." + +But Mrs. Cortlandt shook her head. "Wait until you have seen them." + +"Already I imagine myself under some moonlit balcony teasing chords out +of a guitar. I have rather a good singing voice, you know." + +"It is not done that way nowadays. Panama is Americanized. You will need +a pianola and an automobile." + +"And all the romance is gone?" + +"Oh, there is romance everywhere; there is quite as much in Pittsburg +as in Andalusia. But to speak of more practical things"--Mrs. Cortlandt +hesitated slightly--"I heard you tell the purser the other day about +your financial troubles, and it occurred to me that Mr. Cortlandt might +assist you." + +"Thanks, awfully," Kirk hastened to say, feeling himself flush +uncomfortably. "But I sha'n't need anything. The old gentleman will +wire me whatever I ask for. Does Mr. Cortlandt know how I am fixed?" + +"No." + +"Please don't tell him. I--I'm a little bit ashamed of myself. You're +not going?" + +"Yes. It is getting late, and my maid is looking for me." + +"Oh, I'm sorry. It's lonesome around here without--somebody to talk +to." He took her hand and shook it as if she were a man. "You've been +mighty good to me and--I wish you had a sister. That's all." + +She left him the memory of a very bright and very girlish smile, and he +found himself thinking that she could not be so much older than he, +after all. + +Mr. Cortlandt was awaiting his wife and rose courteously as she entered +their suite. + +"Did you send Annette for me?" she inquired. + +"Yes. I thought you had forgotten the hour. We rise at six." + +"My dear," she returned, coolly, "I was quite aware of the time. I was +talking to Mr. Anthony." + +"Do you find him so amusing?" + +"Very much so." + +"He's such a boy. By-the-way, some of the passengers are remarking +about your friendship for him." + +Mrs. Cortlandt shrugged. "I expected that. Does it interest you?" + +The man favored her with his wintry smile. "Not at all." + +"If he should need assistance while in Panama, I should be obliged if +you would accommodate him." + +"Money?" + +"Yes, or anything else. He left New York unexpectedly." + +"Don't you think that is going a bit too far? You know I don't fancy +him." + +Mrs. Cortlandt frowned slightly. "We won't discuss it," she said. "I +assured him he was at liberty to call on us for anything and--naturally +that ends the matter." + +"Naturally!" he agreed, but his colorless cheeks flushed dully. + + + + +VI + +IN WHICH KIRK ANTHONY IS GREATLY SURPRISED + + +When Kirk came on deck early the following morning, he found the Santa +Cruz nosing her way into Colony harbor. A land fog obscured his view +somewhat, but through it he beheld a low, irregular line of mountains +in the background, and close at hand a town. The ship came to anchor +abreast of a point upon which he descried a squat little spider-legged +lighthouse and long rows of frame dwellings half hidden behind slender +palm-trees. Beyond were warehouses and docks and the funnels of many +ships; on either side of the bay was a dense tropic wilderness. As the +sun dissipated the morning haze, he saw that the hills were matted with +a marvellous vivid green. There were no clearings on the slopes, no +open spaces dotted with farm-houses or herds, the jungle flowed down to +the water's edge in an unbroken sweep, and the town was cut out of it. + +A launch came plunging through the swells, and the deck steward made +his rounds requesting the passengers to assemble for medical +examination. + +Kirk found the Cortlandts ahead of him. + +"What's coming off?" he inquired. + +"Vaccination," Cortlandt explained, briefly. "They are very particular +about disease." + +His wife added: "This used to be the worst fever-spot in the world, you +know. When we were here five years ago, we saw car-loads of dead people +nearly every day. A funeral train was a familiar sight." + +"What a pleasant place to spend my vacation!" exclaimed Kirk. "Now if I +can rent a room over the morgue and board with the village undertaker, +I'll have a nice time." + +"Oh, there's no more yellow fever--no sickness at all, in fact," said +Mr. Cortlandt. "Will you go over to Panama City, or will you stay in +Colon?" + +"I think I'll remain on the ship; then she can't get away without me," +Kirk answered. But when, after taking his turn before the doctors, he +explained his desire to the purser, that worthy replied: + +"I'm sorry, but you'll have to arrange that with the agent. We make a +charge, you know, just like a hotel." + +"I'm going to cable my old man for money." + +The officer shook his head with finality. "Nothing doing, Mr. Locke." + +"Anthony." + +"I'll take no chances. If you don't pay, I'll have to. Look here! Do +you want to know what I think of you, Mr.--Anthony Locke?" + +"I haven't any special yearnings in that direction, but--what do you +think about me?" + +"Well, I don't think your name is either Locke or Anthony." + +"Marvellous!" + +"And I don't think you have any money coming to you, either." + +"Mighty intellect!" + +"I think you are no good." + +"You're not alone in that belief. But what has all that to do with my +sleeping aboard the Santa Cruz?" + +"If you want to stay aboard, you'll have to pay in advance. You're not +so foolish as you try to make out." + +"Those are glorious words of praise," Kirk acknowledged, "but I'll make +a bet with you." + +"What?" + +"That you change your mind. I am just as foolish as I appear, and I'll +prove it. I'll bet my ring against your shirts that my name is Anthony, +and if I don't come through with the price of a ticket to New York you +can keep the ring." + +"Very well, but meanwhile I don't intend to be stuck for your bill." +The purser was a man of admirable caution. + +"All right, then, I shall throw myself upon the mercy of strangers and +take your belongings with me." + +By this time the ship was being warped into her berth, and the dock was +crowded. There were little brown customs inspectors in khaki, little +brown policemen in blue, little brown merchants in white, and huge +black Jamaicans in all colors of rags. Here and there moved a bronzed, +businesslike American, and Anthony noticed that for the most part these +were clean-cut, aggressive-looking young fellows. + +He was delayed but an instant by the customs officials, then made his +way out through a barnlike structure to the street, reflecting that, +after all, there are advantages in travelling light. He came into a +blazing-hot, glaring white street jammed with all sorts of vehicles, +the drivers of which seemed perpetually upon the point of riot. Before +him stretched a shadeless brick pavement, with a railroad track on one +side, and on the other a line of naked frame buildings hideous in their +sameness. The sun beat down fiercely. Kirk mopped his face with the +purser's handkerchief and wondered if this were really December. + +Clumsy two-wheeled carts came bumping past, some with prehensile-footed +negroes perched upon them, others driven by turban-crowned Hindoos. A +fleet of dilapidated surreys and coaches, each equipped with a musical +chime and drawn by a flea-bitten, ratlike horse, thronged the square. +Kirk noticed with amusement that the steeds were of stronger mentality +than the drivers, judging from the way they dominated the place, +kicking, biting squealing, ramming one another, locking wheels and +blocking traffic, the while their futile owners merely jerked the reins +after the fashion of a street-car conductor ringing up fares, or swore +softly in Spanish. Silent-footed coolies drifted past, sullen-faced +negroes jostled him, stately Martinique women stalked through the +confusion with queenly dignity. These last were especially qualified to +take the stranger's eye, being tall and slender and wearing gaudy +head-dresses, the tips of which stood up like rabbits' ears. Unlike the +fat and noisy Jamaicans, they were neat and clean, their skirts +snow-white and stiffly starched, and they held themselves as proudly +erect as if pacing a stage. + +The indescribable confusion of races reminded the young American of a +Red Sea port where the myriad peoples of the far East intermingle. He +heard a dozen different dialects; even the negroes used an accent that +was difficult to understand. One thing only struck a familiar note, and +that with peculiar force and sharpness. Down the railroad track toward +him came a locomotive with the letters "P. R. R." upon it, at which he +said aloud: + +"Hurrah, I'm in Jersey City! I'll take the Twenty-third Street Ferry +and be at the Astor in no time." + +He made his way slowly through the turmoil to the cable office, where +he wrote a message, only to have it refused. + +"We don't send C. O. D.," the operator told him. + +"Must have coin in advance, eh?" + +"Yes, sir." + +"I left my gold-purse on the dresser," Kirk said, cheerfully. "I'll be +back later." Then he wandered forth again, bearing his bundle of shirts +beneath his arm. He thought of appealing to the Cortlandts before they +left for Panama City, but could not bring himself to ask a favor from +that slim, agate-eyed man for whom he felt such an instinctive +distaste. Instead, he resolved to enlist the services of the American +consul. + +He began to feel the heat now, and his borrowed collar drooped, but as +he neared the seaward side of town there was a remarkable +transformation. A delightful, cooling breeze swept in from the ocean, +and, when he finally came out upon a palm-guarded road along the +breakers, he paused in silent enjoyment. The trade-winds were drawing +inward as steadily as if forced by a great electric fan, piling the +green waters upon the rocks in a ceaseless, soothing murmur, making the +palm fronds overhead rustle like the silken skirts of an aerial ballet. +The effect was wonderful, for, while the air was balmy and soft, it was +also deliciously refreshing and seemed to have magic properties. + +After some further wandering, he found the consul's house and knocked +at the door, whereupon a high-pitched, querulous voice from inside +cried: + +"Come in. Dammit, don't stand there hammering!" + +Kirk entered to find a huge, globular man clad in soiled linens +sprawled in a musty Morris chair and sipping a highball. The man's face +and neck were of a purplish, apoplectic hue; he seemed to radiate +heat-waves like a base-burner. + +"Is this Mr. Weeks?" Kirk inquired. + +"That's me." + +"My name is Anthony." + +"Glad to meet you," wheezed the fat man, extending a limp, moist hand +without rising. When Kirk had grasped it he felt like wiping his own +palm. "Have a seat." The speaker indicated a broken-backed rocker +encumbered with damp clothes, newspapers, and books. "Just dump that +rubbish on the floor; it don't matter where." Then he piped at the top +of his thin, little voice, "Zeelah! Hey, Zeelah! Bring some more ice." + +One glance showed Anthony that the place was indescribably disordered; +a rickety desk was half concealed beneath a litter of papers, books, +breakfast dishes, and what not; a typewriter occupied a chair, and all +about the floor were scattered documents where the wind had blown them. +Shoes and articles of clothing were piled in the corners; there was not +a sound piece of furniture in the place, and through an open door +leading to another room at the rear could be seen a cheap iron bed, +sagging hammock-like, its head and foot posts slanting like tepee +poles, doubtless from the weight of its owner. + +In answer to Mr. Weeks's shout a slatternly negress with dragging +skirts and overrun shoes entered, carrying a washbowl partly filled +with ice. + +"Just get in, Mr. Anthony?" + +"Yes, sir, on the Santa. Cruz." + +"Fine ship." Mr. Weeks rose ponderously and wiped out a glass with a +bath towel, while Kirk noticed that two damp half-moons had come +through his stiffly starched linen trousers where his dripping knees +had pressed. He walked with a peculiar, springy roll, as if pads of fat +had grown between his joints, and, once an impulse had been given his +massive frame, it required time in which to become effective. The sound +of his breathing was plainly audible as he prepared his guest's +beverage. + +"You'll like that," he predicted. "There's one good thing we get in +Colon, and that's whiskey." With a palsied hand he presented the glass. +His cuffs were limp and tight, his red wrists were ringed like those of +a baby. As he rolled back toward the Morris chair, his stomach surged +up and down as if about to break from its moorings. + +"I came in to ask a favor," Anthony announced, "I suppose every tourist +does the same." + +"That's part of a consul's duty," Mr. Weeks panted, while his soft +cheeks swelled with every exhalation. "That's what I'm here for." + +"I want to cable home for money." + +"A little poker game on the way down, eh?" He began to shake +ponderously. + +"I'm broke, and they won't take a collect message at the cable office. +You see, I didn't know I was coming; some of my friends gave me a +knockout and shipped me off on the Santa Cruz. The wireless wasn't +working, we didn't stop at Jamaica, so this is my first chance to get +word home." + +"What do you wish me to do?" + +"Cable for me and see that I have a place to stop until I get an +answer." + +A look of distrust crept slowly into the consul's little eyes. + +"Are you absolutely broke?" + +"I haven't got a jingle." + +"How long will it take to hear from your people?" + +"If my father is at home, I'll hear instantly." + +"And if he isn't?" + +"I'll have to wait." + +"What makes you think he'll wire you money?" + +"He's never failed yet. You see, I'm something like a comet; he knows +I'll be around every so often." + +Mr. Weeks began to complain. "I don't know you, Mr.--what's the name +again? Anthony? I'm a poor man and I've been an easy mark for every +tropical tramp from Vera Cruz to Guayaquil. Your father may not be able +to help you, and then I'll be holding the bag." + +"I think you don't understand who he is. Did you ever hear of Darwin K. +Anthony, of Albany, New York?" + +Mr. Weeks's thick lids opened, this time to display a far different +emotion. "Certainly." + +"Well, he's the goat." + +Slowly, grandly, the American consul set his frame in motion, whereat +Kirk said, quickly, "Don't get up; I understand." But Mr. Weeks had +gone too far to check himself, so he lurched resiliently into an +upright position, then across the floor, and, reaching out past his +undulating front, as a man reaches forth from the midst of a crowd, +shook his guest heartily by the hand. + +"Why didn't you say so?" he bubbled. "I'm here to accommodate folks +like you. Darwin K. Anthony! Well, RATHER." + +"Thanks." The young man wiped his hand surreptitiously. "If you will +fix it so I can cable him and sleep aboard the ship, I'll be greatly +obliged." + +"Nothing of the sort," Mr. Weeks blew through his wet lips. "I'll cable +him myself and you'll stay right here as my guest. Delighted to have +the privilege." + +Kirk cast another glance over the place, and demurred hastily. "Really, +I couldn't think of putting you out. I can stay on the Santa Cruz as +well as not." + +"I couldn't hear to such a thing. You're tired of ship life--everybody +is--and I have lots of room--too much room. It's a pleasure to meet +real people--this damn country is so full of crooks and dead-beats. No, +sir, you'll stay right here where it is cool and comfortable." With a +pudgy forefinger he stripped his purple brow of a row of glistening +sweat-drops. "I'll have Zeelah fix up a bed where this glorious breeze +will play on you. Mr. Anthony, that trade-wind blows just like that all +the time--never dies down--it's the only thing that makes life bearable +here--that and the whiskey. Have another highball?" + +"No, I thank you." + +"Darwin--Say, I'll send a cart for your baggage, right now." + +"I have it with me--six shirts, all guilty." + +"Then I'll send your father a message this minute. I'm delighted at the +privilege of being the first to advise him of your safety and to +relieve his mental anguish." Mr. Weeks rocked toward the desk, adjusted +a chair behind him, spread his legs apart, and sat down sidewise so +that he could reach the inkwell. He overhung his chair so generously +that from the front he appeared to be perched precariously upon its +edge or to be holding some one in his lap. "Where are those cable +blanks!" he cried, irritably, stirring up the confusion in front of him. + +"Here they are." Anthony picked one up from the floor. + +"It's that damn wind again. I can't keep anything in place unless I sit +on it. That's the trouble with this country--there's always a breeze +blowing. Thanks! I'm getting a trifle heavy to stoop--makes me dizzy." + +In a moment he read what he had written: + +DARWIN K. ANTHONY, Albany, New York. + +Your son well and safe. Here as my guest. Asks you cable him money for +return. WEEKS, American Consul. + +"That tells the story. It'll please him to know I'm looking after you, +my boy." + +"You are very kind." + +"Don't speak of it. I'm glad to get in touch with your father. We need +capital in this country." + +"He's a hard man in money matters," said Darwin K. Anthony's son. "I +believe I enjoy the distinction of being the only person who ever made +him loosen." + +"All successful men are cautious," Weeks declared. "But if he knew the +wonderful opportunities this country presents--" The speaker leaned +forward, while his chair creaked dangerously, and said, with +impressiveness, "My dear sir, do you realize that a cocoa palm after it +is seven years old drops a nut worth five cents every day in the year +and requires no care whatever except to gather the fruit?" + +"No." + +"Fact! And we grow the best ones in the world right here. But the +demand is increasing so rapidly that in ten years there will be a +famine. Think of it--a famine of cocoanuts!" Mr. Weeks paused to lend +dramatic effect. + +"That's fierce," Kirk acknowledged. "What are they good for?" + +"Eating! People make cakes out of them, and oil, and candy. Good +cocoanut land can be bought for fifty cents an acre, selected seeds for +five cents each, labor is sixty cents a day. No frosts, no worms, no +bugs. You sit still and they drop in your lap." + +"The bugs?" + +"No! No! The cocoanuts." + +"Fine!" + +"But that's nothing. Do you realize that this soil will raise +sugar-cane the size of your--of my--thigh, and once you plant it you +can't keep it cut out?" + +"It's all news to me." + +"You can buy sugar-cane land for a dollar an acre; it costs--" + +"I'm no good at figures, Mr. Weeks." + +"And rubber! THERE'S the chance for a man with capital. Rubber!" + +"I will--I mean, is that so?" + +"Ever see any rubber-trees?" + +"Only in Brooklyn." + +"I mean wild rubber. This country is full of it; the natives bring it +in. All you have to do is buy timber land--you can get it for a +song--plant your rubber-seed, and let 'er go, Gallagher! In ten years +you go back, cut off your timber, sell it for enough to make you rich, +and there is your rubber--velvet!" he concluded, triumphantly. + +"Rubber velvet?" + +"Yes. It's 'velvet'--all clear. You can't lose. My boy, there's a +thousand ways to get rich down here, and I know 'em all. What I need is +capital. If I had your father's backing--Say! It's a mighty good thing +you came to see me. I can do your old man a lot of good. I'm +conservative, I am, and what he needs is a good, conservative man to +manage his investments. Why, talk about quick money"--the speaker +thrust forth a finger that looked like a peeled banana--"I've got a +gold-mine--" + +"Not a bit like it." Kirk shook his head. "They don't behave." + +"This one will. It's an old Spanish mine and hasn't been worked for +three centuries. It's rich, RICH! I'll take you in as my partner, and +we'll get your father to open it up. What do you say? If he doesn't +like that, we'll get him a street-railway franchise; I'm close to the +government, and there isn't a steel rail in any city of the republic. I +know all the Spiggoty politicians." + +"The what?" + +"The Spiggoties! That's what we call the Panamanians. They 'no spiggoty +English'; understand?" + +"It's a funny name." + +"Now, my boy, there's one thing I want you to be careful of. Don't let +some of these fellows around here get you excited. This country is full +of promoters, cheap skates, and that sort, and they'll try to stampede +you into some investment. You trust to me; I'm conservative. I'll put +you up at the club, and when you get straightened around we'll talk +business. Meanwhile, I'll send this cable." + +Mr. Weeks was even better than his word. He took Kirk with him, and +went heaving down the street, his body quivering at every step as if +hung upon a whalebone framework, the breath wheezing noisily in and out +of his chest, the perspiration streaming from his purple face in +rivulets. He put up his guest at the club and invited some of his +friends to join them for dinner that evening on the wide balcony; then, +noting Anthony's heavy clothing, he said: + +"You need some linens, Kirk. That suit looks like a dog bed. You don't +mind my calling you Kirk, do you?" + +"I'm flattered. However, I can't get ready-made clothes large enough, +and, besides, it's hardly worth while for the length of time--" + +"Nonsense. Now you're here we won't let you go right back. There's a +Chinese tailor on Bottle Alley who'll have you a suit to measure by +noon to-morrow, and he only charges seven dollars, goods and all." + +Accordingly, the two journeyed to Bottle Alley and selected some linen, +whereupon, instead of one suit, the consul ordered three, having them +charged to his account. + +Kirk really enjoyed that evening at the Wayfarers Club, for, once the +cool of evening had come, the place filled up rapidly with as fine a +crowd of men as he had ever met. There were young fellows from the +railroad offices, merchants from the town, engineers from the big job, +the proximity of which made itself felt like a mysterious presence. +There was a trader from down the San Blas coast; a benevolent, +white-haired judge, with a fund of excellent stories; a lieutenant in +the Zone Police who impressed Kirk as a real Remington trooper come to +life; and many another. They all welcomed the Yale man with that +freedom which one finds only on the frontier, and as he listened to +them he began to gain some idea of the tremendous task that occupied +their minds. They were all men with work to do; there were no idlers; +there was no class distinction. One topic of conversation prevailed, +and, although the talk drifted away from it at times, it invariably +came back to The Job in the end. + +Weeks did himself credit as a host. His table, spread on the latticed +balcony where the never-failing trade-winds fanned it, was decorated +tastefully with flowers, red-shaded candles, white linen, and gleaming +silver gave it a metropolitan air. Both the food and the wine were well +served, and the consul's half-dozen guests soon became mellowed and +friendly. Kirk felt he had fallen among kindred spirits, for it was +almost like a fraternity dinner. + +When finally they arose, some one proposed a game of draw poker and +insisted upon Kirk's joining. He was about to refuse when Weeks drew +him aside to say: + +"Don't let the money question stand in your way, Kirk. You're my guest, +and your I.O.U. is as good as a government bond; so go as far as you +like." + +A considerable portion of Anthony's time in college had been devoted to +a course in draw poker--recitations, so to speak, being conducted in +the upper rooms of a Greek letter "frat," and he cherished the belief +that he had at least learned to distinguish a spade flush from an +"Arkansas blaze." But he soon found that these men had forgotten more +about the game than he could ever hope to learn at any university, and +when the crowd broke up at midnight he signed his name to a tab for +forty dollars. + +Early the next day the following cablegram was left at the American +Consulate: + +WEEKS, Consul, Colon. + +Anthony absent, returns Friday. + COPLEY. + +"Copley is the Governor's secretary," Kirk explained. "That means that +I'll miss the Santa Cruz and have to wait another week." + +"I'm delighted," the consul said, heartily. + +"Perhaps you could stake me to a ticket. I'll remit when I get to New +York." + +"My pay isn't due for a fortnight," Weeks explained after an instant's +hesitation. "You see, I'm interested in so many ventures it keeps +me--well, broke. Anyhow, you can't go until we have arranged an +investment for your father." + +Kirk could not help thinking that a man of the consul's wide +acquaintance and business capacity could have raised the necessary +funds without much trouble; but, not wishing to embarrass his host, he +refrained from pressing the matter, and resigned himself as best he +could to an extension of his exile. Meanwhile, he decided to visit the +Canal, for on every side he heard nothing but echoes of the great work, +and he began to feel that he owed it to himself to view it. But his +plans were upset by the weather. On the following day it began to rain, +and it continued to rain day and night thereafter until Colon became a +sodden, dripping horror. The soil melted into a quagmire, the streets +became sluices, the heavens closed down like a leaden pall, and the +very air became saturated. It was hot also, and sticky. Indoors a mould +began to form, rust grew like a fungus; outdoors the waving palm tops +spilled a deluge upon roof and sidewalk at every gust; their trunks +streamed like hydrants. + +Kirk had never seen such a rain; it kept up hour after hour, day after +day, until the monotony became maddening. The instant he stepped out +from shelter he was drenched, and even in his rooms he could discover +no means of drying his clothes. His garments, hanging beside his bed at +night, were clammy and overlaid with moisture in the morning. Things +began to smell musty; leather objects grew long, hoary whiskers of +green mould. To his amazement, the inhabitants seemed quite oblivious +to the change, however, and, while they agreed that the weather was a +trifle misty, they pursued their duties as usual, assuring him that the +rain might continue for a month. + +It was too much for Kirk, however, and he deferred his trip over the +"Line," spending his time instead at the Wayfarers Club. In his +daylight hours he listened to Weeks's unending dissertations upon the +riches of the tropics; at night he played poker with such uniform bad +luck that his opponents developed for him an increasing affection. + +But all things have an end, and Friday morning broke clear and hot. + +"We'll hear from the old gentleman to-day, sure," he told Weeks at +breakfast. "He's regularity itself. The train despatchers set their +watches by him." + +"Now that it has cleared off, we must look into the cocoanut business," +the consul announced. "I'll make you a rich man, Kirk." + +"I'm rich, anyhow, or I will be. Money doesn't mean much to me." + +"Your father is--many times a millionaire, isn't he?" Weeks' little red +eyes were very bright and curious. Kirk had seen that look many times +before and knew its meaning. Hence he replied rather brusquely: + +"So I believe." And a moment later declared his determination to avail +himself of the good weather and see something of the town. The prospect +of squaring his account with this fawning fat man filled him with +relief, and once away from the Consulate he stayed until late in the +afternoon. It was nearly dark when he strolled in, to inquire: + +"Well, did you get an answer?" + +"Yes." Weeks fumbled excitedly through the papers on his desk. + +"How much did he send? + +"Here's the message; read it yourself." + +Kirk read as follows: + +WEEKS, Consul, Colon. + +Your guest an impostor. Have no son. + ANTHONY. + +"Well, I'll be damned!" he ejaculated. "This is a joke!" + +Weeks was beginning to pant. "A joke, hey? I suppose it was a joke to +impose on me?" + +"Don't you believe I'm Kirk Anthony?" + +"No, I do not. I just discovered to-day that your name is Jefferson +Locke. Stein told me." + +Anthony laughed lightly. + +"Oh, laugh, if you want to. You're a smooth article with your talk +about football and automobiles and millionaire fathers, but you +happened to select the wrong millionaire for a father this time, and +I'm going to give you a taste of our Spiggoty jails." + +"You can't arrest me. You offered to take me in." + +The fat man grew redder than ever; he seemed upon the point of +exploding; his whole body shook and quivered as if a head of steam were +steadily gathering inside him. + +"You can't get out of it that way," he cried at the top of his little +voice. "I've fed you for a week. I put you up at my club. That very +suit of clothes you have on is mine." + +"Well, don't burst a seam over the matter. My Governor doesn't know the +facts. I'll cable him myself this time." + +"And live off me for another week, I suppose? Not if I know it! He says +he has no son; isn't that enough?" + +"He doesn't understand." + +"And how about those gambling debts?" chattered the mountain of flesh. +"You thought you'd fool me for a week, while you won enough money from +my friends to get away. Now I'LL have to pay them. Oh, I'll fix you!" + +"You go slow about having me pinched," Kirk said, darkly, "or I'll make +you jump through a hoop. I'll pay my debts." + +"You're a rich man, eh? Money doesn't mean much to you, hey?" mocked +the infuriated Consul. "I suppose this is an old game of yours. Well, +you stuck me all right, because you knew I couldn't have you +arrested--I'd be a laughing-stock forever. But I've had your card +cancelled, and I've left word for the waiters to throw you out if you +show up at the Wayfarers." + +"Will you lend me enough money to cable again?" asked Anthony, with an +effort. + +"More money? NO!" fairly screamed the other. "You get out of my house, +Mr. 'Kirk Anthony,' and don't you show yourself around here again. I'll +keep the rest of your wardrobe." + +His erstwhile guest underwent an abrupt reversal of emotion. To the +indignant amazement of Mr. Weeks, he burst into a genuine laugh, saying: + +"All right, landlord, keep my baggage. I believe that's the custom, +but--Oh, gee! This IS funny." He was still laughing when he reached the +public square, for at last he had begun to see the full humor of +Adelbert Higgins' joke. + + + + +VII + +THE REWARD OF MERIT + + +Facing for the first time in his life an instant and absolute need of +money, Kirk found himself singularly lacking in resource; and a period +of sober contemplation brought him no helpful thought. Perhaps, after +all, he decided, his best course would be to seek relief from the +Cortlandts. Accordingly, he strolled into the offices of the steamship +company near by and asked leave to telephone. But on calling up the +Hotel Tivoli, he was told that his friends were out; nor could he learn +the probable hour of their return. As he hung up the receiver he +noticed that the office was closing, and, seeing the agent about to +quit the place, addressed him: + +"I'd like to ask a favor." + +"What is it?" + +"Will you introduce me to the best hotel in town? I have friends in +Panama City, but they're out and it's getting late." + +"There isn't a good hotel here, but you don't need an introduction; +just walk in. They're not full." + +"I'm broke, and I have no baggage." + +"Don't you know anybody?" + +"I know the American consul--been stopping at his house for a week--but +he threw me out." + +A great light seemed suddenly to dawn upon the agent. "Oh, you're +Locke!" said he, with the air of one who detects a fraud too obvious to +be taken seriously. "Now I understand. The purser on the Santa Cruz +told me about you. Sorry I can't help you, but I'm a salaried man." + +"I've got to sleep," stoutly maintained the other. "Somebody will have +to take care of me; I can't sit up all night." + +"See here, my friend, I don't know what your game is, but you can't +sting me." The agent finished locking up, then walked away, leaving his +visitor to reflect anew upon the average human being's ignoble lack of +faith in his fellows. + +It was growing dark. From farther down the water-front the lights of +the Wayfarers Club shone invitingly, and Kirk decided to appeal there +for assistance. In spite of Weeks's warning, he felt sure he could +prevail upon some of the members to tide him over for the night, but as +he neared the place he underwent a sudden change of heart. Slowly +mounting the stairs ahead of him like a trained hippopotamus was the +colossal, panting figure of the American consul, at sight of which +Kirk's pride rose up in arms and forbade him to follow. Doubtless Weeks +had spread his story broadcast; it was manifestly impossible for him to +appeal to his recent card partners--they would believe he had +deliberately imposed upon them. It was humiliating, yet there seemed +nothing to do except to await the Cortlandts' return, and, if he failed +to reach them by telephone, to spend the night in the open. It occurred +to him that he might try to locate Stein or some other of his late +fellow-passengers, but they were probably scattered across the Isthmus +by this time. + +A band was playing in the plaza when he came back--a very good band, +too--and, finding a bench, he allowed his mind the relief of idly +listening to the music. The square was filling with Spanish people, who +soon caught and held his attention, recalling Mrs. Cortlandt's words +regarding the intermixture of bloods in this country; for every +imaginable variety of mongrel breed looked out from the loitering +crowd. But no matter what the racial blend, black was the fundamental +tone. Undeniably the Castilian strain was running out; not one +passer-by in ten seemed really white. Naturally, there was no color +line. Well-dressed girls, evidently white, or nearly so, went arm and +arm with wenches as black as night; men of every shade fraternized +freely. + +It was a picturesque and ever-changing scene. Kirk saw dark-faced girls +wearing their unfailing badge of maidenhood--a white mantilla--followed +invariably at a distance by respectful admirers who never presumed to +walk beside them; wives whom marriage had forced to exchange the white +shawl for the black, escorted by their husbands; huge, slouching +Jamaican negroes of both sexes; silent-footed, stately Barbadians who +gave a touch of savagery to the procession. Some of the women wore +giant firebugs, whose glowing eyes lent a ghostly radiance to hair or +lace, at once weird and beautiful. Round and round the people walked to +the strains of their national music, among them dozens upon dozens of +the ever-present little black-and-tan policemen, who constitute the +republic's standing army. + +As the evening drew on, Kirk became conscious of an unwonted sensation. +Once before he had had the same feeling--while on a moose-trail in +Maine. But now there was no guide, with a packful of food, to come to +his relief, and he could not muster up the spirit that enables men to +bear vacation hardships with cheerfulness. + +He began to wonder whether a fast of twenty-four hours would seriously +weaken a man, and, rather than make the experiment, he again called up +the Tivoli, rejoicing anew in the fact that there was no toll on +Isthmian messages. But again he was disappointed. This time he was told +that the Cortlandts were doubtless spending the night out of town with +friends. + +Soon after his second return to the park, the concert ended, the crowd +melted away, and he found himself occupying a bench with a negro of +about the same age as himself. For perhaps an hour the two sat there +hearkening to the dying noises of the city; then Kirk, unable to endure +the monotony longer, turned sharply on his companion and said: + +"Why don't you go home?" + +The negro started, his eyes flew open, then he laughed: "Oh, boss, I +got no home." + +"Really?" + +"No, sar." + +Kirk reflected that he had found not only the right place, but also +fitting company, for his vigil. + +"What does a person do in that case?" he asked. + +"Oh, he goes to work, sar." + +"For the night, I mean. Are you going to stay here until morning?" + +"Yes, sar, if the policeman will h'admit of it." + +The fellow's dialect was so strange that Kirk inquired: "Where did you +come from?" + +"Jamaica, sar. I was barn on the narth coast of the h'island, sar." + +"Did you just arrive here?" + +"Oh, Lard, no! I 'ave been a liver here for two year." + +"A liver!" Kirk could not help smiling. + +"Yes, sar! Sometimes I labor on the docks, again in the h'office. Lahst +week lose I my position, and to-day my room h'also. Landladies is bad +females, sar, very common." + +"You've been shooting craps," said Kirk, accusingly. + +"Crops, sar! What is crops?" + +"You don't know what craps is! I mean you've been gambling." + +"Oh, boss, I h'invest my money." + +"Indeed!" + +"Lahst Sunday nearly won I the big prize. I 'ad h'all but three +numbers." + +"Lottery ticket, eh?" + +"H'eight! H'eight chawnces in all," the negro sighed. "But dreams is +false, sar." + +"So I've heard. Well, it seems we're in the same boat this beautiful +evening. I have no place to sleep, either." + +"You are humbugging me." + +"No, I'm flat broke." + +"Oh, chot me true, mon." + +"I am chatting you true. I'm an outcast of fortune like yourself." + +"Such talk! You make I laugh this house." + +"What?" + +"You make I laugh," repeated the other in a broad Devonshire dialect. +"Praise God, you h'appear like a gentleman." + +"I trust this little experience will not permanently affect my social +standing. By-the-way, what is your name?" + +"H'Allan." + +"Hallan?" + +"No, sar. H'Allan." + +"Is that your first or last name?" + +"Both, sar--h'Allan h'Allan." + +"Mr. Allan Allan, you're unusually dark for a Scotchman," said Kirk, +gravely. "Now, speaking as one gentleman to another, do you happen to +know where we can get a hand-out?" + +"'And-out?" inquired the puzzled negro. + +"Yes; a lunch. Can't you lead me to a banana vine or a breadfruit +bakery? I'm starving. They grow the finest cocoanuts in the world right +here--worth five cents apiece; they require no care, have no worms, no +bugs. You sit still and they drop in your lap. Can't you show me a tree +where we can sit and wait for something to drop?" + +Allan replied, seriously: "But when the cocoanut falls, it is no good +for h'eating, sar. The milk is h'acid." + +"I see you have a sense of humor; you should be in the consular +service. But h'acid or sweet, h'eating or cooling, I must get something +into my stomach--it's as flat as a wet envelope." + +The Jamaican rose, saying: "Step this way, please. I know the place +where a very good female is. Per'aps she will make us a present." + +"How far is it?" + +"Oh, not too far," Allan replied, optimistically, and Kirk hopefully +followed him. + +But at the opposite side of the square they were halted by a sudden +commotion which drove all thoughts of food out of their minds. From a +building across the street issued a bugle-call, upon which an +indescribable confusion broke forth. Men began running to and fro; a +voice in authority shouted orders, each of which was the signal for +another bugle-call. Through the wide-open doors the Panamanians could +be seen, scurrying around a hose-cart, apparently in search of clothes; +some were struggling into red shirts, others were stamping their feet +into short boots or girding themselves with wide canvas belts. +Meanwhile, the chief issued more orders and the bugle continued to blow. + +"Oh, look, boss!" Allan cried, quickly. "There must be a 'flagration." + +"It's a Spiggoty hose company, as I live. Come on!" + +Already a glare could be seen above the crowded portion of the city, +and the two set off in that direction at a run, leaving the bugle +sounding in the rear and the gallant firemen still wrestling with their +uniforms. They had nearly reached the fire when around a corner back of +them, with frightful speed and clangor, came a modern automobile +fire-truck, clinging to which was a swarm of little brown men in red +shirts and helmets. They reminded the American of monkeys on a circus +horse, and, although he had been counted a reckless driver, he +exclaimed in astonishment at the daring way in which the chauffeur took +the turn. + +It was truly amazing, for the machine, which was the latest improvement +in imported fire-fighting machinery, skidded the full width of the +street, threatening to rip its tires off and turn turtle, then leaped +upon the curb before its driver could straighten it up, and in a +magnificent sweep carried away the wooden supports of an overhanging +balcony. The timbers parted like straws; there came a shrill uproar +from inside the building as the sleeping occupants poured forth, but +without a pause the Yankee machine whizzed on up the street, its gong +clanging, its occupants holding on for dear life, the peaceful +inhabitants of Colon fleeing from its path like quail before the hoofs +of a runaway horse. + +"Hit her up!" Kirk yelled, delightedly, then leaned against a lamp-post +and laughed until he was weak. In the midst of his merriment appeared +the company he had just seen making up. They had found their uniforms +at last, it seemed, down to the final belt and shoelace, and now came +charging gallantly along in the tracks of the more speedy motor. They +were drawing their hand-reel, each brave lad tugging lustily and +panting with fatigue. + +Kirk and his guide fell in behind and jogged to the scene of the +conflagration. + +A three-storied building was already half gutted; out of its windows +roared long, fiery tongues; the structure snapped and volleyed a chorus +to the sullen monotone of destruction. The street was littered with the +household belongings of the neighborhood, and from the galleries and +windows near by came such a flight of miscellaneous articles as to +menace the safety of those below. Men shouted, women screamed, children +shrieked, figures appeared upon the fire-lit balconies hurling forth +armfuls of cooking utensils, bedding, lamps, food, and furniture, +utterly careless of where they fell or of the damage they suffered. +Kirk saw one man fling a graphophone from a top window, then lower a +mattress with a rope. On all sides was a bedlam which the arrival of +the firemen only augmented. The fire captains shouted orders to the +buglers, the buglers blew feebly upon their horns, the companies +deployed in obedience to the bugles, then everybody waited for further +directions. + +Again the trumpet sounded, whereupon each fireman began to interfere +with his neighbor; a series of quarrels arose as couplings were made or +broken; then, after an interminable delay, water began to flow, as if +by a miracle. But except in rare instances it failed to reach the +flames. A ladder-truck, drawn by another excited company, now rumbled +upon the scene, its arrival adding to the general disorder. Meanwhile, +the steady tradewind fanned the blaze to ever-growing proportions. + +"Why the devil don't they get closer?" Kirk inquired of his Jamaican +companion. + +Allan's eyes were wide and ringed with white; his teeth gleamed in a +grin of ecstasy as he replied: + +"Oh, Lard, my God, it is too 'ot, sar; greatly too 'ot! It would take a +stout 'eart to do such a thing." + +"Nonsense! They'll never put it out this way. Hey!" Kirk attracted the +attention of a near-by nozzleman. "Walk up to it. It won't bite you." +But the valiant fire-fighter held stubbornly to his post, while the +stream he directed continued to describe a graceful curve and spatter +upon the sidewalk in front of the burning building. "You're spoiling +that old woman's bed," Anthony warned him, at which a policeman with +drawn club forced him back as if resentful of criticism. Other peace +officers compelled the crowd to give way, then fell upon the distracted +property holders and beat them off their piles of furniture. + +For perhaps ten minutes there was no further change in the situation; +then a great shout arose as it was seen that the roof of the adjoining +building had burst into flame. At this the fanfare of trumpets sounded +again; firemen rushed down the street, dragging a line of hose and +drenching the onlookers. But, despite their hurry, they halted too +soon, and their stream just failed to reach the blazing roof. By now +the heat had grown really intense, and the more hardy heroes in the +vanguard retreated to less trying positions. The voice of the crowd had +arisen to a roar rivalling that of the flames. + +"They must intend to let the whole town burn!" cried Anthony. + +"Yes, sar! Very probably, sar." + +Kirk pointed to the nearest fireman. "If he'd get up under that wall he +could save the roof and be out of the heat." He undertook to convey +this suggestion to the fellow, but without result. "I can't stand +this," he exclaimed at last. "Let's give him a hand, Allan." + +"Very well, sar." + +"Here! help me get a kink in this hose. There! Now you hold it until +you feel me pull." Kirk forced his way out through the crowd, to find +the fireman holding the nozzle, from which a feeble stream was +dribbling, and mechanically directing it at the fire. Kirk laid hold of +the canvas and, with a heave, dragged it, along with its rightful +guardian, ten feet forward; but there had been no bugle-blown order for +this, and the uniformed man pulled backward with all his might, +chattering at Kirk in Spanish. + +"Well, then let go." Anthony shook the Panamannikin loose, then ran +forward across the street until he brought up at the end of the slack +and felt the hose behind him writhe and swell as Allan released his +hold. The next instant the negro was at his side, and the two found +themselves half blistered by the heat that rolled out upon them. But +the newly ignited roof was within range, and the stream they played +upon it made the shingles fly. + +"Oh, Lard!" Allan was crying. "Oh, Lard! I shall h'expire." + +"Pull down your hat and shield your face." + +The fireman they had despoiled began to drag at the hose from a safe +distance; but when Kirk made as if to turn the nozzle upon him he +scampered away amid the jeers of the crowd. A few moments later, the +American felt a hand upon his arm and saw an angry policeman who was +evidently ordering him back. Behind him stood the excited nozzleman +with two companions. + +"He says you should return the 'ose where you found it," Allan +translated. + +"Leave us alone," Kirk replied. "You fellows help the others; we'll +attend to this." More rapid words and gesticulations followed, in the +midst of which a dapper young man in a uniform somewhat more impressive +than the others dashed up, flung himself upon Anthony and endeavored to +wrench the hose from his hands. Meanwhile he uttered epithets in broken +English which the other had no difficulty in understanding. Kirk +promptly turned the nozzle upon him, and the full force of Colon's +water-pressure struck him squarely in the stomach, doubling him up like +the kick of a mule. Down the newcomer went, then half rolled, half slid +across the street as the stream continued to play upon him. He +scrambled to his feet, a sorry spectacle of waving arms and dripping +garments, his cries of rage drowned in the delighted clamor of the +beholders. + +"I guess they'll keep away now," laughed Kirk, as he turned back to his +self-appointed task. + +But Allan exclaimed, fearfully: "Oh, boss, I fear he is some 'igh +h'officer." + +"Never mind. We're having a lot of fun. It's medals for us--gold medals +for bravery, Allan. To-morrow the board of aldermen will thank us." + +But this prediction seemed ill-founded. An instant later a half-dozen +policemen advanced in a businesslike manner, and their leader +announced: "Come! You are arrest." + +"Pinched! What for? We're doing a lot of good here." + +"Come, queeck!" + +"Oh, Lard, my God!" Allan mumbled. "I shall die and kill myself." + +"They won't do anything to us," Kirk assured him. "I've been pinched +lots of times. We'll have to quit, though, and that's a pity. It was +just getting good." + +He surrendered the hose to a fireman, who promptly retreated with it to +a discreet position, then followed his captors, who were now buzzing +like bees. + +"Don't get excited," he said to Allan, noting his frightened look. +"They'll turn us loose all right." + +But a moment after they were clear of the town he was surprised to see +that the negro's captors had snapped "come-alongs" upon him in spite of +his repeated promises to go quietly. + +These handcuffs, Kirk saw, were of the type used upon desperate +criminals, consisting of chains fitted with handles so contrived that a +mere twist of the officer's hand would cut the prisoner's flesh to the +bone. + +"You don't need to do that," he assured the fellow who had made the +arrest, but, instead of heeding his words, the men on each side of the +Jamaican twisted stoutly, forcing the black boy to cry out in pain. He +hung back, protesting: + +"All right, sar, I'll come. I'll come." + +But again they tightened their instruments of torture, and their victim +began to struggle. At this an evil-faced man in blue struck him +brutally upon the head with his club, then upon the shoulders, as if to +silence his groans. The boy flung up his manacled hands to shield +himself, and the light from a street lamp showed blood flowing where +the chains had cut. The whole proceeding was so unprovoked, so +sickening in its cruelty, that Kirk, who until this instant had looked +upon the affair as a rather enjoyable lark, flew into a fury and, +disregarding his own captors, leaped forward before the policeman could +strike a third time. He swung his fist, and the man with the club +hurtled across the street as if shot from a bow, then lay still in the +gutter. With another blow he felled one of the handcuff-men, but at the +same time other hands grasped at him and he was forced to lay about +vigorously on all sides. + +They rushed him with the ferocity of mad dogs, and he knocked them +spinning, one after another. A whistle blew shrilly, other uniforms +came running, more whistles piped, and almost before he realized it he +found himself in the centre of a pack of lean-faced brown men who were +struggling to pull him down and striking at him with their clubs. With +a sudden wild thrill he realized that this was no ordinary street +fight; this was deadly; he must beat off these fellows or be killed. +But, as fast as he cleared them away, others appeared as if by magic, +until a dozen or more were swarming upon him like hungry ants. They +clung to his arms, his legs, his clothing, with a desperate courage +wholly admirable in itself, while strokes were aimed at him from every +quarter. Time and again they dragged him off his feet, only to have him +shake them loose. But though most of their blows went wild or found a +mark among their own numbers, he was felled at last, and a moment +later, with head reeling and wits flickering, he was dragged to his +knees by handcuffs like those on Allan's wrists. The pain as the chains +bit into his flesh brought him to his feet despite the blows and kicks +that were rained upon him, crying hoarsely: + +"Let me go, damn you! Let me go!" + +But a wrench at the gyves took the fight out of him, for he felt that +the bones in his wrists must surely be crushed. One side of his head +was strangely big and numb; a warm stream trickled down his cheek; but +he had no time to think of his condition, for his assailants fell upon +him with fresh fury, and he reeled about, striving to shield himself. +Every movement, however, was construed as resistance, and his +punishment continued, until at last he must have fainted from pain or +had his wits scattered by a blow on the head; for when he recovered +consciousness he found himself in a filthy, ill-lighted room, flung +upon a wooden platform that ran along the wall, evidently serving as a +bed. Near him Allan was huddled, his black face distorted with pain and +ashen with apprehension. + + + + +VIII + +EL COMANDANTE TAKES A HAND + + +"Where are we?" queried Anthony, as he took in the surroundings. + +"This is the prison, sar." + +"Gee! I'm sick." Kirk lay back upon the platform and closed his eyes. +"Did they hurt you much?" + +"Oh yes. Very considerably." + +"Sorry I got you into it, Allan, I never thought they'd be so cranky." +Again he groaned. "I want a drink." + +"Let me get it. Those Spiggoties will not give it to you." + +Allan went to the door and called to the guard. An instant later he +returned with a tin cup. + +"I guess they knocked me out," Kirk said, dazedly. "I never was hit +like that before--and jailed! Say! We must get out of her. Call the +chief or the man in charge, will you? I can't speak the language." + +"Please, sar, if you h'anger them they will beat us again." + +"Beat! Not here?" + +"Oh yes. They might kill us." + +"They wouldn't do that!" + +"A white man they killed lahst h'autumn, and several of my people have +passed away in this prison. Nobody can 'ear nothing. Nobody knows what +'appens 'ere." + +"Oh, well, they wouldn't dare touch us--I'm an American citizen. I'll +notify the consul." + +Roused at the mere suggestion. Kirk staggered to the door and shouted +lustily. When no one answered, he shook the iron grating, whereupon a +guard leisurely approached, and, after listening stolidly to his +request, went back to his post at the other end of the hall. This time +the American sent forth such an uproar that a man evidently +corresponding in authority to a sergeant appeared with the command to +be quiet. + +"Let me out of here!" loudly demanded the prisoner. "I want the chief, +or the alcalde, or somebody in charge. I want to know what I'm booked +for, I want to telephone--TELEPHONE, don't you understand?--and arrange +bail. Quick, now!" + +But the officer merely frowned at him, obviously threatening a resort +to force if this outburst did not cease at once. + +"I tell you I want to get out," insisted Kirk. "I want to know what I'm +charged with and have my friends get bail." + +The man nodded his understanding and went away, but an hour passed and +he did not return. Then another hour followed, and Anthony, who had now +begun to feel the effect of his drubbing more keenly, renewed his +clamor, with the result that a half-dozen policemen appeared, causing +Allan to retreat to a corner and mumble prayers. From their demeanor it +looked as though they were really bent upon mischief, but Kirk soon saw +that an official had come in answer to his call. He felt less reassured +when he perceived that the person in uniform who now stepped forward +was the same upon whom he had turned the hose earlier in the evening. + +This was a black-haired, black-eyed young fellow of, perhaps, thirty. +While his skin was swarthy, even in this poor light it could be seen +that he was of the real Castilian type and of a much better class than +the others. He was slender and straight, his mouth small and decorated +by a carefully pencilled little mustache, which was groomed to a needle +sharpness. His hands and feet were as dainty as those of a woman. He +was undeniably striking in appearance, and might have passed for +handsome had it not been for the scowl that distorted his features. + +"Eh! 'ere you are," he began, angrily. + +"Yes; I want to get out, too. What does this treatment mean?" + +The new-comer stepped toward the other occupant of the cell, at which +Allan broke out in terror: "Don't you touch me. I'm a British object." + +But it was evidently not the man's intention to offer any further +indignity to his prisoners at that time. After scanning the Jamaican +carefully, he issued an order to one of his men, who left the room. + +"And I'm an American," Anthony declared. "You'll have to answer for +this." + +"Per'aps you don' know who I am. I am Ramon Alfarez, Comandante of +Police, an' you dare' to t'row the water of the 'ose-wagon upon my +person. Your gover'ment will settle for those insolt." His white teeth +showed in a furious snarl. + +"I don't give a damn who you are. I'll get bail or do whatever your law +requires, but I want to get out and I want to get out now." + +The commandant's eyes flashed as he asked, shortly. "W'at is your name?" + +"Anthony. Your men tried to kill that boy, and when I wouldn't stand +for it they beat me up." + +"You strock me wit' the water of the 'ose-carriage," repeated the +other. "You 'ave assault the dignity of my country." + +"I didn't know who you were. I was helping to stop that fire when you +butted in. Now, are you going to let me out, or do you want my people +to pull this jail down around your ears?" + +At this threat Senor Alfarez restrained his rage with an obvious +effort. "You will reply to those outrage, senor." + +"Sure, I'll reply. But in the mean time I want to telephone to the +American consul. Look at this!" The young man held out his shaking, +swollen wrists, upon which the blood was scarcely dry. "Look at it! +Those runts of yours got handcuffs on me and then beat me up. I'm sick. +So's that boy. We need a doctor." + +Alfarez shook his head. "You resis' the police. Even in your country +one mus' not do that. 'Ave I been there, I would keel you both, but I +am 'aving a cheel at the moment from those stream of col' water." + +"Will you take me to a telephone?" + +"It is not permit." + +"Will you notify Mr. Weeks?" + +Receiving no reply to this request, Kirk broke out: "Well, then, what +ARE you going to do? Let us stay here all night?" + +"W'at is your bizness?" + +"I haven't any." + +"You don' work on the Canal?" + +"No. I'm a tourist. My father is a big railroad man in the States. I'm +telling you this so you'll know how to act." + +"W'ere do you leeve--w'at 'otel?" + +"I've been stopping with Mr. Weeks." + +Senor Alfarez's attitude became somewhat less overbearing. + +"In due time he will be notify of your outrage to my person," he +announced. + +The fellow who had left the room a moment before now reappeared, +carrying a bucket of water and some towels, with which he directed +Allan to remove the blood from his face and hands. When it came Kirk's +turn, however, he objected. + +"I think I'll wait until Weeks sees me," he said. + +But Alfarez retorted, sharply: "It is not permit"; and, seeing that +resistance would be useless, Kirk acquiesced as gracefully as he could, +remarking as he did so: + +"You'll have hard work washing off this, and this." He indicated the +traces of the handcuffs and the gash in his scalp. + +The commandant turned to his men and addressed them at some length, +calling them to task, as Allan later informed his companion, for using +their clubs in a manner to mark their prisoners so conspicuously. Then +he followed them into the corridor, closing the grating behind him. + +The hours passed, and daylight came with no word from the American +consul. By this time the two prisoners were really in need of medical +attention. Their contusions pained them severely. Kirk felt as if one +or more of his ribs were broken, and his suffering, combined with +hunger, prevented sleep. He became feverish and fretful, but his +demands for communication with the outside world were calmly ignored, +although he felt certain that his wishes were fully understood. When +the morning had passed without his being arraigned for a hearing he +grew alarmed. Evidently he had been flung into confinement and +forgotten. + +Eventually Kirk and Allan were given food, but still no one came to +their relief. Apparently no message had been delivered. This treatment +was so atrocious, so at variance with Anthony's ideas of his own +importance, that he felt he must be suffering from nightmare. How dared +they treat an American so, no matter what the charge? Why didn't they +try him or give him a hearing? These insolent, overbearing Panamaniacs +had no regard for law or humanity, and this was no longer a question of +petty injustice; it was a grave infraction of civilized equity. + +But the afternoon wore on without an encouraging sign, till Kirk began +to think that Weeks had refused to intercede for him and intended to +leave him to the mercies of his enemies. With difficulty he managed to +convey to a guard his desire to notify some of the other Americans in +the city, but as usual no heed was paid to his request. + +It was considerably after dark when a visitor was at last admitted. He +proved to be the English consul, whom Anthony had never met. + +"What are you doing here?" the new-comer inquired. Then, when the facts +had been laid before him, he exclaimed: "Why, I heard that a Jamaican +negro had been arrested, but I heard nothing about mistreatment of a +white man." + +"Doesn't anybody know I'm here?" + +"I'm sure no one does. Those heathens lied to you--they never +communicated with Weeks or anybody. They're afraid. This is an old +trick of theirs--man-handling a prisoner, then keeping him hidden until +he recovers. If he doesn't recover they get out of it on some excuse or +other, as best they can. Why, they killed a white sailor not long +ago--just plain clubbed him to death without excuse, then asserted that +he resisted arrest. They did the same to one of our negroes. He died in +the jail before I got wind of it, and when I started an investigation +they showed his signed statement declaring that he had not been abused +at all, and had been given the kindest treatment. The matter isn't +settled yet. It's infamous! Why, I had hard work to get in at all just +now. But I'll have Allan here out in two hours or I'll know the reason. +England protects her subjects, Mr. Anthony, and these people know it. +If they don't come to time I'll have a gunboat in the harbor in +twenty-four hours. Color doesn't amount to a damn with us, sir; it's +the flag." + +"I guess Uncle Sam is strong enough to command respect," said Anthony. + +"Well, I know the circumstances now, and I'll go straight to Weeks. He +can arrange your release without trouble. If you were an Englishman, +I'd have you out in no time, and you'd collect handsome damages, too. +This boy will." + +True to the consul's prediction, a little later the Jamaican was led +out of the cell, and from the fact that he was not brought back Kirk +judged that the British intervention had been effectual. But it was not +until the next morning, the second of his imprisonment, that the cell +door opened once more, this time to admit the portly figure of John +Weeks and the spruce person of Senor Ramon Alfarez. + +"What's all this trouble about?" inquired the former in none too +amiable a tone. + +Kirk told his story as briefly and convincingly as he could. But when +he had finished, the consul shook his head. + +"I don't see what I can do for you," he said. "According to your own +declaration you resisted a police officer. You'll have to take your +medicine." + +Alfarez nodded agreement. "Quite right!" said he. "He did terrible +'avoc with my men, t'ree of which is now on the 'ospital." + +"But why don't they try me or let me get bail? I want to get out." + +"You'll be tried as soon as they get around to it." + +"Look here!" Kirk showed the marks his assailants had left upon him. +"Will you stand for that? I've been here two nights now without medical +attention." "How about that, Alfarez?" + +The commandant shrugged his shoulders. "If he require a doctor, one +shall be secure', but he is not severely injure.' I 'ave explain the +frightful indignity to the honor of my person, yes? As for me, pooh! It +is forget." He waved his hand gracefully and smiled sweetly upon his +fat visitor. "It does not exist. But the brave soldiers of mine! Ah! +Senor Wick, they lofe me, they cannot forget the honor of el +comandante. So! When the prisoner is decide to insurrect, who can say +those gallant soldier don' be too strong? Who can blame for making +roff-'ouse?" + +"I guess you ain't hurt much," said Weeks, eying his countryman coldly. +"You didn't get any more than was coming to you." + +"I won't stand for this," cried the prisoner, hotly. "The English +consul got that nigger boy out, and I want you to do the same for me." + +"You don't understand. I've got business interests in this country, and +I can't dash about creating international issues every time an American +gets locked up for disorderly conduct. How long do you think I'd last +with these people if I did that?" + +"Are you really afraid to do anything?" Kirk inquired, slowly. "Or is +it because of our row?" + +"Oh, there's nothing personal about it! I can't afford personal +feelings in my position. Really, I don't see where you're so much +abused. You assaulted a government officer and resisted arrest. If you +got hurt it's your own fault. Of course I'll see that you have a fair +trial." + +The commandant spoke up with ingratiating politeness: "The prisoner say +he is reech man's son. Now, of course, it is too bad he is injure' wit' +the clob of the policeman; but those officer is ver' polite, senor, and +if he is explain biffore--" + +Weeks snorted indignantly. "He gave you that fairy tale, eh? He said +his name was Anthony and his father was a railroad president, didn't +he? Well, he imposed on me, too, but his name is Locke, and, as near as +I can learn, he practically stowed away on the SANTA CRUZ." + +"Ah-h!" The officer's eyes widened as he turned them upon his prisoner. +"He is then a w'at you call tramp." + +"All I know is, he stuck me for a lot of bills. I'll have to see that +he gets fair treatment, I suppose, because he's an American, but that +ends my duty." + +"Is this the best you'll do for me?" Kirk inquired, as Weeks made ready +to go. + +"Yes." + +"Will you tell some of the men at the Wayfarers that I'm here?" + +"Oh, that won't do any good. You're in for it, Locke, so don't holler. +I'll be on hand at your hearing." + +"Will you cable my father?" + +"At twenty-five cents a word? Hardly!" The speaker mopped his face, +exclaiming: "There's no use of talking, I've got to get out in the air; +it's too hot in here for me." Then he waddled out ahead of Senor +Alfarez, who slammed the door behind him as he followed to escort his +caller to the street. + +But a half-hour later the commandant returned to the cell, and this +time he brought with him a number of his little policemen, each armed +with a club. Feeling some menace in their coming, Kirk, who had seated +himself dejectedly, arose to ask: "What's coming off?" + +Alfarez merely issued some directions in Spanish, and chain handcuffs +were once more snapped upon the prisoner's wrists. + +"So! you're going to hold my trial, eh?" cried Kirk. + +But the other snarled: "Senor Locke, you 'ave force' the water of the +'ose-wagon upon my body for making the people laugh. Bueno! Now I shall +laugh." He seated himself, then nodded at his men to begin. + + + + +IX + +SPANISH LAW + + +Mrs. Cortlandt answered her telephone for the second time, repeating +with some impatience: "Tell the man I can't see him." + +"But he refuses to leave--says he must see you at once; it's +important," came the voice of the clerk. + +"Oh, very well. I'll come down." She hung up the receiver with a snap. + +"Why don't they send him up?" queried her husband from the sitting-room. + +"It's a negro, and the clerk says he'd rather not allow him up-stairs. +Another sick family, I suppose." + +"They're beginning to impose on you. It's usually that way with +charities," said Cortlandt. + +With unfeminine neglect of the chance for petty discussion, his wife +left the room without replying, and descended to the hotel lobby. Here +she was directed toward a very ragged, very woe-begone young black on +the rear porch, who, at sight of her, began to fumble his hat and run +his words together so excitedly that she was forced to calm him. + +"Now, now! I can't understand a word. Who are you?" + +"H'Allan, mistress." + +"You say some one is ill?" + +"Oh yes, he is very h'ill h'indeed, mistress--h'all covered with blood +and his poor 'ands h'all cut." + +"Who--?" + +"And his 'ead--oh, Lard! His 'ead is cut, too, and he suffers a fever." + +"WHO IS IT?" + +"Mr. h'Auntony--" + +"Anthony!" Mrs. Cortlandt started. "What has happened? Quick!" + +Seeing that at last he had found a friend, the Jamaican began to sob +with relief, wailing extravagant praises to God and apparently +endeavoring to kiss Mrs. Cortlandt's hand, whereat she seized him by +the shoulders and shook him, crying: + +"Stop that! Behave yourself and tell me what is the trouble, quickly +now, from the beginning." + +Without drying his tears, Allan launched himself into the full violence +of his recital, stumbling recklessly over his figures of speech, +lapsing into idioms that it taxed his hearer to follow. Had she been +less acquainted with the Caribbean dialects she would have missed much +of the story, but, as it was, she followed him closely, urging him on +with sharp expressions of amazement and nods of understanding. Rapidly +she gathered the facts of the case, while her cheeks whitened and her +eyes grew dark with indignation. The sight renewed Allan's emotion. His +voice broke, his black hands shook, he began to sob once more, and +great tears stole down his ebony cheeks. But he managed to answer her +terse, shocked questions with some degree of intelligence, calling upon +his vivid imagination for such details as his memory had lost. + +"I wait an' wait for him to h'emerge, but he does not come. Perhaps +they 'ave killed the poor mon once more." + +"How did you get here?" + +"With my feet, mistress. Sometimes rode I on the train, but the train +people are very common; they h'addressed me rudely and threw me by the +wayside." + +"Couldn't you telephone?" + +"I do not h'understand 'ow." + +"Why didn't he notify me at once? If I had only known--" + +"Those 'eartless Spiggoties would not h'allow it. Oh, you will h'assist +the poor mon! Say it. Praise be to God, he is bleeding in the prison--" + +"Yes, yes, certainly." + +Allan reached clumsily this time to kiss the hem of her skirt, but she +stepped aside quickly, fumbling meanwhile in her purse for a bank-note, +while he exclaimed: + +"God bless you, good mistress. He told me to find you and present his +recital." + +"Here, take this money and go back to Colon by the first train. We may +need you. Now go! I'll be there ahead of you." + +She picked up her white skirts and ran up the hotel stairs as if +pursued, bursting in upon her husband so impetuously that he rose in +surprise, inquiring: + +"What is it?" + +"Young Anthony is in jail in Colon," she panted. "He's been locked up +for three days, and they won't let him out." + +"The devil! You said he'd gone back to New York. What is it about?" + +"I thought he had. They arrested him for some silly thing, and he's +hurt." She hurriedly recounted Allan's story, adding, in conclusion, +"That black boy came all the way across the Isthmus to tell us!" + +"I'll get the American consul by 'phone--" + +But Mrs. Cortlandt interrupted. "Weeks is a fool! He wouldn't do +anything. Wait!" She stepped to the instrument and rang violently. +"Give me Colonel Jolson's office, quickly. If he is not there, find +him. I don't care where he is, find him; it is important. This is Mrs. +Cortlandt speaking.' + +"What do you mean to do?" said Cortlandt. + +"Go to Colon at once. This is young Alfarez's doing--the +whipper-snapper--you must lay him out for this. How dare he!" + +"Better go carefully. Remember, General Alfarez is his father." + +"I understand. But we are bound to come to a breach sooner or later." + +"I hardly think so. I believe we can bring him around all +right--anyhow, I haven't lost hope." Then, as his wife made an +impatient gesture: "Well, if we precipitate a quarrel now, that will +end it." He paced the room feverishly. "Good heavens, Edith! Anthony +chose the worst possible time for this escapade. I suppose it will mean +diplomatic difficulties and all that, and once we lose old Alfarez--" + +"We will lose him anyhow," snapped the woman. "I've seen it coming, +although you could not. I'll break Ramon for this." + +"Then you'll break us." Cortlandt stared gloomily at his wife, who met +his gaze squarely. "Do you think Anthony is worth it?" + +"My dear Stephen, they nearly killed that poor boy, and I sha'n't allow +it. Don Anibal Alfarez is not the only presidential timber in the +republic. If he breaks with us it will cost him dearly. You think he is +friendly, but I know that deep down in his crafty old heart he despises +all us Americans and is only waiting a chance to gratify his spleen. +The moment he dares, he'll turn against us." + +Cortlandt's frosty countenance showed signs of unusual agitation as he +answered: "You're mad! You threaten to ruin everything. You understand +perfectly--there's no use of my explaining. Let me call on him this +afternoon. He will instruct his son." + +"No! He would procrastinate, as usual. There would be the customary +delays and excuses, and meanwhile Anthony would be in jail at Colon. +They would have a defence all prepared. Besides, if it's to be a fight +we must have all the weapons possible--and this affair may prove a good +one. Anyhow, you mustn't ask a favor of him at this time; he must ask, +not you." + +The telephone rang, and the speaker snatched the receiver from its hook. + +"Hello! Colonel Jolson, I'm very glad I caught you. This is Mrs. +Cortlandt. Colonel Jolson, young Ramon Alfarez has arrested Kirk +Anthony, of whom I spoke to you. They have maltreated him, as usual, +and have hidden him for three days. Yes, yes! I discovered it quite by +accident while Mr. Cortlandt was down-town. Oh, this is serious, and +I'm furious. ... That will do no good; I have reasons for preferring to +handle it myself. ... Thank you for the compliment. We must go to Colon +at once, and I thought you might give us a special." There was a slight +pause, then: "Good! That will do quite as well. In fifteen minutes. +Thank you. Good-bye." + +Turning to her husband, she explained, swiftly: "The Colonel's +automobile will be waiting at the station in fifteen minutes. Are you +ready?" + +"I think you are going about this in the wrong way," he said, coldly. +"When will you learn--?" She checked her crisp words at the flush that +leaped to his cheeks. "I beg your pardon, Stephen. Please do as Colonel +Jolson has done and trust me to manage this affair." + +He bowed and left her, saying, "I will have a coach waiting at the +door." + +Fifteen minutes later a gasoline railroad motor-car with two passengers +in addition to its driver and flagman rolled out of the yards at Panama +City and took the main line, running under orders like a special train. +As it clanked over the switches with ever-increasing speed, Mrs. +Cortlandt leaned forward and spoke to the driver. + +"We will have a clear track, and you may go as fast as you like." + +The next moment the machine was reeling drunkenly around curves and a +fifty-mile gale was roaring past. + +Senor Ramen Alfarez was considerably nonplussed when his two +distinguished visitors made known the nature of their errand. Cortlandt +did most of the talking, his cold hauteur serving a good purpose and +contrasting strongly with the suppressed excitement of his wife. + +"Pardon me, there is no necessity for delay," he said, as the +commandant endeavored to formulate an excuse. "I trust I need not +insist upon seeing the prisoner?" He raised his brows with a stare of +inquiry that caused the other to reply, hastily: + +"Of a certainty not, senor." + +"Then take us to him." + +"I will spare your lady the painful sight of the prison-house. The +prisoner shall be fetch' with all despatch." + +"We will see him alone." + +Again the commandant hesitated, while his bright eyes searched their +faces with a sudden uneasy curiosity. "I am fear soch t'ing is not +permit'." + +"Nonsense!" exclaimed Mrs. Cortlandt, unable longer to restrain +herself. "We know the law quite as well or perhaps better than you, +Senor Alfarez. If you wish, Mr. Cortlandt will get permission from the +President. You have a telephone?" + +"Oh, soch is farthes' remove' from my thoughts," quickly interposed the +commandant, with his most graceful bow. "If it is in my power to +oblige, w'at matter the law? Pouf! W'at I mean is this: Our prisoner is +not what you call seeck, nor is he ver' well. He is resis' the officer +by force an' he is injure'--oh, but only a leetle--it is not'ing. One +is truly foolish for resis' the policemans, yes?" He shook his dark +head sadly. "I am desolate to 'ear of soch t'ing; it is so useless to +stroggle wit' the officer in disbursement of duty; but you Americans +are so brave! I am force' to admire this prisoner; he is soch a strong +fellow." + +"I think we understand the circumstances." + +Instead of ringing for an orderly the commandant excused himself, then, +after a seemingly interminable delay returned with Anthony and several +policemen. + +At sight of his friends the young man made for them eagerly, crying: +"Jove, I'm glad you came! I'd about given you up." + +"Allan only found us to-day," Mrs. Cortlandt replied. + +"Did he tell the truth? Have you been abused?" + +The young man turned a pair of smouldering eyes upon his enemies. He +looked ill and haggard, although, except for the wound half concealed +beneath his hair, he showed no marks. Then he held out his hands with a +grim smile, and the woman uttered a low cry at what she saw. "They gave +me another good beating yesterday," he said. + +"While you were in jail?" Cortlandt queried, incredulously. "God!" + +"That's the fellow yonder." Kirk pointed to Alfarez, whose smile had +disappeared. + +"Oh, the man is mistake'," the latter hastened to aver. "He is crazee." + +"I gave you a wetting in public, and--" + +"Si, si! That is correc', Senor Cortlan'. He insolt my person an' fight +my soldiers. He is ver' toff person." + +"Did you know he had been maltreated in prison?" Cortlandt demanded. + +"Oh, senor!" Alfarez raised his hands in horrified disclaimer of the +very thought, but his victim said, quietly: + +"He's a liar. He ordered it, then sat there and enjoyed it." + +The Panamanian's face was yellow as he managed to enunciate: + +"Eempossible! It is terrible to conceive!" + +Kirk made a threatening movement in the Spaniard's direction, despite +the half-dozen soldiers, but Edith Cortlandt checked him. + +"Wait, please," she said. Then to the commandant: "This is a serious +matter, and if what he says is true, your government will find itself +in trouble." + +"But we 'ave no idea he is frien' of yours. If he should only spik your +'osban's name, all would be different. For my part, I can prove he is +treat' with the 'ighes' courtesy an' kindness in my presence. Every man +in the prison will testify to those fac'. If soch indignity 'ave be' +shown, there shall be investigations." The unhappy officer's excitement +was increasing, and he turned upon his men as if to make good his word, +when Cortlandt interposed: + +"Why did you keep him locked up so long? Why didn't you try him?" + +"Ah! For that I shall inquire also. I shall conduct investigations in +that respect as well. I am inform', 'owever, that the w'at you call +jodge is seeck." + +"We'll look into that later. We're here now to arrange for Mr. +Anthony's release." + +"The alcalde will be please' to accommodate at the earlies'. I myself +shall see to it. To-morrow--" + +"There will be no to-morrow about it," Mrs. Cortlandt exclaimed, +positively. "If you cannot arrange the bail yourself, my husband will +take up the matter with the Zone Government, and Colonel Jolson will +call upon the President of the republic within an hour. He is waiting +word from us now." + +Senor Ramon Alfarez became suddenly galvanized. He broke into effusive +apologies for even so small a delay as had already occurred. He had not +understood the matter to be so urgent, it seemed; but the wishes of his +distinguished guests were his law, and perhaps he might hasten the +wheels of progress if he tried. While, to be sure, no power was vested +in him, and his willing hands were most miserably tied, nevertheless he +would so far exceed his authority as to promise instant freedom to the +prisoner. There were, of course, certain details to be observed, the +necessity of which filled him with unspeakable regret; but if he might +be excused--He hastened forth to set in motion the proper machinery, +and while he was absent Kirk told his story. It left the woman +white-lipped and incoherent, and roused even the icy Cortlandt to +genuine wrath. + +"Of course," the latter said, "Alfarez will prove by his men that it's +all imagination on your part, and that your injuries were sustained at +the time of your arrest. He'll assume a righteous indignation and start +a Spiggoty investigation. You see, his father is the Governor of Panama +Province and one of the strongest men in the republic, so Ramon will +probably make good his position. Even so, you may recover damages." + +"I don't want damages," Kirk replied. "I want to get that Dago out +alone some time." + +"For Heaven's sake, don't think of it!" Mrs. Cortlandt exclaimed. "All +the American influence on the Isthmus wouldn't help you then. Fifty men +would perjure themselves to convict you, and if you succeeded in +getting our government to interfere in time, Ramen has fifty other men +who would lie to any extent to injure an American." + +"No. That method doesn't work here," her husband agreed. "You're lucky +to escape so easily. He will arrange bail, never fear, and you will +probably not come to trial. I doubt if you will ever hear anything more +of the matter, provided you keep from further trouble. He'll never +forgive you, of course, but that won't matter to you." + +The first part of Mr. Cortlandt's prediction was soon proved true, for +the sick alcalde recovered sufficiently to appear on the scene within +half an hour. Then, after much signing of official documents and +certain other formalities, Kirk Anthony walked out of the Colon jail in +company with his friends. + +Allan was waiting at a safe distance from the municipal building, and +on seeing his late companion at large he broke into the wildest +rejoicing. He conjured a flow of tears, he fondled Kirk's hand in his +own, he laughed, he sobbed, he sang. + +"Praise be to God!" he cried, loudly. "Free mon you, Master h'Auntony. +Glory, glory! My soul was in 'ell, sar. On my knees I h'implored that +fa-ast wretch to release you." + +His emotion appeared so genuine, his service had been so great, that +the object of his adoration felt himself choke up. Of all the people +Kirk had met since leaving home, this one had most occasion to blame +him; yet the boy was in perfect transports of delight at his delivery. + +"Don't carry on so," Kirk laughed, awkwardly. + +"Oh, boss, I feared they would h'assassinate you again." + +Anthony nodded grimly. "They did." + +"Oh, oh!" Allan gave himself over to a shrill frenzy and shook his +clenched fists at the jail in a splendidly tragic attitude. "Wretches! +Murderers! 'Ell-ca-ats!" + +"Sh-h! Don't make a scene on the street," Mrs. Cortlandt cautioned. But +the Jamaican would not allow the fine effect of his rage to be lost. He +clashed his white teeth, he rolled his eyes fearfully, and twisted his +black features into the wildest expressions of ferocity, crying: + +"H'Allan will best them for that! Let 'im tear h'out their 'earts by +his fingers. So!" He made an eloquent gesture. "Blood! Blood!" + +"Not so loud. A little pianissimo on the blood," smiled Kirk. + +"H'Allan would die and kill himself for you," the excited negro ran on +in an excess of loyalty. "Master h'Auntony fought those wretches for I; +I shall fight them for he." + +When he had finally been prevailed upon to exchange his martial threats +for a fresh paean of rejoicing, he fell in behind, declaring firmly +that he intended to follow his new-found hero wherever he might go, +though the course laid were straight for those infernal regions that +played so large a part in his fancy. + +In the midst of Kirk's expressions of gratitude for the timely +intercession of Cortlandt and his wife, the former surprised him by +saying, in a genuinely hearty tone: + +"My wife has told me all about you, Anthony, and I want you to come +over to Panama as my guest until you hear from your father." + +When Kirk informed him of the cablegram that had cast him adrift in +Panama, leading indirectly to his entanglement with the dignity of +Ramon Alfarez and the Spanish law, Cortlandt replied, reassuringly: + +"Oh, well, your father doesn't understand the facts in the case, that's +all. You sit down like a sensible person and write him fully. It will +be a great pleasure for us to have you at the Tivoli in the mean time." + +Seeing a warm second to this invitation in Mrs. Cortlandt's eyes, Kirk +accepted gracefully, explaining: "You know this is the first time I was +ever up against hard luck, and I don't know just how to act." + +"We've missed the four-thirty-five, so we will have to return the way +we came," said Cortlandt. "I'd like to stop at Gatun on a business +matter of some importance, and if you don't mind a half-hour's delay, +we'll do so." + +Kirk expressed entire acquiescence in any plans that suited the +convenience of his rescuers, and the three pursued their way to the +station. But here an unexpected embarrassment arose. As they made ready +to board Colonel Jolson's motor-car, they were annoyed to find that +Allan insisted on going, too. He insisted, moreover, in such +extravagant fashion that Mrs. Cortlandt at last was moved to say: "For +Heaven's sake, let the poor thing come along." And thereafter the +Jamaican boy sat on the step of the machine, his hat in hand, his eyes +rolled worshipfully upon the person of his hero, his shining face ever +ready to break into a grin at a glance from Kirk. + +Once more the little automobile took on the dignity of a regular train +and sped out of the network of tracks behind Colon. As it gained speed +Mrs. Cortlandt, to divert her guest's mind from his recent ordeal, +began to explain the points of interest as they passed. She showed him +the old French workings where a nation's hopes lay buried, the +mechanical ruins that had cost a king's ransom, the Mount Hope +Cemetery, whither daily trains had borne the sacrifice before science +had robbed the fever of its terrors. She told him, also, something of +the railroad's history, how it had been built to bridge the gap in the +route to the Golden West, the manifold difficulties overcome in its +construction, and the stupendous profits it had made. Having the blood +of a railroad-builder in his veins, Anthony could not but feel the +interest of all this, though it failed to take his attention wholly +from the wonders of the landscape that slipped by on either side. It +was his first glimpse of tropic vegetation, and he used his eyes to +good advantage, while he listened politely to his informant. + +The matted thickets, interlaced with vine and creeper, were all ablaze +with blossoms, for this was the wet season, in which nature runs riot. +Great trees of strange character rose out of the tangle, their branches +looped with giant cables and burdened with flowering orchids or half +hidden beneath other parasites. On every hand a vegetable warfare was +in progress--a struggle for existence in which the strong overbore the +weak--and every trunk was distorted by the scars of the battle. Birds +of bright plumage flashed in the glades, giant five-foot lizards +scuttled away into the marshes or stared down from the overhanging +branches. A vivid odor of growing, blooming herbage reached the +nostrils. + +Just as Kirk had made up his mind that he could sit and watch this +brilliant panorama forever, the jungle suddenly fell away, and the car +sped up through low, grass-clad hills into a scattered city flung +against the side of a wide valley. There was no sign here of Latin +America; this was Yankeeland through and through. The houses, hundreds +upon hundreds of them, were of the typical Canal Zone architecture, +double-galleried and screened from foundation to eaves, and they +rambled over the undulating pasture land in a magnificent disregard of +distance. Smooth macadam roads wound back and forth, over which +government wagons rolled, drawn by sleek army mules; flower gardens +blazed forth in gorgeous colors; women and children, all clean and +white and American, were sitting upon the porches or playing in the +yards. Everywhere was a military neatness; the town was like the +officers' quarters of a fort, the whole place spick and span and neatly +groomed. + +Colon had been surprisingly clean, but it was an unnatural cleanliness, +as if the municipality had been scrubbed against its will. Gatun was to +the manner born. + +"Yonder are the locks." Cortlandt pointed to the west, and Kirk saw +below him an impressive array of pyramidal steel towers, from the +pinnacles of which stretched a spider's web of cables. Beneath this, he +had a glimpse of some great activity, but his view was quickly cut off +as the motor-car rumbled into a modern railway station. + +"I'd like to have a. look at what's going on over yonder," he said. + +"You will have time," Cortlandt answered. "Edith will show you about +while I run in on Colonel Bland." + +Out through the station-shed Kirk's hostess led him, then across a +level sward, pausing at length upon the brink of a mighty chasm. It +took him a moment to grasp the sheer magnitude of the thing; then he +broke into his first real expression of wonder: + +"Why, I had no idea--Really, this is tremendous." + +At his feet the earth opened in a giant, man-made canon, running from +the valley above, through the low ridge and out below. Within it an +army was at work. Along the margins of the excavation ran steel tracks, +upon which were mounted the movable towers he had seen from a distance. +These tapering structures bore aloft long, tautly drawn wire cables, +spanning the gorge and supporting great buckets which soared at regular +intervals back and forth, bearing concrete for the work below. Up and +out of the depths tremendous walls were growing like the massive +ramparts of a mediaeval city; tremendous steel forms, braced and +trussed and reinforced to withstand the weight of the countless tons, +stood in regular patterns. In the floor of the chasm were mysterious +pits, black tunnel mouths, in and out of which men crept like ants. Far +across on the opposite lip of the hill, little electric trains sped to +and fro, apparently without the aid of human hands. Everywhere was a +steady, feverish activity. + +From the commanding eminence where the sightseers stood the spectacle +was awe-inspiring; for though the whole vast work lay spread out +beneath them in what looked like a hopeless confusion, yet as their +eyes followed it a great and magic system became manifest. The whole +organism seemed animate with some slow, intricate intelligence. The +metal skips careening across those dizzy heights regulated their +courses to a hand's-breadth, deposited their burdens carefully, then +hurried back for more; the shuttle trains that dodged about so +feverishly, untended and unguided, performed each some vital function. +The great conglomerate body was dead, yet it pulsated with a life of +its own. Its effect of being governed by a single indwelling mind of +superhuman capacity was overpowering. + +Kirk heard Mrs. Cortlandt explaining: "The ships will steam up from the +sea through the dredged channel you see over yonder, then they will be +raised to the level of the lake." + +"What lake?" + +"That valley"--she indicated the tropical plain between the hills, +wherein floating dredges were at work--"will be an inland sea. Those +forests will be under water." + +"Where is the Gatun dam I've heard so much about?" + +She pointed out a low, broad ridge or hog-back linking the hills +together. + +"That is it. It doesn't look much like a dam, does it? But it is all +hand-made. Those are rock trains out there, from Culebra." + +"Oh, now I understand. Gee whiz, but this job is a whopper! Say, this +is great!" Mrs. Cortlandt smiled. "It does wake up your patriotism, +doesn't it? I'm glad to have a hand in building it." + +"Are you helping to dig this canal?" Anthony regarded the woman +curiously. She seemed very cool and well-dressed and independent for +one engaged in actual work. + +"Of course! Even though I don't happen to run a steam-shovel." + +"Will they really finish it? Won't something happen?" + +"It is already dug. The rest is merely a matter of excavation and +concrete. The engineering difficulties have all been solved, and the +big human machine has been built up. What is more important, the +country is livable at last. Over at Ancon Hospital there is a quiet, +hard-working medical man who has made this thing possible. When the two +oceans are joined together, and the job is finished, his will be the +name most highly honored." + +"It must be nice to do something worth while," Anthony mused, vaguely. + +"To do anything," his companion observed, with a shade of meaning; +then: "It is amusing to look back on the old Spanish statement that it +would be impious to unite two oceans which the Creator of the world had +separated." + +Noting that the sun was setting beyond the distant jungles and the +canon at his feet was filling with shadows, Kirk remarked, "It must be +nearly time they quit work." + +"This work doesn't stop. When it grows dark the whole place is lit by +electricity, and the concrete continues to pour in just the same. It is +wonderful then--like the mouth of a volcano. Batteries of search-lights +play upon the men; the whole sky is like a furnace. You can see it for +miles. Now I think we had better go back to the car." + +In spite of his bodily misery, that night ride impressed itself +strongly upon Anthony's mind. The black mystery of the jungles, the +half-suggested glimpses of river and hill, the towns that flashed past +in an incandescent blaze and were buried again in the velvet blackness, +the strange odors of a new land riotous in its time of growth, all +combined to excite his curiosity and desire for closer knowledge. And +then the crowning luxury of a bath, clean clothes, and a good meal on +white linen and china! As he dropped asleep that night he reflected +contentedly that, after all, things have a way of coming right in this +world for those who accept them cheerfully as they come. + + + + +X + +A CHANGE OF PLAN + + +On the following morning Kirk despatched a long letter to his father, +explaining, as well as he could, how he came to be in Panama, and +giving a detailed account of the events that had befallen him since his +arrival. He would have preferred to cable this message collect, but +Mrs. Cortlandt convinced him that he owed a fuller explanation than +could well be sent over the wires. Although he took this means of +relieving his father's anxiety, he was far from resigning himself to a +further delay of his return. On the contrary, he at once began an +inquiry as to sailing dates, discovering, to his intense disgust, that +no ship was scheduled to leave for New York within several days. He +planned to borrow the passage money from his friends, when the time +came, and accompany his letter northward. Meanwhile he devoted his time +to sight-seeing with his hostess. + +The city was old, there were many places of historic interest, and, +although Kirk cared little for such things, he found it easy to assume +the virtue he did not possess. Moreover, there was something contagious +in his companion's enthusiasm. Almost against his will he felt his +appreciation growing, as he listened to her casual comments on the +scenes they visited. Her husband, who seemed busily engaged in work +that barely allowed him time for his meals, seldom accompanied them on +their excursions, and the two were thrown much into each other's +society. + +Edith Cortlandt was a woman very sure of herself in most things. A +situation that might have proved embarrassing to one less tactful she +accepted quite as a matter of course, rather enjoying the exercise of +her influence, and never doubting her power to keep the friendship on +any footing she chose. Kirk's frank, boyish gratitude for the favors he +had received made it easy for her to encourage the growth of an +intimacy that she acknowledged charming, while she sincerely believed +that he would be helped by it. Finding him responsive, she deliberately +set herself to please him. She studied him covertly and set her moods +to match his--not a difficult task, since he was merely a normal, +healthy young man. Always faultless in her attire, she took even more +than ordinary pains with her appearance, and it was not long before +Kirk was naively surprised to find that she no longer seemed older than +he--that she was, in fact, an exceedingly handsome woman. This gradual +metamorphosis depended more than anything else, perhaps, upon the +girlish humor that now possessed her. She was no longer brilliant and +chilly, but gay, smiling, and unaffected. + +Daytimes, they rambled about the crooked streets, bargain-hunting in +the Chinese shops, or drove beneath the stately royal palms of Ancon; +evenings, they loitered about the cool verandas of the Tivoli or +strolled down into the town to watch the crowds in the plazas. Once in +a while Cortlandt went with them, but he was usually uncommunicative, +and they scarcely felt his presence. On the few occasions when he gave +himself rein, Kirk was compelled to feel for him a surprised and +half-grudging respect. Unlike most silent men, when he did talk he +talked easily and well. + +Several days passed thus, during which Anthony fully recovered from his +experience at Colon. Then a ship arrived from New York, but before he +had summoned courage to ask his friends for a loan he received, a +letter forwarded from Colon by the American consul, a perusal of which +not only dumfounded him, but entirely altered his plans. + +It was typewritten, on plain stationery; there was neither heading nor +signature, yet he knew quite well from whom it came. It read as follows: + + Don't cable again, or the stupidity of the police may fail to + protect you. The others got away safely and you would be mad + to return alone. I can't and won't help you now. This time + you went too far. You have made your bed, now lie in it. I + don't believe in miracles, but if you can straighten up and + make a man of yourself, I'll help you face this trouble; + otherwise don't call on me for anything. I'm through. + +Kirk reread this amazing epistle several times before its full +significance struck him; then, when he realized what it meant, he felt +himself break into a sweat of apprehension. That plain-clothes man had +died! The police were looking for him. There could be no other +explanation, else why had Higgins and the rest fled the country? Why +had his father been so cautious in communicating with him? If it came +to a trial, undoubtedly a jury would find him equally guilty with +Higgins, for he had held the poor fellow's hands; it was he who had +engineered the whole episode. Perhaps he was already indicted. Kirk saw +himself accused of manslaughter, arrested, and tried. What could he do +if his father refused to help? With money, almost anything could be +achieved; without it, and particularly without his father's influence, +what would happen? Evidently the Governor believed him guilty. In that +case the young man knew that explanations would be futile. Even the +letter he had sent would do no good. When Darwin K. Anthony said he was +through, he was through. + +Finding a secluded corner of the veranda, he sat down to think this +matter out; but the more he reflected on it the more serious it +appeared. Of one thing he became quickly convinced: New York at present +was no place for him. A moment ago it seemed far away and extremely +desirable, now it was altogether too close at hand and most +undesirable. His father's reference to the stupidity of the police +persuaded him finally that his whereabouts were unknown, but how long +they would remain so was of course a question. It was useless to +attempt further concealment. In the first place, he lacked means of +moving, nor could he conceal his identity under an assumed name while +he remained in Panama, for he had already advertised himself too well +for that. Besides, the idea of hiding did not appeal to him. He decided +to face it out, therefore, hoping sometime to get to the bottom of the +affair. If he were arrested meanwhile, he would have to locate Ringold +or Higgins, or some of the others, and prove that he had not run away +from punishment. It would be difficult to verify the extravagant story +of his kidnapping, of course, but--there was nothing else to do. He +rose quickly and entered the hotel, where he bought all the latest New +York papers. It was not long before he found the thing he was seeking. +There it was, a story headed: + + SALOON-KEEPER TO LOSE LICENSE + + OWNER OF NOTORIOUS AUSTRIAN VILLAGE IN TROUBLE + +There followed an account of Mr. Padden's efforts to disprove his +connection with an assault upon the person of a detective named +Williams, who had come from St. Louis; but nowhere was there a word +about the present condition of the plain-clothes man, nor the slightest +hint toward explaining the conduct of the mysterious Jefferson Locke +for whom he had been searching. Who the devil was Locke, anyhow? The +article did not even state the charge upon which he was to be arrested. +In another paper Kirk found something that relieved his mind a bit: +evidently Williams had not died prior to the time of going to press, +although he was reported in a critical condition. Kirk was interested +to read that the police had a clew to the identity of the criminals and +were confident of soon rounding them up. What mystified him most was +the lack of detail. Evidently much had been printed previously, but he +had no means of ascertaining what it was. + +He spent an hour in serious thought, perhaps the first full hour he had +ever passed so profitably. At the end of that time he had arrived at +little save a vague feeling of offence toward the father who had been +so ready to condemn him. In one way he did not blame the old gentleman +for refusing aid. This episode was the culmination of a long series of +reckless exploits. Mr. Anthony had argued, threatened, even implored +with tears in his eyes, all to no purpose. Just the same, it hurt to +have one's father so willing to believe the worst. The two had never +understood each other; they did not understand each other now. And they +might have been such good pals! Darwin K. did not believe in +miracles--Well, perhaps Kirk was hopelessly bad. The young man did not +care much, one way or the other; but he shut his teeth grimly and +wagered he could make good if he really chose to try. He half decided +to make the experiment just to show what he could do, but he was at a +loss where to begin. Anybody could be successful who really wanted +to--every book said that; the hard part was to get started. + +One thing was clear, at least: he could stay here no longer as the +Cortlandts' guest--he had already incurred an obligation which he would +have difficulty in discharging. Yet how could he explain his change of +front? Mrs. Cortlandt, he felt sure, would understand and come to his +assistance with good advice, but he shrank instinctively from laying +the facts before her husband. It was a deuced unpleasant necessity, and +he detested unpleasant necessities--necessities of any sort, in fact. +Still, there was nothing else for it, so, conquering his sense of +humiliation as best he could, he called up the Cortlandts' suite. + +Edith answered, saying that her husband was out; then, in response to +his request, she came down herself. + +"What has gone wrong? Why this face of tragedy?" she inquired, as she +seated herself beside him. + +"I've received my Declaration of Independence. I've heard from my dad." + +A look of quick understanding drove away the smile she had brought him, +and her manner was one of grave sympathy as she took the letter he +handed her. + +She was clad in a crisp morning gown he had never seen, and he thought +it became her extremely well. She looked very cool, very fresh, very +much the fine lady. All in all, she seemed a person whose friendly +interest might compensate for many woes. + +"Well!" she remarked. "You do seem to be in trouble. What does it mean?" + +Kirk told her everything without reserve, then showed her the +newspapers in his hand. She scrutinized them with a quiet seriousness +that seemed to make his trouble her own. "After all," she said at last, +"if worse comes to worst, you can prove your innocence." + +"I'm not so sure." + +"Nonsense! Those boys can be found. What puzzles me is that Locke +person. Who is he? Why was he followed? What has become of him?" + +"I wish I knew." + +"I can have inquiries made, but it will take time. Meanwhile, it seems +you are safe, so the one important fact for the moment is that you are +cast off." Turning her bright eyes upon him, she inquired, "How does it +feel to be disinherited?" + +"Blamed uncomfortable! I must tell Mr. Cortlandt at once." + +"Let me," she offered, quickly. "I would not show any one that letter, +if I were you, nor advertise the fact that you are in danger of arrest. +It will be quite enough if I tell him that you have quarrelled with +your father--he is a peculiar man." + +Kirk signified his agreement. + +"Now what do you intend doing?" she asked him. + +"I'm going to work." + +"Good! Good!" She clapped her hands gleefully. + +"Oh, I don't WANT to," he protested, "but the old gentleman thinks I'm +no good, and I'd like to show him he's wrong. After I've done that, I +intend to loaf again--yes, and I'll know how to loaf by that time. Of +course, I'll have to pay my debts, too." + +"Poor Mr. Weeks!" + +"Why poor?" + +"He is terribly agitated to learn that we came to your rescue. He knows +now that he really entertained an angel unaware, and his grief of soul +is comical." + +"Weeks isn't such a bad sort." + +But her eyes showed a sudden flash of anger as she returned: "He +deserves to be forced out of the service." + +"That wouldn't do any good. His successor might be worse." + +"Haven't you any resentment? I dislike placid people!" + +"Plenty! If I get a crack at Alfarez---" + +"Now don't allow your mind to dwell on that," she cautioned. "I think +he is riding to a fall, as it is. What do you want to do?" + +"Anything. I'm going to hunt a job this afternoon." + +"What sort?" + +"Something with big pay and no responsibility." + +"Those positions are taken--by the army," she laughed. "What can you +do?" + +"I can take an automobile apart." + +"And put it together again?" + +"Oh no! I can sail a boat; I shoot pretty well; I waltz nicely; I row, +swim, and box indifferently; and I play an atrocious hand at poker." + +Mrs. Cortlandt nodded gravely. "You are also good company, you dress +well, and you are an ornament to any hotel porch." + +"Naturally, I refrained from mentioning those things, but, in addition, +I smoke, drink, and swear. I am unsteady in my habits, and require a +great deal of sleep. I think that completes the inventory." + +"Of course, you will live beyond your salary?" + +"Undoubtedly." + +"Seriously, now, don't you really---?" + +"Go ahead. Say it! Don't I know anything? No. I am too highly educated. +You see, I took the full college course." + +She drew her sharply pencilled brows together and pursed her lips in +meditation, regarding him meanwhile with a look that was not all +disapproval. + +"Am I hopeless?" he inquired at length. + +"Dear, no! Experience is a good thing, of course, and ability is even +better, but neither is absolutely necessary in government work." + +"Oh!" + +"Provided---" + +"What?" + +"--You have influence. I was merely trying to think of the niche into +which you would best fit." + +"When a fellow hasn't any of those qualifications, then what? Take me, +for instance." + +"You have at least one." + +"Which one?" + +"Influence." + +He shook his head. "My father wouldn't help." + +"We'll have no difficulty in finding you a position." + +"Jove! That's good news." He beamed at her with gratified surprise. "I +had an idea I'd be going from door to door." + +"How ridiculous! This is a government job; therefore it is saturated +with politics. There are a great many good men on it, but there are +also a large number of 'somebody's relatives.' Do you understand? +Anything is possible here for a man with influence. If he has ability +with it, he can go to the top. If he lacks ability--well, even then he +can go to the top--it depends entirely upon the influence." + +"But I haven't any--" Kirk began. Then, catching her look, he +exclaimed: "Oh, say! WILL you help me? Really? That's too good to be +true." + +He shook her hand warmly, that being the natural outlet for his +gratitude, and she smiled at him. "I wonder where I'd better start in," +he said. + +"There's not the slightest choice. All paths lead up the mountain, and +if you go far enough you will reach the top. It would be quite easy if +you knew something about the railroad business, for instance." + +"Oh, I do. I've had that drilled into me ever since I was a child. I +grew up with it--was soaked in it. My father made me learn telegraphy +before he gave me a motor-boat." + +"Why in the world didn't you say so?" + +"Well, I have forgotten most of it," he confessed. "I had a railroad of +my own, too, when I was twelve years old. I was president." + +"Indeed!" + +"I suppose it was in my blood. We kids stole the lumber for a track, +and I got a hand-car from dad. We formed a close corporation, and, when +another boy wanted to join, we made him go forth and steal enough +boards to extend the line. We finally had nearly two miles, altogether, +with switches, sidings, yards, and everything; then the fences in that +neighborhood gave out. It was a gravity road--yes, there was extreme +gravity in every department--we'd push the car up and ride down. We had +a telephone system and semaphores, and ran on orders just like a real +train. Grown people heard about it, and paid us five cents a ride, so +we began to declare dividends every Saturday. Oh, it was a great +success. We had a complete organization, too; president, directors, +conductors, section-hands--the section-hands did all the work and rode +between times." + +"What happened to it?" + +"One day we ran into a cow and broke the vice-president's leg. The +board of directors also had his ear cut, and the indignant neighbors +began to reclaim their fences. We lost a mile of track in one +afternoon, and father decided it would be better for me to go to +boarding-school. It was safer." + +"I'll warrant you learned the rudiments of railroading, just the same." + +"I learned everything," Kirk announced, decisively. + +"Unfortunately, the P.R.R. has a president, so we can't start you in +where you left off." + +"He might need an assistant." + +Mrs. Cortlandt laughed lightly. "While we are finding that out," she +said, "I think you had better go over the line in daylight and really +see what this work is like. That glimpse you had at Gatun is only a +small part. Now, will you trust me to manage this for you, Mr. Anthony?" + +"I should say I would, and I can't begin to tell you--" + +"Oh, it's nothing." She rose to put her plans promptly into operation, +this time extending her hands with the words: "Let me congratulate you. +I really believe you are waking up, and without the woman's aid." + +"But the woman is aiding me," he replied, warmly. "She's doing it all. +You have started me moving, and I'll never be able to thank you." Then, +as her eyes flashed to his with a look he had never seen before, he +added: "Understand, though, I am going to work only because I must. I +detest it." + + + + +XI + +THE TRUTH ABOUT MRS. CORTLANDT + + +Edith Cortlandt was not the sort to permit delay. At lunch she +introduced Kirk to the Master of Transportation of the Panama Railroad, +saying: + +"Mr. Runnels has offered to take you out through the Cut this +afternoon, and explain the work to you." + +Runnels, a straight, well-set-up, serious young man, bent a searching +look upon Kirk, as he said, "Mrs. Cortlandt tells me you're going to be +one of us." + +"Yes." + +The Master of Transportation took in the applicant fully, then nodded +his head as if pleased with his inspection. + +"That's good." + +Anthony was drawn to the speaker instantly, for there was no +affectation about him. He was straightforward and open, little given to +the kind of small talk that serves in so many cases to conceal +character. He produced the effect of a busy and forceful man; one could +feel energy radiating from him, and his voice had a ring of authority. +Like every one down here who was doing something, he talked of little +besides the Big Job, even when Mr. Cortlandt joined the trio. As the +two younger men rose to leave, Edith playfully admonished him to teach +his protege the entire detail of the railroad business and have him +back in time for dinner, to which he agreed. + +"She's wonderful," he remarked a moment later, as he and Kirk descended +the hotel steps together. "She told Colonel Jolson he'd just have to +find you a position, and I have been delegated to show you about." + +"You don't say. I supposed there were plenty of openings." + +"Not good ones. However, she usually gets what she wants. If I'm not a +good guide, you must put it down to inexperience." + +"The Cortlandts seem to have considerable influence for outsiders. I +thought I'd have to begin at the bottom." + +Runnels glanced at his companion quickly. + +"Outsiders! You don't call them outsiders?" + +"I never quite figured out who they are. Funny, by-the-way, how +everybody says 'they' in referring to them." + +"Oh, she's the whole team. Cortlandt's a nice fellow--but--Did you +really think that she'd let you start at the bottom?" + +"Why, yes." + +"I guess you don't know her." + +"You're right; I do not." + +"Well, she knows everybody and everything in this country. She's the +whole diplomatic service. Take the Colombian trouble, for instance--" + +"What trouble?" + +"When Panama seceded. She manipulated that, or at least Steve Cortlandt +did under her direction. She was the brains of the whole affair, +however, and those New York lawyers merely did what she told them. It +was one of the cleverest exploits on record. Colombia wouldn't let us +build the Canal, so Panama seceded. War was declared, but the United +States interfered in time to prevent bloodshed. One Chinaman was +killed, I believe, by dropping a flat-iron on his toe, or something, +and by the time the excitement had died out we had begun digging. She +knows Central America like the palm of her hand. When she says Kirk +Anthony wants a position, we hirelings jump about and see that he gets +it. Oh, you'll have any job you want." + +"Well!" The recipient of this good news congratulated himself silently. +"I wish you'd tell me something more about her." + +"There isn't time just now; our motor is waiting. But we have the whole +afternoon ahead of us." + +The two passed through the railroad gates and took their places in the +little car. When they were under way, Runnels went on: "I'm supposed to +show you this end of the work and tell you what it all means." + +"Then please start at the beginning. You see, I probably know less +about it than anybody living." + +"Of course you know the general lay-out?" + +"I tell you I don't know a thing. There's no use four-flushing." + +Runnels smiled at this candor. "Well, the ditch will be about fifty +miles long, and, roughly speaking, the work is in three parts--the +dredging and harbor-building at sea-level on each end of the Canal, the +lock-work, and the excavations on the upper levels. That dam you saw +building at Gatun will form a lake about thirty miles long--quite a +fish-pond, eh? When a west-bound ship arrives, for instance, it will be +raised through the Gatun locks, three of them, and then sail along +eighty-five feet above the ocean, across the lake and into a channel +dug right through the hills, until it reaches the locks at Pedro +Miguel. Then it will be lowered to a smaller lake five miles long, then +down again to the level of the Pacific. An east-bound ship will reverse +the process. Get the idea?" + +"Sure. It sounds easy." + +"Oh, it's simple enough. That's what makes it so big. We've been +working at it five years, and it will take five years more to complete +it. Before we began, the French had spent about twenty years on the +job. Now a word, so you will have the general scheme of operation in +your head. The whole thing is run by the Isthmian Canal Commission--six +men, most of whom are at war with one another. There are really two +railroad systems--the I. C. C., built to haul dirt and rock and to +handle materials in and out of the workings, and the Panama Railroad, +which was built years ago during the California gold rush and bought by +our government at the time of that terrible revolution I told you +about. The latter is a regular system, hauls passengers and freight, +but the two work together. You will start in with the P. R. R., Mr. +Anthony, under my despotic sway." + +"I know a little about railroading." + +"So much the better. There's a big railroad man by your name in the +States. Are you related?" + +"I believe so," Kirk answered, quietly. "Go ahead with the lesson." + +"The Canal Zone is a strip of land ten miles wide running across the +Isthmus--really an American colony, you know, for we govern it, police +it, and all that. As for the work itself, well, the fellows at the two +ends of the Canal are dredging night and day to complete their part, +the lock-builders are laying concrete like mad to get their share done +first, the chaps in the big cut are boring through the hills like moles +and breaking steam-shovel records every week, while we railroad men +take care of the whole shooting-match. Of course, there are other +departments--sanitary, engineering, commissary, and so forth--all doing +their share; but that is the general scheme. Everybody is trying to +break records. We don't think of anything except our own business. Each +fellow believes the fate of the Canal depends upon him. We've lost +interest in everything except this ditch, and while we realize that +there is such a place as home, it has become merely a spot where we +spend our vacations. They have wars and politics and theatres and +divorces out there somewhere, but we don't care. We've lost step with +the world, we've dropped out. When the newspapers come, the first thing +we look for is the Panama news. We're obsessed by this job. Even the +women and the children feel it--you'll feel it as soon as you become a +cog in the machine. Polite conversation at dinner is limited to tons of +rock and yards of concrete. Oh, but I'm tired of this concrete talk." + +"Try the abstract for a change." + +"It's interesting at first, then it gets tiresome. Lord! It's fierce." + +"The work, too?" + +"Everything! Every day you do the same thing; every day you see the +same faces, hear the same talk; even the breeze blows from the same +direction all the time, and the temperature stays at the same mark +winter and summer. Every time you go out you see the same +coach-drivers, the same Spiggoty policemen leaning against the same +things; every time you come in you eat the same food, drink the same +liquor, sit in the same chair, and talk about the same topics. +Everything runs too smoothly. The weather is too damned nice. The +thermometer lacks originality. We're too comfortable. Climate like that +gets on a white man's nerves; he needs physical discomfort to make him +contented. I'd give a forty-dollar dog to be good and cold and freeze +my nose. Why, Doctor Gorgas has made us so sanitary that we can't even +get sick. I'd hail an epidemic as a friend. + +"It's even harder on the women folks, for they can't find anything to +kick about, so they fuss with one another and with us. They have clubs, +you know, to improve things, but there's nothing to improve. We had a +social war recently over a button. One clique wanted a club emblem that +would cost a dollar and a half, while the other faction were in favor +of a dollar button. I tell you, it was serious. Then, too, we're all +tagged and labelled like cans of salmon with the price-mark on--we +can't four-flush. You can tell a man's salary by the number of +rocking-chairs in his house, and the wife of a fellow who draws +eighteen hundred a year can't associate with a woman whose husband +makes twenty-five hundred. They are very careful about such things. We +go to the same dances on the same dates, we dance with the same people +to the same tunes by the same band, and when we get off in some corner +of the same veranda in search of the same old breeze, which we know is +blowing at precisely the same velocity from the usual quarter, our +partners tell us that Colonel So-and-So laid four hundred twenty-seven +more cubic yards of concrete this week than last, or that Steam Shovel +Number Twenty-three broke the record again by eighty yards. It's hell!" +He stopped, breathless. + +"Why don't you quit?" suggested Anthony. + +"Quit! What for? Good Lord! We LIKE it. Here we are at Pedro Miguel, +by-the-way. We'll be into the Cut shortly." + +To his left Anthony beheld another scene somewhat similar to the one at +Gatun. Other movable steel cranes, with huge wide-flung arms, rose out +of another chasm in which were extensive concrete workings. From a +distance the towers resembled parts of a half-constructed cantilever +bridge of tremendous height. Another army was toiling at the bottom of +the pit, more cars shunted back and forth, more rock-crushers rumbled; +but, before Kirk's eye had photographed more than a small part, the +motor-car had sped past and was rolling out upon a bridge spanning the +Canal itself. To the northward appeared an opening cut through the +hills, and Runnels said, simply: + +"Culebra!" + +A moment later he announced: "We leave the P. R. R tracks here and +switch in on the I. C. C. Now you'll begin to see something." + +Down into the Cut the little car went, and at last Anthony saw the +active pulsating heart of this stupendous undertaking. The low range +was severed by a gorge blasted out by human hands. It was a mountain +valley in the making. High up on its sides were dirt and rock trains, +dozens of compressed-air drills, their spars resembling the masts of a +fleet of catboats at anchor--behind these, grimy, powerful steam +shovels which rooted and grunted quite like iron hogs. Along the tracks +at various levels flowed a constant current of traffic; long lines of +empty cars crept past the shovels, then, filled to overflowing, sped +away northward up the valley, to return again and again. Nowhere was +there any idleness, nowhere a cold machine or a man at rest. On every +hand was smoke and steam and sweat. The drills chugged steadily, the +hungry iron hogs gouged out the trails the drills had loosened, the +trains rolled past at intervals of a moment or so. Lines of electric +wire, carried upon low wooden "shears," paralleled the tracks, bearing +the white-hot sparks that rent the mountain. At every switch a negro +flagman crouched beneath a slanting sheet of corrugated iron, seeking +shelter alike from flying fragments and the blazing sun. From beneath +the drills came occasional subterranean explosions; then geysers of +muddy water rose in the air. Under the snouts of the steam shovels +"dobe" shots went off as bowlders were riven into smaller fragments. +Now and then an excited tooting of whistles gave warning of a bigger +blast as the flagmen checked the flow of traffic, indicating with arms +upraised that the ground was "coming up." Thereupon a brief lull +occurred; men hid themselves, the work held its breath, as it were. But +while the detonations still echoed, and before the flying missiles had +ceased to shower, the human ants were moiling at their hills once more, +the wheels were turning again, the jaws of the iron hogs were clanking. + +Through this upheaval the motor-car penetrated, dodging trains of +"flats," which moved sluggishly to afford them passage up and down over +the volcanic furrows at the bottom of the gorge or along some shelf +beneath which the foundations were being dug. At times a shovel reached +out its five-yard steel jaw and gently cleared the rails of debris, or +boosted some bowlder from the path with all the skill of a giant hand +and fingers. Up and down the canon rolled spasmodic rumblings, like +broadsides from a fleet of battle-ships. + +"Somebody with a head for figures has estimated what it costs the +government to send a motor-car like this through the Cut in working +hours," Runnels said. "I don't remember the exact amount, but it was +some thousands of dollars." + +"Delays to trains, I suppose?" + +"Yes. A minute here, thirty seconds there. Every second means a certain +number of cubic yards unremoved, and holds back the opening of the +Canal just so much. You have postponed a great event several minutes, +Mr. Anthony." + +"It's the first important thing I ever did." + +"Our little nine-mile trip will cost Uncle Sam more than a brace of +tickets from New York to 'Frisco and back again, including Pullmans and +travelling expenses." + +Mile after mile the sight-seers rolled on, past scenes of never-varying +activity--past more shovels, more groups of drills, more dirt trains, +more regiments of men--Runnels explaining. Kirk marvelling until he was +forced to exclaim: + +"I had no idea it was so big. It doesn't seem as if they'd ever finish +it." + +"Oh, we'll finish it if we're let alone. Every year, you know, we +receive a batch of senators and congressmen who come down to 'inspect' +and 'report.' Sometimes they spend as much as a week on the job, and +frequently learn to distinguish which is the Gatun dam and which the +Culebra cut, but not always. Some of them don't know yet. Nevertheless, +they return to Washington and tell us how to proceed. Having discovered +that the Panama climate is good and the wages high, they send down all +their relatives. It's too bad Colonel Gorgas did away with the yellow +fever. + +"You see there is too much politics in it; we never know how long our +jobs will last. If some senator whose vote is needed on an +administration matter wanted my position for his wife's brother, he +could get it. Suppose the president of the Clock-Winders' Union wanted +to place his half-sister's husband with the P. R. R. He'd call at the +White House and make his request. If he were refused, he'd threaten to +call a strike of his union and stop every clock on the Isthmus. He'd +get the job all right." + +"Of course, that is an exaggeration." + +"Not at all. It has been done--is being done right along. The +half-sister's husband comes down here and takes a job away from some +fellow who may be entitled to promotion." + +"I suppose I'm an example." + +Runnels looked at him squarely before answering, "You are," said he, +"although I wasn't thinking of you when I spoke. It's something we all +feel, however." + +Anthony flushed as he answered: "I don't remember ever taking anything +I wasn't entitled to, and I didn't think when I was shoved in here that +I'd shove some other fellow out." + +"That's about what will happen. The good positions are filled by good +men, for the most part, but Mrs. Cortlandt has asked it, and you're +elected. You don't mind my frankness, I hope?" + +"Certainly not. I just didn't happen to look at it in this light." Kirk +felt a vivid sense of discomfort as the keen eyes of his companion +dwelt upon him. "As a matter of fact, I dare say I don't need a good +job half as badly as some of these married fellows. I suppose there is +room at the bottom, and a fellow can work up?" + +"If he has it in him." + +"I think I'll start there." + +"Oh, come, now," laughed the Master of Transportation, "that sort of +thing isn't done. You have the chance, and you'd be foolish to let it +slip. I don't blame you; I'd do the same under the circumstances. It's +merely a condition we've all got to face." + +"Just the same, I don't like the idea. I'd feel uncomfortable if I met +some capable fellow whom I'd robbed of his chance. It's hard work to be +uncomfortable, and I don't like hard work, you know." + +Runnels shook his head doubtfully as if questioning the genuineness of +this attitude. + +"I'm afraid you're a poor business man," he said. + +"Rotten!" Kirk admitted. "But I've an idea I can make good if I try." + +"If you feel that way, I certainly will help you," said the other, +warmly. "Of course, I'll try to help you anyhow, but--I like your +spirit. With Mrs. Cortlandt to back me up, I'll see you go forward as +fast as you deserve." + +By now they were out of the Cut and once more upon the main line at Bas +Obispo, heading back toward the Pacific. + +"You asked me to tell you something about her," Runnels continued. + +"Yes." + +"I'm not sure my information is entirely correct, but, knowing who she +is, I think I understand why she is in Panama. It is politics--big +politics. The Spiggoties have an election next year, and it is +necessary to get our wires well laid before it comes off. General +Alfarez will probably be the next president." + +"Alfarez! Not Ramon?" + +"His father. You know we Americans occupy a peculiar position here, set +down as we are in the midst of an alien people who hate us. Oh, they +hate us, all right--all except a few of the better class." + +"Why?" + +"There are a good many reasons. For one thing, there's a sort of racial +antipathy. You don't like them, do you? Well, they don't like you, +either, and the same feeling exists from Mexico to Patagonia, although +it is strongest in these regions. It is partly the resentment of an +inferior race, I suppose. Then, too, when we stole Panama we made the +Colombians sore, and all Central America besides, for they realized +that once we Yankees got a foothold here we'd hang on and not only +dominate this country but all the neighboring republics as well. That's +just what we're beginning to do; that's why the Cortlandts are here. +The stage is clearing for a big political drama, Mr. Anthony, which may +mean the end of Latin Central America." + +"I had gathered something of the sort--but I had no idea there was so +much in it." + +"The United States must protect its Canal, and to that end it is +building 'stone quarries' on Ancon Hill which are really +fortifications. American capital is coming in here, too, and in order +to protect the whole thing we must dominate Panama itself. Once that is +done, all the countries between here and the Texas border will begin to +feel our influence. Why, Costa Rica is already nothing but a fruit farm +owned by a Boston corporation. Of course, nobody can forecast the final +result, but the Mexicans, the Hondurans, the Guatemalans, and the +others have begun to feel it, and that's why the anti-American +sentiment is constantly growing. You don't read much about it in the +papers, but just live here for a while and you'll find out." + +"Oh, I have," Kirk acknowledged, dryly. "But we don't want these jungle +countries." + +"That's where you're wrong. By-and-by we'll need room to expand, and +when that time comes we'll move south, not north or west. Tropical +America is richer than all our great Northwest, and we'll grab it +sooner or later. Meanwhile our far-sighted government is smoothing the +way, and there's nobody better fitted for the preliminary work than Mr. +Stephen Cortlandt, of Washington, D. C., husband and clerk of the +smartest woman in the business of chaperoning administrations." + +"Oh, see here, now, Cortlandt is more than a clerk." + +"He's an errand-boy. He knows it, she knows it, and a few other people +know it. He's the figurehead behind which she works. She's a rich +woman, she loves the game--her father was the greatest diplomat of his +time, you know--and she married Cortlandt so she could play it. Any +other man would have served as well, though I've heard that he showed +promise before she blotted him out and absorbed him. But now he's +merely her power of attorney." + +Anthony pursed his lips into a whistle of astonishment. As usual, he +reflected, his judgment had been strictly college-made. + +"It's been a good thing for him," Runnels ran on, evidently warmed to +his subject. "She's made his reputation; he has money and position. For +my part, I'd rather remain insignificant and have a real wife, even if +she does have hysterics over a club button." + +"Don't they love each other?" + +"Nobody knows. She's carved out of ice, and, as for him, well, +gratitude is a good deal like rust--in time it destroys the thing it +clings to. I suppose I'm talking too much, but others would tell you +the same things. I consider her the smartest woman I ever met, and I +admire her immensely. You are mighty fortunate to be her friend. She'll +force you to the top in spite of yourself." + +"I'm not sure I like that. It doesn't sound good." + +"Oh, don't misconstrue what I've said," Runnels hastened to add. "She +isn't that sort." + +"I didn't mean that," said Kirk, briefly, and lapsed into a silence +from which he roused only to discuss the details of his coming work. + + It was with quite a different eye that he looked upon his host +and hostess that evening. To his genuine liking for the latter was now +added a worshipful admiration and a boyish gratification at her regard, +which rather put her at a distance. When she questioned him on their +way to the Plaza for the band concert later in the evening, he told her +of his trip and of Runnels' kindness. + +"It's all settled," said he. "I'm going to work in a few days as train +collector." + +"What?" Mrs. Cortlandt turned upon him sharply. "Runnels didn't offer +you that sort of position?" Her eyes were dark with indignation. Kirk +promptly came to the defence of his new friend. + +"No, I asked for it." + +"Oh, I see. Well, he will do much better by you than that." + +"I don't want anything better to start with." + +"But, my dear boy, a collector is merely a conductor. He takes tickets." + +"Sure! I can DO that. I might fail at something hard." + +"No, no, no! I'll see that you don't fail. Don't you understand?" + +"I understand a lot more than I did, Mrs. Cortlandt. That's why I don't +want to rob some chap of a job he's entitled to, and I sha'n't. There's +a collector quitting shortly." + +She stared at him curiously for a moment before inquiring: + +"Is that really the reason, or do you think the work will be easier?" + +Kirk stirred uncomfortably. "Oh, I'm not trying to dodge anything," he +maintained. "On the contrary, the most amazing thing has +happened--something I can't quite understand. I--I really want to work. +Funny, isn't it? I didn't know people ever got that way, but--I'd like +to help build this Canal." + +"But a CONDUCTOR! Why, you're a gentleman." + +"My dad was a brakeman." + +"Don't be foolish. Runnels talks too much. He'll offer you something +better than that." + +"The high-salaried positions are well filled now, and most of the +fellows are married." + +"A new position will be created." + +But Kirk was obdurate. "I'd prefer to start in as confidential adviser +to the Canal Commission, of course, but I'd be a 'frost,' and my father +would say 'I told you so.' I must make good for his sake, even if it's +only counting cars or licking postage-stamps. Besides, it isn't exactly +the square thing to take money for work that somebody else does for +you. When a man tried for the Yale team he had to play football, no +matter who his people were. If some capable chap were displaced to put +in an incapable fellow like me, he'd be sore, and so would his friends; +then I'd have to lick them. We'd have a fine scrap, because I couldn't +stand being pointed out as a dub. No, I'll go in through the gate and +pay my admission." + +"Do you realize that you can't live at the Tivoli?" + +"I hadn't thought about that, but I'll live where the other fellows do." + +"No more good dinners, no drives and little parties like this." + +"Oh, now, you won't cut me out just because I pull bell-cords and you +pull diplomatic wires? Remember one of our champion pugilists was once +a sailor." + +Mrs. Cortlandt laughed with a touch of annoyance. + +"It is utterly ridiculous, and I can't believe you are in earnest." + +"I am, though. If I learn to be a good conductor, I'd like to step up. +I'm young. I can't go back to New York; there's plenty of time for +promotion." + +"Oh, you'll have every chance," she declared. "But I think a few weeks +in cap and buttons will cure you of this quixotic sentiment. Meanwhile +I must admit it is refreshing." She stared unseeingly at the street +lights for a moment, then broke out as a new thought occurred to her: +"But see here, Kirk, don't the collectors live in Colon?" + +"I don't know," he replied, startled and flattered by her first use of +his given name. + +"I'll look it up to-morrow. You know I--Mr. Cortlandt and I will be in +Panama, and I prefer to have you here. You see, we can do more for +you." A little later she broke into a low laugh. + +"It seems strange to go driving with a conductor." + +As they reclined against the padded seat of their coach, lulled by the +strains of music that came to them across the crowded Plaza and argued +their first difference, it struck the young man that Edith Cortlandt +was surprisingly warm and human for a woman of ice. He fully felt her +superiority, yet he almost forgot it in the sense of cordial +companionship she gave him. + + + + +XII + +A NIGHT AT TABOGA + + +Despite his great contentment in Mrs. Cortlandt's society, Kirk found +himself waiting with growing impatience for his active duties to begin. +There was a restlessness in his mood, moreover, which his desire to +escape from a situation of rather humiliating dependence could not +wholly explain. Curiously enough, this feeling was somehow connected +with the thought of Edith herself. Why this should be so, he did not +trouble to inquire. They had become the best of good friends, he told +himself--a consummation for which he had devoutly wished--yet, for some +indefinable reason, he was dissatisfied. He did not know that their +moment of perfect, unspoiled companionship had come and gone that +evening in the Plaza. + +Every relation into which sentiment enters at all has its crisis or +turning-point, though it may pass unobserved. Perhaps they are happiest +who heed it least. Certainly, morbid self-analysis was the last fault +of which Kirk could be accused. If he had a rule of action, it was +simply to behave naturally, and, so far, experience had justified him +in the belief that behaving naturally always brought him out right in +the end. + +He decided that he needed exercise, and determined to take a tramp +through the country; but on the evening before the day he had set for +his excursion his plans were upset by a note from Mrs. Cortlandt, which +the clerk handed him. It ran: + +DEAR KIRK,--Stephen has arranged an outing for all three of us, and we +are counting on you for to-morrow. It will be a really, truly picnic, +with all the delightful discomforts of such affairs. You are not to +know where we are going until we call for you at eight. + +Faithfully and mysteriously yours, EDITH CORTLANDT. + +The recipient of this kind invitation tossed it aside with a gesture of +impatience. For the moment he experienced a kind of boyish resentment +at having his intentions thwarted that seemed out of proportion to the +cause. Whether he would have felt the same if Edith's husband were not +to be one of the party was a question that did not occur to him. At all +events, the emotion soon passed, and he rose the next morning feeling +that an outing with the Cortlandts would be as pleasant a diversion for +the day as any other. + +Promptly at eight Edith appeared upon the hotel porch. She was alone. + +"Where's Mr. Cortlandt?" he inquired. + +"Oh, some men arrived last night from Bocas del Toro and telephoned +that they must see him to-day on a matter of importance." + +"Then he's coming later?" + +"I hardly think so. I was terribly disappointed, so he told me to go +without him. Now, I shall have to make up to you for his absence, if I +am able." + +"That's the sort of speech," Kirk laughed, "that doesn't leave a fellow +any nice answer. I'm sorry he couldn't come, of course, and awfully +glad you did. Now, where is to be the scene of our revel?" + +"Taboga," she said, with eyes sparkling. "You've never been there, but +it's perfectly gorgeous. Please call a coach, our boat is waiting--and +don't sit on the lunch." + +Kirk obeyed, and they went clattering down the deserted brick street. +Edith leaned back with a sigh. + +"I'm so glad to get away from that hotel for a day. You've no idea how +hard it is to be forever entertaining a lot of people you care nothing +about, or being entertained by people you detest. I've smiled and +smirked and cooed until I'm sick; I want to scowl and grind my teeth +and roar." + +"Still politics, I suppose?" + +"Yes, indeed; we don't dare talk about it. If you only knew it, Kirk, +you've capsized the political calculations of the Panama Conservative +Party." + +"I didn't know I had ever even rocked the boat." + +"It runs back to your affair with Ramen." She glanced toward the coach +driver, suggesting the need of reticence. + +"Really, did that effect it?" + +"Rather. At any rate, it gave an excuse for setting things in motion. +There had been some doubt about the matter for a long time, and I was +only too glad to exert my influence in the right direction, but--this +is a picnic to an enchanted island, and here we are talking politics! +We mustn't be so serious. School is out, and it's vacation. I want to +romp and play and get my face dirty." + +Kirk readily fell in with her mood, and by the time they reached the +water-front they were laughing like two children. Down through a stone +arch they went, and out upon a landing beneath the sea wall. In front +of them the placid waters of the bay were shimmering, a myriad of small +boats thronged the harbor. There were coasting steamers, launches, +sail-boats, skiffs, and canoes. Along the shore above the tide-line +were rows of schooners fashioned from gigantic tree-trunks and capable +of carrying many tons, all squatting upon the mud, their white sails +raised to dry like the outstretched wings of resting sea-gulls. + +The landing was thronged, and, at sight of the newcomers, loiterers +gathered from all sides--a pirate throng, shouting a dozen dialects and +forcing Kirk to battle lustily for his luggage. Stepping into a skiff, +they were rowed to a launch, and a few moments later were gliding +swiftly around the long rock-rib that guards the harbor, a copper-hued +bandit at the wheel, a Nubian giant at the engine, and an evil, +yellow-faced desperado sprawling upon the forward deck. + +Looking back, they saw the city spread out in brilliant panorama, clear +and beautiful in the morning radiance. Packed and dense it lay, +buttressed by the weather-stained ramparts which legend says were built +by the women while their husbands were at war, and backed by the green +heights of Ancon, against which the foreign houses nestled. Set in the +foreground, like an ivory carving, was the Government Theatre, while +away beyond it loomed the Tivoli. + +Noting armed sentinels pacing the sea wall at a certain spot, Kirk +called his companion's attention to them. + +"That's Chiriqui Prison, isn't it?" he asked. + +"Yes. They say some of the dungeons are almost under the sea. It must +be a terrible place." + +"I've developed a morbid interest in jails," he remarked. "I'm quite an +authority on them. I think, however, I won't experiment with this +one--I don't like the view." + +"Yes, it's an unhealthy spot, according to all accounts. I'm sure you'd +get rheumatism, at least. By-the-way, do you notice the thickness of +those walls? They say that a king of Spain was seen standing at his +palace window one day staring anxiously toward the west. When a +courtier presumed to ask him what he was looking at, he said, 'I am +searching for those costly walls of Panama. They ought to be visible +even from here.' They cost ten million dollars, you know, when dollars +were worth a good deal more than they are now. Look! There's Taboga." + +Following her gaze, Kirk beheld a mountain of amethyst rising out of +the bay. Behind them the shores stretched away into misty distances, +while low mountains, softened by a delicate purple, rolled up from the +jungle plain. Ahead of them the turquoise waters were dotted by islets +whose heights were densely overgrown, while sands of coral whiteness +ringed their shore lines. Here and there a fleet of fishing-boats +drifted. Far out in the roadstead lay two cruisers, slate-gray and +grim. The waters over-side purled soothingly, the heavens beamed, the +breeze was like a gentle caress. The excursionists lost themselves in +silent enjoyment. + +Even before they had come to anchor a dozen boatmen were racing for +them and crying for their patronage. At the water's edge they saw a +tiny village nestled close against the mountains, its tiled roofs +rust-red and grown to moss, its walls faded by wind and weather to +delicate mauves and dove colors and greens impossible to describe. Up +against the slope a squat 'dobe chapel sat, while just beyond reach of +the tide was a funny little pocket-size plaza, boasting a decrepit +fountain and an iron fence eaten by the salt. Backing it all was a +marvellous verdure, tipped up on edge, or so it seemed, and cleared in +spots for pineapples. + +The launch, when it came to rest, seemed suspended in air, and beneath +it lay an entrancing sea-garden. Once the engine had stopped its +clatter, a sleepy, peaceful silence settled over the harbor, unbroken +by wheel or whistle, for in Taboga no one works and there are no +vehicles. + +"What a wonderful place!" exclaimed the young man, fervently. "Why, +it's like a dream--it can't be real!" Then, as the boatmen renewed +their begging, "I wonder which barge gentleman I had better hire." + +"Take the little boy, please." Edith called to an urchin who was +manfully struggling with a pair of oars twice his own length, whereupon +the older boatmen began to shove off with many scowls and much +grumbling. + +"Our choice has offended these genial bandits," Kirk observed as he +helped her to a seat. "When shall we tell the lad to bring us off?" + +"Four o'clock," answered Mrs. Cortlandt. "I arranged with the captain +to be ready at that hour, so, you see, we have the whole day ahead of +us." + +Across the limpid shallows they glided, bravely propelled by their +nine-year-old oarsman, but when the bow of their skiff grated upon the +bottom they were still some yards from the shore. + +"Looks as if we'd have to wade," said Kirk, then called to one of the +near-by boatmen to lend the child a hand. But the fellow replied +gruffly in some unintelligible jargon. + +"He says he carries HIS passengers ashore in his arms," Edith +translated. + +"Really? Competition is spirited even on this heavenly isle. Well, +that's easy!" Anthony untied his low shoes, kicked them off, and rolled +up his trousers. + +"Permit me to help you," he said, "without embarrassing our pilot." + +"Oh! I want to wade, too," the woman exclaimed, enviously, as he +stepped out, "but--it's too pebbly." + +She stood up and allowed him to gather her in his arms. Then for the +first time she felt his strength as her body leaned to his. Slowly he +picked his way ashore while she reclined in his embrace, her arms about +his neck, her smooth cheek brushing his. A faint, intoxicating perfume +she used affected him strangely, increasing the poignant sense of her +nearness; a lock of her hair caressed him. When he deposited her gently +upon her feet he saw her face had gone white and that she was trembling. + +"Did I hurt you?" he queried, quickly. + +"Oh no!" she answered, but as she turned away he saw her breathe as if +for the first time since he had taken her up. + +His own face was glowing as he waded back to fetch the lunch-basket and +his foot-gear. Under the circumstances he had done the only natural, +the only possible thing, yet it had queerly perturbed them both. There +was an artificial note in their voices as they mounted to the village, +and unconsciously they avoided each other's glances. + +A narrow, crooked street, fronted by old stone houses, opened before +them, and the many tints they had seen from a distance became more +pronounced. Even the rough flags and cobbles under foot were of a faint +lichen gray, chrome yellow, or pink, as if painted at cost of infinite +labor. Out of dark, open doorways peered swarthy faces, naked bronze +children scampered away on fat legs at their approach, and in one house +were a number of cassocked priests droning in Spanish. Everywhere was +the same slumberous content, the same peaceful buzz of bees and birds +and soft-toned human voices. + +The two visitors explored the village, even to the quaint, tawdry +chapel, with its impossible blues and rusted gilt, and noon found them +eager to investigate the contents of their lunch-basket. Taking a +random path up the hill, they came at last to a spring of cool water, +and here they spread their meal under a mango-tree bent beneath tons of +fruit. + +"Oh, it's intoxicating!" cried Edith, as she sank to a seat, feasting +her eyes upon the scene below. "After lunch, shall we climb the +mountain?" + +"I'm ready for anything," Kirk assured her. "Maybe we'll go swimming. +That seems to be the main occupation of the inhabitants." + +Up the path toward them came two timid children, one bearing a +pineapple half as large as himself, the other lugging an armful of +strange fruit. Kirk bought their entire burden, and they scuttled away +in high glee. + +By now the spirit of the woods was in the picnickers; the gladness of +the day possessed them wholly, and the afternoon sped quickly. If at +times Kirk found his companion regarding him with a strangely timid, +half-defiant look, he refused to connect it with the episode of their +landing. It was a fleeting look, at most, gone almost before he +surprised it, and, for the most part, Edith showed a seemingly quite +natural gayety that helped him to forget his recent self-consciousness. + +Promptly at four they came down the drunken little main street and out +upon the beach. But no launch was in sight. + +"Hello! Where's our boat?" exclaimed Kirk. + +"The captain told me he'd be ready at four. Perhaps he has run over to +Taboguilla or--" She hesitated, with a troubled frown. + +"You told him to wait?" + +"Distinctly." Seeing an idler in the square above she questioned him in +Spanish. "This man says the launch left for Panama two hours ago." She +turned tragic eyes upon Kirk. + +"Do you think they intend to leave us?" + +"I don't know. These people are liable to do any thing." Once more she +questioned the loiterer. "It is just as I suspected," she explained; +"they went on a Sunday spree. He says they came ashore and bought a lot +of liquor, and he heard them quarrelling later." + +"That means we'll have to get another boat." + +"I don't know where we shall find one." + +"Neither do I, but there must be some sort of craft that plies back and +forth regularly." + +"Only once or twice a week, I believe, and it belongs to the +sanitarium." She nodded toward some buildings perched upon a point +farther around the bay. "Mr. Cortlandt looked it up before leaving and +found the boat doesn't run on Sundays, so he hired that launch. Perhaps +we'd better wait awhile; our men may come back." + +They found seats in the square and were grateful for the rest; but an +hour passed and the sun was getting low, while no sign of their truant +craft appeared. + +"There must be sail-boats to be had," said Kirk; but on inquiry they +learned that, although a few belonged to the island, they all happened +to be away. He suggested that they hire a man to row them across. + +"It's twelve miles," Edith demurred. "Do you think it would be safe?" + +He scanned the twilit sea and gave up the idea; for the afternoon +trades, balmy and soothing as they were, had lifted a swell that would +prove difficult for a skiff to navigate. Uneasily they settled +themselves for a further wait. At last, as the sun was dipping into a +bed of gold, Kirk broke out: + +"Gee whiz! We've got to do SOMETHING. Mr. Cortlandt will be getting +worried." + +"In all probability he won't know anything about it until too late to +come for us. He is dining with these people from Bocas, and may not get +back to the Tivoli before midnight." + +"Nice fix we're in!" remarked Anthony. "I'd like to lay hands on that +captain." + +"We may have to stay here all night!" + +"Well, at least we have a haven of refuge. They'll take us in at the +hospital." + +"I don't care to ask them. There's some one up there I don't wish to +see. That's why I didn't go near the place to-day." + +"You know best, of course. But, see here, don't you think you'd better +go up there--" + +"Not for worlds! We must find some other way." She began to pace back +and forth in the dusk. "How unfortunate it is!" + +"Is it because--I'm with you?" questioned the young man, with an +effort. "Is that why you don't want to apply there?" + +"No, no. Stephen's particular enemy is in charge up there. I detest the +man, and the feeling is mutual, I believe." She sighed, and her glance +fell. "We can't spend the night outdoors." + +"Of course not, but--" + +"What?" + +He laughed to hide his embarrassment. "I'm wondering--what people will +say." + +"Oh, you mustn't be troubled about that. It isn't your fault, you know, +anyhow. Besides, people won't say anything because they won't know +anything about it--if we stay away from that sanitarium." + +In the effort to put him at his ease, her own distress seemed to +vanish, and Kirk immediately felt more cheerful. + +"It's getting along toward dinner-time," he said, "so let's see what we +can find in the way of food. You can be sheltered in one of these +houses, I suppose, though from the looks I'd almost prefer the night +air." + +They stumbled out into the unlighted street and began their search; +but, seen close at hand, the cooking arrangements of Taboga proved most +unattractive. Outside the sanitarium, it seemed, there was not a stove +on the island. Charcoal braziers set upon the floors or in the dirt +yards served all culinary purposes, and the process of preparing meals +was conducted with an indifference that promised no savory results. +About the glowing points of light wrinkled hags appeared irregularly, +as if brewing some witch's broth, but they could not understand the +phenomenon of Americans being hungry and signified no readiness to +relieve them. In several instances Kirk and Mrs. Cortlandt were treated +with open suspicion. But eventually they found a more +pretentious-looking place, where they were taken in, and, after an +interminable wait, food was set before them--chicken, boiled with rice +and cocoanut, black beans and cocoanut, fresh, warm milk, and a +wondrous assortment of hothouse fruits. They would have enjoyed the +meal had it not been for the curious faces that blocked every aperture +in the room and the many bright eyes that peered at them from each +shadow. + +But in spite of their equivocal situation, Edith seemed fully to have +regained her spirits. Even the prospect of spending the night in this +place apparently did not dismay her. + +"We have created quite a sensation," she said, laughingly. "I wonder if +it makes the animals in the zoo as nervous to be stared at." + +Kirk was half puzzled, half relieved by the lightness of her mood. + +"If you have finished this health-food," he remarked, "we'll go back to +the plaza and wait for the launch. I'm as full of cocoanut as a shell." + +They descended to the square again, stared at all the way through open +doors and followed by a subdued murmur of comment. Then they sat for a +long time watching the stars, half minded not to regret the +circumstance that had left them stranded together in such pleasant +surroundings. + +As if in despair over their impossible predicament, Edith gave way to a +spirit of reckless vivacity, and Kirk, with a man's somewhat +exaggerated sympathy for a woman's sensitive feelings, loyally strove +to help her make the best of things in her own way. It was like a +woman, he reflected, to follow her mood to the last extreme, and, being +a man, he was not displeased. The change in her manner was too elusive +for him to analyze. There was no real concession of her reserve--no +sacrifice of the feminine privilege of prompt and complete withdrawal. +If he had struck a false note, he knew that she would have turned +frigid in an instant. But he could not help feeling that some barrier +which had existed between them had been magically removed. Her apparent +obliviousness to all that under the circumstances might have troubled +her was a subtle compliment to himself, and soon he, too, forgot that +there was anything in the world beyond their present relation to each +other. + +It was on their return to the house that the climax came, leaving him +strangely shaken. + +Their course took them past a tiny cantina. It was open in front, and +brightly lighted, although at this hour most of the houses were dark +and the village lay wrapped in the inky shadow of the mountain behind. +Within, several men were carousing--dark-haired, swarthy fellows, who +seemed to be fishermen. Drawn by the sound of argument, the strangers +paused a moment to watch them. The quarrel seemed a harmless affair, +and they were about to pass on, when suddenly one of the disputants +lunged at his antagonist with a knife, conjured from nowhere, and the +two came tumbling out into the street, nearly colliding with the +onlookers. + +Without a sound, Mrs. Cortlandt picked up her skirts and fled into the +darkness, Kirk stumbling along behind her, both guiding themselves by +instinct rather than sight. At last she stopped out of breath, and he +overtook her. + +"You mustn't run through these dark alleys," he cried, sharply. "You'll +break your neck." Half impatient at this hysterical behavior, he seized +her by the arm. + +"Oh, I'm so frightened!" she breathed, and he felt her tremble. "A +drunken man frightens me--" Involuntarily she hid her face against his +breast, then laughed nervously. "Don't mind me, please. It's the one +thing I can't stand. I'll be all right in a moment." She lifted her +white face, and her eyes were luminous in the gloom. "I'm very glad you +don't drink." Her hand crept up to the lapel of his coat. "What will +you think of me?" she said, tremulously. + +Before he realized what he was doing his arms had closed around her and +his lips had met hers. It may have been the romance of the night, the +solitude, the intoxicating warmth of her breath--at any rate, he lost +his head and knew nothing save that she was a woman and he a man. As +for her, she offered no resistance, made no sign beyond a startled sigh +as their lips came together. + +But, impulsive as his action had been, it was no more sudden than his +recoil. He released her and stepped back, crying: + +"Oh, my God! I--I didn't mean that. Forgive me. PLEASE." She said +nothing, and he stammered desperately again: "You'll hate me now, of +course, but--I don't know what ails me. I forgot +myself--you--everything. It was unpardonable, and I ought to be shot." +He started off down the blind street, his whole body cold with +apprehension and self-disgust. + +"Where are you going?" she called after him. + +"I don't know. I can't stay here now. Oh, Mrs. Cortlandt, what can I +say?" + +"Do you intend to leave me here in the middle of this--" + +"No, no! Of course not. I'm rattled, that's all. I've just got a +cowardly desire to flee and butt my head against the nearest wall. +That's what I ought to do. I don't know what possessed me. I don't know +what you'll think of me." + +"We won't speak of it now. Try to compose yourself and find our +lodging-place." + +"Why, yes, of course. I'll see that you're fixed up comfortably and +then I'll get out." + +"Oh, you mustn't leave me!" she cried in a panic. "I couldn't stay in +that awful place alone." She drew a little nearer to him as if +demanding his protection. + +A wave of tenderness swept over him. She was just a girl, after all, he +reflected, and if it were not for what had happened a moment before the +most natural thing in the world would be to take her in his arms and +comfort her. + +"I--I won't leave you--I'll stay near you," he stammered. + +But as they trudged along together through the dark his chagrin +returned in full force. Mrs. Cortlandt maintained a distressing +silence, and he could not see her face. Presently he began to plead +brokenly for forgiveness, stumbling in the effort not to offend her +further and feeling that he was making matters worse with every word he +uttered. For a long time she made no reply, but at last she said: + +"Do you think I ought ever to see you again after this?" + +"I suppose not," said Kirk, miserably. + +"I won't believe," she went on, "that you could have taken me for the +kind of woman who--" + +"No, no!" he cried, in an anguish of self-reproach. "I was a fool--" + +"No," she said, "I don't--I couldn't bear to think that. Perhaps I was +partly to blame--but I didn't think--I ought to have known that no man +can really be trusted. But I thought our friendship was so beautiful, +and now you've spoiled it." + +"Don't say that!" exclaimed Kirk. "Say you'll forgive me some time." + +But instead of answering him directly she proceeded in the same strain, +probing his wounded self-respect to the quick, making his offence seem +blacker every moment. + +Although he assured her over and over that he had simply followed the +irresponsible, unaccountable impulse of a moment--that he had regarded +her only as the best of friends, and respected her more than he could +say, she showed him no mercy. The melancholy, regretful tone she +adopted was ten times worse than anger, and by the time they reached +the inn where they had dined he was sunk in the depths of +self-abasement. + +If he had been less preoccupied with his own remorse he might have +reflected that Edith's attitude, especially as she did not expressly +withhold the prospect of ultimate pardon, established a closer bond +between them than ever before. But there was no room in his mind for +such a thought. + +In reply to his knock an old woman came to the door and sleepily +admitted them. Edith stood for a moment on the threshold, then, seeing +that he made no motion to accompany her, she said good-night, and, +quietly entering, closed the door behind her. + +Kirk experienced a sudden desire to escape. To remain where he was +simply prolonged his humiliation. Instinctively he felt that, if he +could only get away where he could view the matter in an every-day +light, it would cease to trouble him. But evidently he could not desert +Edith. He sat down upon the doorstep and gave himself up to bitter +thoughts. + +She was such a wonderful woman, he told himself; she had been such a +true friend to him that he had been worse than criminal to lose her +respect. And Cortlandt had been so decent to him! It was significant +that this gave him the most discomfort of all. He had betrayed a man's +friendship, and the thought was unbearable. No punishment could be too +severe for that! + +He was still sitting there cramped and stiff when the first faint flush +of dawn stole over the hill-crest behind him. Then he rose to wander +toward the water-front. As the harbor assumed definite form, he beheld +a launch stealing in toward the village, and ten minutes later greeted +Stephen Cortlandt as that gentleman stepped out of the tender. + +"Where's Edith?" eagerly demanded her husband. + +"She's asleep. I found a place for her--" + +"Not at the SANITARIUM?" + +"No, no. One of these houses. Lord, I'm glad to see you! We'd begun to +feel like real castaways. I've been up all night." + +"What happened?" It was plain that Mr. Cortlandt was deeply agitated. + +"Our boatmen evidently got drunk and pulled out. I tried to get a +sail-boat, but there weren't any, and it was too rough to try crossing +with a skiff." + +It took them but a moment to reach the house, and soon the three were +back at the water-front. + +"What a miserable night!" Mrs. Cortlandt complained, stifling a yawn. +"I thought you'd never come, Stephen!" + +"I didn't get back to the Tivoli until midnight, and then I had trouble +in finding a boat to bring me over." + +"I suppose they were alarmed at the hotel?" + +"I said nothing about it," he returned, quietly, at which his wife's +face flushed. Seizing the first occasion, he exclaimed, in a low voice: +"God! How unfortunate--at this time. Were you mad?" + +She looked at him and her eyes burned, but she said nothing. + + + + +XIII + +CHIQUITA + + +The next day Kirk borrowed a shot-gun and went hunting. The events of +the night before seemed like a dream. Could it be that he had really +blundered irretrievably? Was it possible that he had offended his best +friend past forgiveness? He wanted to get away somewhere and collect +his thoughts. For the present, at least, he wished to avoid an +interview with Mrs. Cortlandt. + +A mile or two beyond the railroad track, to the north and east, began +what appeared to be an unbroken wilderness, and thither he turned his +steps. Low, rolling hills lay before him, densely over-grown and +leading upward to a mountain range which paralleled the coast until the +distant haze swallowed it up. These mountains, he reflected with a +thrill of interest, led on to South America, the land of the Incas, +hidden in mystery as the forests close at hand were veiled in faint +purple. The very thought was romantic. Balboa had strained his eyes +along these self-same placid shores; Pizarro, the swineherd, had +followed them in search of Dabaiba, that fabled temple of gold, leaving +behind him a trail of blood. It was only yonder, five miles away, that +Pedrarias, with the murder of a million victims on his soul, had +founded the ancient city which later fell to Morgan's buccaneers. Even +now, a league back from the ocean, the land seemed as wild as then. +Anthony suspected that there were houses--perhaps villages--hidden from +his view; but vast stretches of enchanted jungle intervened, which he +determined to explore, letting his feet stray whither they would. If +game, of which he had heard great stories, fell to his hand, so much +the better. + +Heeding a warning not to bear arms through the streets of Panama +without a permit from the alcalde, he struck off across the fields in a +bee-line for the woods. It was a vast relief to be out in the open air +with a gun upon his arm once more, and he felt his blood coursing +vigorously. The burden upon his spirits insensibly began to lighten. +After all, he had done nothing for which he needed to be ashamed the +rest of his life. Edith, of course, was right in being deeply offended. +That was to be expected. Yet his conduct, regrettable as it was, had +been only natural under the circumstances. Now that the first tumult of +feeling had subsided, he found that his conscience did not accuse him +very severely. + +And, somehow, he was unable to believe that the breach with Edith would +prove irreparable. She was a sensible woman of the world--not a mere +school-girl. Perhaps when the immediate shock of the occurrence had +passed she would consent to take a different view of it, and they might +return to their old friendly footing. If not--well, he would be his own +man soon, anyhow. Their lives would part, and the incident would be +forgotten. He was sorry that in his momentary madness he had behaved +improperly toward a woman to whom he owed so much, yet it was not as if +he had shown meanness or ingratitude. + +Across the meadows deep in grass he went, skirting little ponds and +marshy spots, growing more cheerful with every step. In one place he +had the good-luck to raise a flock of water birds, which he took for +purple gallinule and spur-wing plover, although they were unlike any he +had ever seen. In some scattered groves beyond he bagged a pigeon and +missed a quail which unexpectedly whirred out of a thicket. Then he +continued past herds of grazing cattle to another patch of woodland, +where he came upon something that looked like a path. Through rankly +growing banana-patches, yam-fields, and groves of mango-trees, he +followed it, penetrating ever deeper into the rolling country, until at +last he reached the real forest. He had come several miles, and +realized that he could not retrace his steps, for the trail had +branched many times; he had crossed other pathways and made many +devours. He rejoiced in the thought that he had successfully lost +himself. + +At midday he paused in an open glade against a hillside to eat his +lunch. Back of him the rising ground was heavily timbered; beneath him +a confusion of thickets and groves and cleared fields led out to a +green plain as clean as any golf links, upon which were scattered +dwellings. + +Evidently this was the Savannas of which he had heard so much, and +these foreign-looking bungalows were the country homes of the rich +Panamanians. Beyond, the bay stretched, in unruffled calm, like a sheet +of quicksilver, its bosom dotted with rocky islets, while hidden in the +haze to the southward, as he knew, were the historic Pearl Islands, +where the early Spaniards had enriched themselves. + +Gazing at this view in lazy enjoyment, Kirk found himself thinking how +good it was to be young and free, and to be set down in such a +splendidly romantic country. Above all, it was good to be heart-whole +and unfettered by any woman's spell--men in love were unhappy persons, +harassed by a thousand worries and indecisions, utterly lacking in +poise. It was a lamentable condition of hysteria with which he decided +to have nothing to do. He did not care for women, anyhow. One could +scarcely have any dealings with them without becoming involved in some +affair that unduly harrowed one's feelings. How much better it was to +know the clean spirit of adventure and the joy of living, undisturbed +by feverish emotions! + +As he reclined there, busied with these thoughts, two vivid little +paroquets alighted near him, to quarrel noisily, then make up and kiss +each other like any pair of lovers. It was disgusting. A toucan peered +at him with an appearance of exaggerated curiosity, due to its huge, +grotesquely proportioned beak. Now and then came the harsh notes of +parrots as they fluttered high above the tree-tops. Meanwhile the young +man's ears became attuned to the jungle noises, his eyes observant of +the many kinds of life about him. + +The wood was crowded with plant-life utterly strange to him. On the +hill above towered a giant ceiba-tree, its trunk as smooth as if +polished by hand and bare of branches except at the very top, where, +instead of tapering, it ended abruptly in a tuft of foliage. Here and +there stood tremendous cotton-trees, their limbs so burdened with +air-plants as to form a series of aerial gardens, their twigs bearing +pods filled with down. Beside them palm-trees raised their heads, heavy +with clusters of nuts resembling dates in size and form, but fit only +for wild pigs. Clumps of bamboo were scattered about, their shoots +springing from a common centre like the streams from a fountain, and +sweeping through graceful curves to a spray of shimmering green. He had +never seen such varieties of growth. There were thick trees with +bulbous swellings; tall trees with buttressed roots that ran high up +the trunks; slender trees propped up head-high above the earth on +tripod-like roots or clusters of legs; trees with bark that shone like +a mirror; trees guarded with an impregnable armor of six-inch bony +spikes--Kirk did not know the names of half of them, nor did he care to +learn. + +Vines and creepers abounded, from the tiny honeysuckle that reared +itself with feeble filaments, to the giant liana creeping through the +forest like a python, throttling full-grown trees in its embrace. On +every side was the never-ceasing battle for light and the struggle of +the weak against the strong. The air was heavy with the breath of +triumphant blooms and the odor of defeated, decaying life. A thousand +voiceless tragedies were being enacted; the wood was peopled by +distorted shapes that spoke of forgotten encounters; rich, riotous, +parasitic growths flourished upon starved limbs or rotting trunks. It +was weird and beautiful and pitiless. Unlike the peaceful order of our +Northern forests, here was a savage riot, an unending treacherous +warfare without light or room or mercy. There was something terrible in +it all. + +Tiring of the scene at last, Kirk continued his wanderings, bearing +gradually toward the right, that he might eventually emerge upon the +Savannas below, where he knew there was a good paved road leading to +the city. But the trails were devious and seemed to lead nowhere, so at +last he struck out through the jungle itself. Having no machete with +which to clear a way, his progress was slow, but he took his time, +keeping a wary outlook for game, twisting back and forth to avoid the +densest thickets, until he finally came out upon the margin of a +stream. Through the verdure beyond it he saw the open, sunlit meadows, +and he followed the bank in the hope of finding a foot-log or a bridge +upon which to cross. He had gone, perhaps, a hundred yards when he +stumbled out into a cleared space, where he paused with an exclamation +of surprise. + +The brook had been dammed and widened into a deep, limpid pool to which +the clean, white sand of its bottom lent a golden hue. At the lower end +it overflowed in a waterfall, the purling music of which filled the +glade. Overhead the great trees were arched together and interlaced, +their lower branches set with flowering orchids like hothouse plants +upon a window-ledge. The dense foliage allowed only a random beam of +sunlight to pass through and pierce the pool, like a brilliant, +quivering javelin. Long vines depended from the limbs above, falling +sheer and straight as plumb-lines; a giant liana the size of a man's +body twined up and up until lost in the tangle overhead. + +Although set just within the border of the untouched forest, it was +evident that this spot had been carefully cut away and artfully +cultivated. But, if man's hand had aided nature by a few deft touches +here and there and a careful pruning of her lavish riches, it could be +seen that no human artist had designed the wondrous stage effect. To +step suddenly out of an uncut wilderness into such a scene as this was +bewildering, and made the American gasp with delight. The place had an +air of strictest privacy. A spring-board mirrored in the depths below +invited one to plunge, a pair of iron gymnasium rings were swung by +chains to a massive limb, a flight of stone steps led up the bank and +into a hut artistically thatched and walled with palm-leaves to +harmonize with its setting. Kirk thanked his fortune that he had not +blundered in while the place was in use, for it had almost the sacred +air of a lady's boudoir. + +Instead of promptly withdrawing, he allowed his admiration full play, +and stood staring for a long time. What a delightful nook in which to +dream away the days! It was dim and cool and still, although outside +its walls of green the afternoon sun was beating down fiercely. A +stranger might pass and never guess its presence. It had been cunningly +shaped by fairies, that was evident. Doubtless it was peopled by them +also, and his mistake had been in coming upon it so suddenly. If he had +approached with caution he would surely have surprised them at their +play, for yonder was the music of their dances--that chuckling, singing +waterfall could serve no other purpose. Perhaps one was hidden under it +at present. Kirk was half tempted to conceal himself and wait for them +to reappear, though he knew that it requires extraordinary cunning to +deceive wood-sprites once they have been alarmed. But, undoubtedly, +they were somewhere close by, probably watching him from behind the +leaves, and if they were not such timid bodies he might try to search +them out. + +As it was, he took a lingering, farewell look and turned to retrace his +steps, whereupon the queen fairy laughed at him softly. He paused +abruptly, then turned around, with care, so as not to frighten her. But +of course she was invisible. Then she spoke again with the sweetest +foreign accent imaginable. + +"You had better cross upon the waterfall, sir. There is no bridge +above." After an instant, during which he strained his eyes to find +her, she laughed again. + +"Here I am, in the tree, across the pond." + +"Oh!" Looking over the fork of a tree-trunk, perhaps twice the height +of his head above the ground, Anthony beheld a ravishing face and two +very bright eyes. Without removing his gaze, he leaned his gun +carefully against a bush--firearms have an abominable effect upon +hamadryads--and said: + +"I knew you were here all the time." + +"Indeed!" The eyes opened in astonishment. "You did not see me at all." + +"Of course, but I knew you were somewhere close by, just the same. How +did you get up there?" + +"I climbed up." + +"Why didn't you hide under the waterfall?" + +"I did not hide, senor. I am trying to reach my orchid." + +A little hand appeared beside the face, and a finger pointed to one of +the big air plants above her. Kirk beheld a marvellous white, +dove-shaped flower, nodding upon a slender stalk. + +"I climbed up on the big vine; it is just like a ladder." + +"Then you can't be the queen!" + +Two very large, very dark eyes looked at him questioningly. + +"Queens don't pick flowers," he explained. "They hide in 'em." + +"The queen?" + +"Some of them live in trees, and some preside over lakes and fountains. +Which kind are you?" + +"Oh! I am neither, I live in my father's house." She tossed her head in +the direction of the Savannas behind her. "Do you wish to cross the +stream?" + +"If you please." + +"Wait." The face disappeared. There was a sound from behind the twisted +tree-trunk, a twig fell, then a piece of bark, and the next instant the +girl herself stepped into view. + +"I was afraid you'd gone for good," acknowledged the young man, +gravely. He took up his gun and stepped out upon the crest of the dam. + +"You must look where you go," she admonished, "or you will +fall--splash!" She laughed delightedly at the thought, and he saw that +her eyes had a way of wrinkling almost shut in the merriest fashion. He +balanced upon the slippery surface of the waterway with the stream up +to his ankles. + +"Will you promise not to whisk yourself away if I look down?" he asked. + +"Yes." + +But even with this assurance he found it difficult to remove his eyes +from her even for the brief instant necessary for a safe passage; and +when at last he stood beside her he felt an irresistible desire to +seize her gently so that she could not escape. + +"Well?" she said at length, and he found he had been standing +stock-still staring at her for several seconds. + +"Excuse me! I really took you for a wood-nymph. I'm not sure yet--you +see the place is so well suited. It--it was a natural mistake." + +She dropped her eyes shyly and turned away at his look. + +"It is only our swimming-pool. There have been no fairies here since I +was a very little girl. But once upon a time there were many--oh, a +great many." It was impossible to describe the odd, sweet sound her +tongue gave to the English words. It was not a dialect, hardly an +accent, just a delicious, hesitating mannerism born of unfamiliarity. + +"Did you ever see them?" + +"N-no! I arrived always a little too late. But there are such things." + +He nodded. "Everybody knows that since 'Peter Pan.'" + +Another shy glance told her that he was still regarding her with his +look of wondering admiration. She pointed to a path, saying: + +"This way will bring you to the road, sir, if you wish." + +"But--I don't wish--not yet." He sought wildly for an excuse to stay, +and exclaimed: "Oh, the orchid. I must get it for you." + +"That will be very nice of you, sir. For two years I have awaited its +blooming. If you had not arrived I would have got it, anyhow." + +"Girls shouldn't climb trees," he said, severely. "It tears their +dresses." + +"Oh, one cannot tear a dress like this." She glanced down at her skirt. +Allowing his eyes to leave her face for a moment, Kirk saw that she was +clad, oddly enough, in a suit of denim, which was buttoned snugly clear +to her neck. It struck him as most inappropriate, yet it was extremely +well made, and he could not complain of the effect. + +He broke his gun and removed the shells; then, leaving it beside the +bath-house, went to the tree where he had first seen her. With one hand +resting upon the trunk, he turned to say: + +"Promise you won't disappear while I'm up there, or change into a +squirrel, or a bird, or anything like that." + +"What a funny man you are!" + +"Do you promise?" + +"Yes, yes." + +"Do you live around here?" + +"Of course." + +"Why do you want this orchid?" + +"To put it in the house." + +Instead of beginning his climb, the young man lounged idly against the +tree. + +"Funny how I found you, wasn't it?" he remarked. "I mean it's funny I +should have stumbled right on you this way--there's only one of you and +one of me, and--er--this country is so big! I might have gone some +other way and then perhaps we'd never have met." He contemplated this +contingency for an instant. "And if you hadn't spoken I'd never have +seen you, either." + +"But I had to speak. You could not cross above." + +"Awfully nice of you. Some people would have let me go away." + +"But the orchid, senor. Do you fear to climb so high?" she inquired, +with the faintest gleam of amusement at his obvious effort to prolong +the conversation. + +"Oh no!" + +He cast about for something further to talk about, but, failing to find +it, began slowly to clamber upward, supporting himself upon the natural +steps afforded by the twining vine and the protuberances of the trunk +itself. + +When he had reached the first fork, he turned and seated himself +comfortably, peering downward through the leaves for a sight of her. + +"Not gone yet!" he exclaimed. "That's good." + +"Are you out of breath that you stop so soon?" + +He nodded. "I need to rest a minute. Say, my name is Anthony--Kirk +Anthony." Then, after a pause, "I'm an American." + +"So am I, at least I am almost. My mother was an American." + +"You don't say!" The young man's face lighted up with interest, and he +started eagerly down the tree-trunk, but she checked him promptly. + +"The orchid!" + +"Oh yes!" He reseated himself. "Well, well, I suppose your mother +taught you to speak English?" + +"I also attended school in Baltimore." + +Anthony dangled his legs from his perch and brushed aside a troublesome +prickly pod that depended in such a position as to tickle his neck. +"I'm from Yale. Ever been to New Haven? What are you laughing at?" + +"At you. Do you know what it is which you are fighting from your neck?" + +"This?" Kirk succeeded in locating the nettle that had annoyed him. + +"Yes. It is cow-eetch. Wait! By-and-by you will scratch like +everything." The young lady laughed with the most mischievous, elf-like +enjoyment of this prospect. + +"All right. Just for that, I will wait." + +Now that the first surprise of meeting was over, Kirk began a really +attentive scrutiny of this delightful young person. So far he had been +conscious of little except her eyes, which had exercised a most +remarkable effect upon him from the first. He had never cared for black +eyes--they were too hard and sparkling, as a rule--but these--well, he +had never seen anything quite like them. They were large and soft and +velvety, like--like black pansies! That was precisely what they were, +saucy, wide-awake black pansies, the most beautiful flower in all +creation; and, while they were shadowed by the intangible melancholy of +the tropics, they were also capable of twinkling in the most roguish +manner imaginable, as at the present moment. Her hair was soft and +fine, entirely free from the harsh lustre so common to that shade, and +it grew down upon her temples in a way that completed the perfect oval +of her face. His first glimpse had told him she was ravishingly pretty, +but it had failed to show how dainty and small she was. He saw now that +she was considerably below the usual height, but so perfectly +proportioned that one utterly lost perspective. Even her thick, coarse +dress could not conceal the exquisite mould in which she was cast. But +her chief charm lay in a certain winsome vivacity, a willful +waywardness, an ever-changing expression which showed her keenly alive +and appreciative. Even now pure mischief looked out of her eyes as she +asked: + +"Have you rested enough to attack the orchid?" + +"Yes." He roused himself from his trance, and with a strangely leaping +heart proceeded carefully to detach the big air plant from its +resting-place. The wonderful flower, nodding to his touch, was no more +perfect than this dryad whom he had surprised. + +"Don't break it," she cautioned as he came gingerly down the tree. "It +is what we call 'Espiritu Santa,' the 'Holy Spirit' flower. See, it is +like a white bird." + +"First one I've seen," he said, noting how the purity of the bloom +enhanced the olive of her cheek. Then he began another fruitless search +for a topic of conversation, fearing that if he allowed the slightest +pause she would send him away. But all his thoughts were of her, it +seemed. His tongue would frame nothing but eager questions--all about +herself. At last in desperation he volunteered to get another orchid; +but the suggestion met with no approval. There were no more, she told +him, of that kind. + +"Maybe we can find one," he said, hopefully. + +"Thank you. I know them all." She was looking at him now as if +wondering why he did not make a start, but wild horses could not have +dragged him away. Instead of picking up his gun, he inquired: + +"May I rest a moment? I'm awfully tired." + +"Certainly. You may stay as long as you wish. When you are rested the +little path will bring you out." + +"But you mustn't go!" he exclaimed, in a panic, as she turned away. +"Oh, I say, please! You wouldn't do a thing like that?" + +"I cannot speak to you this way, sir." The young lady blushed prettily. + +"Why not, I'd like to know?" + +"Oh!" She raised her hand and shook her head to express the absolute +impossibility of such a thing. "Already I have been terrible. What will +Stephanie say?" + +"You've been nothing of the sort, and who is Stephanie?" + +"She is a big black woman--very fierce. It is because of Stephanie that +the fairies have gone away from here." + +"If we wait a minute, maybe they'll come out." + +"No. I have waited many times and I never saw them." + +"Somehow I feel sure we'll see 'em this time," he urged. Then, as she +shook her head doubtfully: "Good heavens! Don't you want to see 'em? +I'm so tired that I must sit down." + +The corners of her eyes wrinkled as she said, "You are not very strong, +senor. Have you been ill?" + +"Yes--no. Not exactly." He led her to a bamboo bench beside the palm +hut. "I've been hunting. Now won't you please tell me how you chanced +to be here? I thought these country places were unoccupied at this +season." + +"So they are. But, you see, I am doing a penance." + +"Penance! You?" + +"Oh yes. And it is nothing to laugh about, either," she chided, as he +smiled incredulously, "I am a bad girl; I am disobedient. Otherwise I +would not allow you to speak to me alone like this. You are the first +gentleman I have ever been so long in the company with, Senor Antonio." + +"Really?" + +"Now I will have to do more penance." She sighed sadly, but her eyes +were dancing. + +"I don't understand this penance affair. What do you do?" + +She lifted a fold of her coarse denim dress. "For six months I must +wear these garments--no pretty ones. I must not go out in public also, +and I have been sent here away from the city for a time to cure my +rebellious spirit." + +"Those dresses must be hot." + +"Oh, very uncomfortable! But, you see, I was bad." + +"Not very bad?" + +"Indeed. I disobeyed my father, my uncle, everybody." For the first +time her eyes grew bright with anger. "But I did not wish to be +married." + +"Now, I see. They wanted you to marry some fellow you don't like?" + +"I do like him--" + +"You did exactly right to refuse. By all means stand pat, and don't--" + +"'Stand pat.' I have not heard that word since I was in Baltimore." + +"It's awful to marry somebody you don't like," he declared, with such +earnest conviction that she inquired, quickly: + +"Ah, then are you married?" + +"No! But everybody says it's positively criminal to marry without love." + +"The gentleman is very handsome." + +He shuddered, "Beware of handsome men. If you have any idea of +marriage, select a large, plain man with blue eyes and light hair." + +"I do not know such a person." + +"Not yet, of course; that is, not well enough to marry him." + +"It is not nice to speak of such things," said the young lady, primly. +"And it is not nice also to speak with strange gentlemen who come out +of the forest when one is doing penance. But I am a half American, you +know. Perhaps that is what makes me so bad." + +"Will you catch it for talking to me?" + +"Oh yes. It is not allowed. It is most improper." + +"Then I suppose I'd better leave." Anthony settled himself more +comfortably upon the bench. "And yet there is nothing really wrong +about it, is there? Why, it's done every day in my country. Besides, +who's going to know?" + +"The padre. I tell him everything." + +"You girls down here have a pretty tough time of it; you are guarded +pretty closely, aren't you?" + +She gave him a puzzled look. + +"I mean, you don't have any liberty. You don't go out alone, or let +fellows take you to lunch, or to the matinee, or anything like that?" + +Evidently the mere mention of such things was shocking. "Oh, senor," +she cried, incredulously, "such terrible actions cannot be permitted +even in your country. It is awful to think of!" + +"Nonsense! It's done every day." + +"Here it would not do at all. One's people know best about such things. +One must be careful at all times. But you Americans are so wicked!" + +"How does a fellow ever get acquainted with a girl down here? How does +he get a chance to propose?" + +But this frank questioning on so sacred a topic was a little more than +the young lady was prepared to meet, and for the moment confusion held +her tongue-tied. + +"One's people attend to that, of course," she managed to say, at +length, then changed the subject quickly. + +"Do you live in Panama?" she asked. + +"Yes. I work on the railroad, or will, in a few days." + +"You are so young for such authority. It must be very difficult to +manage railroads." + +"Well--I won't have to run the whole works--at first. I'm beginning +gradually, you know--one train at a time." + +"That will be easier, of course. What did you say is your whole name?" + +"Kirk Anthony." + +"Keerk! It has a fonny sound, has it not?" + +"I never noticed it. And yours?" + +"Do you speak Spanish?" She regarded him curiously. + +"Not a word." + +"My name is Chiquita." + +He repeated it after her. "It's pretty. What is your last name?" + +"That is it. If I told you my first name, you could not use it; it +would not be proper." + +"It ought to be something like Ariel. That means 'spirit of the air and +water,' I believe. Ariel Chiquita. No, they don't go together. What are +you laughing at?" + +"To see you scratch your neck." + +Anthony became conscious of a growing sensation where the strange pod +had dangled against his skin, and realized that he had been rubbing the +spot for some time. + +"You did not know it was the cow-nettle, eh?" + +"You enjoy seeing me suffer," he said, patiently. + +"You do not soffer," she retorted, mimicking his tone. "You only eetch! +You wish me to sympathize." + +"See here, Miss Chiquita, may I call on you?" + +"Oh!" She lifted her brows in amazement. "Such ideas! Of a certainly +not." + +"Why?" + +"You do not onderstand. Our young men do not do those things." + +"Then I'll do whatever is customary--really I will, but--I'm awfully +anxious to see you again--and--' + +"I do not know you--My father--" + +"I'll look up Mr. Chiquita and be introduced." + +At this the young lady began to rock back and forth in an abandon of +merriment. The idea, it seemed, was too utterly ridiculous for words. +Her silvery laughter filled the glade and caused the jealous waterfall +to cease its music. + +"No, no," she said, finally. "It is impossible. Besides, I am doing +penance. I can see no one. In the city I cannot even sit upon the +balcony." She fetched a palpably counterfeit sigh, which ended in a +titter. + +Never had Kirk beheld such a quaintly mischievous, such a madly +tantalizing creature. + +"Say! You're not really going to marry that fellow!" he exclaimed, with +considerable fervor. + +She shrugged her shoulders wearily. "I suppose so. One cannot forever +say no, and there are many reasons--" + +"Oh, that's the limit. You'll go nutty, married to a chap you don't +care for." + +"But I am naughty, now." + +"Not 'naughty'--nutty. You'll be perfectly miserable. There ought to be +a law against it. Let me call and talk it over, at least. I know all +about marriage--I've been around so many married people. Promise?" + +"I cannot let you 'call,' as you say. Besides, for two weeks yet I must +remain here alone with Stephanie." She regarded him mournfully. "Every +day I must do my penance, and think of my sins, and--perhaps look for +orchids." + +He saw the light that flickered in the depths of her velvet eyes, and +his heart pounded violently at the unspoken invitation. + +"To-morrow?" he inquired, breathlessly. "Do you intend to hunt orchids +to-morrow?" + +Instead of answering she started to her feet with a little cry, and he +did likewise. Back of them had sounded an exclamation--it was more like +the snort of a wild animal than a spoken word--and there, ten feet +away, stood a tall, copper-colored negress, her eyes blazing, her +nostrils dilated, a look of utmost fury upon her face. She was fully as +tall as Kirk, gaunt, hook-nosed, and ferocious. About her head was +bound a gaudy Barbadian head-dress, its tips erect like startled ears, +increasing the wildness of her appearance. + +"Stephanie!" exclaimed the girl. "You frightened me." + +The negress strode to her, speaking rapidly in Spanish, then turned +upon Kirk. + +"What do you want here?" she cried, menacingly. She had thrust her +charge behind her and now pierced him with her eyes. + +"Miss Chiquita--" he began, at which that young lady broke into another +peal of silvery laughter and chattered to her servant. But her words, +instead of placating the black woman, only added to her fury. She +pointed with quivering hand to the path along the creek-bank and cried: + +"Go! Go quick, you man!" Then to her charge: "You bad, BAD! Go to the +house." + +"Miss Chiquita hasn't done anything to make you huffy. I came out of +the woods yonder and she was good enough to direct me to the road." + +But Stephanie was not to be appeased. She stamped her flat foot and +repeated her command in so savage a tone that Kirk perceived the +uselessness of trying to explain. He looked appealingly at the girl, +but she merely nodded her head and motioned him to be gone. + +"Very well," he said, regretfully. "Thank you for your assistance, +miss." He bowed to the little figure in blue with his best manner and +took up his gun. "This way out! No crowding, please." + +"Adios, Senor Antonio," came the girl's mischievous voice, and as he +strode down the path he carried with him the memory of a perfect oval +face smiling at him past the tragic figure of the Bajan woman. He went +blindly, scarcely aware of the sun-mottled trail his feet were +following, for his wits were a-flutter and his heart was leaping to +some strange intoxication that grew with every instant. + +It threatened to suffuse him, choke him, rob him of his senses; he +wanted to cry out. Her name was Chiquita. He repeated it over and over +in time to his steps. Was there ever such a beautiful name? Was there +ever such a ravishing little wood-sprite? And her sweet, hesitating +accent that rang in his ears! How could human tongue make such +caressing music of the harshest language on the globe? She had called +him "Senor Antonio," and invited him to come again to-morrow. Would he +come? He doubted his ability to wait so long. Knowing that she agreed +to the tryst, no power on earth could deter him. + +What a day it had been! He had started out in the morning, vaguely +hoping to divert his mind with some of those trite little happenings +that for lack of a better term we call adventures in this humdrum +world. And then, with the miraculous, unbelievable luck of youth, he +had stumbled plump into the middle of the most wondrous adventure it +was possible to conceive. And yet this wasn't adventure, after all--it +was something bigger, finer, more precious. With a suddenness that was +blinding he realized that he was in love! Yes, that was it, beyond the +shadow of a doubt. This mischief-ridden, foreign-born little creature +was the one and only woman in the world for whom the fates had made him +and brought him across two oceans. + +That evening he sat for a long time alone on the gallery of his hotel, +his spirit uplifted with the joy of it, a thousand whispering voices in +his ears. And when at last he fell asleep it was to dream of an olive, +oval face with eyes like black pansies. + + + + +XIV + +THE PATH THAT LED NOWHERE + + +When "Senor Antonio" awoke the next morning he lay for an instant +striving to recall what it was that had haunted his sleeping hours, +what great event awaited him. Then, as it rushed through his mind, he +leaped out of bed and dashed headlong into the bath-room. This was +to-morrow! It had been ages in coming--he recalled how even his +slumbers had dragged--but it was here at last, and he would see +Chiquita. + +He sang as he stepped under his shower, and whistled blithely as he +dressed himself. What a glorious country this Panama was, anyhow! How +good it was to be young and to be in love! He never had been so happy. +A man must be in love to sing before breakfast. But the afternoon was +still a long way off, and he must be content to dream until the hour +came. + +He was too early for the Cortlandts, and he breakfasted alone. When he +strolled out upon the veranda for his smoke he found Allan waiting for +him, as usual. The Jamaican had not missed a morning so far, and it was +only by a show of downright firmness that Kirk had been able to get rid +of him at any time during the day. The black boy seemed bent upon +devoting his every waking hour to his hero, and now, finding himself +regarded with friendly eyes, he expanded joyously. + +"Got you some games yesterday?" he inquired. + +"Yes. And I'm going again to-day." + +"Plenty games over yonder is, but it is very fatiguing to get them. +To-day I go along for showing you the way." + +"Not a bit like it. I'm going alone." + +"Oh no, boss!" + +"Oh yes, boss! I accidentally shot the last man I hunted with--killed +him." Kirk stared tragically at his companion, but Allan was not to be +so easily deterred. + +"I shall pahss behind you, boss." + +"I'd love to have you, of course--but I'm too careless." + +"Praise God, you must not go h'alone in that case, or something will +befall you! I shall h'imitate the birds and call them out before you to +fire at." + +"Fire AT! I don't fire at things, I hit 'em." + +"Yes, sar. In that case we shall procure plenty of games." + +"See here! I'm going alone, understand? I have an engagement with a +Naiad." + +"'Ow much a month will you be getting for such h'engagements?" + +"Naiads don't pay in money, they give you smiles and kind words." + +"Better you continue then as train collector. There is great +h'opportunity for stealing." + +"My job won't be ready for a few days, and meanwhile I have become a +huntsman. I intend to go out every afternoon." + +"H'afternoons is no good for wild h'animals; they are sleeping. Walk +they in the h'early morning, for the most part, very quietly." + +"That's true of some wood creatures, but the kind I hunt dance along +the edges of pools in the afternoon. Say, did you ever feel like +dancing?" + +"No, sar." + +"Come around on the back porch and I'll teach you a buck-step. I feel +too good to sit still." + +But Allan refused this proffer firmly. Such frivolous conduct was +beneath his dignity. + +"I 'ave h'important things to disclose," he said, mysteriously. + +"Indeed." + +"Yes, sar. Last night I dreamed." + +"You've got nothing on me; so did I." + +"I am walking on the h'edge of the h'ocean when I h'encountered a +whale--a 'uge whale." + +"Swam ashore to rest, I suppose?" + +"No, sar; he was dead. It was very vivid." + +"Well, what has a vivid dead whale to do with me?" + +"This!" Allan brought forth a sheet of paper, which he unfolded +carefully. "There is the number--the 'fish number,' sar." + +"Why, this is a Chinese lottery advertisement." + +"I got it for the very purpose. It would pay us to h'invest some money +on the 'fish number.'" + +"Nonsense! I don't believe in dreams. You say yourself they are false." + +"Never such a dream as this, boss. It was very vivid." + +"I've got no money." + +Allan folded the paper disconsolately and thrust it into his pocket. +"It is fartunate h'indeed," said he, "that you will be working soon, +Master h'Auntony. And those P. R. R. was very fartunate also for +getting you to h'accept a position, very fartunate h'indeed." + +"Do you think I will raise the standard of efficiency?" + +"Most of those railroad persons are vile people. They threw me h'off +the train with such violence that my joints are very stiff and +h'inflamed. I should h'enjoy being boss over them for a while." + +"Why don't you ask for a job?" + +"I have decided to do so, and I am asking you now for an h'engagement +as brakesman." + +"I can't hire you. Go to the office." + +"Probably there are h'already brakesmen on your train." + +"I have no doubt." + +"In that case I shall ride with you as private person." + +"Ride back and forth every day?" + +"Those are my h'expectations, sar." + +"That costs money." + +"You will be collector," remarked the negro, calmly. "I should like to +see those train people h'expel me, in that case." + +"Well! I can see trouble ahead for one of us," laughed Anthony. "They +don't allow 'dead-heads.'" + +But Allan replied with unshaken confidence: "Then you should secure for +me a pahss." + +Kirk found it extremely difficult to escape from his persistent shadow +that afternoon, and he succeeded only after a display of armed +resistance. + +It was the hottest part of the day when he set out, gun on arm, yet he +never thought of the discomfort. After skirting the city, he swung into +the fine macadam road that had brought him home the night before, and +much sooner than he expected he arrived at the little path that led +into the forest. He knew that he was trespassing again, and the +knowledge added to his delight. As quickly as possible he lost himself +in the grateful shade and followed the stream-bank with beating heart. +His head was full of vague hopes and plans. He meant to learn the true +story of Miss Chiquita's penance and find some means of winning her +away from that other lover, of whom he had already thought more than +once. He determined to make his love known without delay and establish +himself as a regular suitor. + +As upon the previous day, he broke into the glade before he suspected +its presence, to find the same golden light-beams flickering in the +shadowed depths and to hear the little waterfall chuckling at his +surprise. There was the tree from which she had called to him, yonder +the bench where they had sat together. + +Of course, he was too early--he wanted to be, in order not to miss an +instant of her company, so he seated himself and dreamed about her. The +minutes dragged, the jungle drowsed. An hour passed. A thousand fresh, +earthy odors breathed around him, and he began to see all sorts of +flowers hidden away in unsuspected places. From the sunlit meadows +outside came a sound of grazing herds, the deep woods faintly echoed +the harsh calls of tropic birds, but at the pool itself a sleepy +silence brooded. + +Once a chattering squirrel came bravely rustling through the branches +to the very edge of the enchanted bower, but he only sat and stared a +moment in seeming admiration, then retreated quietly. A yellow-beaked +toucan, in a flash of red and black and gold, settled upon a mirrored +limb; but it, too, stilled its raucous tongue and flitted away on +noiseless pinions as if the Naiads were asleep. + +In the moist earth beside the bench Anthony saw the print of a dainty +boot, no longer than his palm, and he promptly fell into a rhapsody. +What tiny hands and feet she had, to be sure, and such a sweetly +melancholy face! Yet she was anything but grave and gloomy. Why, the +sunlight dancing on that waterfall was no more mischievous and merry +than she. The slight suggestion of sadness she conveyed was but the +shadow of the tropic mystery or the afterglow of the tragedy that had +played so large a part in this country's history. The fact that she was +half American perhaps accounted for her daring, yet, whatever the other +strain, it could not be ignoble. Mrs. Cortlandt's figure of the silver +threads in a rotting altar-cloth recurred to him with peculiar force. + +But why didn't she come? A sudden apprehension overtook him, which grew +and grew as the afternoon wore away. + +It was a very miserable young man who wandered out through the fragrant +path, as the first evening shadows settled, and bent his dejected steps +toward the city. Evidently something had occurred to prevent her +keeping her tryst, but he determined to return on the morrow, and then +if she did not come to follow that other path right up to the house, +where he would risk everything for a word with her. He wondered if she +had stayed away purposely to test him, and the thought gave him a +thrill. If so, she would soon learn that he was in earnest; she would +find him waiting there every afternoon and--after all, why confine +himself to the afternoon when she was just as likely to appear in the +morning? He resolved to go hunting earlier hereafter, and give the +whole day to it. Meanwhile, he would make cautious inquiries. + +It was considerably after dark when he reached the hotel, and his +friends had dined; but he encountered Mr. Cortlandt later. If Edith's +husband suspected anything of what had occurred a night or two ago, his +countenance gave no sign of it. For some reason or other, Kirk had not +been troubled in the slightest by the thought that Cortlandt might be +told. He could not imagine Edith making him the confidant of her +outraged feelings. Besides, would such a strangely impassive person +resent any little indiscretion in which his wife might choose to +indulge? Kirk did not know--the man was a puzzle to him. + +Cortlandt's voice was thoroughly non-committal as he inquired: + +"Where have you been keeping yourself?" + +"I've been hunting, to kill time." + +"Any luck?" + +"No, none at all. I started too late, I guess." + +"By-the-way," continued the other, "your friend Allan has been +besieging Edith, imploring her to use her influence to get him a +position. He has set his heart upon going to work with you." + +"He is becoming a positive nuisance. I can't get rid of him." + +"I never saw such hero-worship." + +"Oh, all niggers are hysterical." + +"Let me give you a bit of advice, Anthony. Remember there are no +'niggers' and 'whites' in this country--they are both about equal. The +President of the republic is a black man, and a very good one, too." + +"That reminds me. I hear he is to be succeeded by the father of my +friend, Alfarez." + +Cortlandt hesitated. "General Alfarez is a candidate. He is a very +strong man, but--" + +"I am glad there is a 'but.'" + +"It isn't settled, by any means. The successful candidate will need the +support of our government." + +"I suppose the Alfarez family is one of the first settlers--Mayflower +stock?" + +"Oh, worse than that. The name runs back to Balboa's time. General +Alfarez is very rich, and very proud of his ancestry. That is one thing +that makes him so strong with the people." + +"What are some of the other leading families?" Kirk artfully inquired. + +"There are a number. The Martinezes, the Moras, the Garavels--I +couldn't name them all. They are very fine people, too." + +"Do you know the Chiquitas?" + +Cortlandt's face relaxed in an involuntary smile. + +"There is no such family. Who has been teaching you Spanish?" + +"Really, isn't there?" + +"'Chiquita' means 'very small,' 'little one,' 'little girl,' or +something like that. It's not a family name, it's a term of endearment, +usually." + +Kirk remembered now how the girl's eyes had danced when she asked him +if he spoke her language. It was just like her to tease him, and yet +what a pretty way to conceal her identity! + +"What made you take it for a proper name?" + +"A-a little girl told me." + +"Oh, naturally. All children are 'Chiquitas' or +'Chiquitos'--everything, in fact, that is a pet." + +Kirk felt somewhat uncomfortable under the older man's gaze of quiet +amusement. + +"But these other families," he went on in some confusion--"I mean the +ones like those you just mentioned--they sometimes intermarry with +Americans, don't they?" + +"No, not the better class. There have been a few instances, I believe, +but for the most part they keep to themselves." + +"How would a fellow set about meeting the nice people." + +"He wouldn't. He would probably live here indefinitely and never see +the inside of a Panamanian house." + +"But there must be some way," the young man exclaimed in desperation. +"There must be dances, parties--" + +"Of course, but Americans are not invited. The men are easy to get +acquainted with, charming, courteous, gentlemanly, but I dare say you +will leave Panama without so much as meeting their wives or sisters. +But why this consuming curiosity? Has some senorita struck your fancy?" + +In spite of his effort to appear unconcerned, Kirk felt that he looked +abominably self-conscious. Without waiting for a reply, Cortlandt +continued to give him information as if he enjoyed it. + +"I suppose one reason why so few Americans marry Panamanians is that +our men like at least to get acquainted with their brides before +marriage, and that is impossible in this country. A man never sees a +girl alone, you know. When he calls to court her he wooes the whole +family, who vote on him, so to speak. That doesn't appeal to us who +originated the mother-in-law joke. There aren't many Northern chaps who +would consent to select a wife by pointing her out like a bolt of +calico on a top shelf." + +Kirk suddenly realized to the full how egregious his request to call +must have appeared to the Spanish girl. What a fool he had been, to be +sure! For a moment he lost himself in a contemplation of the +difficulties so unexpectedly presented. He was brought to himself by +the words: + +"--to-morrow you will go to work." + +"What's that?" he broke forth in a panic. "I can't go to work +to-morrow; I'm going hunting." + +Cortlandt eyed him curiously. + +"I didn't say to-morrow. I said Runnells 'phoned that he would be ready +for you day after to-morrow. What is the matter with you? Have you lost +your head over shooting, or don't you care to work?" + +"Oh, neither," he said, hastily. "I merely misunderstood you. Of +course, the sooner the better." + +"Yes, as you say, the sooner the better," said Cortlandt, with a shade +of meaning. "Well, good-night, and good-luck to you in your shooting!" + +It was with much less self-assurance that Kirk set out again on the +next morning, for this was his last day of grace, and he realized that +unless he accomplished something definite it might be a considerable +time before he could continue his quest. In view of what the girl had +said regarding her engagement, delays seemed particularly dangerous. + +He haunted the vicinity of the meeting-place all the morning, but no +one came, and a heavy shower at midday drove him into the palm-thatched +hut for shelter. When it had passed he put an end to his indecision and +boldly took the other path. At least he would find out where she lived +and who she was. But once again he was disappointed. The trail led out +through the grove to the rain-drenched pasture, where it disappeared, +and, instead of one house, he saw three, half hidden in foliage and all +facing in the opposite direction. They stood upon the crest of a hill +fronting the road, and he realized that the pool might be the +bathing-place for the inmates of one or all of them. + +Up past the grazing stock he went and around to the front of the +nearest residence, which proved to be a low, rambling, bungalow affair +with many outhouses smothered in a profusion of vines and fruit-trees. +Evidently it was unoccupied, for heavy wooden shutters barricaded the +windows, and no one answered his knock, although some pigeons perched +upon the tile roof cooed at him in a friendly manner. He struck across +lots to the next house, but met with no better success, and he +approached the third dwelling with a certain hesitation, for it was his +last chance. It was more pretentious than the rest, and stood proudly +upon the highest point of the ridge, up which ran a private road +guarded by twin rows of stately royal palms, whose perfectly rounded +trunks seemed to have been turned upon some giant lathe. The house +itself was large, square, and double-galleried. It was shaded by lofty +hard-wood trees and overlooked a sort of formal garden, now badly in +need of care. The road was of shell, and where it entered the grounds +passed through a huge iron gate suspended upon concrete pillars. The +whole place had an air of wealth and exclusiveness. + +Here, too, the windows stared at him blindly, and he saw no evidence of +occupation; yet he advanced and pounded vigorously on the door. Failing +to rouse any one, he paused to take a general view of the surroundings. +Scattered upon every side were other winter homes, some bleaching +nakedly in the open, others peeping out from luxuriant groves, some +mean and poor, others really beautiful and impressive. He knew that he +was in the heart of Panama's exclusive winter colony, where her wealthy +residents came to avoid the heat. + +Unwilling to acknowledge himself beaten, he plodded from one place to +another, calling at all the nearest houses, finding most of them +locked, and begging a glass of water where he chanced to be more +fortunate. Nowhere did he see the girl or the Barbadian woman, nowhere +did he receive an intelligible answer to his questions. The caretakers +looked upon him with suspicion, and made it known that he was +unwelcome, while their women retreated at sight of him. Even the +children were unfriendly. Once, indeed, he heard the name that had been +ringing so steadily in his ears, and it gave him a wild thrill until he +discovered that it was only a negress calling to her child. Afterward +it seemed that he heard it everywhere. On his disconsolate journey home +it was spoken twenty times, being applied indifferently to dogs, cats, +parrots, and naked youngsters, each mention causing him to start and +listen. + +Whether the girl had been playing with him, or whether she had been +prevented from keeping her word, was of little moment now. He loved her +and he intended to have her! He shut his teeth grimly and made a vow to +find her if he had to invade every home in Las Savannas, or pull apart +the walls of Panama. + + + + +XV + +ALIAS JEFFERSON LOCKE + + +It was fortunate for Kirk, on the whole, that his last expedition had +proved a failure, for his methods were none of the most discreet; and +it was as well, perhaps, that his work on the railroad intervened to +prevent further wild incursions. + +He was detailed to ride No. 2, which left Panama at 6.35, returning on +No. 7, which arrived at 7.00 P.M. For a few days he made the run in +company with the train collector, whose position he was destined to +fill; and, as the duties were by no means difficult, he quickly +mastered them. He had quarters assigned to him, and regretfully took +leave of his luxurious room and bath at the Tivoli. He also donned cap +and linen uniform, and became an insignificant, brass-tagged unit in +the army of Canal workers. Ordinarily he would have resented this loss +of individuality, but the novelty of the thing appealed to him, and he +brought a great good-nature to his work, deriving sufficient amusement +from it to prevent it from growing tiresome. + +For a time it offended his fastidious taste to be forced to elbow his +way through superheated coaches jammed with shrieking, cackling, +incoherent negroes. They were all utterly hysterical, and apparently +possessed but one stubborn idea--to refuse payments of fares. But in +time he grew to enjoy even this. + +He was glad of his new-found independence, moreover, for, though it did +not cancel his obligation to the Cortlandts, it made him feel it less +keenly. As for his quarters, they were quite tolerable--about the same +as he had had at boarding-school, he reflected, and the meals were +better. They were not quite up to Sherry's or Martin's, it was true, +but they cost only thirty cents, and that had advantages. Certainly he +could not complain of a lack of incident in his new life. On his first +trip to Colon and back he had nine disputes and two fights, and threw +one man off--a record achievement, he was told, for a beginner. + +A further diversion was furnished by Allan, who appeared early in the +morning and all but assaulted the gateman, who refused to let him pass +without a ticket. It took the entire station force to prevent him from +starting for Colon as Kirk's guest. He considered it a matter of course +that his friend should offer him the courtesies of the road, and he +went away at last, wofully disappointed but not discouraged. + +On the evening of that eventful day, instead of returning to his new +quarters, Kirk proceeded to walk the streets in search of a certain +face. He strolled through the plazas; he idled in front of the most +pretentious residences; he tramped wearily back and forth through +dim-lit, narrow streets, gazing up at windows and balconies, harkening +for the tone of a voice or the sound of a girl's laughter. But he was +without the slightest success, and it was very late when he finally +retired, to dream, as usual, of Chiquita. + +Several days passed, and he began to feel a little dull. He was making +no progress in his quest, and he did feel the lack of congenial +society. Then one evening there came a note from Edith Cortlandt +briefly requesting him to come and see her. + +He was a little surprised, yet he was conscious of a certain relief. He +had not felt like intruding upon her with further explanations and +apologies; but since she wished him to come--perhaps they could meet, +after all, in a natural way. He wanted to get rid of the wretched +misunderstanding that lay between them. If he were to leave the country +that night never to return, he would want to feel that he had parted on +good terms with the woman who had befriended him. + +Promptly at eight o'clock he presented himself. + +"I'm a laboring man now," he said, as he stood before her, "and I +usually hold my cap in my hand and shuffle my feet when talking to +ladies. Pray excuse my embarrassment." + +She did not respond to the lightness of his tone. Her glance seemed +intended to warn him that she meant to be serious. + +"I suppose you are wondering why I sent for you," she remarked, after a +perceptible interval, and Kirk felt instantly that their old relations +could not at once be resumed. "I have discovered something very +important, and I felt that you ought to know." + +"Thank you," said Kirk, humbly. "It was very kind." + +"You see," she went on, with a certain hesitancy, "you confided your +story to me so frankly I felt under a certain obligation." She made a +little dramatic pause. "I've discovered who Jefferson Locke is!" + +"No! Who is he?" Kirk was instantly all attention, for the announcement +came as something of a shock. He had almost forgotten Locke. + +"His real name is Frank Wellar, and he is an absconder. He was a +broker's clerk in St. Louis, and he made off with something like eighty +thousand dollars in cash." + +"Good heavens!" said Anthony. "How did you find out?" + +"A bundle of New York papers--they came to-day." + +"Where did they catch him?" + +"They haven't caught him. He has disappeared completely--that's the +strangest part of it. Your detective didn't die, after all." + +"He recovered, did he? I'm mighty glad of that." + +"Yes, but you aren't out of the woods yet. I can't understand why the +police haven't discovered your whereabouts. You left New York openly +under the name of Locke--" + +"Perhaps it was so easy they overlooked it." He smiled ruefully. "I'd +hate to be arrested just now when I'm getting to be such a good +conductor." + +"Don't worry about that until the time comes. I'll get you the papers +later." She showed no immediate intention of rising, however, but sat +regarding her visitor with slightly heightened color. He began to feel +embarrassed. It seemed to be his fate to receive benefits at this +woman's hand, whether he willed it or not. + +He got to his feet with an effort, and said, looking down upon her: + +"I must go now; but first I want to make you feel how grateful I am for +your kindness and for your continued trust in me. I haven't deserved +it, I know, but--" He turned as if to leave, but faced her again as he +heard her pronounce his name. He was surprised to see that there were +tears in her eyes. + +"Kirk," she said, "you're an awfully good sort, and I can't stay angry +with you. Do you know you've made it rather hard for me staying away +all this time?" + +"I thought you never wanted to see me again." + +"You shouldn't take so seriously what a woman says under such +circumstances. It's embarrassing. It makes things seem worse than they +are." She hesitated, as if to emphasize the difficulty of such candor. + +Kirk said, gently: + +"Does that mean that we can forget all about it and be good friends +again? Does it mean that you'll forgive me?" + +"I can't quite promise that," she answered. "But there is no need of +your avoiding me; and it's absurd for you to feel as you do, that you +can't accept any little services from me that might help you in your +work. I'm still interested in your success." + +"You're tremendously good," he answered, really touched. "I can't say +anything, except that I'll try to be worthy of your kindness." + +She gave him a half-distressed look, then smiled brightly. + +"We won't talk of it any more," she said--"ever. Now do sit down and +tell me what you have been doing all this time. How have you been +getting along with your work?" + +"All right, except one morning when I overslept." + +"Overslept? Oh, Kirk!" she said, reproachfully. + +"You see, I never got up so early before, except to go duck-hunting, +and this is different. Did you ever try rising at five-thirty--in the +morning, I mean? You've no idea how it feels. Why, it's hardly light! +You can't see to brush your teeth! I suggested to Runnels that we send +No. 2 out at eight-thirty instead of six-thirty--that's early enough +for anybody--but he didn't seem to take kindly to the thought." + +"What did he say when you reported?" + +"I didn't consider it proper to listen to all he said, so I retired +gracefully. From what I did hear, however, I gathered that he was +vaguely offended at something. I tried to explain that I had been out +late, but it didn't go." + +Edith laughed. "Perhaps I'd better telephone him." + +"Oh no, you needn't do that." + +"But surely you were called in time?" + +"Please don't. That's the first thing Runnels yodelled at me when I +showed up. He's a nice fellow, but he's too serious; he lets little +things bother him. He'll cool off eventually." + +Time passed quickly in such an interchange of pleasant trivialities, +and, although Kirk felt that he was making an unconscionably long call, +he could not well leave while his hostess seemed bent on detaining him. +It was late when he said good-night, and, after returning to his +quarters, with characteristic perversity he proceeded to sit up, +smoking cigarette after cigarette, while he tried to set his thoughts +in order. He was grateful to Mrs. Cortlandt, and immensely pleased to +learn that the man injured in the affair in New York had not died. But +something must be done about Chiquita. That was the important thing +now. He wrestled with the problem for a long time in vain. He was +afraid to go to bed for fear of oversleeping again, and decided to stay +up until train-time. But at length drowsiness overcame him, and for the +few remaining hours he dreamed lonesomely of an oval face and big, +black, velvet eyes. + +He did not really miss his rest until the next afternoon, when the heat +and the monotonous rumble of the train, together with its restful +swaying, sent him off into a delicious doze, from which he was awakened +by a brakeman barely in time to escape discovery. Thereafter he +maintained more regular habits, and while no one but the luxury-loving +youth himself knew what effort it required to cut short his slumbers in +their sweetest part, he never missed his train, and in time the early +hours ceased to be a hardship. + +In the days that followed he tried his very best to make good. Every +evening he had to himself he spent in search of the Spanish girl. Aside +from his inability to find her, and an occasional moment of misgiving +at the thought of Frank Wellar, alias Jefferson Locke, Kirk had but one +worry, and that was caused by Allan. Never a day passed that the +worshipful black boy did not fairly hound him with his attentions; +never a nightly journey down into the city that Allan did not either +accompany him or, failing permission to do so, follow him at a safe +distance. For a time Anthony rebelled at this espionage, but the +constant effort of refusal grew tiresome after a while, especially as +the Jamaican did just as he pleased anyhow, and Kirk ended by letting +him have his way. But this was not all. Allan insisted upon +accompanying his friend upon his daily runs back and forth across the +Isthmus. At first he succeeded in slipping past the gateman in some +miraculous manner, and, once aboard the train, behaved as if free from +all further responsibility. He made it plain, in fact, that he was +Anthony's guest and boon companion, and considered the exchange of +money quite unnecessary, if not even insulting. Day after day Kirk +argued with him, even threatening to throw him off; but Allan ignored +the arguments with bland good-nature and looked upon the threats as the +display of an excruciating sense of humor. He continued to visit and to +gossip on terms of the closest intimacy, and began, moreover, to +exercise a certain proprietary right over Kirk, following him through +the train to see that no harm befell him, and seizing the slightest +opportunity to engage him in conversation. + +Anthony explained time after time that there were probably spotters on +the run, and that this conduct was sure, sooner or later, to get them +both into trouble. To all of which Allan listened attentively and +agreed with all earnestness. But the next morning invariably found him +back again with some excuse. + +"I can't h'explain it, chief," he acknowledged, on one occasion. "Every +day swear I to cease, but it is of no h'avail. Ever you been in love +with a female, sar?" + +"What has that to do with it?" + +"It is much the same. I can't h'allow you to leave me. I would die and +kill myself, but--" + +"Rats!" + +"Yes, sar. It is very h'annoying, is it not?" + +"Do you want me to lose my job?" + +"Oh, MON!" + +"I'm going to speak to the boss, if you don't let up. I don't want to +get fired." + +"Never mind you, for these h'engagements. I will work for you." + +Becoming really concerned lest he should be accused of withholding +fares, Kirk did speak to Runnels, explaining fully, whereupon a watch +was set, with the result that on the very next morning Allan was chased +out of the railroad yards by an unfeeling man with a club. Failing for +a second time to evade the watchful eyes of the gateman, he ranged back +and forth beyond the iron fence like a captive animal, raising his +voice to heaven in weird complaint. He was waiting when the train +pulled in that evening, glued to the iron bars, his eyes showing as +white in the gloom as his expansive grin of welcome. + +For several days this procedure was repeated with variations, until the +dreadful threat of arrest put an end to it. Allan had conceived a +wholesome respect for Spiggoty police, and for a few days thereafter +Kirk was rid of him. Then one morning he reappeared as usual in one of +the forward coaches. + +"How the deuce did you make it?" asked Anthony. + +Allan proudly, triumphantly, displayed a ticket, exclaiming: + +"It is of no h'avail to prevent me, boss!" + +"That ticket is good only to Corozal, the first station. You'll have to +get off there." But when Corozal had been passed he found Allan still +comfortably ensconced in his seat. + +"Now, boss, we shall have fine visits to-day," the negro predicted, +warmly, and Kirk did not have the heart to eject him. + +At the other end of the line Allan repeated the process, and thereafter +worked diligently to amass sufficient money to buy tickets from Panama +to Corozal and from Colon to Mt. Hope, relying with splendid faith upon +his friend to protect him once he penetrated past the lynx-eyed gateman. + +Runnels accepted Kirk's explanation, and so far exceeded his authority +as to make no objection. Allan, therefore, managed to spend about half +his time in company with the object of his adoration. + +Although the Master of Transportation never referred to his +conversation with Kirk on the occasion of their trip through Culebra +Cut, he watched his new subordinate carefully and he felt his +instinctive liking for him increase. The young fellow was in earnest, +he decided, in his effort to succeed on his own merits, and had not +been posing when he offered to start at the bottom. It gave Runnels +pleasure to see how he attended to his work, once he had settled down +to it. + +Accordingly, it afforded him an unpleasant surprise when he received a +printed letter from a St. Louis detective agency relative to one Frank +Wellar, alias Jefferson Locke (last seen in New York City November +25th), and offering a substantial reward for information leading to his +arrest. The communication reached Runnels through the usual channel, +copies having been distributed to the heads of various departments. It +was the description that caught his attention: + +"White; age, twenty-eight years; occupation, clerk; eyes, bluish gray; +hair, light, shading upon yellow; complexion, fair; height, six feet; +weight, one hundred ninety pounds. No prominent scars or marks, so far +as known, but very particular as to personal appearance, and considered +a good athlete, having been captain of U. of K. football team." + +There was but one man in Runnels' department whose appearance tallied +with all this, and it gave the Master of Transportation a start to note +how very complete was the identification. Nevertheless, he held the +letter on his desk, and did nothing for a time except to question his +new collector upon the first occasion. The result was not at all +reassuring. A few days later, chancing to encounter John Weeks, on his +way across the Isthmus, he recalled Kirk's mention of his first +experience at Colon. By way of an experiment he led on the consul to +speak of his former guest. + +"Anthony? Oh yes," wheezed the fat man. "I see you've got him at work." + +"You and he are friends, I believe. I thought you'd be interested to +know he's getting on well. In fact, he's the best collector I have." + +"We're hardly friends," said the consul, cautiously. "I suppose he's +all right--must be or Cortlandt wouldn't have taken him up; but there's +something about him I don't understand. Either he's on the level, or +he's got the nerve of a burglar." + +"How so?" + +"Well, I know he isn't what he claims to be--I have proof. He's no more +Darwin K. Anthony's son than--" + +"Darwin K. Anthony!" exclaimed the railroad man, in amazement. "Did he +claim that?" + +"He did, and he--" The speaker checked himself with admirable +diplomatic caution. "Say, he's taught me one thing, and that is that it +doesn't pay to butt into other people's business. I played him to lose, +and he won; and I got into a fine mess over it." Weeks wrinkled his +face into a ludicrous expression of mournful disgust. "I couldn't pick +a winner if there were two horses in the race and one of them had a +broken leg. Whether his name is Anthony or Locke makes no difference to +me. I got in 'Dutch' for meddling, and Alfarez lost his job for +arresting him. It's only a damn fool who gets stung twice in the same +spot. I'm through." + +"You'll get your money. Anthony told me he'd square up on pay-day." + +Weeks snorted at this. "Why, I've got it already. I've been paid. Mrs. +Cortlandt sent me her check." He stared at his companion curiously. +"Funny, isn't it, how I got called down and Ramen Alfarez got fired on +his account? What does it mean?" He winked one red eye in a manner that +set Runnels to thinking deeply. + + + + +XVI + +"8838" + + +For a few days after this conversation the Master of Transportation was +in doubt as to what course he should pursue. In the end he did nothing, +and the letter from St. Louis was permanently filed away. There were +several reasons for this action. For one thing, he was a salaried man, +and could not afford to lose his job. What influenced him most, +however, was his genuine liking for Anthony. He could not bring himself +to attach much weight to the suspicious circumstances connected with +him. Being a man of sufficient courage to back his own judgment, he +decided that no matter what might have been the past of Frank Wellar, +alias Jefferson Locke, Kirk Anthony was entitled to another chance. + +The first thing Kirk did when pay-day came was to enclose the greater +part of his salary in an envelope and send it to John Weeks, with a +note explaining that he had withheld only enough for his own actual +needs, and promising to continue reducing his indebtedness by a like +amount monthly. He was surprised beyond measure to have the remittance +promptly returned. The brief letter that accompanied it brought him a +flush of discomfort. What the deuce had made Mrs. Cortlandt do that? +For a time he was undecided whether to be offended at her conduct or +gratified, and he had not settled the matter to his satisfaction when +he called upon her that evening. + +"Weeks wrote me you had squared my account with him," he said, +awkwardly. "I'm tremendously obliged, of course, and--I'll give this to +you instead of him." He offered her the envelope with his pay enclosed. + +"Don't be silly, Kirk," she said, in a matter-of-fact tone. "I didn't +wish Weeks to have any opportunity to talk. You need this money and I +don't." + +"Perhaps I should have offered it to Mr. Cortlandt." + +"Stephen knows nothing about the Weeks affair. If you choose to regard +my little favor as a debt, however, please let it run on until you are +better able to pay." + +But Anthony remained inflexible, and at last she accepted his proffer +with some impatience. + +"You are the most foolish person I ever knew," she remarked. "Can't you +understand that such obligations don't exist between friends? A few +dollars mean nothing." + +"A few dollars mean a good deal to me just now." + +"You have the most disappointing way of receiving favors. I had a +decent position for you, but you would go to collecting fares. I hope +you have had enough of it by now, and are ready to take something worth +while." + +"Not until it comes naturally. No hop-skip-and-jump for mine." + +Edith sighed. "It is terribly dull for me here at present," she said. +"Mr. Cortlandt is very busy; I have no one to talk to; no one to amuse +me. Why, I've scarcely seen you since you went to work." + +"It is flattering to be missed." + +"Will you come to the dance to-morrow night?" + +He shook his head. + +"The music is good; you will meet some nice people. If you remember, +one of your qualifications for a position was that you are a good +waltzer." + +"I can't mingle with the 'quality.'" + +"Be sensible. This is an invitation." + +"I am getting sensible fast. I've learned something about Canal +conditions. What would people say if Mrs. Stephen Cortlandt were seen +dancing with the new collector of No. 2?" + +"My dear boy, do you suppose Mrs. Stephen Cortlandt cares what these +people say?" + +"Mr. Stephen Cortlandt might." + +"Mr. Stephen Cortlandt isn't snobbish, either." + +"One has to be on the Canal Zone. Besides, to tell the sordid truth, I +haven't any clothes." + +Edith silently extended the envelope in her hand; but he laughed. + +"Perhaps I'll come to the next dance. I'll be rich then. See!" He +showed her a long slip of paper consisting of five coupons, each +numbered "8838." + +"Lottery tickets!" + +He nodded. "Allan had a very particular dream about the number eight, +so I invested five dollars 'silver' on his hunch. You know he has the +most wonderful dreams. There was one about a whale--it was appallingly +vivid." + +"But you don't bet on all these miraculous whales and things?" + +"Oh no. The whale was a little too much for me. But I thought I'd take +a chance on the number eight, it didn't seem quite so apocryphal." + +"But why did you select such a ridiculous combination? It isn't likely +that the eight will come out three times in four." + +"It's the number of my automobile license." Kirk sighed at the memory +of his new French car. "You don't object to such gambling?" + +"Hardly," laughed Edith, "when I have a ticket for the same drawing. +Every one does it, you know." + +"If I win the capital prize I'll come to the next party and claim all +the dances you will allow me." + +"Not much encouragement in that for a lonely lady." + +"Oh, I'm the luckiest chap in the world. The drawing comes off next +Sunday, and it happens that I've been shifted to No. 6 for a few trips, +so I'll have a chance to see the fun." + +"If you were a little less quixotic and weren't so remarkably afraid of +getting more than your deserts, you could come to all these dances." + +"I'm sorry," he acknowledged, "but I have to do things in my own way." + +It was a welcome change for him to sleep as late as he wished on Sunday +morning, and he enjoyed the privilege to the full. Inasmuch as No. 6 +did not leave until one o'clock, he had ample time in which to witness +the lottery drawing, a thing he had been curious to see since he had +first heard of it. This form of gambling was well recognized, it +seemed; not only the natives, but all classes of Canal Zone workers, +engaged in it freely. On every street corner women sold tickets day +after day, and, as the drawings were conducted under rigid government +supervision, the lottery had come to be regarded as a sort of public +institution, quite as reputable as an ordinary church raffle. + +Allan, vastly excited, was of course waiting to accompany him, and, +when Kirk had finished a leisurely breakfast, the two strolled idly +down into the city. + +"Oh, boss," exclaimed the negro, "I feel that we shall h'experience +good-fartune to-day." + +"Did you buy a ticket?" + +"No, sar, I reinvested all my monies travelling on those railroad +trains." + +"Now see how foolish you are. If you'd stayed at home you might have +bought the winning number to-day." + +"I prefer to h'accompany you. But--I have been thinking to make you a +proposition of partnership. Master h'Auntony. I will stay home and +dream numbers which you can purchase with your salary. In that manner +we shall certainly burst this lottery." + +"Oh, I see! You'll sleep while I rustle the coin to play. What's your +idea of a fair division of the profits?" + +"It is sometimes exceedingly fatiguing to dream," said Allan, +defensively. "Sometimes one wastes an entire day and has no success." + +"That's merely a question of diet. I could make you dream your head +off." + +"But I do not desire the profits, however, for being partners with you. +I would like you to have plenty of monies, that is all. I love you, +sar." + +"Don't! You embarrass me." + +"It is true, chief, I would die and--" + +"Yes, yes, kill yourself." + +"I pray to God h'every day that some bad man will h'assault you in +order that I may die for you." The Jamaican was growing excited, as +usual when he dwelt upon this subject. "I would h'enjoy to shed my +blood for you, sar. I would like to see it running--running--running--" +He waved his arms wildly. + +"Don't bleed to death." + +"I wish to suffer and scream and groan, so that you will be knowing--" + +"Never mind. I think I get the idea. But I'm not going to allow it, and +I'm not going to allow you to dream--you sleep too much as it is. +Besides, your dreams are no good. Look at that whale dream of yours, +for instance." + +"Oh, sar, the 'fish' number did not win, to be sure, but 'water' did." + +"But you didn't dream about water, it was about fish, 'vivid' fish." + +"I did not chance to think of the water," acknowledged Allan, "but +there was the whale lying upon the h'edge of the h'ocean, h'all the +time." + +The drawing, which was for a capital prize of fifteen thousand dollars +"silver," had drawn a larger crowd than usual, and when the two reached +Cathedral Square they found the lottery building thronged to +overflowing with the usual polyglot elements that make up these +Latin-American gatherings--negroes, Indians, Panamanians, Spaniards, +Americans--while in the Plaza itself other groups were waiting to hear +the report. + +By dint of considerable effort Kirk succeeded in working his way +through the wide double doors, and, being much above the average +height, he was able to get a good view of the proceedings. Upon a +platform a group of ceremonious officials were gathered about a +revolving wire cage, so arranged that it could be whirled rapidly upon +its axis. Into it were put ten ivory spheres, resembling billiard-balls +in size and appearance. When this had been done, the cage was closed, +and a very badly frightened twelve-year-old girl was selected at random +from the audience, then lifted to the stage, where it required the +commands and entreaties of her excited parents to prevent her from +dissolving in tears. At a word from the master of ceremonies the cage +was spun until the ivory balls inside leaped and capered like captive +squirrels. Then at another signal it was stopped. The door was opened +and the little girl reached in a trembling hand and selected a sphere. +It proved to be hollow, with two halves screwed together, and in full +sight of the assembly it was opened, displaying a bit of paper inside. + +"Ocho!" cried the announcer, and a card bearing the numeral "8" was +raised. The paper was replaced inside the ivory ball, the ball itself +was dropped into the wire cage, the door was closed, and once more the +cage was spun. + +Kirk was much interested in the scene, not from any faintest hope that +he would draw a prize, but purely from the novel atmosphere and color +of the thing. While his eyes were busiest, and just as the child +prepared to draw another ball, he felt a clutch upon his arm, and, +glancing down, beheld the glowing black eyes of Senor Ramon Alfarez +fixed upon him. + +Alfarez was dressed immaculately, this time in civilian's white linen, +his ferocious little mustachios carefully pointed, his cheeks freshly +shaven and talcumed, his slender feet encased in white canvas shoes. A +wonderful Guayaquil hat, the creamy straws of which were no thicker +than silk threads, crowned his sleek, raven locks. It must have cost a +small fortune. He carried a dapper little cane, with which he tapped +his former prisoner to attract his attention. + +At sight of him Kirk drew down his brows and said, gruffly: + +"Don't poke me with that umbrella." + +He turned away, but again Alfarez touched him with the rattan. + +"I will spik' wit' you, hombre," he said. + +"If you keep jabbing me with that crutch I'll break it, and then you +can't walk home." + +Ramen jerked his head toward the square outside in an imperious +fashion, and Kirk, curious to learn the cause of this unusual +excitement, followed him without demur. When they had reached the +street the Spaniard turned with flashing eyes and a mirthless smile. + +"Well!" he said, dramatically. + +"Pretty well. How goes it with you?" + +"So! You 'ave socceed in your cowardly attemp'." + +"My what?" + +"I am lose my poseetion as Commandante of Police." + +"You don't say so!" Kirk's face broke into a smile of real pleasure. + +"Ha! Makes it you to laugh, then?" exclaimed the Panamanian, excitedly. +"Per'aps you shall answer to those detestable actions, senor." + +"Perhaps! I see you blame me for the loss of your job. Well, maybe you +won't beat up the next American you get your hands on." + +"Bot--I 'ave another poseetion!" Ramen exulted. + +"Indeed! Are you 'behind the ribbons' at the local Wanamaker's?" + +"I 'ave been promote! I am appoint' yesterday by his Excellency the +Presidente to be his secretary. So! Those dastardly attack of yours is +transpire to my blessing. It will be always so." + +"I suppose it's a good job, but you ought to be selling poison in a +drug-store. Did you call me out to hear this news?" + +"Si!" Alfarez nodded his head vigorously. Then, narrowing his eyes, he +said, meaningly, in a voice that none might overhear, "Panama is +sometimes very on'ealthy city for fat Americans." He ran a hostile +glance up and down Anthony's burly frame. "It is the climate +per'aps--of too great 'eat." + +"In other words, you intend to make it hot for me, eh?" + +"I?" The ex-commandant shrugged his shoulders in eloquent denial. "I +shall do not'ing, bot--if you are wise man you will not display +yourself to the dangers of these climate; you will return 'ome." + +"Say! I've a good notion to punch your head." + +Alfarez paled slightly. + +"Soch would be most dangerous, for in Chiriqui prison there is at the +present some fatal disease." He laughed sneeringly. "The senor is reech +man's son, eh? Those do not geeve the appearance." + +With supreme insolence he touched one of the buttons upon Kirk's linen +uniform with his cane, whereat the American snatched the stick out of +his hand, broke it, and tossed it into the street. His blood was up, +and in another breath he would have struck the Spaniard, regardless of +consequences, but just at that moment Allan, dashed out of the crowd +crying, breathlessly: + +"Oh, boss! Oh, BOSS! Glory to God, it is true! OH-H-H GLORY!" Seizing +Kirk's hands, he kissed them before the other could prevent, then ran +on frantically: "Come quick! Come! Come! Come!" + +"Look out!" snapped Kirk, angrily. "What's happened?" + +"The dream! The dream is come! Oh, God, sar! You--you have won the +capital prize, sar!" + +Alfarez's exclamation, as much as the boy's wild hysteria, brought +Anthony to himself. + +"NO! Honest, now! What's the number?" he exclaimed. + +"H'eight, h'eight, three, h'eight," sobbed the Jamaican. Kirk made a +dive for his coat-pocket, while Allan continued in a rising voice: + +"Glory to God, sar! Glory to God! It is fifteen thousand dollars +'silver.' I thought I should h'expire from fright. Oh, I--Quick! Praise +be--Do not say you have lost the ticket or I shall die and kill +myself--" + +"Here it is!" In his hand Anthony waved a slip of paper, out of which +leaped four big, red numbers-"8838." + +"Carraho!" came from behind him, and he turned to behold Alfarez, livid +of face and with shaking hand, fling a handful of similar coupons after +the broken cane. Without another word or a glance behind him, the +Panamanian made off across the Plaza, barely in time to, escape the +crowd that surged around the two he had quitted. + +Bombarded by a fusillade of questions in a dozen tongues, jostled by a +clamoring, curious throng, the lucky owner of 8838 fought his way back +into the lottery building, and, as he went, the news spread like +flaming oil. + +There it was, plainly displayed, "8838"! There could be no possible +mistake, and it meant fifteen thousand silver pesos, a princely fortune +indeed for the collector of No. 2. + +Promptly at five minutes to one o'clock that afternoon, Allan Allan, +late of Jamaica, strode through the Panama railroad station and +flaunted a first-class, round-trip ticket to Colon before the eyes of +his enemy, the gateman. He was smoking a huge Jamaican cigar, and his +pockets bulged with others. When he came to board the train, he called +loudly for a porter to bring him the step and, once inside, selected a +shady seat with the languid air of a bored globe-trotter. He patronized +the "butcher" lavishly, crushing handful after handful of lemon-drops +noisily between his teeth and strewing orange peel and cigar ashes on +the floor with the careless unconcern that accords with firmly +established financial eminence. He spat out of the window, he waved a +dignified greeting to his countrymen gathered upon station platforms, +he halted hurrying brakemen to inquire times of arrival and departure, +and in general he had the time of his young life. + +Only when Kirk appeared upon his rounds did he forego his haughty +complacency. Then his wide lips, which nature had shaped to a perpetual +grin, curled back as they were intended, his smile lit up the car, and +he burst into loud laughter. + +"Enjoying yourself?" inquired his hero. + +"Passably, sar, passably!" Then, with a painful assumption of +seriousness: "How is the train, sar, may I ahsk?" + +"On time." + +"Rarely it is so, as a general thing. It is fartunate h'indeed that you +consented to run her this time." + +"In a hurry to get to Colon?" + +"Quite so. It is h'impartant that I h'arrive promptly to-day. I have +business h'affairs." His countenance assumed tortured lines as he +endeavored to maintain his gravity, then failing in his attempt, he +burst suddenly into a gale of merriment that sent forth a shower of +peanuts and lemon candy. "Praise God, boss, we are 'appy gentlemen +to-day, are we not?" + +Kirk found that the report of his good-fortune had spread far and wide; +he was halted a score of times for congratulations; operators at the +various stations yelled at him and waved their hands; Runnels wired +"Hurrah!" at Gatun. A certain respect was in these greetings, too, for +he had suddenly become a character. + +As yet, however, he had not fully considered what this windfall meant +to him. His first thought had been that he could now discharge his +debts, go back to New York, and clear himself before the law. Yet the +more he thought of it the less eager he became to return. Seven +thousand five hundred dollars in gold to Kirk Anthony, of Panama, +Collector, was a substantial fortune. To Kirk Anthony, of Albany, +Distributor, it was nothing. Suppose he went home and squared his +account with the police, what would he do then? Nothing, as usual. +Here, he was proving that the Anthony breed was self-supporting, at +least. And there was another reason, the weightiest of all. Long before +he had reached the end of his run he realized that not one hundred +times the amount of this capital prize would tempt him to leave Panama +before he had seen Chiquita. + +Chiquita was beginning to seem like a dream. At times during the past +week he had begun to wonder if she were not really a product of his own +imagination. His fancy had played upon her so extravagantly that he +feared he would not know her if ever they came face to face. His mental +picture of her had lost all distinctness; her face was no longer +clear-cut before his mind's eye, but so blurred and hazy that even to +himself he could not describe her with any accuracy. + +This was most unsatisfactory, and he reproached himself bitterly for +the involuntary faithlessness that could allow her image to grow dim. +He was almost without hope of seeing her again. And then, with the +inconsequence of dreams and sprites, she appeared to him. + +It was but a glimpse he had, and a tantalizing flash of recognition +from her eyes. It happened in the dusk during the confusion that +accompanied the arrival of No. 7 at Panama, and it came with a +suddenness that stunned him. The station was jammed with a roaring +flood of negroes, another crowd was forcing its way through the exits +in the high iron fence, the street was a crush of Spiggoty coaches. + +Kirk had volunteered to assist an old lady, and his arms were full of +bundles as he guided her between the clicking teeth of a turnstile. He +was helping her into a carriage when he heard the sharp clatter of +hoofs upon the brick pavement, and looked up to see a fine Peruvian +mare hitched to a tan-colored surrey skirting the confusion. A black +coachman was driving, and there were several people in the carriage. +Kirk cast it a casual glance, and just as he looked it swept into the +glare of an electric light. Out from the back seat shone a perfect oval +face, with soft, luminous eyes. It was just as he had pictured it, only +more beautiful. + +Kirk nearly upset his little old lady, who was struggling into her +equipage. He swept his armful of bundles into the coach, seized his +scandalized companion under the arms, and deposited her bodily upon a +seat. Without waiting to hear from her, he dashed away through the +bedlam. Under horses' heads he went, past flying hoofs and scraping +wheels, jostling pedestrians, and little, brown policemen, until he had +reached the outskirts of the crowd, where he vaulted into a vacant +vehicle and called upon the driver to whip up. + +"Quick! Quick! Follow that tan-colored surrey! I'll give you a dollar +gold not to lose sight of it." + +With the blandest of smiles the coachman started his horses, then, +turning, he inquired, politely: + +"'Otel Tivoli?" + +"No, NO! Follow that carriage!" + +"No sabe Ingles!" said the coachman. + +Before Kirk had succeeded in making him understand, the street had +become jammed with carriages and the Peruvian mare was lost to sight. +After a half-hour of futile clattering back and forth, Kirk dismissed +the driver. + +But there was no doubt that she had recognized him, and nothing now +could prevent him from continuing his search. The trouble was that his +present occupation allowed him no opportunity. He was tied to the +railroad except at night. + +It was perhaps two weeks later that a serious shake-up occurred in the +office force, of which no one seemed to know the cause. There was a mad +scramble for advancement all along the line, in which Kirk took no +part. But unexpectedly Runnels summoned him to his office. + +"How would you like an inside position?" said the Master of +Transportation, eying him keenly. + +"So soon?" + +"I said I'd advance you if you made good." He paused an instant, then +said, deliberately, "When you get the hang of things here you'll have a +chance to be my assistant." + +Kirk opened his eyes in amazement. + +"Gee! That's great! But do you think I can get away with it?" + +"Not at once. It will take time, of course, and you'll have to work +like the devil." Runnels regarded him curiously, recalling the letter +so carefully filed away. Then he yielded to his natural impulse. + +"Look here, Anthony," he said, "I'm partly selfish in this, for I +believe you're the sort I'm going to want within the next year. The +superintendent has had an offer from a big system in the States, and +he's going to quit when his vacation comes. He likes me, and he says +I'll probably step into his shoes. Do you understand what that means? +I'll need fellows I can count on--fellows who won't double-cross me to +make a dollar for themselves, or knife me when my back is turned. I've +got to have an efficient, noiseless organization. Otherwise we'll all +go under, for we'll be into politics up to our necks. I think you're my +sort, so if you'll stick to me I'll help you, and for every step I take +I'll drag you up one." + +"It's a go!" The two young men clasped hands heartily. Runnels had +struck the right note. Beside his former desire to prove himself a man, +Kirk now felt a strong sense of loyalty to the one who had recognized +his worth. This was no mere matter of promotion. He and Runnels would +work shoulder to shoulder. A sense of responsibility descended upon +him. For the first time he thoroughly understood the spirit of the +ardent toilers who were giving their best to the Big Job. He was really +one of them now, and the thought electrified him. + +When he told his good news to Mrs. Cortlandt, her surprise was so +cleverly simulated that he never dreamed that she had been at great +pains to bring this thing about. Not that Runnels was indisposed to act +upon his own initiative, but the circumstances that had made his action +possible had been due to her. It was hard to help a man against his +will; but she profited by experience, and took the line of least +resistance. + +The young man himself did not inquire too closely into the occasion of +his advancement, and Edith Cortlandt was but little in his mind. He was +consumed with the thought of Chiquita. He hoped that his new work would +allow him more control of his time, and perhaps put him in the way of +learning her name. He could move in better society now. Meanwhile he +laid other plans. He took Allan into his confidence, and told him +frankly that he was in love with a woman he did not know. + +Of course his faithful follower was delighted, and made extravagant +promises of aid. + +"Now that the dry season has come," said Kirk, "people must be living +at the Savannas, and I want you to haunt the region round that +swimming-pool until you discover who she is. You must be my detective." + +"Oh, boss, I would--" + +"Don't tell me you'd die and kill yourself for me. I want you to live +and find this girl for me. I'll take you out to-day, after office +hours, and show you the place; then you'll have to do the rest. You +talk Spanish, you know. But, above all, don't tip off." + +"Tip h'off? What shall I be climbing, sar?" + +"I mean you mustn't tell a soul." + +"Never fear, boss. H'Allan will discover your female." + +"And don't call her a 'female,' it sounds indecent. Remember, she has a +Bajan with her, six feet tall, named Stephanie. Who knows? Maybe you +can win Stephanie for yourself." Kirk chuckled at the thought. + +"No, sar, if you please. Those Bajan 'oomen is all very disagreeable." + +"You understand, I can't quit work to go looking for the girl, because +I've simply got to tend to business. But I'll spend Sunday out there if +you haven't already discovered her. Now, I'll chant this all over again +on the way out, so you won't forget anything." + + + + +XVII + +GARAVEL THE BANKER + + +These were busy days for the Cortlandts. They entertained constantly, +and the occasions when they dined without from one to a dozen guests +became so exceptional as to elicit remark around the hotel. Most of +their efforts were devoted to certain Panamanians of the influential +class, and in company with one or more of these Cortlandt made frequent +trips to the various quarters of the Republic, sometimes absenting +himself for days at a time. + +During these intervals his wife assumed the direction of affairs, and +continued to entertain or be entertained. Her energy and resource +seemed inexhaustible. The officials of both governments treated her +with punctilious respect, and the prestige gained in this way she used +to enhance her reputation as a hostess. Soon she became the social +dictator of the city, and the most exclusive circles, American and +Panamanian alike, allowed her to assume control. + +The result was just what had been designed. Tourists and visiting +newspaper people spoke glowingly of the amity between the two nations, +and wondered at the absence of that Spanish prejudice of which they had +heard so much. Those who chanced to know the deeper significance of it +all, and were aware of the smouldering resentment that lay in the Latin +mind, commented admiringly upon her work, and wondered what effect it +would have upon the coming election. Already this event had cast its +shadow ahead, bringing memories of the last election with its +disturbances and ragged uncertainty. That had been a pregnant epoch. +Armed guards, hidden behind American walls, had listened to the growing +clamor and prepared to fire. American marines had been held in +readiness to take such action as might have convulsed the other +watchful World Powers. + +Since then the fuse had burned steadily, if slowly. As the time drew +near, there were those who openly predicted trouble. Others scoffed at +the idea, although they claimed that this would be the last election +ever held in Panama. But all united in declaring that, whatever the +work to which the Cortlandts had been assigned, they were doing it well. + +No one but the woman herself and her husband really understood the +tremendous difficulties of their task or the vital issues at stake. +Although they seemed to be making progress, they knew that they were +dealing with a people not only excitable and egotistic, but steeped in +guile, and distrustful by nature. The fire was close to the magazine. +But this was Edith Cortlandt's chosen field, and she brought to bear a +manlike power of cool calculation, together with a brilliant intuition +of her own. Never had her tact, her knowledge of human nature, her keen +realization of political values been called into such play as now. So +triumphantly did she exercise these qualities that all who came into +contact with her recognized the master mind directing the campaign, +and, consciously or unconsciously, relegated her husband to the +background. + +To the Latin intellect this display of power, on the part of a woman, +was a revelation. She knew the effect she produced, and made the most +of it. + +Old Anibal Alfarez was, perhaps, the last fully to appreciate her. He +did, however, learn in time that while he could successfully match his +craft against that of the husband, the wife read him unerringly. The +result was that he broke with them openly. + +When news of this reached the members of the Canal Commission, they +were alarmed, and Colonel Jolson felt it necessary to make known their +views upon the situation. Accordingly, a few nights later, the +Cortlandts dined at his handsome residence on the heights above +Culebra. After their return to Panama, the Colonel, in whom was vested +the supreme authority over his nation's interests, acknowledged that +his acquaintance with diplomacy was as nothing compared with Edith +Cortlandt's. + +It was to Colonel Bland, in charge of the Atlantic Division, that he +confessed: + +"In all my life I never met a woman like her. Cortlandt, as you know, +is a clever fellow, and I flatter myself that I'm no mental invalid; +but we were like children in her hands. He sided with me at first, but +she talked us both around in spite of ourselves. I agree with her now, +perfectly, and I am content to let her have free rein." + +"General Alfarez is the strongest man in the Republic," said Colonel +Bland. "As Governor of Panama Province, he's the logical next +President. Besides that, he has the machinery behind him. I don't see +who there is to defeat him." + +"We argued the same thing. She thinks Garavel is the proper man." + +"Garavel is a banker; he's not a politician." + +The chief-engineer laughed. + +"All Spanish-Americans are politicians, Colonel; they can't help it." + +"Would he accept?" + +"It is her business to find out. I had my doubts." + +"But could he win? It would be a calamity if he had American backing +and failed; it would mean a disaster." + +"Cortlandt has been working carefully, and he has been in all the seven +Provinces. He admits that it might be done; and she is certain. You +see, their part in the Colombian affair makes them strong with the +leaders, and they have already whipped the foreign influences into +line. Of course, it will mean a fight--Alfarez won't give up +easily--but, if Garavel should be the next President, it would be a +fine thing for both countries." + +The other commissioner shook his white head doubtfully. "I supposed it +was all settled; Cortlandt himself told me Alfarez was a good man the +last time I talked with him. My God, it seems to me we've got enough on +our hands without being guardians for a two-by-four republic filled +with maniacs. We've got to finish this job on time. I can't understand +this change of sentiment." + +"Oh, it isn't settled. There is ample time for anything to happen. When +the psychological moment comes, Cortlandt will be in position to swing +his influence whichever way he thinks best." + +"Well, it's a puzzling situation," Colonel Bland admitted. "And I wish +it were over." Then he branched off on the subject of a cargo of cement +which had not been up to standard and might have to be rejected. + +Over at Panama the Cortlandts were looking for a house to lease. +Affairs had reached a point where it seemed advisable to give up their +quarters at the Tivoli and enter into closer contact with the life of +the Spanish city. One reason for the move was the necessity for a +greater privacy than the hotel afforded, for the time was not far +distant when privacy might prove of paramount importance. + +Meanwhile they gave a ceremonious little dinner, the one and only guest +being Andres Garavel, the banker. + +Of all the charming peoples of Central America there are, perhaps, none +more polished and well-bred than the upper-class Panamanians. Of this +agreeable type, Senor Garavel was an admirable example, having sprung +from the finest Castilian stock, as a name running back through the +pages of history to the earliest conquests attested. Other Garavels had +played important parts in the troubled affairs of Guatemala, and it was +the banker's proud boast that one of his ancestors had assisted +Alvarado to christen the first capital of that country--the city of St. +James the Gentleman--in 1524. The name had later figured prominently in +Antigua, that Athens of the New World where the flower of Spanish +America gathered. A later forebear had fled southward at the time of +the disturbances incidental to the revolt of the colonies, but in his +departure there had been no disgrace, and since that time the Garavels +had worthily maintained the family traditions of dignity and honor. + +The present bearer of the name was of distinguished appearance. He was +swarthy of skin, his hair was snow-white, and he had stern, black eyes +of great intelligence. In size he was not above the medium, but his +manner fully made up for any deficiency of stature. He was courtly and +deliberate, evincing a pride that sprang not only from good blood but +from good deeds. His poise was that of a man with heavy +responsibilities, for Andres Garavel was a careful banker and a rich +one. He was widely travelled, well-informed, an agreeable talker, and +the conversation at Mrs. Cortlandt's table did not lag. + +"I am so disappointed that your daughter could not come," Edith told +him for the second time. "I'm afraid she objects to our American +informality." + +"No, no, my dear lady," said their guest. "She admires American +customs, as I do. We are progressive--we have travelled. In my home, in +my private life, perhaps, I am Panamanian, but in my business and in my +contact with other peoples I am as they are. It is the same with my +daughter." + +"When you Latins really become cosmopolitan you are more so than we +Americans," Cortlandt acknowledged. "We assume foreign airs and customs +that please us and forget to retain our own, while you--well, with +Germans you are German, with Englishmen you are English, and yet you +never forget to be Spaniards." + +The banker smiled. "My daughter has had a wide education for a child. +She has travelled, she speaks five languages--and yet, underneath it +all she is a Garavel and hence a Panamanian. She is all I have, and my +life is hers." + +"When we are settled in our new house we hope to see something of you +both." + +"You have effected a lease of the Martinez home, I believe?" + +"Yes. Do you know it?" + +"As my own. You are indeed fortunate to secure so fine a place. I wish +that in some way I might be of service to you." + +"The wish is mutual," Cortlandt answered, meaningly, but Senor Garavel +concealed any recognition of the tone by a formal bow, and the meal +progressed with only the customary small talk to enliven it. + +As soon as the three had adjourned to the Cortlandt's suite the host of +the evening proceeded to approach the subject in his mind as directly +as the circumstances permitted. Through a series of natural transitions +the conversation was brought around to politics, and Garavel was +adroitly sounded. But he displayed little interest, maintaining a +reserve that baffled them. It was impossible to betray him into an +expression of feeling favorable to their views. When at last he +consented to show his awareness of the suggestion so constantly held +out, he spoke with deliberate intention. + +"General Alfarez is my respected friend," he said, with a quietness +that intensified his meaning, "and I rejoice that he will be the next +President of Panama." + +"You, of course, know that there is opposition to him?" + +"All Panama knows that." + +"General Alfarez does not seem to be a friend of the United States." + +"There are few who hold the views I do. He is a man of strong +character, he has no commercial interests to influence him as I have, +and so we differ. Yet I respect him--" + +"It is precisely because of those views of yours that I wish to consult +you," said Cortlandt, slowly. "In all the Republic there is no one so +progressive as you. May I speak frankly?" + +Garavel inclined his white head without removing his intense, dark eyes +from the speaker. + +"Don Anibal Alfarez can never be President of Panama!" + +The banker made no visible movement, yet the effect of this positive +declaration was almost like that of a blow. After a pause he said: + +"May I tell him you said so?" + +"If you wish, but I do not think you will." + +The hearer let his eyes flit questioningly to Mrs. Cortlandt's face to +find her smiling at him. + +"Believe me, dear lady," he said, "I suspected that there were grave +reasons for this interview, but as yet I am at sea. I am not a +politician, you know. I shall have no voice in our political affairs." + +"Of course we know that, Senor Garavel, and of course there are grave +reasons why we wished to talk with you. As Stephen has said, General +Alfarez cannot be President--" + +"Madame," he said, coldly, "Panama is a republic. The voice of the +people is supreme." + +"Down in your heart do you really think so?" She was still smiling at +him. "No! The United States is supreme." + +"Ah! That day will come, perhaps--I have said so; I look forward to it +as the best solution, but--" + +"The day has come." + +"Even so, Alfarez is an honorable man, a strong man, and the wealthiest +man in our country. He is a politician--" + +"But he is not a friend of our country." + +"I am not so sure." Garavel frowned at his cigar for a moment, while +the room became silent. "What has this to do with me, madame?" he +asked, at last. + +"Can't you guess?" The intensity of her look caused him to rise +hurriedly and cast a quick glance from one to the other. + +"You are also a rich man, a man of ability," said Cortlandt, quick to +seize the momentary advantage. "Your name is second to none in all +Central America. The next President must possess intelligence, honor, +ability; he must be a friend of our people. There is no one better--" + +"Impossible!" exclaimed the banker, in a strange voice. "_I_? No, no!" + +"And why not? Have you never had political aspirations?" + +"Of course. All men have dreams. I was Secretary of Finance under +Amador, but the Garavels have never really been public men. Politics +have been a curse to our house. My grandfather--" + +"I know," broke in Mrs. Cortlandt. "But times have changed. Panama has +seen her last revolution, and she needs a business man at her head. +Presidents are not made now by rifle and sword, and the man with the +machete must give way to the man with a capacity for handling big +affairs. There will be no more swineherd Presidents like your +Guatemalan countryman Corera, nor tyrants like Zelaya. Panama is a +healthy country, with no national debt; she is growing, developing. She +holds the gateway to the Western World, and her finances must be +administered wisely. You, Mr. Garavel, are one of the few who are +clear-headed enough to see that her destiny is linked with ours, and +there is no one who can direct her so well as you." + +"It is impossible!" repeated Garavel, his agitation growing more +pronounced. "General Alfarez is my friend. His son will be my son." + +"Ramon! Is Ramon engaged to your daughter?" + +"Yes," exclaimed the banker, shortly. He began to pace the room. + +"What difference would that make, if the young people love each other?" + +"Certainly," Cortlandt agreed. "They are not children." + +"As for love, Ramon loves, and--my daughter will love also, once she is +married, for she is a Garavel." + +"If Ramon isn't satisfactory to her, ought you to force her +inclination?" Mrs. Cortlandt offered, eagerly. But the banker flung his +arms aloft in a gesture of half-humorous despair. + +"Oh-h! These young ladies!" he cried. "They do not know what they want. +What pleases to-day, displeases to-morrow. It is 'Yes' and 'No,' 'Yes' +and 'No,' until one must decide for them. That, after all, is best." He +paused abruptly. "This comes upon me like a flood, my friends. I am +swept away, and yet I--I will need to think seriously." + +"Certainly." + +"To an honorable man the salary will mean nothing. I have many affairs; +I fear I cannot afford this sacrifice." + +"Would you retire in favor of some one who could afford it?" + +"Alfarez is honest." + +"Alfarez cannot be President." + +"It would require a great deal of money. I am considered a rich man, +but I have discounted the future, and my enterprises--" He flung out +his arms. "I have spread out. I must be careful. It is not alone MY +money that I have invested." + +"It will require very little money," said Cortlandt. "I have been from +David to Darien, from Bocas to Colon and I know the public sentiment." + +"Speaking of David," his wife added; "it was you who first projected +the railroad to that point, Senor Garavel." + +"Yes, I saw that it was needed. It would make Panama," he said, simply. + +"Under your administration it can be built. Mr. Cortlandt can assure +you of our government's earnest co-operation. That would not be the +case if General Alfarez were elected. Perhaps the Colombian boundary +can be settled. There also our influence might avail. Those two steps +forward would make the name of Garavel as famous in Panama as it is in +Guatemala." + +"Those are important issues for any loyal Panamanian," he admitted. + +"And you love your daughter--you say your life is, hers. Your honor +would be hers also. Senorita Garavel would have no cause to regret her +father's presidency." + +"Oh, it is useless to argue," smiled the Spaniard. "I am weak. I am +human. I am also patriotic, and I realize that our little country must +look to your great one for its stimulus. Our life must be moulded after +yours. For years I have dreamed of a railroad to David, which would +some day form a link in the great system that will join the three +Americas. I have pictured our inland jungles replaced with homes; a +great traffic flowing from end to end of the Republic. But I have also +seen that our people would not profit by it. The languor of the tropics +is in their blood, and you Yankees would be needed to inspire them." +His voice shook with emotion as he went on: "They are good, simple +people, no more than children, and I love them. A gracious Providence +gave us the key to the world's commerce, but we could not use it. It +needs all our wisdom now to adapt ourselves to the conditions that have +arisen. 'Andres Garavel, President of the Republic of Panama!' It has a +sweet sound, my friends, and yet--I have fears." + +"Let's take them one by one," laughed his host, "and prove them +imaginary. I see a great good-fortune in store for you." + +It was midnight before Senor Andres Garavel, the banker, bade his +friends good-bye. When he descended the hotel steps to his carriage, he +held his white head proudly erect, and there was new dignity in his +bearing. As he was whirled homeward behind his spirited Peruvian mare, +a wonderful song was singing in his heart. + + + + +XVIII + +THE SIEGE OF MARIA TORRES + + +The faithful Allan was not long in fulfilling his mission. Such +devotion as his, it seemed, could hardly fail, and, if there had been a +hundred Chiquitas, doubtless he would have corralled them all. He +conveyed the impression that, if it had been necessary to journey +beyond the grave and bring back the ghost of some dead-and-gone +Chiquita, he would have gloriously succeeded. One morning, a few days +later, he appeared to Kirk, bursting with importance and news. + +"Well, sar! I have discovered your female," he announced, pompously. + +"No? What's her name? Who is she?" + +"Her is named Maria Torres, sar, and resides in the small 'ouse you +h'observed upon the 'ill." + +"Did you SEE her?" Anthony could hardly believe his ears. + +"Oh yes, very h'extensively." + +"What does she look like? Is she dark?" + +"Very dark, sar." + +"And small?" + +"Not too small," opined Allan. + +"Of course, just right. And her eyes, like--like--" + +"H'ink! Spots of h'ink. Oh, it is she, Master h'Auntony." + +"Jove! I believe it is! You're an ace, Allan. You're my ace of spades." +Out of pure joy he began to pummel him playfully. "Why don't you +rejoice? Lift up your voice and sing. Maria Torres! It's a heavenly +name--Why don't you make a joyful noise?" + +Allan voiced a feeble hurrah. + +"It was only by chawnce that I h'encountered her, boss, for she is +residing in the city. I h'ascertained all those facts--" + +"Good! Find the street and number, quick! I'm going a-wooing! Say! When +these Spaniards court a girl they hang around her window and roll their +eyes, don't they? Me for that! I'll haunt the Torres neighborhood until +she shows herself, or die in the attempt. I'll play their game. I'll +get a guitar, I'll--Oh, from this moment I'm a Spaniard of the +Spaniards. I'm the incarnation of ten thousand fiery cavaliers. I'll +stand in front of her house until she sends me a chair. Maria Tor--What +the deuce are you loafing for? Get a move on; hustle those kidney feet +of yours. Don't come back until you have located her; for to-night--ah, +blessed night! My life's romance begins in earnest. GET OUT!" + +Allan fled while Kirk proceeded to dream over his breakfast of bacon +and cold-storage eggs. + +He was beaming when he appeared at the office. He sang, he whistled, he +performed his duties with a joyous uproar that interfered seriously +with all around him and set the whole place in confusion. Nor did his +spirits lessen when, later in the day, Allan informed him that the +residence of Senor Luis Torres, whom the gods had selected as father to +the delectable Maria, was at number 89 Avenida Norte. + +Anthony did not taste his dinner that evening. As darkness settled he +planted himself conspicuously on the corner opposite No. 89 and began +to study the premises. + +It was a trifle disappointing to note that Chiquita lived in such poor +style; the place was not at all impressive. The first floor of the +building was given over to a Chinese bazaar, and the upper story seemed +neither extremely clean nor at all modern. But, although this clashed a +bit with his preconceived ideas, he knew that many of the nicest +Panamanian families lived in modest quarters. + +His natural impulse was to apply boldly at the door, but he had learned +something of local customs, and he determined to give no possible +ground for offence. After she had recognized him and seen his +willingness to follow the habit of her Spanish suitors, it would be +feasible, perhaps, to adopt a more Americanized method. Meanwhile, he +must run no risk of antagonizing her people. + +In the Central American scheme of courtship patience plays a large +part. It is the young man's practice to martyr himself until the sight +of him becomes such a reproach that the family must perforce express +its sympathy. Although this procedure struck Anthony as ludicrous in +the extreme, its novelty was not without charm, and he had lived +through such a period of torturing uncertainty that the mere fact of +the girl's presence was compensation enough for his pains. + +For an hour he stood motionless, staring at the upper windows of No. +89. Then his feet began to hurt, and he paraded slowly back and forth +"playing the bear," as he had heard it termed. Another hour passed, and +he discovered that, if his presence had not been marked by the members +of the Torres household, it was at least exciting comment elsewhere in +the neighborhood. Faces appeared at near-by windows; he heard sounds of +muffled merriment which made him uncomfortable; passers-by smiled at +him and dropped encouraging remarks which he could not translate. The +little policeman, lounging at the next corner, watched him complacently +and agreed with his neighbors that the Americano was undoubtedly a +fine-appearing lover. + +Kirk took his stand at last beneath a street light and gazed +languorously upon the windows opposite until his eyes ached as well as +his feet. At last a curtain parted, and he saw the flash of a white +dress back of it. His heart leaped; he raised his hat; there was a +titter from beyond the iron grating. Presently another figure was dimly +revealed. The watcher held his position stubbornly until the last light +in the Torres house winked out, then limped homeward, warmed by the +glad conviction that at least he had been recognized. + +Promptly at seven o'clock on the following evening he returned to his +post, and before he had been there five minutes knew that his presence +was noticed. This was encouraging, so he focused his mental powers in +an effort to communicate telepathically with the object of his desires. +But she seemed unattuned, and coyly refrained from showing her face. He +undertook to loiter gracefully, knowing himself to be the target of +many eyes, but found it extremely hard to refrain from sitting on the +curb, a manifestly unromantic attitude for a love-lorn swain. He swore +grimly that, if usage required a suitor to make an exhibition of +himself before the entire neighborhood, he would do the job thoroughly. +It did not cheer him to reflect that the girl had a keen sense of humor +and must be laughing at him, yet he determined to put in a week at this +idiotic love-making before he attempted anything else. Later in the +evening he was rewarded by the glimpse of a handkerchief cautiously +waved, and he was delirious with joy as he hobbled homeward. + +Night after night he spent assiduously studying the cracks and +blemishes in the stucco walls of No. 89 Avenida Norte, encouraged by +the occasional flutter of a hand or a soulful sigh from behind the lace +screen at the third window from the corner. But when Sunday came he was +in no mood to continue this roundabout and embarrassing mode of +courtship longer. He made an early start from his quarters, taking +Allan with him. + +"I'll catch her going to mass," he explained, hopefully. "I've just got +to put an end to this performance." + +"Will you h'accost her h'openly?" inquired Allan. + +"You bet! If she runs away you trip her up. Oh, it's great to be in +love!" + +"Without doubt, sar." + +"She's a corker, isn't she?" + +"I do not know as to that," Allan demurred. "What may be a carker?" + +"I mean she's beautiful." + +"Oh, h'indeed so! And her h'eyes--like h'ink spots, as you say." + +"Was she wearing a denim dress when you saw her?" + +"Yes, yes," eagerly agreed the negro. "Oh, there is no mistake. It was +a red dress." + +"No, it wasn't. It was blue." + +"H'exactly, sar--a sort of reddish blue." + +"And she was--petite?" + +"Rather more dark, I should say." + +"I mean she was small." + +"Oh, it is the same female. It is h'exciting, is it not?" + +Kirk acknowledged that it was exciting, for, now that he had a full day +in which to besiege No. 89, he felt certain of gaining a word at least +with his inamorata. He was in good time, it seemed, for hardly had he +taken his customary station before the Cathedral bells awoke the +slumberous echoes of the city. + +"Praise God, she will be coming soon!" Allan exclaimed. "I shall +h'expire from fright. Look! There! THERE!" + +Down the wide stairs leading from the living-rooms of Senor Torres came +two women, and the negro danced in excitement. As they emerged upon the +sidewalk the younger one flashed a glance at the men opposite, and Kirk +saw that she was a mulatto--evidently a housemaid. His eager eyes flew +back to the entrance. Allan hissed at him: + +"Yonder goes! Quick, or you will be losing she." + +"Where?" + +"There! The young female in w'ite. It is h'indeed the Senorita Torres." + +"THAT!" Anthony stared at the girl amazedly as she cast him a second +and more coquettish flash of her black eyes. "Why, damn it, that--why, +she's a--NIGGER!" + +"No, no!" shrilly expostulated the Jamaican. "It is she. H'alas! They +have turned the corner." + +Kirk wheeled upon his detective in overwhelming disgust. "You idiot!" +he breathed. "That girl is a 'dinge.' So, SHE'S the one I've been--Oh, +it's unspeakable! Let's get away from here." + +"You h'informed me in particular that she is dark," protested Allan. + +"Come on!" Kirk dragged his companion away as fast as he could. His +thoughts were too deep for tears. As soon as his emotion permitted +coherent speech, he launched into a tirade so eloquent and picturesque +that Allan was reduced to a state of wondering awe. Pausing at length +in his harangue, he turned smouldering eyes upon the black boy. + +"I ought to punch you right in the nose," he said, with mournful +calmness. "Let me feel your head." Allan obediently doffed his cap, and +Kirk rapped the woolly cranium with his knuckle. "Do you feel that? Is +there any sensation?" + +"Yes, sar! Shortly I shall suffer a swelling." Allan stroked the spot +tenderly. + +"It's all imagination; there's no feeling to solid bone. You've got an +ivory 'nut,' my friend, just like a cane." + +"Ivory-nuts grow upon trees, sar, in the Darien region." + +Anthony regarded him sourly. "The Brunswick-Balke people never turned +out anything half so round and half so hard. That burr of yours is a +curio. I told you Chiquita was small and beautiful and dainty and--Oh, +what's the use! This dame is a truck-horse. She's the color of a +saddle." + +"Oh, she is not too dark, sar." Allan came loyally to the defence of +Miss Torres. "Some of the finest people in Panama is blacker than that. +There is but few who are h'all w'ite." + +"Well, SHE'S all white, and I want you to find her to-day--TO-DAY, +understand? You gallop out to the Savannas and make some inquiries." He +shook his fist in Allan's face. "If you don't learn something this +trip, I'll have your lignum-vitae cranium in a bowling-alley by dark. +Lord! If I only spoke Spanish!" + +Allan reluctantly departed, and Kirk went back to his quarters in high +displeasure. It seemed as if the affair had actually left a bad taste +in his mouth. He could not compose his features into anything like a +decently amiable expression, but went about with a bitter smile upon +his lips. Every time some new aspect of his grotesque and humiliating +mistake occurred to him he suffered a nervous twinge. That afternoon a +card was brought to him bearing the ornate inscription in a beautiful +Spencerian hand: + +PROFESSOR JESUS HERARA THE HERARA COLLEGE OF BUSINESS + +Reconciling himself as best he could to the prospect of an interview +with some importunate stranger, he grudgingly consented to have the +visitor brought in. Professor Herara was not alone. He was accompanied +by a very short, very fat man, whose smooth skin had the rich, dark +coloring of a nice, oily Cuban cigar. + +"Senor Anthony, it is?" inquired the Professor, bowing ceremoniously. + +"That's my name." + +"It is my privilege to consult you upon a business of importance." + +"I'm afraid you have the wrong party. I don't care to learn shorthand." + +"Ah, no, it is not concerning my academy. Allow me to present Senor +Luis Torres." + +Kirk felt the room begin to revolve slowly. + +"My friend does not possess a card at the moment, eh?" continued the +Professor. + +The little, rotund man bowed, his hand-polished, mahogany features +widening in a smile. + +"'Sveree hot wedder!" he exclaimed. + +"He begs one thousand pardons for not speaking of your language the +more perfectly, and so he is request of me to be his interpreter." + +Something urged Kirk to flee while there was yet time, but the father +of Maria Torres was between him and the door, and he could not bring +himself to push the little man out of the way. So he bade them both be +seated in the only two chairs which the room contained, while he rested +gingerly upon the edge of the bed. The new-comers let their eyes roll +curiously about the chamber, and an embarrassing silence descended. +Senor Torres maintained a set smile designed to be agreeable; Professor +Herara, serene in the possession of his linguistic acquirements, +displayed the insouciance of an undertaker. Together they beamed +benignantly, almost patronizingly, upon the young man. Plainly they +meant to put him at his ease--but they failed. At length, after +clearing his throat impressively, the interpreter began again: + +"Of course, you have been expecting this visit, senor?" + +"N--not exactly." + +"My friend is deeply disappointed that he has not the honor of before +meeting you." + +"I am flattered, but--" + +"Indeed, yes! Then you are perhaps acquainted with Senor Torres by +reputation? You know who he is?" Professor Jesus Herara raised his +brows and inclined his head like a polite school-teacher endeavoring to +encourage a diffident pupil. + +"I regret that I do not." + +"He is one of our most estimable citizens. He is possess' not only of +the magnificent residence at No. 89 Avenida Norte, but also of a +comfortable abode at Las Savannas, and he has a large trade in sponges +and hides. His place of business you will have noticed upon the +water-front, perhaps?" + +Kirk wiped his brow nervously and cursed Allan. + +"And now, as for you, senor?" The principal of the Herara College of +Business awaited an answer with unctuous deference. Evidently +attributing the young man's silence to modesty, he went on, helpfully: +"Senor Torres has instituted inquiries, and ascertained your excellent +position with the P. R. R., but he would know more, if soch is not +disagreeable to you." + +"Well--I--there isn't much to tell. It is my first job." + +This was quickly put into Spanish, whereupon Mr. Torres nodded with +vigor, as if this information were indeed gratifying--nay, splendid. + +"It is agreeable to my friend to ascertain your industry, and I may say +you are most highly spoke of at the railroad office. Therefore, Senor +Torres affords you an invitation to call at his residence on Thursday +evening." + +"That's awfully--nice," gasped Anthony; "but--er--what's the idea?" + +"Ah!" The interpreter beamed; Mr. Torres beamed. They combined to +radiate a gentle effulgence which was most disquieting. "It is indeed +pleasing to encounter a gentleman so truly modest, so possessed of +delicacy; but I may say that Senor Torres is look with favor upon your +suit. Of course"--he checked Kirk's hasty words--"it is not completely +settle, by no means; the young lady is but partly won. However"--he +winked one black eye reassuringly--"as friend of the family I bid you +not to permit discouragement and despair." + +Anthony broke out in desperation: "Hold on! Let me explain! There's +been an awful mistake." + +"Mistake?" The tone was blandly incredulous. + +"Yes. I'm not in love with Miss Torres." + +Professor Jesus Herara stared at the speaker as if his mastery of the +English language was, after all, incomplete. Torres, seeing that he was +missing something, interpolated a smiling inquiry; then, as his +interpreter made the situation clear, his honeyed smile froze, his +sparkling eyes opened in bewilderment. He stared about the room again, +as if doubting that he had come to the right place. + +"There's really a mistake," Kirk persisted. "I don't even know Miss +Torres." + +"Ah! Now I understand." The Professor was intensely relieved. "It is +precisely for that purpose we arrived. Bueno! You admire from a +distance, is it not so? You are struck with the lady's beauty; your +heart is awakened. You are miserable. You pine away. You cannot find +courage to speak. It is admirable, senor. We understand fully, and I, +who know, assure you of her many virtues." + +"No, it's nothing like that, either. I have no doubt Miss Torres is +altogether charming, but--I--there's just a mistake, that's all. I'm +not the least bit in love with her." + +"But, senor! Is it not you who have stood beneath her window nightly? +Is it not you who have laid siege to her these many days?" The +speaker's eyes were glowing with anger as he turned to make his inquiry +clear to the young lady's father. + +Mr. Torres began to swell ominously. + +"If you'll just let me explain. I'm in love with a young woman, true +enough, but it doesn't happen to be Miss Torres. I thought it was, but +it isn't." + +There was another vibrant exchange of words between the Spaniards. + +"You were making sport, then, of my friend--" + +"No, no! It's another person altogether." + +"Who?" + +"I don't know her name." + +"WHAT?" Herara was about to burst forth when his friend nudged him and +he was obliged to put this amazing declaration into Spanish. Senor +Torres breathed heavily and exploded an oath. + +"I met her in the country and made a mistake in the town houses," Kirk +floundered on. "I never knew till this morning that I was on the wrong +trail. It is all my fault. I thought the lady's name was Torres." + +"Eh? So you love one whom you do not know? Incredible!" + +"It does sound a little fishy." + +"And it is a grave affront to my friend. How will the senorita +understand?--she in whose breast is awakened already an answering +thrills?" + +"I'm mighty sorry. If you wish, I'll apologize in person to Miss +Torres." + +At this Herara cried out in horror; then, after a brief colloquy with +the father, he rose stiffly, saying: "I offer no words from my friend. +For the present he does not believe, nor do I. Inquiries will be +institute, of that be assured. If you have deceived--if your intentions +were not of the most honorable"--the head of the Herara Business +College glared in a horrible manner--"you will have occasion to regret +those foolish jokes." + +Kirk tried to explain that his present regrets were ample for all time, +but, bowing formally, the visitors withdrew, leaving him to revile anew +the name of Allan Allan. + +When the black boy returned, foot-sore but cheerful, his appearance was +the signal for an outburst that left him disconsolate and bewildered. +He apologized over and over for his little error, and tried to +reinstate himself by announcing, with a confidence he was far from +feeling, that this time he had identified the elusive Chiquita beyond +the peradventure of a doubt. This welcome intelligence did much to make +Kirk forget his wrath. + +"What's her name?" he inquired, eagerly. + +"Fermina, sar." + +"Are you sure?" + +"H'entirely. But it will not h'avail to be courting of those ladies, +Master h'Auntony." + +"Is there more than one?" + +"Two of they--sisters--very rich. They h'occupy the 'ouse h'adjoining +Senor Torres." + +Allan spoke in a hushed voice, and shook his head as if to show the +hopelessness of aspiring to such aristocracy. Surely Kirk knew of the +Ferminas? Arcadio Fermina was the owner of the pearl-fishery concession +and a person of the highest social distinction. He was white, all +white, there was no doubt on that score. Undoubtedly Chiquita would +prove to be his daughter and a joint heiress to his fabulous fortune. +But she was not the sort to be courted from the street, even Allan knew +that much; for, after all, such a procedure was followed only by the +middle classes, and in this instance would result in nothing less than +disaster. + +It sounded reasonable, and Kirk allowed himself to be half convinced. +It was no later than the following day, however, that Runnels pointed +out two young ladies who were driving past and informed him that they +were the Misses Fermina. + +"Their old man has made a fortune out of the Pearl Islands," he +remarked. "They say those girls have the finest collection of pearls in +Central America." + +Kirk gazed after them eagerly, but it took no more than a glance to +show him that they were not even distantly related to the object of his +search. Once more he set Allan upon the trail with instructions to find +out who lived in the large house upon the hill--the one with the +driveway of royal palms--and not to return without the information. But +by now the Jamaican was beginning to weary of this running back and +forth and to consider the quest a vain imagining. So, being wishful to +dream another lottery number, he brought back with him a fanciful tale +designed to quiet his employer and to assure himself ample leisure in +the future. + +"Master h'Auntony, your female is gone," he informed him, sadly. + +"Gone! Where?" + +"Somewhere--on a ship." + +"Are you sure?" + +"There is no doubt, sar. Her name is Garavel, and she h'occupies the +big 'ouse on the 'ill. I discovered those h'impartant facts from the +Bajan 'ooman." + +"Stephanie! You saw her? By Jove! Then you are right this time. Quick! +tell me all you learned." + +Allan lied fluently, elaborately, and, finding his hero plunged into +despair, resigned himself gratefully to another period of blissful +idleness. This was much the simplest way, he decided; for even should +Kirk meet a Garavel or a Fermina, there was no chance of his winning +her, and love, after all, is but a passing impulse which may be +summoned or banished at will by such simple mediums as charms. The boy +did go out of his way to ease his benefactor's malady by taking a lock +of his own fuzzy wool and placing it beneath Kirk's mattress, after +certain exorcisms. + +There followed a period of blank dejection. Kirk's first +disappointment, when the girl had failed to keep her tryst, was as +nothing compared to this, for now he felt that she was unattainable. He +did not quite give up hope; so many strange experiences had befallen +him since his involuntary departure from New York that it all seemed +like a dream in which anything is possible. But he was deep in the +doldrums when, with magic suddenness, the scene changed, and his long +discouragement came to an end. + + + + +XIX + +"LA TOSCA" + + +The winter season was at its height now. For weeks there had been no +rain, and the Pacific side of the Isthmus was growing sere and yellow +beneath the ceaseless glare of the sun. The musty dampness of the rainy +season had disappeared, the steady trade-winds breathed a dreamy +languor, and the days fled past in one long, unending procession of +brilliant sameness. Every ship from the North came laden with tourists, +and the social life of the city grew brilliant and gay. There were +receptions, dinners, dances; the plazas echoed to the strains of music +almost nightly. Now that Nature smiled, the work upon the Canal went +forward with ever-growing eagerness. Records were broken in every +department, the railroad groaned beneath its burden, the giant human +machine was strained to its fullest efficiency. + +Young Anthony mastered the details of his work very rapidly, for +railroading had been bred into him. He needed little help from Runnels, +and soon began to feel a conscious grasp of affairs as surprising to +himself as to his chief. Being intensely interested in his work, he +avoided all social entanglements, despite repeated invitations from +Mrs. Cortlandt. But, when the grand-opera season began, he made an +exception, and joined her box-party on the opening night. + +It seemed quite like old times to don an evening suit; the stiff, white +linen awakened a pang of regret. The time was not far distant when he +had felt never so much at home as in these togs; but now they were hot +and uncomfortable--and how they accentuated his coat of tan! + +There was a somewhat formal dinner in the Cortlandts' new home, at +which there were a dozen guests; so Kirk had no opportunity of speaking +with his hostess until they had reached the theatre, where he found +himself seated immediately behind her. + +"I've scarcely seen you lately," she said, at the first opportunity. +"You're a very neglectful young man." + +"I knew you were getting settled in your house, and we've been +tremendously busy at the office." + +"I began to think you were avoiding us." + +"You must know better than that." + +She regarded him shrewdly over her shoulder. "You're not still thinking +of--that night at Taboga? You haven't seemed the same since." + +He blushed, and nodded frankly. "I can't help thinking about it. You +were mighty nice to overlook a break like that, but--" Unconsciously +his eyes shifted to Cortlandt, who was conversing politely with a +giggly old lady from Gatun. + +She tapped his cheek lightly with her fan. "Just to show you how +forgiving I am, I am going to ask you to go riding with me. The late +afternoons are lovely now, and I've found a good horse for you. I +suppose you ride?" + +"I love it." + +"Wednesday, at five, then." She turned to another guest, and Kirk +leaned back to take in the scene about him. + +Like most Latin-American cities, Panama prides herself upon her +government theatre, which is in truth very beautiful. Although it +remains dark most of the year, its brief period of opera is celebrated +by a notable outpouring. To-night the magnificent white-and-gold +auditorium was filled to the topmost gallery, and the two circles of +boxes were crowded with the flower of Panamanian society, tourists from +the North, and Americans from the whole length of the Canal Zone. Kirk +himself had seen to running a theatre special from Colon, and +recognized all six of the Commissioners, with their families. It was an +exceedingly well-dressed audience, and although the pit was plentifully +sprinkled with men in white, the two lower galleries were in solid +full-dress. Bejewelled women in elaborate gowns lent the affair almost +the elegance of a night at the Metropolitan, while the flash of many +uniforms made the scene colorful. + +Suddenly the orchestra broke into the national air, and with a great +rustling and turning of heads the audience rose to its feet. In the +centre box of the first tier, ornately hung with flags and a coat of +arms, Anthony beheld a giant black man of majestic appearance, drawn to +his full height and flanked by a half-dozen aides in uniform, all at a +stiff military salute. + +"That is President Galleo," Edith told him. + +"Jove! He's a regal-looking chap," Kirk exclaimed. + +"He's very much of a man, too, yet even here there is a color line. +Nobody acknowledges it, but the old Castilian families are keenly aware +of it just the same." + +As the last measured strain died out the audience reseated itself, the +introduction to "La Tosca" sounded, and the curtain rose. Although the +names of the performers were unknown to Kirk, their voices were +remarkably good, and he soon became absorbed in the drama. A sudden +lonesomeness surged over him as he recalled another night when he and +Darwin K. Anthony had heard these same notes sung. But then they had +sat enthralled by the art of Caruso, Scotti, and the ravishing +Cavalieri. It had been one of the rare hours when he and his father had +felt themselves really in sympathy. The Governor had come down for some +fabulous directors' meeting, he remembered, and had wired his son to +run in from New Haven for the evening. They had been real chums that +night, and even at their modest little supper afterward, when the old +gentleman had rowed with the waiter and cursed his dyspepsia, they had +laughed and chatted like cronies. Yet a week later they had quarrelled. + +With an unexpected access of tenderness, Anthony Jr. longed to see once +more that tumbled shock of white hair, that strong-lined face; to hear +again the gruff tones of that voice he loved so well. After all, there +were only two Anthonys left in the world, and he had been to blame. He +acknowledged that he had been a ne'er-do-well. No wonder his father had +been harsh, but still--old Darwin K. should not have been so +domineering, so ready to credit all he heard. Kirk pressed his lips +together and swore to make good, if for no other reason than to show +his dad. + +As the curtain fell on the first act, he rose with the others and, +accompanied by Mrs. Cortlandt, made his way down the long passageway +and out into a brightly lighted, highly decorated foyer filling now +with voluble people. It was a splendid room; but he had no eyes for it. +His gaze was fixed upon the welcome open-air promenade outside, and his +fingers fumbled with his cigarette-case. + +"Oh, wait, please," he heard Edith say, "I want you to meet some one." + +He had done little except respond to meaningless introductions all the +evening, and nothing could have pleased him less at the moment. But, +somewhat awkwardly, he began to edge his way through the press in the +wake of his hostess. The next moment he halted and stood stock-still in +helpless surprise. + +There, not a yard away, was the girl of his dreams demurely bowing to +Edith Cortlandt, her hand upon the arm of a swarthy man whom Kirk knew +at once as her father. He felt the blood rush blindingly to his head, +felt it drumming at his ears, knew that he must be staring like a man +bereft. Mrs. Cortlandt was speaking, and he caught the name "Garavel" +like a bugle-call. They turned upon him, the Spanish gentleman bowed, +and he saw that Chiquita's little white-gloved hand was extended toward +him. + +She was the same dainty, desirous maid he had met in the forest, but +now splendidly radiant and perfect beyond his imagining. She was no +longer the simple wood-sprite, but a tiny princess in filmy white, +moulded by some master craftsman. As on that earlier meeting, she was +thrilling with some subtle mirth which flickered on her lips or danced +in the depths of her great, dark eyes. + +How he ever got through that wild introductory moment without making a +show of himself, Anthony never knew, for his first overwhelming impulse +was to seize the girl and never let her escape. It was the same feeling +he had had at Las Savannas, only ten times harder to resist. The +general confusion, perhaps, helped to hide his emotion, for around them +eddied a constant human tide, through which at last came Mr. Cortlandt +and the other members of his party. There were more introductions, more +bows and polite exchanges of words which had the maddening effect of +distracting Miss Garavel's attention. Then, by some glorious miracle, +Kirk found himself moving toward the open air at her side, with Mrs. +Cortlandt and the banker in advance of them. + +"Oh, Chiquita," he said, softly, "I thought I'd NEVER find you. I've +hunted everywhere." + +At the tremulous intensity of his tone, she gave an uncertain laugh and +flashed him a startled glance. + +"Chiquita is not my name," she said, reprovingly. + +"Yes, it is; it must be. I can't think of you by any other. Hasn't it +been whispering at my ears ever since you said it? It has nearly driven +me mad." + +"Senor Antonio! I have seen you but once." + +"I have seen you every day, every hour-" + +"Indeed?" + +"I can't see anything else. Don't you understand?" + +"You forget that we have but just been introduced." + +"Don't be offended; you see, I can't realize that I have found you at +last. When I learned you had gone away, I thought I would surely-" + +"I have been nowhere." + +"Didn't you go away on a ship?" + +"That is absurd! I have remained always in my father's house." + +"Then wait until I catch that boy of mine! Didn't you know I was +looking for you? Couldn't you FEEL it?" + +"Indeed, why should I imagine such things?" + +"Why, if you couldn't feel a thing like that, you can't love me." + +"Of a certainly not," she gasped. "You should not joke about such +things." + +"I'm not joking; I never was so serious in my life. I-I'm afraid I +can't tell you everything-it all wants to come out at once. Why didn't +you come back as you promised?" + +"It was Stephanie-she is such a ferocious person! I was brought to the +city that day-but no, senor. I did not promise. I said only 'perhaps.'" + +"Have you done your penance?" + +"It was finished yesterday. This is the first time I have been out. Oh, +it is delightful. The music-the people!" + +"And I can come to see you now?" + +"Very well do you know that you cannot. Have you not learned our +customs?" Then, with an abrupt and icy change of tone: "I forget. Of +course you are familiar with those customs, since you have become the +wooer of Miss Torres." + +"Oh, Lord! Where did you hear about that?" + +"So! It is true. You are fickle, senor-or is it that you prefer dark +people?" + +"I was looking for you. I thought it was you behind those curtains all +the time." He began a flurried defence of his recent outrageous +behavior, to which Miss Garavel endeavored to listen with distant +composure. But he was so desperately in earnest, so anxious to make +light of the matter, so eager to expose all his folly and have done +with it, that he must have been funnier than he knew. In the midst of +his narrative the girl's eyes showed an encouraging gleam, and when he +described his interview with Torres and Heran their surprise and +dramatic indignation, she laughed merrily. + +"Oh, it wasn't funny at the time," he hastened to add. "I felt as +though I had actually proposed, and might have to pay alimony." + +"Poor Maria! It is no light thing to be cast aside by one's lover. She +is broken-hearted, and for six months she will do penance." + +"This penance thing is a habit with you girls. But I wasn't her lover; +I'm yours." + +"Do not be foolish," she exclaimed, sharply, "or I shall be forced to +walk with my father." + +"Don't do that. Can't you see we must make haste while the curtain is +down?" + +"I do not see. I am strolling in search of the cool air." She bowed and +smiled at some passing friends. She seemed very careless, very +flippant. She was not at all the impetuous, mischievous Chiquita he had +met in the woods. + +"See here!" he said, soberly. "We can't go on this way. Now that I've +met your father, I'm going to explain my intentions to him, and ask his +permission to call on you." + +"We have a--proverb, senor, 'Ir por lana, y volver trasquilado,' which +means, 'Take heed lest you find what you do not seek.' Do not be +impetuous." + +"There's only one thing I'm seeking." + +"My father is a stern man. In his home he is entirely a Spaniard, and +if he learned how we met, for instance"-even under the electric light +he saw her flush-"he would create a terrible scene." She paused in her +walk and leaned over the stone balustrade, staring out across the +ink-black harbor. + +"Trust me! I shan't tell him." + +"There are so many reasons why it is useless." + +"Name one." + +"One!" She shrugged lightly. "In the first place I care nothing for +you. Is not that enough?" + +"No, indeed. You'll get over that." + +"Let us imagine, then, the contrary. You Americans are entirely +different from our people. You are cold, deliberate, wicked-your social +customs are not like ours. You do not at all understand us. How then +could you be interested to meet a Spanish family?" + +"Why, you're half American." + +"Oh yes, although it is to be regretted. Even at school in your +Baltimore I learned many improper things, against which I have had to +struggle ever since." + +"For instance?" + +"Ah," she sighed, "I saw so much liberty; I heard of the shocking +conduct of your American ladies, and, while I know it is quite wrong +and wicked, still-it is interesting. Why, there is no other nice girl +in all Panama who would have talked with you as I did in the forest +that day." + +"But what has all this to do with my coming to see you?" + +"It is difficult to explain, since you will not understand. When a +young man is accepted into a Spanish house, many things are taken for +granted. Besides that, we do not know each other, you and I. Also, if +you should come to see me, it would cause gossip, misunderstanding +among my friends." + +"I'll declare myself in advance," he promised warmly. + +"No, no, no! We Spanish-Americans do not care for strangers. We have +our own people and we are satisfied. You Yankees are not very nice; you +are barbarous; you assume such liberties. Our young men are gentle, +modest, sweet--" + +"Um-m! I hadn't noticed it." + +"This is the first time I have ever talked so freely with a gentleman, +and I suppose it is immodest. After all, it is much better that old +people who are of more experience should discuss these questions." + +"But don't you want to have a voice in your own affairs?" he eagerly +urged. "Do you really want your relatives to tell you whom to meet, +whom to love, and whom to marry?" + +She answered, frankly: "Sometimes I feel that way. Yet at other times I +am sure they must know best." + +"I don't believe you are the sort to shut your eyes and do exactly as +you're told." + +"I do rebel sometimes. I protest, but it is only the American blood in +me." + +"If you'd learn to know me a little bit, maybe you'd enjoy having me +around the house." + +"But I cannot know you, any more than you can know me," she cried, with +a little gesture of despair at his dullness. "Don't you see--before we +could get acquainted nicely people would be talking?" + +"Let's try. You're living at the country place again, aren't you? +Suppose I should get lost some day--tomorrow, for instance?" + +"No, no! Listen. It is the warning bell, and we must return." + +The crowd was filing into the theatre now. They fell in behind Senor +Garavel and Mrs. Cortlandt. + +"I'm going hunting again tomorrow," prophesied Kirk, "and I'm almost +certain to lose my way-about three o'clock." + +"You should take with you a guide." + +"That's not a bad idea. I'd like to talk it over with you. Suppose we +have another stroll after the next act?" + +"I shall be with my father. Never before have I enjoyed so much +liberty." She sighed gratefully. + +"Oh, I detest your blamed, straitlaced Spanish customs," he cried, +hotly. "What do they amount to, anyhow? I love you. I do, I do-" + +She laughed and darted to her father's side. + +"Don't you think Miss Garavel is a pretty girl?" Mrs. Cortlandt +questioned, as they strolled toward their box. + +"She's a dream." Anthony's tone left nothing unsaid. + +"You got along together capitally. Most of the senoritas are +impossible." + +"By the way, what is her name?" + +"Gertrudis. Rather pleasing, I think." + +Kirk thought so, too. In fact, it pleased him so greatly that he +thought of nothing else during the entire second act of "La Tosca." It +was even sweeter than the music of her hesitating accent. + +When, after an age, the curtain fell for a second time, he escaped from +his companions, mumbling some excuse or other, and made haste to find +her again. But as he approached he felt a sudden pang of jealous rage. + +Ramon Alfarez was beside her, and the two were chatting with an +appearance of intimacy that made him furious. Close at hand stood +Garavel, deep in conversation with Colonel Jolson. + +"Ah, Ramon, I wish you to meet Mr. Anthony," said Gertrudis. "So! You +have met before?" + +"In Colon," Kirk explained, while Alfarez scorched him with his eyes. +"Mr. Alfarez was very hospitable to me." + +"Yes," the Spaniard exclaimed. "It is my great regret that Senor +Ant'ony did not remain for longer." + +"Ramon is with the President's party this evening. He is Senor Galleo's +Secretary, you know." + +"I informed you concerning those good fortunes some time since, eh?" +Ramon's insulting stare made Kirk long to take him by the throat. + +"Yes, you told me. I suppose it is a fine position." + +Alfarez swelled pompously. "I 'ave many responsibilities." + +"It brings you very close to the Chief Executive, no doubt." + +"I 'ave indeed the honor to be his intimate!" + +"He's the tallest negro I ever saw," Kirk said, simply, at which the +haughty Ramon seemed about to explode, and Miss Garavel quite +shamelessly giggled. + +"That is funny," she exclaimed. "But you must not tease Ramon. You +understand, the voice of the people has made Galleo President, but no +one forgets that he is not one of us." + +Her youthful countryman twisted his mustache with trembling fingers. + +"It is politics!" he declared. "And yet Galleo is a great man; I am +honor' to be his Secretary. But by the grace of God our next President +will be w'ite." + +"Ramon's father, Don Anibal, you know." Gertrudis nodded wisely at the +American. "We are very proud of Ramon, he is so young to be high in +politics." + +"Eh! Yes, and many of our bravest patriots 'ave been black men." + +"Oh, we've had some brave negroes, too," Kirk acknowledged. + +"So! You see!" Alfarez was triumphant. + +"The greatest fighter we ever had was a colored chap." + +"Ah!" + +"His name was Gans--Joe Gans." + +"You are still joking," said Miss Garavel. "In Baltimore I read the +newspapers about that Gans. He was a-box-fighter, what?" + +"Exactly. But he never carried a Secretary." + +Alfarez's countenance was sallow as he inquired: + +"Does Senor Ant'ony discover our climate to be still agreeable?" + +"Very. It hasn't grown too warm for me yet." + +"We are but approaching our 'ot season." The speaker's eyes snapped. + +"Oh, I'll stand the heat all right, and the mosquitoes, too." + +"Eh! Do not be too sure. The mosquito makes a leetle buzzing-but it is +well to take warning. If not, behol', some day you grow ver' seeck." + +Heretofore Kirk had hated Ramon in a careless, indifferent sort of way, +feeling that he owed him a good drubbing, which he would be pleased to +administer if ever a fitting time arrived. But now, since he saw that +the jackanapes had the audacity to love Gertrudis, his feeling became +intense. The girl, of course, was fully alive to the situation, and, +although she evidently enjoyed it, she did her best to stand between +the two men. + +As for Alfarez, he was quick to feel the sudden fierce hostility he had +aroused, and it seemed to make him nervous. Moreover, he conceived that +he had scored heavily by his last retort, at which Kirk had only +smiled. It therefore seemed best to him to withdraw from the +conversation (annoyingly conducted in English), and a few moments later +he stalked majestically away. This was just what Kirk wanted, and he +quickly suggested the balcony. But Gertrudis was obstinate. + +"I must remain with my father," she said. + +"May I sit beside you, then? I've been thinking of a lot of things to +say. I always think of bully remarks when it's too late. Now I've +forgotten them. Do you know, I'm going to nestle up to your father and +make him like me?" + +"Again you are speaking of that subject. I have known you but an hour, +and you talk of nothing but my father, of me, of coming to call." + +"Well, I can't think of anything else." + +"You are too bold. Spanish fathers do not like such young men. But to +hear me talk!" She flushed slightly. "I have lost all modesty to speak +of those things. You force me to embarrass myself." + +"I was an instantaneous success with Miss Torres' father. He was ready +to send a dray for my trunks." + +"Let us discuss other things." + +"I haven't the strength. You once spoke of a chap your people had +picked out. It isn't-Alfarez?" + +She let her dark eyes rest upon his a moment, and his senses swam. Then +she nodded slowly. + +"You do not like him?" + +"Just like a nose-bleed. The day you and I are married I'm going to +send him a wreath of poison ivy." + +"It pleases you always to joke." + +"No joke about that. You won't give in, will you?" + +"There is no question of force nor of surrender, senor. I insist now +that we shall speak of other things." + +A few moments later he was constrained to rejoin his hostess' party. + +"When are you going back to Las Savannas?" he asked, as he reluctantly +arose. + +"To-morrow." + +"The hunting ought to be good-" + +But she frowned at him in annoyance, and he left her, after all, +without knowing whether he had gained or lost ground. Of one thing only +he was sure-their meeting had been in some respects a disappointment. +She was not by any means so warm and impulsive as he had supposed. Her +girlishness, her simplicity, her little American ways, cloaked a deep +reserve and a fine sense of the difference in their positions. She +could be Spanish enough when she chose, he perceived, and he felt, as +he was intended to feel, that the little lady of quality he had met +to-night would be much harder to win than the girl of the woods. The +plague of it was that, if anything, he was more in love with the +definite and dazzling Gertrudis Garavel than he had been with the +mysteriously alluring Chiquita. If only she were all American, or even +all Spanish, perhaps he would know better how to act. But, +unfortunately, she was both-just enough of both to be perplexing and +wholly unreliable. And then, too, there was Alfarez! + + + + +XX + +AN AWAKENING + + +He was in no more satisfactory frame of mind when, on the next +afternoon, he shouldered his gun and set out for the country. He went +directly to the fairy pool, and waited there in a very fever of +anxiety. Despite the coolness and peace of the place, he felt his +pulses throb and his face burn. If she came, it would mean everything +to him. If she stayed away-why, then he would have to believe that, +after all, the real Gertrudis Garavel had spoken last night at the +opera, and that the sprightly, mirthful little maid who had bewitched +him on their first meeting no longer existed. An odd bashfulness +overtook him. It did not seem to him that it could possibly have been +he who had talked to her so boldly only the evening before. At the +thought of his temerity he felt almost inclined to flee, yet he would +not have deserted his post for worlds. The sound of a voice shot +through his troubled thoughts like a beam of sunlight through a dark +room. + +"Oh, Senor Antonio! How you startled me!" + +Instantly his self-possession came back. He felt relieved and gay. + +"Good-afternoon, queen!" He rose and bowed politely. "I thought I saw +one underneath the waterfall just now." + +"Who would have expected you to be here?" she cried, with an extreme +and obviously counterfeit amazement that filled him with delight. + +"I'm lost," he declared; then, after one look into her eyes, he added, +"Absolutely, utterly, irretrievably lost." + +"It is very fortunate that I chanced to be passing, for this is a +lonely spot; nobody ever comes here." + +"Well, I hardly ever lose myself in busy places. Won't you sit down?" + +"Since we have met quite by accident, perhaps it would not be so very +improper," She laughed mischievously. + +"You know I've been lost now for several months. It's a delightful +feeling-you ought to try it." + +She settled uncertainly beside him like a butterfly just alighting, +ready to take flight again, on the instant. + +"Perhaps I can help you to find your way, senor?" she said, with +ingenuous politeness. + +"You are the only one who can, Miss Garavel. I don't know that I ever +told you, but I'm in love." + +"Indeed?" + +"I am the most miserably happy person in the world, for I have just +this moment begun to believe that the young lady likes me a little bit." + +"Oh! But I forgot the real reason why I came. I have something I must +tell you." + +"All right. But honestly now, didn't you WANT to come?" + +She turned upon him in a little burst of passion. "Yes!" she cried. "Of +course I did! I wished to come, madly, senor. There is no use to lie. +But wait! It is wholly because I am a-what you call fleert-a very sad +fleert." No one could possibly describe the quaint pronunciation she +gave the word. "It makes my heart patter, like that"--she made her +little fingers "patter"-"to be wooed even by a Yankee. But I do not +love you in the least. Oh no! Even if I wished to do so, there are too +many reasons why I could not, and when I explain you will understand." + +"I know; it's Ramon Alfarez. You're half-way engaged to him--but you +know you don't love him." + +"Ah! It is not too sure. He is of fine family, he is rich, he is +handsome-not possibly could I care for any man who was not all of +those. All my life I have thought him a very sweet gentleman, and for a +long time it has been agreed that I should be his wife. Even all the +young ladies are furious at me, which is very nice also-so it is only +because I am disobedient that I rebelled. But I was punished for my +evil disposition." She sighed mournfully. "And now it is all arranged +once more." + +"Is it really signed, sealed, stamped, and delivered in the presence +of?" + +"No, no; but 'Arco siempre armado'-" + +"Of course. Is that a prescription?" + +'"A bow long bent grows weak.' And there are so many reasons why I +should say yes." + +"You haven't mentioned any that would be binding in law." + +"My father's wish. Is not that sufficient?" + +"You disregarded that once." + +"That was but a flutter. All the time I knew I should be Ramon's wife +when the time arrived. But it made him so unhappy that I was quite +pleased. Only for those ugly blue dresses, I would have greatly enjoyed +my penance. Perhaps I could refuse to wed a man my father chose for me, +but no nice Spanish girl would dare to wed a man her father did not +like. Do you see?" + +"But it's no cinch your father won't positively hunger for me, once we +get chummy." + +"And I for Ramon? How sad that would be, eh?" + +"Really, now, couldn't you bring yourself to marry a chap who wasn't +aristocratic, rich, and handsome? You know that's a tough combination. +Most aristocratic people are poor, and the rich ones have dyspepsia." + +"Oh no! I am quite certain." + +"Suppose I should show you a family tree that you couldn't throw a +stone over?" + +"It would not do at all. I am so extravagant." + +"I fully intend to be rich, some time." + +"But you are not handsome, senor." Her eyes travelled over him with a +mischievous twinkle. "You are too beeg." + +"I'm very durable; I'd last a long time." + +She shook her dark head decisively, and he saw the lights that rippled +in her profuse crown of hair. + +"You are too different, you disregard our customs, you are bold. You +continue to come here against my wishes, which no Spanish gentleman +would dare to do." + +"Oh, I'm no Spanish gentleman. I'm just an emotional blond; but I'm +bound to marry you." + +"If one of my countrymen found me so indiscreet as to talk with him +alone like this, he would go away and never come back. I am amazed at +you, senor. Have you no pride?" + +"Not a bit; and now that I have met all your objections, let's arrange +the details. Shall it be a church wedding?" + +She laughed deliciously. "What a nice game it is we have played! But +now I must talk seriously." + +"You witch!" he breathed. "Do you think I could ever give you up?" + +She checked him gravely. "Truly, it was just a game--and yet it was not +altogether so, either. But here is what I came to say. The strangest +thing has happened-not until last night after the opera did I even +dream of it, and-even now I cannot believe. Oh, I am so proud!" + +"More bad news for me, I suppose." + +"Yes. But such good news for me that I am sure you will be glad." +Timidly he reached out and touched a fold of her white dress. She +seemed to be slipping from him. "Coming home from the theatre my father +told me-oh, the most wonderful thing! He said-but how shall I speak of +such a secret?" + +"Evidently you don't intend to." + +"I promised very faithfully not to tell, so-he is to be the next +President of Panama." + +"Pres--" Anthony stared at her in frank amazement. "Why, I thought old +man Alfarez--" + +"It seems your country does not like him because he hates +Americans-see? This is the work of that Mr. Cortlandt. Think! Is it not +wonderful? Now that you know the truth, you must see at once that by no +means could I marry to a person like you." + +"Why not?" + +"Ohe! Don't you understand? I shall be the finest lady in the Republic. +All men will adore me. I will have suitors-not one or two as now, but +many. I will be 'the beautiful Senorita Garavel,' for all the great +people are beautiful. I shall be proud, also, and I shall not even +speak to Yankees any more. My father will be the most famous man of all +the Republic-perhaps in the whole world, I don't know." + +"I don't think it will make any difference with him when he knows who I +am." + +"Then you also are a great man, eh?" She hitched herself about, to face +him more squarely. "That is truly interesting. He would scarcely wish a +railroad conductor to address the daughter of President Garavel." + +"Oh, I've been promoted since I was out here last. Anyhow, I guess my +dad is pretty nearly as good as anybody in Panama." + +"He is, then, of blue blood?" + +"No! Red." + +"Oh, but a gentleman!" + +"He is now. He used to be a brakeman." + +"You appear to be-proud of such a thing! How strange! My father's blood +runs back to the conquistadors; even in the earliest books one finds +Garavels. They were conquerors, they ruled this country and all these +people." + +"That's something to be proud of, but it isn't everything. High-bred +horses run well, but they can't pull. It's the old farm nag that +delivers the merchandise. But I'll tackle your father, and I'll promise +to vote for him." + +"You are very fonny." She gazed at him seriously, one tiny foot curled +under her, her chin nestling into her palm. + +"Do you love me?" + +"Not one single speck. I merely like you to make love at me and cause +my heart to jomp! But that is not fair to you, is it?-since you can +have no hope." + +The little hypocrite continued to voice words of warning and denial, +though her eyes invited him, and for a long time they continued this +delightful play of pleading and evasion. But at last Chiquita jumped up +with a great appearance of alarm. + +"Heavens! the time," she cried. "I have stayed too long by much. +Stephanie will miss me." + +He rose and stretched out his hand as if to hold her. + +"Shall I come again to-morrow?" + +She grew suddenly earnest. + +"No, no, senor. That is something you should not ask. If ever we are to +meet again, it must be with my father's consent. Please! Do not urge, +for truly I would have to refuse." She let her palm rest in his an +instant, and her cheek went scarlet as he pressed it to his lips. Then +she said: "Go, Mr. Brazen One. How greatly it surprised me to find you +here I cannot say. It gave me such a start! And, Senor Antonio--my +father may be found any day at his bank." Before he could detain her +she was gone, flitting up the path with just one flashing smile of +mischief over her shoulder. + +Anthony went home with his head in the clouds. All his doubts were now +at rest; for while Chiquita had stubbornly denied him all +encouragement, he felt sure that her heart had answered. It was in the +highest spirits, therefore, that he opened a letter he found awaiting +him, and read as follows: + +DEAR KIRK,--I hope you are heartily sick of yourself and ready to do +something decent for a change. Knowing your aristocratic habits as I +do, I realize you must owe a lot of money by this time, and your new +friends must be getting tired of you. I have been expecting you to draw +on me daily, and am taking this occasion to warn you in your own +expensively acquired college English that "THERE IS NOTHING +DOING"--except upon one condition. If you will agree to behave yourself +in future, I will pay your debts, send you West, and give you a job as +operator at forty dollars a month. BUT--you will go where I send you, +and you will stay where you are put. I will do the thinking for both of +us and judge of your associates. Maybe if you prove to be any good at +all, I will arrange with the police to let you spend your vacations in +"that dear New York," which still shows signs of your red--paint brush. +I would be pleased to have an apology by return mail, so that I may +meet you in New Orleans and start you off once more on the road to +decency and self-respect. You will never be a success at anything, but +I am always ready to do my duty. This is my last offer, and if you +refuse you may distinctly and definitely go to the devil. As ever, + +Your loving father, DARWIN K. ANTHONY. + +P.S.--I can get GOOD operators for thirty dollars a month. The extra +ten dollars is pure sentiment. + +Kirk had known in advance just about what the letter contained, and now +laughed aloud. It was so like the old gentleman! Why, he could almost +hear him dictating it. + +Spurred by his present exhilaration, he wrote an answer, which he read +with a good deal of satisfaction before sealing it up. + +DEAR DAD,-Your affectionate letter, with the kind offer to take charge +of a siding out in the Dakotas, is at hand. I would like to help you +along with your business, but "Upward and onward" is my motto, and +you'll have to raise that salary a bit. I am drawing two hundred and +twenty-five dollars a month at present, quarters furnished and +promotion promised. I have made some good investments, and there are no +debts to settle. Enclosed find my last bank statement, which will +doubtless prove a great disappointment to you. + +If you need a good Master of Transportation, I would be pleased to +consider an offer at any time, provided the salary is satisfactory, but +your proposal to edit my acquaintances is out of the question. My +decency and self respect are doing well, thank you, and I like the +climate. + +Outside my window a mocking-bird sings nightly, and I have a tame +rabbit with ears like a squirrel and baby-blue eyes--also a Jamaican +negro boy who, I fear, could not stand our harsh Northern winters. + +The salary would have to be about six thousand a year. As always, + +Your devoted and obedient son, KIRK. + +P.S.--I would not care to locate farther west than Buffalo. My wife +might not like it. + +"If he survives the first part, that tag line will put him down for the +count," mused the writer, with a grin. "And, yet, something tells me he +will not embrace my offer. Ah, well! Promotion is slow." He whistled +blithely as he sent Allan off to the post-office. + +Kirk lost no time in calling at the bank, but was disappointed to learn +that Senor Andres Garavel had left the city for an unexpected business +tour of the Provinces and would not return for at least two weeks. At +first he was inclined to doubt the truth of this statement, but a +casual inquiry from Mrs. Cortlandt confirmed it, and, cursing his luck, +he sought distraction where he could most easily find it. + +In the days that followed he saw nothing of Gertrudis, but a good deal +of Edith Cortlandt. She had redeemed her promise of getting him a good +horse-something rare in this country-and he was grateful for the +exercise, which came as a welcome relief from his indoor toil. They +rode almost daily; he dined at her house, and once again made one of +her party at the opera. Soon their old friendly intercourse was going +on as if it had never been interrupted. + +As for Edith, this unsatisfying, semi-public intimacy came to be quite +as much a pain as a pleasure to her. During these past few weeks she +had been plunged in a mental turmoil, the signs of which she had +concealed with difficulty. She had fought with herself; she had tried +to reason; she had marshalled her pride, but all in vain. At last she +awoke to the terrifying certainty that she was in love. It had all +begun with that moment of impulsive surrender at Taboga. The night +following had been terrible to her. In its dark hours she had seen her +soul for the first time, and the glimpse she got frightened her. +Following this, she became furious with herself, then resentful toward +Anthony; next she grew desperate and reckless. + +She began to look upon her husband with a quickened curiosity, and +found him a stranger. For years she had made allowance for his +weaknesses, ignoring them as she ignored his virtues; but never before +had he appeared so colorless, so insignificant, above all so alien. She +had barely tolerated him hitherto, but now she began to despise him. + +If Cortlandt was aware of her change of feeling and its cause, his +method of dealing with her showed some keenness. Silent contempt was +what she could least endure from him of all men; yet this was just what +his manner toward her expressed-if it expressed anything. Beyond those +words as they were leaving the island, he had said nothing, had never +referred to the incident, had not so much as mentioned Anthony's name +unless forced to do so, and this offended her unreasonably. She caught +him regarding her strangely at times with a curious, faltering +expression, but he was so icy in his reserve, he yielded so easily to +her predominance, that she could divine nothing and turned the more +fiercely to her inward struggle. Even if he did suspect, what then? It +was no affair of his; she was her own mistress. She had given him all +he possessed, she had made a man of him. He was her creature, and had +no rights beyond what she chose to give. They saw less and less of each +other. He became more formal, more respectfully unhusbandlike. He spent +few daylight hours in the house, coming and going as he pleased, +frequenting the few clubs of the city, or riding alone. On more than +one occasion he met her and Anthony on their horses. Only before +others, or at their frequent political councils, were they quite the +same as they had been. + +Of Anthony, on the other hand, she arranged to see more than ever, +flattering him by a new deference in her manner, making him feel always +at ease with her, watching him vainly for the least sign of awakening +desire. In their frequent rides they covered most of the roads about +the city, even to the ruins of old Panama. Then they began to explore +the by-paths and trails. + +One afternoon they turned into an unfrequented road that led off to the +jungle from the main highway, walking their horses while they marvelled +at the beauty of the foliage. The trail they knew led to a coffee +plantation far up among the hills, but it was so little travelled that +the verdure brushed them as they went, and in many places they passed +beneath a roof of branches. Before they had penetrated a quarter of a +mile they were in the midst of an unbroken solitude, shut off from the +world by a riotous glory of green, yellow, and crimson. They had not +spoken for a long time, and were feeling quite content with the +pleasant monotony of--their journey, when they burst out into a rocky +glen where a spring of clear water bubbled forth. With a common impulse +they reined in; Twenty feet farther on the trail twisted into the +screen of verdure and was lost. + +"What a discovery!" exclaimed Edith. "Help me down, please, I'm going +to drink." + +Kirk dismounted and lent her a hand; the horses snorted appreciatively, +and stepping forward, thrust their soft muzzles eagerly into the +stream, then fell to browsing upon the tender leaves at their shoulders. + +Edith quenched her thirst, shook the cramp from her limbs, and said: +"Some time we will have to see where this road leads. There may be more +surprises beyond." She broke a flower from its stem and fastened it in +Kirk's buttonhole, while he gazed down at her with friendly eyes. + +"You're looking awfully well lately," he declared. + +Glancing up, she met his gaze and held it for an instant. "It's the +open air and the exercise. I enjoy these rides with you more than I can +say." Something in her look gave him a little thrill of embarrassment. + +"I think I'll give Marquis and Gyp their dessert," he said, and, +turning aside, began to gather a handful of the greenest leaves. The +instant his eyes were off her, she took the horses by their bridles, +swung them about, and with a sharp blow of her riding-crop sent them +snorting and clattering down the trail. Kirk wheeled barely in time to +see them disappearing. + +"Here!" he cried, sharply. "What are you doing?" + +"They bolted." + +"They'll hike straight for town. Now I'll have to chase--" He glanced +at her sharply. "Say, why did you do that?" + +"Because I wanted to. Isn't that reason enough?" Her eyes were reckless +and her lips white. + +"You shouldn't do a thing like that!" he cried, gruffly. "It's foolish. +Now I'll have to run them down." + +"Oh, you can't catch them." + +"Well, I'll have a try at it, anyhow." He tossed away his handful of +leaves. + +"Silly! I did it because I wanted to talk with you." + +"Well, those horses wouldn't overhear." + +"Don't be angry, Kirk. I haven't seen you alone since that night." + +"Taboga?" he said, guiltily. "You're not going to lecture me again? I'm +sorry enough as it is." Never in all his life had he felt more +uncomfortable. He could not bring himself to meet her gaze, feeling +that his own face must be on fire. + +"What a queer chap you are! Am I so unattractive that you really want +to rush off after those horses?" He said nothing, and she went on after +a moment of hesitation: "I have known men who would have thought it a +privilege to be left alone with me like this." + +"I--have no doubt." + +"You remember, for instance, I told you there was one man at Taboga +whom I did not wish to see?" + +"Yes--at the sanitarium." + +"Well, something like this happened once--with him--and I told Stephen." + +"And did you tell Mr. Cortlandt what I did?" + +"Do you think I would have come riding with you if I had?" She shook +her head. "Kirk, I used to think you were an unusually forward young +man, but you're not very worldly, are you?" + +"N-no--yes! I guess I'm as wise as most fellows." + +"Sometimes I think you are very stupid." + +He began firmly: "See here, Mrs. Cortlandt, you have been mighty good +to me, and I'm indebted to you and your husband for a whole lot. I am +terribly fond of you both." + +She clipped a crimson bloom from its stem with a vicious blow of her +crop, then, with eyes fixed upon the fallen flower, broke the awkward +pause that followed. + +"I suppose," she said, half defiantly, "you know how things are with +Stephen and me--everybody must know, I suppose. I have done a lot of +thinking lately, and I have made up my mind that the last appeal of +what is right or wrong lies with one's self. I'm not going to care any +longer what the world thinks of my actions so long as my own heart +justifies them. Happiness--that is what I want, and I will have it--I +will have it at any cost. It is my right. Because a woman marries +without love, is it right for her to forego love all her life? I think +not." + +She looked up, and with a change of tone ran on swiftly: "I have +studied you for a long time, Kirk. I know the sort of man you are. I +know you better than you know yourself. Very lately I have begun to +study myself, too, and I know, at last, the sort of woman I am." She +drew near and laid a hand on each shoulder, forcing him to look +straight into her eyes. "I am not like most women; I can't do things by +halves; I can't temporize with vital things; I prefer to experiment, +even blindly. I used to think I was born to rule, but I think now that +a woman's only happiness lies in serving; and I used to believe I was +contented, when all the time I was waiting for something and didn't +know it. Don't be silly now; you're just like every other man." + +"I can't pretend to misunderstand you, although--Listen!" He cut his +words short. "Here comes some one." + +She turned her head, as from the direction their mounts had taken came +the sound of approaching hoots. + +"Natives from the hills." She nodded carelessly toward the purple +mountains back of them. But the next moment she gave a little gasp of +consternation. Out from the overhung path, with a great rustling of +leaves, came, not the expected flea-bitten Panama horse, but a familiar +bay, astride of which was Stephen Cortlandt. He was leading Marquis and +Gyp by their bridles, and reined in at sight of his wife and her +companion. + +"Hello!" he said. "I caught your horses for you." + +"Jove! That's lucky!" Kirk greeted the husband's arrival with genuine +relief. "They bolted when we got down to take a drink, and we were +getting ready for a long walk. Thanks, awfully." + +"No trouble at all. I saw them as they came out on the main road." +Cortlandt's pigskin saddle creaked as he bent forward to deliver the +reins. He was as cool and immaculate as ever. He met Edith's eyes +without the slightest expression. "Nice afternoon for a ride." + +"If I had known you were riding to-day you might have come with us," +she said. + +He smiled in his wintry fashion, then scanned the surroundings +appreciatively. + +"Pretty spot, isn't it? If you are going back, I'll ride with you." + +"Good enough. May I give you a hand, Mrs. Cortlandt?" Kirk helped Edith +to her seat, at which her husband bowed his thanks. Then the three set +out in single file. + +"Which way?" inquired Stephen as they reached the highroad. + +"Back to town, I think," Edith told him, "And you?" + +"I'm not ready yet. See you later." He raised his hat and cantered +easily away, while the other two turned their horses' heads toward the +city. + + + + +XXI + +THE REST OF THE FAMILY + + +The time for Senor Garavel's return having arrived, Kirk called at the +bank, and found not the least difficulty in gaining an audience. +Indeed, as soon as he had reminded the banker of their former meeting, +he was treated with a degree of cordiality that surpassed his +expectations. + +"I remember quite well, sir," said Garavel--"'La Tosca.' Since you are +a friend of Mrs. Cortlandt I shall be delighted to serve you." + +Now that they were face to face, Kirk felt that he distinctly approved +of Chiquita's father. This dignified, distinguished-looking gentleman +awaited his pleasure with an air of leisurely courtesy that would have +made him under other circumstances very easy of approach. But there was +a keenness in his dark eyes that suggested the futility of beating +round the bush. Kirk felt suddenly a little awkward. + +"I have something very particular to say to you," he began, +diffidently, "but I don't know just how to get at it." + +Garavel smiled graciously. "I am a business man." + +"This isn't business," blurted Kirk; "it's much more important. I want +to have it over as quickly as possible, so I'll be frank. I have met +your daughter, Mr. Garavel"--the banker's eyes widened in a look of +disconcerting intensity--"and I am in love with her--sort of a shock, +isn't it? It was to me. I'd like to tell you who I am and anything else +you may wish to know." + +"My dear sir, you surprise me--if you are really serious. Why, you have +seen her but once--a moment, at the theatre!" + +"I met her before that night, out at your country place. I had been +hunting, and on my way home through the woods I stumbled upon your +swimming-pool. She directed me to the road." + +"But even so!" + +"Well, I loved her the first instant I saw her." + +"I knew nothing of this. If you had reason to think that your suit +would be acceptable, why did you not come to me before?" + +"I couldn't. I didn't know your name. I was nearly crazy because I +couldn't so much as learn the name of the girl I loved!" Kirk plunged +confusedly into the story of his search for Chiquita. + +"That is a strange tale," said Senor Garavel, when he had finished--"a +very strange tale--and yet you did well to tell it me. At present I do +not know what to think. Young men are prone to such romantic fancies, +rash and ill-considered. They are, perhaps, excusable, but---" + +"Oh, I suppose you can't understand how a fellow falls so deep in love +on such short acquaintance, but I have been brooding over this for +months--there's nothing hasty or ill-considered about it, I can assure +you. I am terribly hard hit, sir; it means everything to me." + +"If you would tell me something about yourself, I might know better in +what light to regard this affair." + +"Gladly--though there isn't much to tell. Just now I'm working on the +P.R.R. as assistant to Runnels--the Master of Transportation, you know. +I like the work and expect to be promoted. I have a little money--just +enough to give me a fresh start if I should lose out here, and--oh, +well, I'm poor but honest; I suppose that's about the size of it." He +paused, vaguely conscious that he had not done himself justice. What +else was there to say about Kirk Anthony? Then he added as an +afterthought: + +"My father is a railroad man, in Albany, New York." + +"In what capacity is he employed, may I ask?" said Garavel, showing +something like real interest. + +Kirk grinned at this, and, seeing a copy of Bradstreet's on the +banker's table, turned to his father's name, which he pointed out +rather shamefacedly. Senor Garavel became instantly less distant. + +"Of course the financial world knows Darwin K. Anthony," said he. "Even +we modest merchants of the tropics have heard of him; and that his son +should seek to win success upon his own merits is greatly to his +credit. I congratulate you, sir, upon your excellent progress." + +"I hope to make good," said Kirk, simply, "and I think I can." Then he +flushed and hesitated as a realization of the situation swept over him. +Could he gain the favor of Chiquita's father under false pretences? +Surely it was only just that a man should stand upon his own merits, +and yet--it didn't seem quite right. At length, he said, with an effort: + +"I ought to tell you, sir, that I am not on good terms with my father, +at present. In fact, he has cast me off. That is why I am here +supporting myself by hard work, instead of living in idleness. But I'm +beginning to like the work--and I'll make good--I'll do it if only to +show my father his mistake. That's what I care about most. I don't want +his money. It's easier to make money than I thought. But I must +succeed, for his sake and my own." + +Despite his embarrassment, his face shone with sudden enthusiasm. He +looked purposeful and aggressive, with a certain sternness that sat +well upon his young manhood. Garavel lifted his brows. + +"May I inquire the cause of this--estrangement?" + +"Oh, general worthlessness on my part, I suppose. Come to think of it, +I must have been a good deal of a cross. I never did anything very +fierce, though." He smiled a little sadly. "I don't wonder that I fail +to impress you." + +A quick light of thought flashed through the banker's eyes. He was a +keen judge of men. + +"Well, well," he said, with a trace of impatience, "there is no need to +go into the matter further. Your proposal is impossible--for many +reasons it is impossible, and yet--your spirit is commendable." + +"Does that mean you won't even allow me to see your daughter?" + +"It would be useless." + +"But I love Gertrudis," said Kirk, desperately. + +Garavel looked a trifle pitying. + +"You are by no means the first," he said; "I have been besieged by +many, who say always the same thing--without Gertrudis they cannot, +they will not, they should not live. And yet I have heard of no deaths. +At first I was greatly concerned about them--poor fellows--but most of +them are married now, so I not do take your words too seriously." He +laughed good-naturedly. "You unemotional Americans do not love at first +sight." + +"_I_ do, sir." + +"Tut! It is but admiration for a beautiful girl who--I say it--is +wicked enough to enjoy creating havoc. Take time, my boy, and you will +smile at this madness. Now, let us talk of something else." + +"It is no use, sir, I have it bad." + +"But when you make such a request as this, you assume to know the young +lady's wishes in the matter." + +"Not at all. Without your consent I don't believe she'd allow herself +to even like me. That is why I want to fix it with you first." + +"In that, at least, you are quite right, for Gertrudis is a good girl, +and obedient, as a general rule; but--it is impossible. Her marriage +has been arranged." + +"Do you think that is quite fair to her? If she loves Ramon Alfarez---" + +Once again Garavel's brows signalled surprise. "Ah, you know?" + +"Yes, sir. I was about to say, if she really loves him, I can't make +any difference; but suppose she should care for me?" + +"Again it could make no difference, once she had married Ramon. But she +is too young to know her own mind. These young girls are +impressionable, romantic, foolish. I can see no object in deliberately +courting trouble. Can you? In affairs of the heart it is well to use +judgment and caution--qualities which come only with age. Youth is +headstrong and blinded by dreams, hence it is better that marriage +should be arranged by older persons." + +"Exactly! That's why I want you to arrange mine." The banker smiled in +spite of himself, for he was not without a sense of humor, and the +young man's sincerity was winning. + +"It is out of the question," he said; "useless to discuss. Forgetting +for the moment all other considerations, there is an obstacle to your +marriage into a Spanish family, which you do not stop to consider--one +which might well prove insurmountable. I speak of religion." + +"No trouble there, sir." + +"You are, then, a Catholic?" + +"It was my mother's faith, and I was brought up in it until she died. +After that, I--sort of neglected it. You see, I am more of a Catholic +than anything else." + +"What we call a 'bad Catholic'?" + +"Yes, sir. But if I were not, it wouldn't make any difference. Chiquita +is my religion." + +"Who?" The father started. + +"I--I call her that," Kirk explained, in confusion. "To myself, of +course." + +"Indeed! So do I," said Senor Garavel, dryly. For a moment he frowned +in meditation. There were many things to consider. He felt a certain +sympathy for this young man, with his straightforwardness and artless +brusquerie. Moreover, though the banker was no great respecter of +persons, the mention of Darwin K. Anthony had impressed him. If Kirk +were all that he seemed, he had no doubt of the ultimate reconciliation +of father and son. At all events, it would do no harm to learn more of +this extraordinary suitor, and meanwhile he must treat him with respect +while carefully guarding his own dignity against possibly impertinent +advances. + +"She has been promised to Ramon," he said, at last, "and I have +considered her future quite settled. Of course, such arrangements are +frequently altered for various causes, even at the last moment, +but--quien sabe?" He shrugged his shoulders. "She may not wish to +entertain your suit. So why discuss it? Why make plans or promises? It +is a matter to be handled with the greatest delicacy; there are +important issues linked with it. Where there is the prospect of an +alliance between two houses--of business or politics--you will +understand that according to our ideas, those considerations must +govern--absolutely. Otherwise--I do not know--I can say nothing to +encourage you except--that, for a young man I have known so very short +a time"--he smiled genially--"you have impressed me not unfavorably. I +thank you for coming to me, at any rate." + +The two men rose and shook hands; Kirk was not altogether cast down by +the result of the interview. He understood the banker's allusion to the +possible change of arrangements, and felt sure from what Chiquita had +told him that the marriage with Ramon could not take place after the +true nature of Garavel's political aspirations became known. In that +case, if all went well, it did not seem impossible that Garavel would +give his consent, and then Gertrudis alone would remain to be won. If, +on the other hand, her father refused his permission--well, there are +many ways of winning a bride. Kirk believed in his lucky star, and had +a constitutional inability to imagine failure. + +The truth was that Andres Garavel had not hesitated long after that +memorable night at the Tivoli before accepting the brilliant prize +which the Cortlandts had dangled so alluringly before his eyes, and, +the decision once made, he had entered into the scheme with all his +soul. He was wise enough, however, to leave his destiny largely in +their hands. This meant frequent councils among the three, a vast +amount of careful work, of crafty intrigue, of untiring diplomacy, and, +although his candidacy had not as yet been more than whispered, the +purple robe of power was daily being woven, thread by thread. + +It was not long after Kirk's visit to the bank that Garavel, during one +of these conferences, took occasion to bring up the young man's name. +Cortlandt had been called to the telephone, and Edith was left free to +answer without constraint. + +"I have seen you and him riding quite frequently," her guest remarked, +with polite interest. "Is he, then, an old friend?" + +"Yes, we are very fond of him." + +"Your Mr. Runnels believes him most capable; we were speaking of him +but yesterday." + +"Oh, he will be successful, if that's what you mean; I shall see to +that. He has his father's gift for handling men---" + +"You know his father?" + +"Not personally, only by reputation. Kirk will be promoted soon, +by-the-way, although he doesn't know it. He is to replace Runnels as +soon as he is able." + +"Remarkable--and yet I have seen the marvels you work, dear lady. But +is not this a strange sphere of activity for the son of Darwin K. +Anthony?" + +"Oh, he had some kind of falling-out with his father, I believe, which +occasioned his coming here. There was nothing really to Kirk's +discredit--of that I am perfectly sure." + +"It would be unfortunate, indeed, if this breach between father and son +should prove serious." + +"Oh, I dare say it won't. Kirk is certain to succeed, and old Anthony +will come round, if I know American fathers." + +Garavel smiled, well pleased that he had treated his recent visitor +with proper consideration. After all, why not invite the young fellow +to his house? That would be rather a significant step according to +Spanish custom; yet he need not be bound by it. He could put a stop to +the affair at any time. Besides, despite his frequent protestations to +the contrary, he was somewhat influenced by his daughter's desire for +more liberty. It was not fair to her, he thought in his heart, that she +should know only Ramon. One reason especially appealed to his pride. If +a break came between him and Alfarez, Ramon must not appear to have +jilted Gertrudis. If, meanwhile, she had another suitor, and one of +distinguished family, the affair would wear a better look. It cannot be +denied that the name of Darwin K. Anthony rang musically in his ears. + +"The boy has the right stuff in him," Edith went on. "He began at the +bottom, only a few months ago, preferring to work his way up, though he +was offered a first-rate position to begin with." + +She would have said more, but just at that moment her husband entered. +"You were saying that Alfarez suspects," said Cortlandt, addressing +Garavel. "Has he said anything?" + +"Not to me, as yet, but he surely must know; the rumors must have +reached him. He is cold--and Ramon acts queerly. I feel guilty--almost +as if I had betrayed a friend." + +"Nonsense! There is no room for fine scruples in politics. We mustn't +be in too great a hurry, though. Things are going smoothly, and when +the time comes you will be called for. But it must be the voice of the +people calling. Bocas, Chiriqui, Colon--they must all demand Garavel." +Cortlandt sighed. "I shall be very glad when it is over." He looked +more pale, more bloodless, more world-weary than ever. + +"You need have no fear that it will cause serious trouble between you +and the General," Mrs. Cortlandt assured Garavel. "Ramon should be able +to effect peace, no matter what happens." + +"Ah, I am not so sure that there will be a marriage between Gertrudis +and him. Young ladies are most uncertain when allowed the slightest +liberty." + +"Is she growing rebellious?" Cortlandt inquired. "If I were you, then, +I wouldn't force her. A loveless marriage is a tragic thing." + +His wife nodded her agreement. + +"Not exactly rebellious. She would do whatever I asked regardless of +her own feelings, for that is the way we Spaniards bring up our +daughters, but--she is cold to Ramon, and he, I believe, is suspicious +of my intentions toward his father. Therefore, the situation is +strained. It is very hard to know what is right in a case of this sort. +The young are impressionable and reckless. Often what seems to them +distasteful is in reality a blessing. It is not every love-match that +turns out so happily as yours, my dear friends. Well, I suppose I am +weak. With Gertrudis I cannot be severe; but unless it becomes +necessary to make conditions with my old friend Alfarez, I should +prefer to let the girl have her own way." + +As Cortlandt escorted his caller to the door, the Panamanian paused and +said, with genuine solicitude: + +"You look badly, sir. I am afraid you work too hard. I would not easily +forgive myself if this affair of ours caused you to fall ill." + +"Oh, I am all right--a little tired, that's all. I don't sleep well." + +"It is worry over this thing." + +Cortlandt smiled crookedly. "I am not the one to worry; I am not the +one at the head. Surely you know what people say--that I am her +office-boy?" + +Garavel found it hard to laugh this off gracefully. "You are too +modest," he said. "I admire the trait, but I also chance to know the +wonderful things you have accomplished. If people say such things, it +is because they do not know and are too small to understand your +voluntary position. It is very fine of you to let your wife share your +work, senor." But he shook his head as the door closed behind him, +really doubting that Cortlandt would prove physically equal to the +coming struggle. + +It was about this time--perhaps two weeks after Kirk had replied to his +father's letter--that Runnels called him in one day to ask: + +"Do you know a man named Clifford?" + +"No." + +"He dropped in this morning, claiming to be a newspaper man from the +States; wanted to know all about everything on the Canal and--the usual +thing. He didn't talk like a writer, though. I thought you might know +him; he asked about you." + +"Me?" Kirk pricked up his ears. + +"I gathered the impression he was trying to pump me." Runnels eyed his +subordinate shrewdly. "I boosted you." + +"Is he short and thick-set?" + +"No. Tall and thin." As Kirk merely looked at him in a puzzled way, he +continued: "I suppose we're all suspicious down here, there's so much +of that sort of thing. If he has anything on you--" + +"He's got nothing on me." + +"I'm glad of that. You're the best man I have, and that shake-up I told +you about is coming off sooner than I expected. I'd hate to have +anything happen to you. Do you think you could hold down my job?" + +"WHAT? Do you really mean it?" + +"I do." + +"I think I could, if you would help me." + +Runnels laughed. "That remark shows you haven't developed Isthmitis, +anyhow." + +"What is that?" + +"Well, it's a sort of mental disorder most of us have. We believe +everybody above us is incompetent, and everybody below us is after our +jobs. You'll get it in time--even some of the Commissioners have it." + +"It goes without saying that I'd like to be Master of Transportation, +but not until you're through." + +"Well, the old man has had another row with Colonel Jolson, and may not +wait for his vacation to quit. I'm promised the vacancy." + +"Then you have seen the Colonel?" + +"No--but I have seen Mrs. Cortlandt. I felt I had a right to ask +something from her in return for what I did for you. I know that sounds +rotten, but you'll understand how it is. Colonel Jolson wants his +brother-in-law, Blakeley, to have the place, but I'm entitled to it, +and she has promised to fix it for me. If I go up, you go, too; that's +why I was worried when this Clifford party appeared." + +"There IS something, I suppose, I ought to tell you, although it +doesn't amount to much. I was mixed up in a scrape the night I left New +York. A plain-clothes man happened to get his head under a falling +bottle and nearly died from the effects." + +"What was the trouble?" + +"It really wasn't the least bit of trouble, it was fatally easy. We +were out on a grape carnival, six of us. It was an anti-prohibition +festival, and he horned in." + +"There is nothing else?" + +"Nothing." + +"Well, this Clifford party is stopping at the Hotel Central. Better +look him over." + +"I will," said Kirk, feeling more concern than he cared to show, but +his apprehension turned out to be quite unfounded. On inspection, +Clifford proved to bear no resemblance whatever to Williams, nor did he +seem to have any concealed design. He was a good sort, apparently, with +a knack of making himself agreeable, and in the weeks that followed he +and Kirk became quite friendly. Meanwhile, no word had come from Senor +Garavel, and Kirk was beginning to fret. But just as he had reached the +limit of his patience he received a note which transported him with joy. + +Senor Andres Garavel, he read, would be in the city on the following +Tuesday evening, and would be pleased to have him call. + +Even with his recent experiences of Spanish etiquette, Kirk hardly +realized the extent of the concession that had been made to him. He +knew nothing of the tears, the pleadings, and the spirited championship +of his cause that had overborne the last parental objection. It was +lucky for him that Chiquita was a spoiled child, and Garavel a very +Americanized Spaniard. However, as it was, he went nearly mad with +delight, and when Tuesday came round he performed his office-work so +badly that Runnels took him to task. + +"What the devil has got into you the last few days?" he exclaimed, +irritably. + +"I'm going to see a certain party to-night and I can't contain myself. +I'm about to blow up. That's all." + +"Woman, eh?" + +Kirk grinned. "It has taken months, and I'd begun to think I wasn't +wanted. Oh, I've had a battle." + +"Anybody I know?" + +"Yes, but I can't talk about her. There's a man in the case, see! I'm +going slow to start with." + +Runnels, who had never seen Kirk with any woman except Edith Cortlandt, +formed his own conclusions, helped a bit, perhaps, by the memory of +that conversation with John Weeks on the day of their ride across the +Isthmus. That these conclusions were not pleasing to him, he showed +when he returned to his office. He stood an instant in thought, looking +rather stern, then murmured, half aloud: "That's one thing I wouldn't +stand for." + +Kirk had hard work to refrain from shaving himself twice that evening, +so overcareful was he about his toilet, yet his excitement was as +nothing compared to that of Allan, who looked on with admiration +tempered by anxious criticism. The boy, it seemed, appropriated to +himself the entire credit for the happy ending of this affair. + +"It will be a grand wedding, sar," he exclaimed. "H'Allan will be there +for giving you away." + +"You don't know enough about me to give me away," Kirk returned, +lightly. + +"I shall be needing some h'expensive garments for the ceremony. I would +h'ahsk you to be so kind--" + +"Not too fast. It hasn't gone quite that far yet." + +"But I shall need to have those garments made by a tailor, and that +will require time. They will be made precisely to resemble yours, then +nobody can tell h'us apart." + +"That's considered genuine flattery, I believe." + +"Would you do me a favor, Master h'Auntony?" + +"Surest thing you know." + +"I shall be waiting in the street to-night. Could you h'arrange to +h'ahsk those fatal questions h'adjoining the window so that I might +h'overhear?" + +"NO! And I don't want you prowling around outside, either. You're not +to follow me, understand! I have enough on my mind as it is." + +The residence of Senor Garavel is considered one of the show places of +Panama. It is of Spanish architecture, built of brick and stucco, and +embellished with highly ornamental iron balconies. It stands upon a +corner overlooking one of the several public squares, guarded from the +street by a breast-high stone wall crowned with a stout iron fence. +Diagonally opposite and running the full length of the block is a huge +weather-stained cathedral, the front of which is decorated with holy +figures, each standing by itself in a separate niche. In the open +church tower are great chimes which flood the city with melody, and in +the corner fronting upon the intersecting street is a tiny shrine with +an image of the Madonna smiling downward. It is only a little recess in +the wall, with barely room for a few kneeling figures, but at night its +bright radiance illumines the darkness round about and lends the spot a +certain sanctity. + +Contrary to the usual custom, the Garavel mansion has a narrow yard, +almost smothered in tropical plants that crowd one another through the +iron bars and nod at the passers-by. Riotous vines half screen the +balconies: great overhanging red-tiled eaves give the place an air of +coziness which the verdure enhances. A subdued light was glowing from +the lower windows when Anthony mounted the steps and rang. + +An Indian woman, clad in barbarous colors, her bare feet encased in +sandals, admitted him, and the banker himself met him in the hall. He +led the way into a great barren parlor, where, to Kirk's embarrassment, +he found quite a company gathered. His host formally presented him to +them, one after another. There were Senor Pedro Garavel, a brother of +Andres; Senora Garavel, his wife, who was fat and short of wind; the +two Misses Garavel, their daughters; then a little, wrinkled, brown old +lady in stiff black silk who spoke no English. Kirk gathered that she +was somebody's aunt or grandmother. Last of all, Gertrudis came shyly +forward and put her hand in his, then glided back to a seat behind the +old lady. Just as they were seating themselves another member of the +family appeared--this time a second cousin from Guatemala. Like the +grandmother, he was as ignorant of English as Kirk was of Spanish, but +he had a pair of frightfully intense black eyes with which he devoured +the American. These orbs exercised an unusual effect upon the caller; +they were unwinking, the lids were wide open, and the brilliance of the +pupils was heightened by the startling whiteness surrounding them. They +were like the eyes of a frightened horse. + +It was very trying to be the target of so many glances and to know that +he was being studied like a bug beneath a microscope, yet Kirk managed +to keep a degree of self-possession, making up his mind to display a +modest reticence that could not help appearing admirable. But he soon +found that this did not suit. Instead of resuming their conversation, +the entire assemblage of Garavels waited calmly for their caller to +begin, and he realized in a panic that he was expected to make +conversation. He cast about madly for a topic. + +His host helped him to get started, and he did fairly well until one of +the Misses Garavel began to translate his remarks to the old lady and +the ferocious cousin from Guatemala. As their replies were not rendered +into English, he was left stranded. He knew that his whole salvation +lay in properly impressing his auditors, so he began again and +floundered through a painful monologue. It was not at all pleasant. It +was like being initiated into some secret order. These strange people +sitting so stiff and watchful formed an inquisitorial body. The night +suddenly turned off swelteringly hot; perspiration began to trickle +down his brow, his collar became a tourniquet, and he cast appealing +glances at the silent figure hidden demurely behind the rustly old lady +in the black harness. The look of mingled pity and understanding she +gave him somewhat revived his fainting spirit, and he determined to +stick it out until the family were ready to retire and allow him a word +with her alone. But, idle hope! Gradually it dawned upon him that they +had no such intention. To relieve the strain, he became facetious and +told funny stories; but this was an unlucky experiment, for his +witticisms fell with a ghastly hollowness. No one laughed save the +grandmother and the Guatemalan cousin, who could not understand, and at +this Kirk fled helter-skelter from the realms of humor. + +By now his collar had given up the struggle and lain limply down to +rest. The whole experience was hideous, yet he understood quite well +that these people were not making sport of him. All this was only a +part of their foreign customs. They were gentlefolk, reared to a +different code from his--that was all--and, since he had elected to +come among them, he could only suffer and be strong. + +In time he became sufficiently inured to the situation to take in the +details of the room, which were truly markable. To begin with, the +parlor walls entirely lacked the sort of decoration to which he was +used; the furniture, costly and rare in itself, was arranged stiffly in +a square about the room, the precise geometrical centre being occupied +by a great urn of impressive ugliness. A richly carved mahogany +"what-not" against one wall was laden with sea-shells and other curios. +At various points about the room were many statuettes, vases, and +figures, of every conceivable size and shape--some of bisque, others of +common pottery, a few of exquisite marble--all standing upon the floor. +A tremendous French chandelier of sparkling crystal cascaded downward +from an American ceiling of pressed metal; at regular intervals around +the wall were panels painted to resemble marble. Crouched upon a rug in +one corner was a life-size figure of what seemed to be a tiger, +perfectly colored and made of porcelain. It had tremendous glass eyes, +larger even than the cousin's from Guatemala, and they shone with a +hypnotic intensity that was disturbing. Kirk wanted to kick it and cry +"Scat!" Hidden in other desolate quarters of the room were similar +studies in animal life. These anomalous surroundings by turns depressed +him and provoked an insane desire to laugh. + +What he ever talked about during that evening he never quite +remembered. At one time the Cholo girl who had admitted him entered +noiselessly, bearing silver plates of fruit, and shortly afterward he +found himself trying to balance upon his knee a plate of pineapple +soaked in spice and wine, a fork, a napkin starched as stiffly as a +sheet of linoleum, and a piece of cake which crumbled at a look. It was +a difficult bit of juggling, but he managed to keep one or two of the +articles in the air almost continuously. + +When it came time to leave he expected at least to be allowed a +farewell word or two with Gertrudis, but instead he was bowed out as +ceremoniously as he had been bowed in, and, finding himself at last in +the open, sighed with relief. He felt like a paroled prisoner, but he +thought of the girl's glance of sympathy and was instantly consoled. He +crossed slowly to the Plaza, pausing a moment for a good-night look at +the house, then, as he turned, he caught a glimpse of a figure slinking +into the shadows of the side-street, and smiled indulgently. Evidently +Allan had been unable to resist the temptation to follow, after all, +and had hung about hoping to overhear his hero at his best. But when he +had reached his quarters he was surprised to find the boy there ahead +of him. + +"How did you beat me home?" he inquired. + +"I have been waiting h'impatiently ever since you went out. To be sure, +I have had one little dream--" + +"Didn't you follow me to the Garavels'?" + +"Oh, boss! Never would I do such." + +Seeing that the negro was honest, Kirk decided that somebody had been +spying upon him, but the matter was of so little consequence that he +dismissed it from his mind. + +"And what said your female upon your proposal of marriage?" Allan +inquired. "Praise God, I shall h'expire of suspense if you do not +cha-at me the truth." + +"Oh, there was a chorus of her relatives in the room. They sat in my +lap all the evening." + +"Perhaps it is fartunate, after all. This senorita is rich 'ooman, and +therefar she would be h'expensive for us." + +Kirk managed to drive him forth after some effort, and straightway +retired to dream of timid Spanish girls who peeped at him from behind +old ladies, porcelain tigers that laughed inanely at his jokes, and +Guatemalan gentlemen with huge hypnotic eyes of glass. + + + + +XXII + +A CHALLENGE AND A CONFESSION + + +Although Runnels had spoken with confidence of the coming shake-up in +the railroad organization, it was not without a certain surprise that +he awoke one morning to find himself actively in charge of the entire +system. He lost no time in sending for Kirk, who took the news of their +joint advancement with characteristic equanimity. + +"Now, there is nothing cinched yet, understand," the Acting +Superintendent cautioned him. "We're all on probation, but if we make +good, I think we'll stick." + +"I'll do my best to fill your shoes." + +"And I have the inside track on Blakeley, in spite of Colonel Jolson, +so I'm not alarmed. The break came sooner than I expected, and now that +we chaps are in control it's the chance of our lifetimes." + +Kirk nodded. "You're entitled to all you get, but I've never quite +understood how I managed to forge ahead so fast. Why, there are dozens +of fellows here who know more than I, and who could do better. I've +been mighty lucky." + +"You don't really call it luck, do you?" Runnels looked at him +curiously. + +"I'm not conceited enough to think I'm a downright genius." + +"Why, the Cortlandts engineered everything. It was they who arranged +your promotion to the office in the first place, and they're behind +this last affair. They have stood back of you at every step, and, +incidentally; back of me and the other boys." + +"When you say 'they' you of course mean 'she'." + +"Of course. One has to recognize him, though--as the head of the +family. And he really did have a part in it, too; at least, if he had +been against us we never would have won." + +"I can't pretend that I didn't suspect," said Kirk slowly, "but I did +hope I'd made good on my own merits." + +Runnels laughed. "You have made good all right, or you couldn't go +forward; but this is a government job, and fellows like us aren't big +enough to get through on our own merits. One has to be a real +world-beater to do that. If the Cortlandts hadn't backed us, some other +chaps with influence would have stepped in above us. Take Blakeley, for +instance. He is nothing extra, and he doesn't know half as much about +this business as I do; but he's the brother-in-law of Colonel Jolson, +and he'd have landed the job sure if it hadn't been for our friends. +You'd better let your conscience take a nap." + +"I'd like to show the Cortlandts that we appreciate what they've done, +but we can't openly thank her without humiliating him. I'd like to give +him something." + +"Suppose we give him a quiet little supper, some night, and tell him +frankly how grateful we are. He's the sort to appreciate a thing like +that, and it would be a delicate way of thanking his wife, too." + +"Good! I'll speak to the other fellows, and now the Acting Master of +Transportation is going to shake with the new Acting Superintendent, +and wish him every success." + +Runnels grasped the outstretched hand. + +"Say, Anthony," he said, "we're young and we have a start. I have what +you lack, and you have what I lack; if we stick together, we'll own a +railroad some day. Is it a go?" + +"You bet!" + +With a warm glow in his breast, the new Master of Transportation +plunged into his duties. He really was making a success, it seemed, +although it was a bit disappointing to learn that he owed so much of it +to Edith Cortlandt. At the same time he couldn't help thinking that his +efforts had entitled him to reasonable success, and, anyhow, it was +pleasant to feel that at no point in his scramble up the ladder had he +elbowed off some other man more deserving, perhaps, than he. This last +advancement, too, was very timely, for it would surely have its effect +upon Andres Garavel. + +But his new work brought new troubles and worries. Runnels helped him +whenever he could, yet Kirk was left largely to his own devices, and +learned for the first time what real responsibility was like. He began +to sleep shorter hours; he concentrated with every atom of +determination in him; he drove himself with an iron hand. He attacked +his task from every angle, and with his fine constitution and unbounded +youthful energy he covered an amazing quantity of work. He covered it +so well, moreover, that Runnels complimented him. + +This stress of labor served one purpose for which he was very grateful; +it separated him from Edith Cortlandt and took his mind from that +occurrence in the jungle. Ever since the day of his last ride with her, +he had been tortured with the most unpleasant thoughts. He confessed to +forgetting himself briefly that night at Taboga, but he had believed +that she understood--that she regarded him only as a chum and a +companion. Therefore her open surrender, coming so unexpectedly had +dumfounded him. As he looked back upon the incident now, it seemed +inconceivable, yet her words, her expression, her reckless abandon at +that moment, were too significant to allow of misunderstanding. Still, +by dint of determination and stern attention to his tasks, he was able +to put the matter almost wholly from his mind. + +Soon after his promotion he received from Andres Garavel a warmly +worded note of congratulation, and some few days later an invitation to +dine, which he accepted eagerly. + +The dinner proved to be another disappointing ordeal, for again he was +allowed no opportunity of speaking with Gertrudis, and had to content +himself with feasting his eyes upon her. But although the family were +present en masse, as on the former occasion, they unbent to a +surprising degree, and he found them truly gracious and delightful. He +realized, nevertheless, that he was under the closest scrutiny and upon +the strictest probation. The Garavels still held him at a noticeable +distance, and he was far from feeling wholly at ease. + +Later in the evening he found himself alone with Chiquita and the old +Spanish lady, and, knowing that the latter could not understand a word +of his tongue, he addressed himself to the girl with some degree of +naturalness. + +"I was sorry for you the last time, senor," she said, in reply to his +half-humorous complaint, "and yet it was fonny; you were so frightened." + +"It was my first memorial service. I thought I was going to see you +alone." + +"Oh, that is never allowed." + +"Never? How am I going to ask you to marry me?" + +Miss Garavel hid her blushing face behind her fan. "Indeed! You seem +capable of asking that absurd question under any circumstances." + +"I wish you would straighten me out on some of your customs." + +"What, for instance?" + +"Why does the whole family sit around and watch me? I don't intend to +steal any bric-a-brac. They could search me just as well when I go out." + +"They wish to satisfy themselves as to your character, perhaps." + +"Yes, but a fellow feels guilty causing them to lose so much sleep." + +She gave him an odd look, smiling timidly. + +"As for to-night, do you attribute any meaning to my father's request +that you dine with us?" + +"Of course. It means I wasn't blackballed at the first meeting, I +suppose. After I've become a regular member, and there is nothing +missed from the lodgerooms, I'll be allowed to proceed in the ordinary +manner." + +She blushed delightfully again. "Since you are so ignorant of our ways +you should inquire at your earliest convenience. I would advise you, +perhaps, to learn Spanish." + +"Will you teach me? I'll come every evening." + +She did not answer, for the old lady began to show curiosity, and a +conversation in Spanish ensued which Kirk could not follow. + +When it came time for their chaperon to leave, she excused herself with +royal dignity, and, going to the door, called Stephanie, the giant St. +Lucian woman. Not until the negress had entered did the grandmother +retire, which showed, so Kirk imagined, that even yet the Garavel +household had no more confidence in him than in a badgeless building +inspector. He was not grateful for the change, for he did not like +Stephanie, and, judging from the sombre suspicion of the black woman's +glances, the feeling was mutual. The conversation took perforce a less +personal nature in her presence, yet Kirk departed with a feeling of +exaltation. Beyond doubt his suit was progressing, slowly, perhaps, but +still progressing. + +His understanding of Spanish customs received a considerable +enlargement on the following day, when he met Ramon Alfarez outside the +railroad office. Ramon had evidently waited purposely for him, and now +began to voice some unintelligible protest in the greatest excitement. + +"You'll have to play it all over again," Kirk advised him. "I'm only +just learning to conjugate the verb 'amar.' What seems to be the +trouble this time?" + +"Ha! For the moment I forgot your ignorance, but onderstan' this, +detestable person, it is time you shall answer to me." + +"Cheerfully! Ask your questions slowly." + +"Onderstan' further," chattered the Spaniard, "regardless of the +'appenings to me, it shall never come to pass. Soch disgraceful +occurrence shall never transpire; of that be assure', even if it exac' +the las' drops of blood in the veins of me. I 'ave despised you, senor, +an' so I 'ave neglec' to keel you, being busy with important affairs of +government. Bot, 'ow am I reward for those neglec'? Eh!" Alfarez +breathed ferociously through his nostrils. + +"I don't know, I'm sure. What is your reward?" + +"Very well are you aware, PIG." + +"Nix on those pet names," the American ordered, gruffly. + +"You 'ave insolt me," cried Ramon, furiously, "and now you 'ave the +insolence to interfere in my affairs." He paused dramatically. "Make it +yourself ready to fight on to-morrow." + +"What's the use of putting it off? I couldn't make your weight in that +time. I'll do it now, if you say." + +"No, no! Onderstan' we shall fight like gentlemen. I shall keel you +with any weapon you prefer." + +"By Jove!" Kirk exclaimed, in amazement. "This is a challenge; you want +to fight a duel! Why, this reads like a book." He began to laugh, at +which Ramon became white and calm. "Listen," Kirk went on, "I'll tell +you what we'll do; we'll fight with fire-hose again. I suppose you want +satisfaction for that ducking." + +"I prefer to shoot you, senor," the other declared, quietly. "Those +marriage shall never occur until first I walk upon your dead body. As +matter of honor I offer you this opportunity biffore it is too late." + +"I guess you have been drinking. You're a little premature in talking +about my marriage, aren't you?" + +"So! You fear to confess the truth! Oh, I am not to be deceive'. All +Panama is speaking of those engagements to Senorita Garavel. Come, +then, must I insolt you further?" + +Kirk replied, dryly, looking the Spaniard over with, cold blue eyes. +"No! I think you've gone about far enough." + +"You riffuse?" exclaimed Ramon, triumphantly. + +"Look here!" said Kirk, "I've had enough of this." He advanced +threateningly, and the Spaniard nervously gave way. "I don't fight +duels; it's against the law. In my country it's a crime to kill a man +in cold blood; and we don't tie a fellow up and beat him when he's +helpless and then offer him the HONORABLE satisfaction of either +committing murder or being killed. They're not wearing duels this +season." His hands clenched involuntarily. "I don't want to hurt you, +Alfarez, but I may not be able to help it if you don't keep out of my +way." + +He left the fiery little Panamanian still scowling and muttering +threats, and went his way wondering vaguely how his attentions to +Chiquita had become so quickly known. He was informed later in the +afternoon. + +As he left the office for the day he was handed a note from Mrs. +Cortlandt requesting him to call at once, and, summoning a coach, he +was driven directly to her house. Unlike the Garavel home, the house +which the Cortlandts had leased was set upon the water-front, its rear +balcony overlooking the sea where it lapped the foundation of the city +wall. It was a delightful old place, shut off from the street by a yard +filled with flowering plants and shrubs, and, though flanked in true +Spanish fashion by stores and shops, it was roomy and comfortable. + +Edith kept him waiting a moment before she descended, dressed for her +afternoon ride. + +"You see, I haven't given up my horse in spite of your neglect," she +said, as she gave him her hand, "You got my note?" + +"Yes, and I came straight from the office." + +"I suppose you know what it is about and are wondering how I heard the +news." + +"What news?" + +"Your 'engagement.'" She laughed with an amusement that did not ring +quite true. + +"You're the second one to speak about that. I'm not engaged." + +"Of course not. Don't think for a moment I believed it. I was calling +on some Spanish people this afternoon and heard the report--I admit it +was a shock. When I learned the details I knew at once you ought to be +told before it developed into something embarrassing. Come into the +other room; there is a breeze from the water." She led him into the +parlor, from which the open windows, shielded now by drawn shutters, +gave egress to the rear porch with its chairs and hammock. + +"Dear, dear! You foolish boy, you're always in trouble, aren't you? You +really don't deserve to be helped. Why, you have avoided me for weeks." + +"The new arrangement has swamped us with work. I have had no time to go +out." + +"Indeed! You had time to run after the first pretty Spanish face you +saw. I'm really angry, though I suppose I can't blame you. After all, +she is charming, in her way." + +"You mean Miss Garavel?" + +"Yes. Didn't you realize what you were doing?" + +"I realized what I was trying to do." + +"Naughty! But why select her of all people? There are dozens of others +who could amuse you and whose people would not object. Andres Garavel +isn't that sort; he is a rich man, he has political ambitions, he's a +very proud sort. Now, I suppose I must get you out of this difficulty +as best I can. You ought to be more careful." + +"Please!" he said, crossly. "I could understand better what you are +talking about if I knew just what this difficulty is." + +"Why, this silly 'engagement' of yours. Don't pretend to be so stupid." + +"Ramon Alfarez heard that same report, and very courteously invited me +to wait a few minutes while he killed me. It's tremendously flattering +to be linked up with Miss Garavel, of course, but I haven't asked her +to marry me." + +"But you've seen her; you have called at her house!" + +"Sure! Twice; at the invitation of the old gentleman. All the little +Garavels were lined up like mourners." + +"And you dined there last night. Is that all you have seen of her?" + +"N-no! I've seen her at Las Savannas. That's why I went hunting so +often." + +At this confession, which Kirk delivered with sheepish reluctance, Mrs. +Cortlandt drew herself up with an expression of anger. + +"Then this has been going on for some time," she cried. "Why, Kirk, you +never told me!" + +"Why should I?" + +She flushed at this unconscious brutality, but after a moment ran on +bravely; "Oh, well, I suppose any man would enjoy that sort of an +adventure, particularly with such a pretty girl, but why did you let it +go so far? Why did you let them commit you?" + +"Am I committed?" + +Her look was half offended, half incredulous. "Are you trying to be +disagreeable, or is it possible you don't know the meaning of those +invitations to call, and to dine with the family, and all that? Why, +they expect you to MARRY her. It is all settled now, according to the +Spanish custom. The whole town is talking about it, I can't understand, +for the life of me, how you ever allowed yourself to go there the +second time and to DINE." Seeing the look in his face, she cried, +sharply, "You don't mean--that you're in earnest?" She was staring at +him as if disbelieving her eyes. + +"Certainly, I'm in earnest." + +Edith turned away abruptly. + +"I hope you're not joking," said Kirk. "Jove! I--I'm knocked clear off +my pins." A tremendous wave of excitement surged over him. "So, that's +what Alfarez meant. That's what SHE meant last night when she told me +to look up--" He broke off suddenly, for Edith's face had gone +chalk-white. + +"But, Kirk, what about me?" she asked, in a strained voice. + +There was deathlike silence in the room. + +"You can't LOVE her," said the woman. "Why, she's only a child, and +she's--Spanish." + +They stood motionless, facing each other. At last Kirk said, gravely +and deliberately, + +"Yes, I love her better than anything in the world and I want to marry +her. I could give up my country, my dad--anything for her." + +Pressing her gloved fingers to her temples she turned her head blindly +from side to side, whispering as if to herself: + +"What will become of me?" + +"Don't," he cried, in a panic, and cast a hurried look over his +shoulders. "You'll be overheard--you'll be seen. You don't know what +you're saying. Where's Cortlandt?" + +"At his club, I suppose. I don't know--I--I don't care." Then the +paralysis that had numbed her vanished, and she spoke with quivering +intensity. "You've been dishonest with me, Kirk." + +"Don't act this way," he ordered, roughly. "I'm terribly fond of you, +but I never knew--" + +"You MUST have known." + +"I knew NOTHING. I chose not to think. What I saw I forgot. I supposed +you merely liked me as I liked you." + +"That night at Taboga!" she flared up. "What about that? Couldn't you +tell then? I fought--fought--fought--but I had to give up. You haven't +forgotten--those wonderful hours we had together?" She began to sob, +but steadied herself with an effort. "You say you didn't know, then +what about that afternoon in the jungle? Oh, you're not blind; you must +have seen a thousand times. Every hour we've been alone together I've +told you, and you let me go on believing you cared. Do you think that +was right? Now you are shocked because I admit it," she mocked. "Well, +I have no pride. I am not ashamed. It's too late for shame now. Why, +even my husband knows." + +With an exclamation he seized her by the arm. "You don't mean that!" he +cried, fiercely. But she wrenched herself away. + +"Why, do you think, I made a man of you? Why did I force you up and up +and over the heads of others? Why are you in line for the best position +on the railroad? Did you think you had made good by your own efforts?" +She laughed harshly. "I took Runnels and Wade and Kimble and the others +that you liked and forced them up with you, so you'd have an +organization that couldn't be pulled down." + +"Did--did you do all that?" + +"I did more. I broke with Alfarez because of what his son did to you. I +juggled the politics of this country, I threw him over and took +Garavel--Garavel! My God! What a mockery! But I won't let you--I won't +let that girl spoil my work." Her voice trailed off in a kind of +rasping whisper. She struggled a moment for composure, then went on: +"It was I who promoted you to Runnels' position--he'll tell you that. +It was I who put ideas of advancement into his head. I fostered this +quarrel between Jolson and the Superintendent, and I've used Runnels to +break trail for you. Why? Ask yourself why! Oh, Kirk," she cried, "you +mustn't marry that girl! I'll make you a great man!" + +"You seem to forget Cortlandt," he said, dully. + +She gave a scornful laugh. "You needn't bring Stephen in. He doesn't +count. I doubt if he'd even care. Our marriage amounts to +nothing--nothing. You'd better consider ME, and the sacrifice I'm +willing to make." + +"I'm not going to listen to you," he cried. "I suppose I've been a +fool, but this must end right here." + +"You can't marry that girl," she reiterated, hysterically. She was half +sobbing again, but not with the weakness of a woman; her grief was more +like that of a despairing man. + +"For Heaven's sake, pull yourself together," said Kirk. "You have +servants. I--I don't know what to say. I want to get out, I want to +think it over. I'm--dreadfully sorry. That's all I can seem to think +about now." He turned and went blindly to the door, leaving her without +a look behind. + +When he had gone she drew off her riding-gloves, removed her hat, and +dropped them both upon the nearest chair, then crept wearily up the +stairs to her room. + +A moment later the latticed wooden blinds at the end of the parlor +swung open, and through the front window stepped Stephen Cortlandt. +Behind him was a hammock swung in the coolest part of the balcony. The +pupils of his eyes, ordinarily so dead and expressionless, were +distended like those of a man under the influence of a drug or +suffering from a violent headache. He listened attentively for an +instant, his head on one side, then, hearing footsteps approaching from +the rear of the house, he strolled into the hall. + +A maid appeared with a tray, a glass, and a bottle. "I could not find +the aspirin," she said, "but I brought you some absinthe. It will +deaden the pain, sir." + +He thanked her and with shaking fingers poured the glass full, then +drank it off like so much water. + +"You're not going out again in the heat, sir?" + +"Yes. Tell Mrs. Cortlandt that I am dining at the University Club." He +went slowly down the steps and out through the flowering shrubs. + + + + +XXIII + +A PLOT AND A SACRIFICE + + +Kirk never passed a more unpleasant night than the one which followed. +In the morning he went straight to Runnels with the statement that he +could take no part in the little testimonial they had intended to give +Cortlandt. + +"But it's too late now to back out. I saw him at the University Club +last evening and fixed the date for Saturday night." + +"Did you tell him I was in the affair?" + +"Certainly. I said it was your idea. It affected him deeply, too. I +never saw a chap so moved over a little thing." + +Kirk thought quickly. Perhaps Edith had spoken rashly in her +excitement, and her husband did not know her feelings after all. +Perhaps he only suspected. In that case it would never do to withdraw. +It would seem like a confession of guilt. + +"If he has accepted, that ends it, I suppose," he said, finally. + +"What has happened?" Runnels was watching him sharply. + +"Nothing. I merely wish I hadn't entered into the arrangement, that's +all. I've ordered a watch for him, too, and it's being engraved. I +wanted to give him something to show my own personal gratitude for what +he and his wife have done for me. Lord! It took a month's salary. I +know it's a jay present, but there's nothing decent in these shops." + +"Look here! I've wanted to say something to you for some time, though +it's deuced hard to speak of such things. Maybe I have more moral +scruples than some people, but--" Runnels stirred uncomfortably in his +chair. "Steve Cortlandt has put us where we are--you understand, when I +speak of him I include his wife, too. Well, I like him, Kirk, and I'd +hate to see him made unhappy. If a chap loves a married woman, he ought +to be man enough to forget it. Rotten way to express myself, of +course--" + +Kirk looked the speaker squarely in the eyes as he answered: "I don't +understand what you're driving at. I haven't the least interest in any +married man's affairs--never have had, in fact. I'm in love with +Gertrudis Garavel, and I'm engaged to marry her." + +"The devil!" + +"It's a fact. I didn't know until last night that I'd been accepted." + +"Then just forget what I said. I was going north on a south-bound +track--I ran ahead of orders. I really do congratulate you, old man; +Miss Garavel is--well, I won't try to do her justice--I had no idea. +Please pardon me." + +"Certainly! Now that it's settled I'm not going to let any grass grow +under my feet." + +"Why, say! Garavel is to be the next President! Jove! You ARE lucky! +Cortlandt told me last night that the old fellow's candidacy was to be +announced Saturday night at the big ball; that's how he came to accept +our invitation. He said his work would be over by then and he'd be glad +to join us after the dance. Well, well! Your future wife and +father-in-law are to be his guests that night, I suppose you know." + +"Then they have patched up a truce with Alfarez? I'm glad to hear that." + +"It's all settled, I believe. This dance is a big special event. The +American Minister and the various diplomatic gangs will be there, +besides the prominent Spanish people. It's precisely the moment to +launch the Garavel boom, and Cortlandt intends to do it. After it's +over, our little crowd will have supper and thank him for what he has +done for us. Oh, it will be a big night all around, won't it? Do you +realize the skyrockety nature of your progress, young man? Lord! You +take my breath." + +"It does seem like a dream. I landed here with a button-hook for +baggage, and now--Say, Runnels, her eyes are just like two big black +pansies, and when she smiles you'll go off your trolley." + +"Your promotion came just in time, didn't it? Talk about luck! We ought +to hear from Washington before Saturday and know that our jobs are +cinched. This uncertainty is fierce for me. You know I have a wife and +kid, and it means a lot. When you give Cortlandt that watch you'll have +to present him with a loving-cup from the rest of us. I think it's +coming to him, don't you?" + +"I--I'd rather you presented it." + +"Not much! I can run trains, but I can't engineer social functions. +You'll have to be spokesman. I suppose jobs and increased salaries and +preferments, and all that, don't count for much with a young fellow who +is engaged to the fabulous Miss Garavel, but with the Runnels family +it's different. Meanwhile, let's just hold our thumbs till our +promotions are ratified from headquarters. I need that position, and +I'm dying of uneasiness." + +The night had been as hard for Edith Cortlandt as it had been for Kirk, +but during its sleepless hours she had reached a determination. She was +not naturally revengeful, but it was characteristic of her that she +could not endure failure. Action, not words or tears, was the natural +outlet of her feelings. There was just one possible way of winning Kirk +back, and if instead it ruined him she would be only undoing what she +had mistakenly done. As soon after breakfast as she knew definitely +that her husband had gone out, she telephoned to General Alfarez, +making an appointment to call on him at eleven. + +It was the first time she had ever gone to see him, for she was in the +habit of bringing people to her, but this was no ordinary occasion, and +she knew the crafty old Spaniard would be awaiting her with eagerness. + +Her interview with him was short, however, and when she emerged from +his house she ordered the coachman to drive directly to the Garavel +Bank. This time she stayed longer, closeted with the proprietor. What +she told him threw him into something like a panic. It seemed that +Anibal Alfarez was by no means so well reconciled to the death of his +political hopes as had been supposed. On the contrary, in spite of all +that had been done to prevent it, he had been working secretly and had +perfected the preliminaries of a coup which he intended to spring at +the eleventh hour. Through Ramon, he had brought about an alliance with +the outgoing Galleo, and intended to make the bitterest possible fight +against Garavel. Such joining of forces meant serious trouble, and +until the banker's position was materially strengthened it would be +most unwise to announce his candidacy as had been planned. The General +had worked with remarkable craftiness, according to Mrs. Cortlandt's +account, and Galleo's grip upon the National Assembly was so strong as +to threaten all their schemes. She did not go into minute +details--there was no need, for the banker's fears took fire at the +mere fact that Alfarez had revolted. He was dumfounded, appalled. + +"But it was only last week that we were assured that all was well," he +cried in despair. + +She shrugged her shoulders. "One is privileged to change his mind +overnight, I suppose. Politics is not a child's game." + +"Oh, I am sorry I ever entertained the proposal. To be defeated now +would do me immeasurable harm, not only in my pride, but in my business +affairs. My affiliations with the government are of the closest--they +must be, for me to live. To be a candidate, to make the fight, and to +be beaten! What consideration will come to the firm of Garavel +Hermanos, think you?" + +"Not much, but you are not so deeply committed that you cannot +withdraw." + +This cool suggestion brought the expected outburst. "Rather than such a +disgrace," cried Garavel, "I would go to certain defeat. One's pride is +not for sale, madame. What has caused this so sudden change of +sentiment?" + +"Ramon is partly to blame. He is just as proud as you or as his father. +When he heard of your daughter's engagement to our friend Anthony--" + +"Ah! Now I see it all." His face darkened. "So, this is my reward for +heeding your advice in regard to Gertrudis. She should have wed Ramon, +as was intended, then I would have had a lever with which to lift his +father from my path. Very well, then, there is no engagement with this +Anthony. It may not be too late even yet to capture Ramon." + +"The city is already talking about Gertrudis and Kirk." + +"No word has been spoken, no promise given. There is not even an +understanding. It is merely an old custom that has caused this report. +He seemed a pleasant fellow, she had dreams, so--I yielded. But do you +suppose I would allow my great ambition to be thwarted by the whim of a +girl--to be upset by a stranger's smile? Bah! At their age I loved a +dozen. I could not survive without them." He snapped his fingers. "You +see now the truth of what I told you when we first spoke of my +daughter. It is the older heads that must govern, always. I should have +foreseen this effect, but Ramon was offended, and he said too little. +Now, I admire his spirit; he is desperate; he will fight; he is no +parrot to sit by and see his cage robbed. So much the better, since he +is the pivot upon which this great affair revolves. You see what must +be done?" + +"Certainly." + +"Come! We will see my friend Anibal at once." + +But Mrs. Cortlandt checked him, saying, quietly: + +"That is all right as far as it goes, but you forget the other young +man." + +Garavel paused in his heavy strides across the room. + +"Eh? How so? Gertrudis will not marry this Anthony." + +"Perhaps she loves him." + +"Love is a fancy, a something seen through a distant haze, an illusion +which vanishes with the sun. In a month, a year, she will have +forgotten; but with me it is different. This is my life's climax; there +will be no other. I am a Garavel; I have looked into the future and I +cannot turn back. I think also of Panama herself. There are great +issues at stake." + +"But how will you handle Anthony?" + +Garavel looked at her blankly. "He is in my way. He is ended! Is not +that all?" + +"I am glad you are practical; so many of you Latin-Americans are +absurdly romantic." + +"And why should I not be practical? I am a business man. I love but two +things, madame--no, three: my daughter, my success, and--my country. By +this course I will serve all three." + +"Since you take this view of it, I am sure that with Ramon's help we +can dissuade Don Anibal from his course. The General is sensible, and +doesn't want a fight any more than you do. If your daughter will +consent--" + +"My dear lady, give yourself no uneasiness. She does not know the +meaning of rebellion. If necessary--but there is not the slightest +question. It is done." + +"Then let me look up Ramon. He and I will approach the General +together." She gave him her neatly gloved hand. "Things are never so +bad as they seem." + +"And I thank you for your promptness, which alone, perhaps, has saved +our hopes and our ambitions." He escorted his caller to her carriage, +then hurriedly returned to his office. + +That afternoon Kirk received a formal communication from the banker +which filled him with dismay. It ran: + +MY DEAR MR. ANTHONY,--To my extreme distress, I hear a rumor that +Gertrudis is to become your wife. I assure you that neither she nor I +blame you in the least for this unfortunate report; but since busy +tongues will wag upon the slightest excuse, we feel it best that no +further occasion for gossip should be given, I am sure you will +co-operate with us. + +Sincerely and respectfully, your friend, ANDRES GARAVEL. + +A sense of betrayal crept over him as he read. What the letter +signified, beyond the fact that Mr. Garavel had changed his mind, he +could not make out, and he resolved to go at once and demand an +explanation. But at the bank he was told that the proprietor had gone +home, and he drove to the house only to learn that Senor Garavel and +his daughter had left for Las Savannas not half an hour before. So, +back through the city he urged his driver, across the bridge, and out +along the country road. + +Darkness had settled when he returned, raging at the trickery that had +been practised upon him. If they thought to gain their point by sending +him on wildgoose chases like this, they were greatly mistaken. He +proposed to have Chiquita now, if he had to burst his way to her +through barred doors. Never in all his easy, careless life had anything +of moment been denied him, never had he felt such bitterness of +thwarted longing. Reared in a way to foster a disregard of all +restraint and a contempt for other people's rights, he was in a fitting +mood for any reckless project, and the mere thought that they should +undertake to coerce an Anthony filled him with grim amusement. He had +yielded to their left-handed customs out of courtesy; it was time now +to show his strength. + +What folly he might have committed it is hard to tell, but he was +prevented from putting any extravagant plan into operation by a message +from the girl herself. + +As he dismissed his coachman and turned toward his quarters, Stephanie +came to him out of the shadows. + +"I have been waiting," she said. + +"Where is Chiquita? Tell me quickly." + +"She is at the house. She wants to see you." + +"Of course she does. I knew this wasn't any of her doing. I've been +hunting everywhere for her." + +"At nine o'clock she will be in the Plaza. You know the dark place +across from the church?" + +"I'll be there." + +"If we do not come, wait." + +"Certainly. But, Stephanie, tell me what it is all about?" + +The black woman shook her head. "She is sick," she said, in a harsh +voice, "that is all I know. I have never seen her act so." From her +expression Kirk fancied that she held him responsible for her +mistress's sufferings. + +"Now, don't be angry with me," he made haste to say. "I'm sick, too, +and you're the only friend we have. You love her, don't you? Well, so +do I. and I'm going to make her happy in spite of her father and all +the rest. Run along now, I won't keep you waiting to-night." + +Long before the appointed time he was at the place of meeting, but +scarcely had the city chimes rung out nine when he saw two women emerge +from the dark side-street next the Garavel mansion and come swiftly +toward him. + +He refrained from rushing out to meet them, but when they were close to +his place of concealment he stepped forward, with Chiquita's name upon +his lips and his arms outstretched. She drew away. + +"No, no, senor!" she cried. "I sent for you because there was no other +way--that is all. My father would not let you come to the house. You +will not think me bold?" + +"Of course not." + +"I could not let you go until you knew the truth. You do not--believe +it was my fault?" + +"I don't know what to believe, because I don't know what has happened. +All I know is that I got a note from your father. But that won't make +me let you go." + +She clung desperately to the Bajan woman as if afraid to trust herself +near him. "Wait--wait," she said, "until you have heard it all." + +Never had she appeared so beautiful as now, with her face white, her +bosom heaving, as the half-light dimly revealed. + +"No matter what it is, I'll never give you up," he declared, stubbornly. + +"Ah! I feared you would say those very words; but you must do it, just +the same. It will be hard for us both, I know--but--" She choked and +shook her head as the words refused to come. + +Stephanie laid a great copper hand soothingly upon her shoulder, and +growled at Kirk in a hoarse, accusing voice: + +"You see?" + +"Tell me first why I must give you up?" + +"Because, in spite of all, I am to marry Ramon," Gertrudis said, +wretchedly. + +"Who said so?" + +"My father. He has forbidden me to think of you, and ordered that I +marry Ramon. Sick or well, living or dead, I must marry him." + +"I'm hanged if you do!" + +"It is those miserable politics again. If I do not obey, my father +cannot be President, do you see?" Pausing an instant to master her +agitation, she hurried on. "To be President means a great deal to him +and to our family; it is the greatest honor that has ever come to a +Garavel. Senor Alfarez is terribly angry that I refused to marry his +son, to whom since I was a little child I have been engaged. Ramon also +is furious; he threatened to kill himself. So, it comes to this then: +if I will not bind myself to the agreement, Senor Alfarez will contest +the election--I do not know how you say those things--but my father +will be defeated--perhaps he will be humbled. Many other terrible +things which I cannot understand will happen also. If I agree, then +there will be no opposition to his plans. He will be President, and I +will be a grand lady." + +"I won't stand for it. They're making you a sacrifice, that's all. What +kind of a father is it who would sell his daughter--" + +"No, no! You do not understand. He is proud, he cannot accept defeat, +he would rather give his life than be humiliated. Furthermore--he +wishes me to marry Ramon, and so that ends it." Her lips were trembling +as she peered up at him to see if he really understood. + +"Let them rave, dear. What does it matter who is President? What does +anything matter to you and me?" + +"He says I am too young to know my own mind, and--perhaps that is true, +Senor Antonio; perhaps I shall soon forget you and learn to love Ramon +as he loves me, I do not know--" + +In spite of the pathetic quaver in her voice, Kirk cried with jealous +bitterness: + +"You don't seem to object very strongly; you seem to care about as much +for Alfarez as you do for me. Is that it?" + +"Yes, senor," she said, bravely. + +"You are lying!" declared Stephanie, suddenly. + +The girl burst into a perfect torrent of weeping that shamed him. Then, +without any invitation, she flung herself recklessly into his arms and +lay there, trembling, palpitating like an imprisoned bird. "Forgive me, +dear," he exclaimed, softly. "I knew better all the time. You mustn't +think of doing what they ask; I won't allow it." His own heart-beats +were shaking him, and he hardly knew what he was saying. The sight of +her grief maddened him. It was as if they had taken advantage of his +helpless little maid to hurt her maliciously, and his indignation +blazed forth. She looked up with eyes gleaming through her tears and +said, brokenly: + +"Senor, I love you truly. You see, I cannot lie." + +Her breath intoxicated him, and he bent his head to kiss her, but +Stephanie tore her roughly from his arms. The woman showed the strength +of a man, and her vulture-like face was working fiercely as she cried: + +"No! She is mine! She is mine! She is a good girl." + +"Stephanie! She loves me, don't you see?" + +"No, no!" The black woman drew the girl into the shelter of her own +arms. + +"Oh, I am wicked," Gertrudis said. "I love you, Keerk--yes, I love you +very dearly, but my father--he refuses--I must obey--he has the right, +and I must do as he wishes." + +"Come with me now. We'll be married to-night," he urged; but she only +clung to Stephanie more closely, as if to hold herself from falling. + +"You are very sweet to me," she said, with piteous tenderness, "and I +shall never forget the honor; but you see I cannot. This is more to my +father than his life; it is the same to all our family, and I must do +my duty. I will pray for strength to keep from loving you, senor, and +some day, perhaps, the dear God will hear. You must do likewise, and +pray also for me to have courage, I could not let you go away thinking +this was my doing, so I sent for you. No, one must obey one's people, +for they are wise--and good. But one should be honest." + +The tears were stealing down her cheeks, and she thrilled to his +pleadings as to some wondrous music, yet she was like adamant, and all +his lover's desperation could not shake her. It was strange to see this +slender, timid slip of a girl so melting and yet so cruelly firm. He +appealed to Stephanie, but she was as unresponsive as a bronze image. +Seeing that his urging only made matters worse, he said, more gently: + +"You are exalted now with the spirit of self-sacrifice, but later you +will see that I am right. I am not discouraged. A thousand things may +happen. Who knows what to-morrow may bring? Let's wait and see if we +can't find a way out. Now that I know you love me, I have the courage +to face anything, and I am going to win you, Chiquita. I have never +lost in all my life, and I don't intend to begin now. I'll see your +father in the morning, and I'll be here again, to-morrow night--" + +But at this Gertrudis cried out: "No, no! I cannot meet you again in +this manner." And Stephanie nodded her agreement. + +"Then I'll see you the next night, that is Saturday. You are coming to +the big ball at the Tivoli with him and the Cortlandts--I must see you +then, so make sure to be there, and meanwhile don't give up." + +"Oh, there is no hope." + +"There is always hope. I'll think of something." + +"We must go," said the Barbadian woman, warningly. + +"Yes, yes! It is of no avail to resist," came the girl's choking voice. +She stretched out her little hand, and then, looking up at him, said, +uncertainly: "I--may never speak with you again alone, senor, and I +must pray to--cease loving you; but will you--kiss me once so that I +may never forget?" + +He breathed a tender exclamation and took her gently to his breast, +while the negress stood by scowling and muttering. + +The memory of that long, breathless moment lived with him for years. +Strangely enough, at the touch of her lips he felt his courage forsake +him--it ran out like water. He became weak, fearful, despairing, as if +it were his life that was ebbing away. And the pang when she drew +herself from him was like a bayonet-thrust. Even when she and Stephanie +had melted into the shadows, he stood motionless under the spell of +that caress, its ecstasy still suffusing him. + +He found himself following slowly in the direction they had taken in +the hope of catching just one more glimpse of her, but as he emerged +from the darkness of the park he paused. There across the street, in +the little open shrine set in the corner of the great cathedral, she +was kneeling before the shining figure of the Madonna. The candle-glow +that illumined the holy image and shone out so hopefully against the +gloom showed her crouched close before the altar, her dark head bowed +in uttermost dejection. Outside, and barely revealed, stood the tall, +gaunt Bajan woman, silent, watchful, and forbidding. + +With a painful grip at his throat Kirk watched until the girl rose and +hurried away into the shadows. Then he, too, turned and made his way up +the street, but he went slowly, unseeingly, as if he had beheld a +vision. + +For the first time in his life he was a prey to fear. A thousand panics +clamored at him, his mind began working with the exaggerated speed of a +person in dire peril. Once more, as upon that night when he had first +called at her father's house, he turned abruptly at the corner to stare +at her window, and again he surprised a figure skulking after him. +Without a moment's hesitation he made after it at a run, but the fellow +dodged into the Plaza and disappeared among the shrubbery. Not caring +to pursue the chase into those lurking shadows Kirk desisted, certain +only of one thing--that he was not Allan who was trailing him. He +recalled the oft-repeated threats of Ramon Alfarez, and returned to his +quarters by way of the lighted thoroughfares. + + + + +XXIV + +A BUSINESS PROPOSITION + + +Edith Cortlandt's interview with the rival candidates for the +Panamanian Presidency formed but a part of her plan. She next held a +long conversation with Colonel Jolson, to the end that on Friday +morning Runnels heard a rumor that threw him into the greatest +consternation. It was to the effect that instead of his succeeding to +the office of Superintendent, he was to retain his old post, and that +Colonel Jolson's brother-in-law was to supersede him. Although the word +was not authoritative, it came with sufficient directness to leave him +aghast. If true, it was, of course, equivalent to his discharge, for it +meant that he could not even continue in his former position without +putting himself in a light intolerable to any man of spirit. Since he +was entitled to the promotion, had been promised it, in fact, and had +made his plans accordingly, there was no course open except +resignation. If he did not resign voluntarily, he knew that his new +superior would eventually force him to do so, for Blakeley would build +up an organization of his own, and in it there would be no place for +one who had aspired to the highest office. + +Inasmuch as his assistant was concerned in this threatened calamity, +Runnels made haste to lay the matter before him. At first Kirk was +inclined to take it as a joke, but his friend quickly brought him to a +more serious frame of mind. + +"No," he said, "Blakeley has finally put it over. He's wanted this +position for a long time, and I guess the Cortlandts weren't strong +enough to prevent it--or else they have broken with the Colonel." + +"Didn't he promise you the job?" + +"Sure! But what are promises? I've been double-crossed, that's all. It +means I must quit." + +"Of course. I'm trying to figure out what it will mean to me." + +Runnels smiled grimly. "The same thing it would mean to me if I stayed, +I'd go back to my desk; in a month I'd have a row with Blakeley, no +matter what I did; then I'd be fired and have a tough time getting a +job with another railroad. Of course, the Cortlandts might do more for +you than they would for me, and you might be able to hang on." + +"Then this would seem to end our fine hopes, eh?" + +"Rather!" Runnels broke out, bitterly. "I've worked like a nigger, +Kirk, and I deserve promotion if anybody ever did. This other fellow is +a dub--he has proven that. Why, I've forgotten more railroading than +he'll ever know. Every man on the system hates him and likes me; and on +top of it all I was PROMISED the job. It's tough on the wife and the +kid." + +He stopped to swallow his emotion. He was a single-purposed, somewhat +serious man, a little lacking in resilience, and he could not meet +misfortune with Kirk's careless self-confidence. + +"I gave this job the best I had in me," he went on, "for I had the idea +that I was doing something patriotic, something for my country--that's +the way they used to talk about this Canal, you know. I've put in four +years of hell; I've lost step with the world; I've lost my business +connections in the States; and I haven't saved up any money, I CAN'T +quit, and yet I'll have to, for if I'm fired it'll mean I'll have to go +back there and start at the bottom again. Those people don't know +anything about these damned politics; they'll think I made a failure +here in government work, and I'll have to live it down. Still, I +suppose I ought not to kick--it's happening all the time to other +fellows who came down here with hopes as high as mine--fellows who have +given even more to the job than I have. What are YOU going to do?" + +Kirk started. "Oh, I don't know. I was thinking about you. This job +doesn't worry me, for I'm on my feet at last, and I know I have the +goods with me--they can have my position and welcome. Now, about you. I +haven't spent much of that lottery coin. It's in the bank, all that +Allan hasn't used, and half of it is yours, if you'll take it. You and +Mrs. Runnels and the kid, and Allan and I--and one other party--will +hike back home and get something else to do. What do you say?" + +Runnels' voice shook as he answered: "By Jove! You're the--real stuff, +Anthony. I'll think it over." He turned away as if ashamed of his show +of feeling, only to whirl about with the question, "Who is this 'other +party'?" + +"My wife." + +"Good Lord! You're not married?" + +"No, but I'm going to be. You talk about YOUR troubles; now listen to +mine. I'll make you weep like a fog." Briefly he told his friend of the +blow that had so suddenly fallen upon him. + +"You ARE up against it, old man," agreed Runnels, when he had heard +all. "Garavel has set his heart on the Presidency, and he'll pay any +price to get it. It's the same all over Central America; these people +are mad on politics. There are never more than two parties, you +know--the Wanters and the Hasers. The Wanters are out and the Hasers +are in; that's what makes these wicked little revolutions at every +change of the moon--it isn't a question of policy at all. Now, if Miss +Gertrudis were an American girl, she might rebel, elope, do something +like that, but she's been reared with the Spanish notions of obedience, +and I dare say she will submit tamely because she doesn't know how to +put up a fight. That's an admirable characteristic in a wife, but not +very helpful in a sweetheart." + +"Well, she's half American," said Kirk. + +"What do you mean by that?" + +"I mean the game isn't over. I carried the ball forty yards once for a +touchdown in the last ten seconds of play, and Yale won. I had good +'interference' then, and I need it now. Somebody'll have to run ahead +of me." + +Runnels smiled. "I guess you can count on me. What is the plan?" + +For the next half-hour the two talked earnestly, their heads together, +their voices low. + +"I don't believe it will work, my boy," Runnels said at last. "I know +these people better than you, and yet--Lord! if it does come off!" He +whistled softly. "Well, they may kick the political props out from +under us, but there will be an awful crash when we hit. Now, don't +mention this rumor about Blakeley. I want to see Steve Cortlandt first." + +"Cortlandt! By-the-way, do you happen to remember that he's to be our +guest for supper to-morrow night? Kind of a joke now, trying to thank +him for what he's done, isn't it?" + +"Not at all. It may be our one chance of salvation; he may be the one +person who can help us." + +"Well," Kirk reflected, "I have a good deal to thank him for, I +suppose, outside of this, and I'll go through with my part." + +He proceeded at once to put his plan into execution, his first step +being to rent a room at the Tivoli, taking particular care to select +one on the first floor in the north wing. That evening he and Allan +moved. It was a simple process, yet he felt that he was engaged in the +most momentous act of his Hie. As to its outcome much depended upon +Runnels and much more upon himself--so much, in fact, that when he came +to look at the matter coldly he confessed the hope of success was +slender. But such as it was he clung to it desperately. + +Runnels telephoned during the evening that he had been equal to his +part of the task, so there remained nothing to do but wait for the hour +of the dance. + +Over and over Anthony asked himself if he were not foolish to pin his +faith to so slight a chance, but he could find no answer. He slept +little amid his new surroundings that night, and awoke Saturday morning +thrilled with the certainty that his life's crisis was but a few hours +away. + +It was considerably after dark on Saturday evening that John Weeks, +American Consul at Colon, received a caller who came to him direct from +the Royal Mail steamer just docked. At first sight the stranger did not +impress Mr. Weeks as a man of particular importance. His face was +insignificant, and his pale-blue eyes showed little force. His only +noticeable feature was displayed when he removed his hat. Then it could +be seen that a wide, white scar ran from just over his temple to a +point back of his right ear. + +He made his name known as Williams, which, of course, meant nothing to +the consul, and while drinking one of Weeks' high-balls, inquired idly +about the country, the climate, and the people, as if in no hurry to +come to his point. Weeks watched him shrewdly, convinced at last by his +visitor's excessive caution that his first judgment had been wrong, and +that the man was more knowing than he seemed. Mr. Williams was likewise +studying the fat man, and when he had satisfied himself, came out +openly with these words: + +"I'm looking for a chap named Wellar. He landed here some time late in +November." + +"Friend of yours?" + +"Um--m--not exactly." Mr. Williams ran a hand meditatively over the +ragged scar on his scalp, as if from force of habit. + +"Wellar? I never heard of him." + +"He may have travelled under another name. Ever hear of a fellow called +Locke?" + +The consul's moist lips drew together, his red eyes gleamed watchfully. +"Maybe I have, and maybe I haven't," said he. "Why do you want him?" + +"I heard he was here. I'd enjoy meeting him again." + +"What does he look like?" + +Mr. Williams rattled off a description of Kirk Anthony so photographic +that the consul suddenly saw a great light. + +"Yes, I know him all right," he confessed, warmly. "He's a good friend +of mine, too; in fact, he lived with me for a while." Misconstruing the +eager expression that came to his caller's face, he rose heavily and +thrust out a thick, wet hand. "Don't let's beat about the bush, Mr. +Anthony; your son is safe and well and making a name for himself. I'm +happy to say I helped him--not much, to be sure, but all I could--yes, +sir, I acknowledge the corn--and I'm glad to meet you at last. I have +been waiting for you to arrive, and I'm glad you dropped in on me. I +have a lot of things to talk about." + +But the other stared upward impatiently. "No, no! You've got me wrong. +I'm a detective, and I'm after your friend Wellar, alias Locke, alias +Anthony. He's wanted for embezzlement and assault and a few other +things, and I'm going to take him." The indistinctive Mr. Williams +spoke sharply, and his pale blue eyes were suddenly hard and bright. + +Weeks stared open-mouthed for an instant. "Then you're really not +Darwin K. Anthony?" he gasped. + +"Certainly not. Here's the warrant. I'm sorry this chap is your pal, +but--" + +"My pal! Hell, I hate him like the smallpox. Good thing you spoke or +I'd have sold you a cocoanut grove. I KNEW he was wrong. Embezzler, eh? +Well, well!" + +"Eighty thousand, that's all, and he's got it on him." + +"You're wrong there; he was broke when he landed. I ought to know." + +"Oh no! He came down on the Santa Cruz; I've seen the purser. He +travelled under the name of Jefferson Locke. There's no mistake, and he +couldn't have blown it all. No, it's sewed into his shirt, and I'm here +to grab it." + +Weeks whistled in amazement. "He IS a shrewd one. Eighty thou--Lord, I +wish I'd known that! He's here, all right, working for the railroad and +living at Panama. He's made good, too, and got some influential +friends. Oh, this is great!" + +"Working, hey? Clever stall! Do you see that?" Williams inclined his +head for a fuller display of the disfiguration over his ear. "He hung +that on me, with a bottle. I damn near died." He laughed disagreeably. +"He'll go back, and he'll go back quick. How do I get to Panama?" + +Weeks consulted his watch hastily. + +"You've missed the last train; but we'll go over together in the +morning. I want to have a hand in this arrest for reasons of my own; I +don't like him or his influential friends." He began to chuckle +ponderously. "No, I don't like his influential friends, in particular." + +While this scene was being enacted on the north side of the Isthmus, +Kirk Anthony, over at the Tivoli Hotel, was making himself ready for +the ball with particular pains. Even his personal appearance might have +a bearing upon the outcome of this adventure, and he dared not overlook +the slightest advantage. + +Allan regarded him admiringly from many angles. + +"Oh, Master h'Auntony," he exclaimed, rapturously, "you are beautiful!" + +"Thanks! Again thanks! Now, can you remember to do as I have told you?" + +"I would die--" + +"DON'T say that again, I'm too nervous. Here are your instructions, +once more. Keep both doors to this room locked and stand by the one to +the veranda! Don't let any one in except Mr. Runnels and the man he'll +bring. DON'T--LEAVE--THIS--SPOT, no matter what happens. Does that +penetrate your teakwood dome? Does your ivory cue-ball encompass that +thought?" + +"I shall watch this h'apartment carefully, never fear." + +"But I do fear. I'm scared to death. My hands are go cold they are +brittle. Remember, when I knock, so, let me in instantly, and keep your +wits about you." + +"H'Allan never fails, sar. But what is coming to pahss?" + +"Never mind what is coming to pass. This is going to be a big night, my +boy--a very big night." Kirk strolled out into the hall and made his +way to the lobby. + +Already the orchestra was tuning up, the wide porches were filling with +well-dressed people, while a stream of coaches at the door was +delivering the arrivals on the special from Colon. It was a very +animated crowd, sprinkled plentifully with Spanish people--something +quite unusual, by-the-way--while the presence of many uniforms gave the +affair almost the brilliance of a military function. There were marine +officers from Bas Obispo, straight, trim, brown of cheek; naval +officers from the cruisers in the roadstead, clad in their white +trousers and bell-boy jackets; army officers detailed from Washington +on special duty; others from the various parts of the work itself. + +Kirk wandered about through the confusion, nodding to his friends, +chatting here and there, his eyes fixed anxiously upon the door. + +Clifford approached and fell into conversation with him. + +"Great doings, eh? I came up from the Central just to see what these +affairs are like. Did you see to-night's paper?" + +"No." + +"Garavel is going to run for President. This is a kind of political +coming-out party." + +"So I believe." + +"It looked like a fight between him and General Alfarez, but they've +patched it up, and the General is going to withdraw. Garavel is to have +Uncle Sam's congratulations and co-operation. It's a joke, isn't it, +this international good feeling?" + +"Excuse me." Anthony saw Runnels searching the room with anxiety. He +hurried toward him and inquired, breathlessly: + +"Have you got him?" + +"Sure, I showed him your room." + +"Did you lock him in?" + +"Certainly not." + +"He'll get away." + +"Oh no, he'll be on the job. Has she come?" + +Kirk shook his head. "Gee! I'm nervous." He wiped his brow with a +shaking hand. + +"Don't weaken," Runnels encouraged. "I'm beginning to believe you'll +pull it off. I told my wife all about it--thought we might need +her--and she's perfectly crazy. I never saw her so excited. Let me know +as soon as you can which dance it will be. This suspense--Gad! There +they are now! Go to it, old man." + +Into the lobby came a mixed group, in which were Andres Garavel, his +daughter, Ramon Alfarez, and the Cortlandts. Kirk's face was white as +he went boldly to meet them, but he did his best to smile +unconcernedly. He shook hands with Edith and her husband, bowed to +Gertrudis, then turned to meet her father's stare. + +"May I have a word with you, sir?" + +Garavel inclined his head silently. As the others moved on he said: +"This is hardly a suitable time or place, Mr. Anthony." + +"Oh, I'm not going to kick up a fuss. I didn't answer your note, +because there was nothing to say. You still wish me to cease my +attentions?" + +"I do! It is her wish and mine." + +"Then I shall do so, of course. If Miss Garavel is dancing to-night I +would like your permission to place my name on her programme." + +"No!" exclaimed the banker. + +"Purely to avoid comment. Every one knows I have been calling upon her, +and that report of our engagement got about considerably; it would set +people talking if she snubbed me. That is the only reason I came to +this dance. Believe me, I'd rather have stayed away." + +"Perhaps you are right. Let us have no unpleasantness and no gossip +about the affair, by all means. I consent, then." Garavel's voice +altered and he said, with more of his natural geniality, "I am very +glad you take the matter so sensibly, Mr. Anthony; it was, after all, +but a dream of youth." + +"And permit me to offer my congratulations upon the honor your country +is about to bestow upon you." Conversing in a friendly manner, they +followed the rest of the party. + +As the banker appeared upon the threshold of the ballroom a murmur ran +through the crowd; faces were turned in his direction, whispers were +exchanged, showing that already the news had travelled. Conscious of +this notice and its reason, Garavel drew himself up; he walked with the +tread of an emperor. + +Kirk ignored Ramon's scowl as he requested the pleasure of seeing +Chiquita's programme; then pretended not to notice her start of +surprise. After a frightened look at her father, she timidly extended +the card to him, and he wrote his name upon it. + +As he finished he found Mrs. Cortlandt regarding him. + +"Will you dance with me?" he inquired. "Yes. I saved the fourth and the +tenth." As he filled in the allotted spaces, she said, in a low voice, +"You are the boldest person! Did Mr. Garavel give you leave to do that, +or--" + +"Of course! Thank you." He made his way out of the press that had +gathered and toward the open air. He was shaking with nervousness and +cursed all government hotels where a man is denied the solace of a +drink. + +Runnels pounced upon him just outside. + +"Well, well, quick! Did you make it?" + +"Number nine." + +"Good! I was gnawing my finger-nails. Whew! I'm glad that is over. Now +pull yourself together and don't forget you have the first dance with +Mrs. Runnels. There goes the music. I--I'm too rattled to dance." + +Anthony found his friend's wife bubbling with excitement, and scarcely +able to contain herself. + +"Oh, I'll never live through it, I know," she cried, as soon as they +were out upon the floor. "How CAN you be so calm?" + +"I'm not. I'm as panicky as you are." + +"And she, poor little thing! She seems frightened to death." + +"But--isn't she beautiful?" + +Mrs. Runnels admitted the fact cheerfully, and at the same time noted +how her partner's muscles swelled and hardened as Miss Garavel glided +past in the arms of Ramon Alfarez. It gave her a thrill to see a real +drama unfolding thus before her very eyes. + +To Kirk, Chiquita had never appeared so ravishing, nor so purely +Spanish as to-night. She was clad in some mysterious filmy white stuff +that floated about her form like a mist. The strangeness and brilliance +of her surroundings had frightened her a little, and the misery at her +heart had filled her wide, dark eyes with a plaintive melancholy. But +she was entirely the fine lady through it all, and she accepted the +prominence that was hers as the leading senorita of the Republic with +simple dignity and unconcern. The women began to whisper her name, the +men followed her with admiring glances. At every interval between +dances she was besieged by gayly clad officers, civilians in white--the +flower of her own people and of the American colony as well--all eager +to claim her attention or to share in her shy, slow smile. + +Now and then her eyes strayed to Kirk with a look that made his blood +move quicker. It boded well for the success of his plans, and filled +him with a fierce, hot gladness. But how the moments dragged! + +General Alfarez entered the room amid a buzz of comment. Then, as he +greeted his rival, Garavel, with a smile and a handshake, a round of +applause broke forth. The members of the Commission sought them both +out, and congratulations were exchanged. At last the Garavel boom was +launched in earnest. + +Mrs. Cortlandt expressed a desire to sit out the fourth dance. + +"So, your engagement to Miss Garavel is broken?" she began, when she +and Kirk had seated themselves in two of the big rockers that lined the +porch. + +"All smashed to pieces, running-gear broken, steering-knuckle bent, +gasolene tank punctured. I need a tow." + +"You take it calmly." + +"What's the use of struggling? I'm no Samson to go around pulling down +temples." + +"Did you expect her to yield so tamely?" + +"I didn't know she had yielded. In fact, I haven't had a chance to talk +to her." + +"But she has. Mr. Garavel told me not an hour ago that as soon as he +explained his wishes she consented to marry Ramon without a protest." + +"A refusal would have meant the death of the old man's chances, I +presume. She acted quite dutifully." + +"Yes. If she had refused Ramon, I doubt if we could have saved her +father. As it is, the General withdraws and leaves the field clear, the +two young people are reunited, quite as if you had never appeared, and +you--My dear Kirk, now what about you?" + +"Oh, I don't count. I never have counted in anything, you know. That's +the trouble with good-natured people. But is it true that Garavel is +practically elected?" + +"General Alfarez couldn't very well step in after he had publicly +stepped out, could he? That would be a trifle too treacherous; he'd +lose his support, and our people could then have an excuse to take a +hand. I'm tremendously glad it's all settled finally, I assure you. It +was a strain; and although I'm sorry you got your fingers pinched +between the political wheels, I'm relieved that the uncertainty is +ended." + +So far they had been speaking like mere acquaintances, but now Kirk +turned upon her a trifle bitterly. + +"I think you worked it very cleverly, Mrs. Cortlandt," he said. "Of +course, I had no chance to win against a person of your diplomatic +gifts. I had my nerve to try." + +She regarded him without offence at this candor, then nodded. + +"Yes. You see, it meant more to me than to you or to her. With you two +it is but a romance forgotten in a night. I have pretty nearly outlived +romance." + +"You think I will forget easily? That's not flattering." + +"All men do. You will even forget my part in the affair, and we will be +better friends than ever." + +"Suppose I don't choose to accept what it pleases people to hand me?" + +"My dear Kirk!" She smiled. "You will have to in this case. There is +nothing else to do." + +He shook his head. "I hoped we could be friends, Mrs. Cortlandt, but it +seems we can't be." + +At this she broke out, imperiously, her eyes flashing. + +"I ask nothing you can't give. I have never been denied, and I won't be +denied now. You can't afford to break with me." + +"Indeed! Why do you think that?" + +"Listen! I've shown you what I can do in a few months. In a year you +can be a great success. That's how big men are made; they know the +short-cuts. You are too inexperienced yet to know what success and +power mean, but you are beginning to learn, and when you have learned +you will thank me for breaking up this foolish romance. I don't ask you +to forget your manhood. I ask nothing. I am content to wait. You want +to become a big man like your father. Well, Runnels will be out of the +way soon; Blakeley amounts to nothing. You will be the Superintendent." + +"So! That's not merely a rumor about Blakeley? Runnels is fired, eh?" + +"Yes." + +"If I choose not to give up Chiq--Miss Garavel, then what? It means the +end of me here, is that it?" + +"If you 'choose'! Why, my dear, you have no choice whatever in the +matter. It is practically closed. You can do nothing--although, if you +really intend to make trouble, I shall walk inside when I leave and +inform the old gentleman, in which case he will probably send the girl +home at once, and take very good care to give you no further +opportunity. Ramon is only too anxious to marry her. As to this being +the end of you here, well, I really don't see how it could be +otherwise. No Kirk, it's for you to decide whether you wish to be shown +the secret path up the mountain or to scale the cliffs unaided. There +are no conditions. You merely mustn't play the fool." + +"And if I don't agree you will tell Mr. Garavel that I'm going to make +trouble?" He mused aloud, watching her out of the corner of his eye. +She said nothing, so he went on cautiously, sparring for time. + +"Well, inasmuch as this seems to be a plain business proposition, +suppose I think it over. When it comes time for our next dance, I'll +say yes or no." + +"As you please." + +"Very well. The music has stopped; we'd better go in." + +As they rose she laid her hand upon his arm and he felt it tremble as +she exclaimed: + +"Believe me, Kirk, this isn't at all easy for me, but--I can't bear to +lose." + + + + +XXV + +CHECKMATE! + + +Anthony had no partner for the eighth dance, and was very glad of it, +for he could not have carried off the necessary small talk. As it was, +he felt that his excitement must be patent to those around him. His +mind was filled with tormenting doubts, his chance for success seemed +so infinitely small, his plan so extravagantly impracticable, now that +the time had come! + +As the music ceased and the dancers came pouring out into the cool +night air, Runnels approached with his wife. + +"Well, are you equal to it?" he asked. + +Kirk nodded; he could not speak. + +"Why, you look as cold as ice," exclaimed the woman, half-resentfully. +"I'm the only one who seems to feel it. I--I'm positively delirious. My +partners look at me in the strangest way, as if they thought I were +liable to become dangerous at any moment." + +"Not too loud!" her husband cautioned, then to Kirk: "Good-luck, old +man. Lord! I need a bracer." His words stuck in his throat, and Kirk +realized that he was himself the calmest of the three. Together, +Runnels and his wife strolled off through the crowd, disappearing in +the direction of the north wing of the hotel. + +It seemed ages before the orchestra struck up; Kirk began to fear that +something had happened to the musicians. He edged closer to the door +and searched out Chiquita with his eyes. There she was, seated with her +father, Colonel Bland from Gatun, and some high officer or +other--probably an admiral. Ramon Alfarez was draped artistically over +the back of her chair, curling his mustache tenderly and smiling +vacantly at the conversation. + +Kirk ground his teeth together and set his feet as if for the sound of +the referee's whistle. He heard the orchestra leader tap his +music-stand; then, as the first strains of the waltz floated forth, he +stepped into the ballroom and made toward his sweetheart. All at once +he found that his brain was clear, his heart-beats measured. + +Of course she saw him coming; she had waited all the long evening for +this moment. He saw her hand flutter uncertainly to her throat; then, +as he paused before her, she rose without a word. His arm encircled her +waist, her little, cold palm dropped into his as lightly as a +snowflake, and they glided away together. He found himself whispering +her name over and over again passionately. + +"Why--why did you do this, senor?" she protested, faintly. "It is very +hard for me." + +"It is the last time I shall ever hold you--this way." + +She faltered, her breath caught. "Please! My father is looking. Ramon--" + +"Have you agreed to marry him?" + +"Yes! No no! Oh, I have prayed to the Virgin every hour. I cannot, and +yet I must. See! I cannot waltz, senor, I have s-stepped upon you. Take +me back to my seat." + +For answer he pressed her closer to his breast, holding her up without +effort. The incense from her hair was robbing him of his wits, his old +wild desire to pick her up and carry her away swept over him. + +"Don't--esqueeze--me--so!" she exclaimed. "I cannot hold back--the +tears. I am so unhappy. If I could die quickly--now." + +"Let us go out on the porch." + +"No, no! We must remain in my father's sight. Will you take me to my +seat?" + +"No, I want you to listen carefully to what I'm going to say." He spoke +low and earnestly. "Try to show nothing in your face, for they are +watching us." Seeing her more composed and attentive, he went on: + +"Don't stop dancing now, when I tell you. Chiquita dear, you must marry +me, to-night, right away! I have arranged everything. No, don't look up +at me until I have finished. Try to smile. I've planned it all out and +everything is in readiness. I have a room just around the corner of the +veranda; there's a judge waiting for us, and Runnels and his wife--" + +"You are mad!" she gasped. + +"No, no. We'll slip through one of the French windows, and we'll be +back again before they miss us. Nobody will know. I tell you they're +waiting. If we are missed they'll think--it doesn't matter what they +think, you'll be my wife, and Ramon can't marry you then. We'll say +nothing about it until your father is elected President." + +"Senor, one cannot be married in a moment. I am Catholic--the banns--" + +"I've thought of all that, but a civil marriage is binding. We'll have +the religious ceremony afterward; meanwhile this will stop Ramon, at +least. I promise not to see you again until you send for me, until your +father's hopes are realized. You may wait as long as you wish, and +nobody will know. They tricked you, Chiquita dear; I can't explain, but +it wasn't all politics, by any means. Oh, girl! Don't you understand, I +love you--love you? It's our only chance." The words were tumbling from +his lips incoherently; he was pleading as if for his life, while she +clung to him to support herself. Through it all their feet moved +rhythmically, their bodies swayed to the cadences of the waltz as they +circled the ballroom. He guided her among the other whirling figures, +under the very eyes of her father and her fiance, while more than one +of the onlookers commented upon the handsome appearance of these young +people, the one so stalwart and blond and Northern, the other so chic +and dark and tropical. + +He knew it was her lifelong loyalty, her traditional sense of +obedience, that made her hesitate. + +"It was treachery to both of us," he urged; "they imposed upon your +father, but when he has won he'll forgive us. I know what I'm saying; +Mrs. Cortlandt told me to-night." + +"Mother of God!" she exclaimed, faintly. "Is it that I am dreaming?" + +"They are waiting for us; the dance is half over already. I love +you--better than all the world. Do you remember two nights ago? You +kissed me then, and--I--I can't live without you. We'll go away +together, you and I, through all the world--just we two." She trembled +against him. "Quick!" he cried in her ear. "We're coming to the spot. +They can't see us now. If you feel weak, hold to my arm until we are +outside." + +She gave a hysterical, choking sob that was half a sigh; then her eyes +flashed upward to his--they were wide and bright and shining--her lips +were parted, her body was lithe and full of life. She slipped from his +embrace, whispering: + +"Yes, yes! Quickly, senor!" And the next instant they were out upon the +wide gallery with the dance behind them. "Hurree, hurree! Or they will +follow." + +Together they fled along the north wing of the hotel; the girl was +panting, with one hand held to her bare throat; but there was no need +for him to help her, for she ran like a fawn. + +"Here!" He swung her around the corner and rapped sharply at a door. + +"Quickly! Quickly!" she moaned. "For the love of--" + +With terrific force the door was fairly jerked from its hinges and +slammed to behind them. The next moment Allan's big body was leaning +against it, as if the wall were about to fall inward upon him. Runnels +leaped forward with an exclamation, his wife stood staring, her face as +white as snow. With them was the genial gray-haired judge from Colon, +whom Kirk had met at the Wayfarers Club on the night of his arrival. + +"You made it!" Runnels cried, triumphantly. + +"Miss Garavel!" his wife echoed. "Thank Heaven you came!" + +"Quick, the music will stop! Judge, this is Miss Garavel--you must +marry us just as fast as you can." + +"I presume you consent?" the judge asked, with a smile at the girl. + +"I--I want to be happy," she said, simply. Her bosom was heaving, her +pansy eyes were fastened upon the magistrate with a look of pleading +that drove the smile from his lips. She clung to Anthony's arm as if +she feared these strangers might tear him away. + +"You understand, Judge, she's of age; so am I. They want to force her +to marry a man she doesn't--" + +The muffled strains of music ceased. There came the faint clapping of +hands. + +"Madre de Dios!" Miss Garavel cried. "We are too late." She beat her +little palms together in desperation. + +There was a breathless interval. Then the music began again, and to its +throbbing measures the marriage ceremony was performed. As the last +word was pronounced, Mrs. Runnels burst into tears and hid her face +against her husband's breast. Runnels himself held forth a shaking hand +to Kirk, then patted the bride clumsily upon her shoulder. + +"I know you will be happy now, Mrs. Anthony," he said. + +With an incoherent cry of delight, Kirk folded his wife in his arms, +and she kissed him before them all. + +"Senor, I will love you always," she said, shyly. + +During the progress of this scene, Allan Allan of Jamaica had stood +frozen with amazement, a door-knob wedged firmly into the small of his +back, his eyes distended and rolling; but when Mrs. Runnels collapsed, +as at a signal he too dissolved in tears. + +"Oh, glory to God, boss," he sobbed, "you is a beautiful bridegroom!" + +"Come, we must get back, the music has stopped again." Kirk turned to +the judge. "Nothing is to be said until Miss Gar--Mrs. Anthony gives +the word; you understand? I can't thank you all half enough. Now, +Allan, see if the coast is clear, quickly!" He was still in a panic, +for there yet remained a chance of discovery and ruin. One more instant +of suspense, then the two stepped out; the door closed softly behind +them and they strolled around the corner of the north wing and into the +crowd. It had all happened so quickly that even yet they were dazed and +disbelieving. + +"My wife!" Kirk whispered, while a tremendous rush of emotion swept +over him. She trembled in answer like a wind-shaken leaf. "You're mine, +Chiquita! They can't take you away." His voice broke. + +"I am still dreaming. What have I done? Oh-h--they will know; in my +face they will read the truth. But I do not care. Is--it indeed true?" + +They were at the entrance to the ballroom now, through which they had +come a few minutes before, and, pausing, she gave him a half-serious, +half-timid glance. + +"Senor, I do not know if some time you will be sorry for this action, +but I shall never cease loving you. I prayed hourly to the Blessed +Virgin, and she heard. Now, I shall perish until you come." + +"When you give me leave; through steel and stone, through fire and +water." + +"Quick, for the one more time, call me--that--" She hesitated, blushing +vividly. "I will hear it in my dreams." + +"My wife!" he whispered, tenderly. + +"Ho! Chiquita mia!" her father cried, as they came to him. "There you +are then. I have missed you." His eyes smouldered as he gazed +suspiciously at Kirk. + +"Ah, but I was too warm," she said, easily. "Yonder by the door we have +been standing in the night breeze. And where is Ramon?" + +"He is looking for you." + +"One would think him a jealous husband already," she exclaimed, +lightly. Then, extending her hand coolly to Kirk, "I thank you, senor, +for the--dance." + +Her husband bowed. "I shall not soon forget it." To the father he +added, in a low voice: "I thank you, also, for your courtesy. We have +been discussing your daughter's marriage during the dance, and it is my +one greatest hope that she will never regret it." + +The banker acknowledged the words ceremoniously. "Love is a thing that +comes and goes; marriage alone can bind it. Some day you will thank me, +and then perhaps you will honor our house again, eh?" + +"I shall be happy to come whenever you wish." As he walked away, the +banker said, with relief: + +"He takes it well; he is proud--almost like a Spaniard." + +Kirk moved through the crowd as if in a trance, but he was beginning to +realize the truth now; it surged over him in great waves of gladness. +He longed to shout his news aloud. What luck was his! The world was +made for him; there was no such thing as adversity or failure--Chiquita +was his wife! All Christendom might go to pot for all he cared; that +marvellous fact was unalterable. Yes, and he could speak his mind to +Mrs. Cortlandt. His tentative acceptance of the terms she made sickened +him. He wanted to rid himself of this false position as soon as +possible. What mattered her threats? What did he care for the things +she could give or withhold when all the glad open world was beckoning +to him and to his bride? Success! Riches! He could win them for +himself. Chiquita was all and more than they, and he was a god! + +In the midst of his rhapsody he heard a bell-boy speaking his name, and +smiled at him vacantly as he turned away. But the negro followed him +persistently, saying something about a letter. + +"Letter? I have no time to write letters. Oh, I beg pardon, letter for +ME?" He took the missive from the silver tray and stuffed it +absent-mindedly into a pocket, fumbling meanwhile for a tip. "I don't +seem to have any money, my boy, but money, after all, means nothing." + +"It is h'impartant, sar." + +"Oh yes, the letter. Very well." He opened the envelope and pretended +to read, but in reality the sheet held nothing for him but a ravishing, +mischievous face, with pansy eyes. He must have stood staring +unseeingly at it for several seconds. Then the dancing visions faded +and the scrawl stood out plainly: + +Williams, detective, St. Louis, arrived at Colon this evening on the +Prince Joachim. You'd better take it on the run. + +It was written upon Tivoli paper, but the hand was strange and it was +not signed. + +"Well!" Kirk came suddenly to himself, and a spasm of disgust seized +him. "What a rotten inconvenience!" he said aloud. But before he had +time to measure the effect of this new complication the swelling music +reminded him that this dance belonged to Mrs. Cortlandt and that her +answer was due. + +She was waiting for him in the gallery, and motioned him to the chair +adjoining hers. + +"I can't two-step and talk at the same time," she said, "and here we'll +be quite private." + +Kirk remained standing. "What I have to say won't take long. I've made +up my mind, and I--" + +Edith interrupted him with a lightness that her look belied: + +"Oh, let's not discuss it. I don't want you to answer. I don't want to +think of it. I just want to forget--and to plan. You understand how I +feel?" She faced him with eyes bright and lustrous, her red lips parted +in a smile. She was a very beautiful woman, Kirk realized--a very +compelling, unusual woman, and one whose capabilities seemed unbounded. +He began dimly to perceive that all women have great capabilities for +good or evil, depending largely upon the accident of their environment, +and with this thought came the feeling that he must speak frankly now +or prove himself worse than base. If only she were of the weakly +feminine type his task would be far easier. But it was hard to strike +her, for the very reason that he knew she would take the blow bravely +and meet its full force. + +"I must answer," he said. "I don't want to pretend; I'm not good at +lying. I can't go through with any such arrangement as you suggested. +Why, the very idea is positively--fierce. You've been awfully nice to +me, but I had no idea of--this. Besides, Cortlandt's an awfully decent +chap, and--and, well," he concluded, lamely, "there are lots of +reasons." + +"Oh no! There is only one reason; all the others count for nothing." +She spoke in a voice that he could scarcely hear. + +"Perhaps! But it's--just impossible." + +"You know what it means?" She stared at him with hard, level eyes. "I'm +not a moderate person--I can't do things by halves. No! I see you don't +think of that, you are mad over this Garavel girl. But you can't get +her." Something in his dazzled, love-foolish smile enraged her. "So! +You are planning even now. Well, then, understand there are practical +reasons, political reasons, why you can't have her. If Garavel were +insane enough to consent, others would not. She is part of--the +machine, and there are those who will not consent to see all their work +spoiled. That is altogether apart from me, you understand. I can build, +and I can destroy--" + +"There's nothing more to say," he interrupted her, quietly, "so I'd +better excuse myself." + +"Yes! I would prefer to be alone." + +When he had bowed himself away she crushed the fan in her hand, staring +out across the lights of the city below, and it was thus that Cortlandt +found her a few moments later, as he idled along the veranda, his hands +in his pockets, a cigarette between his lips. He dropped into the empty +chair beside her, saying: + +"Hello! Thought you had this with Anthony?" + +"I had." + +"What's the trouble?" + +"There is no trouble." She began to rock, while he studied her profile; +then, conscious of his look, she inquired, "Aren't you dancing?" + +"No, just looking on, as usual. I prefer to watch. You have broken your +fan, it seems." He flung his cigarette into the darkness and, reaching +out, took the fan from her hand. She saw that his lips were drawn back +in a peculiar smile. + +"Well! Is that so strange?" she answered, sharply. "You seem--" She +broke off and looked deliberately away from him. + +"Row, eh?" he inquired, softly. + +She could barely hold back her hatred of the man. He had worked +powerfully upon her nerves of late, and she was half hysterical. + +"Why do you take pleasure in annoying me?" she cried. "What ails you +these last few weeks? I can't stand it--I won't--" + +"Oh! Pardon! One quarrel an evening is enough. I should have known +better." + +She turned upon him at this, but once more checked the words that +clamored for utterance. Her look, however, was a warning. She bit her +lip and said nothing. + +"Too bad you and he don't hit it off better; he likes me." + +There was no answer. + +"He's giving me a party after the dance, sort of a gratitude affair. A +delicate way to acknowledge a debt, eh?" + +She saw that his hand shook as he lit a fresh cigarettes, and the +strangeness of his tone made her wonder. "You know very well it is +Runnels' doing," she said. + +"Oh, there are six of them in it altogether, but Anthony originated the +little surprise. It's intended for you, of course." + +"I don't see it. Are you going?" + +"I accepted." + +"What do you mean by that?" + +"Bah! They won't give it," he said, harshly. + +"And why not? I think it is rather nice of those chaps. Of course, +Runnels would like to ingratiate himself with you--" + +"Funny spectacle, eh? Me the guest of--Anthony!" + +There was a trace of anxiety in her voice as she answered, and, though +she spoke carelessly, she did not meet his eyes. + +"I--I'd rather you'd make an excuse. I'll have to go home alone, you +know." + +He raised his brows mockingly. "My DEAR! I'm to be the honored guest." + +"Suit yourself, of course." + +A marine officer approached, mopping his face, and engaged her in +conversation, whereupon Cortlandt rose languidly and strolled away +through the crowd that came eddying forth from the ballroom. + +Meanwhile, Kirk had found Runnels, who was looking for him, eager to +express his congratulations and to discuss their exploit in detail. + +"I've just taken the wife home," he explained. "I never saw anybody so +excited. If she'd stayed here she'd have given the whole thing away, +sure. Why, she wasn't half so much affected by her own marriage." + +"I--I haven't pulled myself together yet. Funny thing--I've just been +watching my wife dancing with the man she is engaged to. Gee! It's +great to be married." + +"She's the dearest thing I ever saw; and wasn't she game? Alice will +cry for weeks over this. Why, it's the sob-fest of her lifetime. She's +bursting with grief and rapture. I hope your wife can keep a secret +better than mine, otherwise there will be a tremendous commotion before +to-morrow's sun sets. I suppose now I'll have to hang around home with +my finger on my lip, saying 'Hist!' until the news comes out. Whew! I +am thirsty." + +Anthony did not tell his friend about the detective in Colon and his +mysterious warning, partly because he was not greatly disturbed by it +and trusted to meeting the difficulty in proper time, and partly +because his mind was once more too full of his great good-fortune to +permit of any other interest. Now that he had some one to whom he could +talk freely, he let himself go, and he was deep in conversation when +Stephen Cortlandt strolled up and stopped for an instant to say: + +"Quite a lively party, isn't it?" + +Kirk noticed how sallow he had grown in the past few months, and how he +had fallen off in weight. He looked older, too; his cheeks had sunken +in until they outlined his jaws sharply. He seemed far from well; a +nervous twitching of his fingers betokened the strain he had been +under. He was quite as immaculate as usual, however, quite as polished +and collected. + +"How is our little 'stag' coming on?" he asked. + +"Fine! Everything is ready," said Runnels. "You won't expect an +elaborate layout; it's mostly cold storage, you know, but we'll at +least be able to quench our thirst at the Central." + +"Then it's really coming off? I was--afraid you'd forgotten it." +Cortlandt cast a curious glance at Kirk, who exclaimed, heartily: + +"Well, hardly!" Then, as their prospective guest moved off, "What a +strange remark!" + +"Yes," said Runnels, "he's a queer fellow; but then, you know, he's +about as emotional as a toad." + + + + +XXVI + +THE CRASH + + +Kirk had no further chance of speaking with his wife, for after the +dance she was whisked away, leaving him nothing but the memory of an +adoring, blissful glance as she passed. With Runnels and Cortlandt and +the rest, he was driven to the Hotel Central, where they found a very +attractive table set in a private dining-room. It was a lively party, +and Kirk's secret elation enabled him to play the part of host with +unforced geniality. The others joined him in a hearty effort to show +their guest the high regard in which they held him, and if Cortlandt +did not enjoy himself, it was entirely his own fault. + +Toward Kirk, however, he preserved a peculiar attitude, which only the +young man's self-absorption prevented him from noticing. If he had been +less jubilant, he must have felt the unnatural aloofness of the other +man's bearing; but even had he done so, he would doubtless have +attributed it to Cortlandt's well-recognized frigidity. + +At the propitious moment, Runnels, who had reluctantly agreed to share +the social responsibility, made a little speech, explaining that he and +his boys had been sensible from the first of their guest's interest in +them, and were deeply grateful for it. They were all working together, +he said, and what helped one helped another. They had banded together, +and now tendered him a token of their regard in a form which he could +preserve. + +"It's a little late," he smiled, "in view of the rumor that has been +going round within the last day or so, but, no matter what happens to +any one of us in the readjustment of our department, we appreciate the +help you have given us collectively." + +He handed a handsome loving-cup to Cortlandt, who thanked him +appropriately, then waited courteously for the party to break up. But +Anthony rose, saying: + +"I simply have to say a word on my own account, fellows, for I owe Mr. +Cortlandt more than any of you." + +The object of these remarks shot a swift, questioning glance from his +stony eyes, and raised a hand as if to check him. But Kirk ran on +unheeding: + +"I want to thank him before all of you for what he has done for me +personally. When I landed in Panama I was a rotter. I'd never worked, +and never intended to; I rather despised people who did. I represented +the unearned increment. I was broke and friendless, and what ideas I +had were all wrong. This is something you don't know, perhaps, but no +sooner had I landed than I got into trouble of the worst sort, and Mr. +Cortlandt got me out. He was my bail-bond; he put me up at his hotel; +gave me clothes, and paid my way until I got started. I was a stranger, +mind you, but he's been just like one of my own people, and if I ever +succeed in doing anything really worth while, it will be due to the +start he gave me." + +Though the words were commonplace enough, they carried a sincere +message, and Cortlandt saw by the faces about him that the others were +pleased. His own gaunt features turned more sallow than ever. The +memory of what he had heard on the porch of his own house a few +afternoons ago, of what he had seen at other times, of his wife's +telltale behavior on this very evening, swept over him, fanning anew +the sullen emotions he had cherished all these months. How far would +this fellow dare to go, he wondered? What motive inspired him thus to +pose before his friends, and openly goad his victim under the cloak of +modesty and gratitude? Was he enhancing his triumph by jeering at the +husband of whom he had made a fool? He dropped his eyes to hide the +fury in them. + +"I want to give you a little remembrance of my own." Anthony was +speaking directly to him. "It isn't much, but it means a good deal to +me, and I hope it will have some sort of personal association for you, +Mr. Cortlandt." He drew from his pocket a plush case and took from it a +very handsome thin Swiss watch with the letters "S. C." artfully +enamelled upon the back. Runnels, who knew the local shops, wondered +how it had been procured in Panama. The others openly expressed their +admiration. + +Cortlandt accepted the gift mechanically; then, as it touched his +flesh, a sudden color mounted to his cheeks, only to recede, leaving +them bloodless again. He stared at it uncertainly, then looked up and +ran his eyes slowly around the table. They came to rest at last upon +the broad frame of the giver, crowned with its handsome, sun-tanned +face and close-cropped shock of yellow hair. Anthony was all that he +was not--the very embodiment of youth, vigor, and confidence, while he +was prematurely aged, worn, and impotent. + +They noted how ill he appeared, as if he had suffered from a jungle +fever, how his well-cut evening clothes refused to conceal the frail +lines of his figure, and how the hollows in his cheeks added to his +age. But for the first time since they had known him they saw that his +eyes were alive and burning dully. + +"I really didn't expect this," he began, slowly, as he rose. "Anthony +exaggerates; he is too kind. But since he has chosen to publicly call +attention to our relations, I will confess that what he tells you is +all true. He was everything he says when he first came to Panama. He +did get into trouble, and I helped him out; he had no money, and I put +him up as my guest; he needed work, and I helped to place him. Through +my assistance--partly, at any rate--he has made a man of himself. He +has been welcome at my house, at my table; he has come and gone as he +pleased, like one of the family, you might say. But those are little +things; they count for nothing." He smiled in a way that seemed +ironical, his lips writhed away from his teeth until his visage +resembled a death-head. His tone had gripped his hearers, and Anthony +stirred uneasily, thinking this an odd way of accepting a gift. + +Unclasping his long, white fingers, Cortlandt held up the watch to +public view. + +"In payment for my poor friendship he has given me this magnificent +thing of gold and jewels, the finest I ever saw. I never counted upon +such gratitude. It is too much, and yet a man cannot refuse the gift of +his friend and not seem ungracious, can he? Somewhere in the Orient +they have a custom of exchanging gifts. No man may accept a thing of +value without making adequate return, and it has always struck me as a +wise practice." He turned full upon Kirk for the first time since he +had begun speaking, and his voice rose a tone as he said: "I can't let +the obligation rest entirely upon me. We have been friends, Anthony, +and I am going to give you something in return which I have prized +highly; it would be counted of great value by some." Once more he +paused and drew his lips back in that grimace of mockery--it could no +longer be termed a smile. "It is this--I am going to give you--my wife. +You have had her from the first, and now she is yours." For one +frightful moment there was no sound; even the men's breathing was +hushed, and they sat slack-jawed, stunned, half-minded to believe this +some hideous, incredible jest. But the maniacal light in Cortlandt's +eyes, and Anthony's chalk-white, frozen countenance soon showed them +the truth. Some one gasped, another laughed hysterically, the sound +breaking in his throat. Cortlandt turned away gloatingly. + +Kirk was the last to recover his powers, but when they did revive they +came with a prodigious rush. He plunged upward out of his chair with a +cry like a wounded animal, and the others rose with him. The table +rocked, something smashed, a chair was hurled backward. The room broke +into instant turmoil. Kirk felt hands upon him, and then went blind +with fury, struggling in a passion too strong for coherent speech. He +was engulfed in chaos. He felt things break beneath his touch, felt +bodies give way before him. + +How or when Cortlandt left the room he never knew. Eventually he found +himself pinned in his chair, with Runnels' white face close against his +own and other hands upon his arms. His first frenzy quickly gave way to +a sickening horror. Some one was commanding him to be still, to create +no scene; but those were not words, they were simply mutterings that +conveyed no meaning. + +"It's a lie! The man's crazy!" he cried, hoarsely; then, as his +companions drew away from him, he rose to his feet. "Why are you +looking at me like that? I tell you it's a damned lie! I never--" + +Runnels turned to the table, and with shaking hand put a glass to his +lips and gulped its contents. Wade and Kimble exchanged glances, then, +avoiding each other's eyes, took their hats from the hooks behind them. + +"Wait! Bring him back!" Kirk mumbled. "I'll get him and make him say +it's a lie." But still no one answered, no one looked at him. "God! You +don't believe it?" + +"I'm going home, fellows. I'm kind of sick," Kimble said. One of the +others murmured unintelligibly, and, wetting a napkin, bound up his +hand, which was bleeding. They continued to watch Kirk as if fearful of +some insane action, yet they refused to meet his eyes squarely. There +was no sympathy in their faces. + +The knowledge of what these actions meant came to him slowly. Was it +possible that his friends believed this incredible accusation? The +thought made him furious, too agitated as yet to realize that such a +charge made under such circumstances could not well prove less than +convincing. As he began to collect himself he saw his plight more +clearly. His first thought had been that Cortlandt was insane, but the +man's actions were not those of a maniac. No! He actually believed +and--and these fellows believed also. No doubt they would continue to +think him guilty in spite of all that he could do or say; for after +this shocking denunciation it would take more than mere words to prove +that he had not betrayed his friend and benefactor. It was incredible, +unbearable! He wanted to shout his innocence at them, to beat it into +their heads; but the more he expostulated the more distant they became. + +One by one they took their hats and went out, mumbling good-night to +one another, as if intending to go home singly in order to avoid all +discussion of this thing that had fallen among them Runnels alone +remained. + +"YOU don't believe I did--that?" Anthony asked, in a strained voice. + +"I--I think I do." There was a miserable silence, and then: "It isn't +the thing itself, you know, so much as the rotten--underhanded +advantage you took. If he'd been a stranger, now--Honestly, isn't it +true?" + +Kirk shook his head, listlessly. "I wouldn't lie to you." + +Runnels drew a deep breath.. "Oh, come, now, the man MUST have known +what he was saying. Do you realize what it means--if--well, if he were +mistaken? It would be bad enough if he were not, but this would be ten +times worse. Don't you see?" + +"I don't see much of anything yet. I'm stunned." + +"Ugh! To make it public that way, he must be made of iron." Runnels +shuddered; then, with cold eyes on Kirk, continued: "He must have +known, Anthony. Men don't do things like that on suspicion." + +"He misunderstood our friendship," said Kirk, heavily, then roused +himself for a last plea. "Look here!" he cried. "You know Cortlandt and +you know me. The man was insanely jealous! I know it sounds weak, but +it's the truth, and it's all I can say. I'll go mad if you doubt me." + +Runnels' face showed the pain he felt, but his eyes looked incredulous. + +"Another thing," Kirk went on, desperately: "do you suppose that if +what you believe were true I could have the inhuman nerve to come here +to-night? That would make me a fool or a monster!" + +"I don't know," said Runnels. + +"You do know. You know ME. If we weren't such friends I wouldn't argue +with you like this, but--I can't bear it. And to-night of all--" He +broke off sharply. "My God! I'd forgotten that I'm married! Suppose +Gertrudis hears of this! If it ever gets to her--I--believe I could +kill him." + +"Don't talk like that." + +"I never really thought I could take a person's life, but if she heard +she might believe; everybody else seems to believe. Understand, she +hardly knows me. She might--she might--" Anthony seized his temples in +despair. + +Runnels took a sudden illogical decision. He never knew exactly what +had influenced him, but his whole past knowledge of Anthony surged up +in him with a force that he could not resist. He found that he could +not really believe him capable of this abomination any more than he +could believe it of himself. Little of our life is ruled by reason, and +it is something else than logic that produces the last feeling of +conviction. Here, this something was present where logic was lacking. + +He laid his hand on Kirk's shoulder. "Take it easy, old man," he said. +"I believe you. I've always known that they didn't get along together, +although--well, I won't try to understand it. He may not do anything +further, and these fellows won't mention what happened here; they +can't." + +"You know we're only half married," moaned Kirk, hardly heeding him. +"Women are apt to be jealous, aren't they, Runnels? What do you suppose +she'd do?" + +"Don't worry about that. I'm thinking about Cortlandt. If he finds out +he's mistaken, what will HE do?" + +"He'll have to find out. I'm going to tell him. His wife will tell him. +Good God! Do you see what an awful light it puts me in? You don't doubt +me, do you, really, old man?" + +"No--but what a night this has been! It seems a year old. Come along, +now, you must get out of here. You must turn in." + +"Oh, I don't feel as if I'd ever sleep again until this thing is +cleared up." His anguish swept over him in a fresh tide. "Those boys +think I did that trick to the man who befriended me!" + +"Well, don't let's talk about it any more; we can't stay here all +night, anyhow. The waiters are wondering what this row is about. I +think we'd better take a walk." Runnels dragged his companion out, +trying to calm him as best he could. + +In passing through the deserted lobby of the hotel, they saw Clifford +idling about; but they were too much absorbed to wonder what had kept +him up so late. By the clock across the Plaza they saw it was two hours +after midnight as they stepped into the street; then, finding no +coaches in sight, they set out to walk toward Ancon, both badly in need +of the open air. + +A moment later Clifford followed them, taking pains to keep at a +distance. + +Now that the full import of Cortlandt's accusation had sunk into his +mind, Kirk lapsed into a mood of sullen bitterness. He said little, but +his set face worried his companion, who was loath to bid him goodnight +even when they were close to the Tivoli. After they had parted Runnels +was upon the point of going back and offering to spend the night with +him, but thought better of it. After all, he reflected, his +apprehensions were probably quite unfounded. Anthony was too sensible a +chap to do anything he might repent of, now that his gust of passion +had died down. So he went on homeward wondering vaguely how Cortlandt +would dare to meet his wife, or, if he really found himself mistaken, +how he could ever summon courage to look his hosts in the face. + +Instead of passing through the office, Kirk mounted to the porch of the +Tivoli and entered his room from the outside, as he and Chiquita had +done earlier that evening. He found Allan waiting, and bursting with a +desire to gossip, but cut him short. + +"Get my street-clothes, I'm going out." He tore the white tie from his +throat as if it were choking him. + +"It is too late, sar. You will be h'exposing yourself to a fever in the +mist," expostulated the boy; but Kirk would not hear argument. + +"Come along if you want to, I can't sleep. I want to walk--walk until +I'm tired." + +Mystified and frightened at this behavior, Allan obeyed. "Never have I +h'observed you so h'angry, boss," he observed. "Is it Ramon Alfarez?" +His eyes began to roll in excitement, for the spectacle of his master's +agitation never failed to work upon him powerfully. + +"No, not Ramon; another. I've been hurt, Allan. I can't explain, for +you wouldn't understand, but I've been hurt." + +The negro's lips drew apart in an expression of ape-like ferocity, and +he began to chatter threats of vengeance, to which Kirk paid little +heed. A few moments later they went out quietly, and together took the +rock road down toward the city, the one silent and desperate, the other +whining like a hound nearing a scent. + + + + +XXVII + +A QUESTION + + +Edith Cortlandt did not retire immediately upon her return from the +ball. Her anger at Anthony's behavior kept her wakeful, and the night +had turned off so dead and humid that sleep was in any case a doubtful +possibility. It was the lifeless period between seasons when the trades +had died out, or, at best, veered about bafflingly, too faint to offer +relief. The cooling rains had not set in as yet, and a great blanket of +heat wrapped the city in its smothering folds. The air was still and +tainted, like that of a sick-room. Through Mrs. Cortlandt's open +windows came hardly a sound; even from the sea below rose only a faint +hissing, as if the rocks at the water's edge were superheated. Earlier +in the evening the temperature had been bearable, but now it had +reached an intensity to strain tired nerves to the snapping-point. It +was the sort of night in which ailing children die and strong minds +feel the burden of living. No relief was to be had, and the slightest +physical effort was a misery. + +She was still sitting there at a late hour when she heard the outside +door close and Cortlandt's footsteps mounting the stairs. She was glad +he had his own room and never entered hers at such an hour, for even to +talk with him in her present state of mind and body would have been +more than she could bear. + +She was unreasonably annoyed, therefore, when he came boldly into her +chamber without even knocking, for all the world like a welcome lover. +To conceal her irritation, she kept her face turned from him and +continued fanning herself listlessly. She was reclining in a wicker +chair, lightly clad in a filmy silk negligee, which she mechanically +drew closer. + +"Rather late for good-nights," she said, coldly. + +"I've just come from Anthony's supper-party." + +His voice made her look round sharply. She saw that his linen, +ordinarily stiff and immaculate, was sodden and crumpled, his collar +limp, his forehead glistening with drops of moisture. She could not +remember ever having seen him in such a state. His appearance affected +her queerly. In him this dishevelment was shocking. + +"What ails you, Stephen?" she cried. "Have you been drinking?" + +"No. I didn't drink much. I brought you something." + +He took the loving-cup from its flannel bag and set it upon the table. +"They gave me this." + +"It is very pretty, though I don't care for such things." + +"And this too." He tossed the watch with its enamelled monogram into +her lap. + +"Ah! That's very handsome." + +"Yes, I thought you'd like it; it's from Anthony." He laughed, then +shuddered, as though a cold wind had bitten through his sodden garments. + +"Why--you seem excited over these souvenirs. You surely expected--" + +He broke in--a thing he rarely did while she was speaking: + +"Anthony made a speech when he gave it to me--a very nice speech, full +of friendship and love and gratitude." He repeated Kirk's words as he +remembered them, "What do you think of that?" + +"I think he expressed himself very frankly. But why do you tell me now, +when the morning will do just as well? I'm prostrated with this heat." + +"He actually acknowledged his debt in public." + +Mrs. Cortlandt's eyes widened. This was not the man she knew. At this +moment he was actually insistent, almost overbearing, and he was +regarding her with that same ironical sneer that had roused her anger +earlier in the evening. + +"Well, come to the point," she cried, irritably. "I don't understand +what you are getting at. If you didn't wish to accept anything from +him, why did you go?" + +He began to chuckle, apparently without reason. His shoulders shook, +feebly at first, then more violently; his flat chest heaved, and he +hiccoughed as if from physical weakness. It was alarming, and she rose, +staring at him affrightedly. The sight of her increased his mirthless +laughter. He continued to shudder and shake in uncontrollable hysteria, +but his eyes were bright and watchful. + +"Oh, I--I--took it all in--I let him p-put the noose around his own +neck and tie the knot. Then I hung him." His convulsive giggling was +terrible, forecasting, as it did, his immediate breakdown. + +"Stephen!" she exclaimed, in a shocked tone, convinced that his mind +was going. "You are ill, you need a doctor. I will call Joceel." She +laid her hand on his arm. + +But he sniggered: "N-no! No! I'm all right. I t-t-t-t--" A +stuttering-fit seized him; then, with an effort of will, he calmed +himself. "Don't think I'm crazy. I was never more sane, never cooler, +in here." He tapped his head with his finger. "But I'm tired, that's +all, tired of waiting." + +"Won't you go to your room and let me call a doctor?" + +"Not yet. Wait! He told them what I had done for him, how I'd made a +man of him when he was broke and friendless, how I'd taken him into my +home like one of my family, and then I went him one better. I +acknowledged it all and made them hear it from my lips too. Then--" He +paused, and she steeled herself to witness another spectacle of his +pitiable loss of self-control. But instead he grew icy and corpse-like, +with lips drawn back in a grin. "What do you think I said? Can't you +guess? I couldn't let him get away with that, could I? I played with +him the way you have played with me. Think!" + +Her face went suddenly ashen. He stood before her grimly triumphant, +enjoying his sense of mastery and deliberately prolonging her suspense. + +"Well, I told him before them all that I intended to give him something +in return, and I did. I--gave--him--YOU." + +She stared at him uncomprehendingly. + +He nodded. "I said he'd had you from the first and that now I'd give +you to him." + +She gave an unintelligible cry, standing now, as if petrified. He went +on: + +"I knew all the time that I was in the way, but my work is done at +last, so I'll step out. But--you both got more than you bargained for, +didn't you?" + +"God! You didn't tell him that? You didn't say THAT--before those men! +Oh-h!" She shrank back, drawing the gauzy silk robe closer about her +breast. Her hands were shaking, her hair, which had fallen free when +she rose, cascaded about her neck and shoulders. She let her eyes +wander about the room as if to assure herself that this was not some +hideous nightmare. Then she roused to sudden action. Seizing him by the +shoulders she shook him roughly with far more than her natural +strength, voicing furious words which neither of them understood. + +"Oh, I did it," he declared. "He's yours now. You can have him. He's +been your lover--" + +She flung him away from her so violently that he nearly fell. + +"It's a lie! You know it's a lie!" + +"It's true. I'm no fool." + +She beat her hands together distractedly, "What have you done? What +will those men think? Listen! You must stop them quickly. Tell them +it's not so." + +He seemed not to hear her. "I'm going away to-morrow," he said, "but +I'll never divorce you, no matter what you do; and I won't let you +divorce me, either. No, no! Take him now, if you want him, but you'll +never be able to marry him until I'm gone. And I won't die soon--I +promise you that, I'm going to live." + +"You can't go--" + +"There's a boat to-morrow." + +"Don't you see you must stay and explain to those men? My God! They'll +think you spoke the truth; they'll BELIEVE what you said." + +"Of course they will," he chattered, shrilly. "That's why I did it in +that way. No matter what you or he or I can do or say now, they'll +believe it forever. It came to me like a flash of light, and I saw what +it meant all in a minute. Do YOU understand what it means, eh? Listen! +No matter how you behave, they'll know. They won't say anything, but +they'll know, and you can't stand that, can you? Even if you could fool +me once more against the evidence of my own eyes and ears, and convince +me that your lies are true, it wouldn't do any good with them." + +"'Evidence!' You have no evidence." + +"No? What about that night at Taboga? You were mad over the fellow +then, but you didn't think I saw. That day I caught you together in the +jungle--have you forgotten that? Didn't you think it strange that I +should be the one to discover you? Oh, I pretended to be blind, but I +followed you everywhere I could, and I kept my eyes open." + +"You saw nothing, for there was nothing." + +"He's been with you day and night. You have been together constantly, +and I knew what was going on. But I waited, because I wasn't strong +enough to revolt--until to-night. Oh, but to-night I was strong! +Something gave me courage." + +In all their married life she had never known him to show such stubborn +force. He was like granite, and the unbelievable change in him, +upsetting all her preconceived notions of the man, appalled her. There +had been times in the past when they had clashed, but he had never +really matched his will with hers, and she had judged him weak and +spiritless. Now, therefore, failing to dominate him as usual, she was +filled with a strange feeling of helplessness and terror. + +"You had no right to accept such evidence," she stormed. + +"Bah! Why try to fool me? I have your own words for it. The other +afternoon I came home sick--with my head. I was on the gallery outside +when you were pleading with him, and I heard it all. You talked that +night about Taboga, your guilty kisses and other things; you +acknowledged everything. But he was growing tired of you. That, you +know, makes it all the more effective." He smiled in an agonized fury. + +"You--cur!" she cried, with the fury of one beating barehanded at a +barred door. "You had no right to do such a thing even if I were +guilty." + +"Right? Aren't you my wife?" + +The look she gave him was heavy with loathing. "That means nothing with +us. I never loved you, and you know it. You know, too, why I married +you. I made no secret of it at the time. You had what I wanted, and I +had what you wanted; but you were content with the bargain because I +gave you money, position, and power. I never promised anything more +than that. I made you into something like a man. You never could have +succeeded without me. All you have is due to me--even your reputation +in the service. Your success, your influence, it is all mine, and the +only thing you gave me was a name; any other would have done as well." + +He shrank a little under this tirade, despite his exaltation. + +"Marriage!" she continued, in bitter scorn. "A priest mumbled something +over us, but it meant nothing then or now. I have tolerated you because +you were useful. I have carried you with me as I carry a maid or a +butler. I bought a manikin and dressed it up and put breath into it for +my own convenience, and I owe you nothing, do you understand--nothing! +The debt is all on your side, as you and I and all the world know." + +"Who made me a manikin?" he demanded, with womanish fury, a fury that +had been striving for utterance these many years. "I had ambitions and +hopes and ability once--not much, perhaps, but enough--before you +married me. I was nothing great, but I was getting along. I had +confidence, too, but you took it away from me. You--you absorbed me. +You had your father's brain, and it was too big for me; it overshadowed +mine. In a way you were a vampire; for what I had you drained me of. At +first it was terrible to feel that I was inferior, but I loved you, and +although I had some pride--" He choked an instant and threw back her +incredulous stare defiantly. "I let myself be eliminated. You thought +you were doing me a favor when you put me forward as a figurehead, but +to me it was a tragedy. I COULDN'T HELP LETTING YOU DO IT. Do you +realize what that means to a fellow? I quit fighting for my own +individuality, I became colored by you, I took on your ways, your +habits, your mental traits, and--all the time I knew what was +happening. God! How I struggled to remain Stephen Cortlandt, but it +would have taken a BIG man to mould you to his ways, and I was only +average. I began to do your work in your particular style; I forgot my +ambitions and my dreams and took up yours. That's what I fell to, and +all the time I KNEW it, and--and all the time I knew you neither cared +nor understood. My only consolation was the thought that even though +you never had loved me and never could, you at least respected our +relation. I clung to that miserably, for it was all I had left, all +that made me seem like a man. And yet you took away even that. I tried +to rebel, but I had been drugged too long. You saw Anthony, and he had +the things I lack; you found you were not a machine, but a living +woman. He discovered the secret I had wasted away in searching for, and +you rewarded him. Oh, I saw the change in you quickly enough, and if +I'd been a man instead of what I was, I'd have--but I wasn't. I went +spying around like a woman, hating myself for permitting it to go on, +but lacking strength to stop it. But to-night, when he got up before +those other men and dangled my shame before my eyes, I had enough +manhood left in me to strike back. Thank God for that at least! Maybe +it's not too late yet; maybe if I get away from you and try--" His +voice died out weakly; in his face there was a miserable half-gleam of +hope. + +"I never knew you felt like that. I never knew you COULD feel that +way," she said, in a colorless voice. "But you made a terrible mistake." + +"Do you mean to say you don't love him?" + +"No, I have loved him for a long time--I can't remember when it began." +She spoke very listlessly, looking past him as if at a long-familiar +picture which she was tired of contemplating. "I never knew what love +was before; I never even dreamed. I'd give my life right now--to undo +what you have done, just for his sake, for he is innocent. Oh, don't +sneer; it's true. He loves the Garavel girl, and wants to marry her." + +"I know all that. I overheard you in the parlor below." + +"Listen, please! I don't remember what I said then, and it doesn't +matter; you took too much for granted. We must talk plainly now, +before"--she pressed her palms to her temples as if they were +bursting--"before it becomes impossible. I never lied to you, Stephen. +Is that true?" + +"I used to think so." + +"I'm going to tell you the whole truth now without sparing myself. It +began, I think, at Taboga, that night when he kissed me. It was the +only time he ever did such a thing. It was dark, we were alone, I was +frightened, and it was purely impulse on his part. But it woke me up, +and all at once I knew how much he meant to me. I would have yielded +utterly to him then if he had let me, but he was panic-stricken. He +spoke of you, he apologized; I never saw a man in more misery. When I +had time to realize the truth I tried to fight it off. But it was no +use, and at last I gave up. After that I put myself in his way +deliberately. I offered him opportunities continually, but he never +seemed to see them. That day in the jungle I was desperate at his +indifference, and I drove the horses away when he wasn't looking. I +struck them with my crop--and I actually threw myself at him as boldly +as I could, regardless of consequences. But he was like ice; he was +speaking of you when you came. It has always been the same. When I +discovered that he cared for that girl--well, if you overheard you must +know. I frightened Garavel into dismissing him, and I set out to break +him, just to show him that he needed me. To-night I offered to divorce +you and make him all and more than I've made you, but he scorned me. +That's the truth, Stephen. If we believed in oaths, I would swear it." + +No one who knew the woman could have disbelieved her, and to the +husband who knew her every mental and moral trait this bald, hopeless +confession came as a crushing anti-climax to his great effort. It left +him not the slightest doubt that she was honest. He said, dully, in a +feeble attempt to right himself: + +"You are shielding him. You want to make me out wrong." But she knew he +knew. + +"Those are the facts. Heaven knows they are bad enough, but they are by +no means so bad as you thought. And I'm your wife, Stephen. That thing +you did was brutal; those men will talk. I was guilty, no doubt, in my +thoughts, but I'm young, and you have no right to blight my life and my +reputation--yes, and yours--by a thing like that. We will have to meet +those men. What are you going to do?" + +"I don't know," he said. "In all my life I never felt but one moment of +power, and that, it seems, was false. For years I have longed to show +myself a man, and now--what have I done? What have I done? I am no +monster." He moaned and sank limply into a chair, folding together in +an attitude of dejection that was pitiful. He raised his head and broke +out at her in a last spasm of desperation, as a dying ember flares even +while it crumbles. "My God! why couldn't you be consistent? Why did you +go half-way? Why couldn't you be all good or all bad and save me this?" + +"All women are half good and half bad." + +"I can't blame you for not loving me, I suppose," he mumbled. "No woman +of your kind could love a man like me." + +"Those men!" she said, in a way that made him writhe. + +"Wait until I--think. I must think." + +"You can't think now, and neither can I." + +"We must." He wrung his hands. "They'll never believe me--" There was a +long silence. + +"Perhaps in the morning we can see a way out." + +"That's it." He nodded. "You go to bed and I'll think. I'm trying to +think now, but this heat is suffocating me and my head is tired." He +brushed a hand feebly across his brow. "If it would only rain I--could +think better." + +"Yes, and we must think of Anthony, too. No matter how you blame me, +you must realize that he was innocent, and perhaps, after all, he is +the one that you wronged deepest. He will have to meet those men, and +they were his friends." + +Despite the breathless oppression of the night, she shivered. "_I_ +never can meet them now, and I don't see how you will dare to, knowing +that you were wrong." + +"Don't!" he pleaded. "The other was bad enough, but this--Tell me what +to do!" + +"I can't. I don't know myself. All I can see is that those men will +never cease to believe, no matter what you tell them." She groped her +way to the window, but there was no relief even in the open air. +By-and-by she heard him sigh, then rise and say "Good-night." + +As she prepared for bed an hour later she heard him still stirring +about in his quarters, but afterward, as she lay staring into the black +night, she was so busied with the frightful fancies that swarmed about +her that she did not detect his cautious footsteps when he stole out of +his chamber, closing the door softly behind him. + + + + +XXVIII + +THE ANSWER + + +Kirk was roused from a heavy, senseless slumber the next morning by a +vigorous rapping at his door. He lay still for a time, vaguely +resentful of the noise, then glanced at his watch, and found, with a +shock, that it was quite late. Realizing only that he was due at the +office, he leaped out of bed. He opened the door and Runnels rushed in. + +"Have you heard?" + +"I heard your infernal pounding; that's what woke me up." + +Runnels calmed his excitement, which Kirk now observed was intense. + +"Where did you go after I left you last night?" + +"I came here, of course." As the memory of the previous night swept +over him he scowled. + +"Did you stay here?" + +"No. I went out again, and was out nearly all night trying to walk it +off." + +Runnels' face blanched, and he drew back. + +"Then of course you know?" + +"What?" + +"About Cortlandt. He's dead!" + +It was Kirk's turn to start and grow pale. The last cobweb was swept +from his brain, and he gasped: + +"DEAD! When? Where? How did it happen?" + +"Nobody knows just how. He was found on the sea-wall near Alfarez' +house, shot." + +"Shot! Good Lord!" + +"It happened some time early this morning, and the whole city is +talking about it. I came to you the first thing." + +"We'd better hurry down there. Mrs. Cortlandt must be all broken up." +Kirk began to dress hastily, but paused as his friend stammered: + +"Wait! I--I--let's understand each other first. I met Wade just now. +The news has rattled him, and he's been talking." + +"What do you mean?" + +"Did you see Cortlandt again after I left you?" Runnels swallowed hard. + +Kirk whirled about and faced him. "Great heavens! No! See here, that +idea is ridiculous." + +Runnels sank weakly into a chair and mopped his face. "I'm glad to hear +you say that. It frightened me just the same, for I remembered you +acted so queerly when I left you, and Wade seemed to think, +perhaps--When you said you'd gone out again, it knocked me flat, +understand?" + +"I can prove where I was, for Allan was with me. I couldn't sleep, so I +tried to walk off my excitement. No, no. I couldn't do a thing like +that. I thought last night that I could, but--I couldn't, really." + +"I'm afraid Wade will tell all about the party if we don't stop him." + +"Then we'd better hunt him up." Kirk resumed his dressing, while +Runnels consulted his watch. + +"No. 5 is due in twenty minutes. We'll probably find him at the office." + +Together they hastened to the railroad building, Runnels telling all he +knew of the tragedy as they went along. Cortlandt's body, it seemed, +had been found about daylight by a Spiggoty policeman, who had +identified it. Becoming panic-stricken at the importance of his +discovery, he had sounded the alarm, then reported directly to the +Governor, whose house was close by. It was General Alfarez himself who +had informed Mrs. Cortlandt over the telephone of her husband's death. +The whole city was alive with the news, the police were buzzing like +bees. Rumors of suicide, murder, robbery were about, but no one seemed +to know anything definite. Colonel Jolson in his motor-car had just +come from Culebra, and Colonel Bland was on No. 5 from Gatun, hence +Runnels' desire to be at the station. + +"It was suicide," Kirk averred, with conviction. "The man was insane +last night, and that accounts for what he said about me. He's been sick +for a long time." + +"If those boys will only keep their mouths shut!" Runnels said, +anxiously. "There's no telling what these Spiggoties might do if they +heard about that row." + +"Cortlandt was an American." + +"But it happened in Panama, and it would be their affair." + +Although it was Sunday, the four young fellows who had taken part in +the entertainment on the night before had gathered in the office, and +at the appearance of Runnels greeted him eagerly. Toward Kirk, however, +they maintained a disheartening constraint. + +The Acting Superintendent began to caution them tersely. + +"Boys, there's no use to tell you that we must keep still about what +happened last night. Kirk thinks Cortlandt's mind was unbalanced; but +whether it was or not, he left a widow, and what went on at that supper +must never leak out." + +"Why do you think he was crazy?" Wade inquired. + +"His actions last night would show it," Kirk answered. "The man must +have been out of his mind to believe or to say such a thing." + +"You mean, then, that he shot himself?" + +Kirk nodded. + +"I don't agree with you. I've seen crazy people, but he was as sane as +any of us. And I don't believe in secrecy, either. I think we ought to +be entirely frank about the matter. The truth never hurt anybody." + +"It's a bad business," said Runnels, "and it's something I for one +don't want to be mixed up in. I've heard rumors already about some sort +of a quarrel at our party, so I'm afraid you fellows have been talking." + +Wade acknowledged it recklessly. "Yes, I'll answer for my part, and I'm +not going to make any promise of secrecy, either. If that affair had +anything to do with Steve Cortlandt's death, it ought to be known, so +the man who did it can be made to answer." + +Into the office behind them came Ramon Alfarez and two Panamanian +policemen, one evidently a sergeant. + +"Eh, there you are!" Alfarez cried, as he caught sight of Kirk. Then he +said something in Spanish to the sergeant, who advanced and laid hands +upon the American. "You are arrest'." + +"What for?" + +"Gentlemen, you will be so kind as to geeve the names, yes? The jodge +will desire to make inquiries regarding those sopper to Senor Cortlan' +las' night." + +"What am I arrested for?" Kirk demanded. + +"Come! You are arrest'. That is enough." + +At that moment the building began to shake and reverberate, as No. 5 +rolled in from Colon, bearing John Weeks, American Consul, and Mr. +Williams, of St. Louis, in one of the forward coaches. As the two +hurried out through the turnstiles, they found the street blocked by a +considerable crowd, evidently interested in something quite apart from +the arrival of the morning train. But before they could learn the +cause, out from the near-by building came Ramon Alfarez, accompanied by +several policemen and a group of railroad employes, among whom was Kirk +Anthony. + +"There he is!" wheezed the consul, clutching at his companion's arm. +"Get him now, before his friends." But Williams had been even quicker +of eye than his fat guide, and was plunging through the crowd toward +his quarry. He thrust the policemen and the curious onlookers aside +and, laying hold of Anthony, cried in triumph: + +"Well, Mr. Jefferson Locke, I want you." + +"Hello, Williams! You got around finally, didn't you?" Kirk smiled at +him. + +A little man in blue uniform was attempting to take the prisoner in +charge, but the detective disregarded him. + +"It won't do you any good to resist," he went on. "I've come to get +you." + +Runnels elbowed his way forward with a question. + +"Oh, I've got a warrant for him," Williams declared. "What for? Well, +for one thing he embezzled eighty thousand dollars, and I'm going to +take him back." + +"Eh? W'at is this?" Alfarez bustled into the conversation. "Embezzle? +He is then a t'ief?" + +"Exactly. If you're the inspector I'll ask you to make this arrest for +me. I believe we're on foreign ground." + +"That's right, Alfarez," came the voice of John Weeks, anxious to have +a word in the affair. "I'll vouch for Mr. Williams. This chap is a +smooth one, but his name isn't Anthony at all, nor Locke, either; it's +Wellar; and he's wanted for other things besides embezzlement." Turning +his triumphant little red eyes upon the prisoner, he puffed, "Got you, +didn't we?" + +"I regret you 'ave arrive' so late," smirked Alfarez. "The gentleman is +already arrest' for the murder of Senor Cortlan'. He will first answer +to that, I assure you." + +Kirk nodded. "Too bad, Williams! I'm sorry you didn't come last night." + +They went on down the street, leaving the detective staring and Weeks +open-mouthed. + +"Cortlandt murdered!" the consul gasped. "Lord! And to think I +nourished that viper at my breast." + +Williams wheeled and cursed the fat man furiously. It was during the +lunch-hour that Ramon Alfarez called at the Garavel home, finding the +banker and his daughter still loitering over their midday meal and +discussing the topic that had electrified the whole city. + +"Ah, Ramon!" the old gentleman began, eagerly. "Be seated and tell us +quickly the latest news. A terrible thing, was it not, this death of +our good friend? I have been to see his unfortunate widow, but even yet +I cannot believe it to be true." + +"Yes. A terrible thing! It was only last night that we saw him well and +happy." + +Although Alfarez was trembling with eagerness to tell his news, he also +meant to extract the greatest possible satisfaction from it, and now +bent an inquiring glance upon Gertrudis. His look turned to one of +malicious triumph as he saw that he was, indeed, the first to bring the +tidings of Anthony's arrest; for the girl's acceptance of his suit had +by no means wiped out the memory of her momentary preference for his +rival, and he had hastened hither straight from the police barracks, +delighting in the chance to make her suffer. + +"So fine a man," the father was saying. "He was, indeed, my good +friend. It is shocking." + +"Yes, and to think he should have been killed in this cowardly manner!" + +"Killed! Is it believed that he was murdered? Caramba! I supposed he +had shot himself. That was the gossip an hour ago." Garavel was deeply +affected, and motioned for the dishes in front of him to be removed. + +Ramon nodded. "There are suspicious circumstances, it seems. Last +night, after the ball, he had a serious quarrel--one of those American +fights, almost. That much is known." + +Gertrudis, who had remained silent until now, her dark eyes clouded +with distress, said, sympathetically: + +"And the poor lady! She must suffer terribly." + +"Ah, perhaps! One cannot always tell!" Ramon shrugged and smiled. + +"What do you mean?" cried Garavel. "This quarrel you speak of? +Continue, Ramon, I am consumed with eagerness." + +"Upon leaving the Tivoli last night, Senor Cortlan' dined with six of +his friends at the Central. There was drinking. The waiters have been +questioned; also, one of the men who was present has recounted to me +what occurred. It seems that for a long time Senor Cortlan' has been +jealous of his wife." + +"Impossible! Jealous? My dear Ramon, an admirable lady." + +"I--I shall leave you, perhaps?" questioned Gertrudis, modestly, as she +rose, but Ramon exclaimed: + +"No, no! By all means remain. I have remarkable things to disclose, +amazing news that will interest you. There was a serious altercation, +and Senor Cortlan' openly accused his enemy before all the others. It +was most dramatic, it was terrible! There was a scene of violence, the +other man made threats." + +Garavel breathed an incredulous exclamation. + +"Ah, but wait! It was Senor Cortlan's best friend, too, the man for +whom he had accomplished many favors whom he accused." He noted with +mingled anger and satisfaction the pallor that was creeping into the +girl's cheeks. "You would never guess. It was--I hesitate, and yet you +are bound to learn, my dear friends, it was this Ant'ony." + +His moment had indeed been worth waiting for. It even went far to atone +for the sense of injury under which he smarted; for the banker was +stricken speechless, and his daughter went deathly white. Her eyes +began to fill with horror. + +Garavel was the first to recover himself. "Infamous! It is +unbelievable! The wretch, then, had betrayed his friend." + +"He is indeed a villain. That much I have always known." + +"It is a lie!" said the girl, quietly. She had risen and was standing +straight, a tragic little figure. + +"Gertrudis!" her father admonished. "You hear what Ramon has said." + +"Yes!" said Ramon. "He deceived Senor Cortlan' very nicely; it had been +going on for months." + +"It is a lie!" she repeated. "He loved no one but me." + +"Gertrudis!" The banker was shocked beyond measure at what he +considered his daughter's jealousy. "Those are not nice words. He told +you so, yes; but if he would betray his best friend, he would deceive +you also. It was our great good-fortune to be done with him in time. +You will see now that I did well in sending him off--eh, Chiquita?" + +"No! I do not believe you." + +Ramon had not counted upon such a spirit, and, his anger getting the +better of him, he sneered: "I should not have spoken. I did not know +you still care." + +"She does not care," Garavel declared, loudly. + +"Ah, but I do. I love him very dearly." + +The two men were upon their feet in an instant, staring at her, the +elder in amazement, the younger with rage and resentment blazing from +his countenance. + +"Silence!" thundered the banker. "Yonder stands your affianced husband." + +"It is a mistake--" she persisted, gently. + +"No, no, no! There is no mistake," chattered Ramon. "Those other men +have told all, and your Ant'ony is now in the Carcel under guard. It +was I who saw to his arrest." The slender figure swayed, a tiny olive +hand fluttered to her breast. + +"Ramon, you must not heed her, she is upset. This is but a girl's +foolish fancy, and it will pass. The man was handsome, and he cast a +spell over her." + +"Nor is that all," Ramon ran on, excitedly. "He is not at all the man +he pretended to be, even his name is false. This morning there arrived +an American officer of police to arrest him on other charges. He is a +thief, it seems, having stolen eighty thousand dollars 'gold' from his +employers. Oh, there is no mistake. Within the hour I have been talking +with this detective, and he has the papers of proof. It will be in the +newspapers, every one will know shortly. Last night, when Senor +Cortlan' made his accusation, there was a frightful quarrel, and +Ant'ony swore to kill him. At dawn the poor husband is found shot on +the sea wall. Is not that enough?" + +"It is indeed!" gasped the father. "You see, then, my child, from what +you were saved. This should be a day of thanksgiving to you as it is to +me. For this deliverance I shall erect a cross of stone on the hill by +our house, so that all our lives we may offer a prayer when our eyes +rest upon it. Come, now, it is Ramon who has unmasked this person. Have +you no thanks to give him?" + +"But it is not true," maintained the girl, simply, and her eyes were as +steady as altar flames. + +"Eh? Well! He is in the barracks at this moment," snarled Ramon, "and +there he shall remain, I promise you, until he goes to Chiriqui or--" + +Gertrudis turned to her father. + +"Take me to him, please. I must go at once to the Carcel." + +But he only answered her with a stare of amazement. "Go!" he murmured, +after an instant. "Have I lost my senses?" He began to summon his +indignation for a terrific outburst. + +"Yes, I must go, for he is my husband. We were wed last night." + +There was a moment of absolute silence, during which the clatter of a +passing coach sounded loudly in the room. Then-- + +"Mother of God!" the banker ejaculated, hoarsely, and sank into the +seat from which he had arisen. Ramon was staring from one to the other, +his head turning jerkily. + +The girl raised her face proudly. "Yes! I am his wife, although I had +not expected to tell you so soon; therefore, you see I must go to him +quickly, or he will think I believe these lies." + +"You are mad! Do you know what you are saying?" + +"Oh yes. The judge from Colon married us during the dance. I would have +liked a church wedding; but that will come later. The Senor Ronnels and +his wife were there also, and they will tell you. It made me very +happy. You see, I prayed the Virgin that I might be happy, and she +heard. Oh, I offered so many prayers, and all last night I lay awake +giving thanks for my great happiness, which even yet I cannot believe." +Her face was transfigured by a look that left the two men no choice but +to believe. + +"A civil marriage!" stammered Ramen. + +"A civil marriage, indeed!" said Garavel, in a choking voice. "So that +is where you were when I believed you to be dancing!" He burst forth +violently, pounding the table with his clenched fist until the dishes +danced, his brilliant black eyes flashing beneath their thatch of +white. "But I will not have it, understand! You are betrothed. You have +given your word to Ramon." + +"Ah, but I never loved him. You compelled me to consent, because you +said you could not be President unless I married him. And that was not +so. Ramon deceived you. Now it is all right. You will be President, and +I can be happy." + +Ramon's suspicion kindled on the instant. He turned upon the banker. +"So! I begin to see! That was a trick, then, to betray my father." + +"But wait!" Gertrudis exclaimed, sharply. "Did you not trick us also? +Did you not use the General, your father, to make me give up the man I +love? Which of us, then, is the better?" + +Andres Garavel spoke threateningly, menacingly, to his daughter. +"Enough! Our word was given, and you have broken it! You have brought +disgrace to our name. Can a Garavel be President of the Republic with +his daughter wed to a murderer?" + +"He is not that!" + +"It was no marriage, and it will not stand. I will have it annulled. +Such things are easily done, Ramon. She is no wife. The man was a +criminal, a fugitive, even when he forced her to marry--" + +"No, no! You cannot do that. It was I who asked him to marry me." The +girl lied tremulously, panic-stricken at the threat. "Before God, I am +his wife!" she maintained. "And if this marriage has a flaw, then I +will stand beside the prison gates and remarry him as he comes forth." + +"He will not come forth," Ramon declared, harshly. + +"Oh yes! And now will you take me to him?" + +"NO!" her father bellowed. "You are my daughter, you are under my roof, +and here you shall stay until you give up this madness and this man." + +"That I can never do," she retorted, proudly. "You see, I am not all +Spanish, I have in me also the blood of his people, and that makes me +steadfast. I could not doubt him if I wished." + +"I forbid you to go near him. Come! Do you promise?" She inclined her +dark head. "I must learn more of this affair at once. You will find +your senses, miss, or if you do not you will spend your life in +meditation and prayer--that much I promise you." + +"I do not wish to enter a convent," she said, with white lips. "I wish +to be happy. When Keerk is free I shall go to him. Now, if you please, +I--think I shall go away." She turned and went out of the big +high-ceilinged room, and not until she had reached the hall did her +feet waver or her head droop. + +When the two men were alone, Garavel said, brokenly: "She is the first +to bring disgrace upon our name. Is there absolute proof that the man +is guilty, Ramon?" + +"Proof?" Alfarez turned dazed eyes from the door through which +Gertrudis had gone. "Proof? I believe so. I have not thought much of +the matter as yet, but--I think there will be proof in plenty. Oh yes!" + +"Come then. I must go to see him. Perhaps--oh, God! Perhaps what? My +head is afire, my heart is broken for you, my poor boy." + + + + +XXIX + +A LAST APPEAL + + +That was not a pleasant interview for Anthony. His surroundings were +not such as to lend him assurance, and Garavel's grief at his +daughter's disgrace was really distressing. Moreover, the unequivocal +threat to annul the marriage filled him with alarm. His only +consolation came from the fact that Gertrudis had made known the truth +without the slightest hesitation. That showed that she was loyal, at +any rate. Kirk tried to assure his caller that he would have no trouble +in proving his innocence, but Garavel seemed very little concerned with +that phase of the affair, and continued to bewail the dishonor that had +fallen upon his name. + +Kirk's pride arose at this, and he exclaimed with some heat: + +"My dear Mr. Garavel, if you are so blamed sure that I did all these +things, why did you come to see me?" + +"It was to learn if she spoke the truth." + +"Oh, we're married, right enough. And you'll have some difficulty in +breaking it up before I get out." + +"You expect, then, to prove your innocence easily?" + +"I do." + +"But I hear there are other serious charges." + +"It is quite the same with them." + +"But--suppose you should not clear yourself of this--murder--would you +wish to drag down my daughter's name?" + +"Of course not." + +"I understand you have not spoken of this marriage. Perhaps you might +consent to remain silent. If by any chance you should be convicted of +guilt, what satisfaction could you derive from injuring me and mine?" + +"None at all, sir." + +"I am rich," Garavel went on, meaningly. "If you are acquitted, I +might, perhaps, arrange amply for your future--upon conditions." + +"In other words, if I am to be hanged or shot or whatever it is they do +to people down here, you'll expect me to keep my mouth shut on general +principles, and if I'm acquitted you'll pay me well to disappear. Is +that it? Well, there is some family pride to that." He laughed lightly. + +"My political future may depend upon it." + +"If I can help you in that way I'll gladly keep silent as long as you +wish, but I don't think I care to make any further terms." + +"Make sure of this," snapped the father, "your marriage will be +annulled, no matter what you prove or fail to prove. Already Chiquita +is repentant, and I shall not rest until she is free. You have done me +a great injury, and I shall not forget it." + +On the following morning the leading American attorney of the city +called at the jail, announcing that he had been retained as counsel, +but refusing to tell who had employed him. Supposing, of course, that +he had been sent by friends who wished no publicity in the matter, Kirk +did not press him for information. Together they outlined their defence +as best they could. With characteristic optimism, Kirk insisted upon +treating the charge against him as of little consequence, and it was +not until he had undergone his preliminary hearing that he fully +realized the gravity of his situation. + +To his unspeakable indignation, the officer who had discovered +Cortlandt's body swore that he had seen the deceased pass him shortly +before the time of his death, evidently taking a walk along the water's +edge for relief from the heat, and that immediately afterward--perhaps +a minute or so--the prisoner had also passed, going in the same +direction! There was a street light close by, he said, and there could +be no possible mistake as to Anthony's identity. A few moments later +there had been a pistol-shot, muffled, but unmistakable, and the +policeman had hastened in the direction from which it came. The +prisoner had appeared suddenly out of the darkness and hurried past. In +the politest manner possible, the witness declared, he had questioned +him regarding the shot, but Mr. Anthony had neither stopped nor +answered; on the contrary, he had broken into a run. The officer had +considered this strange behavior, but, being at all times most +respectful toward Americans, he had made no effort to detain him. +Passing on, he had found the body of the dead man. A revolver was +beside it. It was shocking! It had quite upset the witness. He had +blown his whistle, and seeing a light in the Governor's mansion close +by had called there for assistance. Soon afterward another officer had +arrived upon the scene. + +When this amazing testimony was translated to Kirk he was astounded; +but his indignation was as nothing to that which swept over him when a +servant in the Alfarez household swore to having actually witnessed the +murder. + +This fellow declared that he had been troubled greatly with a +toothache. Toward morning of the night in question, too restless for +sleep, he had gone out upon the sea wall. Even now, his face was +swollen, and he made a determined effort to show the court the +particular tooth which had made him an unwilling beholder of the +tragedy. Overcome by exhaustion, he had fallen asleep after a time, and +he was awakened by the sounds of a quarrel. On opening his eyes, he saw +two Americans, one of whom was Senor Cortlandt, and the other Kirk +Anthony. Being utterly ignorant of their language, he had no means of +knowing what was said, nor did he consider the altercation serious +until the large man shot the Senor Cortlandt. Then, being +terror-stricken at what he had beheld, he had run away, entirely +forgetting his toothache, which, by the grace of God, was quite gone. +That was all he knew of the matter. He recognized Anthony as the man +who had done the shooting. He was troubled greatly with toothaches. + +It all seemed like some grotesque, practical joke, and Kirk at first +could not believe that the evidence of these witnesses could have +weight. But he soon became convinced that this was no laughing matter. +Since they had perjured themselves so readily, it was evident that some +determined influence was back of them, and how far that influence might +carry it was hard to tell. The reason for it was all very simple, of +course, and yet he was at a loss how to combat it. Wade was called next +and told the story of that damning incident at the supper-party, being +corroborated by the others. Then there were several witnesses who swore +to inconsequent things, such as waiters at the Hotel Central, and the +doctor who had examined Cortlandt. + +For once in his careless life the young man realized that he was face +to face with something bigger and stronger than his own determination, +and it daunted him. He began to see that he had underestimated these +foreigners, for it seemed an easy matter to convict an innocent man in +these Central American courts. He recalled certain ridiculous stories +of Spanish justice which he had laughed at; he remembered Mrs. +Cortlandt's vivid tale of an execution she had once beheld in the +court-yard of Chiriqui prison; and suddenly he decided to cable for +Darwin K. Anthony--the one man who was strong enough to save him. + +When it came time for him to speak, he told a straight story about his +own actions on that night, and he was corroborated by Allan; but he +knew that their words had little weight against that other testimony. +Of course, he was remanded for trial, and that night the newspapers of +the city were crowded with columns of sensational reading-matter +bearing upon the crime. + +Anson, the lawyer, gave him a ray of encouragement as he left. + +"Don't go too much on this hearing," he said. "I think we'll pull you +out all right." + +"You THINK! I dare say Ramon Alfarez can get a dozen men to perjure +themselves as easily as he got those two." + +"Exactly. But I have a little coup that I intend to spring at the right +moment." + +"For Heaven's sake, tell me what it is." + +"I'm sorry, but I can't just yet. In the first place, one must handle +these people exactly right or they explode." + +"But give me an idea at least. I'm really interested in the outcome of +this case, you know." + +Anson smiled. "Of course you are, and I'll tell you as soon as I can, +but not now." + +"These Spiggoties would enjoy standing me up against a wall with my +head in a rag--they'd make it a holiday and ring all the bells in town." + +"I can't assure you that it isn't serious," Anson acknowledged, +gravely, "for it is--any time an American goes to court in this country +it is serious--but that doesn't mean that we'll lose." + +"You may be a good lawyer," said Kirk, ruefully, "but you're a blamed +poor comforter. I--I wish my dad was here; he'd fix it. He wouldn't let +'em convict me. He's great, my dad is. He can swear--like the devil." +His voice caught, and his eyes were unusually bright as he turned away +to hide his emotions. "I like him better than any man I've ever met, +Anson. And you watch him come when he hears I'm in trouble." + +He wrote a lengthy cablegram, which the lawyer, with a peculiar smile, +agreed to despatch at once. He spent a sleepless night. In the morning +a message came signed by Copley--Kirk's heart leaped at the familiar +name--saying that Darwin K. Anthony had left Albany for the West on +Sunday night, and could not be located for a few days. + +"He was never gone when I needed money," the son mused. "He'll be +worried when he hears about this, and he has enough to worry him as it +is. I'm mighty sorry, but--I simply must have him." + +Anson brought in the day's papers, which alluded, as usual, to +Cortlandt's death as a murder, and printed their customary sensational +stories, even to a rehash of all that had occurred at the stag supper. +This in particular made Kirk writhe, knowing as he did that it would +reach the eyes of his newly made wife. He also wondered vaguely how +Edith Cortlandt was bearing up under all this notoriety. The lawyer +brought the further news that Allan was in captivity as an accessory to +the crime, and that henceforth Kirk need expect but few visitors. +Somebody--probably Ramon Alfarez--had induced the officials to treat +their prisoner with special severity. + +During the days which followed, Kirk suffered more than he chose to +confess even to his attorney. In the first place, it was hard to be +denied all knowledge of what was going on--Anson would tell him little, +except that he was working every day--and, then, too, the long hours of +solitude gnawed at his self-control. Runnels managed to see him once or +twice, reporting that, so far as he could learn, Chiquita had +disappeared. He took a message from Kirk to her, but brought back word +that he could not deliver it. Kirk wondered if she could really believe +those frightful half-complete newspaper accounts, or if she had been +unable to withstand the combined weight of her whole family, and had +given up. It was almost too much to hope that a girl reared as she had +been could keep her mind unpoisoned, with all those lying tongues about +her. And, besides, she had the Spanish ideas of morality, which would +make the actions of which he was accused seem doubly shocking. The more +he speculated upon the cause of her silence, the wilder grew his +fancies, until it became a positive torture to think of her at all. +Instead, his thoughts turned to Edith Cortlandt in a curiously +uninterested way. Her attitude was a problem. Perhaps she would leave +him to his fate. Reviewing the circumstances coldly, he could hardly +blame her. + +It was on Sunday, a week after his arrest, that she came to him. He was +surprised to see the ravages that this short time had made in her, for +she was pale and drawn and weary-looking, as if from sleeplessness. +Strange to say, these marks of suffering did not detract from her +appearance, but rather enhanced her poise and distinction. She was not +even veiled. On the contrary, she had driven openly to the police +barracks, and ordered her coachman to wait in the street outside, then +demanded to be shown to Anthony's cell. + +"I'm awfully glad to see you, Mrs. Cortlandt," he said, as she extended +her hand. "But do you think it was wise for you to come?" + +She shrugged. "People can say no more than they have already said. My +name is on every tongue, and a little more gossip can make matters no +worse. I had to come. I just couldn't stay away. I wonder if you can +realize what I have been through." + +"It must have been terrible," he said, gently. + +"Yes, I have paid. It seems to me that I have paid for everything I +ever did. Those newspaper stories nearly killed me, but it wasn't that +so much as the thought that you were suffering for my acts." + +"I'm very sorry. You never thought for a moment that I did what they +claim?" + +"No, no! It has all been a mistake from the first. I was sure of that." + +"You heard what those two men testified?" + +"Bah! That is Ramon Alfarez--but he can do nothing." + +"Nothing! I don't call a week in the Bastile 'nothing.' Why, he has +perjured two witnesses already, and I dare say he'll have the whole +native population swearing against me when the trial comes up." + +"Never mind. I have had no time to do anything as yet. There were--so +many things to be attended to." She shuddered and sank down upon the +edge of his cot. "Stephen had a great many friends in various parts of +the world; I have been swamped with cablegrams." + +"If my dad were here he'd have me free in a jiffy; he can do anything." + +"I don't think we'll need him," she said, in a way that comforted him +somehow, though the feeling shamed him. She laid a soft hand upon his +arm, and, looking up eagerly into his face, exclaimed: "You will +forgive me for what I said that night at the hotel, won't you? I didn't +really mean to injure you, Kirk, but I was half hysterical. I had +suffered so these last few months that I was ready to do anything. I +was torn by two great desires, one to remain what I am and have always +been, and the other--well, the other was the stronger, or would have +been if you had allowed it. I never dreamed there was a way out of my +misery, a way so close at hand; but somehow even before General +Alfarez' voice on the 'phone told me what had happened, I knew, and +I--I felt--" + +"I know you had a great deal to put up with," he said, "but for both +our sakes I wish it had come in some other way." + +"Oh, I don't care," she cried, recklessly. "The one thing I can grasp +in all this turmoil, the one thing that rings in my ears every moment, +is that I am free, FREE! That is all that matters to me. You showed +your loyalty to Stephen more than once, and, though your scruples +angered me, I honor you for them now. I can see, too, that you had no +choice but to put me off even that night of the dance. But my chains +are broken, and it is all different now." + +"Your husband's death can make no difference with us, Mrs. Cortlandt," +he said, gravely. + +"We have talked openly before, and there is no need to do otherwise +now. You mean by that that you don't care for me, but I know better. I +believe there is a love so strong that it must find an answer. Although +you may not care for me now as you care for--some one else--I KNOW that +I can make you forget her and put me in her place. I know men, and I +know you. I came here prepared to be honest--shameless, if you like. I +am young, I have money, I have power; I work for the love of doing +things, and you are learning to do the same. I can help you, oh, so +much! We can win happiness together just as easily as we can win +material success, and that is ours now for the asking. It dazzles me to +think of it, Kirk. It is like a glimpse of paradise, and I can show it +all to you." She was bending forward, her lips parted, the color +gleaming in her cheeks, her whole face transformed by a passionate +eagerness. + +"Wait!" he said, harshly. "You force me to break my word. I don't want +to tell you this, but--I am married." + +She rose slowly, her eyes fixed in bewilderment upon his, her hand +clutching at his sleeve. + +"You--never told me that! It was some mad college prank, I suppose." + +"No, no. I married Gertrudis Garavel that night at the Tivoli." + +"Oh, that can't be. That was the night of the dance." + +"It is quite true." + +Mrs. Cortlandt stared about the squalid cell dully. + +"Miss Garavel! Why didn't you tell me? Why isn't she here? Why does she +leave you alone? No, no! You hardly know each other. Why, she's not old +enough to know her own mind--" + +"But I know my mind, and I love her." + +Her white hands strained at each other as she steadied her shaking +voice. "Love!" she cried. "You don't know what love means, nor does +she. She CAN'T know, or she'd be here, she'd have this prison torn +block from block." + +"I suppose her father would not let her come," said Kirk, slowly, but +Edith did not seem to hear him. The realization of her broken hopes was +coming home to her poignantly. + +"My happiness!" she exclaimed. "I have been unhappy so long! And I +seemed to see it just within my reach. Oh, Kirk, she thinks you are +guilty, she hasn't faith." + +"You have no right to say that." + +"See! I came to you when I was married and asked you to take me; I'll +do the same with you now." + +"You don't know what you're saying. You're hysterical, Mrs. Cortlandt. +I love Gertrudis so deeply that there's no room in me for anything +else, and never will be. Heaven only knows what they have made her +believe about me, but I don't care; I'll upset this little plot of +Alfarez's, and when she learns the truth she will come back again." + +"This little plot!" Edith cried, in distraction. "And I suppose you +wish me to give you back to her?" + +They confronted each other a moment in silence. + +"But I won't help her," she went on. "I'm not that sort. I'm a selfish +woman. I've always been selfish because I've never had anybody to work +for. But I have it in me to be generous." + +"I'm sorry," he said. "You have suffered, I know. Don't trouble any +more about me--please." + +She stared at him defiantly, although her whole frame was shaking as if +from an ague. + +"Oh, I'd rather face the gallows as you face it than what is before me, +and I'm not sure I could help you, after all. You are in Latin America +now, remember, and your enemies are strong." + +"I am Darwin K. Anthony's son," he protested. "He won't allow it." + +"Bah! He is an American, and these are Spanish people. You have seen +how they like us, and you have seen what Alfarez can do. He's rich, and +he'll perjure more witnesses, he'll manipulate the court with his +money. Yes, and I'd rather he succeeded than see you--No, no! What am I +saying? L-let me go; let me get away from here!" She broke down, and +went sobbing out into the corridor. The iron door clanged to behind her. + +On the same afternoon, Mr. Clifford, accompanied by Anson, the lawyer, +took the 3.20 train for Colon. As soon as he arrived, he called up +Colonel Jolson, to request that the Commissioner's motor-car should, +without fail, await him at ten o'clock sharp on the next morning, with +an open track ahead of it. Strangely enough, the Colonel agreed very +readily. + + + + +XXX + +DARWIN K. ANTHONY + + +About noon on Monday, Edith Cortlandt received a caller. The name she +read on the card her maid handed her gave her a start of surprise, and +set her wits whirling in speculation. + +"Show him into the drawing-room," she said, at length. "I'll be right +down." + +As she descended, a few moments later, she was greeted by a gigantic +old man with a rumbling voice, who, instead of seating himself in the +drawing-room as he had been requested, had flung open the carefully +closed shutters to admit more light, then kicked aside whatever +articles of furniture happened to be in his way. He was now pacing back +and forth with the restlessness of a polar bear. + +"How do you do, Mrs. Cortlandt?" he began, at sight of her, his big +voice flooding the room. "I'm sorry to disturb you under the +circumstances." + +"You are Mr. Anthony?" + +"Yes, madam. You'll pardon my intrusion. I knew your husband slightly, +and I've heard about you. I extend my sympathy." + +She bowed. "When did you arrive?" + +"Just now; came across in one of those damned joy-wagons--fifty miles +an hour. We hit a nigger on the way, but we didn't stop. I know +everything, madam. What I didn't know before I landed, I learned on the +way across the Isthmus, so don't let's waste time. Hell of a position +for you to be in--I understand and all that--and I'm sorry for you. Now +let's get down to business, for I must get back to New York." + +It was impossible not to feel Darwin K. Anthony's force; it spoke in +his every tone and action. It looked out from his harsh-lined features, +and showed in his energetic movements. He was a great granite block of +a man, powerful in physique, in mind, and in determination. He had +Kirk's eyes, Mrs. Cortlandt noted, except that they were deeper set, +more fierce and eager. + +She was not used to being overridden, and his masterful air offended +her. + +"In what way may I be of service to you?" she inquired, coldly. + +"I want my boy," he said, simply, and she began to see that underneath +his cold and domineering exterior his heart was torn by a great +distress. + +"You know all the circumstances, of course?" + +"I do. That's why I came straight to you. I know you're the keystone of +the whole affair, so I didn't waste time with these other people. +Kirk's a damned idiot, and always has been; he isn't worth the powder +to blow him to--excuse me--I mean he's just a ne'er-do-well; but I +suppose I'll have to do my duty by him." + +"I understand that has always been your attitude." + +"Exactly! I got sick of his performances and cut him off; couldn't +stand for him any longer. I tried my best to make a man out of him, but +he wouldn't have it, so we severed our connections absolutely. I just +kicked him out. Sorry I didn't do it sooner." + +"If you have cut him off, why do you care what becomes of him?" + +Darwin K. Anthony's eyes dimmed, but his voice rose fiercely. "He's my +boy, and I've a right to treat him any damned way I please, but nobody +else is going to abuse him! These Spaniards can't do it! I'll teach +them to lay hands on my--boy." He tore a handkerchief from his pocket +and blew a blast into it. "I'll tear their little Republic to pieces," +he shouted. "I'll buy the whole works and throw it away. I'll buy their +President and their courts and their whole infernal population, and if +they won't sell I've got enough men to take it. Hell's bells, madam, do +you think these little black people can shoot MY son? I don't care what +he's done, they've got to give him up. And he's going back with me. +He's going home; I--I--want him." + +"Why have you come to me?" she queried. + +"Because you must know the truth, if anybody does, and I want your +help." His voice softened suddenly, and he regarded her with a gentle +kindness that was surprising. "I've heard all about you and Kirk. In +fact, I've known what was going on all the time, for I've had a man on +his track night and day. You may know him--Clifford? Well, he followed +Kirk that night after the supper to your husband, but Anson didn't dare +call him to the stand at the hearing for fear this Alfarez would +perjure more of his black-and-tans." He ground his teeth in rage. "By +God! I'll get that Ramon, if it costs me a million--they can't stand +for such things even here. But I want MORE proof; I want to snow him +under absolutely, completely." + +"So Clifford is your man?" + +"Yes! I took him off my system and sent him down here as soon as I got +Kirk's idiotic, impudent letter--" The old man began to sputter with +indignation. "What d'you think he wrote me, Mrs. Cortlandt? He had the +impudence to turn down a good job I offered him because 'his wife might +not like our climate!' Imagine! And I had positively begged him to come +back--on any terms. Of course, it gave me an awful scare, and I lost no +time in learning if it was true. Thank God, he had sense enough not to +do that!" + +"Then you don't know?" + +"Know what?" + +"That he is married." + +"DAMNATION!" roared Anthony, furiously. + +She nodded. "A Miss Garavel. They were married a--week ago." She broke +down miserably and hid her face in her hands. He strode to her with a +light of understanding in his eyes. Laying a great hand upon her +drooping head, he exclaimed with wonderful softness: + +"My dear Mrs. Cortlandt, I'm very sorry for you, indeed I am. How the +boy ever let you go for any other woman I don't see, but he's always +been a fool--that's why he never cared for me. Now, now, try to face it +squarely--all good women are brave, and you're a good woman. We both +love him, and I know we can save him if we pull together." + +"Yes, yes!" She raised her drawn, white face eagerly to his. "It will +only take a word, but I have been like a mad woman. I couldn't bear to +give him up, and when I learned the truth I thought I could let +him--suffer. But I couldn't. Oh, I couldn't, and I knew it all the +time. I was distracted, that is all. You see I have no shame in telling +you this, for he is the first and only man--" + +"I know." He patted her in a way that said more than words. + +"I couldn't have stood out much longer." + +"Then you have proof?" His face was wild with eagerness. + +"This. Take it quickly. I only found it last night. It had been mislaid +in the confusion. I meant to give it up, I really did." With clumsy +fingers she drew from the front of her dress an unsealed letter and +handed it to him. "Stephen was not a bad man, you see, and he had no +intention of wronging an innocent person." + +Darwin K. Anthony's pallor matched hers as he read the sheet, then he +exclaimed, weakly, "Thank God! Something told me to come straight to +you. Something always tells me where to find the heart of things." + +"Quick! You must lose no time," she exclaimed. "He is in prison, and +the place is frightful. I will go with you to the Mayor. Ah, I'm very +glad he will get his freedom from your hands. I was so weak. When this +is done I shall go back North and try to live it out. But I love him +very dearly, Mr. Anthony." Her lip trembled piteously. "And I could +have done so much for him." + +Grim-faced and scowling he re-read the letter in his hand during the +moment it required for Edith to make ready. The injustice that had been +done his blood roused every passion in him. He had himself well in +hand, however, and he restrained his yearning to burst forcibly into +the police barracks and take his boy to his heart. He determined there +should be no possible slip--and he longed ferociously to meet Ramon +Alfarez. + +Kirk was considerably surprised that afternoon when a sergeant and two +policemen came to his cell, signifying that he was to accompany them. +He could not make out where they were taking him, and, despite their +unusual politeness, they were dense to all inquiries. It was a bright, +hot afternoon, and the city seemed very beautiful and desirous as he +was driven through it; but the whole procedure filled him with +uneasiness. He was sure that it had nothing to do with his trial, or +Anson would have posted him, and he began to fear that it might concern +his marriage. Perhaps Chiquita was ill, dying, or perhaps they were +trying to annul the bond. The smiling little officer only shook his +head, shrugged, and chattered unintelligibly at his questions. + +The coach drew up at last before a large, white building, and he was +told to descend. Up a flight of stairs he was escorted, his pulses +quickening with apprehension, down a long corridor, and into a large +room, where he saw Runnels, Colonel Jolson, Anson, Clifford, a dozen or +more Panamanian officials, and--he stopped in his tracks as his eyes +fell upon a huge, white-crowned figure that came to meet him. His heart +leaped wildly, a great drumming set up in his ears, something gripped +his throat with agonizing pressure and robbed him of speech. + +A certain harsh yet tender voice pronounced his name. He felt his hands +crushed in his father's palms, found the old man's arm about his +shoulders, and saw the deep-set, steel-blue eyes he loved so well wet +and shiny. Then, for once and for all time, he realized that in the +whole wide world there was but one man who really mattered, one man for +whom he honestly cared. A sudden sense of security swept over him, +banishing all his fears. The room with its smiling faces became blurred +and distant; a thousand words of endearment sprang to his lips. What he +really said was: + +"Hello!" And even that he pronounced as shyly as a girl. + +"My kid!" the old man said, shakingly. "H-how have they treated you, +Buster?" It was a nickname he had given his son when he was a sturdy, +round-faced urchin of eight, and which he had laid away regretfully in +lavender, so to speak, when the boy grew to manhood. + +"You came, didn't you?" Kirk said, in a voice not at all like his own. +"I knew you'd come." + +"Of course I came, the instant Clifford cabled me that these idiots had +arrested you. By God! They'll sweat for this. How are you anyhow, Kirk? +Dammit, you need a shave! Wouldn't they give you a razor? Hey! +Clifford, Colonel Jolson, come here! These scoundrels wouldn't give him +a shave." Darwin K. Anthony's eyes began to blaze at this indignity, +and he rumbled on savagely: "Oh, I'll smash this dinky government--try +to convict my kid, eh? I suppose you're hungry, too; well, so'm I. +We'll be out of here in a minute, then you show me the best place in +town and we'll have a decent meal, just we two, the way we used to. +I'll pay the bill. God Almighty! I've missed you, Buster." + +"Wait, dad." Kirk was smiling, but his heart ached at his father's +emotion. "I'm a jail-bird, you know. They think I--killed a fellow. But +I don't care much what they think now." + +"That's all over," Clifford broke in. "We've squared that, and you'll +be discharged in ten minutes." + +"Honest?" + +"Certainly," said the old gentleman. "Cortlandt shot himself. Anybody +but a blithering Spanish ass would have known it at the start. We have +a letter he wrote to his wife an hour before he did it. She just found +it and turned it over. She left here a moment ago, by-the-way, all +broken up. She's a great woman, Kirk. That's not all, either. Clifford +followed you that night, and knows you didn't go near Cortlandt. Oh, +you should have seen 'em jump when we flashed it on 'em all at once and +they learned who I was!" + +"But those men who swore they saw me?" + +"Bah! We've got that little Dago with the mustache, and both his +witnesses. If they don't send him up, I'll run in a shipload of my +brakemen, and we'll push this Isthmus overboard and him with it." + +"I knew you could fix things." + +"Fix 'em! Fix 'em! That's EASY! Say, how have you been getting along, +anyhow?" + +"Great!" + +"And you married one of these Panamanicures, eh?" The father scowled. +"Lord! I can trust you to make a fool of yourself." + +"Say, dad. She's only--so big." Anthony Junior indicated his wife's +stature, smiling rapturously. + +"Dwarf, eh?" + +"Oh no!" + +"Love her?" + +"DO I? It's fierce." + +"Humph! You'll have to get over it. I'll pay your debts and take care +of you, but I can't stand a mulatto around me." + +"There aren't any debts, and she's not a mulatto. She's a--dream." + +"They're waiting, Mr. Anthony," Clifford made bold to say. "I think +we'd better get this over with." + +Kirk paid little attention to the formalities of the next few minutes. +He was too busy with thoughts of his amazing good-fortune, his mind was +too dazzled by the joy of freedom. Allan appeared from somewhere and +clung to him in an ecstasy of delight. Colonel Jolson, Runnels, Anson, +even the Panamanian officials shook hands with him. He accepted their +congratulations mechanically, meanwhile keeping very close to his +father's side. + +Some time later he found himself out in the open sunlight a free man +once more, with Darwin K. Anthony and Runnels on either side of him. +But before he had gone a block, he halted suddenly, saying: + +"Williams! I'd forgotten him and his warrant." + +"He's fixed," Runnels explained. "While your father and Mrs. Cortlandt +and Colonel Jolson were getting you out of jail, Clifford and I told +him the truth. He's rather a decent fellow. They have caught the real +Jefferson Locke, or whatever his name is." + +"No!" + +"Yes; a week ago. He landed in Boston; couldn't stay away from his own +country any longer. Williams hadn't heard of it." + +"What has become of Higgins?" Kirk inquired of his father. + +Anthony Senior exploded: + +"Oh, he's back scorching up the Tenderloin as usual, but you'll have to +cut him out, or I'll leave you here. That's final, understand?" + +"I intend to stay here, anyhow." + +"Huh?" The old man turned with a start. "I'm damned if you do." Then, +savagely: "What do you suppose I came down here for? I'm lonesome. I +want you to come home." + +Kirk smiled craftily and looked at Runnels. "Well, what can you offer? +I'm doing pretty well as it is, and I can't afford to lay off." + +His father in turn appealed to the Acting Superintendent. "See! It's +nothing less than blackmail. Is he any good, Mr. Runnels?" + +"If there weren't so much politics in this job, he'd be Master of +Transportation of the P. R. R. That's doing pretty well, isn't it? +We're both going to quit and look for new work." + +"Do you drink, Kirk?" + +"I haven't even had an alcohol rub since I left New York. But, dad, if +you place me, you'll have to take care of Runnels, too. He knows more +about railroads than--you do." + +Mr. Anthony grunted a trifle sceptically at this and murmured: "He must +be a bright young man. I suppose what he doesn't know, you do. Well, +how would you both like to come North and give me some lessons?" + +"Do you mean it?" they cried in chorus. + +"I do." + +"Oh, there's Allan, too, he'll have to go." + +"Any cats and dogs you'd like to have drawing salary from me? Now let's +go somewhere and eat. I haven't tasted anything to speak of since +Clifford's message came." + +"If you don't mind, I--I'd like to stop at the Garavels' for a minute," +Kirk said, longingly, and his father scowled. + +"I'd forgotten this--wife of yours." + +"She's not there," Runnels hastened to say. "I've tried to find her, +but I was told she was out at the country place." + +"Then I think I'd rather drive out there than eat. Won't you go with +me, dad?" + +"Well--yes! I want to see this banker fellow, and--I'm not so damned +hungry, after all. We'll settle this thing right now." + + The afternoon sun was still an hour high when Kirk Anthony came +down the hill from the Garavels' home and crossed the meadow toward the +forest glade he knew so well. The grateful coolness of evening was +stealing downward, and Nature was roused from her midday lethargy. It +was the vibrant, active hour when odors are freshest and spirits rise. +The forest was noisy with the cry of birds, and flocks of shrill-voiced +paroquets raised an uproar in the tallest trees. The dense canopy of +green overhead was alive with fluttering wings; the groves echoed to +the cries of all the loud-voiced thicket denizens. The pastured cattle, +which had sauntered forth from shaded nooks, ceased their grazing to +stare with gentle curiosity at the hurrying figure. Of course they +recognized a lover speeding to his tryst, and gave him passage, shaking +their heads at one another and wagging their ears in knowing fashion. + +He faltered a bit despite his haste, for this nook had grown sacred to +him, and even yet he felt that it was haunted. The laughter of the +waterfall helped to drown the sound of his approach, but he surprised +no dancing wood-sprites. Instead, he saw what filled his heart with a +greater gladness than he had ever known. + +Chiquita was there, huddled upon the seat where they had rested +together, one foot curled beneath her like a child, her head bowed down +disconsolately. From one brown hand, now drooping listlessly, a few +wild flowers had scattered, and her slim figure was clad once more in +the stiff, coarse denim dress of blue. Her other hand was toying with +her beads mechanically, as if the fingers had learned their task from +long practice. Her dusky eyes were fast upon the lights that wavered in +the pool. + +As if to prove that the spot was really peopled by kind spirits, a +gentle voice seemed to whisper the news to her, and she turned to find +him smiling at her. She rose and met him with her hands outstretched, +her face transfigured. + +After a time she leaned backward in his arms, and said, gravely: "You +see! When one says many, many prayers, the good saints always answer. +The padre told me that I should never cease until you came, but I grew +very tired, senor." + +"And you never doubted me?" + +"Oh no!" + +"I'm free, you know." + +"Of course! What else were my prayers for? Had my father allowed, I +would have gone to your prison, but he forbade it, so I had no choice. +But every hour I prayed that he might give me leave, and I think his +heart was yielding." + +"I'm sure of that," he told her, "for I have just come from him." + +It was some time later, when the sun was dipping, that voices sounded +outside the wall of verdure, and Kirk heard Andres Garavel saying: + +"Of a certainty I shall try that experiment, senor, for the ticks in +this country are a pest to cattle. A little to the right, and you will +find the path--So!" + +An instant later the two white-haired men appeared. + +"Hello! There you are, eh?" Darwin K. Anthony exclaimed, gruffly. +"Where's that girl?" He paused and let his hostile eyes rest upon +Gertrudis. + +She saw a great, forbidding giant of a man scowling down at her with +eyes like Kirk's, and she came forward timidly, holding out her hands. +She was smiling up at him faintly. + +"You are Keerk's father, yes? You are the Senor Antonio." + +Mr. Anthony uttered a curious, choking exclamation, and gathered her +gently in his arms. When he looked up, his eyes were wet and his +deep-lined face was working. + +"I couldn't wait any longer," he apologized humbly to his son. "I had +to come and see her." + +"Ah, then I hope you will like me," she said in her grave, quaint way. + +"Your father has told me everything"--Garavel laid a hand upon his new +son's shoulder--"and we have become good friends already. I fear I owe +you a great apology, my boy; but if I consent that you take my little +girl away to your country, will that be reparation?" + +"Then you WILL let her go with us?" Kirk cried, happily. + +"If she doesn't go, I'll stay," Anthony Senior rumbled. "I--I don't see +how you ever did it, you're such a blamed fool. Now let's go back to +the house, it's sundown." + +"We'll be along directly," his son assented. + +"There are chills in the evening air," Mr. Garavel protested. + +"I'm sorry, but we were waiting for the fairies. They were almost in +sight when you frightened them away." + +Gertrudis nodded. "It is quite true, Senor Antonio. We heard them all +about, everywhere." She placed her little hand in Kirk's, then checked +her father's remonstrance, saying: + +"Oh, it is quite proper for us to walk home together, even in the dark; +we are married now, you know." + +"Come on, Garavel," exclaimed Darwin K. Anthony. "You understand how it +is." Together they went out through the fragrant path a little way, +then old man Anthony paused and called back to his son, wistfully: +"But, I say, Kirk, don't stay too long; we're lonesome." + +THE END + + + + + + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Ne'er-Do-Well, by Rex Beach + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE NE'ER-DO-WELL *** + +***** This file should be named 5405.txt or 5405.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/5/4/0/5405/ + +Produced by Charles Franks and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team. + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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Do not change or edit the +header without written permission. + +Please read the "legal small print," and other information about the +eBook and Project Gutenberg at the bottom of this file. Included is +important information about your specific rights and restrictions in +how the file may be used. You can also find out about how to make a +donation to Project Gutenberg, and how to get involved. + + +**Welcome To The World of Free Plain Vanilla Electronic Texts** + +**eBooks Readable By Both Humans and By Computers, Since 1971** + +*****These eBooks Were Prepared By Thousands of Volunteers!***** + + +Title: The Ne'er-Do-Well + +Author: Rex Beach + +Release Date: April, 2004 [EBook #5405] +[Yes, we are more than one year ahead of schedule] +[This file was first posted on July 7, 2002] +[Date last updated: August 16, 2005] + +Edition: 10 + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE NE'ER-DO-WELL *** + + + + +Produced by Charles Franks and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team. + + + + + +THE NE'ER-DO-WELL + +By REX BEACH + +Author of "THE SILVER HORDE" "THE SPOILERS" "THE IRON TRAIL" Etc. + +Illustrated + + + + +TO + +MY WIFE + + + + +CONTENTS + + I. VICTORY + + II. THE TRAIL DIVIDES + + III. A GAP + + IV. NEW ACQUAINTANCES + + V. A REMEDY IS PROPOSED + + VI. IN WHICH KIRK ANTHONY IS GREATLY SURPRISED + + VII. THE REWARD OF MERIT + + VIII. EL COMANDANTE TAKES A HAND + + IX. SPANISH LAW + + X. A CHANGE OF PLAN + + XI. THE TRUTH ABOUT MRS. CORTLANDT + + XII. A NIGHT AT TABOGA + + XIII. CHIQUITA + + XIV. THE PATH THAT LED NOWHERE + + XV. ALIAS JEFFERSON LOCKE + + XVI. "8838" + + XVII. GARAVEL THE BANKER + + XVIII. THE SIEGE OF MARIA TORRES + + XIX. "LA TOSCA" + + XX. AN AWAKENING + + XXI. THE REST OF THE FAMILY + + XXII. A CHALLENGE AND A CONFESSION + + XXIII. A PLOT AND A SACRIFICE + + XXIV. A BUSINESS PROPOSITION + + XXV. CHECKMATE! + + XXVI. THE CRASH + + XXVII. A QUESTION + +XXVIII. THE ANSWER + + XXIX. A LAST APPEAL + + XXX. DARWIN K ANTHONY + + + + +THE NE'ER-DO-WELL + + + + +I + +VICTORY + + +It was a crisp November night. The artificial brilliance of +Broadway was rivalled by a glorious moonlit sky. The first autumn +frost was in the air, and on the side-streets long rows of +taxicabs were standing, their motors blanketed, their chauffeurs +threshing their arms to rout the cold. A few well-bundled cabbies, +perched upon old-style hansoms, were barking at the stream of +hurrying pedestrians. Against a background of lesser lights myriad +points of electric signs flashed into everchanging shapes, winking +like huge, distorted eyes; fanciful designs of liquid fire ran up +and down the walls or blazed forth in lurid colors. From the +city's canons came an incessant clanging roar, as if a great river +of brass and steel were grinding its way toward the sea. + +Crowds began to issue from the theatres, and the lines of waiting +vehicles broke up, filling the streets with the whir of machinery +and the clatter of hoofs. A horde of shrill-voiced urchins pierced +the confusion, waving their papers and screaming the football +scores at the tops of their lusty lungs, while above it all rose +the hoarse tones of carriage callers, the commands of traffic +officers, and the din of street-car gongs. + +In the lobby of one of the playhouses a woman paused to adjust her +wraps, and, hearing the cries of the newsboys, petulantly +exclaimed: + +"I'm absolutely sick of football. That performance during the +third act was enough to disgust one." + +Her escort smiled. "Oh, you take it too seriously," he said. +"Those boys don't mean anything. That was merely Youth-- +irrepressible Youth, on a tear. You wouldn't spoil the fun?" + +"It may have been Youth," returned his companion, "but it sounded +more like the end of the world. It was a little too much!" + +A bevy of shop-girls came bustling forth from a gallery exit. + +"Rah! rah! rah!" they mimicked, whereupon the cry was answered by +a hundred throats as the doors belched forth the football players +and their friends. Out they came, tumbling, pushing, jostling; +greeting scowls and smiles with grins of insolent good-humor. In +their hands were decorated walking-sticks and flags, ragged and +tattered as if from long use in a heavy gale. Dignified old +gentlemen dived among them in pursuit of top-hats; hysterical +matrons hustled daughters into carriages and slammed the doors. + +"Wuxtry! Wuxtry!" shrilled the newsboys. "Full account of the big +game!" + +A youth with a ridiculous little hat and heliotrope socks dashed +into the street, where, facing the crowd, he led a battle song of +his university. Policemen set their shoulders to the mob, but, +though they met with no open resistance, they might as well have +tried to dislodge a thicket of saplings. To-night football was +king. + +Out through the crowd came a score of deep-chested young men +moving together as if to resist an attack, whereupon a mighty roar +went up. The cheer-leader increased his antics, and the barking +yell changed to a measured chant, to the time of which the army +marched down the street until the twenty athletes dodged in +through the revolving doors of a cafe, leaving Broadway rocking +with the tumult. + +All the city was football-mad, it seemed, for no sooner had the +new-comers entered the restaurant than the diners rose to wave +napkins or to cheer. Men stepped upon chairs and craned for a +better sight of them; women raised their voices in eager +questioning. A gentleman in evening dress pointed out the leader +of the squad to his companions, explaining: + +"That is Anthony--the big chap. He's Darwin K. Anthony's son. +You've heard about the Anthony bill at Albany?" + +"Yes, and I saw this fellow play football four years ago. Say! +That was a game." + +"He's a worthless sort of chap, isn't he?" remarked one of the +women, when the squad had disappeared up the stairs. + +"Just a rich man's son, that's all. But he certainly could play +football." + +"Didn't I read that he had been sent to jail recently?" + +"No doubt. He was given thirty days." + +"What! in PRISON?" questioned another, in a shocked voice. + +"Only for speeding. It was his third offence, and his father let +him take his medicine." + +"How cruel!" + +"Old man Anthony doesn't care for this sort of thing. He's right, +too. All this young fellow is good for is to spend money." + +Up in the banquet-hall, however, it was evident that Kirk Anthony +was more highly esteemed by his mates than by the public at large. +He was their hero, in fact, and in a way he deserved it. For three +years before his graduation he had been the heart and sinew of the +university team, and for the four years following he had coached +them, preferring the life of an athletic trainer to the career his +father had offered him. And he had done his chosen work well. + +Only three weeks prior to the hard gruel of the great game the +eleven had received a blow that had left its supporters dazed and +despairing. There had been a scandal, of which the public had +heard little and the students scarcely more, resulting in the +expulsion of the five best players of the team. The crisis might +have daunted the most resourceful of men, yet Anthony had proved +equal to it. For twenty-one days he had labored like a real +general, spending his nights alone with diagrams and little +dummies on a miniature gridiron, his days in careful coaching. He +had taken a huge, ungainly Nova Scotian lad named Ringold for +centre; he had placed a square-jawed, tow-headed boy from Duluth +in the line; he had selected a high-strung, unseasoned chap, who +for two years had been eating his heart out on the side-lines, and +made him into a quarter-back. + +Then he had driven them all with the cruelty of a Cossack captain; +and when at last the dusk of this November day had settled, new +football history had been made. The world had seen a strange team +snatch victory from defeat, and not one of all the thirty thousand +onlookers but knew to whom the credit belonged. It had been a +tremendous spectacle, and when the final whistle blew for the +multitude to come roaring down across the field, the cohorts had +paid homage to Kirk Anthony, the weary coach to whom they knew the +honor belonged. + +Of course this fervid enthusiasm and hero-worship was all very +immature, very foolish, as the general public acknowledged after +it had taken time to cool off. Yet there was something appealing +about it, after all. At any rate, the press deemed the public +sufficiently interested in the subject to warrant giving it +considerable prominence, and the name of Darwin K. Anthony's son +was published far and wide. + +Naturally, the newspapers gave the young man's story as well as a +history of the game. They told of his disagreement with his +father; of the Anthony anti-football bill which the old man in his +rage had driven through the legislature and up to the Governor +himself. Some of them even printed a rehash of the railroad man's +famous magazine attack on the modern college, in which he all but +cited his own son as an example of the havoc wrought by present- +day university methods. The elder Anthony's wealth and position +made it good copy. The yellow journals liked it immensely, and, +strangely enough, notwithstanding the positiveness with which the +newspapers spoke, the facts agreed essentially with their +statements. Darwin K. Anthony and his son had quarrelled, they +were estranged; the young man did prefer idleness to industry. +Exactly as the published narratives related, he toiled not at all, +he spun nothing but excuses, he arrayed himself in sartorial +glory, and drove a yellow racing-car beyond the speed limit. + +It was all true, only incomplete. Kirk Anthony's father had even +better reasons for his disapproval of the young man's behavior +than appeared. The fact was that Kirk's associates were of a sort +to worry any observant parent, and, moreover, he had acquired a +renown in that part of New York lying immediately west of Broadway +and north of Twenty-sixth Street which, in his father's opinion, +added not at all to the lustre of the family name. In particular, +Anthony, Sr., was prejudiced against a certain Higgins, who, of +course, was his son's boon companion, aid, and abettor. This young +gentleman was a lean, horse-faced senior, whose unbroken solemnity +of manner had more than once led strangers to mistake him for a +divinity student, though closer acquaintance proved him wholly +unmoral and rattle-brained. Mr. Higgins possessed a distorted +sense of humor and a crooked outlook upon life; while, so far as +had been discovered, he owned but two ambitions: one to whip a +policeman, the other to write a musical comedy. Neither seemed +likely of realization. As for the first, he was narrow-chested and +gangling, while a brief, disastrous experience on the college +paper had furnished a sad commentary upon the second. + +Not to exaggerate, Darwin K. Anthony, the father, saw in the +person of Adelbert Higgins a budding criminal of rare precocity, +and a menace to his son; while to the object of his solicitude the +aforesaid criminal was nothing more than an entertaining +companion, whose bizarre disregard of all established rules of +right and wrong matched well with his own careless temper. +Higgins, moreover, was an ardent follower of athletics, revolving +like a satellite about the football stars, and attaching himself +especially to Kirk, who was too good-natured to find fault with an +honest admirer. + +It was Higgins this evening who, after the "cripples" had deserted +and the supper party had dwindled to perhaps a dozen, proposed to +make a night of it. It was always Higgins who proposed to make a +night of it, and now, as usual, his words were greeted with +enthusiasm. + +Having obtained the floor, he gazed owlishly over the flushed +faces around the table and said: + +"I wish to announce that, in our little journey to the underworld, +we will visit some places of rare interest and educational value. +First we will go to the House of Seven Turnings." + +"No poetry, Hig!" some one cried. "What is it?" + +"It is merely a rendezvous of pickpockets and thieves, accessible +only to a chosen few. I feel sure you will enjoy yourselves there, +for the bartender has the secret of a remarkable gin fizz, sweeter +than a maiden's smile, more intoxicating than a kiss." + +"Piffle!" + +"It is a place where the student of sociology can obtain a world +of valuable information." + +"How do we get in?" + +"Leave that to old Doctor Higgins," Anthony laughed. "To get out +is the difficulty." + +"Oh, I guess we'll get out," said the bulky Ringold. + +"After we have concluded our investigations at the House of Seven +Turnings," continued the ceremonious Higgins, "we will go to the +Palace of Ebony, where a full negro orchestra--" + +"The police closed that a week ago." + +"But it has reopened on a scale larger and grander than ever." + +"Let's take in the Austrian Village," offered Ringold. + +"Patiently! Patiently, Behemoth! We'll take 'em all in. However, I +wish to request one favor. If by any chance I should become +embroiled with a minion of the law, please, oh please, let me +finish him." + +"Remember the last time," cautioned Anthony. "You've never come +home a winner." + +"Enough! Away with painful memories! All in favor--" + +"AYE!" yelled the diners, whereupon a stampede ensued that caused +the waiters in the main dining-room below to cease piling chairs +upon the tables and hastily weight their napkins with salt- +cellars. + +But the crowd was not combative. They poured out upon the street +in the best possible humor, and even at the House of Seven +Turnings, as Higgins had dubbed the "hide-away" on Thirty-second +Street, they made no disturbance. On the contrary, it was +altogether too quiet for most of them, and they soon sought +another scene. But there were deserters en route to the Palace of +Ebony, and when in turn the joys of a full negro orchestra had +palled and a course was set for the Austrian Village, the number +of investigators had dwindled to a choice half-dozen. + +These, however, were kindred spirits, veterans of many a midnight +escapade, composing a flying squadron of exactly the right +proportions for the utmost efficiency and mobility combined. + +The hour was now past a respectable bedtime and the Tenderloin had +awakened. The roar of commerce had dwindled away, and the +comparative silence was broken only by the clang of an infrequent +trolley. The streets were empty of vehicles, except for a few cabs +that followed the little group persistently. As yet there was no +need of them. The crowd was made up, for the most part, of +healthy, full-blooded boys, fresh from weeks of training, strong +of body, and with stomachs like galvanized iron. They showed scant +evidence of intoxication. As for the weakest member of the party, +it had long been known that one drink made Higgins drunk, and all +further libations merely served to maintain him in status quo. +Exhaustive experiments had proved that he was able to retain +consciousness and the power of locomotion until the first streak +of dawn appeared, after which he usually became a burden. For the +present he was amply able to take care of himself, and now, +although his speech was slightly thick, his demeanor was as +didactic and severe as ever, and, save for the vagrant workings of +his mind, he might have passed for a curate. As a whole, the crowd +was in fine fettle. + +The Austrian Village is a saloon, dance-hall, and all-night +restaurant, flourishing brazenly within a stone's throw of +Broadway, and it is counted one of the sights of the city. Upon +entering, one may pass through a saloon where white-aproned +waiters load trays and wrangle over checks, then into a ball-room +filled with the flotsam and jetsam of midnight Manhattan. Above +and around this room runs a white-and-gold balcony partitioned +into boxes; beneath it are many tables separated from the waxed +floor by a railing. Inside the enclosure men in street-clothes and +smartly gowned girls with enormous hats revolve nightly to the +strains of an orchestra which nearly succeeds in drowning their +voices. From the tables come laughter and snatches of song; +waiters dash hither and yon. It is all very animated and gay on +the surface, and none but the closely observant would note the +weariness beneath the women's smiles, the laughter notes that +occasionally jar, or perceive that the tailored gowns are +imitations, the ermines mainly rabbit-skins. + +But the eyes of youth are not analytical, and seen through a rosy +haze the sight was inspiriting. The college men selected a table, +and, shouldering the occupants aside without ceremony, seated +themselves and pounded for a waiter. + +Padden, the proprietor, came toward them, and, after greeting +Anthony and Higgins by a shake of his left hand, ducked his round +gray head in acknowledgment of an introduction to the others. + +"Excuse my right," said he, displaying a swollen hand criss- +crossed with surgeon's plaster. "A fellow got noisy last night." + +"D'jou hit him?" queried Higgins, gazing with interest at the +proprietor's knuckles. + +"Yes. I swung for his jaw and went high. Teeth--" Mr. Padden said, +vaguely. He turned a shrewd eye upon Anthony. "I heard about the +game to-day. That was all right." + +Kirk grinned boyishly. "I didn't have much to do with it; these +are the fellows." + +"Don't believe him," interrupted Ringold. + +"Sure! he's too modest," Higgins chimed in. "Fine fellow an' all +that, understand, but he's got two faults--he's modest and he's +lazy. He's caused a lot of uneasiness to his father and me. +Father's a fine man, too." He nodded his long, narrow head +solemnly. + +"We know who did the trick for us," added Anderson, the straw- +haired half-back. + +"Glad you dropped in," Mr. Padden assured them. "Anything you boys +want and can't get, let me know." + +When he had gone Higgins averred: "There's a fine man--peaceful, +refined--got a lovely character, too. Let's be gentlemen while +we're in his place." + +Ringold rose. "I'm going to dance, fellows," he announced, and his +companions followed him, with the exception of the cadaverous +Higgins, who maintained that dancing was a pastime for the +frivolous and weak. + +When they returned to their table they found a stranger was seated +with him, who rose as Higgins made him known. + +"Boys, meet my old friend, Mr. Jefferson Locke, of St. Louis. He's +all right." + +The college men treated this new recruit with a hilarious +cordiality, to which he responded with the air of one quite +accustomed to such reunions. + +"I was at the game this afternoon," he explained, when the +greetings were over, "and recognized you chaps when you came in. +I'm a football fan myself." + +"You look as if you might have played," said Anthony, sizing up +the broad frame of the Missourian with the critical eye of a +coach. + +"Yes. I used to play." + +"Where?" + +Mr. Locke avoided answer by calling loudly for a waiter, but when +the orders had been taken Kirk repeated: + +"Where did you play, Mr. Locke?" + +"Left tackle." + +"What university?" + +"Oh one of the Southern colleges. It was a freshwater school--you +wouldn't know the name." He changed the subject quickly by adding: + +"I just got into town this morning and I'm sailing to-morrow. I +couldn't catch a boat to-day, so I'm having a little blow-out on +my own account. When I recognized you all, I just butted in. New +York is a lonesome place for a stranger. Hope you don't mind my +joining you." + +"Not at all!" he was assured. + +When he came to pay the waiter he displayed a roll of yellow- +backed bills that caused Anthony to caution him: + +"If I were you I'd put that in my shoe. I know this place." + +Locke only laughed. "There's more where this came from. However, +that's one reason I'd like to stick around with you fellows. I +have an idea I've been followed, and I don't care to be tapped on +the head. If you will let me trail along I'll foot the bills. +That's a fair proposition." + +"It certainly sounds engaging," cried Higgins, joyously. "The +sight of that money awakens a feeling of loyalty in our breasts. I +speak for all when I say we will guard you like a lily as long as +your money lasts, Mr. Locke." + +"As long as we last," Ringold amended. + +"It's a bargain," Locke agreed. "Hereafter I foot the bills. +You're my guests for the evening, understand. If you'll agree to +keep me company until my ship sails I'll do the entertaining." + +"Oh, come now," Anthony struck in. "The fellows are just fooling. +You're more than welcome to stay with us if you like, but we can't +let you put up for it." + +"Why not? We'll make a night of it. I'll show you how we spend +money in St. Louis. I'm too nervous to go to bed." + +Anthony protested, insisting that the other should regard himself +as the guest of the crowd; but as Locke proved obdurate the +question was allowed to drop until later, when Kirk found himself +promoted by tacit consent to the position of host for the whole +company. This was a little more than he had bargained for, but the +sense of having triumphed in a contest of good-fellowship consoled +him. Meanwhile, the stranger, despite his avowedly festive spirit, +showed a certain reserve. + +When the music again struck up he declined to dance, preferring to +remain with Higgins in their inconspicuous corner. + +"There's a fine fellow," the latter remarked, following his best +friend's figure with his eyes, when he and Locke were once more +alone. "Sweet nature." + +"Anthony? Yes, he looks it." + +"He's got just two faults, I always say: he's too modest by far +and he's lazy--won't work." + +"He doesn't have to work. His old man has plenty of coin, hasn't +he?" + +"Yes, and he'll keep it, too. Heartless old wretch. Mr.--What's +your name, again?" + +"Locke." + +"Mr. Locke." The speaker stared mournfully at his companion. +"D'you know what that unnatural parent did?" + +"No." + +"He let his only son and heir go to jail." + +Mr. Jefferson Locke, of St. Louis, started; his wandering, +watchful eyes flew back to the speaker. + +"What! Jail?" + +"That's what I remarked. He allowed his own flesh and blood to +languish in a loathsome cell." + +"What for? What did they get him for?" queried the other, quickly. + +"Speeding." + +"Oh!" Locke let himself back in his chair. + +"Yes sir, he's a branded felon." + +"Nonsense. That's nothing." + +"But we love him just the same, criminal though he is" said +Higgins, showing a disposition to weep. "If he were not such a +strong, patient soul it might have ruined his whole life." + +Mr. Locke grunted. + +"S'true! You've no idea the disgrace it is to go to jail." + +The Missourian stirred uneasily. "Say, it gets on my nerves to sit +still," said he. "Let's move around." + +"Patiently! Patiently! Somebody's sure to start something before +long." + +"Well, I don't care to get mixed up in a row." + +Higgins laid a long, white hand upon the speaker's arm. "Then stay +with us, Mr.--Locke. If you incline to peace, be one of us. We're +a flock of sucking doves." + +The dancers came crowding up to the table at the moment, and +Ringold suggested loudly: "I'm hungry; let's eat again." + +His proposal met with eager response. + +"Where shall we go?" asked Anderson. + +"I just fixed it with Padden for a private room upstairs," Anthony +said. "All the cafes are closed now, and this is the best place in +town for chicken creole, anyhow." + +Accordingly he led the way, and the rest filed out after him; but +as they left the ball-room a medium-sized man who had recently +entered from the street caught a glimpse of them, craned his neck +for a better view, then idled along behind. + + + + +II + +THE TRAIL DIVIDES + + +Inspired by his recent rivalry with Mr. Jefferson Locke, Anthony +played the part of host more lavishly than even the present +occasion required. He ordered elaborately, and it was not long +before corks were popping and dishes rattling quite as if the +young men were really hungry. Mr. Locke, however, insisted that +his friends should partake of a kind of drink previously unheard +of, and with this in view had a confidential chat with the waiter, +to whom he unostentatiously handed a five-dollar retainer. No one +witnessed this unusual generosity except Higgins, who commended it +fondly; but his remarks went unheeded in the general clamor. + +The meal was at its noisiest when the man whom Locke had so +generously tipped spoke to him quietly. Whatever his words, they +affected the listener strongly. Locke's face whitened, then grew +muddy and yellow, his hands trembled, his lips went dry. He half +arose from his chair, then cast a swift look about the room. His +companions were too well occupied, however, to notice this by-play +even when the waiter continued, in a low tone: + +"He slipped me a ten-spot, so I thought it must be something worth +while." + +"He--he's alone, you say?" + +"Seems to be. What shall I do, sir?" + +Locke took something from his pocket and thrust it into the +fellow's hand, while the look in his eyes changed to one of +desperation. + +"Step outside and wait. Don't let him come up. I'll call you in a +minute." + +Ringold was recounting his version of the first touchdown--how he +had been forced inch by inch across the goal line to the tune of +thirty thousand yelling throats and his companions were hanging +upon his words, when their new friend interrupted in such a tone +that Anthony inquired in surprise: + +"What's wrong, old man? Are you sick?" + +Locke shook his head. "I told you fellows I'd been followed this +evening. Remember? Well, there's a man down-stairs who has given +the waiter ten dollars to let him have his coat and apron so he +can come in here." + +"What for?" + +"Who is he?" + +The men stared at the speaker with a sudden new interest. + +"I'm not sure. I--think it's part of a plan to rob me." He let his +gaze roam from one face to another. "You see--I just came into a +big piece of coin, and I've got it with me. I'm--I'm alone in New +York, understand? They've followed me from St. Louis. Now, I want +you boys to help me dodge this--" + +Kirk Anthony rose suddenly, moving as lightly upon his feet as a +dancer. + +"You say he's below?" + +Locke nodded. It was plain that he was quite unnerved. + +Ringold rose in turn and lurched ponderously toward the door, but +Kirk stepped in front of him with a sharp word: + +"Wait! I'll manage this." + +"Lemme go," expostulated the centre-rush. "Locke's a good fellow +and this man wants to trim him." + +"No, no! Sit down!" Ringold obeyed. "If he wants to join us, we'll +have him come up." + +"What?" cried Locke, leaping nervously from his chair. "Don't do +that. I want to get out of here." + +"Not a bit like it." Kirk's eyes were sparkling. "We'll give this +fellow the third degree and find out who his pals are." + +"Grand idea!" Higgins seconded with enthusiasm. "Grand!" + +"Hold on! I can't do that. I've got to sail at ten o'clock. I +don't dare get into trouble, don't you understand? It's +important." Locke seemed in an extraordinary panic. + +"Oh, we'll see that you catch your boat all right," Kirk assured +him; and then before the other could interfere he rang for the +waiter. + +"Give that chap your coat and apron," he ordered, when the +attendant answered, "and when I ring next send him up. Pass the +word to Padden and the others not to notice any little +disturbance. I'll answer for results." + +"I'm going to get out," cried the man from St. Louis. "He mustn't +see me." + +"He'll see you sure if you leave now. You'll have to pass him. +Stick here. We'll have some fun." + +The white-faced man sank back into his chair, while Anthony +directed sharply: + +"Now, gentlemen, be seated. Here, Locke, your back to the door-- +your face looks like a chalk-mine. There! Now don't be so nervous-- +we'll cure this fellow's ambition as a gin-slinger. I'll change +names with you for a minute. Now, Ringold, go ahead with your +story." Then, as the giant took up his tale again: "Listen to him, +fellows; look pleasant, please. Remember you're not sitting up +with a corpse. A little more ginger, Ringie. Good!" He pushed the +button twice, and a moment Later the door opened quietly to admit +a medium-sized man in white coat and apron. + +Had the young men been a little less exhilarated they might have +suspected that Locke's story of having been dogged from St. Louis +was a trifle exaggerated; for, instead of singling him out at +first glance, the new-comer paused at a respectful distance inside +the door and allowed his eyes to shift uncertainly from one to +another as if in doubt as to which was his quarry. Anthony did not +dream that it was his own resemblance to the Missourian that led +to this confusion, but in fact, while he and Locke were totally +unlike when closely compared, they were of a similar size and +coloring, and the same general description would have fitted both. + +Having allowed the intruder a moment in which to take in the room, +Kirk leaned back in his chair and nodded for him to approach. + +"Cigars!" he ordered. "Bring a box of Carolinas." + +"Yes, sir. Are you Mr. Locke, sir?" inquired the new waiter. + +"Yes," said Kirk. + +"Telephone message for you, Mr. Locke," the waiter muttered. + +"What's that?" Anthony queried, loud enough for the others to +hear. + +"Somebody calling you by 'phone. They're holding the wire outside. +I'll show you the booth." + +"Oh, will you?" Kirk Anthony's hands suddenly shot out and seized +the masquerader by the throat. The man uttered a startled gasp, +but simultaneously the iron grip of Marty Ringold fell upon his +arms and doubled them behind him, while Kirk gibed: + +"You'll get me outside and into a telephone booth, eh? My dear +sir, that is old stuff." + +The rest of the party were on their feet instantly, watching the +struggle and crowding forward with angry exclamations. Ringold, +with the man's two wrists locked securely in his own huge paw, was +growling: + +"Smooth way to do up a fellow, I call it." + +"All the way from St. Louis for a telephone call, eh?" Anthony +sank his thumbs into the stranger's throat, then, as the man's +face grew black and his contortions diminished, added: "We're +going to make a good waiter out of you." + +Jefferson Locke broke in excitedly: "Choke him good! Choke him! +That's right. Put him out for keeps. For God's sake, don't let him +go!" + +But it was not Kirk's idea to strangle his victim beyond a certain +point. He relaxed his grip after a moment and, nodding to Ringold +to do likewise, took the fellow's wrists himself, then swung him +about until he faced the others. The man's lungs filled with fresh +air, he began to struggle once more, and when his voice had +returned he gasped: + +"I'll get you for this. You'll do a trick--" He mumbled a name +that did not sound at all like Jefferson Locke, whereupon the +Missourian made a rush at him that required the full strength of +Anthony's free hand to thwart. + +"Here, stand back! I've got him!" + +"I'll kill him!" chattered the other. + +"Let me go," the stranger gasped. "I'll take you all in. I'm an +officer." + +"It's a lie!" shouted Locke. "He's a thief." + +"I tell you I'm--an officer; I arrest this--" + +The words were cut off abruptly by a loud exclamation from Higgins +and a crash of glass. Kirk Anthony's face was drenched, his eyes +were filled with a stinging liquid; he felt his prisoner sink +limply back into his arms and beheld Higgins struggling in the +grasp of big Marty Ringold, the foil-covered neck of a wine bottle +in his fingers. + +The foolish fellow had been hovering uncertainly round the edges +of the crowd, longing to help his friends and crazily anxious to +win glory by some deed of valor. At the first opening he had +darted wildly into the fray, not realizing that the enemy was +already helpless in the hands of his captors. + +"I've got him!" he cried, joyously. "He's out!' + +"Higgins!" Anthony exclaimed, sharply. "What the devil--" Then the +dead weight in his arms, the lolling head and sagging jaw of the +stranger, sobered him like a deluge of ice-water. + +"You've done it this time," he muttered. + +"Good God!" Locke cried. "Let's get away! He's hurt!" + +"Here, you!" Anthony shot a command at the speaker that checked +him half-way across the room. "Ringold, take the door and don't +let anybody in or out." To Higgins he exclaimed, "You idiot, +didn't you see I had his hands?" + +"No. Had to get him," returned Higgins, with vinous dignity. +"Wanted to rob my old friend, Mr.--What's his name?" + +"We've got to leave quick before we get in bad," Locke reiterated, +nervously, but Anthony retorted: + +"We're in bad now. I want Padden." He stepped to the door and +signaled a passing waiter. A moment later the proprietor knocked, +and Ringold admitted him. + +"What's the--" Padden started at sight of the motionless figure on +the floor, and, kneeling beside it, made a quick examination, +while Anthony explained the circumstances leading up to the +assault. + +"Thief, eh? I see." + +"Is he badly hurt?" queried Locke, bending a pale face upon them. + +"Huh! I guess he's due for the hospital," the owner of the +Austrian Village announced. "He had his nerve, trying to turn a +trick in my place. I thought I knew all the dips, but he's a +stranger." With nimble fingers he ran through the fellow's +pockets, then continued: + +"I'm glad you got him, but you'd better get together and rehearse +before the police--" He stopped abruptly once more, then looked up +curiously. + +"What is it?" questioned the man from Missouri. + +Padden pointed silently to the lapel of the fellow's vest, which +he had turned back. A nickeled badge was pinned upon it. "He's no +thief; he's a detective--a plain-clothes man!" + +"Wha'd I tell you!" Higgins exulted. "I can smell 'em!" + +The crowd looked nonplussed, with the exception of Jefferson +Locke, who became calmer than at any time since the waiter had +first whispered into his ear. + +"We didn't know who he was," he began, hurriedly, "You must square +it for us, Padden. I don't care what it costs." He extended a +bulky roll of bank-notes toward the gray-haired man. "These boys +can't stand this sort of thing, and neither can I. I've got to +sail at ten o'clock this morning." + +"Looks to me like you've croaked him," said the proprietor, +ignoring the proffered money. + +"It's worth a thousand dollars to me not to miss my boat." + +"Wait a minute." Padden emptied the unconscious man's pockets, +among other things of some telegrams and a legally folded paper. +The latter he opened and scanned swiftly, then turned his little +eyes upon Locke without a word, whereupon that gentleman, with +equal silence, took from his inside pocket a wallet, and selected +a bill, the denomination of which he displayed to the; proprietor +before folding it inside the bundle he held. + +"Here! It may cost you something." + +Padden nodded and accepted the money, saying: + +"Oh, I guess I can fix it. I know the right doctor." He regained +his feet, then warned the onlookers: "But you'll have to keep your +traps closed, understand?" + +"Will he die?" asked Ringold, fearfully, his back still against +the door. + +"Not a chance. But if he does he'll never know who hit him. You +see, we picked him up in the alley and brought him in." Padden +winked meaningly. "It happens right along in this part of town. Do +you get me? I'll keep these." He indicated the badge and papers in +his hand. "Now go out as if nothing had come off. Drop in again +the next time you're in town. I'll take care of the supper +checks." + +As the partly sobered visitors struggled into their overcoats +Padden drew Locke aside, and, nodding toward Higgins, who was +still talkative, said: + +"If you want to catch that ten o'clock boat you'd better stick +close to your friend; I know him." + +"Thanks!" Locke glanced at the prostrate figure, then inquired in +a low tone: "On the level, will he make it?" + +"Hard to tell. Just the same, if I was you I'd change my sailing-- +he might come to." + +"You chaps have done me a big favor to-night," said Locke, a +little later, when he and his companions were safely out of the +Austrian Village, "and I won't forget it, either. Now let's finish +the evening the way we began it." + +Anderson, Rankin, and Burroughs, to conceal their nervousness, +pleaded bodily fatigue, while Anthony also declared that he had +enjoyed himself sufficiently for one night and intended to go home +and to bed. "That episode rather got on my nerves," he +acknowledged. + +"Mine, too," assented Locke. "That's why you mustn't leave me. I +just won't let you. Remember, you agreed to see me off." + +"'S'right, fellows," Higgins joined in. "We agreed to put him +aboard and we must do it. Don't break up the party, Kirk." + +"I don't want to go home," Ringold muttered. + +"It's a breach of hospitality to go home," Higgins insisted. +"Besides, after my bloody 'ncounter with that limb of the law I +need a stimulant. You must look after me." + +"I shall tuck you in your little bed," Kirk told him. But Higgins +would hear to nothing of the sort, protesting that he was in honor +bound to conduct his old friend Locke to the steamer, and Anthony +feared that without his protection some harm might befall his +irresponsible and impulsive companion. Candor requires it to be +said that he did hesitate, arguing long with the limp-legged +Higgins; but Locke was insistent, the others grew impatient of the +delay, and in the end he allowed himself to be persuaded. + +It is often through just such sudden, inconsequent decisions, +influenced perhaps by the merest trifles, that a man's life is +made great or small; just such narrow forkings of the trail may +divert him into strange adventurings, or into worlds undreamed of. +Kirk Anthony, twenty-six years old, with a heritage at hand, and +with an average capacity for good or evil, chose the turning that +led him swiftly from the world he knew into an alien land. + +Numbed as they were by the excesses of the evening, it did not +take the young men long to lose all clear and vivid remembrance of +this recent experience; for the time had come when Nature was +offering her last resistance, and their brains were badly awhirl. +Of all the four, Jefferson Locke was the only one who retained his +wits to the fullest--a circumstance that would have proved him the +owner of a remarkably steady head had it not been for the fact +that he had cunningly substituted water for gin each time it came +his turn to drink. It was a commentary upon the state of his +companions that they did not notice the limpid clearness of his +beverage. + +Dawn found them in an East Side basement drinking-place frequented +by the lowest classes. Ringold was slumbering peacefully, half +overflowing the wet surface of a table; Anthony had discovered +musical talent in the bartender and was seated at a battered +piano, laboriously experimenting with the accompaniment to an +Irish ballad; Higgins and Locke were talking earnestly. It was the +slackest, blackest hour in an all-night dive; the nocturnal +habitues had slunk away, and the day's trade had not yet begun. +Higgins, drawn and haggard beneath his drunken flush, was babbling +incessantly; Locke, as usual, sat facing the entrance, his eyes +watchful, his countenance alert. In spite of the fact that he had +constantly plied his companion with liquor in the hope of stilling +his tongue, Higgins seemed incapable of silence, and kept breaking +forth into loud, garbled recitals of the scene at Padden's, which +caused the Missourian to shiver with apprehension. To a sober eye +it would have been patent that Locke was laboring under some +strong excitement; for every door that opened caused him to start, +every stranger that entered made him quake. He consulted his watch +repeatedly, he flushed and paled and fidgeted, then lost himself +in frowning meditation. + +"Grandes' fellow I ever met," Higgins was saying for the hundredth +time. "Got two faults, tha's all; he's modesht an' he's lazy--he +won't work." + +"Anthony?" + +"Yes." + +Locke stirred himself, and, leaning forward, said: "You and he are +good friends, eh?" + +"Best ever." + +"Would you like to play a joke on him?" + +"Joke? Can't be done. He's wises' guy ever. I've tried it an' +always get the wors' of it. Yes, sir, he's wise guy. Jus' got two +faults: he won't work an'--" + +"Look here! Why don't you make him work?" + +"Huh?" Higgins turned a pair of bleared, unfocusable eyes upon the +speaker. + +"Why don't somebody make him work?" + +The lean-faced youth laughed moistly. + +"Tha's good joke." + +"I mean it." + +"Got too much money. 'S old man puts up reg'lar." + +"Listen! It's a shame for a fine fellow like him to go to the +dogs." Higgins nodded heavily in agreement. "Why don't you send +him away where he'll have to rustle? That's the joke I meant." + +"Huh?" Again the listener's mind failed to follow, and Locke +repeated his words, concluding: "It would make a new man of him." + +"Oh, he wouldn't work. Too lazy." + +"He'd have to if he were broke." + +"But he AIN'T broke. Didn't I tell you 's old man puts up reg'lar? +Fine man, too, Misser Anthony; owns railroads." + +"I'll tell you how we can work it. I've got a ticket for Central +America in my pocket. The boat sails at ten. Let's send him down +there." + +"Wha' for?" + +Locke kept his temper with an effort. "To make a man of him. We'll +go through his clothes and when he lands he'll be broke. He'll +HAVE to work. Don't you see?" + +"No." Anthony's friend did not see. "He don't want to go to +Central America," he argued; "he's got a new autom'bile." + +"But suppose we got him soused, went through his pockets, and then +put him aboard the boat. He'd be at sea by the time he woke up; he +couldn't get back; he'd have to work; don't you see? He'd be broke +when he landed and have to rustle money to get back with. I think +it's an awful funny idea." + +The undeniable humor of such a situation finally dawned upon +Higgins's mind, and he burst into a loud guffaw. + +"Hey there! Shut up!" Anthony called from the piano. "Listen here! +I've found the lost chord." He bore down with his huge hands upon +the yellow keyboard, bringing forth a metallic crash that blended +fearfully with the bartender's voice. "It's a great discovery." + +"I'll get him full if you'll help manage him," Locke went on. "And +here's the ticket." He tapped his pocket. + +"Where'd you get it?" + +"Bought it yesterday. It's first class and better, and he'll fit +my description. We're about the same size." + +"Ain't you goin'?" + +"No. I've changed my mind. I may jump over to Paris. Come, are you +on?" + +Higgins giggled. "Darn' funny idea, if you can get him full." + +"Wait." Locke rose and went to the bar, where he called loudly for +the singer; then, when the bartender had deserted the piano, he +spoke to Anthony: "Keep it up, old man, you're doing fine." + +For some moments he talked earnestly to the man behind the bar; +but his back was to Higgins, Anthony was occupied, and Ringold +still slumbered; hence no one observed the transfer of another of +those yellow bills of which he seemed to have an unlimited store. + +Strangely enough, Mr. Jefferson Locke's plan worked without a +hitch. Within ten minutes after Kirk Anthony had taken the drink +handed him he declared himself sleepy, and rose from the piano, +only to seek a chair, into which he flung himself heavily. + +"It's all right," Locke told his drunken companion. "I've got a +taxi waiting. We'll leave Ringold where he is." + +Twenty-four hours later Adelbert Higgins undertook to recall what +had happened to him after he left Muller's place on East +Fourteenth Street, but his memory was tricky. He recollected a +vaguely humorous discussion of some sort with a stranger, the +details of which were almost entirely missing. He remembered that +dawn had broken when he came out of the saloon, but beyond that he +could not go with any degree of certainty. There was a hazy memory +of an interminable ride in a closed vehicle of some sort, a dizzy +panorama of moving buildings, bleak, wind-swept trees, frosty +meadows, and land-locked lakes backed by what were either distant +mountain ranges or apartment houses. This last, however, was all +very blurred and indistinct. + +As to who was with him on the ride, or what took place thereafter, +he had no memory and no opportunity of learning, owing to certain +unexpected and alarming occurrences which made it imperative for +him to terminate his connection with his college, as big Marty +Ringold had done earlier in the day, and begin to pack his +belongings. Partly out of deference to the frantic appeals of his +widowed mother, partly owing to the telephoned advice of Mr. +Michael Padden, of Sixth Avenue, who said the injured man had +recognized one of his assailants, he booked passage to Japan by +the next steamer out of Vancouver. He left New York that afternoon +by the Twentieth Century Limited, taking with him only one suit- +case and a determination to see the world. + + + + +III + +A GAP + + +Strictly speaking, Kirk Anthony did not awake to a realization of +his surroundings, but became conscious of them through a long +process of dull, dreamy speculation. He never knew the precise +moment when his eyes opened and sleep left him, but at cost of +considerable mental effort he finally brought himself to the +conviction that hours had passed and another day had arrived. More +than once after long, white nights in New York City, he had +awakened amid strange surroundings and had been forced to wait +upon his lagging memory; but this time his mind refused to work, +even after he knew himself to be fully roused. So he closed his +eyes with the admonition: + +"Now, begin all over again, Kirk. When you left Padden's place you +went to Maxim's and listened to the fat quartette, then to the +place where the waiter held out a dollar. After the trouble at +that point, you tried to get into Tony's rathskeller and couldn't, +so you started for the East Side. Ringold was very drunk. Good! +Everything is clear so far. Next you were playing a piano with +yellow teeth while somebody sang something about a 'Little Brown +Cot.' After that--Lord, you must have been drinking! Well, let's +run through it again." + +But his efforts were vain; he could recall nothing beyond the +piano, so fell to wondering what hotel this could be. + +"Some East Side joint," he decided, "and a cheap one too, from the +size of this stall." He noted another brass bed close at hand and +reasoned that Ringold or Higgins must have risen early, leaving +him to finish his sleep. That was considerate, of course, but-- +Good heavens, it must be late! And he was due to motor to New +Haven at noon! He raised himself suddenly, and was half out of bed +when he fell back, with a cry, as if an unseen hand had smitten +him. He clapped both palms to his head, realizing that he was very +sick indeed. The sensation was unlike anything he had ever felt +before. His head was splitting, he felt a frightful nausea, the +whole room was rocking and reeling as if to pitch him out of bed. +It was terrible; so he arose blindly and felt his way toward the +telephone. Failing to find it, he pushed a button instead, then +tumbled back to bed, reviling the luck that had brought him to +such a miserable place. He closed his eyes tightly and calmed his +stomach by an effort of will. At last he heard the door open and a +voice inquire: + +"Did you ring, sir?" + +"An hour ago. Haven't you more than one bell-hop in this place?" + +"I'm sorry, sir." + +"And I'm sick, mighty sick. I'm going to die." + +"I think not, sir; the others are sick, too." + +"That's good! I was afraid they'd dressed and gone." It was some +consolation to know that Ringold and Higgins had not escaped their +share of suffering. "How is Hig--the bony fellow?" + +"Do you mean the gentleman in thirty-two?" + +"How should I know his number? That's not Hig's description, +however--even you could tell that he is no gentle--Oh, Lord!" + +"Can I get you something, sir--a little champagne, perhaps, to +settle your stomach?" + +"NO, NO! Get me a taxicab. I want to go up-town." + +"Rather a long drive, isn't it?" snickered the bell-boy. + +"Never mind the comedy." Anthony opened his eyes. "Hello! Are you +the clerk?" Instead of the bell-hop he had expected he beheld a +man in white jacket and black trousers. + +"No, sir, I'm the steward." + +The invalid shook his head faintly. "Funny place I've got into. +What's the name of it?" + +"This? Oh! The SANTA CRUZ." + +"Never heard of it. Why didn't they give me a good room? This is +fierce." + +"Suite A is considered very good, sir. It is one of the best on +the line." + +"Line?" Kirk grunted. "So this is some dead-line dump. Well, I'm +going to get out--understand? Hand me my trousers and I'll slip +you a quarter." + +The steward did as desired, but a blind search showed the pockets +to be empty. + +"Give me the coat and vest." But here again Kirk found nothing, +and was forced to apologize. "Sorry, old man, but I must have left +it at the office. Now be a good fellow and hustle up that taxi. +I'm getting sicker every minute." + +"Perhaps you had better have the doctor?" + +"Is there a good one handy?" + +"Yes, sir." + +"Here in the hotel?" + +The steward seemed undecided whether to treat the occupant of +Suite A as a humorist or a lunatic, but finally he observed, "This +isn't a hotel, sir." + +"That's what I though-t-more like a roadhouse," "This is a ship." + +"A--WHAT?" Anthony raised himself and stared at the white-clad +figure over the foot of his little brass bed. + +"This is a ship, sir." + +"You get out of here!" yelled the infuriated young man. He cast +his eyes about for some missile to hurl at this insolent menial, +and, spying a heavy glass pitcher upon a stand beside him, reached +for it, whereat the steward retreated hastily to the door. + +"I beg pardon, sir. I will send the doctor at once." + +"Must think I'm still drunk," mumbled Anthony, dazedly, as he once +more laid his head upon his pillow with a groan. + +When his dizziness had diminished sufficiently to permit him to +open his eyes he scanned his surroundings more carefully; but his +vision was unreliable. His head, too, continued to feel as if his +skull were being forcibly spread apart by some fiendish instrument +concealed within it. His mouth was parched, his stomach violently +rebellious. In spite of these distractions he began to note +certain unfamiliar features about this place. The wall-paper, for +instance, which at first glance he had taken for the work of some +cheap decorator, turned out to be tapestry, as he proved by +extending a shaky hand. The low ceiling, the little windows with +wooden blinds, the furniture itself, were all out of keeping with +hotel usages. He discovered by rolling his head that there was a +mahogany dresser over by the door and a padded couch covered with +chintz. There were folding brass clothes-hooks on the wall, +moreover, and an electric fan, while a narrow door gave him a +glimpse of a tiny, white-enamelled bath-room. + +He took in these details laboriously, deciding finally that he was +too intoxicated to see aright, for, while the place was quite +unlike an ordinary hotel room, neither did it resemble any +steamship stateroom he had ever seen; it was more like a lady's +boudoir. To be sure, he felt a sickening surge and roll now and +then, but at other times the whole room made a complete +revolution, which was manifestly contrary to the law of +gravitation and therefore not to be trusted as evidence. There +were plenty of reasons, moreover, why this could not be a ship. +The mere supposition was absurd. No, this must be a room in some +up-town club, or perhaps a bachelor hotel. Kirk had many friends +with quarters decorated to suit their own peculiar fancies, and he +decided that in all probability one of these had met him on the +street and taken him home for safe-keeping. He had barely settled +this in his mind when the door opened for a second time and a man +in uniform entered. + +"The steward said you wanted me," he began. + +"No; I want a doctor." + +"I am the doctor." + +"I thought you were the elevator man. I'm sick--awful sick--" + +"Can you vomit?" + +"Certainly! Anybody can do that." + +The stranger pulled up a stool, seated himself beside the bed, +then felt of Anthony's cheek. + +"You have a fever." + +"That explains everything." Kirk sighed thankfully and closed his +eyes once more, for the doctor had begun to revolve slowly, with +the bed as an axis. "How are the other boys coming on?" + +"Everybody is laid out. It's a bad night." + +"Night? It must be nearly daylight by this time." + +"Oh no! It is not midnight yet." + +"Not midnight? Why, I didn't turn in until--" Anthony raised +himself suddenly. "Good Lord! have I slept all day?" + +"You certainly have." + +"Whose room is this?" + +"Your room, of course. Here, take one of these capsules; it will +settle your stomach." + +"Better give me something to settle my bill if I've been here that +long. I'm broke again." + +"You're not fully awake yet," said the doctor. "People have funny +ideas when they're sick." + +"Well, I know I'm broke, anyhow! That's no idea; it's a condition. +I went through my clothes just now and I'm all in. I must get back +to the Astor, too, for I had arranged to motor up to New Haven at +noon." + +"Let me feel your pulse," said the doctor, quietly. + +"The boys will think I'm lost. I never did such a thing before." + +"Where do you think you are?" inquired the physician. + +"I don't know. It's a nice little hotel, but--" + +"This isn't a hotel. This is a ship." + +Anthony was silent for a moment. Then he sighed feebly and said: + +"Doctor, you shouldn't make fun of a man at the point of death. It +isn't professional." + +"Fact," said the doctor, abstractedly gazing at his watch, while +he held Anthony's wrist between his fingers. "We are one hundred +and fifty miles out of New York. The first officer told me you +were considerably intoxicated when you came aboard, but," he +continued brusquely, rising and closing his watch with a snap, +"you will remember it all in a little while, Mr. Locke." + +"What did you call me?" + +"Locke. You haven't forgotten your name, too?" + +"Wait!" + +Again Anthony pressed his throbbing temples with both hot hands +and strove to collect his whirling wits. At last he began to +speak, measuring his words with care. + +"Now, I KNOW you are wrong, Doctor, and I'll tell you why. You +see, my name isn't Locke; it's Anthony. Locke went away on a ship, +but _I_ stayed in New York; understand? Well, he's the fellow +you're talking to and I'm asleep somewhere down around the Bowery. +I'm not here at all. _I_ didn't want to go anywhere on a ship; I +couldn't go; I didn't have the price. That supper was a hundred +and seventy." + +"Nevertheless, this is a ship," the physician patiently explained, +"and you're on it and I'm talking to you. What is more, you have +not exchanged identities with your friend Anthony, for your ticket +reads 'Jefferson Locke.' You'll be all right if you will just go +to sleep and give that capsule a chance to operate." + +"Ask Higgins or Ringold who I am." + +"There's no one aboard by either of those names." + +"Say!" Anthony raised himself excitedly on one arm, but was forced +to lie down again without delay. "If this is a ship, I must have +come aboard. How did I do it? When? Where?" + +"You came on with two men, or rather between two men, about eight- +thirty this morning. They put you in here, gave your ticket to the +purser, and went ashore. The slim fellow was crying, and one of +the deck-hands had to help him down the gangway." + +"That was Higgins all right. Now, Doctor, granting, just for the +sake of argument, that this is a ship and that I am Jefferson +Locke, when is your next stop?" + +"One week." + +"What?" Kirk's eyes opened wide with horror. "I can't stay here a +week." + +"You will have to." + +"But I tell you I CAN'T, I just can't. I bought a new car the +other day and it's standing in front of the New York Theatre. Yes, +and I have two rooms and a bath at the Astor, at fifteen dollars a +day." + +The physician smiled heartlessly. "You must have been drinking +pretty heavily, but I guess you will remember everything by-and- +by." + +"I can't understand it," groaned the bewildered invalid. "What +ship is this--if it is really a ship?" + +"The SANTA CRUZ. Belongs to the United Fruit Company. This is one +of the bridal suites; it is 11:30 P.M., November 21st. We are +bound for Colon." + +"Where is that?" + +"Panama." + +"Panama is in Central America or Mexico or somewhere, isn't it?" + +"It is. Now, do you remember anything more?" + +"Not a thing." + +"Well, then, go to sleep. You'll be all right in the morning, Mr. +Locke." + +"Anthony." + +"Very well, Mr. Anthony, if you prefer. Is there anything more you +would like to ask me?" + +"No." + +"Of course, there may have been some mistake," the medical man +observed, doubtfully, as he opened the door. "Maybe you intended +to take some other ship?" + +"No mistake at all," the sick man assured him. "I'm beginning to +remember now. You see, I lost my hat and decided I'd run down to +Panama and get another. Good-night." + +"Good-night. That capsule will make you sleep." + +When the officer had gone Kirk mumbled to himself: "If it turns +out that I AM in New York, after all, when I wake up I'll lick +that doctor." Then he turned over and fell asleep. + +But morning showed him the truth of the doctor's information. He +awoke early and, although his head still behaved queerly and he +had moments of nausea, he dressed himself and went on deck. The +shock he had received on the evening before was as nothing to what +he felt now upon stepping out into the light of day. In spite of +his growing conviction, he had cherished a lingering hope that it +was all a dream, and the feeling did not entirely vanish until he +had really seen for himself. Then his dismay was overwhelming. + +A broad deck, still wet from its morning scrubbing and lined with +steamer chairs, lay in front of him. A limitless, oily sea +stretched out before his bewildered eyes; he touched the rail with +his hands to verify his vision. The strangeness of it was uncanny. +He felt as if he were walking in his sleep. He realized that a +great fragment had suddenly dropped out of his life's pattern, and +it was intensely disquieting to think of all it might have carried +with it. + +He began to pace the deck mechanically, falling in with the other +early risers who were out for a breath of morning air, striving to +adjust himself to this new state of affairs. But even though the +solid reality of his surroundings soon brought him back more +nearly to a normal state of mind, he felt an ever-present +expectancy of some new shock, some new and abrupt transition that +might yet bring him back to his starting-point. But this obsession +gradually left him, as the brisk sea breeze brought him to a +proper perspective and braced him to face the full consequences of +his long, restless night's orgy. + +No man is so systematic, none is so well ordered in his affairs, +that he can cut out a slice of his life at a moment's notice +without suffering many kinds of loss and inconvenience. Although +Anthony was a youth of few responsibilities, he awoke suddenly to +the fact that there were a thousand things that needed doing, a +thousand people who needed to know his whereabouts, a thousand +things that were bound to go wrong. For instance, there was his +brand-new French car, standing with motor blanketed beside the +Forty-fifth Street curb. + +What had happened to it, and to the urchin he had left in charge +of it? He owed a thousand dollars on its purchase, which he had +promised to pay yesterday. Then, too, he had neglected his house +account at the University Club, and it was long overdue. That +remittance from his father had come just in the nick of time. +Suddenly he recalled placing the check in his bill-case, and he +searched himself diligently, but found nothing. That reminded him +that he had won a bet or two on the football game and the money +needed collecting. There was the shooting trip to Cape Cod as +well. He was due there to-day for a week-end among the geese and +brant. What would Benny Glover think when he failed to show up or +even telegraph? Benny's sister was coming down from Boston with +some friends and--oh, it was simply imperative that he get some +word ashore. + +He let his eyes rove over the ship in desperation, then a happy +thought came to him. + +"The wireless!" he said aloud. "Bonehead! Why didn't you think of +that long ago?" A glance at the rigging showed him that the Santa +Cruz was equipped with a plant, and a moment later he was +hammering at the operator's door. + +"I want to send a message right away!" he cried, excitedly; but +the "wireless" shook his head with a smile. + +"I'm sorry, but--" + +"It's important; awfully important. I'll pay you anything!" Kirk +rammed a hand mechanically into his empty pocket. + +"We're installing a new system," said the operator. "The old +apparatus wasn't satisfactory and it's being changed throughout." + +"Then you-you can't send a message--possibly?" + +"Nothing doing until the next trip." + +Kirk strode forward and stared disconsolately down upon the +freight deck in a vain endeavor to collect his thoughts. How in +the devil had he managed to get into this mess? Could it be one of +Higgins's senseless pranks, or was there something deeper, more +sinister behind it? He recalled the incidents of that wild night +and began to have a disquieting doubt. Did that chance meeting +with the chap from St. Louis have anything to do with his presence +here, or had he really decided in some foolish, drunken whim to +take a trip to Central America? He hardly knew what to think or +where to begin his reasoning. He recollected that Jefferson Locke +had not impressed him very favorably at the start, and that his +behavior upon the appearance of the plain-clothes man had not +improved that first impression. It seemed certain that he must +have had his hand in this affair, else how would Anthony now find +himself in possession of his ticket? What had become of the +rightful occupant of Suite A? What had become of Higgins's +unfortunate victim with the cracked head? What did it all signify? +Kirk sighed disconsolately and gave it up. In five days more he +would learn the answer, anyhow, for there must be a cable from +Panama to the States. Meanwhile, he supposed he must reconcile +himself to his condition. But it was tough to have two weeks of +valuable time snatched out of his eventful life. It was maddening. + + + + +IV + +NEW ACQUAINTANCES + + +The sound of a bugle, which Kirk interpreted as an invitation to +breakfast, reminded him that he was famished, and he lost no time +in going below. Upon his appearance the steward made it plain to +him in some subtle manner that the occupant of Suite A needed +nothing beyond the mere possession of those magnificent quarters +to insure the most considerate treatment. Kirk was placed at the +captain's table, where his hunger was soon appeased, and his +outlook grew more cheerful with the complete restoration of bodily +comfort. Feeling somewhat less dissatisfied with his surroundings, +he began to study the faces of his fellow-passengers. + +"Getting your sea legs, Mr. Locke?" inquired the man at his right. + +"My name is Anthony." + +"I beg your pardon! The passenger list said--" + +"That was a mistake." + +"My name is Stein. May I ask where you are bound for?" + +"I think the place is Panama." + +"Going to work on the canal?" + +"What canal? Oh, of course! Now I remember hearing something about +a Panama Canal. Is that where it is?" + +"That's the place," Stein replied, dryly. + +"I'm not going to work. I don't work--don't know how." + +"I see. Pleasure trip?" + +"Purely a pleasure trip. I'm having a great time. By-the-way, this +canal affair is something new, isn't it?" + +"It was begun about thirty years ago." Mr. Stein regarded the +speaker with puzzled inquiry, as if undecided in what spirit to +take him. + +"What's the idea? Why don't they finish it up?" + +"I thought you were an American," returned the other, politely. +"You have no accent." + +"I am an American. I'm the fellow who was born in Albany, New +York. If you look on the map you'll find the town has a little +ring around it." + +"And really don't you know anything about the Panama Canal?" + +"Oh, I've heard it mentioned." + +"Well, you won't hear anything else mentioned down here; it's the +one and only subject of conversation. Nobody thinks or talks or +dreams about anything except the canal. Everybody works on it or +else works for somebody who does. For instance, that white-haired +man at the other end of the table is Colonel Bland, one of the +commissioners. The man over there with the black beard is one of +the engineers at Gatun." + +Stein, who seemed a gossipy person, ran on glibly for a time, +pointing out the passengers of note and giving brief details about +them. Suddenly he laid his hand on Anthony's arm, and said: + +"See this fellow coming down the stairs?" Anthony beheld a +slender, bald-headed man of youthful appearance. "That is Stephen +Cortlandt. You've heard of the Cortlandts?" + +"Sure! One of them pitched for the Cubs." + +"I mean the Cortlandts of Washington. They're swell people, +society folks and all that--" He broke off to bow effusively to +the late comer, who seated himself opposite; then he introduced +Kirk. + +Mr. Cortlandt impressed Anthony as a cold-blooded, highly schooled +person, absolutely devoid of sentiment. His face was stony, his +eyes were cool, even his linen partook of his own unruffled calm. +He seemed by no means effeminate, yet he was one of those +immaculate beings upon whom one can scarcely imagine a speck of +dust or a bead of perspiration. His hair--what was left of it--was +parted to a nicety, his clothes were faultless, and he had an air +of quiet assurance. + +"By-the-way, we're getting up a pool on the ship's run," Stein +told his new acquaintance. "Would you like to join?" + +"Yes, indeed. I'm for anything in the line of chance." + +"Very well. I'll see you in the smoking-room later. It will cost +you only five dollars." + +Kirk suddenly recalled his financial condition and hastened to +say, a trifle lamely: + +"Come to think about it, I believe I'll stay out. I never gamble." +Chancing to glance up at the moment, he found Mr. Cortlandt's eyes +fixed upon him with a peculiarly amused look, and a few minutes +later he followed Mr. Stein to the deck above. + +Once in his own stateroom, the young man began a thorough +exploration, realizing more keenly than before that without +baggage or money his plight might prove distressing. But, look as +he would, he could find no trace of either, and an inadvertent +glance in the mirror betrayed the further fact that his linen was +long since past a presentable stage. Another despairing search +showed that even his watch was gone and that his only asset, +evidently overlooked by the hilarious Higgins and his co-partner +in crime, was a modest three-stone finger ring. He was regarding +this speculatively when the purser knocked, then entered at his +call. + +"I've just heard that there's a mistake about your ticket," the +new-comer began. "It is made out to 'Mr. Jefferson Locke,' but the +doctor says you insist your name is something else." + +"That's right. My name is Anthony." + +"Then how did I get this ticket?" + +"I'm sure I don't know." + +"Have you any baggage?" + +"I don't know." + +"What is your destination?" + +"I don't know. You'll pardon my limited vocabulary?" + +"Are you joking?" + +"Do I look as if I were?" + +"But I don't understand." + +"Neither do I. But I must have some luggage--a fellow wouldn't +make a trip like this without baggage, would he?" + +"I should think not. I'll look it up for you if you wish. But +about this ticket--" + +"My dear man, don't bother me with that. I have worries enough as +it is. What I want now is a clean shirt and collar." + +"Yes, but this ticket says--" + +"Please! Look at my linen. I'll create a scandal this way." + +"Mr. Locke--" + +"Anthony." + +"Very well, Mr. Anthony. I must straighten out this ticket affair. +Really, I must." + +"All right, straighten away." + +"If you are not Mr. Locke, it is no good." + +"Hurrah! Put me off." + +"You don't understand--the ticket is good, but--See here, there's +something mighty strange about this. You say your name isn't +Locke, you have no baggage, you even thought this ship was a +hotel--" + +"I did. It was a great disappointment. And now I want a shirt." +Anthony began to laugh. "Funny, isn't it?" + +"You will have to buy another ticket," said the purser, with +dignity. + +"A bright idea!" Kirk smiled grimly; then, turning his pockets +wrong side out, continued lightly: "You look me over and if you +can find the price of a ticket I'll give you half." + +"Then you have lost your money as well as your baggage and your +identity?" + +"So it would seem." + +"Impossible!" + +It was plain that the officer was growing angry, so Kirk made +haste to say: + +"Now let's be friends, at least. By-the-way--pardon the personal +nature of the question--but--what size shirt do you wear?" + +"Seventeen." + +"Saved! Let me have about six, will you?" + +"Certainly NOT," returned the other. "I need all I have." + +"Miser! Then you must help me find some one my size." + +The purser, however, seemed in no mood to go shirt-hunting, and +backed out of the door, saying: "I'll have a look for your +baggage, Mr.--Anthony, and I'll see the captain about this ticket, +also. I don't know whether you're making fun of me or not, but-- +I'll look you up later." + +He departed, shaking his head as if this were a form of insanity +he had never before encountered. A moment later Kirk followed him +and made a round of the deck, staring at each man he met and +mentally estimating the girth of his neck; but it seemed that the +male passengers of the Santa Cruz were all of medium size, and he +saw no one whose appearance held out the slightest hope. He did +observe one fellow whose neck seemed as large as his own, but the +man looked surly and not too cleanly, and Kirk was not yet +desperate enough to bring himself to the point of approaching such +a fellow for such a favor. He thought of appealing directly to the +captain, but promptly remembered that he was a small, wiry man +whose wardrobe could by no possible chance afford him relief. At +last he made his way toward the smoking-room, determined to enlist +the help of his new acquaintance, Stein. + +Midway aft, he paused. A girl had emerged from the deck-house +ahead of him, whose appearance was sufficiently striking to divert +him, momentarily at least, from his quest. She was well above the +usual height, quite slender, yet of an exquisite rounded fulness, +while her snug-fitting tailor-made gown showed the marks of a +Redfern or a Paquin. He noted, also, that her stride was springy +and athletic and her head well carried. Feeling that friendly +approval with which one recognizes a member of his own kind, Kirk +let his eyes follow her, then retraced his way around the deck in +the hope of meeting her face to face. + +A woman frequently betrays her beauty by the poise of her head, by +the turn of her neck, or the lines of her figure, just as truly as +by a full glimpse of her features. Hence it was that Anthony felt +a certain pleasurable expectancy as he crossed in front of the +deck-house, realizing that she was approaching. But when they had +met and passed he went his way vaguely disappointed. Instead of a +girl, as the first sight of her youthful figure had led him to +expect, he had seen a woman of perhaps forty. There was little in +her countenance to reveal her age except a certain settled look +that does not go with girlhood, and, while no one could have +thought her plain, she was certainly not so handsome as he had +imagined from a distance. Yet the face was attractive. The eyes +were wide-set, gray, and very clear, the mouth large enough to be +expressive. Her hair shone in the morning sun with a delicate +bronze lustre like that of a turkey's wing. It did not add to the +young man's comfort to realize that her one straight, casual +glance in passing had taken him in from his soiled collar to his +somewhat extreme patent leathers with the tan tops and pearl +buttons. + +Being very young himself and of limited social experience, he +classed all women as either young or old--there was no middle +ground. So he dismissed her from his thoughts and continued his +search for a number seventeen shirt, and collar to match. But he +did not fare well. He found Mr. Stein in the smoking-room, but +discovered that his size was fifteen and a half; and there was no +one else to whom he could apply. + +For a second time Stein importuned him to buy a chance on the +ship's run, and, failing in this, suggested that they have a drink +together. Had not Kirk realized in time his inability to +reciprocate he would have accepted eagerly, for his recent +dissipation had left him curiously weak and nervous. At the cost +of an effort, however, he refused. It was a rare experience for +him to refuse anything, being, like many indolent youths, an +accomplished guest. In fact, he was usually as ready to accept +favors as he was carelessly generous when he happened to be in +funds. The technique of receiving comes to some people naturally; +others cannot assume an obligation without giving offence. Kirk +was one of the former. Yet now he felt a sudden, strange hesitancy +and a self-consciousness that made graceful acquiescence +impossible. He continued firm, therefore, even when Stein gibed at +him good-humoredly: + +"I suppose it's against your principles to drink, as well as to +gamble?" + +"Exactly." + +"That's good, after the way you came aboard." + +"How did I come aboard?" + +"Oh, I didn't see you, but I heard about it." + +Kirk flushed uncomfortably, muttering: "The acoustics of this ship +are great. A man can't fall asleep but what somebody hears it." + +Stein laughed: "Don't get sore; all ships are alike--we have to +talk about something. Sorry I can't help you with the shirt +question. Deuced careless of them to lose your luggage." + +"Yes! It makes one feel about as comfortable as a man with a +broken arm and the prickly heat. Something's got to be done about +it, that's all." He glared enviously at the well-dressed men about +the room. + +Over in a corner, propped against the leather upholstery, was Mr. +Cortlandt, as pale, as reserved, and as saturnine as at breakfast. +He was sipping Scotch-and-soda, and in all the time that Anthony +remained he did not speak to a soul save the waiter, did not shift +his position save to beckon for another drink. Something about his +sour, introspective aloofness displeased the onlooker, who shortly +returned to the deck. + +The day was warming up, and on the sunny side of the ship the +steamer chairs were filling. Two old men were casting quoits; a +noisy quartette was playing shuffle-board. After idling back and +forth for a time, Kirk selected a chair and stretched himself out; +but he was scarcely seated before the deck steward approached him +and said: + +"Do you wish this chair for the voyage, sir?" + +"Yes, I think so." + +"I'll put your name on it." + +"Anthony, Suite A, third floor, front." + +"Very well, sir." The man wrote out a card and fitted it to the +back of the chair, saying, "One dollar, if you please." + +"What?" + +"The price of the chair is one dollar." + +"I haven't got a dollar." + +The steward laughed as if to humor his passenger. "I'm afraid then +you can't have the chair." + +"So I must stand up all the way to Panama, eh?" + +"You are joking, sir. I'll have to pay it myself, if you don't." + +"That's right--make me as uncomfortable as possible. By-the-way, +what size collar do you wear?" + +"Sixteen." + +Kirk sighed. "Send the purser to me, will you? I'll fix up the +chair matter with him." + +While he was talking he heard the rustle of skirts close by and +saw the woman he had met earlier seating herself next to him. With +her was a French maid bearing a rug in her hands. It annoyed the +young man to realize that out of all the chairs on deck he had +selected the one nearest hers, and he would have changed his +position had he not been too indolent. As it was, he lay idly +listening to her words of direction to the maid; but as she spoke +in French, he was undecided whether she was telling her companion +that bad weather was imminent, or that the laundry needed +counting--his mind, it seemed, ran to laundry. + +Then the purser appeared. "Did you send for me?" he inquired. + +"Yes. There was a strange man around just now, and he wanted a +dollar for this chair." + +"Well?" + +"I want to establish a line of credit." + +The purser grunted. + +"And say!" Kirk ran on, seriously. "I've been all over your little +ship, but the passengers are boys' size. I can't wear this collar +any longer." + +"And I can't find any baggage of yours." + +"Then there isn't any. I never really expected there was. Come +now, be a good fellow. This is my 'case shirt." + +"If you really wish some clothes, I'll see what I can find among +the stewards." + +"No, no," Kirk hastily interposed, "I can't wear a shirt with soup +stains on it. Let me have one of yours--we're twin brothers." + +"I have no more than I need," said the purser, coldly. He opened a +cigarette case, at which Anthony gazed longingly. It seemed ages +since he had had a smoke; but the other seemed disinclined for +small courtesies. + +"I've seen the captain about that ticket matter," he went on, "and +he says you must buy another." + +Kirk shook his head languidly. "Once more I tell you there is +nothing doing." + +The officer broke out with some heat: "If you are joking, you've +carried this thing far enough. If you are really strapped, as you +say you are, how does it happen that you are occupying the best +suite on the ship?" + +"It is a long story." + +"Humph! You will have to give up those quarters and go forward." + +"Why? You have your money for that ticket?" + +"Yes, but you're not Mr. Locke." + +Kirk smiled meditatively. "How do you know?" he queried. + +"Good heavens! You've told me so a dozen--" + +"Ah! Then you have nothing except my word. Well, sir, now that I +come to think it over, I believe my name is Locke, after all." He +grinned. "Anyhow, I love my little room and I think I'll keep it. +Please don't be peevish. I want you to do me a favor." He removed +the ring from his finger, and, handing it to the Purser, said "I +want you to get me two diamonds' and a ruby's worth of shirts and +collars; and also a safety razor. My mind has stopped working, but +my whiskers continue to grow." + +The officer managed to say with dignity: "You wish to raise money +on this, I presume? Very well, I'll see what can be done for you, +Mr. Locke." As he turned away, Kirk became conscious that the +woman in the next chair had let her book fall and was watching him +with amused curiosity. Feeling a sudden desire to confide in some +one, he turned his eyes upon her with such a natural, boyish smile +that she could not take offence, and began quite as if he had +known her for some time: + +"These people are money-mad, aren't they? Worst bunch of gold- +diggers I ever saw." Surprised, she half raised her book, but Kirk +ran on: "Anybody would think I was trying to find a missing will +instead of a shirt. That purser is the only man on the ship my +size, and he distrusts me." + +The woman murmured something unintelligible. "I hope you don't +mind my speaking to you," he added. "I'm awfully lonesome. My name +is Anthony, Kirk Anthony." + +Evidently the occupant of the next chair was not a football +enthusiast, for, although she bowed her acknowledgment, her face +showed that the name carried no significance. + +"I understood you to tell the purser your name was Locke," said +she, in a very low-pitched, well-modulated voice. "I couldn't help +overhearing." + +"But it isn't really, it's Anthony. I'm the undignified heir to +the stocks and bonds of an old party by that name who lives in +Albany." + +"Darwin K. Anthony?" questioned she, quickly. "Is he your father?" +Her face lighted with a flash of genuine interest. + +Kirk nodded. "He's my prodigal father and I'm the fatted son. Do +you know the governor?" + +"Yes, slightly." + +"Well, what do you think of that? He's a great old party, isn't +he?" He chuckled irrepressibly. "Did you ever hear him swear?" + +The woman shook her head with a smile. "I hardly know him well +enough for that." + +"Oh, he's a free performer; he swears naturally; can't help it. +Everybody knows he doesn't mean anything. It's funny, isn't it, +with all his credit, that I can't get a shirt until I put up a +diamond ring? He could buy a railroad with half that security." + +"You are joking, are you not?" + +"No indeed. I never needed a shirt so badly in my life. You see, I +didn't intend to take this trip; I didn't even know I had sailed. +When I woke up I thought this was a hotel. I've got no more +baggage than a robin." + +"Really?" The woman by now had closed her book and was giving him +her full attention, responding to some respectful quality in his +tone that robbed his frankness of offence. "How did it happen?" + +"Well, to be perfectly honest, I got drunk--just plain drunk. I +didn't think so at the time, understand, for I'd never been the +least bit that way before. Hope I don't shock you?" + +His new acquaintance shrugged her shoulders. "I have seen +something of the world; I'm not easily shocked." + +"Well, I was perfectly sober the last I remember, and then I woke +up on the Santa Cruz. I'd never even heard the name before." + +"And hadn't you intended taking an ocean trip?" + +"Good Lord, no! I had just bought a new French car and was going +to drive it up to New Haven yesterday. It's standing out on Forty- +fifth Street now, if somebody hasn't stolen it. Gee! I can see the +news-boys cutting their monograms in those tires." + +"How remarkable!" + +"You see, it was a big night--football game, supper, and all that. +I remember everything up to a certain point, then--curtain! I was +'out' for twelve hours, and SICK!--that's the funny part; I'm +still sick." He shook his head as if at a loss what to make of +this phenomenon. He noted how the woman's countenance lighted at +even a passing interest, as he continued: "What I can't understand +is this: It took all my money to pay for the supper, and yet I +wake up with a first-class ticket to Panama and in possession of +one of the best suites on the ship. It's a problem play." + +"You say you were sick afterward?" + +"WAS I?" Kirk turned his eyes upon the speaker, mournfully. "My +head isn't right yet." + +"You were drugged," said the woman. + +"By Jove!" He straightened up in his chair. "Knockouts!" + +"Exactly. Some one drugged you and bought a ticket--" + +"Wait! I'm beginning to see. It was Locke. That's how I got his +name. This is his ticket. Oh! There's going to be something doing +when I get back." + +"What?" + +"I don't know yet, but I'm going to sit right here and brood upon +some fitting revenge. After that chap gets out of the hospital--" + +"You did not impress me as a college student," said the stranger. + +"I'm not. I graduated four years ago. I barely made it, but I did +get through." + +"And you have never been to the tropics?" + +"Not since I had my last row with the governor. Have you?" + +"Many times. It will prove an interesting trip for you. At least +you have that consolation." + +"What is it like?" + +Evidently the artless effrontery of the young man had not +offended, for his neighbor talked freely, and in a short time the +two were conversing as easily as old acquaintances. This was due, +perhaps, to the fact that he had appealed to her with the same +frankness he would have used toward a man and, thus far at least, +had quite ignored her sex. She was sufficiently quick to +appreciate the footing thus established, and allowed herself to +meet him half-way. Had he presumed in the slightest, she would +have chilled him instantly; but, as it was, she seemed to feel the +innate courtesy back of his boldness, seeing in him only a big, +unaffected boy who needed an outlet for his feelings. In the same +way, had a fine St. Bernard dog thrust a friendly head beneath her +hand she would have petted it. + +When at last she rose, after an hour that had swiftly sped, she +was gratified at the look of concern that came into his eyes. She +looked at him with genuine approval as he bowed and said: + +"Thank you for the pointers about Panama. I hope I may have the +pleasure of talking to you again." + +When she had disappeared he murmured, admiringly: + +"Jove! She's a corker! And she's not so old, after all. I wonder +who she--" He leaned over and read the card on the back of her +steamer chair. "Mrs. Stephen Cortlandt, Suite B," it was lettered. +Straightening up, he grumbled with genuine disappointment: "Just +my blamed luck! She's MARRIED." + + + + +V + +A REMEDY IS PROPOSED + + +By pledging his one article of jewelry Kirk became possessed that +afternoon of several shirts, collars, and handkerchiefs--likewise +a razor, over which he exercised a sort of leasehold privilege. +The purser made it plain, however, that he had not sold these +articles, but merely loaned them, holding the ring as security for +their return, and this arrangement allowed Kirk no spare cash +whatever. Even with all his necessities paid for, it surprised him +to find how many channels remained for spending money. For +instance, the most agreeable loafing spot on the ship was the +smoking-room, but whenever he entered it he was invited to drink, +smoke, or play cards, and as he was fond of all these diversions, +it required such an effort of will to refuse that it destroyed all +the pleasure of good company. It was very hard always to be saying +no; and in addition it excited his disgust to learn that he had +inadvertently founded a reputation for abstemiousness. + +Before long he discovered that the passengers considered him an +exceptionally sober, steady youth of economical habits, and this +enraged him beyond measure. Every tinkle of ice or hiss of seltzer +made his mouth water, the click of poker chips drew him with +magnetic power. He longed mightily to "break over" and have a good +time. It was his first effort at self-restraint, and the warfare +became so intense that he finally gave up the smoking-room almost +entirely, and spent his hours on deck, away from temptation. He +suffered most, perhaps, from the lack of tobacco, but even in the +matter of cigarettes he could not bring himself to accept favors +that he could not return. In the solitude of his richly appointed +suite he collected a few cork-bound stumps, which he impaled on a +toothpick in order to light them. + +Meanwhile he amused himself by baiting the purser. He dogged that +serious-minded gentleman through all his waking hours, finding a +rare delight in playing upon his suspicion and lack of humor. To +him Kirk was always Mr. Locke, while he insisted upon being called +Mr. Anthony by the others, and the officer never quite got the +hang of it. Moreover, the latter was full of dignity, and did not +relish being connected with a certainly dubious and possibly +criminal character, yet dared not resort to rudeness as a means of +riddance. + +The situation was trying enough to the young man at best; for the +ship's hirelings began to show a lack of interest in his comfort, +once it became known that he did not tip, and he experienced +difficulty in obtaining even the customary attentions. It was +annoying to one who had never known an unsatisfied whim; but Kirk +was of a peculiarly sanguine temperament that required much to +ruffle, and looked upon the whole matter as a huge joke. It was +this, perhaps, that enabled him to make friends in spite of his +unsociable habits, for the men liked him. As for the women, he +avoided them religiously, with the exception of Mrs. Cortlandt, +whom he saw for an hour or two, morning and afternoon, as well as +at meal-times. With her he got on famously, finding her nearly as +entertaining as a male chum, though he never quite lost his +dislike for her husband. Had she been unmarried and nearer his own +age, their daily intimacy might have caused him to become self- +conscious, but, under the circumstances, no such thought occurred +to him, and he began to look forward with pleasure to their hours +on deck. + +The Santa Cruz was four days out before Cortlandt joined them, and +when he did he merely nodded casually to Kirk, then, after +exchanging a polite word or two with his wife, lapsed into his +customary silence, while Mrs. Cortlandt continued her conversation +without a second glance in her husband's direction. + +"That's what I call an ideal married couple," Kirk reflected-- +"complete understanding, absolute confidence." And the more he saw +of them, the stronger this impression grew. Cortlandt was always +attentive and courteous, without being demonstrative, while his +wife showed a charming graciousness that was plainly unassumed. +Their perfect good-breeding made the young man feel at ease; but +though he endeavored to cultivate the husband on several +occasions, he made little headway. The man evidently possessed a +wide knowledge of current events, a keen understanding of men and +things, yet he never opened up. He listened, smiled, spoke rarely, +and continued to spend nine-tenths of his time in that isolated +corner of the smoking-room, with no other company than a long +glass and a siphon. + +One day when Kirk had begun to feel that his acquaintance with +Mrs. Cortlandt was well established, he said to her: + +"Stein told me to-day that your husband is in the diplomatic +service." + +"Yes," said she. "He was Consul-General to Colombia several years +ago, and since then he has been to France and to Germany." + +"I thought you were tourists--you have travelled so much." + +"Most of our journeys have been made at the expense of the +Government." + +"Are you diplomatting now?" + +"In a way. We shall be in Panama for some time." + +"This Stein seems to be a nice fellow. He's taken quite a liking +to me." + +Mrs. Cortlandt laughed lightly. "That is part of his business." + +"How so?" + +"He is one of Colonel Jolson's secret agents." + +"Who is Colonel Jolson?" + +"Chairman of the Isthmian Canal Commission. Your father knows +him." + +"Do you mean that Stein is a--detective?" Kirk looked +uncomfortable. + +"I do! Does he know you are the son of Darwin K. Anthony?" + +"Why, yes, I suppose so." + +"Colonel Jolson will be interested." + +"Again I don't see the point." + +"Your father is one of the most powerful and aggressive railroad +men in the country. Perhaps you know something about the railroad +opposition to the canal?" + +Kirk smiled. "Well, to tell you the truth," said he, "the governor +doesn't consult me about his business as much as he ought to. He +seems to think he can run it all right without me, and we've only +been speaking over the telephone lately." + +"One of the strongest forces the Government had to combat in +putting through the canal appropriations was the railroads. +Colonel Jolson has no reason to love your father." + +"Yes, but _I_ don't object to this canal. I think it must be a +rather good idea." + +Mrs. Cortlandt laughed for a second time. "The Colonel's dislike +for your father will not affect you, inasmuch as you are returning +so soon, but if you intended to stay it might be different." + +"In what way?" + +"Oh, in many ways. There are two classes of people who are not +welcomed on the Canal Zone--magazine writers and applicants for +positions who have political influence back of them. The former +are regarded as muckrakers, the latter as spies." + +"That's rather rough on them, isn't it?" + +"You must understand that there is a great big human machine +behind the digging of this canal, and, while it is more wonderful +by far than the actual machinery of iron and steel, it is subject +to human weaknesses. Men like Colonel Jolson, who form a part of +it, are down here to make reputations for themselves. They are +handicapped and vexed by constant interference, constant jealousy. +It is a survival of the fittest, and I suppose they feel that they +must protect themselves even if they use underhand means to do so. +It is so in all big work of this character, where the individual +is made small. You would find the same condition in your father's +railroad organization." + +"Oh, now! My old man is a pretty tough citizen to get along with, +but he wouldn't hire detectives to spy on his employees." + +Mrs. Cortlandt smiled. "By-the-way, when are you going into +business with him?" she said. + +"I? Oh, not for a long time. You see, I'm so busy I never seem to +have time to work. Work doesn't really appeal to me, anyway. I +suppose if I had to hustle I could, but--what's the use?" + +"What is it that keeps you so busy? What are you going to do when +you get back, for instance?" + +"Well, I'm going to Ormond for the auto races, and I may enter my +new car. If I don't get hurt in the races I'll take a hunting trip +or two. Then I want to try out an iceboat on the Hudson, and I'll +have to be back in New Haven by the time the baseball squad +limbers up. Oh, I have plenty of work ahead!" + +Mrs. Cortlandt let her eyes dwell upon him curiously for a moment; +then she said: + +"Have you no ambition?" + +"Certainly." + +"What is it?" + +"Why--" Kirk hesitated. "I can't say right off the reel, but I've +got it--lots of it." + +"Is there no--girl, for instance? Have you never been in love?" + +"Oh, see here, now!" Anthony blushed in a manner to excite the +envy of any woman. "I don't like 'em. I'd rather play football." + +"That explains something. When the time comes you will cease +wasting your life and--" + +"I'm NOT wasting my life," the young man denied hotly. "I'm having +a great time; simply immense." + +"I remember reading an article once by a man who attacked American +colleges with bitter personal feeling, on the ground that they +fostered exactly the attitude toward life which you have just +expressed." + +Anthony looked sober. "That was my father," he said. + +"Really! How stupid of me to forget the name. But I don't agree +with him," she continued, gently. "You merely lack stimulus. If +you should meet the right woman--" Then, seeing the amusement in +his face; "Believe me, I know what I am talking about. I know what +a woman can do. Your life has been too easy and placid. You need +some disturbing element to make it ferment." + +"But I don't want to ferment." + +"Why don't you stay in Panama and go to work?" + +"Work? Hideous word! For one thing, I haven't time. I must get +back--" + +"You will find great opportunities there." + +"But how about the girl who is to sour the syrup of my being and +make it ferment?" + +"Oh, she may appear at any moment; but, joking aside, you had +better think over what I have said." She left him with an +admonitory shake of her head. + +The SANTA CRUZ was now rapidly drawing out of the cold northern +winter and into a tropic warmth. Already the raw chill of higher +latitudes was giving way to a balmy, spring-like temperature, +while the glittering sunshine transformed the sea into a lively, +gleaming expanse of sapphire. The nights were perfect, the days +divine. The passengers responded as if to a magic draught, and +Kirk found his blood filled with a new vigor. + +A brief sight of Columbus' Landfall served to break the monotony; +then followed a swift flight past low, tropical islands ringed +with coral sand, upon which broke a lazy, milk-white surf. Through +the glasses villages were spied, backed by palm groves and guarded +by tall sentinel lighthouses; but the Santa Cruz pushed steadily +southward, her decks as level as a dancing floor, the melancholy +voice of her bell tolling the leagues as they slipped past. The +eastern tongue of Cuba rose out of the horizon, then dropped +astern, and the gentle trades began to fan the travellers. Now +that they were in the Caribbean, schools of flying fish whisked +out from under the ship's prow, and away, like tiny silver- +sheathed arrows. New constellations rose into the evening sky. It +became impossible to rest indoors, with the trade-winds calling, +and the passengers spent long, lazy hours basking in the breath of +the tropics and grudging the pleasure of which sleep deprived +them. + +It was the last night of the voyage, and the thrill of approaching +land was felt by all. As usual, the monotony of the first day or +two had given way to an idle contentment and a vague regret at +leaving the ship and severing the ties so newly made. Home, +instead of looming close and overshadowing, had become a memory +rather indistinct and blurred, clouded by the proximity of the new +and unknown. + +Kirk Anthony acknowledged to a reluctant enjoyment of the change +and found himself less eager to go back. As he paced the deck +after dinner he felt a lurking desire to defer his return until he +had absorbed something more of this warmth and languor; he even +reflected that he might welcome a stay of some length in the +tropics if it were not for the fact that he had so much to do. + +Mrs. Cortlandt joined him as usual, and they did a mile around the +promenade, chatting idly of many things. The evening was too +glorious to permit of early retiring, and a late hour found them +leaning over the rail, side by side, while Anthony bewailed the +fact that he knew nothing of the country just beyond the dark +horizon ahead of them. + +"You are quite right," his companion agreed. "You will miss its +best flavor if you don't know the history back of it. For +instance, we are now on the Spanish Main, the traditional home of +romance and adventure." + +"I always wanted to be a pirate," he acknowledged gravely, "up to +fifteen. Then I thought I'd rather run a candy store." + +"The ships of Sir Henry Morgan and the galleons of His Catholic +Majesty Philip of Spain sailed these waters. Over yonder"--she +waved a graceful hand to the north and east--"are the haunts where +the adventurers of old England used to lie in wait for their prey. +Ahead of us is the land that Pizarro soaked with blood. We're +coming into the oldest country on this side of the globe, Mr. +Anthony, where men lived in peace and plenty when most of Europe +was a wilderness. I suppose such things appeal more to a woman's +fancy than to a man's, but to me they're mightily alluring." + +Kirk wagged his head admiringly, as he said: + +"I wish I could make language behave like that," and Edith +Cortlandt laughed like a young girl. + +"Oh, I'm not a perfervid poet," she disclaimed, "but everything +down here is so full of association I can't help feeling it." + +"I'm beginning to notice it myself. Maybe it's the climate." + +"Perhaps. Anyhow, it is all very vivid to me. Did you ever stop to +think how brave those men must have been who first went venturing +into unknown seas in their little wooden boats?" + +"They were looking for a short cut to the East Indies, weren't +they?" + +"Yes, to Cathay. And then the people they found and conquered! The +spoils they exacted! They were men--those conquistadores--whatever +else they were--big, cruel, heroic fellows like Bastida, Nicuesa, +Balboa, Pedrarias the Assassin, and the rest. They oppressed the +natives terribly, yet they paved the way for civilization, after +all. The Spaniards did try to uplift the Indians, you know. And +the life in the colonies was like that in old Spain, only more +romantic and picturesque. Why, whenever I pass through these +Latin-American cities I see, in place of the crumbling ruins, +grand cathedrals and palaces; in place of the squalid beggars +idling about the market-places I see velvet-clad dons and high- +born ladies." + +"Aren't there any beautiful ladies left?" + +"A few, perhaps." + +"What happened to the cathedrals and the velvet fellows and all +that?" + +"Oh, the old state of affairs couldn't last forever. The Spanish +administration wasn't so bad as is generally supposed, yet of +course there was too much rapacity and not enough industry. +Central America, broadly speaking, was known as the treasure-chest +of the world, and there were constant wars and disturbances. The +colonies as a whole did not progress like those in the North, and +in course of time deteriorated. The old cathedrals decayed and +were not rebuilt. The old Spanish stock died out and in its stead +grew up a motley race given to revolt, revolution, and corruption. +Even when the provinces became free, they weren't able to unite +and form a strong nation. The Isthmus of Panama became a pest-hole +where the scum of the Four Seas settled. The people became mean +and unhealthy in mind and body and morals, preserving nothing +except the cruelty of their forefathers. Here and there, to be +sure, one comes across the old Castilian breed, like a silver +thread running through a rotting altar-cloth, but only here and +there, and most of those silver threads have become tarnished from +contact with the fabric." + +"It must be a nice place," Kirk observed with gentle sarcasm. + +"It affords one a great chance to moralize, at any rate. Take the +building of this canal, for instance. First, the French came, led +by a dreamer, and poured in the wealth of an empire in order that +they might exact toll from the world. You see, they were all lured +by the love of gain--the Spaniards, who pillaged the natives to +begin with, and the French, who set out to squeeze profit from all +the other nations. But it seems as if the spot were infected. The +French lost an army in their project; corruption gnawed through, +and the thing ended in disgrace and disaster. Spain and France +have come and gone, and at last we Yankees have arrived. It seems +to be the will of God that the youngest, lustiest people on the +earth should finally be sent to clean this Augean stable." + +"By Jove! I never thought of it that way." + +"It is a big task, Mr. Anthony, and the mere digging of the ditch +is the smallest part. There is a great deal more to be done. You +see, as men attain culture, they require more than mere food and +drink and bedding, and in the same way, as nations attain to +greatness, they require more than mere territory--they reach out +and absorb power and prestige. Our decision to build the Panama +Canal is like the landing of another Columbus; the conquest is to +follow. After that will come--who knows what? Perhaps more wars, +more pillage, more injustice." + +"You talk like a man," Anthony said, admiringly. "I had no idea +you looked at things in such a big way." + +"You are laughing at me." + +"No, indeed." + +"You see, it is part of my husband's profession. As to the +romance--well, all women are romantic and imaginative, I suppose, +and you've been an inspiring listener." + +"I don't know about that, but--you're a corking good talker. +Excuse my archaic English." Mrs. Cortlandt turned her eyes upon +the speaker, and he saw that they were very bright. "I've been +thinking about what you told me the other day," he ran on, "about +myself. Remember?" + +"I'm glad I have the knack of making something besides football +signals stick in your memory," said she. "Have you been thinking +about that girl I spoke of?" + +"Yes," he replied, ingenuously. "I've been making up my mind to +ask you if you happen to have a sister--an unmarried sister, I +mean." + +Mrs. Cortlandt laughed appreciatively. "No, I have no sister, but +I thank you for the compliment. I suppose you meant it for one?" + +"Yes. I hope you don't mind." + +"Not at all. I'm quite sure now that my notion about you was +right. It will take a woman to make a man of you." + +"It used to be my wind that troubled me," said the athlete, +mournfully. "Now it seems to be my heart." + +"It doesn't seem to be seriously affected as yet, but it's +remarkable the number of ways in which the heart of man may be +reached. I remember once having breakfast in a queer little +restaurant in the French quarter of New Orleans, famous for its +cooking and for the well-known people who had eaten there. There +was a sort of register which the guests were asked to sign, and in +looking it over I read the inscription of one particularly +enthusiastic diner. It ran, 'Oh, Madame Begue, your liver has +touched my heart,' and the story is that the writer made desperate +love to the proprietor's wife." + +"Oh, come, that's rather hard on me. I have some emotions besides +a hearty appreciation of food." + +"No doubt. I only mentioned that as one of the ways, and, +seriously, I am convinced that, however your awakening may come, +you will be the better for it." + +"I do hope the cook will prove to be unmarried," he mused. +"Imagine having to do away with a husband who can handle a +cleaver." + +"Oh, I don't mean you should necessarily marry the woman. It would +be quite as good for you if she refused even to look at you. +However, let us hope that you meet some nice American girl--" + +"Why not a senorita? You have inspired me with Spanish romance." + +But Mrs. Cortlandt shook her head. "Wait until you have seen +them." + +"Already I imagine myself under some moonlit balcony teasing +chords out of a guitar. I have rather a good singing voice, you +know." + +It is not done that way nowadays. Panama is Americanized. You will +need a pianola and an automobile." + +"And all the romance is gone?" + +"Oh, there is romance everywhere; there is quite as much in +Pittsburg as in Andalusia. But to speak of more practical things"-- +Mrs. Cortlandt hesitated slightly--"I heard you tell the purser +the other day about your financial troubles, and it occurred to me +that Mr. Cortlandt might assist you." + +"Thanks, awfully," Kirk hastened to say, feeling himself flush +uncomfortably. "But I sha'n't need anything. The old gentleman +will wire me whatever I ask for. Does Mr. Cortlandt know how I am +fixed?" + +"No." + +"Please don't tell him. I--I'm a little bit ashamed of myself. +You're not going?" + +"Yes. It is getting late, and my maid is looking for me." + +"Oh, I'm sorry. It's lonesome around here without--somebody to +talk to." He took her hand and shook it as if she were a man. +"You've been mighty good to me and--I wish you had a sister. +That's all." + +She left him the memory of a very bright and very girlish smile, +and he found himself thinking that she could not be so much older +than he, after all. + +Mr. Cortlandt was awaiting his wife and rose courteously as she +entered their suite. + +"Did you send Annette for me?" she inquired. + +"Yes. I thought you had forgotten the hour. We rise at six." + +"My dear," she returned, coolly, "I was quite aware of the time. I +was talking to Mr. Anthony." + +"Do you find him so amusing?" + +"Very much so." + +"He's such a boy. By-the-way, some of the passengers are remarking +about your friendship for him." + +Mrs. Cortlandt shrugged. "I expected that. Does it interest you?" + +The man favored her with his wintry smile. "Not at all." + +"If he should need assistance while in Panama, I should be obliged +if you would accommodate him." + +"Money?" + +"Yes, or anything else. He left New York unexpectedly." + +"Don't you think that is going a bit too far? You know I don't +fancy him." + +Mrs. Cortlandt frowned slightly. "We won't discuss it," she said. +"I assured him he was at liberty to call on us for anything and-- +naturally that ends the matter." + +"Naturally!" he agreed, but his colorless cheeks flushed dully. + + + + +VI + +IN WHICH KIRK ANTHONY IS GREATLY SURPRISED + + +When Kirk came on deck early the following morning, he found the +Santa Cruz nosing her way into Colony harbor. A land fog obscured +his view somewhat, but through it he beheld a low, irregular line +of mountains in the background, and close at hand a town. The ship +came to anchor abreast of a point upon which he descried a squat +little spider-legged lighthouse and long rows of frame dwellings +half hidden behind slender palm-trees. Beyond were warehouses and +docks and the funnels of many ships; on either side of the bay was +a dense tropic wilderness. As the sun dissipated the morning haze, +he saw that the hills were matted with a marvellous vivid green. +There were no clearings on the slopes, no open spaces dotted with +farm-houses or herds, the jungle flowed down to the water's edge +in an unbroken sweep, and the town was cut out of it. + +A launch came plunging through the swells, and the deck steward +made his rounds requesting the passengers to assemble for medical +examination. + +Kirk found the Cortlandts ahead of him. + +"What's coming off?" he inquired. + +"Vaccination," Cortlandt explained, briefly. "They are very +particular about disease." + +His wife added: "This used to be the worst fever-spot in the +world, you know. When we were here five years ago, we saw car- +loads of dead people nearly every day. A funeral train was a +familiar sight." + +"What a pleasant place to spend my vacation!" exclaimed Kirk. "Now +if I can rent a room over the morgue and board with the village +undertaker, I'll have a nice time." + +"Oh, there's no more yellow fever--no sickness at all, in fact," +said Mr. Cortlandt. "Will you go over to Panama City, or will you +stay in Colon?" + +"I think I'll remain on the ship; then she can't get away without +me," Kirk answered. But when, after taking his turn before the +doctors, he explained his desire to the purser, that worthy +replied: + +"I'm sorry, but you'll have to arrange that with the agent. We +make a charge, you know, just like a hotel." + +"I'm going to cable my old man for money." + +The officer shook his head with finality. "Nothing doing, Mr. +Locke." + +"Anthony." + +"I'll take no chances. If you don't pay, I'll have to. Look here! +Do you want to know what I think of you, Mr.--Anthony Locke?" + +"I haven't any special yearnings in that direction, but--what do +you think about me?" + +"Well, I don't think your name is either Locke or Anthony." + +"Marvellous!" + +"And I don't think you have any money coming to you, either." + +"Mighty intellect!" + +"I think you are no good." + +"You're not alone in that belief. But what has all that to do with +my sleeping aboard the Santa Cruz?" + +"If you want to stay aboard, you'll have to pay in advance. You're +not so foolish as you try to make out." + +"Those are glorious words of praise," Kirk acknowledged, "but I'll +make a bet with you." + +"What?" + +"That you change your mind. I am just as foolish as I appear, and +I'll prove it. I'll bet my ring against your shirts that my name +is Anthony, and if I don't come through with the price of a ticket +to New York you can keep the ring." + +"Very well, but meanwhile I don't intend to be stuck for your +bill." The purser was a man of admirable caution. + +"All right, then, I shall throw myself upon the mercy of strangers +and take your belongings with me." + +By this time the ship was being warped into her berth, and the +dock was crowded. There were little brown customs inspectors in +khaki, little brown policemen in blue, little brown merchants in +white, and huge black Jamaicans in all colors of rags. Here and +there moved a bronzed, businesslike American, and Anthony noticed +that for the most part these were clean-cut, aggressive-looking +young fellows. + +He was delayed but an instant by the customs officials, then made +his way out through a barnlike structure to the street, reflecting +that, after all, there are advantages in travelling light. He came +into a blazing-hot, glaring white street jammed with all sorts of +vehicles, the drivers of which seemed perpetually upon the point +of riot. Before him stretched a shadeless brick pavement, with a +railroad track on one side, and on the other a line of naked frame +buildings hideous in their sameness. The sun beat down fiercely. +Kirk mopped his face with the purser's handkerchief and wondered +if this were really December. + +Clumsy two-wheeled carts came bumping past, some with prehensile- +footed negroes perched upon them, others driven by turban-crowned +Hindoos. A fleet of dilapidated surreys and coaches, each equipped +with a musical chime and drawn by a flea-bitten, ratlike horse, +thronged the square. Kirk noticed with amusement that the steeds +were of stronger mentality than the drivers, judging from the way +they dominated the place, kicking, biting squealing, ramming one +another, locking wheels and blocking traffic, the while their +futile owners merely jerked the reins after the fashion of a +street-car conductor ringing up fares, or swore softly in Spanish. +Silent-footed coolies drifted past, sullen-faced negroes jostled +him, stately Martinique women stalked through the confusion with +queenly dignity. These last were especially qualified to take the +stranger's eye, being tall and slender and wearing gaudy head- +dresses, the tips of which stood up like rabbits' ears. Unlike the +fat and noisy Jamaicans, they were neat and clean, their skirts +snow-white and stiffly starched, and they held themselves as +proudly erect as if pacing a stage. + +The indescribable confusion of races reminded the young American +of a Red Sea port where the myriad peoples of the far East +intermingle. He heard a dozen different dialects; even the negroes +used an accent that was difficult to understand. One thing only +struck a familiar note, and that with peculiar force and +sharpness. Down the railroad track toward him came a locomotive +with the letters "P. R. R." upon it, at which he said aloud: + +"Hurrah, I'm in Jersey City! I'll take the Twenty-third Street +Ferry and be at the Astor in no time." + +He made his way slowly through the turmoil to the cable office, +where he wrote a message, only to have it refused. + +"We don't send C. O. D.," the operator told him. + +"Must have coin in advance, eh?" + +"Yes, sir." + +"I left my gold-purse on the dresser," Kirk said, cheerfully. +"I'll be back later." Then he wandered forth again, bearing his +bundle of shirts beneath his arm. He thought of appealing to the +Cortlandts before they left for Panama City, but could not bring +himself to ask a favor from that slim, agate-eyed man for whom he +felt such an instinctive distaste. Instead, he resolved to enlist +the services of the American consul. + +He began to feel the heat now, and his borrowed collar drooped, +but as he neared the seaward side of town there was a remarkable +transformation. A delightful, cooling breeze swept in from the +ocean, and, when he finally came out upon a palm-guarded road +along the breakers, he paused in silent enjoyment. The trade-winds +were drawing inward as steadily as if forced by a great electric +fan, piling the green waters upon the rocks in a ceaseless, +soothing murmur, making the palm fronds overhead rustle like the +silken skirts of an aerial ballet. The effect was wonderful, for, +while the air was balmy and soft, it was also deliciously +refreshing and seemed to have magic properties. + +After some further wandering, he found the consul's house and +knocked at the door, whereupon a high-pitched, querulous voice +from inside cried: + +"Come in. Dammit, don't stand there hammering!" + +Kirk entered to find a huge, globular man clad in soiled linens +sprawled in a musty Morris chair and sipping a highball. The man's +face and neck were of a purplish, apoplectic hue; he seemed to +radiate heat-waves like a base-burner. + +"Is this Mr. Weeks?" Kirk inquired. + +"That's me." + +"My name is Anthony." + +"Glad to meet you," wheezed the fat man, extending a limp, moist +hand without rising. When Kirk had grasped it he felt like wiping +his own palm. "Have a seat." The speaker indicated a broken-backed +rocker encumbered with damp clothes, newspapers, and books. "Just +dump that rubbish on the floor; it don't matter where." Then he +piped at the top of his thin, little voice, "Zeelah! Hey, Zeelah! +Bring some more ice." + +One glance showed Anthony that the place was indescribably +disordered; a rickety desk was half concealed beneath a litter of +papers, books, breakfast dishes, and what not; a typewriter +occupied a chair, and all about the floor were scattered documents +where the wind had blown them. Shoes and articles of clothing were +piled in the corners; there was not a sound piece of furniture in +the place, and through an open door leading to another room at the +rear could be seen a cheap iron bed, sagging hammock-like, its +head and foot posts slanting like tepee poles, doubtless from the +weight of its owner. + +In answer to Mr. Weeks's shout a slatternly negress with dragging +skirts and overrun shoes entered, carrying a washbowl partly +filled with ice. + +"Just get in, Mr. Anthony?" + +"Yes, sir, on the Santa. Cruz." + +"Fine ship." Mr. Weeks rose ponderously and wiped out a glass with +a bath towel, while Kirk noticed that two damp half-moons had come +through his stiffly starched linen trousers where his dripping +knees had pressed. He walked with a peculiar, springy roll, as if +pads of fat had grown between his joints, and, once an impulse had +been given his massive frame, it required time in which to become +effective. The sound of his breathing was plainly audible as he +prepared his guest's beverage. + +"You'll like that," he predicted. "There's one good thing we get +in Colon, and that's whiskey." With a palsied hand he presented +the glass. His cuffs were limp and tight, his red wrists were +ringed like those of a baby. As he rolled back toward the Morris +chair, his stomach surged up and down as if about to break from +its moorings. + +"I came in to ask a favor," Anthony announced, "I suppose every +tourist does the same." + +"That's part of a consul's duty," Mr. Weeks panted, while his soft +cheeks swelled with every exhalation. "That's what I'm here for." + +"I want to cable home for money." + +"A little poker game on the way down, eh?" He began to shake +ponderously. + +"I'm broke, and they won't take a collect message at the cable +office. You see, I didn't know I was coming; some of my friends +gave me a knockout and shipped me off on the Santa Cruz. The +wireless wasn't working, we didn't stop at Jamaica, so this is my +first chance to get word home." + +"What do you wish me to do?" + +"Cable for me and see that I have a place to stop until I get an +answer." + +A look of distrust crept slowly into the consul's little eyes. + +"Are you absolutely broke?" + +"I haven't got a jingle." + +"How long will it take to hear from your people?" + +"If my father is at home, I'll hear instantly." + +"And if he isn't?" + +"I'll have to wait." + +"What makes you think he'll wire you money?" + +"He's never failed yet. You see, I'm something like a comet; he +knows I'll be around every so often." + +Mr. Weeks began to complain. "I don't know you, Mr.--what's the +name again? Anthony? I'm a poor man and I've been an easy mark for +every tropical tramp from Vera Cruz to Guayaquil. Your father may +not be able to help you, and then I'll be holding the bag." + +"I think you don't understand who he is. Did you ever hear of +Darwin K. Anthony, of Albany, New York?" + +Mr. Weeks's thick lids opened, this time to display a far +different emotion. "Certainly." + +"Well, he's the goat." + +Slowly, grandly, the American consul set his frame in motion, +whereat Kirk said, quickly, "Don't get up; I understand." But Mr. +Weeks had gone too far to check himself, so he lurched resiliently +into an upright position, then across the floor, and, reaching out +past his undulating front, as a man reaches forth from the midst +of a crowd, shook his guest heartily by the hand. + +"Why didn't you say so?" he bubbled. "I'm here to accommodate +folks like you. Darwin K. Anthony! Well, RATHER." + +"Thanks." The young man wiped his hand surreptitiously. "If you +will fix it so I can cable him and sleep aboard the ship, I'll be +greatly obliged." + +"Nothing of the sort," Mr. Weeks blew through his wet lips. "I'll +cable him myself and you'll stay right here as my guest. Delighted +to have the privilege." + +Kirk cast another glance over the place, and demurred hastily. +"Really, I couldn't think of putting you out. I can stay on the +Santa Cruz as well as not." + +"I couldn't hear to such a thing. You're tired of ship life-- +everybody is--and I have lots of room--too much room. It's a +pleasure to meet real people--this damn country is so full of +crooks and dead-beats. No, sir, you'll stay right here where it is +cool and comfortable." With a pudgy forefinger he stripped his +purple brow of a row of glistening sweat-drops. "I'll have Zeelah +fix up a bed where this glorious breeze will play on you. Mr. +Anthony, that trade-wind blows just like that all the time--never +dies down--it's the only thing that makes life bearable here--that +and the whiskey. Have another highball?" + +"No, I thank you." + +"Darwin--Say, I'll send a cart for your baggage, right now." + +"I have it with me--six shirts, all guilty." + +"Then I'll send your father a message this minute. I'm delighted +at the privilege of being the first to advise him of your safety +and to relieve his mental anguish." Mr. Weeks rocked toward the +desk, adjusted a chair behind him, spread his legs apart, and sat +down sidewise so that he could reach the inkwell. He overhung his +chair so generously that from the front he appeared to be perched +precariously upon its edge or to be holding some one in his lap. +"Where are those cable blanks!" he cried, irritably, stirring up +the confusion in front of him. + +"Here they are." Anthony picked one up from the floor. + +"It's that damn wind again. I can't keep anything in place unless +I sit on it. That's the trouble with this country--there's always +a breeze blowing. Thanks! I'm getting a trifle heavy to stoop-- +makes me dizzy." + +In a moment he read what he had written: + +DARWIN K. ANTHONY, Albany, New York. + +Your son well and safe. Here as my guest. Asks you cable him money +for return. WEEKS, American Consul. + +"That tells the story. It'll please him to know I'm looking after +you, my boy." + +"You are very kind." + +"Don't speak of it. I'm glad to get in touch with your father. We +need capital in this country." + +"He's a hard man in money matters," said Darwin K. Anthony's son. +"I believe I enjoy the distinction of being the only person who +ever made him loosen." + +"All successful men are cautious," Weeks declared. "But if he knew +the wonderful opportunities this country presents--" The speaker +leaned forward, while his chair creaked dangerously, and said, +with impressiveness, "My dear sir, do you realize that a cocoa +palm after it is seven years old drops a nut worth five cents +every day in the year and requires no care whatever except to +gather the fruit?" + +"No." + +"Fact! And we grow the best ones in the world right here. But the +demand is increasing so rapidly that in ten years there will be a +famine. Think of it--a famine of cocoanuts!" Mr. Weeks paused to +lend dramatic effect. + +"That's fierce," Kirk acknowledged. "What are they good for?" + +"Eating! People make cakes out of them, and oil, and candy. Good +cocoanut land can be bought for fifty cents an acre, selected +seeds for five cents each, labor is sixty cents a day. No frosts, +no worms, no bugs. You sit still and they drop in your lap." + +"The bugs?" + +"No! No! The cocoanuts." + +"Fine!" + +"But that's nothing. Do you realize that this soil will raise +sugar-cane the size of your--of my--thigh, and once you plant it +you can't keep it cut out?" + +"It's all news to me." + +"You can buy sugar-cane land for a dollar an acre; it costs--" +"I'm no good at figures, Mr. Weeks." + +"And rubber! THERE'S the chance for a man with capital. Rubber!" + +"I will--I mean, is that so?" + +"Ever see any rubber-trees?" + +"Only in Brooklyn." + +"I mean wild rubber. This country is full of it; the natives bring +it in. All you have to do is buy timber land--you can get it for a +song--plant your rubber-seed, and let 'er go, Gallagher! In ten +years you go back, cut off your timber, sell it for enough to make +you rich, and there is your rubber--velvet!" he concluded, +triumphantly. + +"Rubber velvet?" + +"Yes. It's 'velvet'--all clear. You can't lose. My boy, there's a +thousand ways to get rich down here, and I know 'em all. What I +need is capital. If I had your father's backing--Say! It's a +mighty good thing you came to see me. I can do your old man a lot +of good. I'm conservative, I am, and what he needs is a good, +conservative man to manage his investments. Why, talk about quick +money"--the speaker thrust forth a finger that looked like a +peeled banana--"I've got a gold-mine--" + +"Not a bit like it." Kirk shook his head. "They don't behave." + +"This one will. It's an old Spanish mine and hasn't been worked +for three centuries. It's rich, RICH! I'll take you in as my +partner, and we'll get your father to open it up. What do you say? +If he doesn't like that, we'll get him a street-railway franchise; +I'm close to the government, and there isn't a steel rail in any +city of the republic. I know all the Spiggoty politicians." + +"The what?" "The Spiggoties! That's what we call the Panamanians. +They 'no spiggoty English'; understand?" + +"It's a funny name." + +"Now, my boy, there's one thing I want you to be careful of. Don't +let some of these fellows around here get you excited. This +country is full of promoters, cheap skates, and that sort, and +they'll try to stampede you into some investment. You trust to me; +I'm conservative. I'll put you up at the club, and when you get +straightened around we'll talk business. Meanwhile, I'll send this +cable." + +Mr. Weeks was even better than his word. He took Kirk with him, +and went heaving down the street, his body quivering at every step +as if hung upon a whalebone framework, the breath wheezing noisily +in and out of his chest, the perspiration streaming from his +purple face in rivulets. He put up his guest at the club and +invited some of his friends to join them for dinner that evening +on the wide balcony; then, noting Anthony's heavy clothing, he +said: + +"You need some linens, Kirk. That suit looks like a dog bed. You +don't mind my calling you Kirk, do you?" + +"I'm flattered. However, I can't get ready-made clothes large +enough, and, besides, it's hardly worth while for the length of +time--" + +"Nonsense. Now you're here we won't let you go right back. There's +a Chinese tailor on Bottle Alley who'll have you a suit to measure +by noon to-morrow, and he only charges seven dollars, goods and +all." + +Accordingly, the two journeyed to Bottle Alley and selected some +linen, whereupon, instead of one suit, the consul ordered three, +having them charged to his account. + +Kirk really enjoyed that evening at the Wayfarers Club, for, once +the cool of evening had come, the place filled up rapidly with as +fine a crowd of men as he had ever met. There were young fellows +from the railroad offices, merchants from the town, engineers from +the big job, the proximity of which made itself felt like a +mysterious presence. There was a trader from down the San Blas +coast; a benevolent, white-haired judge, with a fund of excellent +stories; a lieutenant in the Zone Police who impressed Kirk as a +real Remington trooper come to life; and many another. They all +welcomed the Yale man with that freedom which one finds only on +the frontier, and as he listened to them he began to gain some +idea of the tremendous task that occupied their minds. They were +all men with work to do; there were no idlers; there was no class +distinction. One topic of conversation prevailed, and, although +the talk drifted away from it at times, it invariably came back to +The Job in the end. + +Weeks did himself credit as a host. His table, spread on the +latticed balcony where the never-failing trade-winds fanned it, +was decorated tastefully with flowers, red-shaded candles, white +linen, and gleaming silver gave it a metropolitan air. Both the +food and the wine were well served, and the consul's half-dozen +guests soon became mellowed and friendly. Kirk felt he had fallen +among kindred spirits, for it was almost like a fraternity dinner. + +When finally they arose, some one proposed a game of draw poker +and insisted upon Kirk's joining. He was about to refuse when +Weeks drew him aside to say: + +"Don't let the money question stand in your way, Kirk. You're my +guest, and your I.O.U. is as good as a government bond; so go as +far as you like." + +A considerable portion of Anthony's time in college had been +devoted to a course in draw poker--recitations, so to speak, being +conducted in the upper rooms of a Greek letter "frat," and he +cherished the belief that he had at least learned to distinguish a +spade flush from an "Arkansas blaze." But he soon found that these +men had forgotten more about the game than he could ever hope to +learn at any university, and when the crowd broke up at midnight +he signed his name to a tab for forty dollars. + +Early the next day the following cablegram was left at the +American Consulate: + +WEEKS, Consul, Colon. + +Anthony absent, returns Friday. + COPLEY. + +"Copley is the Governor's secretary," Kirk explained. "That means +that I'll miss the Santa Cruz and have to wait another week." + +"I'm delighted," the consul said, heartily. + +"Perhaps you could stake me to a ticket. I'll remit when I get to +New York." + +"My pay isn't due for a fortnight," Weeks explained after an +instant's hesitation. "You see, I'm interested in so many ventures +it keeps me--well, broke. Anyhow, you can't go until we have +arranged an investment for your father." + +Kirk could not help thinking that a man of the consul's wide +acquaintance and business capacity could have raised the necessary +funds without much trouble; but, not wishing to embarrass his +host, he refrained from pressing the matter, and resigned himself +as best he could to an extension of his exile. Meanwhile, he +decided to visit the Canal, for on every side he heard nothing but +echoes of the great work, and he began to feel that he owed it to +himself to view it. But his plans were upset by the weather. On +the following day it began to rain, and it continued to rain day +and night thereafter until Colon became a sodden, dripping horror. +The soil melted into a quagmire, the streets became sluices, the +heavens closed down like a leaden pall, and the very air became +saturated. It was hot also, and sticky. Indoors a mould began to +form, rust grew like a fungus; outdoors the waving palm tops +spilled a deluge upon roof and sidewalk at every gust; their +trunks streamed like hydrants. + +Kirk had never seen such a rain; it kept up hour after hour, day +after day, until the monotony became maddening. The instant he +stepped out from shelter he was drenched, and even in his rooms he +could discover no means of drying his clothes. His garments, +hanging beside his bed at night, were clammy and overlaid with +moisture in the morning. Things began to smell musty; leather +objects grew long, hoary whiskers of green mould. To his +amazement, the inhabitants seemed quite oblivious to the change, +however, and, while they agreed that the weather was a trifle +misty, they pursued their duties as usual, assuring him that the +rain might continue for a month. + +It was too much for Kirk, however, and he deferred his trip over +the "Line," spending his time instead at the Wayfarers Club. In +his daylight hours he listened to Weeks's unending dissertations +upon the riches of the tropics; at night he played poker with such +uniform bad luck that his opponents developed for him an +increasing affection. + +But all things have an end, and Friday morning broke clear and +hot. + +"We'll hear from the old gentleman to-day, sure," he told Weeks at +breakfast. "He's regularity itself. The train despatchers set +their watches by him." + +"Now that it has cleared off, we must look into the cocoanut +business," the consul announced. "I'll make you a rich man, Kirk." + +"I'm rich, anyhow, or I will be. Money doesn't mean much to me." + +"Your father is--many times a millionaire, isn't he?" Weeks' +little red eyes were very bright and curious. Kirk had seen that +look many times before and knew its meaning. Hence he replied +rather brusquely: + +"So I believe." And a moment later declared his determination to +avail himself of the good weather and see something of the town. +The prospect of squaring his account with this fawning fat man +filled him with relief, and once away from the Consulate he stayed +until late in the afternoon. It was nearly dark when he strolled +in, to inquire: + +"Well, did you get an answer?" + +"Yes." Weeks fumbled excitedly through the papers on his desk. + +"How much did he send? + +"Here's the message; read it yourself." + +Kirk read as follows: + +WEEKS, Consul, Colon. + +Your guest an impostor. Have no son. + ANTHONY. + +"Well, I'll be damned!" he ejaculated. "This is a joke!" + +Weeks was beginning to pant. "A joke, hey? I suppose it was a joke +to impose on me?" + +"Don't you believe I'm Kirk Anthony?" + +"No, I do not. I just discovered to-day that your name is +Jefferson Locke. Stein told me." + +Anthony laughed lightly. + +"Oh, laugh, if you want to. You're a smooth article with your talk +about football and automobiles and millionaire fathers, but you +happened to select the wrong millionaire for a father this time, +and I'm going to give you a taste of our Spiggoty jails." + +"You can't arrest me. You offered to take me in." + +The fat man grew redder than ever; he seemed upon the point of +exploding; his whole body shook and quivered as if a head of steam +were steadily gathering inside him. + +"You can't get out of it that way," he cried at the top of his +little voice. "I've fed you for a week. I put you up at my club. +That very suit of clothes you have on is mine." + +"Well, don't burst a seam over the matter. My Governor doesn't +know the facts. I'll cable him myself this time." + +"And live off me for another week, I suppose? Not if I know it! He +says he has no son; isn't that enough?" + +"He doesn't understand." + +"And how about those gambling debts?" chattered the mountain of +flesh. "You thought you'd fool me for a week, while you won enough +money from my friends to get away. Now I'LL have to pay them. Oh, +I'll fix you!" + +"You go slow about having me pinched," Kirk said, darkly, "or I'll +make you jump through a hoop. I'll pay my debts." + +"You're a rich man, eh? Money doesn't mean much to you, hey?" +mocked the infuriated Consul. "I suppose this is an old game of +yours. Well, you stuck me all right, because you knew I couldn't +have you arrested--I'd be a laughing-stock forever. But I've had +your card cancelled, and I've left word for the waiters to throw +you out if you show up at the Wayfarers." + +"Will you lend me enough money to cable again?" asked Anthony, +with an effort. + +"More money? NO!" fairly screamed the other. "You get out of my +house, Mr. 'Kirk Anthony,' and don't you show yourself around here +again. I'll keep the rest of your wardrobe." + +His erstwhile guest underwent an abrupt reversal of emotion. To +the indignant amazement of Mr. Weeks, he burst into a genuine +laugh, saying: + +"All right, landlord, keep my baggage. I believe that's the +custom, but--Oh, gee! This IS funny." He was still laughing when +he reached the public square, for at last he had begun to see the +full humor of Adelbert Higgins' joke. + + + + +VII + +THE REWARD OF MERIT + + +Facing for the first time in his life an instant and absolute need +of money, Kirk found himself singularly lacking in resource; and a +period of sober contemplation brought him no helpful thought. +Perhaps, after all, he decided, his best course would be to seek +relief from the Cortlandts. Accordingly, he strolled into the +offices of the steamship company near by and asked leave to +telephone. But on calling up the Hotel Tivoli, he was told that +his friends were out; nor could he learn the probable hour of +their return. As he hung up the receiver he noticed that the +office was closing, and, seeing the agent about to quit the place, +addressed him: + +"I'd like to ask a favor." + +"What is it?" + +"Will you introduce me to the best hotel in town? I have friends +in Panama City, but they're out and it's getting late." + +"There isn't a good hotel here, but you don't need an +introduction; just walk in. They're not full." + +"I'm broke, and I have no baggage." + +"Don't you know anybody?" + +"I know the American consul--been stopping at his house for a +week--but he threw me out." + +A great light seemed suddenly to dawn upon the agent. "Oh, you're +Locke!" said he, with the air of one who detects a fraud too +obvious to be taken seriously. "Now I understand. The purser on +the Santa Cruz told me about you. Sorry I can't help you, but I'm +a salaried man." + +"I've got to sleep," stoutly maintained the other. "Somebody will +have to take care of me; I can't sit up all night." + +"See here, my friend, I don't know what your game is, but you +can't sting me." The agent finished locking up, then walked away, +leaving his visitor to reflect anew upon the average human being's +ignoble lack of faith in his fellows. + +It was growing dark. From farther down the water-front the lights +of the Wayfarers Club shone invitingly, and Kirk decided to appeal +there for assistance. In spite of Weeks's warning, he felt sure he +could prevail upon some of the members to tide him over for the +night, but as he neared the place he underwent a sudden change of +heart. Slowly mounting the stairs ahead of him like a trained +hippopotamus was the colossal, panting figure of the American +consul, at sight of which Kirk's pride rose up in arms and forbade +him to follow. Doubtless Weeks had spread his story broadcast; it +was manifestly impossible for him to appeal to his recent card +partners--they would believe he had deliberately imposed upon +them. It was humiliating, yet there seemed nothing to do except to +await the Cortlandts' return, and, if he failed to reach them by +telephone, to spend the night in the open. It occurred to him that +he might try to locate Stein or some other of his late fellow- +passengers, but they were probably scattered across the Isthmus by +this time. + +A band was playing in the plaza when he came back--a very good +band, too--and, finding a bench, he allowed his mind the relief of +idly listening to the music. The square was filling with Spanish +people, who soon caught and held his attention, recalling Mrs. +Cortlandt's words regarding the intermixture of bloods in this +country; for every imaginable variety of mongrel breed looked out +from the loitering crowd. But no matter what the racial blend, +black was the fundamental tone. Undeniably the Castilian strain +was running out; not one passer-by in ten seemed really white. +Naturally, there was no color line. Well-dressed girls, evidently +white, or nearly so, went arm and arm with wenches as black as +night; men of every shade fraternized freely. + +It was a picturesque and ever-changing scene. Kirk saw dark-faced +girls wearing their unfailing badge of maidenhood--a white +mantilla--followed invariably at a distance by respectful admirers +who never presumed to walk beside them; wives whom marriage had +forced to exchange the white shawl for the black, escorted by +their husbands; huge, slouching Jamaican negroes of both sexes; +silent-footed, stately Barbadians who gave a touch of savagery to +the procession. Some of the women wore giant firebugs, whose +glowing eyes lent a ghostly radiance to hair or lace, at once +weird and beautiful. Round and round the people walked to the +strains of their national music, among them dozens upon dozens of +the ever-present little black-and-tan policemen, who constitute +the republic's standing army. + +As the evening drew on, Kirk became conscious of an unwonted +sensation. Once before he had had the same feeling--while on a +moose-trail in Maine. But now there was no guide, with a packful +of food, to come to his relief, and he could not muster up the +spirit that enables men to bear vacation hardships with +cheerfulness. + +He began to wonder whether a fast of twenty-four hours would +seriously weaken a man, and, rather than make the experiment, he +again called up the Tivoli, rejoicing anew in the fact that there +was no toll on Isthmian messages. But again he was disappointed. +This time he was told that the Cortlandts were doubtless spending +the night out of town with friends. + +Soon after his second return to the park, the concert ended, the +crowd melted away, and he found himself occupying a bench with a +negro of about the same age as himself. For perhaps an hour the +two sat there hearkening to the dying noises of the city; then +Kirk, unable to endure the monotony longer, turned sharply on his +companion and said: + +"Why don't you go home?" + +The negro started, his eyes flew open, then he laughed: "Oh, boss, +I got no home." + +"Really?" + +"No, sar." + +Kirk reflected that he had found not only the right place, but +also fitting company, for his vigil. + +"What does a person do in that case?" he asked. + +"Oh, he goes to work, sar." + +"For the night, I mean. Are you going to stay here until morning?" + +"Yes, sar, if the policeman will h'admit of it." + +The fellow's dialect was so strange that Kirk inquired: "Where did +you come from?" + +"Jamaica, sar. I was barn on the narth coast of the h'island, +sar." + +"Did you just arrive here?" + +"Oh, Lard, no! I 'ave been a liver here for two year." + +"A liver!" Kirk could not help smiling. + +"Yes, sar! Sometimes I labor on the docks, again in the h'office. +Lahst week lose I my position, and to-day my room h'also. +Landladies is bad females, sar, very common." + +"You've been shooting craps," said Kirk, accusingly. + +"Crops, sar! What is crops?" + +"You don't know what craps is! I mean you've been gambling." + +"Oh, boss, I h'invest my money." + +"Indeed!" + +"Lahst Sunday nearly won I the big prize. I 'ad h'all but three +numbers." + +"Lottery ticket, eh?" + +"H'eight! H'eight chawnces in all," the negro sighed. "But dreams +is false, sar." + +"So I've heard. Well, it seems we're in the same boat this +beautiful evening. I have no place to sleep, either." + +"You are humbugging me." + +"No, I'm flat broke." + +"Oh, chot me true, mon." + +"I am chatting you true. I'm an outcast of fortune like yourself." + +"Such talk! You make I laugh this house." + +"What?" + +"You make I laugh," repeated the other in a broad Devonshire +dialect. "Praise God, you h'appear like a gentleman." + +"I trust this little experience will not permanently affect my +social standing. By-the-way, what is your name?" + +"H'Allan." + +"Hallan?" + +"No, sar. H'Allan." + +"Is that your first or last name?" + +"Both, sar--h'Allan h'Allan." + +"Mr. Allan Allan, you're unusually dark for a Scotchman," said +Kirk, gravely. "Now, speaking as one gentleman to another, do you +happen to know where we can get a hand-out?" + +"'And-out?" inquired the puzzled negro. + +"Yes; a lunch. Can't you lead me to a banana vine or a breadfruit +bakery? I'm starving. They grow the finest cocoanuts in the world +right here--worth five cents apiece; they require no care, have no +worms, no bugs. You sit still and they drop in your lap. Can't you +show me a tree where we can sit and wait for something to drop?" + +Allan replied, seriously: "But when the cocoanut falls, it is no +good for h'eating, sar. The milk is h'acid." + +"I see you have a sense of humor; you should be in the consular +service. But h'acid or sweet, h'eating or cooling, I must get +something into my stomach--it's as flat as a wet envelope." + +The Jamaican rose, saying: "Step this way, please. I know the +place where a very good female is. Per'aps she will make us a +present." + +"How far is it?" + +"Oh, not too far," Allan replied, optimistically, and Kirk +hopefully followed him. + +But at the opposite side of the square they were halted by a +sudden commotion which drove all thoughts of food out of their +minds. From a building across the street issued a bugle-call, upon +which an indescribable confusion broke forth. Men began running to +and fro; a voice in authority shouted orders, each of which was +the signal for another bugle-call. Through the wide-open doors the +Panamanians could be seen, scurrying around a hose-cart, +apparently in search of clothes; some were struggling into red +shirts, others were stamping their feet into short boots or +girding themselves with wide canvas belts. Meanwhile, the chief +issued more orders and the bugle continued to blow. + +"Oh, look, boss!" Allan cried, quickly. "There must be a +'flagration." + +"It's a Spiggoty hose company, as I live. Come on!" + +Already a glare could be seen above the crowded portion of the +city, and the two set off in that direction at a run, leaving the +bugle sounding in the rear and the gallant firemen still wrestling +with their uniforms. They had nearly reached the fire when around +a corner back of them, with frightful speed and clangor, came a +modern automobile fire-truck, clinging to which was a swarm of +little brown men in red shirts and helmets. They reminded the +American of monkeys on a circus horse, and, although he had been +counted a reckless driver, he exclaimed in astonishment at the +daring way in which the chauffeur took the turn. + +It was truly amazing, for the machine, which was the latest +improvement in imported fire-fighting machinery, skidded the full +width of the street, threatening to rip its tires off and turn +turtle, then leaped upon the curb before its driver could +straighten it up, and in a magnificent sweep carried away the +wooden supports of an overhanging balcony. The timbers parted like +straws; there came a shrill uproar from inside the building as the +sleeping occupants poured forth, but without a pause the Yankee +machine whizzed on up the street, its gong clanging, its occupants +holding on for dear life, the peaceful inhabitants of Colon +fleeing from its path like quail before the hoofs of a runaway +horse. + +"Hit her up!" Kirk yelled, delightedly, then leaned against a +lamp-post and laughed until he was weak. In the midst of his +merriment appeared the company he had just seen making up. They +had found their uniforms at last, it seemed, down to the final +belt and shoelace, and now came charging gallantly along in the +tracks of the more speedy motor. They were drawing their hand- +reel, each brave lad tugging lustily and panting with fatigue. + +Kirk and his guide fell in behind and jogged to the scene of the +conflagration. + +A three-storied building was already half gutted; out of its +windows roared long, fiery tongues; the structure snapped and +volleyed a chorus to the sullen monotone of destruction. The +street was littered with the household belongings of the +neighborhood, and from the galleries and windows near by came such +a flight of miscellaneous articles as to menace the safety of +those below. Men shouted, women screamed, children shrieked, +figures appeared upon the fire-lit balconies hurling forth armfuls +of cooking utensils, bedding, lamps, food, and furniture, utterly +careless of where they fell or of the damage they suffered. Kirk +saw one man fling a graphophone from a top window, then lower a +mattress with a rope. On all sides was a bedlam which the arrival +of the firemen only augmented. The fire captains shouted orders to +the buglers, the buglers blew feebly upon their horns, the +companies deployed in obedience to the bugles, then everybody +waited for further directions. + +Again the trumpet sounded, whereupon each fireman began to +interfere with his neighbor; a series of quarrels arose as +couplings were made or broken; then, after an interminable delay, +water began to flow, as if by a miracle. But except in rare +instances it failed to reach the flames. A ladder-truck, drawn by +another excited company, now rumbled upon the scene, its arrival +adding to the general disorder. Meanwhile, the steady tradewind +fanned the blaze to ever-growing proportions. + +"Why the devil don't they get closer?" Kirk inquired of his +Jamaican companion. + +Allan's eyes were wide and ringed with white; his teeth gleamed in +a grin of ecstasy as he replied: + +"Oh, Lard, my God, it is too 'ot, sar; greatly too 'ot! It would +take a stout 'eart to do such a thing." + +"Nonsense! They'll never put it out this way. Hey!" Kirk attracted +the attention of a near-by nozzleman. "Walk up to it. It won't +bite you." But the valiant fire-fighter held stubbornly to his +post, while the stream he directed continued to describe a +graceful curve and spatter upon the sidewalk in front of the +burning building. "You're spoiling that old woman's bed," Anthony +warned him, at which a policeman with drawn club forced him back +as if resentful of criticism. Other peace officers compelled the +crowd to give way, then fell upon the distracted property holders +and beat them off their piles of furniture. + +For perhaps ten minutes there was no further change in the +situation; then a great shout arose as it was seen that the roof +of the adjoining building had burst into flame. At this the +fanfare of trumpets sounded again; firemen rushed down the street, +dragging a line of hose and drenching the onlookers. But, despite +their hurry, they halted too soon, and their stream just failed to +reach the blazing roof. By now the heat had grown really intense, +and the more hardy heroes in the vanguard retreated to less trying +positions. The voice of the crowd had arisen to a roar rivalling +that of the flames. + +"They must intend to let the whole town burn!" cried Anthony. + +"Yes, sar! Very probably, sar." + +Kirk pointed to the nearest fireman. "If he'd get up under that +wall he could save the roof and be out of the heat." He undertook +to convey this suggestion to the fellow, but without result. "I +can't stand this," he exclaimed at last. "Let's give him a hand, +Allan." + +"Very well, sar." + +"Here! help me get a kink in this hose. There! Now you hold it +until you feel me pull." Kirk forced his way out through the +crowd, to find the fireman holding the nozzle, from which a feeble +stream was dribbling, and mechanically directing it at the fire. +Kirk laid hold of the canvas and, with a heave, dragged it, along +with its rightful guardian, ten feet forward; but there had been +no bugle-blown order for this, and the uniformed man pulled +backward with all his might, chattering at Kirk in Spanish. + +"Well, then let go." Anthony shook the Panamannikin loose, then +ran forward across the street until he brought up at the end of +the slack and felt the hose behind him writhe and swell as Allan +released his hold. The next instant the negro was at his side, and +the two found themselves half blistered by the heat that rolled +out upon them. But the newly ignited roof was within range, and +the stream they played upon it made the shingles fly. + +"Oh, Lard!" Allan was crying. "Oh, Lard! I shall h'expire." + +"Pull down your hat and shield your face." + +The fireman they had despoiled began to drag at the hose from a +safe distance; but when Kirk made as if to turn the nozzle upon +him he scampered away amid the jeers of the crowd. A few moments +later, the American felt a hand upon his arm and saw an angry +policeman who was evidently ordering him back. Behind him stood +the excited nozzleman with two companions. + +"He says you should return the 'ose where you found it," Allan +translated. + +"Leave us alone," Kirk replied. "You fellows help the others; +we'll attend to this." More rapid words and gesticulations +followed, in the midst of which a dapper young man in a uniform +somewhat more impressive than the others dashed up, flung himself +upon Anthony and endeavored to wrench the hose from his hands. +Meanwhile he uttered epithets in broken English which the other +had no difficulty in understanding. Kirk promptly turned the +nozzle upon him, and the full force of Colon's water-pressure +struck him squarely in the stomach, doubling him up like the kick +of a mule. Down the newcomer went, then half rolled, half slid +across the street as the stream continued to play upon him. He +scrambled to his feet, a sorry spectacle of waving arms and +dripping garments, his cries of rage drowned in the delighted +clamor of the beholders. + +"I guess they'll keep away now," laughed Kirk, as he turned back +to his self-appointed task. + +But Allan exclaimed, fearfully: "Oh, boss, I fear he is some 'igh +h'officer." + +"Never mind. We're having a lot of fun. It's medals for us--gold +medals for bravery, Allan. To-morrow the board of aldermen will +thank us." + +But this prediction seemed ill-founded. An instant later a half- +dozen policemen advanced in a businesslike manner, and their +leader announced: "Come! You are arrest." + +"Pinched! What for? We're doing a lot of good here." + +"Come, queeck!" + +"Oh, Lard, my God!" Allan mumbled. "I shall die and kill myself." + +"They won't do anything to us," Kirk assured him. "I've been +pinched lots of times. We'll have to quit, though, and that's a +pity. It was just getting good." + +He surrendered the hose to a fireman, who promptly retreated with +it to a discreet position, then followed his captors, who were now +buzzing like bees. + +"Don't get excited," he said to Allan, noting his frightened look. +"They'll turn us loose all right." + +But a moment after they were clear of the town he was surprised to +see that the negro's captors had snapped "come-alongs" upon him in +spite of his repeated promises to go quietly. + +These handcuffs, Kirk saw, were of the type used upon desperate +criminals, consisting of chains fitted with handles so contrived +that a mere twist of the officer's hand would cut the prisoner's +flesh to the bone. + +"You don't need to do that," he assured the fellow who had made +the arrest, but, instead of heeding his words, the men on each +side of the Jamaican twisted stoutly, forcing the black boy to cry +out in pain. He hung back, protesting: + +"All right, sar, I'll come. I'll come." + +But again they tightened their instruments of torture, and their +victim began to struggle. At this an evil-faced man in blue struck +him brutally upon the head with his club, then upon the shoulders, +as if to silence his groans. The boy flung up his manacled hands +to shield himself, and the light from a street lamp showed blood +flowing where the chains had cut. The whole proceeding was so +unprovoked, so sickening in its cruelty, that Kirk, who until this +instant had looked upon the affair as a rather enjoyable lark, +flew into a fury and, disregarding his own captors, leaped forward +before the policeman could strike a third time. He swung his fist, +and the man with the club hurtled across the street as if shot +from a bow, then lay still in the gutter. With another blow he +felled one of the handcuff-men, but at the same time other hands +grasped at him and he was forced to lay about vigorously on all +sides. + +They rushed him with the ferocity of mad dogs, and he knocked them +spinning, one after another. A whistle blew shrilly, other +uniforms came running, more whistles piped, and almost before he +realized it he found himself in the centre of a pack of lean-faced +brown men who were struggling to pull him down and striking at him +with their clubs. With a sudden wild thrill he realized that this +was no ordinary street fight; this was deadly; he must beat off +these fellows or be killed. But, as fast as he cleared them away, +others appeared as if by magic, until a dozen or more were +swarming upon him like hungry ants. They clung to his arms, his +legs, his clothing, with a desperate courage wholly admirable in +itself, while strokes were aimed at him from every quarter. Time +and again they dragged him off his feet, only to have him shake +them loose. But though most of their blows went wild or found a +mark among their own numbers, he was felled at last, and a moment +later, with head reeling and wits flickering, he was dragged to +his knees by handcuffs like those on Allan's wrists. The pain as +the chains bit into his flesh brought him to his feet despite the +blows and kicks that were rained upon him, crying hoarsely: + +"Let me go, damn you! Let me go!" + +But a wrench at the gyves took the fight out of him, for he felt +that the bones in his wrists must surely be crushed. One side of +his head was strangely big and numb; a warm stream trickled down +his cheek; but he had no time to think of his condition, for his +assailants fell upon him with fresh fury, and he reeled about, +striving to shield himself. Every movement, however, was construed +as resistance, and his punishment continued, until at last he must +have fainted from pain or had his wits scattered by a blow on the +head; for when he recovered consciousness he found himself in a +filthy, ill-lighted room, flung upon a wooden platform that ran +along the wall, evidently serving as a bed. Near him Allan was +huddled, his black face distorted with pain and ashen with +apprehension. + + + + +VIII + +EL COMANDANTE TAKES A HAND + + +"Where are we?" queried Anthony, as he took in the surroundings. + +"This is the prison, sar." + +"Gee! I'm sick." Kirk lay back upon the platform and closed his +eyes. "Did they hurt you much?" + +"Oh yes. Very considerably." + +"Sorry I got you into it, Allan, I never thought they'd be so +cranky." Again he groaned. "I want a drink." + +"Let me get it. Those Spiggoties will not give it to you." + +Allan went to the door and called to the guard. An instant later +he returned with a tin cup. + +"I guess they knocked me out," Kirk said, dazedly. "I never was +hit like that before--and jailed! Say! We must get out of her. +Call the chief or the man in charge, will you? I can't speak the +language." + +"Please, sar, if you h'anger them they will beat us again." + +"Beat! Not here?" + +"Oh yes. They might kill us." + +"They wouldn't do that!" + +"A white man they killed lahst h'autumn, and several of my people +have passed away in this prison. Nobody can 'ear nothing. Nobody +knows what 'appens 'ere." + +"Oh, well, they wouldn't dare touch us--I'm an American citizen. +I'll notify the consul." + +Roused at the mere suggestion. Kirk staggered to the door and +shouted lustily. When no one answered, he shook the iron grating, +whereupon a guard leisurely approached, and, after listening +stolidly to his request, went back to his post at the other end of +the hall. This time the American sent forth such an uproar that a +man evidently corresponding in authority to a sergeant appeared +with the command to be quiet. + +"Let me out of here!" loudly demanded the prisoner. "I want the +chief, or the alcalde, or somebody in charge. I want to know what +I'm booked for, I want to telephone--TELEPHONE, don't you +understand?--and arrange bail. Quick, now!" + +But the officer merely frowned at him, obviously threatening a +resort to force if this outburst did not cease at once. + +"I tell you I want to get out," insisted Kirk. "I want to know +what I'm charged with and have my friends get bail." + +The man nodded his understanding and went away, but an hour passed +and he did not return. Then another hour followed, and Anthony, +who had now begun to feel the effect of his drubbing more keenly, +renewed his clamor, with the result that a half-dozen policemen +appeared, causing Allan to retreat to a corner and mumble prayers. +From their demeanor it looked as though they were really bent upon +mischief, but Kirk soon saw that an official had come in answer to +his call. He felt less reassured when he perceived that the person +in uniform who now stepped forward was the same upon whom he had +turned the hose earlier in the evening. + +This was a black-haired, black-eyed young fellow of, perhaps, +thirty. While his skin was swarthy, even in this poor light it +could be seen that he was of the real Castilian type and of a much +better class than the others. He was slender and straight, his +mouth small and decorated by a carefully pencilled little +mustache, which was groomed to a needle sharpness. His hands and +feet were as dainty as those of a woman. He was undeniably +striking in appearance, and might have passed for handsome had it +not been for the scowl that distorted his features. + +"Eh! 'ere you are," he began, angrily. + +"Yes; I want to get out, too. What does this treatment mean?" + +The new-comer stepped toward the other occupant of the cell, at +which Allan broke out in terror: "Don't you touch me. I'm a +British object." + +But it was evidently not the man's intention to offer any further +indignity to his prisoners at that time. After scanning the +Jamaican carefully, he issued an order to one of his men, who left +the room. + +"And I'm an American," Anthony declared. "You'll have to answer +for this." + +"Per'aps you don' know who I am. I am Ramon Alfarez, Comandante of +Police, an' you dare' to t'row the water of the 'ose-wagon upon my +person. Your gover'ment will settle for those insolt." His white +teeth showed in a furious snarl. + +"I don't give a damn who you are. I'll get bail or do whatever +your law requires, but I want to get out and I want to get out +now." + +The commandant's eyes flashed as he asked, shortly. "W'at is your +name?" + +"Anthony. Your men tried to kill that boy, and when I wouldn't +stand for it they beat me up." + +"You strock me wit' the water of the 'ose-carriage," repeated the +other. "You 'ave assault the dignity of my country." + +"I didn't know who you were. I was helping to stop that fire when +you butted in. Now, are you going to let me out, or do you want my +people to pull this jail down around your ears?" + +At this threat Senor Alfarez restrained his rage with an obvious +effort. "You will reply to those outrage, senor." + +"Sure, I'll reply. But in the mean time I want to telephone to the +American consul. Look at this!" The young man held out his +shaking, swollen wrists, upon which the blood was scarcely dry. +"Look at it! Those runts of yours got handcuffs on me and then +beat me up. I'm sick. So's that boy. We need a doctor." + +Alfarez shook his head. "You resis' the police. Even in your +country one mus' not do that. 'Ave I been there, I would keel you +both, but I am 'aving a cheel at the moment from those stream of +col' water." + +"Will you take me to a telephone?" + +"It is not permit." + +"Will you notify Mr. Weeks?" + +Receiving no reply to this request, Kirk broke out: "Well, then, +what ARE you going to do? Let us stay here all night?" + +"W'at is your bizness?" + +"I haven't any." + +"You don' work on the Canal?" + +"No. I'm a tourist. My father is a big railroad man in the States. +I'm telling you this so you'll know how to act." + +"W'ere do you leeve--w'at 'otel?" + +"I've been stopping with Mr. Weeks." + +Senor Alfarez's attitude became somewhat less overbearing. + +"In due time he will be notify of your outrage to my person," he +announced. + +The fellow who had left the room a moment before now reappeared, +carrying a bucket of water and some towels, with which he directed +Allan to remove the blood from his face and hands. When it came +Kirk's turn, however, he objected. + +"I think I'll wait until Weeks sees me," he said. + +But Alfarez retorted, sharply: "It is not permit"; and, seeing +that resistance would be useless, Kirk acquiesced as gracefully as +he could, remarking as he did so: + +"You'll have hard work washing off this, and this." He indicated +the traces of the handcuffs and the gash in his scalp. + +The commandant turned to his men and addressed them at some +length, calling them to task, as Allan later informed his +companion, for using their clubs in a manner to mark their +prisoners so conspicuously. Then he followed them into the +corridor, closing the grating behind him. + +The hours passed, and daylight came with no word from the American +consul. By this time the two prisoners were really in need of +medical attention. Their contusions pained them severely. Kirk +felt as if one or more of his ribs were broken, and his suffering, +combined with hunger, prevented sleep. He became feverish and +fretful, but his demands for communication with the outside world +were calmly ignored, although he felt certain that his wishes were +fully understood. When the morning had passed without his being +arraigned for a hearing he grew alarmed. Evidently he had been +flung into confinement and forgotten. + +Eventually Kirk and Allan were given food, but still no one came +to their relief. Apparently no message had been delivered. This +treatment was so atrocious, so at variance with Anthony's ideas of +his own importance, that he felt he must be suffering from +nightmare. How dared they treat an American so, no matter what the +charge? Why didn't they try him or give him a hearing? These +insolent, overbearing Panamaniacs had no regard for law or +humanity, and this was no longer a question of petty injustice; it +was a grave infraction of civilized equity. + +But the afternoon wore on without an encouraging sign, till Kirk +began to think that Weeks had refused to intercede for him and +intended to leave him to the mercies of his enemies. With +difficulty he managed to convey to a guard his desire to notify +some of the other Americans in the city, but as usual no heed was +paid to his request. + +It was considerably after dark when a visitor was at last +admitted. He proved to be the English consul, whom Anthony had +never met. + +"What are you doing here?" the new-comer inquired. Then, when the +facts had been laid before him, he exclaimed: "Why, I heard that a +Jamaican negro had been arrested, but I heard nothing about +mistreatment of a white man." + +"Doesn't anybody know I'm here?" + +"I'm sure no one does. Those heathens lied to you--they never +communicated with Weeks or anybody. They're afraid. This is an old +trick of theirs--man-handling a prisoner, then keeping him hidden +until he recovers. If he doesn't recover they get out of it on +some excuse or other, as best they can. Why, they killed a white +sailor not long ago--just plain clubbed him to death without +excuse, then asserted that he resisted arrest. They did the same +to one of our negroes. He died in the jail before I got wind of +it, and when I started an investigation they showed his signed +statement declaring that he had not been abused at all, and had +been given the kindest treatment. The matter isn't settled yet. +It's infamous! Why, I had hard work to get in at all just now. But +I'll have Allan here out in two hours or I'll know the reason. +England protects her subjects, Mr. Anthony, and these people know +it. If they don't come to time I'll have a gunboat in the harbor +in twenty-four hours. Color doesn't amount to a damn with us, sir; +it's the flag." + +"I guess Uncle Sam is strong enough to command respect," said +Anthony. + +"Well, I know the circumstances now, and I'll go straight to +Weeks. He can arrange your release without trouble. If you were an +Englishman, I'd have you out in no time, and you'd collect +handsome damages, too. This boy will." + +True to the consul's prediction, a little later the Jamaican was +led out of the cell, and from the fact that he was not brought +back Kirk judged that the British intervention had been effectual. +But it was not until the next morning, the second of his +imprisonment, that the cell door opened once more, this time to +admit the portly figure of John Weeks and the spruce person of +Senor Ramon Alfarez. + +"What's all this trouble about?" inquired the former in none too +amiable a tone. + +Kirk told his story as briefly and convincingly as he could. But +when he had finished, the consul shook his head. + +"I don't see what I can do for you," he said. "According to your +own declaration you resisted a police officer. You'll have to take +your medicine." + +Alfarez nodded agreement. "Quite right!" said he. "He did terrible +'avoc with my men, t'ree of which is now on the 'ospital." + +"But why don't they try me or let me get bail? I want to get out." + +"You'll be tried as soon as they get around to it." + +"Look here!" Kirk showed the marks his assailants had left upon +him. "Will you stand for that? I've been here two nights now +without medical attention." "How about that, Alfarez?" + +The commandant shrugged his shoulders. "If he require a doctor, +one shall be secure', but he is not severely injure.' I 'ave +explain the frightful indignity to the honor of my person, yes? As +for me, pooh! It is forget." He waved his hand gracefully and +smiled sweetly upon his fat visitor. "It does not exist. But the +brave soldiers of mine! Ah! Senor Wick, they lofe me, they cannot +forget the honor of el comandante. So! When the prisoner is decide +to insurrect, who can say those gallant soldier don' be too +strong? Who can blame for making roff-'ouse?" + +"I guess you ain't hurt much," said Weeks, eying his countryman +coldly. "You didn't get any more than was coming to you." + +"I won't stand for this," cried the prisoner, hotly. "The English +consul got that nigger boy out, and I want you to do the same for +me." + +"You don't understand. I've got business interests in this +country, and I can't dash about creating international issues +every time an American gets locked up for disorderly conduct. How +long do you think I'd last with these people if I did that?" + +"Are you really afraid to do anything?" Kirk inquired, slowly. "Or +is it because of our row?" + +"Oh, there's nothing personal about it! I can't afford personal +feelings in my position. Really, I don't see where you're so much +abused. You assaulted a government officer and resisted arrest. If +you got hurt it's your own fault. Of course I'll see that you have +a fair trial." + +The commandant spoke up with ingratiating politeness: "The +prisoner say he is reech man's son. Now, of course, it is too bad +he is injure' wit' the clob of the policeman; but those officer is +ver' polite, senor, and if he is explain biffore--" + +Weeks snorted indignantly. "He gave you that fairy tale, eh? He +said his name was Anthony and his father was a railroad president, +didn't he? Well, he imposed on me, too, but his name is Locke, +and, as near as I can learn, he practically stowed away on the +SANTA CRUZ." + +"Ah-h!" The officer's eyes widened as he turned them upon his +prisoner. "He is then a w'at you call tramp." + +"All I know is, he stuck me for a lot of bills. I'll have to see +that he gets fair treatment, I suppose, because he's an American, +but that ends my duty." + +"Is this the best you'll do for me?" Kirk inquired, as Weeks made +ready to go. + +"Yes." + +"Will you tell some of the men at the Wayfarers that I'm here?" + +"Oh, that won't do any good. You're in for it, Locke, so don't +holler. I'll be on hand at your hearing." + +"Will you cable my father?" + +"At twenty-five cents a word? Hardly!" The speaker mopped his +face, exclaiming: "There's no use of talking, I've got to get out +in the air; it's too hot in here for me." Then he waddled out +ahead of Senor Alfarez, who slammed the door behind him as he +followed to escort his caller to the street. + +But a half-hour later the commandant returned to the cell, and +this time he brought with him a number of his little policemen, +each armed with a club. Feeling some menace in their coming, Kirk, +who had seated himself dejectedly, arose to ask: "What's coming +off?" + +Alfarez merely issued some directions in Spanish, and chain +handcuffs were once more snapped upon the prisoner's wrists. + +"So! you're going to hold my trial, eh?" cried Kirk. + +But the other snarled: "Senor Locke, you 'ave force' the water of +the 'ose-wagon upon my body for making the people laugh. Bueno! +Now I shall laugh." He seated himself, then nodded at his men to +begin. + + + + +IX + +SPANISH LAW + + +Mrs. Cortlandt answered her telephone for the second time, +repeating with some impatience: "Tell the man I can't see him." + +"But he refuses to leave--says he must see you at once; it's +important," came the voice of the clerk. + +"Oh, very well. I'll come down." She hung up the receiver with a +snap. + +"Why don't they send him up?" queried her husband from the +sitting-room. + +"It's a negro, and the clerk says he'd rather not allow him up- +stairs. Another sick family, I suppose." + +"They're beginning to impose on you. It's usually that way with +charities," said Cortlandt. + +With unfeminine neglect of the chance for petty discussion, his +wife left the room without replying, and descended to the hotel +lobby. Here she was directed toward a very ragged, very woe-begone +young black on the rear porch, who, at sight of her, began to +fumble his hat and run his words together so excitedly that she +was forced to calm him. + +"Now, now! I can't understand a word. Who are you?" + +"H'Allan, mistress." + +"You say some one is ill?" + +"Oh yes, he is very h'ill h'indeed, mistress--h'all covered with +blood and his poor 'ands h'all cut." + +"Who--?" + +"And his 'ead--oh, Lard! His 'ead is cut, too, and he suffers a +fever." + +"WHO IS IT?" + +"Mr. h'Auntony--" + +"Anthony!" Mrs. Cortlandt started. "What has happened? Quick!" + +Seeing that at last he had found a friend, the Jamaican began to +sob with relief, wailing extravagant praises to God and apparently +endeavoring to kiss Mrs. Cortlandt's hand, whereat she seized him +by the shoulders and shook him, crying: + +"Stop that! Behave yourself and tell me what is the trouble, +quickly now, from the beginning." + +Without drying his tears, Allan launched himself into the full +violence of his recital, stumbling recklessly over his figures of +speech, lapsing into idioms that it taxed his hearer to follow. +Had she been less acquainted with the Caribbean dialects she would +have missed much of the story, but, as it was, she followed him +closely, urging him on with sharp expressions of amazement and +nods of understanding. Rapidly she gathered the facts of the case, +while her cheeks whitened and her eyes grew dark with indignation. +The sight renewed Allan's emotion. His voice broke, his black +hands shook, he began to sob once more, and great tears stole down +his ebony cheeks. But he managed to answer her terse, shocked +questions with some degree of intelligence, calling upon his vivid +imagination for such details as his memory had lost. + +"I wait an' wait for him to h'emerge, but he does not come. +Perhaps they 'ave killed the poor mon once more." + +"How did you get here?" + +"With my feet, mistress. Sometimes rode I on the train, but the +train people are very common; they h'addressed me rudely and threw +me by the wayside." + +"Couldn't you telephone?" + +"I do not h'understand 'ow." + +"Why didn't he notify me at once? If I had only known--" + +"Those 'eartless Spiggoties would not h'allow it. Oh, you will +h'assist the poor mon! Say it. Praise be to God, he is bleeding in +the prison--" + +"Yes, yes, certainly." + +Allan reached clumsily this time to kiss the hem of her skirt, but +she stepped aside quickly, fumbling meanwhile in her purse for a +bank-note, while he exclaimed: + +"God bless you, good mistress. He told me to find you and present +his recital." + +"Here, take this money and go back to Colon by the first train. We +may need you. Now go! I'll be there ahead of you." + +She picked up her white skirts and ran up the hotel stairs as if +pursued, bursting in upon her husband so impetuously that he rose +in surprise, inquiring: + +"What is it?" + +"Young Anthony is in jail in Colon," she panted. "He's been locked +up for three days, and they won't let him out." + +"The devil! You said he'd gone back to New York. What is it +about?" + +"I thought he had. They arrested him for some silly thing, and +he's hurt." She hurriedly recounted Allan's story, adding, in +conclusion, "That black boy came all the way across the Isthmus to +tell us!" + +"I'll get the American consul by 'phone--" + +But Mrs. Cortlandt interrupted. "Weeks is a fool! He wouldn't do +anything. Wait!" She stepped to the instrument and rang violently. +"Give me Colonel Jolson's office, quickly. If he is not there, +find him. I don't care where he is, find him; it is important. +This is Mrs. Cortlandt speaking.' + +"What do you mean to do?" said Cortlandt. + +"Go to Colon at once. This is young Alfarez's doing--the whipper- +snapper--you must lay him out for this. How dare he!" + +"Better go carefully. Remember, General Alfarez is his father." + +"I understand. But we are bound to come to a breach sooner or +later." + +"I hardly think so. I believe we can bring him around all right-- +anyhow, I haven't lost hope." Then, as his wife made an impatient +gesture: "Well, if we precipitate a quarrel now, that will end +it." He paced the room feverishly. "Good heavens, Edith! Anthony +chose the worst possible time for this escapade. I suppose it will +mean diplomatic difficulties and all that, and once we lose old +Alfarez--" + +"We will lose him anyhow," snapped the woman. "I've seen it +coming, although you could not. I'll break Ramon for this." + +"Then you'll break us." Cortlandt stared gloomily at his wife, who +met his gaze squarely. "Do you think Anthony is worth it?" + +"My dear Stephen, they nearly killed that poor boy, and I sha'n't +allow it. Don Anibal Alfarez is not the only presidential timber +in the republic. If he breaks with us it will cost him dearly. You +think he is friendly, but I know that deep down in his crafty old +heart he despises all us Americans and is only waiting a chance to +gratify his spleen. The moment he dares, he'll turn against us." + +Cortlandt's frosty countenance showed signs of unusual agitation +as he answered: "You're mad! You threaten to ruin everything. You +understand perfectly--there's no use of my explaining. Let me call +on him this afternoon. He will instruct his son." + +"No! He would procrastinate, as usual. There would be the +customary delays and excuses, and meanwhile Anthony would be in +jail at Colon. They would have a defence all prepared. Besides, if +it's to be a fight we must have all the weapons possible--and this +affair may prove a good one. Anyhow, you mustn't ask a favor of +him at this time; he must ask, not you." + +The telephone rang, and the speaker snatched the receiver from its +hook. + +"Hello! Colonel Jolson, I'm very glad I caught you. This is Mrs. +Cortlandt. Colonel Jolson, young Ramon Alfarez has arrested Kirk +Anthony, of whom I spoke to you. They have maltreated him, as +usual, and have hidden him for three days. Yes, yes! I discovered +it quite by accident while Mr. Cortlandt was down-town. Oh, this +is serious, and I'm furious. ... That will do no good; I have +reasons for preferring to handle it myself. ... Thank you for the +compliment. We must go to Colon at once, and I thought you might +give us a special." There was a slight pause, then: "Good! That +will do quite as well. In fifteen minutes. Thank you. Good-bye." + +Turning to her husband, she explained, swiftly: "The Colonel's +automobile will be waiting at the station in fifteen minutes. Are +you ready?" + +"I think you are going about this in the wrong way," he said, +coldly. "When will you learn--?" She checked her crisp words at +the flush that leaped to his cheeks. "I beg your pardon, Stephen. +Please do as Colonel Jolson has done and trust me to manage this +affair." + +He bowed and left her, saying, "I will have a coach waiting at the +door." + +Fifteen minutes later a gasoline railroad motor-car with two +passengers in addition to its driver and flagman rolled out of the +yards at Panama City and took the main line, running under orders +like a special train. As it clanked over the switches with ever- +increasing speed, Mrs. Cortlandt leaned forward and spoke to the +driver. + +"We will have a clear track, and you may go as fast as you like." + +The next moment the machine was reeling drunkenly around curves +and a fifty-mile gale was roaring past. + +Senor Ramen Alfarez was considerably nonplussed when his two +distinguished visitors made known the nature of their errand. +Cortlandt did most of the talking, his cold hauteur serving a good +purpose and contrasting strongly with the suppressed excitement of +his wife. + +"Pardon me, there is no necessity for delay," he said, as the +commandant endeavored to formulate an excuse. "I trust I need not +insist upon seeing the prisoner?" He raised his brows with a stare +of inquiry that caused the other to reply, hastily: + +"Of a certainty not, senor." + +"Then take us to him." + +"I will spare your lady the painful sight of the prison-house. The +prisoner shall be fetch' with all despatch." + +"We will see him alone." + +Again the commandant hesitated, while his bright eyes searched +their faces with a sudden uneasy curiosity. "I am fear soch t'ing +is not permit'." + +"Nonsense!" exclaimed Mrs. Cortlandt, unable longer to restrain +herself. "We know the law quite as well or perhaps better than +you, Senor Alfarez. If you wish, Mr. Cortlandt will get permission +from the President. You have a telephone?" + +"Oh, soch is farthes' remove' from my thoughts," quickly +interposed the commandant, with his most graceful bow. "If it is +in my power to oblige, w'at matter the law? Pouf! W'at I mean is +this: Our prisoner is not what you call seeck, nor is he ver' +well. He is resis' the officer by force an' he is injure'--oh, but +only a leetle--it is not'ing. One is truly foolish for resis' the +policemans, yes?" He shook his dark head sadly. "I am desolate to +'ear of soch t'ing; it is so useless to stroggle wit' the officer +in disbursement of duty; but you Americans are so brave! I am +force' to admire this prisoner; he is soch a strong fellow." + +"I think we understand the circumstances." + +Instead of ringing for an orderly the commandant excused himself, +then, after a seemingly interminable delay returned with Anthony +and several policemen. + +At sight of his friends the young man made for them eagerly, +crying: "Jove, I'm glad you came! I'd about given you up." + +"Allan only found us to-day," Mrs. Cortlandt replied. + +"Did he tell the truth? Have you been abused?" + +The young man turned a pair of smouldering eyes upon his enemies. +He looked ill and haggard, although, except for the wound half +concealed beneath his hair, he showed no marks. Then he held out +his hands with a grim smile, and the woman uttered a low cry at +what she saw. "They gave me another good beating yesterday," he +said. + +"While you were in jail?" Cortlandt queried, incredulously. "God!" + +"That's the fellow yonder." Kirk pointed to Alfarez, whose smile +had disappeared. + +"Oh, the man is mistake'," the latter hastened to aver. "He is +crazee." + +"I gave you a wetting in public, and--" + +"Si, si! That is correc', Senor Cortlan'. He insolt my person an' +fight my soldiers. He is ver' toff person." + +"Did you know he had been maltreated in prison?" Cortlandt +demanded. + +"Oh, senor!" Alfarez raised his hands in horrified disclaimer of +the very thought, but his victim said, quietly: + +"He's a liar. He ordered it, then sat there and enjoyed it." + +The Panamanian's face was yellow as he managed to enunciate: + +"Eempossible! It is terrible to conceive!" + +Kirk made a threatening movement in the Spaniard's direction, +despite the half-dozen soldiers, but Edith Cortlandt checked him. + +"Wait, please," she said. Then to the commandant: "This is a +serious matter, and if what he says is true, your government will +find itself in trouble." + +"But we 'ave no idea he is frien' of yours. If he should only spik +your 'osban's name, all would be different. For my part, I can +prove he is treat' with the 'ighes' courtesy an' kindness in my +presence. Every man in the prison will testify to those fac'. If +soch indignity 'ave be' shown, there shall be investigations." The +unhappy officer's excitement was increasing, and he turned upon +his men as if to make good his word, when Cortlandt interposed: + +"Why did you keep him locked up so long? Why didn't you try him?" + +"Ah! For that I shall inquire also. I shall conduct investigations +in that respect as well. I am inform', 'owever, that the w'at you +call jodge is seeck." + +"We'll look into that later. We're here now to arrange for Mr. +Anthony's release." + +"The alcalde will be please' to accommodate at the earlies'. I +myself shall see to it. To-morrow--" + +"There will be no to-morrow about it," Mrs. Cortlandt exclaimed, +positively. "If you cannot arrange the bail yourself, my husband +will take up the matter with the Zone Government, and Colonel +Jolson will call upon the President of the republic within an +hour. He is waiting word from us now." + +Senor Ramon Alfarez became suddenly galvanized. He broke into +effusive apologies for even so small a delay as had already +occurred. He had not understood the matter to be so urgent, it +seemed; but the wishes of his distinguished guests were his law, +and perhaps he might hasten the wheels of progress if he tried. +While, to be sure, no power was vested in him, and his willing +hands were most miserably tied, nevertheless he would so far +exceed his authority as to promise instant freedom to the +prisoner. There were, of course, certain details to be observed, +the necessity of which filled him with unspeakable regret; but if +he might be excused--He hastened forth to set in motion the proper +machinery, and while he was absent Kirk told his story. It left +the woman white-lipped and incoherent, and roused even the icy +Cortlandt to genuine wrath. + +"Of course," the latter said, "Alfarez will prove by his men that +it's all imagination on your part, and that your injuries were +sustained at the time of your arrest. He'll assume a righteous +indignation and start a Spiggoty investigation. You see, his +father is the Governor of Panama Province and one of the strongest +men in the republic, so Ramon will probably make good his +position. Even so, you may recover damages." + +"I don't want damages," Kirk replied. "I want to get that Dago out +alone some time." + +"For Heaven's sake, don't think of it!" Mrs. Cortlandt exclaimed. +"All the American influence on the Isthmus wouldn't help you then. +Fifty men would perjure themselves to convict you, and if you +succeeded in getting our government to interfere in time, Ramen +has fifty other men who would lie to any extent to injure an +American." + +"No. That method doesn't work here," her husband agreed. "You're +lucky to escape so easily. He will arrange bail, never fear, and +you will probably not come to trial. I doubt if you will ever hear +anything more of the matter, provided you keep from further +trouble. He'll never forgive you, of course, but that won't matter +to you." + +The first part of Mr. Cortlandt's prediction was soon proved true, +for the sick alcalde recovered sufficiently to appear on the scene +within half an hour. Then, after much signing of official +documents and certain other formalities, Kirk Anthony walked out +of the Colon jail in company with his friends. + +Allan was waiting at a safe distance from the municipal building, +and on seeing his late companion at large he broke into the +wildest rejoicing. He conjured a flow of tears, he fondled Kirk's +hand in his own, he laughed, he sobbed, he sang. + +"Praise be to God!" he cried, loudly. "Free mon you, Master +h'Auntony. Glory, glory! My soul was in 'ell, sar. On my knees I +h'implored that fa-ast wretch to release you." + +His emotion appeared so genuine, his service had been so great, +that the object of his adoration felt himself choke up. Of all the +people Kirk had met since leaving home, this one had most occasion +to blame him; yet the boy was in perfect transports of delight at +his delivery. + +"Don't carry on so," Kirk laughed, awkwardly. + +"Oh, boss, I feared they would h'assassinate you again." + +Anthony nodded grimly. "They did." + +"Oh, oh!" Allan gave himself over to a shrill frenzy and shook his +clenched fists at the jail in a splendidly tragic attitude. +"Wretches! Murderers! 'Ell-ca-ats!" + +"Sh-h! Don't make a scene on the street," Mrs. Cortlandt +cautioned. But the Jamaican would not allow the fine effect of his +rage to be lost. He clashed his white teeth, he rolled his eyes +fearfully, and twisted his black features into the wildest +expressions of ferocity, crying: + +"H'Allan will best them for that! Let 'im tear h'out their 'earts +by his fingers. So!" He made an eloquent gesture. "Blood! Blood!" + +"Not so loud. A little pianissimo on the blood," smiled Kirk. + +"H'Allan would die and kill himself for you," the excited negro +ran on in an excess of loyalty. "Master h'Auntony fought those +wretches for I; I shall fight them for he." + +When he had finally been prevailed upon to exchange his martial +threats for a fresh paean of rejoicing, he fell in behind, +declaring firmly that he intended to follow his new-found hero +wherever he might go, though the course laid were straight for +those infernal regions that played so large a part in his fancy. + +In the midst of Kirk's expressions of gratitude for the timely +intercession of Cortlandt and his wife, the former surprised him +by saying, in a genuinely hearty tone: + +"My wife has told me all about you, Anthony, and I want you to +come over to Panama as my guest until you hear from your father." + +When Kirk informed him of the cablegram that had cast him adrift +in Panama, leading indirectly to his entanglement with the dignity +of Ramon Alfarez and the Spanish law, Cortlandt replied, +reassuringly: + +"Oh, well, your father doesn't understand the facts in the case, +that's all. You sit down like a sensible person and write him +fully. It will be a great pleasure for us to have you at the +Tivoli in the mean time." + +Seeing a warm second to this invitation in Mrs. Cortlandt's eyes, +Kirk accepted gracefully, explaining: "You know this is the first +time I was ever up against hard luck, and I don't know just how to +act." + +"We've missed the four-thirty-five, so we will have to return the +way we came," said Cortlandt. "I'd like to stop at Gatun on a +business matter of some importance, and if you don't mind a half- +hour's delay, we'll do so." + +Kirk expressed entire acquiescence in any plans that suited the +convenience of his rescuers, and the three pursued their way to +the station. But here an unexpected embarrassment arose. As they +made ready to board Colonel Jolson's motor-car, they were annoyed +to find that Allan insisted on going, too. He insisted, moreover, +in such extravagant fashion that Mrs. Cortlandt at last was moved +to say: "For Heaven's sake, let the poor thing come along." And +thereafter the Jamaican boy sat on the step of the machine, his +hat in hand, his eyes rolled worshipfully upon the person of his +hero, his shining face ever ready to break into a grin at a glance +from Kirk. + +Once more the little automobile took on the dignity of a regular +train and sped out of the network of tracks behind Colon. As it +gained speed Mrs. Cortlandt, to divert her guest's mind from his +recent ordeal, began to explain the points of interest as they +passed. She showed him the old French workings where a nation's +hopes lay buried, the mechanical ruins that had cost a king's +ransom, the Mount Hope Cemetery, whither daily trains had borne +the sacrifice before science had robbed the fever of its terrors. +She told him, also, something of the railroad's history, how it +had been built to bridge the gap in the route to the Golden West, +the manifold difficulties overcome in its construction, and the +stupendous profits it had made. Having the blood of a railroad- +builder in his veins, Anthony could not but feel the interest of +all this, though it failed to take his attention wholly from the +wonders of the landscape that slipped by on either side. It was +his first glimpse of tropic vegetation, and he used his eyes to +good advantage, while he listened politely to his informant. + +The matted thickets, interlaced with vine and creeper, were all +ablaze with blossoms, for this was the wet season, in which nature +runs riot. Great trees of strange character rose out of the +tangle, their branches looped with giant cables and burdened with +flowering orchids or half hidden beneath other parasites. On every +hand a vegetable warfare was in progress--a struggle for existence +in which the strong overbore the weak--and every trunk was +distorted by the scars of the battle. Birds of bright plumage +flashed in the glades, giant five-foot lizards scuttled away into +the marshes or stared down from the overhanging branches. A vivid +odor of growing, blooming herbage reached the nostrils. + +Just as Kirk had made up his mind that he could sit and watch this +brilliant panorama forever, the jungle suddenly fell away, and the +car sped up through low, grass-clad hills into a scattered city +flung against the side of a wide valley. There was no sign here of +Latin America; this was Yankeeland through and through. The +houses, hundreds upon hundreds of them, were of the typical Canal +Zone architecture, double-galleried and screened from foundation +to eaves, and they rambled over the undulating pasture land in a +magnificent disregard of distance. Smooth macadam roads wound back +and forth, over which government wagons rolled, drawn by sleek +army mules; flower gardens blazed forth in gorgeous colors; women +and children, all clean and white and American, were sitting upon +the porches or playing in the yards. Everywhere was a military +neatness; the town was like the officers' quarters of a fort, the +whole place spick and span and neatly groomed. + +Colon had been surprisingly clean, but it was an unnatural +cleanliness, as if the municipality had been scrubbed against its +will. Gatun was to the manner born. + +"Yonder are the locks." Cortlandt pointed to the west, and Kirk +saw below him an impressive array of pyramidal steel towers, from +the pinnacles of which stretched a spider's web of cables. Beneath +this, he had a glimpse of some great activity, but his view was +quickly cut off as the motor-car rumbled into a modern railway +station. + +"I'd like to have a. look at what's going on over yonder," he +said. + +"You will have time," Cortlandt answered. "Edith will show you +about while I run in on Colonel Bland." + +Out through the station-shed Kirk's hostess led him, then across a +level sward, pausing at length upon the brink of a mighty chasm. +It took him a moment to grasp the sheer magnitude of the thing; +then he broke into his first real expression of wonder: + +"Why, I had no idea--Really, this is tremendous." + +At his feet the earth opened in a giant, man-made canon, running +from the valley above, through the low ridge and out below. Within +it an army was at work. Along the margins of the excavation ran +steel tracks, upon which were mounted the movable towers he had +seen from a distance. These tapering structures bore aloft long, +tautly drawn wire cables, spanning the gorge and supporting great +buckets which soared at regular intervals back and forth, bearing +concrete for the work below. Up and out of the depths tremendous +walls were growing like the massive ramparts of a mediaeval city; +tremendous steel forms, braced and trussed and reinforced to +withstand the weight of the countless tons, stood in regular +patterns. In the floor of the chasm were mysterious pits, black +tunnel mouths, in and out of which men crept like ants. Far across +on the opposite lip of the hill, little electric trains sped to +and fro, apparently without the aid of human hands. Everywhere was +a steady, feverish activity. + +From the commanding eminence where the sightseers stood the +spectacle was awe-inspiring; for though the whole vast work lay +spread out beneath them in what looked like a hopeless confusion, +yet as their eyes followed it a great and magic system became +manifest. The whole organism seemed animate with some slow, +intricate intelligence. The metal skips careening across those +dizzy heights regulated their courses to a hand's-breadth, +deposited their burdens carefully, then hurried back for more; the +shuttle trains that dodged about so feverishly, untended and +unguided, performed each some vital function. The great +conglomerate body was dead, yet it pulsated with a life of its +own. Its effect of being governed by a single indwelling mind of +superhuman capacity was overpowering. + +Kirk heard Mrs. Cortlandt explaining: "The ships will steam up +from the sea through the dredged channel you see over yonder, then +they will be raised to the level of the lake." + +"What lake?" + +"That valley"--she indicated the tropical plain between the hills, +wherein floating dredges were at work--"will be an inland sea. +Those forests will be under water." + +"Where is the Gatun dam I've heard so much about?" + +She pointed out a low, broad ridge or hog-back linking the hills +together. + +"That is it. It doesn't look much like a dam, does it? But it is +all hand-made. Those are rock trains out there, from Culebra." + +"Oh, now I understand. Gee whiz, but this job is a whopper! Say, +this is great!" Mrs. Cortlandt smiled. "It does wake up your +patriotism, doesn't it? I'm glad to have a hand in building it." + +"Are you helping to dig this canal?" Anthony regarded the woman +curiously. She seemed very cool and well-dressed and independent +for one engaged in actual work. + +"Of course! Even though I don't happen to run a steam-shovel." + +"Will they really finish it? Won't something happen?" + +"It is already dug. The rest is merely a matter of excavation and +concrete. The engineering difficulties have all been solved, and +the big human machine has been built up. What is more important, +the country is livable at last. Over at Ancon Hospital there is a +quiet, hard-working medical man who has made this thing possible. +When the two oceans are joined together, and the job is finished, +his will be the name most highly honored." + +"It must be nice to do something worth while," Anthony mused, +vaguely. + +"To do anything," his companion observed, with a shade of meaning; +then: "It is amusing to look back on the old Spanish statement +that it would be impious to unite two oceans which the Creator of +the world had separated." + +Noting that the sun was setting beyond the distant jungles and the +canon at his feet was filling with shadows, Kirk remarked, "It +must be nearly time they quit work." + +"This work doesn't stop. When it grows dark the whole place is lit +by electricity, and the concrete continues to pour in just the +same. It is wonderful then--like the mouth of a volcano. Batteries +of search-lights play upon the men; the whole sky is like a +furnace. You can see it for miles. Now I think we had better go +back to the car." + +In spite of his bodily misery, that night ride impressed itself +strongly upon Anthony's mind. The black mystery of the jungles, +the half-suggested glimpses of river and hill, the towns that +flashed past in an incandescent blaze and were buried again in the +velvet blackness, the strange odors of a new land riotous in its +time of growth, all combined to excite his curiosity and desire +for closer knowledge. And then the crowning luxury of a bath, +clean clothes, and a good meal on white linen and china! As he +dropped asleep that night he reflected contentedly that, after +all, things have a way of coming right in this world for those who +accept them cheerfully as they come. + + + + +X + +A CHANGE OF PLAN + + +On the following morning Kirk despatched a long letter to his +father, explaining, as well as he could, how he came to be in +Panama, and giving a detailed account of the events that had +befallen him since his arrival. He would have preferred to cable +this message collect, but Mrs. Cortlandt convinced him that he +owed a fuller explanation than could well be sent over the wires. +Although he took this means of relieving his father's anxiety, he +was far from resigning himself to a further delay of his return. +On the contrary, he at once began an inquiry as to sailing dates, +discovering, to his intense disgust, that no ship was scheduled to +leave for New York within several days. He planned to borrow the +passage money from his friends, when the time came, and accompany +his letter northward. Meanwhile he devoted his time to sight- +seeing with his hostess. + +The city was old, there were many places of historic interest, +and, although Kirk cared little for such things, he found it easy +to assume the virtue he did not possess. Moreover, there was +something contagious in his companion's enthusiasm. Almost against +his will he felt his appreciation growing, as he listened to her +casual comments on the scenes they visited. Her husband, who +seemed busily engaged in work that barely allowed him time for his +meals, seldom accompanied them on their excursions, and the two +were thrown much into each other's society. + +Edith Cortlandt was a woman very sure of herself in most things. A +situation that might have proved embarrassing to one less tactful +she accepted quite as a matter of course, rather enjoying the +exercise of her influence, and never doubting her power to keep +the friendship on any footing she chose. Kirk's frank, boyish +gratitude for the favors he had received made it easy for her to +encourage the growth of an intimacy that she acknowledged +charming, while she sincerely believed that he would be helped by +it. Finding him responsive, she deliberately set herself to please +him. She studied him covertly and set her moods to match his--not +a difficult task, since he was merely a normal, healthy young man. +Always faultless in her attire, she took even more than ordinary +pains with her appearance, and it was not long before Kirk was +naively surprised to find that she no longer seemed older than he +--that she was, in fact, an exceedingly handsome woman. This +gradual metamorphosis depended more than anything else, perhaps, +upon the girlish humor that now possessed her. She was no longer +brilliant and chilly, but gay, smiling, and unaffected. + +Daytimes, they rambled about the crooked streets, bargain-hunting +in the Chinese shops, or drove beneath the stately royal palms of +Ancon; evenings, they loitered about the cool verandas of the +Tivoli or strolled down into the town to watch the crowds in the +plazas. Once in a while Cortlandt went with them, but he was +usually uncommunicative, and they scarcely felt his presence. On +the few occasions when he gave himself rein, Kirk was compelled to +feel for him a surprised and half-grudging respect. Unlike most +silent men, when he did talk he talked easily and well. + +Several days passed thus, during which Anthony fully recovered +from his experience at Colon. Then a ship arrived from New York, +but before he had summoned courage to ask his friends for a loan +he received, a letter forwarded from Colon by the American consul, +a perusal of which not only dumfounded him, but entirely altered +his plans. + +It was typewritten, on plain stationery; there was neither heading +nor signature, yet he knew quite well from whom it came. It read +as follows: + + Don't cable again, or the stupidity of the police may fail to + protect you. The others got away safely and you would be mad + to return alone. I can't and won't help you now. This time + you went too far. You have made your bed, now lie in it. I + don't believe in miracles, but if you can straighten up and + make a man of yourself, I'll help you face this trouble; + otherwise don't call on me for anything. I'm through. + +Kirk reread this amazing epistle several times before its full +significance struck him; then, when he realized what it meant, he +felt himself break into a sweat of apprehension. That plain- +clothes man had died! The police were looking for him. There could +be no other explanation, else why had Higgins and the rest fled +the country? Why had his father been so cautious in communicating +with him? If it came to a trial, undoubtedly a jury would find him +equally guilty with Higgins, for he had held the poor fellow's +hands; it was he who had engineered the whole episode. Perhaps he +was already indicted. Kirk saw himself accused of manslaughter, +arrested, and tried. What could he do if his father refused to +help? With money, almost anything could be achieved; without it, +and particularly without his father's influence, what would +happen? Evidently the Governor believed him guilty. In that case +the young man knew that explanations would be futile. Even the +letter he had sent would do no good. When Darwin K. Anthony said +he was through, he was through. + +Finding a secluded corner of the veranda, he sat down to think +this matter out; but the more he reflected on it the more serious +it appeared. Of one thing he became quickly convinced: New York at +present was no place for him. A moment ago it seemed far away and +extremely desirable, now it was altogether too close at hand and +most undesirable. His father's reference to the stupidity of the +police persuaded him finally that his whereabouts were unknown, +but how long they would remain so was of course a question. It was +useless to attempt further concealment. In the first place, he +lacked means of moving, nor could he conceal his identity under an +assumed name while he remained in Panama, for he had already +advertised himself too well for that. Besides, the idea of hiding +did not appeal to him. He decided to face it out, therefore, +hoping sometime to get to the bottom of the affair. If he were +arrested meanwhile, he would have to locate Ringold or Higgins, or +some of the others, and prove that he had not run away from +punishment. It would be difficult to verify the extravagant story +of his kidnapping, of course, but--there was nothing else to do. +He rose quickly and entered the hotel, where he bought all the +latest New York papers. It was not long before he found the thing +he was seeking. There it was, a story headed: + + SALOON-KEEPER TO LOSE LICENSE + + OWNER OF NOTORIOUS AUSTRIAN VILLAGE IN TROUBLE + +There followed an account of Mr. Padden's efforts to disprove his +connection with an assault upon the person of a detective named +Williams, who had come from St. Louis; but nowhere was there a +word about the present condition of the plain-clothes man, nor the +slightest hint toward explaining the conduct of the mysterious +Jefferson Locke for whom he had been searching. Who the devil was +Locke, anyhow? The article did not even state the charge upon +which he was to be arrested. In another paper Kirk found something +that relieved his mind a bit: evidently Williams had not died +prior to the time of going to press, although he was reported in a +critical condition. Kirk was interested to read that the police +had a clew to the identity of the criminals and were confident of +soon rounding them up. What mystified him most was the lack of +detail. Evidently much had been printed previously, but he had no +means of ascertaining what it was. + +He spent an hour in serious thought, perhaps the first full hour +he had ever passed so profitably. At the end of that time he had +arrived at little save a vague feeling of offence toward the +father who had been so ready to condemn him. In one way he did not +blame the old gentleman for refusing aid. This episode was the +culmination of a long series of reckless exploits. Mr. Anthony had +argued, threatened, even implored with tears in his eyes, all to +no purpose. Just the same, it hurt to have one's father so willing +to believe the worst. The two had never understood each other; +they did not understand each other now. And they might have been +such good pals! Darwin K. did not believe in miracles--Well, +perhaps Kirk was hopelessly bad. The young man did not care much, +one way or the other; but he shut his teeth grimly and wagered he +could make good if he really chose to try. He half decided to make +the experiment just to show what he could do, but he was at a loss +where to begin. Anybody could be successful who really wanted to-- +every book said that; the hard part was to get started. + +One thing was clear, at least: he could stay here no longer as the +Cortlandts' guest--he had already incurred an obligation which he +would have difficulty in discharging. Yet how could he explain his +change of front? Mrs. Cortlandt, he felt sure, would understand +and come to his assistance with good advice, but he shrank +instinctively from laying the facts before her husband. It was a +deuced unpleasant necessity, and he detested unpleasant +necessities--necessities of any sort, in fact. Still, there was +nothing else for it, so, conquering his sense of humiliation as +best he could, he called up the Cortlandts' suite. + +Edith answered, saying that her husband was out; then, in response +to his request, she came down herself. + +"What has gone wrong? Why this face of tragedy?" she inquired, as +she seated herself beside him. + +"I've received my Declaration of Independence. I've heard from my +dad." + +A look of quick understanding drove away the smile she had brought +him, and her manner was one of grave sympathy as she took the +letter he handed her. + +She was clad in a crisp morning gown he had never seen, and he +thought it became her extremely well. She looked very cool, very +fresh, very much the fine lady. All in all, she seemed a person +whose friendly interest might compensate for many woes. + +"Well!" she remarked. "You do seem to be in trouble. What does it +mean?" + +Kirk told her everything without reserve, then showed her the +newspapers in his hand. She scrutinized them with a quiet +seriousness that seemed to make his trouble her own. "After all," +she said at last, "if worse comes to worst, you can prove your +innocence." + +"I'm not so sure." + +"Nonsense! Those boys can be found. What puzzles me is that Locke +person. Who is he? Why was he followed? What has become of him?" + +"I wish I knew." + +"I can have inquiries made, but it will take time. Meanwhile, it +seems you are safe, so the one important fact for the moment is +that you are cast off." Turning her bright eyes upon him, she +inquired, "How does it feel to be disinherited?" + +"Blamed uncomfortable! I must tell Mr. Cortlandt at once." + +"Let me," she offered, quickly. "I would not show any one that +letter, if I were you, nor advertise the fact that you are in +danger of arrest. It will be quite enough if I tell him that you +have quarrelled with your father--he is a peculiar man." + +Kirk signified his agreement. + +"Now what do you intend doing?" she asked him. + +"I'm going to work." + +"Good! Good!" She clapped her hands gleefully. + +"Oh, I don't WANT to," he protested, "but the old gentleman thinks +I'm no good, and I'd like to show him he's wrong. After I've done +that, I intend to loaf again--yes, and I'll know how to loaf by +that time. Of course, I'll have to pay my debts, too." + +"Poor Mr. Weeks!" + +"Why poor?" + +"He is terribly agitated to learn that we came to your rescue. He +knows now that he really entertained an angel unaware, and his +grief of soul is comical." + +"Weeks isn't such a bad sort." + +But her eyes showed a sudden flash of anger as she returned: "He +deserves to be forced out of the service." + +"That wouldn't do any good. His successor might be worse." + +"Haven't you any resentment? I dislike placid people!" + +"Plenty! If I get a crack at Alfarez---" + +"Now don't allow your mind to dwell on that," she cautioned. "I +think he is riding to a fall, as it is. What do you want to do?" + +"Anything. I'm going to hunt a job this afternoon." + +"What sort?" + +"Something with big pay and no responsibility." + +"Those positions are taken--by the army," she laughed. "What can +you do?" + +"I can take an automobile apart." + +"And put it together again?" + +"Oh no! I can sail a boat; I shoot pretty well; I waltz nicely; I +row, swim, and box indifferently; and I play an atrocious hand at +poker." + +Mrs. Cortlandt nodded gravely. "You are also good company, you +dress well, and you are an ornament to any hotel porch." + +"Naturally, I refrained from mentioning those things, but, in +addition, I smoke, drink, and swear. I am unsteady in my habits, +and require a great deal of sleep. I think that completes the +inventory." + +"Of course, you will live beyond your salary?" + +"Undoubtedly." + +"Seriously, now, don't you really---?" + +"Go ahead. Say it! Don't I know anything? No. I am too highly +educated. You see, I took the full college course." + +She drew her sharply pencilled brows together and pursed her lips +in meditation, regarding him meanwhile with a, look that was not +all disapproval. + +"Am I hopeless?" he inquired at length. + +"Dear, no! Experience is a good thing, of course, and ability is +even better, but neither is absolutely necessary in government +work." + +"Oh!" + +"Provided---" + +"What?" + +"--You have influence. I was merely trying to think of the niche +into which you would best fit." + +"When a fellow hasn't any of those qualifications, then what? Take +me, for instance." + +"You have at least one." + +"Which one?" + +"Influence." + +He shook his head. "My father wouldn't help." + +"We'll have no difficulty in finding you a position." + +"Jove! That's good news." He beamed at her with gratified +surprise. "I had an idea I'd be going from door to door." + +"How ridiculous! This is a government job; therefore it is +saturated with politics. There are a great many good men on it, +but there are also a large number of 'somebody's relatives.' Do +you understand? Anything is possible here for a man with +influence. If he has ability with it, he can go to the top. If he +lacks ability--well, even then he can go to the top--it depends +entirely upon the influence." + +"But I haven't any--" Kirk began. Then, catching her look, he +exclaimed: "Oh, say! WILL you help me? Really? That's too good to +be true." + +He shook her hand warmly, that being the natural outlet for his +gratitude, and she smiled at him. "I wonder where I'd better start +in," he said. + +"There's not the slightest choice. All paths lead up the mountain, +and if you go far enough you will reach the top. It would be quite +easy if you knew something about the railroad business, for +instance." + +"Oh, I do. I've had that drilled into me ever since I was a child. +I grew up with it--was soaked in it. My father made me learn +telegraphy before he gave me a motor-boat." + +"Why in the world didn't you say so?" + +"Well, I have forgotten most of it," he confessed. "I had a +railroad of my own, too, when I was twelve years old. I was +president." + +"Indeed!" + +"I suppose it was in my blood. We kids stole the lumber for a +track, and I got a hand-car from dad. We formed a close +corporation, and, when another boy wanted to join, we made him go +forth and steal enough boards to extend the line. We finally had +nearly two miles, altogether, with switches, sidings, yards, and +everything; then the fences in that neighborhood gave out. It was +a gravity road--yes, there was extreme gravity in every +department--we'd push the car up and ride down. We had a telephone +system and semaphores, and ran on orders just like a real train. +Grown people heard about it, and paid us five cents a ride, so we +began to declare dividends every Saturday. Oh, it was a great +success. We had a complete organization, too; president, +directors, conductors, section-hands--the section-hands did all +the work and rode between times." + +"What happened to it?" + +"One day we ran into a cow and broke the vice-president's leg. The +board of directors also had his ear cut, and the indignant +neighbors began to reclaim their fences. We lost a mile of track +in one afternoon, and father decided it would be better for me to +go to boarding-school. It was safer." + +"I'll warrant you learned the rudiments of railroading, just the +same." + +"I learned everything," Kirk announced, decisively. + +"Unfortunately, the P.R.R. has a president, so we can't start you +in where you left off." + +"He might need an assistant." + +Mrs. Cortlandt laughed lightly. "While we are finding that out," +she said, "I think you had better go over the line in daylight and +really see what this work is like. That glimpse you had at Gatun +is only a small part. Now, will you trust me to manage this for +you, Mr. Anthony?" + +"I should say I would, and I can't begin to tell you--" + +"Oh, it's nothing." She rose to put her plans promptly into +operation, this time extending her hands with the words: "Let me +congratulate you. I really believe you are waking up, and without +the woman's aid." + +"But the woman is aiding me," he replied, warmly. "She's doing it +all. You have started me moving, and I'll never be able to thank +you." Then, as her eyes flashed to his with a look he had never +seen before, he added: "Understand, though, I am going to work +only because I must. I detest it." + + + + +XI + +THE TRUTH ABOUT MRS. CORTLANDT + + +Edith Cortlandt was not the sort to permit delay. At lunch she +introduced Kirk to the Master of Transportation of the Panama +Railroad, saying: + +"Mr. Runnels has offered to take you out through the Cut this +afternoon, and explain the work to you." + +Runnels, a straight, well-set-up, serious young man, bent a +searching look upon Kirk, as he said, "Mrs. Cortlandt tells me +you're going to be one of us." + +"Yes." + +The Master of Transportation took in the applicant fully, then +nodded his head as if pleased with his inspection. + +"That's good." + +Anthony was drawn to the speaker instantly, for there was no +affectation about him. He was straightforward and open, little +given to the kind of small talk that serves in so many cases to +conceal character. He produced the effect of a busy and forceful +man; one could feel energy radiating from him, and his voice had a +ring of authority. Like every one down here who was doing +something, he talked of little besides the Big Job, even when Mr. +Cortlandt joined the trio. As the two younger men rose to leave, +Edith playfully admonished him to teach his protege the entire +detail of the railroad business and have him back in time for +dinner, to which he agreed. + +"She's wonderful," he remarked a moment later, as he and Kirk +descended the hotel steps together. "She told Colonel Jolson he'd +just have to find you a position, and I have been delegated to +show you about." + +"You don't say. I supposed there were plenty of openings." + +"Not good ones. However, she usually gets what she wants. If I'm +not a good guide, you must put it down to inexperience." + +"The Cortlandts seem to have considerable influence for outsiders. +I thought I'd have to begin at the bottom." + +Runnels glanced at his companion quickly. + +"Outsiders! You don't call them outsiders?" + +"I never quite figured out who they are. Funny, by-the-way, how +everybody says 'they' in referring to them." + +"Oh, she's the whole team. Cortlandt's a nice fellow--but--Did you +really think that she'd let you start at the bottom?" + +"Why, yes." + +"I guess you don't know her." + +"You're right; I do not." + +"Well, she knows everybody and everything in this country. She's +the whole diplomatic service. Take the Colombian trouble, for +instance--" + +"What trouble?" + +"When Panama seceded. She manipulated that, or at least Steve +Cortlandt did under her direction. She was the brains of the whole +affair, however, and those New York lawyers merely did what she +told them. It was one of the cleverest exploits on record. +Colombia wouldn't let us build the Canal, so Panama seceded. War +was declared, but the United States interfered in time to prevent +bloodshed. One Chinaman was killed, I believe, by dropping a flat- +iron on his toe, or something, and by the time the excitement had +died out we had begun digging. She knows Central America like the +palm of her hand. When she says Kirk Anthony wants a position, we +hirelings jump about and see that he gets it. Oh, you'll have any +job you want." + +"Well!" The recipient of this good news congratulated himself +silently. "I wish you'd tell me something more about her." + +"There isn't time just now; our motor is waiting. But we have the +whole afternoon ahead of us." + +The two passed through the railroad gates and took their places in +the little car. When they were under way, Runnels went on: "I'm +supposed to show you this end of the work and tell you what it all +means." + +"Then please start at the beginning. You see, I probably know less +about it than anybody living." + +"Of course you know the general lay-out?" + +"I tell you I don't know a thing. There's no use four-flushing." + +Runnels smiled at this candor. "Well, the ditch will be about +fifty miles long, and, roughly speaking, the work is in three +parts--the dredging and harbor-building at sea-level on each end +of the Canal, the lock-work, and the excavations on the upper +levels. That dam you saw building at Gatun will form a lake about +thirty miles long--quite a fish-pond, eh? When a west-bound ship +arrives, for instance, it will be raised through the Gatun locks, +three of them, and then sail along eighty-five feet above the +ocean, across the lake and into a channel dug right through the +hills, until it reaches the locks at Pedro Miguel. Then it will be +lowered to a smaller lake five miles long, then down again to the +level of the Pacific. An east-bound ship will reverse the process. +Get the idea?" + +"Sure. It sounds easy." + +"Oh, it's simple enough. That's what makes it so big. We've been +working at it five years, and it will take five years more to +complete it. Before we began, the French had spent about twenty +years on the job. Now a word, so you will have the general scheme +of operation in your head. The whole thing is run by the Isthmian +Canal Commission--six men, most of whom are at war with one +another. There are really two railroad systems--the I. C. C., +built to haul dirt and rock and to handle materials in and out of +the workings, and the Panama Railroad, which was built years ago +during the California gold rush and bought by our government at +the time of that terrible revolution I told you about. The latter +is a regular system, hauls passengers and freight, but the two +work together. You will start in with the P. R. R., Mr. Anthony, +under my despotic sway." + +"I know a little about railroading." + +"So much the better. There's a big railroad man by your name in +the States. Are you related?" + +"I believe so," Kirk answered, quietly. "Go ahead with the +lesson." + +"The Canal Zone is a strip of land ten miles wide running across +the Isthmus--really an American colony, you know, for we govern +it, police it, and all that. As for the work itself, well, the +fellows at the two ends of the Canal are dredging night and day to +complete their part, the lock-builders are laying concrete like +mad to get their share done first, the chaps in the big cut are +boring through the hills like moles and breaking steam-shovel +records every week, while we railroad men take care of the whole +shooting-match. Of course, there are other departments--sanitary, +engineering, commissary, and so forth--all doing their share; but +that is the general scheme. Everybody is trying to break records. +We don't think of anything except our own business. Each fellow +believes the fate of the Canal depends upon him. We've lost +interest in everything except this ditch, and while we realize +that there is such a place as home, it has become merely a spot +where we spend our vacations. They have wars and politics and +theatres and divorces out there somewhere, but we don't care. +We've lost step with the world, we've dropped out. When the +newspapers come, the first thing we look for is the Panama news. +We're obsessed by this job. Even the women and the children feel +it--you'll feel it as soon as you become a cog in the machine. +Polite conversation at dinner is limited to tons of rock and yards +of concrete. Oh, but I'm tired of this concrete talk." + +"Try the abstract for a change." + +"It's interesting at first, then it gets tiresome. Lord! It's +fierce." + +"The work, too?" + +"Everything! Every day you do the same thing; every day you see +the same faces, hear the same talk; even the breeze blows from the +same direction all the time, and the temperature stays at the same +mark winter and summer. Every time you go out you see the same +coach-drivers, the same Spiggoty policemen leaning against the +same things; every time you come in you eat the same food, drink +the same liquor, sit in the same chair, and talk about the same +topics. Everything runs too smoothly. The weather is too damned +nice. The thermometer lacks originality. We're too comfortable. +Climate like that gets on a white man's nerves; he needs physical +discomfort to make him contented. I'd give a forty-dollar dog to +be good and cold and freeze my nose. Why, Doctor Gorgas has made +us so sanitary that we can't even get sick. I'd hail an epidemic +as a friend. + +"It's even harder on the women folks, for they can't find anything +to kick about, so they fuss with one another and with us. They +have clubs, you know, to improve things, but there's nothing to +improve. We had a social war recently over a button. One clique +wanted a club emblem that would cost a dollar and a half, while +the other faction were in favor of a dollar button. I tell you, it +was serious. Then, too, we're all tagged and labelled like cans of +salmon with the price-mark on--we can't four-flush. You can tell a +man's salary by the number of rocking-chairs in his house, and the +wife of a fellow who draws eighteen hundred a year can't associate +with a woman whose husband makes twenty-five hundred. They are +very careful about such things. We go to the same dances on the +same dates, we dance with the same people to the same tunes by the +same band, and when we get off in some corner of the same veranda +in search of the same old breeze, which we know is blowing at +precisely the same velocity from the usual quarter, our partners +tell us that Colonel So-and-So laid four hundred twenty-seven more +cubic yards of concrete this week than last, or that Steam Shovel +Number Twenty-three broke the record again by eighty yards. It's +hell!" He stopped, breathless. + +"Why don't you quit?" suggested Anthony. + +"Quit! What for? Good Lord! We LIKE it. Here we are at Pedro +Miguel, by-the-way. We'll be into the Cut shortly." + +To his left Anthony beheld another scene somewhat similar to the +one at Gatun. Other movable steel cranes, with huge wide-flung +arms, rose out of another chasm in which were extensive concrete +workings. From a distance the towers resembled parts of a half- +constructed cantilever bridge of tremendous height. Another army +was toiling at the bottom of the pit, more cars shunted back and +forth, more rock-crushers rumbled; but, before Kirk's eye had +photographed more than a small part, the motor-car had sped past +and was rolling out upon a bridge spanning the Canal itself. To +the northward appeared an opening cut through the hills, and +Runnels said, simply: + +"Culebra!" + +A moment later he announced: "We leave the P. R. R tracks here and +switch in on the I. C. C. Now you'll begin to see something." + +Down into the Cut the little car went, and at last Anthony saw the +active pulsating heart of this stupendous undertaking. The low +range was severed by a gorge blasted out by human hands. It was a +mountain valley in the making. High up on its sides were dirt and +rock trains, dozens of compressed-air drills, their spars +resembling the masts of a fleet of catboats at anchor--behind +these, grimy, powerful steam shovels which rooted and grunted +quite like iron hogs. Along the tracks at various levels flowed a +constant current of traffic; long lines of empty cars crept past +the shovels, then, filled to overflowing, sped away northward up +the valley, to return again and again. Nowhere was there any +idleness, nowhere a cold machine or a man at rest. On every hand +was smoke and steam and sweat. The drills chugged steadily, the +hungry iron hogs gouged out the trails the drills had loosened, +the trains rolled past at intervals of a moment or so. Lines of +electric wire, carried upon low wooden "shears," paralleled the +tracks, bearing the white-hot sparks that rent the mountain. At +every switch a negro flagman crouched beneath a slanting sheet of +corrugated iron, seeking shelter alike from flying fragments and +the blazing sun. From beneath the drills came occasional +subterranean explosions; then geysers of muddy water rose in the +air. Under the snouts of the steam shovels "dobe" shots went off +as bowlders were riven into smaller fragments. Now and then an +excited tooting of whistles gave warning of a bigger blast as the +flagmen checked the flow of traffic, indicating with arms upraised +that the ground was "coming up." Thereupon a brief lull occurred; +men hid themselves, the work held its breath, as it were. But +while the detonations still echoed, and before the flying missiles +had ceased to shower, the human ants were moiling at their hills +once more, the wheels were turning again, the jaws of the iron +hogs were clanking. + +Through this upheaval the motor-car penetrated, dodging trains of +"flats," which moved sluggishly to afford them passage up and down +over the volcanic furrows at the bottom of the gorge or along some +shelf beneath which the foundations were being dug. At times a +shovel reached out its five-yard steel jaw and gently cleared the +rails of debris, or boosted some bowlder from the path with all +the skill of a giant hand and fingers. Up and down the canon +rolled spasmodic rumblings, like broadsides from a fleet of +battle-ships. + +"Somebody with a head for figures has estimated what it costs the +government to send a motor-car like this through the Cut in +working hours," Runnels said. "I don't remember the exact amount, +but it was some thousands of dollars." + +"Delays to trains, I suppose?" + +"Yes. A minute here, thirty seconds there. Every second means a +certain number of cubic yards unremoved, and holds back the +opening of the Canal just so much. You have postponed a great +event several minutes, Mr. Anthony." + +"It's the first important thing I ever did." + +"Our little nine-mile trip will cost Uncle Sam more than a brace +of tickets from New York to 'Frisco and back again, including +Pullmans and travelling expenses." + +Mile after mile the sight-seers rolled on, past scenes of never- +varying activity--past more shovels, more groups of drills, more +dirt trains, more regiments of men--Runnels explaining. Kirk +marvelling until he was forced to exclaim: + +"I had no idea it was so big. It doesn't seem as if they'd ever +finish it." + +"Oh, we'll finish it if we're let alone. Every year, you know, we +receive a batch of senators and congressmen who come down to +'inspect' and 'report.' Sometimes they spend as much as a week on +the job, and frequently learn to distinguish which is the Gatun +dam and which the Culebra cut, but not always. Some of them don't +know yet. Nevertheless, they return to Washington and tell us how +to proceed. Having discovered that the Panama climate is good and +the wages high, they send down all their relatives. It's too bad +Colonel Gorgas did away with the yellow fever. + +"You see there is too much politics in it; we never know how long +our jobs will last. If some senator whose vote is needed on an +administration matter wanted my position for his wife's brother, +he could get it. Suppose the president of the Clock-Winders' Union +wanted to place his half-sister's husband with the P. R. R. He'd +call at the White House and make his request. If he were refused, +he'd threaten to call a strike of his union and stop every clock +on the Isthmus. He'd get the job all right." + +"Of course, that is an exaggeration." + +"Not at all. It has been done--is being done right along. The +half-sister's husband comes down here and takes a job away from +some fellow who may be entitled to promotion." + +"I suppose I'm an example." + +Runnels looked at him squarely before answering, "You are," said +he, "although I wasn't thinking of you when I spoke. It's +something we all feel, however." + +Anthony flushed as he answered: "I don't remember ever taking +anything I wasn't entitled to, and I didn't think when I was +shoved in here that I'd shove some other fellow out." + +"That's about what will happen. The good positions are filled by +good men, for the most part, but Mrs. Cortlandt has asked it, and +you're elected. You don't mind my frankness, I hope?" + +"Certainly not. I just didn't happen to look at it in this light." +Kirk felt a vivid sense of discomfort as the keen eyes of his +companion dwelt upon him. "As a matter of fact, I dare say I don't +need a good job half as badly as some of these married fellows. I +suppose there is room at the bottom, and a fellow can work up?" + +"If he has it in him." + +"I think I'll start there." + +"Oh, come, now," laughed the Master of Transportation, "that sort +of thing isn't done. You have the chance, and you'd be foolish to +let it slip. I don't blame you; I'd do the same under the +circumstances. It's merely a condition we've all got to face." + +"Just the same, I don't like the idea. I'd feel uncomfortable if I +met some capable fellow whom I'd robbed of his chance. It's hard +work to be uncomfortable, and I don't like hard work, you know." + +Runnels shook his head doubtfully as if questioning the +genuineness of this attitude. + +"I'm afraid you're a poor business man," he said. + +"Rotten!" Kirk admitted. "But I've an idea I can make good if I +try." + +"If you feel that way, I certainly will help you," said the other, +warmly. "Of course, I'll try to help you anyhow, but--I like your +spirit. With Mrs. Cortlandt to back me up, I'll see you go forward +as fast as you deserve." + +By now they were out of the Cut and once more upon the main line +at Bas Obispo, heading back toward the Pacific. + +"You asked me to tell you something about her," Runnels continued. + +"Yes." + +"I'm not sure my information is entirely correct, but, knowing who +she is, I think I understand why she is in Panama. It is politics +--big politics. The Spiggoties have an election next year, and it +is necessary to get our wires well laid before it comes off. +General Alfarez will probably be the next president." + +"Alfarez! Not Ramon?" + +"His father. You know we Americans occupy a peculiar position +here, set down as we are in the midst of an alien people who hate +us. Oh, they hate us, all right--all except a few of the better +class." + +"Why?" + +"There are a good many reasons. For one thing, there's a sort of +racial antipathy. You don't like them, do you? Well, they don't +like you, either, and the same feeling exists from Mexico to +Patagonia, although it is strongest in these regions. It is partly +the resentment of an inferior race, I suppose. Then, too, when we +stole Panama we made the Colombians sore, and all Central America +besides, for they realized that once we Yankees got a foothold +here we'd hang on and not only dominate this country but all the +neighboring republics as well. That's just what we're beginning to +do; that's why the Cortlandts are here. The stage is clearing for +a big political drama, Mr. Anthony, which may mean the end of +Latin Central America." + +"I had gathered something of the sort--but I had no idea there was +so much in it." + +"The United States must protect its Canal, and to that end it is +building 'stone quarries' on Ancon Hill which are really +fortifications. American capital is coming in here, too, and in +order to protect the whole thing we must dominate Panama itself. +Once that is done, all the countries between here and the Texas +border will begin to feel our influence. Why, Costa Rica is +already nothing but a fruit farm owned by a Boston corporation. Of +course, nobody can forecast the final result, but the Mexicans, +the Hondurans, the Guatemalans, and the others have begun to feel +it, and that's why the anti-American sentiment is constantly +growing. You don't read much about it in the papers, but just live +here for a while and you'll find out." + +"Oh, I have," Kirk acknowledged, dryly. "But we don't want these +jungle countries." + +"That's where you're wrong. By-and-by we'll need room to expand, +and when that time comes we'll move south, not north or west. +Tropical America is richer than all our great Northwest, and we'll +grab it sooner or later. Meanwhile our far-sighted government is +smoothing the way, and there's nobody better fitted for the +preliminary work than Mr. Stephen Cortlandt, of Washington, D. C., +husband and clerk of the smartest woman in the business of +chaperoning administrations." + +"Oh, see here, now, Cortlandt is more than a clerk." + +"He's an errand-boy. He knows it, she knows it, and a few other +people know it. He's the figurehead behind which she works. She's +a rich woman, she loves the game--her father was the greatest +diplomat of his time, you know--and she married Cortlandt so she +could play it. Any other man would have served as well, though +I've heard that he showed promise before she blotted him out and +absorbed him. But now he's merely her power of attorney." + +Anthony pursed his lips into a whistle of astonishment. As usual, +he reflected, his judgment had been strictly college-made. + +"It's been a good thing for him," Runnels ran on, evidently warmed +to his subject. "She's made his reputation; he has money and +position. For my part, I'd rather remain insignificant and have a +real wife, even if she does have hysterics over a club button." + +"Don't they love each other?" + +"Nobody knows. She's carved out of ice, and, as for him, well, +gratitude is a good deal like rust--in time it destroys the thing +it clings to. I suppose I'm talking too much, but others would +tell you the same things. I consider her the smartest woman I ever +met, and I admire her immensely. You are mighty fortunate to be +her friend. She'll force you to the top in spite of yourself." + +"I'm not sure I like that. It doesn't sound good." + +"Oh, don't misconstrue what I've said," Runnels hastened to add. +"She isn't that sort." + +"I didn't mean that," said Kirk, briefly, and lapsed into a +silence from which he roused only to discuss the details of his +coming work. + + It was with quite a different eye that he looked upon his host +and hostess that evening. To his genuine liking for the latter was +now added a worshipful admiration and a boyish gratification at +her regard, which rather put her at a distance. When she +questioned him on their way to the Plaza for the band concert +later in the evening, he told her of his trip and of Runnels' +kindness. + +"It's all settled," said he. "I'm going to work in a few days as +train collector." + +"What?" Mrs. Cortlandt turned upon him sharply. "Runnels didn't +offer you that sort of position?" Her eyes were dark with +indignation. Kirk promptly came to the defence of his new friend. + +"No, I asked for it." + +"Oh, I see. Well, he will do much better by you than that." + +"I don't want anything better to start with." + +"But, my dear boy, a collector is merely a conductor. He takes +tickets." + +"Sure! I can DO that. I might fail at something hard." + +"No, no, no! I'll see that you don't fail. Don't you understand?" + +"I understand a lot more than I did, Mrs. Cortlandt. That's why I +don't want to rob some chap of a job he's entitled to, and I +sha'n't. There's a collector quitting shortly." + +She stared at him curiously for a moment before inquiring: + +"Is that really the reason, or do you think the work will be +easier?" + +Kirk stirred uncomfortably. "Oh, I'm not trying to dodge +anything," he maintained. "On the contrary, the most amazing thing +has happened--something I can't quite understand. I--I really want +to work. Funny, isn't it? I didn't know people ever got that way, +but--I'd like to help build this Canal." + +"But a CONDUCTOR! Why, you're a gentleman." + +"My dad was a brakeman." + +"Don't be foolish. Runnels talks too much. He'll offer you +something better than that." + +"The high-salaried positions are well filled now, and most of the +fellows are married." + +"A new position will be created." + +But Kirk was obdurate. "I'd prefer to start in as confidential +adviser to the Canal Commission, of course, but I'd be a 'frost,' +and my father would say 'I told you so.' I must make good for his +sake, even if it's only counting cars or licking postage-stamps. +Besides, it isn't exactly the square thing to take money for work +that somebody else does for you. When a man tried for the Yale +team he had to play football, no matter who his people were. If +some capable chap were displaced to put in an incapable fellow +like me, he'd be sore, and so would his friends; then I'd have to +lick them. We'd have a fine scrap, because I couldn't stand being +pointed out as a dub. No, I'll go in through the gate and pay my +admission." + +"Do you realize that you can't live at the Tivoli?" + +"I hadn't thought about that, but I'll live where the other +fellows do." + +"No more good dinners, no drives and little parties like this." + +"Oh, now, you won't cut me out just because I pull bell-cords and +you pull diplomatic wires? Remember one of our champion pugilists +was once a sailor." + +Mrs. Cortlandt laughed with a touch of annoyance. + +"It is utterly ridiculous, and I can't believe you are in +earnest." + +"I am, though. If I learn to be a good conductor, I'd like to step +up. I'm young. I can't go back to New York; there's plenty of time +for promotion." + +"Oh, you'll have every chance," she declared. "But I think a few +weeks in cap and buttons will cure you of this quixotic sentiment. +Meanwhile I must admit it is refreshing." She stared unseeingly at +the street lights for a moment, then broke out as a new thought +occurred to her: "But see here, Kirk, don't the collectors live in +Colon?" + +"I don't know," he replied, startled and flattered by her first use +of his given name. + +"I'll look it up to-morrow. You know I--Mr. Cortlandt and I will +be in Panama, and I prefer to have you here. You see, we can do +more for you." A little later she broke into a low laugh. + +"It seems strange to go driving with a conductor." + +As they reclined against the padded seat of their coach, lulled by +the strains of music that came to them across the crowded Plaza +and argued their first difference, it struck the young man that +Edith Cortlandt was surprisingly warm and human for a woman of +ice. He fully felt her superiority, yet he almost forgot it in the +sense of cordial companionship she gave him. + + + + +XII + +A NIGHT AT TABOGA + + +Despite his great contentment in Mrs. Cortlandt's society, Kirk +found himself waiting with growing impatience for his active +duties to begin. There was a restlessness in his mood, moreover, +which his desire to escape from a situation of rather humiliating +dependence could not wholly explain. Curiously enough, this +feeling was somehow connected with the thought of Edith herself. +Why this should be so, he did not trouble to inquire. They had +become the best of good friends, he told himself--a consummation +for which he had devoutly wished--yet, for some indefinable +reason, he was dissatisfied. He did not know that their moment of +perfect, unspoiled companionship had come and gone that evening in +the Plaza. + +Every relation into which sentiment enters at all has its crisis +or turning-point, though it may pass unobserved. Perhaps they are +happiest who heed it least. Certainly, morbid self-analysis was +the last fault of which Kirk could be accused. If he had a rule of +action, it was simply to behave naturally, and, so far, experience +had justified him in the belief that behaving naturally always +brought him out right in the end. + +He decided that he needed exercise, and determined to take a tramp +through the country; but on the evening before the day he had set +for his excursion his plans were upset by a note from Mrs. +Cortlandt, which the clerk handed him. It ran: + +DEAR KIRK,--Stephen has arranged an outing for all three of us, +and we are counting on you for to-morrow. It will be a really, +truly picnic, with all the delightful discomforts of such affairs. +You are not to know where we are going until we call for you at +eight. + +Faithfully and mysteriously yours, EDITH CORTLANDT. + +The recipient of this kind invitation tossed it aside with a +gesture of impatience. For the moment he experienced a kind of +boyish resentment at having his intentions thwarted that seemed +out of proportion to the cause. Whether he would have felt the +same if Edith's husband were not to be one of the party was a +question that did not occur to him. At all events, the emotion +soon passed, and he rose the next morning feeling that an outing +with the Cortlandts would be as pleasant a diversion for the day +as any other. + +Promptly at eight Edith appeared upon the hotel porch. She was +alone. + +"Where's Mr. Cortlandt?" he inquired. + +"Oh, some men arrived last night from Bocas del Toro and +telephoned that they must see him to-day on a matter of +importance." + +"Then he's coming later?" + +"I hardly think so. I was terribly disappointed, so he told me to +go without him. Now, I shall have to make up to you for his +absence, if I am able." + +"That's the sort of speech," Kirk laughed, "that doesn't leave a +fellow any nice answer. I'm sorry he couldn't come, of course, and +awfully glad you did. Now, where is to be the scene of our revel?" + +"Taboga," she said, with eyes sparkling. "You've never been there, +but it's perfectly gorgeous. Please call a coach, our boat is +waiting--and don't sit on the lunch." + +Kirk obeyed, and they went clattering down the deserted brick +street. Edith leaned back with a sigh. + +"I'm so glad to get away from that hotel for a day. You've no idea +how hard it is to be forever entertaining a lot of people you care +nothing about, or being entertained by people you detest. I've +smiled and smirked and cooed until I'm sick; I want to scowl and +grind my teeth and roar." + +"Still politics, I suppose?" + +"Yes, indeed; we don't dare talk about it. If you only knew it, +Kirk, you've capsized the political calculations of the Panama +Conservative Party." + +"I didn't know I had ever even rocked the boat." + +"It runs back to your affair with Ramen." She glanced toward the +coach driver, suggesting the need of reticence. + +"Really, did that effect it?" + +"Rather. At any rate, it gave an excuse for setting things in +motion. There had been some doubt about the matter for a long +time, and I was only too glad to exert my influence in the right +direction, but--this is a picnic to an enchanted island, and here +we are talking politics! We mustn't be so serious. School is out, +and it's vacation. I want to romp and play and get my face dirty." + +Kirk readily fell in with her mood, and by the time they reached +the water-front they were laughing like two children. Down through +a stone arch they went, and out upon a landing beneath the sea +wall. In front of them the placid waters of the bay were +shimmering, a myriad of small boats thronged the harbor. There +were coasting steamers, launches, sail-boats, skiffs, and canoes. +Along the shore above the tide-line were rows of schooners +fashioned from gigantic tree-trunks and capable of carrying many +tons, all squatting upon the mud, their white sails raised to dry +like the outstretched wings of resting sea-gulls. + +The landing was thronged, and, at sight of the newcomers, +loiterers gathered from all sides--a pirate throng, shouting a +dozen dialects and forcing Kirk to battle lustily for his luggage. +Stepping into a skiff, they were rowed to a launch, and a few +moments later were gliding swiftly around the long rock-rib that +guards the harbor, a copper-hued bandit at the wheel, a Nubian +giant at the engine, and an evil, yellow-faced desperado sprawling +upon the forward deck. + +Looking back, they saw the city spread out in brilliant panorama, +clear and beautiful in the morning radiance. Packed and dense it +lay, buttressed by the weather-stained ramparts which legend says +were built by the women while their husbands were at war, and +backed by the green heights of Ancon, against which the foreign +houses nestled. Set in the foreground, like an ivory carving, was +the Government Theatre, while away beyond it loomed the Tivoli. + +Noting armed sentinels pacing the sea wall at a certain spot, Kirk +called his companion's attention to them. + +"That's Chiriqui Prison, isn't it?" he asked. + +"Yes. They say some of the dungeons are almost under the sea. It +must be a terrible place." + +"I've developed a morbid interest in jails," he remarked. "I'm +quite an authority on them. I think, however, I won't experiment +with this one--I don't like the view." + +"Yes, it's an unhealthy spot, according to all accounts. I'm sure +you'd get rheumatism, at least. By-the-way, do you notice the +thickness of those walls? They say that a king of Spain was seen +standing at his palace window one day staring anxiously toward the +west. When a courtier presumed to ask him what he was looking at, +he said, 'I am searching for those costly walls of Panama. They +ought to be visible even from here.' They cost ten million +dollars, you know, when dollars were worth a good deal more than +they are now. Look! There's Taboga." + +Following her gaze, Kirk beheld a mountain of amethyst rising out +of the bay. Behind them the shores stretched away into misty +distances, while low mountains, softened by a delicate purple, +rolled up from the jungle plain. Ahead of them the turquoise +waters were dotted by islets whose heights were densely overgrown, +while sands of coral whiteness ringed their shore lines. Here and +there a fleet of fishing-boats drifted. Far out in the roadstead +lay two cruisers, slate-gray and grim. The waters over-side purled +soothingly, the heavens beamed, the breeze was like a gentle +caress. The excursionists lost themselves in silent enjoyment. + +Even before they had come to anchor a dozen boatmen were racing +for them and crying for their patronage. At the water's edge they +saw a tiny village nestled close against the mountains, its tiled +roofs rust-red and grown to moss, its walls faded by wind and +weather to delicate mauves and dove colors and greens impossible +to describe. Up against the slope a squat 'dobe chapel sat, while +just beyond reach of the tide was a funny little pocket-size +plaza, boasting a decrepit fountain and an iron fence eaten by the +salt. Backing it all was a marvellous verdure, tipped up on edge, +or so it seemed, and cleared in spots for pineapples. + +The launch, when it came to rest, seemed suspended in air, and +beneath it lay an entrancing sea-garden. Once the engine had +stopped its clatter, a sleepy, peaceful silence settled over the +harbor, unbroken by wheel or whistle, for in Taboga no one works +and there are no vehicles. + +"What a wonderful place!" exclaimed the young man, fervently. +"Why, it's like a dream--it can't be real!" Then, as the boatmen +renewed their begging, "I wonder which barge gentleman I had +better hire." + +"Take the little boy, please." Edith called to an urchin who was +manfully struggling with a pair of oars twice his own length, +whereupon the older boatmen began to shove off with many scowls +and much grumbling. + +"Our choice has offended these genial bandits," Kirk observed as +he helped her to a seat. "When shall we tell the lad to bring us +off?" + +"Four o'clock," answered Mrs. Cortlandt. "I arranged with the +captain to be ready at that hour, so, you see, we have the whole +day ahead of us." + +Across the limpid shallows they glided, bravely propelled by their +nine-year-old oarsman, but when the bow of their skiff grated upon +the bottom they were still some yards from the shore. + +"Looks as if we'd have to wade," said Kirk, then called to one of +the near-by boatmen to lend the child a hand. But the fellow +replied gruffly in some unintelligible jargon. + +"He says he carries HIS passengers ashore in his arms," Edith +translated. + +"Really? Competition is spirited even on this heavenly isle. Well, +that's easy!" Anthony untied his low shoes, kicked them off, and +rolled up his trousers. + +"Permit me to help you," he said, "without embarrassing our +pilot." + +"Oh! I want to wade, too," the woman exclaimed, enviously, as he +stepped out, "but--it's too pebbly." + +She stood up and allowed him to gather her in his arms. Then for +the first time she felt his strength as her body leaned to his. +Slowly he picked his way ashore while she reclined in his embrace, +her arms about his neck, her smooth cheek brushing his. A faint, +intoxicating perfume she used affected him strangely, increasing +the poignant sense of her nearness; a lock of her hair caressed +him. When he deposited her gently upon her feet he saw her face +had gone white and that she was trembling. + +"Did I hurt you?" he queried, quickly. + +"Oh no!" she answered, but as she turned away he saw her breathe +as if for the first time since he had taken her up. + +His own face was glowing as he waded back to fetch the lunch- +basket and his foot-gear. Under the circumstances he had done the +only natural, the only possible thing, yet it had queerly +perturbed them both. There was an artificial note in their voices +as they mounted to the village, and unconsciously they avoided +each other's glances. + +A narrow, crooked street, fronted by old stone houses, opened +before them, and the many tints they had seen from a distance +became more pronounced. Even the rough flags and cobbles under +foot were of a faint lichen gray, chrome yellow, or pink, as if +painted at cost of infinite labor. Out of dark, open doorways +peered swarthy faces, naked bronze children scampered away on fat +legs at their approach, and in one house were a number of +cassocked priests droning in Spanish. Everywhere was the same +slumberous content, the same peaceful buzz of bees and birds and +soft-toned human voices. + +The two visitors explored the village, even to the quaint, tawdry +chapel, with its impossible blues and rusted gilt, and noon found +them eager to investigate the contents of their lunch-basket. +Taking a random path up the hill, they came at last to a spring of +cool water, and here they spread their meal under a mango-tree +bent beneath tons of fruit. + +"Oh, it's intoxicating!" cried Edith, as she sank to a seat, +feasting her eyes upon the scene below. "After lunch, shall we +climb the mountain?" + +"I'm ready for anything," Kirk assured her. "Maybe we'll go +swimming. That seems to be the main occupation of the +inhabitants." + +Up the path toward them came two timid children, one bearing a +pineapple half as large as himself, the other lugging an armful of +strange fruit. Kirk bought their entire burden, and they scuttled +away in high glee. + +By now the spirit of the woods was in the picnickers; the gladness +of the day possessed them wholly, and the afternoon sped quickly. +If at times Kirk found his companion regarding him with a +strangely timid, half-defiant look, he refused to connect it with +the episode of their landing. It was a fleeting look, at most, +gone almost before he surprised it, and, for the most part, Edith +showed a seemingly quite natural gayety that helped him to forget +his recent self-consciousness. + +Promptly at four they came down the drunken little main street and +out upon the beach. But no launch was in sight. + +"Hello! Where's our boat?" exclaimed Kirk. + +"The captain told me he'd be ready at four. Perhaps he has run +over to Taboguilla or--" She hesitated, with a troubled frown. + +"You told him to wait?" + +"Distinctly." Seeing an idler in the square above she questioned +him in Spanish. "This man says the launch left for Panama two +hours ago." She turned tragic eyes upon Kirk. + +"Do you think they intend to leave us?" + +"I don't know. These people are liable to do any thing." Once more +she questioned the loiterer. "It is just as I suspected," she +explained; "they went on a Sunday spree. He says they came ashore +and bought a lot of liquor, and he heard them quarrelling later." + +"That means we'll have to get another boat." + +"I don't know where we shall find one." + +"Neither do I, but there must be some sort of craft that plies +back and forth regularly." + +"Only once or twice a week, I believe, and it belongs to the +sanitarium." She nodded toward some buildings perched upon a point +farther around the bay. "Mr. Cortlandt looked it up before leaving +and found the boat doesn't run on Sundays, so he hired that +launch. Perhaps we'd better wait awhile; our men may come back." + +They found seats in the square and were grateful for the rest; but +an hour passed and the sun was getting low, while no sign of their +truant craft appeared. + +"There must be sail-boats to be had," said Kirk; but on inquiry +they learned that, although a few belonged to the island, they all +happened to be away. He suggested that they hire a man to row them +across. + +"It's twelve miles," Edith demurred. "Do you think it would be +safe?" + +He scanned the twilit sea and gave up the idea; for the afternoon +trades, balmy and soothing as they were, had lifted a swell that +would prove difficult for a skiff to navigate. Uneasily they +settled themselves for a further wait. At last, as the sun was +dipping into a bed of gold, Kirk broke out: + +"Gee whiz! We've got to do SOMETHING. Mr. Cortlandt will be +getting worried." + +"In all probability he won't know anything about it until too late +to come for us. He is dining with these people from Bocas, and may +not get back to the Tivoli before midnight." + +"Nice fix we're in!" remarked Anthony. "I'd like to lay hands on +that captain." + +"We may have to stay here all night!" + +"Well, at least we have a haven of refuge. They'll take us in at +the hospital." + +"I don't care to ask them. There's some one up there I don't wish +to see. That's why I didn't go near the place to-day." + +"You know best, of course. But, see here, don't you think you'd +better go up there--" + +"Not for worlds! We must find some other way." She began to pace +back and forth in the dusk. "How unfortunate it is!" + +"Is it because--I'm with you?" questioned the young man, with an +effort. "Is that why you don't want to apply there?" + +"No, no. Stephen's particular enemy is in charge up there. I +detest the man, and the feeling is mutual, I believe." She sighed, +and her glance fell. "We can't spend the night outdoors." + +"Of course not, but--" + +"What?" + +He laughed to hide his embarrassment. "I'm wondering--what people +will say." + +"Oh, you mustn't be troubled about that. It isn't your fault, you +know, anyhow. Besides, people won't say anything because they +won't know anything about it--if we stay away from that +sanitarium." + +In the effort to put him at his ease, her own distress seemed to +vanish, and Kirk immediately felt more cheerful. + +"It's getting along toward dinner-time," he said, "so let's see +what we can find in the way of food. You can be sheltered in one +of these houses, I suppose, though from the looks I'd almost +prefer the night air." + +They stumbled out into the unlighted street and began their +search; but, seen close at hand, the cooking arrangements of +Taboga proved most unattractive. Outside the sanitarium, it +seemed, there was not a stove on the island. Charcoal braziers set +upon the floors or in the dirt yards served all culinary purposes, +and the process of preparing meals was conducted with an +indifference that promised no savory results. About the glowing +points of light wrinkled hags appeared irregularly, as if brewing +some witch's broth, but they could not understand the phenomenon +of Americans being hungry and signified no readiness to relieve +them. In several instances Kirk and Mrs. Cortlandt were treated +with open suspicion. But eventually they found a more pretentious- +looking place, where they were taken in, and, after an +interminable wait, food was set before them--chicken, boiled with +rice and cocoanut, black beans and cocoanut, fresh, warm milk, and +a wondrous assortment of hothouse fruits. They would have enjoyed +the meal had it not been for the curious faces that blocked every +aperture in the room and the many bright eyes that peered at them +from each shadow. + +But in spite of their equivocal situation, Edith seemed fully to +have regained her spirits. Even the prospect of spending the night +in this place apparently did not dismay her. + +"We have created quite a sensation," she said, laughingly. "I +wonder if it makes the animals in the zoo as nervous to be stared +at." + +Kirk was half puzzled, half relieved by the lightness of her mood. + +"If you have finished this health-food," he remarked, "we'll go +back to the plaza and wait for the launch. I'm as full of cocoanut +as a shell." + +They descended to the square again, stared at all the way through +open doors and followed by a subdued murmur of comment. Then they +sat for a long time watching the stars, half minded not to regret +the circumstance that had left them stranded together in such +pleasant surroundings. + +As if in despair over their impossible predicament, Edith gave way +to a spirit of reckless vivacity, and Kirk, with a man's somewhat +exaggerated sympathy for a woman's sensitive feelings, loyally +strove to help her make the best of things in her own way. It was +like a woman, he reflected, to follow her mood to the last +extreme, and, being a man, he was not displeased. The change in +her manner was too elusive for him to analyze. There was no real +concession of her reserve--no sacrifice of the feminine privilege +of prompt and complete withdrawal. If he had struck a false note, +he knew that she would have turned frigid in an instant. But he +could not help feeling that some barrier which had existed between +them had been magically removed. Her apparent obliviousness to all +that under the circumstances might have troubled her was a subtle +compliment to himself, and soon he, too, forgot that there was +anything in the world beyond their present relation to each other. + +It was on their return to the house that the climax came, leaving +him strangely shaken. + +Their course took them past a tiny cantina. It was open in front, +and brightly lighted, although at this hour most of the houses +were dark and the village lay wrapped in the inky shadow of the +mountain behind. Within, several men were carousing--dark-haired, +swarthy fellows, who seemed to be fishermen. Drawn by the sound of +argument, the strangers paused a moment to watch them. The quarrel +seemed a harmless affair, and they were about to pass on, when +suddenly one of the disputants lunged at his antagonist with a +knife, conjured from nowhere, and the two came tumbling out into +the street, nearly colliding with the onlookers. + +Without a sound, Mrs. Cortlandt picked up her skirts and fled into +the darkness, Kirk stumbling along behind her, both guiding +themselves by instinct rather than sight. At last she stopped out +of breath, and he overtook her. + +"You mustn't run through these dark alleys," he cried, sharply. +"You'll break your neck." Half impatient at this hysterical +behavior, he seized her by the arm. + +"Oh, I'm so frightened!" she breathed, and he felt her tremble. "A +drunken man frightens me--" Involuntarily she hid her face against +his breast, then laughed nervously. "Don't mind me, please. It's +the one thing I can't stand. I'll be all right in a moment." She +lifted her white face, and her eyes were luminous in the gloom. +"I'm very glad you don't drink." Her hand crept up to the lapel of +his coat. "What will you think of me?" she said, tremulously. + +Before he realized what he was doing his arms had closed around +her and his lips had met hers. It may have been the romance of the +night, the solitude, the intoxicating warmth of her breath--at any +rate, he lost his head and knew nothing save that she was a woman +and he a man. As for her, she offered no resistance, made no sign +beyond a startled sigh as their lips came together. + +But, impulsive as his action had been, it was no more sudden than +his recoil. He released her and stepped back, crying: + +"Oh, my God! I--I didn't mean that. Forgive me. PLEASE." She said +nothing, and he stammered desperately again: "You'll hate me now, +of course, but--I don't know what ails me. I forgot myself--you-- +everything. It was unpardonable, and I ought to be shot." He +started off down the blind street, his whole body cold with +apprehension and self-disgust. + +"Where are you going?" she called after him. + +"I don't know. I can't stay here now. Oh, Mrs. Cortlandt, what can +I say?" + +"Do you intend to leave me here in the middle of this--" + +"No, no! Of course not. I'm rattled, that's all. I've just got a +cowardly desire to flee and butt my head against the nearest wall. +That's what I ought to do. I don't know what possessed me. I don't +know what you'll think of me." + +"We won't speak of it now. Try to compose yourself and find our +lodging-place." + +"Why, yes, of course. I'll see that you're fixed up comfortably +and then I'll get out." + +"Oh, you mustn't leave me!" she cried in a panic. "I couldn't stay +in that awful place alone." She drew a little nearer to him as if +demanding his protection. + +A wave of tenderness swept over him. She was just a girl, after +all, he reflected, and if it were not for what had happened a +moment before the most natural thing in the world would be to take +her in his arms and comfort her. + +"I--I won't leave you--I'll stay near you," he stammered. + +But as they trudged along together through the dark his chagrin +returned in full force. Mrs. Cortlandt maintained a distressing +silence, and he could not see her face. Presently he began to +plead brokenly for forgiveness, stumbling in the effort not to +offend her further and feeling that he was making matters worse +with every word he uttered. For a long time she made no reply, but +at last she said: + +"Do you think I ought ever to see you again after this?" + +"I suppose not," said Kirk, miserably. + +"I won't believe," she went on, "that you could have taken me for +the kind of woman who--" + +"No, no!" he cried, in an anguish of self-reproach. "I was a fool--" + +"No," she said, "I don't--I couldn't bear to think that. Perhaps I +was partly to blame--but I didn't think--I ought to have known +that no man can really be trusted. But I thought our friendship +was so beautiful, and now you've spoiled it." + +"Don't say that!" exclaimed Kirk. "Say you'll forgive me some +time." + +But instead of answering him directly she proceeded in the same +strain, probing his wounded self-respect to the quick, making his +offence seem blacker every moment. + +Although he assured her over and over that he had simply followed +the irresponsible, unaccountable impulse of a moment--that he had +regarded her only as the best of friends, and respected her more +than he could say, she showed him no mercy. The melancholy, +regretful tone she adopted was ten times worse than anger, and by +the time they reached the inn where they had dined he was sunk in +the depths of self-abasement. + +If he had been less preoccupied with his own remorse he might have +reflected that Edith's attitude, especially as she did not +expressly withhold the prospect of ultimate pardon, established a +closer bond between them than ever before. But there was no room +in his mind for such a thought. + +In reply to his knock an old woman came to the door and sleepily +admitted them. Edith stood for a moment on the threshold, then, +seeing that he made no motion to accompany her, she said good- +night, and, quietly entering, closed the door behind her. + +Kirk experienced a sudden desire to escape. To remain where he was +simply prolonged his humiliation. Instinctively he felt that, if +he could only get away where he could view the matter in an every- +day light, it would cease to trouble him. But evidently he could +not desert Edith. He sat down upon the doorstep and gave himself +up to bitter thoughts. + +She was such a wonderful woman, he told himself; she had been such +a true friend to him that he had been worse than criminal to lose +her respect. And Cortlandt had been so decent to him! It was +significant that this gave him the most discomfort of all. He had +betrayed a man's friendship, and the thought was unbearable. No +punishment could be too severe for that! + +He was still sitting there cramped and stiff when the first faint +flush of dawn stole over the hill-crest behind him. Then he rose +to wander toward the water-front. As the harbor assumed definite +form, he beheld a launch stealing in toward the village, and ten +minutes later greeted Stephen Cortlandt as that gentleman stepped +out of the tender. + +"Where's Edith?" eagerly demanded her husband. + +"She's asleep. I found a place for her--" + +"Not at the SANITARIUM?" + +"No, no. One of these houses. Lord, I'm glad to see you! We'd +begun to feel like real castaways. I've been up all night." + +"What happened?" It was plain that Mr. Cortlandt was deeply +agitated. + +"Our boatmen evidently got drunk and pulled out. I tried to get a +sail-boat, but there weren't any, and it was too rough to try +crossing with a skiff." + +It took them but a moment to reach the house, and soon the three +were back at the water-front. + +"What a miserable night!" Mrs. Cortlandt complained, stifling a +yawn. "I thought you'd never come, Stephen!" + +"I didn't get back to the Tivoli until midnight, and then I had +trouble in finding a boat to bring me over." + +"I suppose they were alarmed at the hotel?" + +"I said nothing about it," he returned, quietly, at which his +wife's face flushed. Seizing the first occasion, he exclaimed, in +a low voice: "God! How unfortunate--at this time. Were you mad?" + +She looked at him and her eyes burned, but she said nothing. + + + + +XIII + +CHIQUITA + + +The next day Kirk borrowed a shot-gun and went hunting. The events +of the night before seemed like a dream. Could it be that he had +really blundered irretrievably? Was it possible that he had +offended his best friend past forgiveness? He wanted to get away +somewhere and collect his thoughts. For the present, at least, he +wished to avoid an interview with Mrs. Cortlandt. + +A mile or two beyond the railroad track, to the north and east, +began what appeared to be an unbroken wilderness, and thither he +turned his steps. Low, rolling hills lay before him, densely over- +grown and leading upward to a mountain range which paralleled the +coast until the distant haze swallowed it up. These mountains, he +reflected with a thrill of interest, led on to South America, the +land of the Incas, hidden in mystery as the forests close at hand +were veiled in faint purple. The very thought was romantic. Balboa +had strained his eyes along these self-same placid shores; +Pizarro, the swineherd, had followed them in search of Dabaiba, +that fabled temple of gold, leaving behind him a trail of blood. +It was only yonder, five miles away, that Pedrarias, with the +murder of a million victims on his soul, had founded the ancient +city which later fell to Morgan's buccaneers. Even now, a league +back from the ocean, the land seemed as wild as then. Anthony +suspected that there were houses--perhaps villages--hidden from +his view; but vast stretches of enchanted jungle intervened, which +he determined to explore, letting his feet stray whither they +would. If game, of which he had heard great stories, fell to his +hand, so much the better. + +Heeding a warning not to bear arms through the streets of Panama +without a permit from the alcalde, he struck off across the fields +in a bee-line for the woods. It was a vast relief to be out in the +open air with a gun upon his arm once more, and he felt his blood +coursing vigorously. The burden upon his spirits insensibly began +to lighten. After all, he had done nothing for which he needed to +be ashamed the rest of his life. Edith, of course, was right in +being deeply offended. That was to be expected. Yet his conduct, +regrettable as it was, had been only natural under the +circumstances. Now that the first tumult of feeling had subsided, +he found that his conscience did not accuse him very severely. + +And, somehow, he was unable to believe that the breach with Edith +would prove irreparable. She was a sensible woman of the world-- +not a mere school-girl. Perhaps when the immediate shock of the +occurrence had passed she would consent to take a different view +of it, and they might return to their old friendly footing. If +not--well, he would be his own man soon, anyhow. Their lives would +part, and the incident would be forgotten. He was sorry that in +his momentary madness he had behaved improperly toward a woman to +whom he owed so much, yet it was not as if he had shown meanness +or ingratitude. + +Across the meadows deep in grass he went, skirting little ponds +and marshy spots, growing more cheerful with every step. In one +place he had the good-luck to raise a flock of water birds, which +he took for purple gallinule and spur-wing plover, although they +were unlike any he had ever seen. In some scattered groves beyond +he bagged a pigeon and missed a quail which unexpectedly whirred +out of a thicket. Then he continued past herds of grazing cattle +to another patch of woodland, where he came upon something that +looked like a path. Through rankly growing banana-patches, yam- +fields, and groves of mango-trees, he followed it, penetrating +ever deeper into the rolling country, until at last he reached the +real forest. He had come several miles, and realized that he could +not retrace his steps, for the trail had branched many times; he +had crossed other pathways and made many devours. He rejoiced in +the thought that he had successfully lost himself. + +At midday he paused in an open glade against a hillside to eat his +lunch. Back of him the rising ground was heavily timbered; beneath +him a confusion of thickets and groves and cleared fields led out +to a green plain as clean as any golf links, upon which were +scattered dwellings. + +Evidently this was the Savannas of which he had heard so much, and +these foreign-looking bungalows were the country homes of the rich +Panamanians. Beyond, the bay stretched, in unruffled calm, like a +sheet of quicksilver, its bosom dotted with rocky islets, while +hidden in the haze to the southward, as he knew, were the historic +Pearl Islands, where the early Spaniards had enriched themselves. + +Gazing at this view in lazy enjoyment, Kirk found himself thinking +how good it was to be young and free, and to be set down in such a +splendidly romantic country. Above all, it was good to be heart- +whole and unfettered by any woman's spell--men in love were +unhappy persons, harassed by a thousand worries and indecisions, +utterly lacking in poise. It was a lamentable condition of +hysteria with which he decided to have nothing to do. He did not +care for women, anyhow. One could scarcely have any dealings with +them without becoming involved in some affair that unduly harrowed +one's feelings. How much better it was to know the clean spirit of +adventure and the joy of living, undisturbed by feverish emotions! + +As he reclined there, busied with these thoughts, two vivid little +paroquets alighted near him, to quarrel noisily, then make up and +kiss each other like any pair of lovers. It was disgusting. A +toucan peered at him with an appearance of exaggerated curiosity, +due to its huge, grotesquely proportioned beak. Now and then came +the harsh notes of parrots as they fluttered high above the tree- +tops. Meanwhile the young man's ears became attuned to the jungle +noises, his eyes observant of the many kinds of life about him. + +The wood was crowded with plant-life utterly strange to him. On +the hill above towered a giant ceiba-tree, its trunk as smooth as +if polished by hand and bare of branches except at the very top, +where, instead of tapering, it ended abruptly in a tuft of +foliage. Here and there stood tremendous cotton-trees, their limbs +so burdened with air-plants as to form a series of aerial gardens, +their twigs bearing pods filled with down. Beside them palm-trees +raised their heads, heavy with clusters of nuts resembling dates +in size and form, but fit only for wild pigs. Clumps of bamboo +were scattered about, their shoots springing from a common centre +like the streams from a fountain, and sweeping through graceful +curves to a spray of shimmering green. He had never seen such +varieties of growth. There were thick trees with bulbous +swellings; tall trees with buttressed roots that ran high up the +trunks; slender trees propped up head-high above the earth on +tripod-like roots or clusters of legs; trees with bark that shone +like a mirror; trees guarded with an impregnable armor of six-inch +bony spikes--Kirk did not know the names of half of them, nor did +he care to learn. + +Vines and creepers abounded, from the tiny honeysuckle that reared +itself with feeble filaments, to the giant liana creeping through +the forest like a python, throttling full-grown trees in its +embrace. On every side was the never-ceasing battle for light and +the struggle of the weak against the strong. The air was heavy +with the breath of triumphant blooms and the odor of defeated, +decaying life. A thousand voiceless tragedies were being enacted; +the wood was peopled by distorted shapes that spoke of forgotten +encounters; rich, riotous, parasitic growths flourished upon +starved limbs or rotting trunks. It was weird and beautiful and +pitiless. Unlike the peaceful order of our Northern forests, here +was a savage riot, an unending treacherous warfare without light +or room or mercy. There was something terrible in it all. + +Tiring of the scene at last, Kirk continued his wanderings, +bearing gradually toward the right, that he might eventually +emerge upon the Savannas below, where he knew there was a good +paved road leading to the city. But the trails were devious and +seemed to lead nowhere, so at last he struck out through the +jungle itself. Having no machete with which to clear a way, his +progress was slow, but he took his time, keeping a wary outlook +for game, twisting back and forth to avoid the densest thickets, +until he finally came out upon the margin of a stream. Through the +verdure beyond it he saw the open, sunlit meadows, and he followed +the bank in the hope of finding a foot-log or a bridge upon which +to cross. He had gone, perhaps, a hundred yards when he stumbled +out into a cleared space, where he paused with an exclamation of +surprise. + +The brook had been dammed and widened into a deep, limpid pool to +which the clean, white sand of its bottom lent a golden hue. At +the lower end it overflowed in a waterfall, the purling music of +which filled the glade. Overhead the great trees were arched +together and interlaced, their lower branches set with flowering +orchids like hothouse plants upon a window-ledge. The dense +foliage allowed only a random beam of sunlight to pass through and +pierce the pool, like a brilliant, quivering javelin. Long vines +depended from the limbs above, falling sheer and straight as +plumb-lines; a giant liana the size of a man's body twined up and +up until lost in the tangle overhead. + +Although set just within the border of the untouched forest, it +was evident that this spot had been carefully cut away and +artfully cultivated. But, if man's hand had aided nature by a few +deft touches here and there and a careful pruning of her lavish +riches, it could be seen that no human artist had designed the +wondrous stage effect. To step suddenly out of an uncut wilderness +into such a scene as this was bewildering, and made the American +gasp with delight. The place had an air of strictest privacy. A +spring-board mirrored in the depths below invited one to plunge, a +pair of iron gymnasium rings were swung by chains to a massive +limb, a flight of stone steps led up the bank and into a hut +artistically thatched and walled with palm-leaves to harmonize +with its setting. Kirk thanked his fortune that he had not +blundered in while the place was in use, for it had almost the +sacred air of a lady's boudoir. + +Instead of promptly withdrawing, he allowed his admiration full +play, and stood staring for a long time. What a delightful nook in +which to dream away the days! It was dim and cool and still, +although outside its walls of green the afternoon sun was beating +down fiercely. A stranger might pass and never guess its presence. +It had been cunningly shaped by fairies, that was evident. +Doubtless it was peopled by them also, and his mistake had been in +coming upon it so suddenly. If he had approached with caution he +would surely have surprised them at their play, for yonder was the +music of their dances--that chuckling, singing waterfall could +serve no other purpose. Perhaps one was hidden under it at +present. Kirk was half tempted to conceal himself and wait for +them to reappear, though he knew that it requires extraordinary +cunning to deceive wood-sprites once they have been alarmed. But, +undoubtedly, they were somewhere close by, probably watching him +from behind the leaves, and if they were not such timid bodies he +might try to search them out. + +As it was, he took a lingering, farewell look and turned to +retrace his steps, whereupon the queen fairy laughed at him +softly. He paused abruptly, then turned around, with care, so as +not to frighten her. But of course she was invisible. Then she +spoke again with the sweetest foreign accent imaginable. + +"You had better cross upon the waterfall, sir. There is no bridge +above." After an instant, during which he strained his eyes to +find her, she laughed again. + +"Here I am, in the tree, across the pond." + +"Oh!" Looking over the fork of a tree-trunk, perhaps twice the +height of his head above the ground, Anthony beheld a ravishing +face and two very bright eyes. Without removing his gaze, he +leaned his gun carefully against a bush--firearms have an +abominable effect upon hamadryads--and said: + +"I knew you were here all the time." + +"Indeed!" The eyes opened in astonishment. "You did not see me at +all." + +"Of course, but I knew you were somewhere close by, just the same. +How did you get up there?" + +"I climbed up." + +"Why didn't you hide under the waterfall?" + +"I did not hide, senor. I am trying to reach my orchid." + +A little hand appeared beside the face, and a finger pointed to +one of the big air plants above her. Kirk beheld a marvellous +white, dove-shaped flower, nodding upon a slender stalk. + +"I climbed up on the big vine; it is just like a ladder." + +"Then you can't be the queen!" + +Two very large, very dark eyes looked at him questioningly. + +"Queens don't pick flowers," he explained. "They hide in 'em." + +"The queen?" + +"Some of them live in trees, and some preside over lakes and +fountains. Which kind are you?" + +"Oh! I am neither, I live in my father's house." She tossed her +head in the direction of the Savannas behind her. "Do you wish to +cross the stream?" + +"If you please." + +"Wait." The face disappeared. There was a sound from behind the +twisted tree-trunk, a twig fell, then a piece of bark, and the +next instant the girl herself stepped into view. + +"I was afraid you'd gone for good," acknowledged the young man, +gravely. He took up his gun and stepped out upon the crest of the +dam. + +"You must look where you go," she admonished, "or you will fall-- +splash!" She laughed delightedly at the thought, and he saw that +her eyes had a way of wrinkling almost shut in the merriest +fashion. He balanced upon the slippery surface of the waterway +with the stream up to his ankles. + +"Will you promise not to whisk yourself away if I look down?" he +asked. + +"Yes." + +But even with this assurance he found it difficult to remove his +eyes from her even for the brief instant necessary for a safe +passage; and when at last he stood beside her he felt an +irresistible desire to seize her gently so that she could not +escape. + +"Well?" she said at length, and he found he had been standing +stock-still staring at her for several seconds. + +"Excuse me! I really took you for a wood-nymph. I'm not sure yet-- +you see the place is so well suited. It--it was a natural +mistake." + +She dropped her eyes shyly and turned away at his look. + +"It is only our swimming-pool. There have been no fairies here +since I was a very little girl. But once upon a time there were +many--oh, a great many." It was impossible to describe the odd, +sweet sound her tongue gave to the English words. It was not a +dialect, hardly an accent, just a delicious, hesitating mannerism +born of unfamiliarity. + +"Did you ever see them?" + +"N-no! I arrived always a little too late. But there are such +things." + +He nodded. "Everybody knows that since 'Peter Pan.'" + +Another shy glance told her that he was still regarding her with +his look of wondering admiration. She pointed to a path, saying: + +"This way will bring you to the road, sir, if you wish." + +"But--I don't wish--not yet." He sought wildly for an excuse to +stay, and exclaimed: "Oh, the orchid. I must get it for you." + +"That will be very nice of you, sir. For two years I have awaited +its blooming. If you had not arrived I would have got it, anyhow." + +"Girls shouldn't climb trees," he said, severely. "It tears their +dresses." + +"Oh, one cannot tear a dress like this." She glanced down at her +skirt. Allowing his eyes to leave her face for a moment, Kirk saw +that she was clad, oddly enough, in a suit of denim, which was +buttoned snugly clear to her neck. It struck him as most +inappropriate, yet it was extremely well made, and he could not +complain of the effect. + +He broke his gun and removed the shells; then, leaving it beside +the bath-house, went to the tree where he had first seen her. With +one hand resting upon the trunk, he turned to say: + +"Promise you won't disappear while I'm up there, or change into a +squirrel, or a bird, or anything like that." + +"What a funny man you are!" + +"Do you promise?" + +"Yes, yes." + +"Do you live around here?" + +"Of course." + +"Why do you want this orchid?" + +"To put it in the house." + +Instead of beginning his climb, the young man lounged idly against +the tree. + +"Funny how I found you, wasn't it?" he remarked. "I mean it's +funny I should have stumbled right on you this way--there's only +one of you and one of me, and--er--this country is so big! I might +have gone some other way and then perhaps we'd never have met." He +contemplated this contingency for an instant. "And if you hadn't +spoken I'd never have seen you, either." + +"But I had to speak. You could not cross above." + +"Awfully nice of you. Some people would have let me go away." + +"But the orchid, senor. Do you fear to climb so high?" she +inquired, with the faintest gleam of amusement at his obvious +effort to prolong the conversation. + +"Oh no!" + +He cast about for something further to talk about, but, failing to +find it, began slowly to clamber upward, supporting himself upon +the natural steps afforded by the twining vine and the +protuberances of the trunk itself. + +When he had reached the first fork, he turned and seated himself +comfortably, peering downward through the leaves for a sight of +her. + +"Not gone yet!" he exclaimed. "That's good." + +"Are you out of breath that you stop so soon?" + +He nodded. "I need to rest a minute. Say, my name is Anthony--Kirk +Anthony." Then, after a pause, "I'm an American." + +"So am I, at least I am almost. My mother was an American." + +"You don't say!" The young man's face lighted up with interest, +and he started eagerly down the tree-trunk, but she checked him +promptly. + +"The orchid!" + +"Oh yes!" He reseated himself. "Well, well, I suppose your mother +taught you to speak English?" + +"I also attended school in Baltimore." + +Anthony dangled his legs from his perch and brushed aside a +troublesome prickly pod that depended in such a position as to +tickle his neck. "I'm from Yale. Ever been to New Haven? What are +you laughing at?" + +"At you. Do you know what it is which you are fighting from your +neck?" + +"This?" Kirk succeeded in locating the nettle that had annoyed +him. + +"Yes. It is cow-eetch. Wait! By-and-by you will scratch like +everything." The young lady laughed with the most mischievous, +elf-like enjoyment of this prospect. + +"All right. Just for that, I will wait." + +Now that the first surprise of meeting was over, Kirk began a +really attentive scrutiny of this delightful young person. So far +he had been conscious of little except her eyes, which had +exercised a most remarkable effect upon him from the first. He had +never cared for black eyes--they were too hard and sparkling, as a +rule--but these--well, he had never seen anything quite like them. +They were large and soft and velvety, like--like black pansies! +That was precisely what they were, saucy, wide-awake black +pansies, the most beautiful flower in all creation; and, while +they were shadowed by the intangible melancholy of the tropics, +they were also capable of twinkling in the most roguish manner +imaginable, as at the present moment. Her hair was soft and fine, +entirely free from the harsh lustre so common to that shade, and +it grew down upon her temples in a way that completed the perfect +oval of her face. His first glimpse had told him she was +ravishingly pretty, but it had failed to show how dainty and small +she was. He saw now that she was considerably below the usual +height, but so perfectly proportioned that one utterly lost +perspective. Even her thick, coarse dress could not conceal the +exquisite mould in which she was cast. But her chief charm lay in +a certain winsome vivacity, a willful waywardness, an ever- +changing expression which showed her keenly alive and +appreciative. Even now pure mischief looked out of her eyes as she +asked: + +"Have you rested enough to attack the orchid?" + +"Yes." He roused himself from his trance, and with a strangely +leaping heart proceeded carefully to detach the big air plant from +its resting-place. The wonderful flower, nodding to his touch, was +no more perfect than this dryad whom he had surprised. + +"Don't break it," she cautioned as he came gingerly down the tree. +"It is what we call 'Espiritu Santa,' the 'Holy Spirit' flower. +See, it is like a white bird." + +"First one I've seen," he said, noting how the purity of the bloom +enhanced the olive of her cheek. Then he began another fruitless +search for a topic of conversation, fearing that if he allowed the +slightest pause she would send him away. But all his thoughts were +of her, it seemed. His tongue would frame nothing but eager +questions--all about herself. At last in desperation he +volunteered to get another orchid; but the suggestion met with no +approval. There were no more, she told him, of that kind. + +"Maybe we can find one," he said, hopefully. + +"Thank you. I know them all." She was looking at him now as if +wondering why he did not make a start, but wild horses could not +have dragged him away. Instead of picking up his gun, he inquired: + +"May I rest a moment? I'm awfully tired." + +"Certainly. You may stay as long as you wish. When you are rested +the little path will bring you out." + +"But you mustn't go!" he exclaimed, in a panic, as she turned +away. "Oh, I say, please! You wouldn't do a thing like that?" + +"I cannot speak to you this way, sir." The young lady blushed +prettily. + +"Why not, I'd like to know?" + +"Oh!" She raised her hand and shook her head to express the +absolute impossibility of such a thing. "Already I have been +terrible. What will Stephanie say?" + +"You've been nothing of the sort, and who is Stephanie?" + +"She is a big black woman--very fierce. It is because of Stephanie +that the fairies have gone away from here." + +"If we wait a minute, maybe they'll come out." + +"No. I have waited many times and I never saw them." + +"Somehow I feel sure we'll see 'em this time," he urged. Then, as +she shook her head doubtfully: "Good heavens! Don't you want to +see 'em? I'm so tired that I must sit down." + +The corners of her eyes wrinkled as she said, "You are not very +strong, senor. Have you been ill?" + +"Yes--no. Not exactly." He led her to a bamboo bench beside the +palm hut. "I've been hunting. Now won't you please tell me how you +chanced to be here? I thought these country places were unoccupied +at this season." + +"So they are. But, you see, I am doing a penance." + +"Penance! You?" + +"Oh yes. And it is nothing to laugh about, either," she chided, as +he smiled incredulously, "I am a bad girl; I am disobedient. +Otherwise I would not allow you to speak to me alone like this. +You are the first gentleman I have ever been so long in the +company with, Senor Antonio." + +"Really?" + +"Now I will have to do more penance." She sighed sadly, but her +eyes were dancing. + +"I don't understand this penance affair. What do you do?" + +She lifted a fold of her coarse denim dress. "For six months I +must wear these garments--no pretty ones. I must not go out in +public also, and I have been sent here away from the city for a +time to cure my rebellious spirit." + +"Those dresses must be hot." + +"Oh, very uncomfortable! But, you see, I was bad." + +"Not very bad?" + +"Indeed. I disobeyed my father, my uncle, everybody." For the +first time her eyes grew bright with anger. "But I did not wish to +be married." + +"Now, I see. They wanted you to marry some fellow you don't like?" + +"I do like him--" + +"You did exactly right to refuse. By all means stand pat, and +don't--" + +"'Stand pat.' I have not heard that word since I was in +Baltimore." + +"It's awful to marry somebody you don't like," he declared, with +such earnest conviction that she inquired, quickly: + +"Ah, then are you married?" + +"No! But everybody says it's positively criminal to marry without +love." + +"The gentleman is very handsome." + +He shuddered, "Beware of handsome men. If you have any idea of +marriage, select a large, plain man with blue eyes and light +hair." + +"I do not know such a person." + +"Not yet, of course; that is, not well enough to marry him." + +"It is not nice to speak of such things," said the young lady, +primly. "And it is not nice also to speak with strange gentlemen +who come out of the forest when one is doing penance. But I am a +half American, you know. Perhaps that is what makes me so bad." + +"Will you catch it for talking to me?" + +"Oh yes. It is not allowed. It is most improper." + +"Then I suppose I'd better leave." Anthony settled himself more +comfortably upon the bench. "And yet there is nothing really wrong +about it, is there? Why, it's done every day in my country. +Besides, who's going to know?" + +"The padre. I tell him everything." + +"You girls down here have a pretty tough time of it; you are +guarded pretty closely, aren't you?" + +She gave him a puzzled look. + +"I mean, you don't have any liberty. You don't go out alone, or +let fellows take you to lunch, or to the matinee, or anything like +that?" + +Evidently the mere mention of such things was shocking. "Oh, +senor," she cried, incredulously, "such terrible actions cannot be +permitted even in your country. It is awful to think of!" + +"Nonsense! It's done every day." + +"Here it would not do at all. One's people know best about such +things. One must be careful at all times. But you Americans are so +wicked!" + +"How does a fellow ever get acquainted with a girl down here? How +does he get a chance to propose?" + +But this frank questioning on so sacred a topic was a little more +than the young lady was prepared to meet, and for the moment +confusion held her tongue-tied. + +"One's people attend to that, of course," she managed to say, at +length, then changed the subject quickly. + +"Do you live in Panama?" she asked. + +"Yes. I work on the railroad, or will, in a few days." + +"You are so young for such authority. It must be very difficult to +manage railroads." + +"Well--I won't have to run the whole works--at first. I'm +beginning gradually, you know--one train at a time." + +"That will be easier, of course. What did you say is your whole +name?" + +"Kirk Anthony." + +"Keerk! It has a fonny sound, has it not?" + +"I never noticed it. And yours?" + +"Do you speak Spanish?" She regarded him curiously. + +"Not a word." + +"My name is Chiquita." + +He repeated it after her. "It's pretty. What is your last name?" + +"That is it. If I told you my first name, you could not use it; it +would not be proper." + +"It ought to be something like Ariel. That means 'spirit of the +air and water,' I believe. Ariel Chiquita. No, they don't go +together. What are you laughing at?" + +"To see you scratch your neck." + +Anthony became conscious of a growing sensation where the strange +pod had dangled against his skin, and realized that he had been +rubbing the spot for some time. + +"You did not know it was the cow-nettle, eh?" + +"You enjoy seeing me suffer," he said, patiently. + +"You do not soffer," she retorted, mimicking his tone. "You only +eetch! You wish me to sympathize." + +"See here, Miss Chiquita, may I call on you?" + +"Oh!" She lifted her brows in amazement. "Such ideas! Of a +certainly not." + +"Why?" + +"You do not onderstand. Our young men do not do those things." + +"Then I'll do whatever is customary--really I will, but--I'm +awfully anxious to see you again--and--' + +"I do not know you--My father--" + +"I'll look up Mr. Chiquita and be introduced." + +At this the young lady began to rock back and forth in an abandon +of merriment. The idea, it seemed, was too utterly ridiculous for +words. Her silvery laughter filled the glade and caused the +jealous waterfall to cease its music. + +"No, no," she said, finally. "It is impossible. Besides, I am +doing penance. I can see no one. In the city I cannot even sit +upon the balcony." She fetched a palpably counterfeit sigh, which +ended in a titter. + +Never had Kirk beheld such a quaintly mischievous, such a madly +tantalizing creature. + +"Say! You're not really going to marry that fellow!" he exclaimed, +with considerable fervor. + +She shrugged her shoulders wearily. "I suppose so. One cannot +forever say no, and there are many reasons--" + +"Oh, that's the limit. You'll go nutty, married to a chap you +don't care for." + +"But I am naughty, now." + +"Not 'naughty'--nutty. You'll be perfectly miserable. There ought +to be a law against it. Let me call and talk it over, at least. I +know all about marriage--I've been around so many married people. +Promise?" + +"I cannot let you 'call,' as you say. Besides, for two weeks yet I +must remain here alone with Stephanie." She regarded him +mournfully. "Every day I must do my penance, and think of my sins, +and--perhaps look for orchids." + +He saw the light that flickered in the depths of her velvet eyes, +and his heart pounded violently at the unspoken invitation. + +"To-morrow?" he inquired, breathlessly. "Do you intend to hunt +orchids to-morrow?" + +Instead of answering she started to her feet with a little cry, +and he did likewise. Back of them had sounded an exclamation--it +was more like the snort of a wild animal than a spoken word--and +there, ten feet away, stood a tall, copper-colored negress, her +eyes blazing, her nostrils dilated, a look of utmost fury upon her +face. She was fully as tall as Kirk, gaunt, hook-nosed, and +ferocious. About her head was bound a gaudy Barbadian head-dress, +its tips erect like startled ears, increasing the wildness of her +appearance. + +"Stephanie!" exclaimed the girl. "You frightened me." + +The negress strode to her, speaking rapidly in Spanish, then +turned upon Kirk. + +"What do you want here?" she cried, menacingly. She had thrust her +charge behind her and now pierced him with her eyes. + +"Miss Chiquita--" he began, at which that young lady broke into +another peal of silvery laughter and chattered to her servant. But +her words, instead of placating the black woman, only added to her +fury. She pointed with quivering hand to the path along the creek- +bank and cried: + +"Go! Go quick, you man!" Then to her charge: "You bad, BAD! Go to +the house." + +"Miss Chiquita hasn't done anything to make you huffy. I came out +of the woods yonder and she was good enough to direct me to the +road." + +But Stephanie was not to be appeased. She stamped her flat foot +and repeated her command in so savage a tone that Kirk perceived +the uselessness of trying to explain. He looked appealingly at the +girl, but she merely nodded her head and motioned him to be gone. + +"Very well," he said, regretfully. "Thank you for your assistance, +miss." He bowed to the little figure in blue with his best manner +and took up his gun. "This way out! No crowding, please." + +"Adios, Senor Antonio," came the girl's mischievous voice, and as +he strode down the path he carried with him the memory of a +perfect oval face smiling at him past the tragic figure of the +Bajan woman. He went blindly, scarcely aware of the sun-mottled +trail his feet were following, for his wits were a-flutter and his +heart was leaping to some strange intoxication that grew with +every instant. + +It threatened to suffuse him, choke him, rob him of his senses; he +wanted to cry out. Her name was Chiquita. He repeated it over and +over in time to his steps. Was there ever such a beautiful name? +Was there ever such a ravishing little wood-sprite? And her sweet, +hesitating accent that rang in his ears! How could human tongue +make such caressing music of the harshest language on the globe? +She had called him "Senor Antonio," and invited him to come again +to-morrow. Would he come? He doubted his ability to wait so long. +Knowing that she agreed to the tryst, no power on earth could +deter him. + +What a day it had been! He had started out in the morning, vaguely +hoping to divert his mind with some of those trite little +happenings that for lack of a better term we call adventures in +this humdrum world. And then, with the miraculous, unbelievable +luck of youth, he had stumbled plump into the middle of the most +wondrous adventure it was possible to conceive. And yet this +wasn't adventure, after all--it was something bigger, finer, more +precious. With a suddenness that was blinding he realized that he +was in love! Yes, that was it, beyond the shadow of a doubt. This +mischief-ridden, foreign-born little creature was the one and only +woman in the world for whom the fates had made him and brought him +across two oceans. + +That evening he sat for a long time alone on the gallery of his +hotel, his spirit uplifted with the joy of it, a thousand +whispering voices in his ears. And when at last he fell asleep it +was to dream of an olive, oval face with eyes like black pansies. + + + + +XIV + +THE PATH THAT LED NOWHERE + + +When "Senor Antonio" awoke the next morning he lay for an instant +striving to recall what it was that had haunted his sleeping +hours, what great event awaited him. Then, as it rushed through +his mind, he leaped out of bed and dashed headlong into the bath- +room. This was to-morrow! It had been ages in coming--he recalled +how even his slumbers had dragged--but it was here at last, and he +would see Chiquita. + +He sang as he stepped under his shower, and whistled blithely as +he dressed himself. What a glorious country this Panama was, +anyhow! How good it was to be young and to be in love! He never +had been so happy. A man must be in love to sing before breakfast. +But the afternoon was still a long way off, and he must be content +to dream until the hour came. + +He was too early for the Cortlandts, and he breakfasted alone. +When he strolled out upon the veranda for his smoke he found Allan +waiting for him, as usual. The Jamaican had not missed a morning +so far, and it was only by a show of downright firmness that Kirk +had been able to get rid of him at any time during the day. The +black boy seemed bent upon devoting his every waking hour to his +hero, and now, finding himself regarded with friendly eyes, he +expanded joyously. + +"Got you some games yesterday?" he inquired. + +"Yes. And I'm going again to-day." + +"Plenty games over yonder is, but it is very fatiguing to get +them. To-day I go along for showing you the way." + +"Not a bit like it. I'm going alone." + +"Oh no, boss!" + +"Oh yes, boss! I accidentally shot the last man I hunted with-- +killed him." Kirk stared tragically at his companion, but Allan +was not to be so easily deterred. + +"I shall pahss behind you, boss." + +"I'd love to have you, of course--but I'm too careless." + +"Praise God, you must not go h'alone in that case, or something +will befall you! I shall h'imitate the birds and call them out +before you to fire at." + +"Fire AT! I don't fire at things, I hit 'em." + +"Yes, sar. In that case we shall procure plenty of games." + +"See here! I'm going alone, understand? I have an engagement with +a Naiad." + +"'Ow much a month will you be getting for such h'engagements?" + +"Naiads don't pay in money, they give you smiles and kind words." + +"Better you continue then as train collector. There is great +h'opportunity for stealing." + +"My job won't be ready for a few days, and meanwhile I have become +a huntsman. I intend to go out every afternoon." + +"H'afternoons is no good for wild h'animals; they are sleeping. +Walk they in the h'early morning, for the most part, very +quietly." + +"That's true of some wood creatures, but the kind I hunt dance +along the edges of pools in the afternoon. Say, did you ever feel +like dancing?" + +"No, sar." + +"Come around on the back porch and I'll teach you a buck-step. I +feel too good to sit still." + +But Allan refused this proffer firmly. Such frivolous conduct was +beneath his dignity. + +"I 'ave h'important things to disclose," he said, mysteriously. + +"Indeed." + +"Yes, sar. Last night I dreamed." + +"You've got nothing on me; so did I." + +"I am walking on the h'edge of the h'ocean when I h'encountered a +whale--a 'uge whale." + +"Swam ashore to rest, I suppose?" + +"No, sar; he was dead. It was very vivid." + +"Well, what has a vivid dead whale to do with me?" + +"This!" Allan brought forth a sheet of paper, which he unfolded +carefully. "There is the number--the 'fish number,' sar." + +"Why, this is a Chinese lottery advertisement." + +"I got it for the very purpose. It would pay us to h'invest some +money on the 'fish number.'" + +"Nonsense! I don't believe in dreams. You say yourself they are +false." + +"Never such a dream as this, boss. It was very vivid." + +"I've got no money." + +Allan folded the paper disconsolately and thrust it into his +pocket. "It is fartunate h'indeed," said he, "that you will be +working soon, Master h'Auntony. And those P. R. R. was very +fartunate also for getting you to h'accept a position, very +fartunate h'indeed." + +"Do you think I will raise the standard of efficiency?" + +"Most of those railroad persons are vile people. They threw me +h'off the train with such violence that my joints are very stiff +and h'inflamed. I should h'enjoy being boss over them for a +while." + +"Why don't you ask for a job?" + +"I have decided to do so, and I am asking you now for an +h'engagement as brakesman." + +"I can't hire you. Go to the office." + +"Probably there are h'already brakesmen on your train." + +"I have no doubt." + +"In that case I shall ride with you as private person." + +"Ride back and forth every day?" + +"Those are my h'expectations, sar." + +"That costs money." + +"You will be collector," remarked the negro, calmly. "I should +like to see those train people h'expel me, in that case." + +"Well! I can see trouble ahead for one of us," laughed Anthony. +"They don't allow 'dead-heads.'" + +But Allan replied with unshaken confidence: "Then you should +secure for me a pahss." + +Kirk found it extremely difficult to escape from his persistent +shadow that afternoon, and he succeeded only after a display of +armed resistance. + +It was the hottest part of the day when he set out, gun on arm, +yet he never thought of the discomfort. After skirting the city, +he swung into the fine macadam road that had brought him home the +night before, and much sooner than he expected he arrived at the +little path that led into the forest. He knew that he was +trespassing again, and the knowledge added to his delight. As +quickly as possible he lost himself in the grateful shade and +followed the stream-bank with beating heart. His head was full of +vague hopes and plans. He meant to learn the true story of Miss +Chiquita's penance and find some means of winning her away from +that other lover, of whom he had already thought more than once. +He determined to make his love known without delay and establish +himself as a regular suitor. + +As upon the previous day, he broke into the glade before he +suspected its presence, to find the same golden light-beams +flickering in the shadowed depths and to hear the little waterfall +chuckling at his surprise. There was the tree from which she had +called to him, yonder the bench where they had sat together. + +Of course, he was too early--he wanted to be, in order not to miss +an instant of her company, so he seated himself and dreamed about +her. The minutes dragged, the jungle drowsed. An hour passed. A +thousand fresh, earthy odors breathed around him, and he began to +see all sorts of flowers hidden away in unsuspected places. From +the sunlit meadows outside came a sound of grazing herds, the deep +woods faintly echoed the harsh calls of tropic birds, but at the +pool itself a sleepy silence brooded. + +Once a chattering squirrel came bravely rustling through the +branches to the very edge of the enchanted bower, but he only sat +and stared a moment in seeming admiration, then retreated quietly. +A yellow-beaked toucan, in a flash of red and black and gold, +settled upon a mirrored limb; but it, too, stilled its raucous +tongue and flitted away on noiseless pinions as if the Naiads were +asleep. + +In the moist earth beside the bench Anthony saw the print of a +dainty boot, no longer than his palm, and he promptly fell into a +rhapsody. What tiny hands and feet she had, to be sure, and such a +sweetly melancholy face! Yet she was anything but grave and +gloomy. Why, the sunlight dancing on that waterfall was no more +mischievous and merry than she. The slight suggestion of sadness +she conveyed was but the shadow of the tropic mystery or the +afterglow of the tragedy that had played so large a part in this +country's history. The fact that she was half American perhaps +accounted for her daring, yet, whatever the other strain, it could +not be ignoble. Mrs. Cortlandt's figure of the silver threads in a +rotting altar-cloth recurred to him with peculiar force. + +But why didn't she come? A sudden apprehension overtook him, which +grew and grew as the afternoon wore away. + +It was a very miserable young man who wandered out through the +fragrant path, as the first evening shadows settled, and bent his +dejected steps toward the city. Evidently something had occurred +to prevent her keeping her tryst, but he determined to return on +the morrow, and then if she did not come to follow that other path +right up to the house, where he would risk everything for a word +with her. He wondered if she had stayed away purposely to test +him, and the thought gave him a thrill. If so, she would soon +learn that he was in earnest; she would find him waiting there +every afternoon and--after all, why confine himself to the +afternoon when she was just as likely to appear in the morning? He +resolved to go hunting earlier hereafter, and give the whole day +to it. Meanwhile, he would make cautious inquiries. + +It was considerably after dark when he reached the hotel, and his +friends had dined; but he encountered Mr. Cortlandt later. If +Edith's husband suspected anything of what had occurred a night or +two ago, his countenance gave no sign of it. For some reason or +other, Kirk had not been troubled in the slightest by the thought +that Cortlandt might be told. He could not imagine Edith making +him the confidant of her outraged feelings. Besides, would such a +strangely impassive person resent any little indiscretion in which +his wife might choose to indulge? Kirk did not know--the man was a +puzzle to him. + +Cortlandt's voice was thoroughly non-committal as he inquired: + +"Where have you been keeping yourself?" + +"I've been hunting, to kill time." + +"Any luck?" + +"No, none at all. I started too late, I guess." + +"By-the-way," continued the other, "your friend Allan has been +besieging Edith, imploring her to use her influence to get him a +position. He has set his heart upon going to work with you." + +"He is becoming a positive nuisance. I can't get rid of him." + +"I never saw such hero-worship." + +"Oh, all niggers are hysterical." + +"Let me give you a bit of advice, Anthony. Remember there are no +'niggers' and 'whites' in this country--they are both about equal. +The President of the republic is a black man, and a very good one, +too." + +"That reminds me. I hear he is to be succeeded by the father of my +friend, Alfarez." + +Cortlandt hesitated. "General Alfarez is a candidate. He is a very +strong man, but--" + +"I am glad there is a 'but.'" + +"It isn't settled, by any means. The successful candidate will +need the support of our government." + +"I suppose the Alfarez family is one of the first settlers-- +Mayflower stock?" + +"Oh, worse than that. The name runs back to Balboa's time. General +Alfarez is very rich, and very proud of his ancestry. That is one +thing that makes him so strong with the people." + +"What are some of the other leading families?" Kirk artfully +inquired. + +"There are a number. The Martinezes, the Moras, the Garavels--I +couldn't name them all. They are very fine people, too." + +"Do you know the Chiquitas?" + +Cortlandt's face relaxed in an involuntary smile. + +"There is no such family. Who has been teaching you Spanish?" + +"Really, isn't there?" + +"'Chiquita' means 'very small,' 'little one,' 'little girl,' or +something like that. It's not a family name, it's a term of +endearment, usually." + +Kirk remembered now how the girl's eyes had danced when she asked +him if he spoke her language. It was just like her to tease him, +and yet what a pretty way to conceal her identity! + +"What made you take it for a proper name?" + +"A-a little girl told me." + +"Oh, naturally. All children are 'Chiquitas' or 'Chiquitos'-- +everything, in fact, that is a pet." + +Kirk felt somewhat uncomfortable under the older man's gaze of +quiet amusement. + +"But these other families," he went on in some confusion--"I mean +the ones like those you just mentioned--they sometimes intermarry +with Americans, don't they?" + +"No, not the better class. There have been a few instances, I +believe, but for the most part they keep to themselves." + +"How would a fellow set about meeting the nice people." + +"He wouldn't. He would probably live here indefinitely and never +see the inside of a Panamanian house." + +"But there must be some way," the young man exclaimed in +desperation. "There must be dances, parties--" + +"Of course, but Americans are not invited. The men are easy to get +acquainted with, charming, courteous, gentlemanly, but I dare say +you will leave Panama without so much as meeting their wives or +sisters. But why this consuming curiosity? Has some senorita +struck your fancy?" + +In spite of his effort to appear unconcerned, Kirk felt that he +looked abominably self-conscious. Without waiting for a reply, +Cortlandt continued to give him information as if he enjoyed it. + +"I suppose one reason why so few Americans marry Panamanians is +that our men like at least to get acquainted with their brides +before marriage, and that is impossible in this country. A man +never sees a girl alone, you know. When he calls to court her he +wooes the whole family, who vote on him, so to speak. That doesn't +appeal to us who originated the mother-in-law joke. There aren't +many Northern chaps who would consent to select a wife by pointing +her out like a bolt of calico on a top shelf." + +Kirk suddenly realized to the full how egregious his request to +call must have appeared to the Spanish girl. What a fool he had +been, to be sure! For a moment he lost himself in a contemplation +of the difficulties so unexpectedly presented. He was brought to +himself by the words: + +"--to-morrow you will go to work." + +"What's that?" he broke forth in a panic. "I can't go to work to- +morrow; I'm going hunting." + +Cortlandt eyed him curiously. + +"I didn't say to-morrow. I said Runnells 'phoned that he would be +ready for you day after to-morrow. What is the matter with you? +Have you lost your head over shooting, or don't you care to work?" + +"Oh, neither," he said, hastily. "I merely misunderstood you. Of +course, the sooner the better." + +"Yes, as you say, the sooner the better," said Cortlandt, with a +shade of meaning. "Well, good-night, and good-luck to you in your +shooting!" + +It was with much less self-assurance that Kirk set out again on +the next morning, for this was his last day of grace, and he +realized that unless he accomplished something definite it might +be a considerable time before he could continue his quest. In view +of what the girl had said regarding her engagement, delays seemed +particularly dangerous. + +He haunted the vicinity of the meeting-place all the morning, but +no one came, and a heavy shower at midday drove him into the palm- +thatched hut for shelter. When it had passed he put an end to his +indecision and boldly took the other path. At least he would find +out where she lived and who she was. But once again he was +disappointed. The trail led out through the grove to the rain- +drenched pasture, where it disappeared, and, instead of one house, +he saw three, half hidden in foliage and all facing in the +opposite direction. They stood upon the crest of a hill fronting +the road, and he realized that the pool might be the bathing-place +for the inmates of one or all of them. + +Up past the grazing stock he went and around to the front of the +nearest residence, which proved to be a low, rambling, bungalow +affair with many outhouses smothered in a profusion of vines and +fruit-trees. Evidently it was unoccupied, for heavy wooden +shutters barricaded the windows, and no one answered his knock, +although some pigeons perched upon the tile roof cooed at him in a +friendly manner. He struck across lots to the next house, but met +with no better success, and he approached the third dwelling with +a certain hesitation, for it was his last chance. It was more +pretentious than the rest, and stood proudly upon the highest +point of the ridge, up which ran a private road guarded by twin +rows of stately royal palms, whose perfectly rounded trunks seemed +to have been turned upon some giant lathe. The house itself was +large, square, and double-galleried. It was shaded by lofty hard- +wood trees and overlooked a sort of formal garden, now badly in +need of care. The road was of shell, and where it entered the +grounds passed through a huge iron gate suspended upon concrete +pillars. The whole place had an air of wealth and exclusiveness. + +Here, too, the windows stared at him blindly, and he saw no +evidence of occupation; yet he advanced and pounded vigorously on +the door. Failing to rouse any one, he paused to take a general +view of the surroundings. Scattered upon every side were other +winter homes, some bleaching nakedly in the open, others peeping +out from luxuriant groves, some mean and poor, others really +beautiful and impressive. He knew that he was in the heart of +Panama's exclusive winter colony, where her wealthy residents came +to avoid the heat. + +Unwilling to acknowledge himself beaten, he plodded from one place +to another, calling at all the nearest houses, finding most of +them locked, and begging a glass of water where he chanced to be +more fortunate. Nowhere did he see the girl or the Barbadian +woman, nowhere did he receive an intelligible answer to his +questions. The caretakers looked upon him with suspicion, and made +it known that he was unwelcome, while their women retreated at +sight of him. Even the children were unfriendly. Once, indeed, he +heard the name that had been ringing so steadily in his ears, and +it gave him a wild thrill until he discovered that it was only a +negress calling to her child. Afterward it seemed that he heard it +everywhere. On his disconsolate journey home it was spoken twenty +times, being applied indifferently to dogs, cats, parrots, and +naked youngsters, each mention causing him to start and listen. + +Whether the girl had been playing with him, or whether she had +been prevented from keeping her word, was of little moment now. He +loved her and he intended to have her! He shut his teeth grimly +and made a vow to find her if he had to invade every home in Las +Savannas, or pull apart the walls of Panama. + + + + +XV + +ALIAS JEFFERSON LOCKE + + +It was fortunate for Kirk, on the whole, that his last expedition +had proved a failure, for his methods were none of the most +discreet; and it was as well, perhaps, that his work on the +railroad intervened to prevent further wild incursions. + +He was detailed to ride No. 2, which left Panama at 6.35, +returning on No. 7, which arrived at 7.00 P.M. For a few days he +made the run in company with the train collector, whose position +he was destined to fill; and, as the duties were by no means +difficult, he quickly mastered them. He had quarters assigned to +him, and regretfully took leave of his luxurious room and bath at +the Tivoli. He also donned cap and linen uniform, and became an +insignificant, brass-tagged unit in the army of Canal workers. +Ordinarily he would have resented this loss of individuality, but +the novelty of the thing appealed to him, and he brought a great +good-nature to his work, deriving sufficient amusement from it to +prevent it from growing tiresome. + +For a time it offended his fastidious taste to be forced to elbow +his way through superheated coaches jammed with shrieking, +cackling, incoherent negroes. They were all utterly hysterical, +and apparently possessed but one stubborn idea--to refuse payments +of fares. But in time he grew to enjoy even this. + +He was glad of his new-found independence, moreover, for, though +it did not cancel his obligation to the Cortlandts, it made him +feel it less keenly. As for his quarters, they were quite +tolerable--about the same as he had had at boarding-school, he +reflected, and the meals were better. They were not quite up to +Sherry's or Martin's, it was true, but they cost only thirty +cents, and that had advantages. Certainly he could not complain of +a lack of incident in his new life. On his first trip to Colon and +back he had nine disputes and two fights, and threw one man off--a +record achievement, he was told, for a beginner. + +A further diversion was furnished by Allan, who appeared early in +the morning and all but assaulted the gateman, who refused to let +him pass without a ticket. It took the entire station force to +prevent him from starting for Colon as Kirk's guest. He considered +it a matter of course that his friend should offer him the +courtesies of the road, and he went away at last, wofully +disappointed but not discouraged. + +On the evening of that eventful day, instead of returning to his +new quarters, Kirk proceeded to walk the streets in search of a +certain face. He strolled through the plazas; he idled in front of +the most pretentious residences; he tramped wearily back and forth +through dim-lit, narrow streets, gazing up at windows and +balconies, harkening for the tone of a voice or the sound of a +girl's laughter. But he was without the slightest success, and it +was very late when he finally retired, to dream, as usual, of +Chiquita. + +Several days passed, and he began to feel a little dull. He was +making no progress in his quest, and he did feel the lack of +congenial society. Then one evening there came a note from Edith +Cortlandt briefly requesting him to come and see her. + +He was a little surprised, yet he was conscious of a certain +relief. He had not felt like intruding upon her with further +explanations and apologies; but since she wished him to come-- +perhaps they could meet, after all, in a natural way. He wanted to +get rid of the wretched misunderstanding that lay between them. If +he were to leave the country that night never to return, he would +want to feel that he had parted on good terms with the woman who +had befriended him. + +Promptly at eight o'clock he presented himself. + +"I'm a laboring man now," he said, as he stood before her, "and I +usually hold my cap in my hand and shuffle my feet when talking to +ladies. Pray excuse my embarrassment." + +She did not respond to the lightness of his tone. Her glance +seemed intended to warn him that she meant to be serious. + +"I suppose you are wondering why I sent for you," she remarked, +after a perceptible interval, and Kirk felt instantly that their +old relations could not at once be resumed. "I have discovered +something very important, and I felt that you ought to know." + +"Thank you," said Kirk, humbly. "It was very kind." + +"You see," she went on, with a certain hesitancy, "you confided +your story to me so frankly I felt under a certain obligation." +She made a little dramatic pause. "I've discovered who Jefferson +Locke is!" + +"No! Who is he?" Kirk was instantly all attention, for the +announcement came as something of a shock. He had almost forgotten +Locke. + +"His real name is Frank Wellar, and he is an absconder. He was a +broker's clerk in St. Louis, and he made off with something like +eighty thousand dollars in cash." + +"Good heavens!" said Anthony. "How did you find out?" + +"A bundle of New York papers--they came to-day." + +"Where did they catch him?" + +"They haven't caught him. He has disappeared completely--that's +the strangest part of it. Your detective didn't die, after all." + +"He recovered, did he? I'm mighty glad of that." + +"Yes, but you aren't out of the woods yet. I can't understand why +the police haven't discovered your whereabouts. You left New York +openly under the name of Locke--" + +"Perhaps it was so easy they overlooked it." He smiled ruefully. +I'd hate to be arrested just now when I'm getting to be such a +good conductor." + +"Don't worry about that until the time comes. I'll get you the +papers later." She showed no immediate intention of rising, +however, but sat regarding her visitor with slightly heightened +color. He began to feel embarrassed. It seemed to be his fate to +receive benefits at this woman's hand, whether he willed it or +not. + +He got to his feet with an effort, and said, looking down upon +her: + +"I must go now; but first I want to make you feel how grateful I +am for your kindness and for your continued trust in me. I haven't +deserved it, I know, but--" He turned as if to leave, but faced +her again as he heard her pronounce his name. He was surprised to +see that there were tears in her eyes. + +"Kirk," she said, "you're an awfully good sort, and I can't stay +angry with you. Do you know you've made it rather hard for me +staying away all this time?" + +"I thought you never wanted to see me again." + +"You shouldn't take so seriously what a woman says under such +circumstances. It's embarrassing. It makes things seem worse than +they are." She hesitated, as if to emphasize the difficulty of +such candor. + +Kirk said, gently: + +"Does that mean that we can forget all about it and be good +friends again? Does it mean that you'll forgive me?" + +"I can't quite promise that," she answered. "But there is no need +of your avoiding me; and it's absurd for you to feel as you do, +that you can't accept any little services from me that might help +you in your work. I'm still interested in your success." + +"You're tremendously good," he answered, really touched. "I can't +say anything, except that I'll try to be worthy of your kindness." + +She gave him a half-distressed look, then smiled brightly. + +"We won't talk of it any more," she said--"ever. Now do sit down +and tell me what you have been doing all this time. How have you +been getting along with your work?" + +"All right, except one morning when I overslept." + +"Overslept? Oh, Kirk!" she said, reproachfully. + +"You see, I never got up so early before, except to go duck- +hunting, and this is different. Did you ever try rising at five- +thirty--in the morning, I mean? You've no idea how it feels. Why, +it's hardly light! You can't see to brush your teeth! I suggested +to Runnels that we send No. 2 out at eight-thirty instead of six- +thirty--that's early enough for anybody--but he didn't seem to +take kindly to the thought." + +"What did he say when you reported?" + +"I didn't consider it proper to listen to all he said, so I +retired gracefully. From what I did hear, however, I gathered that +he was vaguely offended at something. I tried to explain that I +had been out late, but it didn't go." + +Edith laughed. "Perhaps I'd better telephone him." + +"Oh no, you needn't do that." + +"But surely you were called in time?" + +"Please don't. That's the first thing Runnels yodelled at me when +I showed up. He's a nice fellow, but he's too serious; he lets +little things bother him. He'll cool off eventually." + +Time passed quickly in such an interchange of pleasant +trivialities, and, although Kirk felt that he was making an +unconscionably long call, he could not well leave while his +hostess seemed bent on detaining him. It was late when he said +good-night, and, after returning to his quarters, with +characteristic perversity he proceeded to sit up, smoking +cigarette after cigarette, while he tried to set his thoughts in +order. He was grateful to Mrs. Cortlandt, and immensely pleased to +learn that the man injured in the affair in New York had not died. +But something must be done about Chiquita. That was the important +thing now. He wrestled with the problem for a long time in vain. +He was afraid to go to bed for fear of oversleeping again, and +decided to stay up until train-time. But at length drowsiness +overcame him, and for the few remaining hours he dreamed +lonesomely of an oval face and big, black, velvet eyes. + +He did not really miss his rest until the next afternoon, when the +heat and the monotonous rumble of the train, together with its +restful swaying, sent him off into a delicious doze, from which he +was awakened by a brakeman barely in time to escape discovery. +Thereafter he maintained more regular habits, and while no one but +the luxury-loving youth himself knew what effort it required to +cut short his slumbers in their sweetest part, he never missed his +train, and in time the early hours ceased to be a hardship. + +In the days that followed he tried his very best to make good. +Every evening he had to himself he spent in search of the Spanish +girl. Aside from his inability to find her, and an occasional +moment of misgiving at the thought of Frank Wellar, alias +Jefferson Locke, Kirk had but one worry, and that was caused by +Allan. Never a day passed that the worshipful black boy did not +fairly hound him with his attentions; never a nightly journey down +into the city that Allan did not either accompany him or, failing +permission to do so, follow him at a safe distance. For a time +Anthony rebelled at this espionage, but the constant effort of +refusal grew tiresome after a while, especially as the Jamaican +did just as he pleased anyhow, and Kirk ended by letting him have +his way. But this was not all. Allan insisted upon accompanying +his friend upon his daily runs back and forth across the Isthmus. +At first he succeeded in slipping past the gateman in some +miraculous manner, and, once aboard the train, behaved as if free +from all further responsibility. He made it plain, in fact, that +he was Anthony's guest and boon companion, and considered the +exchange of money quite unnecessary, if not even insulting. Day +after day Kirk argued with him, even threatening to throw him off; +but Allan ignored the arguments with bland good-nature and looked +upon the threats as the display of an excruciating sense of humor. +He continued to visit and to gossip on terms of the closest +intimacy, and began, moreover, to exercise a certain proprietary +right over Kirk, following him through the train to see that no +harm befell him, and seizing the slightest opportunity to engage +him in conversation. + +Anthony explained time after time that there were probably +spotters on the run, and that this conduct was sure, sooner or +later, to get them both into trouble. To all of which Allan +listened attentively and agreed with all earnestness. But the next +morning invariably found him back again with some excuse. + +"I can't h'explain it, chief," he acknowledged, on one occasion. +"Every day swear I to cease, but it is of no h'avail. Ever you +been in love with a female, sar?" + +"What has that to do with it?" + +"It is much the same. I can't h'allow you to leave me. I would die +and kill myself, but--" + +"Rats!" + +"Yes, sar. It is very h'annoying, is it not?" + +"Do you want me to lose my job?" + +"Oh, MON!" + +"I'm going to speak to the boss, if you don't let up. I don't want +to get fired." + +"Never mind you, for these h'engagements. I will work for you." + +Becoming really concerned lest he should be accused of withholding +fares, Kirk did speak to Runnels, explaining fully, whereupon a +watch was set, with the result that on the very next morning Allan +was chased out of the railroad yards by an unfeeling man with a +club. Failing for a second time to evade the watchful eyes of the +gateman, he ranged back and forth beyond the iron fence like a +captive animal, raising his voice to heaven in weird complaint. He +was waiting when the train pulled in that evening, glued to the +iron bars, his eyes showing as white in the gloom as his expansive +grin of welcome. + +For several days this procedure was repeated with variations, +until the dreadful threat of arrest put an end to it. Allan had +conceived a wholesome respect for Spiggoty police, and for a few +days thereafter Kirk was rid of him. Then one morning he +reappeared as usual in one of the forward coaches. + +"How the deuce did you make it?" asked Anthony. + +Allan proudly, triumphantly, displayed a ticket, exclaiming: + +"It is of no h'avail to prevent me, boss!" + +"That ticket is good only to Corozal, the first station. You'll +have to get off there." But when Corozal had been passed he found +Allan still comfortably ensconced in his seat. + +"Now, boss, we shall have fine visits to-day," the negro +predicted, warmly, and Kirk did not have the heart to eject him. + +At the other end of the line Allan repeated the process, and +thereafter worked diligently to amass sufficient money to buy +tickets from Panama to Corozal and from Colon to Mt. Hope, relying +with splendid faith upon his friend to protect him once he +penetrated past the lynx-eyed gateman. + +Runnels accepted Kirk's explanation, and so far exceeded his +authority as to make no objection. Allan, therefore, managed to +spend about half his time in company with the object of his +adoration. + +Although the Master of Transportation never referred to his +conversation with Kirk on the occasion of their trip through +Culebra Cut, he watched his new subordinate carefully and he felt +his instinctive liking for him increase. The young fellow was in +earnest, he decided, in his effort to succeed on his own merits, +and had not been posing when he offered to start at the bottom. It +gave Runnels pleasure to see how he attended to his work, once he +had settled down to it. + +Accordingly, it afforded him an unpleasant surprise when he +received a printed letter from a St. Louis detective agency +relative to one Frank Wellar, alias Jefferson Locke (last seen in +New York City November 25th), and offering a substantial reward +for information leading to his arrest. The communication reached +Runnels through the usual channel, copies having been distributed +to the heads of various departments. It was the description that +caught his attention: + +"White; age, twenty-eight years; occupation, clerk; eyes, bluish +gray; hair, light, shading upon yellow; complexion, fair; height, +six feet; weight, one hundred ninety pounds. No prominent scars or +marks, so far as known, but very particular as to personal +appearance, and considered a good athlete, having been captain of +U. of K. football team." + +There was but one man in Runnels' department whose appearance +tallied with all this, and it gave the Master of Transportation a +start to note how very complete was the identification. +Nevertheless, he held the letter on his desk, and did nothing for +a time except to question his new collector upon the first +occasion. The result was not at all reassuring. A few days later, +chancing to encounter John Weeks, on his way across the Isthmus, +he recalled Kirk's mention of his first experience at Colon. By +way of an experiment he led on the consul to speak of his former +guest. + +"Anthony? Oh yes," wheezed the fat man. "I see you've got him at +work." + +"You and he are friends, I believe. I thought you'd be interested +to know he's getting on well. In fact, he's the best collector I +have." + +"We're hardly friends," said the consul, cautiously. "I suppose +he's all right--must be or Cortlandt wouldn't have taken him up; +but there's something about him I don't understand. Either he's on +the level, or he's got the nerve of a burglar." + +"How so?" + +"Well, I know he isn't what he claims to be--I have proof. He's no +more Darwin K. Anthony's son than--" + +"Darwin K. Anthony!" exclaimed the railroad man, in amazement. +"Did he claim that?" + +"He did, and he--" The speaker checked himself with admirable +diplomatic caution. "Say, he's taught me one thing, and that is +that it doesn't pay to butt into other people's business. I played +him to lose, and he won; and I got into a fine mess over it." +Weeks wrinkled his face into a ludicrous expression of mournful +disgust. "I couldn't pick a winner if there were two horses in the +race and one of them had a broken leg. Whether his name is Anthony +or Locke makes no difference to me. I got in 'Dutch' for meddling, +and Alfarez lost his job for arresting him. It's only a damn fool +who gets stung twice in the same spot. I'm through." + +"You'll get your money. Anthony told me he'd square up on pay- +day." + +Weeks snorted at this. "Why, I've got it already. I've been paid. +Mrs. Cortlandt sent me her check." He stared at his companion +curiously. "Funny, isn't it, how I got called down and Ramen +Alfarez got fired on his account? What does it mean?" He winked +one red eye in a manner that set Runnels to thinking deeply. + + + + +XVI + +"8838" + + +For a few days after this conversation the Master of +Transportation was in doubt as to what course he should pursue. In +the end he did nothing, and the letter from St. Louis was +permanently filed away. There were several reasons for this +action. For one thing, he was a salaried man, and could not afford +to lose his job. What influenced him most, however, was his +genuine liking for Anthony. He could not bring himself to attach +much weight to the suspicious circumstances connected with him. +Being a man of sufficient courage to back his own judgment, he +decided that no matter what might have been the past of Frank +Wellar, alias Jefferson Locke, Kirk Anthony was entitled to +another chance. + +The first thing Kirk did when pay-day came was to enclose the +greater part of his salary in an envelope and send it to John +Weeks, with a note explaining that he had withheld only enough for +his own actual needs, and promising to continue reducing his +indebtedness by a like amount monthly. He was surprised beyond +measure to have the remittance promptly returned. The brief letter +that accompanied it brought him a flush of discomfort. What the +deuce had made Mrs. Cortlandt do that? For a time he was undecided +whether to be offended at her conduct or gratified, and he had not +settled the matter to his satisfaction when he called upon her +that evening. + +"Weeks wrote me you had squared my account with him," he said, +awkwardly. "I'm tremendously obliged, of course, and--I'll give +this to you instead of him." He offered her the envelope with his +pay enclosed. + +"Don't be silly, Kirk," she said, in a matter-of-fact tone. "I +didn't wish Weeks to have any opportunity to talk. You need this +money and I don't." + +"Perhaps I should have offered it to Mr. Cortlandt." + +"Stephen knows nothing about the Weeks affair. If you choose to +regard my little favor as a debt, however, please let it run on +until you are better able to pay." + +But Anthony remained inflexible, and at last she accepted his +proffer with some impatience. + +"You are the most foolish person I ever knew," she remarked. +"Can't you understand that such obligations don't exist between +friends? A few dollars mean nothing." + +"A few dollars mean a good deal to me just now." + +"You have the most disappointing way of receiving favors. I had a +decent position for you, but you would go to collecting fares. I +hope you have had enough of it by now, and are ready to take +something worth while." + +"Not until it comes naturally. No hop-skip-and-jump for mine." + +Edith sighed. "It is terribly dull for me here at present," she +said. "Mr. Cortlandt is very busy; I have no one to talk to; no +one to amuse me. Why, I've scarcely seen you since you went to +work." + +"It is flattering to be missed." + +"Will you come to the dance to-morrow night?" + +He shook his head. + +"The music is good; you will meet some nice people. If you +remember, one of your qualifications for a position was that you +are a good waltzer." + +"I can't mingle with the 'quality.'" + +"Be sensible. This is an invitation." + +"I am getting sensible fast. I've learned something about Canal +conditions. What would people say if Mrs. Stephen Cortlandt were +seen dancing with the new collector of No. 2?" + +"My dear boy, do you suppose Mrs. Stephen Cortlandt cares what +these people say?" + +"Mr. Stephen Cortlandt might." + +"Mr. Stephen Cortlandt isn't snobbish, either." + +"One has to be on the Canal Zone. Besides, to tell the sordid +truth, I haven't any clothes." + +Edith silently extended the envelope in her hand; but he laughed. + +"Perhaps I'll come to the next dance. I'll be rich then. See!" He +showed her a long slip of paper consisting of five coupons, each +numbered "8838." + +"Lottery tickets!" + +He nodded. "Allan had a very particular dream about the number +eight, so I invested five dollars 'silver' on his hunch. You know +he has the most wonderful dreams. There was one about a whale--it +was appallingly vivid." + +"But you don't bet on all these miraculous whales and things?" + +"Oh no. The whale was a little too much for me. But I thought I'd +take a chance on the number eight, it didn't seem quite so +apocryphal." + +"But why did you select such a ridiculous combination? It isn't +likely that the eight will come out three times in four." + +"It's the number of my automobile license." Kirk sighed at the +memory of his new French car. "You don't object to such gambling?" + +"Hardly," laughed Edith, "when I have a ticket for the same +drawing. Every one does it, you know." + +"If I win the capital prize I'll come to the next party and claim +all the dances you will allow me." + +"Not much encouragement in that for a lonely lady." + +"Oh, I'm the luckiest chap in the world. The drawing comes off +next Sunday, and it happens that I've been shifted to No. 6 for a +few trips, so I'll have a chance to see the fun." + +"If you were a little less quixotic and weren't so remarkably +afraid of getting more than your deserts, you could come to all +these dances." + +"I'm sorry," he acknowledged, "but I have to do things in my own +way." + +It was a welcome change for him to sleep as late as he wished on +Sunday morning, and he enjoyed the privilege to the full. Inasmuch +as No. 6 did not leave until one o'clock, he had ample time in +which to witness the lottery drawing, a thing he had been curious +to see since he had first heard of it. This form of gambling was +well recognized, it seemed; not only the natives, but all classes +of Canal Zone workers, engaged in it freely. On every street +corner women sold tickets day after day, and, as the drawings were +conducted under rigid government supervision, the lottery had come +to be regarded as a sort of public institution, quite as reputable +as an ordinary church raffle. + +Allan, vastly excited, was of course waiting to accompany him, +and, when Kirk had finished a leisurely breakfast, the two +strolled idly down into the city. + +"Oh, boss," exclaimed the negro, "I feel that we shall +h'experience good-fartune to-day." + +"Did you buy a ticket?" + +"No, sar, I reinvested all my monies travelling on those railroad +trains." + +"Now see how foolish you are. If you'd stayed at home you might +have bought the winning number to-day." + +"I prefer to h'accompany you. But--I have been thinking to make +you a proposition of partnership. Master h'Auntony. I will stay +home and dream numbers which you can purchase with your salary. In +that manner we shall certainly burst this lottery." + +"Oh, I see! You'll sleep while I rustle the coin to play. What's +your idea of a fair division of the profits?" + +"It is sometimes exceedingly fatiguing to dream," said Allan, +defensively. "Sometimes one wastes an entire day and has no +success." + +"That's merely a question of diet. I could make you dream your +head off." + +"But I do not desire the profits, however, for being partners with +you. I would like you to have plenty of monies, that is all. I +love you, sar." + +"Don't! You embarrass me." + +"It is true, chief, I would die and--" + +"Yes, yes, kill yourself." + +"I pray to God h'every day that some bad man will h'assault you in +order that I may die for you." The Jamaican was growing excited, +as usual when he dwelt upon this subject. "I would h'enjoy to shed +my blood for you, sar. I would like to see it running--running-- +running--" He waved his arms wildly. + +"Don't bleed to death." + +"I wish to suffer and scream and groan, so that you will be +knowing--" + +"Never mind. I think I get the idea. But I'm not going to allow +it, and I'm not going to allow you to dream--you sleep too much as +it is. Besides, your dreams are no good. Look at that whale dream +of yours, for instance." + +"Oh, sar, the 'fish' number did not win, to be sure, but 'water' +did." + +"But you didn't dream about water, it was about fish, 'vivid' +fish." + +"I did not chance to think of the water," acknowledged Allan, "but +there was the whale lying upon the h'edge of the h'ocean, h'all +the time." + +The drawing, which was for a capital prize of fifteen thousand +dollars "silver," had drawn a larger crowd than usual, and when +the two reached Cathedral Square they found the lottery building +thronged to overflowing with the usual polyglot elements that make +up these Latin-American gatherings--negroes, Indians, Panamanians, +Spaniards, Americans--while in the Plaza itself other groups were +waiting to hear the report. + +By dint of considerable effort Kirk succeeded in working his way +through the wide double doors, and, being much above the average +height, he was able to get a good view of the proceedings. Upon a +platform a group of ceremonious officials were gathered about a +revolving wire cage, so arranged that it could be whirled rapidly +upon its axis. Into it were put ten ivory spheres, resembling +billiard-balls in size and appearance. When this had been done, +the cage was closed, and a very badly frightened twelve-year-old +girl was selected at random from the audience, then lifted to the +stage, where it required the commands and entreaties of her +excited parents to prevent her from dissolving in tears. At a word +from the master of ceremonies the cage was spun until the ivory +balls inside leaped and capered like captive squirrels. Then at +another signal it was stopped. The door was opened and the little +girl reached in a trembling hand and selected a sphere. It proved +to be hollow, with two halves screwed together, and in full sight +of the assembly it was opened, displaying a bit of paper inside. + +"Ocho!" cried the announcer, and a card bearing the numeral "8" +was raised. The paper was replaced inside the ivory ball, the ball +itself was dropped into the wire cage, the door was closed, and +once more the cage was spun. + +Kirk was much interested in the scene, not from any faintest hope +that he would draw a prize, but purely from the novel atmosphere +and color of the thing. While his eyes were busiest, and just as +the child prepared to draw another ball, he felt a clutch upon his +arm, and, glancing down, beheld the glowing black eyes of Senor +Ramon Alfarez fixed upon him. + +Alfarez was dressed immaculately, this time in civilian's white +linen, his ferocious little mustachios carefully pointed, his +cheeks freshly shaven and talcumed, his slender feet encased in +white canvas shoes. A wonderful Guayaquil hat, the creamy straws +of which were no thicker than silk threads, crowned his sleek, +raven locks. It must have cost a small fortune. He carried a +dapper little cane, with which he tapped his former prisoner to +attract his attention. + +At sight of him Kirk drew down his brows and said, gruffly: + +"Don't poke me with that umbrella." + +He turned away, but again Alfarez touched him with the rattan. + +"I will spik' wit' you, hombre," he said. + +"If you keep jabbing me with that crutch I'll break it, and then +you can't walk home." + +Ramen jerked his head toward the square outside in an imperious +fashion, and Kirk, curious to learn the cause of this unusual +excitement, followed him without demur. When they had reached the +street the Spaniard turned with flashing eyes and a mirthless +smile. + +"Well!" he said, dramatically. + +"Pretty well. How goes it with you?" + +"So! You 'ave socceed in your cowardly attemp'." + +"My what?" + +"I am lose my poseetion as Commandante of Police." + +"You don't say so!" Kirk's face broke into a smile of real +pleasure. + +"Ha! Makes it you to laugh, then?" exclaimed the Panamanian, +excitedly. "Per'aps you shall answer to those detestable actions, +senor." + +"Perhaps! I see you blame me for the loss of your job. Well, maybe +you won't beat up the next American you get your hands on." + +"Bot--I 'ave another poseetion!" Ramen exulted. + +"Indeed! Are you 'behind the ribbons' at the local Wanamaker's?" + +"I 'ave been promote! I am appoint' yesterday by his Excellency +the Presidente to be his secretary. So! Those dastardly attack of +yours is transpire to my blessing. It will be always so." + +"I suppose it's a good job, but you ought to be selling poison in +a drug-store. Did you call me out to hear this news?" + +"Si!" Alfarez nodded his head vigorously. Then, narrowing his +eyes, he said, meaningly, in a voice that none might overhear, +"Panama is sometimes very on'ealthy city for fat Americans." He +ran a hostile glance up and down Anthony's burly frame. "It is the +climate per'aps--of too great 'eat." + +"In other words, you intend to make it hot for me, eh?" + +"I?" The ex-commandant shrugged his shoulders in eloquent denial. +"I shall do not'ing, bot--if you are wise man you will not display +yourself to the dangers of these climate; you will return 'ome." + +"Say! I've a good notion to punch your head." + +Alfarez paled slightly. + +"Soch would be most dangerous, for in Chiriqui prison there is at +the present some fatal disease." He laughed sneeringly. "The senor +is reech man's son, eh? Those do not geeve the appearance." + +With supreme insolence he touched one of the buttons upon Kirk's +linen uniform with his cane, whereat the American snatched the +stick out of his hand, broke it, and tossed it into the street. +His blood was up, and in another breath he would have struck the +Spaniard, regardless of consequences, but just at that moment +Allan, dashed out of the crowd crying, breathlessly: + +"Oh, boss! Oh, BOSS! Glory to God, it is true! OH-H-H GLORY!" +Seizing Kirk's hands, he kissed them before the other could +prevent, then ran on frantically: "Come quick! Come! Come! Come!" + +"Look out!" snapped Kirk, angrily. "What's happened?" + +"The dream! The dream is come! Oh, God, sar! You--you have won the +capital prize, sar!" + +Alfarez's exclamation, as much as the boy's wild hysteria, brought +Anthony to himself. + +"NO! Honest, now! What's the number?" he exclaimed. + +"H'eight, h'eight, three, h'eight," sobbed the Jamaican. Kirk made +a dive for his coat-pocket, while Allan continued in a rising +voice: + +"Glory to God, sar! Glory to God! It is fifteen thousand dollars +'silver.' I thought I should h'expire from fright. Oh, I--Quick! +Praise be--Do not say you have lost the ticket or I shall die and +kill myself--" + +"Here it is!" In his hand Anthony waved a slip of paper, out of +which leaped four big, red numbers-"8838." + +"Carraho!" came from behind him, and he turned to behold Alfarez, +livid of face and with shaking hand, fling a handful of similar +coupons after the broken cane. Without another word or a glance +behind him, the Panamanian made off across the Plaza, barely in +time to, escape the crowd that surged around the two he had +quitted. + +Bombarded by a fusillade of questions in a dozen tongues, jostled +by a clamoring, curious throng, the lucky owner of 8838 fought his +way back into the lottery building, and, as he went, the news +spread like flaming oil. + +There it was, plainly displayed, "8838"! There could be no +possible mistake, and it meant fifteen thousand silver pesos, a +princely fortune indeed for the collector of No. 2. + +Promptly at five minutes to one o'clock that afternoon, Allan +Allan, late of Jamaica, strode through the Panama railroad station +and flaunted a first-class, round-trip ticket to Colon before the +eyes of his enemy, the gateman. He was smoking a huge Jamaican +cigar, and his pockets bulged with others. When he came to board +the train, he called loudly for a porter to bring him the step +and, once inside, selected a shady seat with the languid air of a +bored globe-trotter. He patronized the "butcher" lavishly, +crushing handful after handful of lemon-drops noisily between his +teeth and strewing orange peel and cigar ashes on the floor with +the careless unconcern that accords with firmly established +financial eminence. He spat out of the window, he waved a +dignified greeting to his countrymen gathered upon station +platforms, he halted hurrying brakemen to inquire times of arrival +and departure, and in general he had the time of his young life. + +Only when Kirk appeared upon his rounds did he forego his haughty +complacency. Then his wide lips, which nature had shaped to a +perpetual grin, curled back as they were intended, his smile lit +up the car, and he burst into loud laughter. + +"Enjoying yourself?" inquired his hero. + +"Passably, sar, passably!" Then, with a painful assumption of +seriousness: "How is the train, sar, may I ahsk?" + +"On time." + +"Rarely it is so, as a general thing. It is fartunate h'indeed +that you consented to run her this time." + +"In a hurry to get to Colon?" + +"Quite so. It is h'impartant that I h'arrive promptly to-day. I +have business h'affairs." His countenance assumed tortured lines +as he endeavored to maintain his gravity, then failing in his +attempt, he burst suddenly into a gale of merriment that sent +forth a shower of peanuts and lemon candy. "Praise God, boss, we +are 'appy gentlemen to-day, are we not?" + +Kirk found that the report of his good-fortune had spread far and +wide; he was halted a score of times for congratulations; +operators at the various stations yelled at him and waved their +hands; Runnels wired "Hurrah!" at Gatun. A certain respect was in +these greetings, too, for he had suddenly become a character. + +As yet, however, he had not fully considered what this windfall +meant to him. His first thought had been that he could now +discharge his debts, go back to New York, and clear himself before +the law. Yet the more he thought of it the less eager he became to +return. Seven thousand five hundred dollars in gold to Kirk +Anthony, of Panama, Collector, was a substantial fortune. To Kirk +Anthony, of Albany, Distributor, it was nothing. Suppose he went +home and squared his account with the police, what would he do +then? Nothing, as usual. Here, he was proving that the Anthony +breed was self-supporting, at least. And there was another reason, +the weightiest of all. Long before he had reached the end of his +run he realized that not one hundred times the amount of this +capital prize would tempt him to leave Panama before he had seen +Chiquita. + +Chiquita was beginning to seem like a dream. At times during the +past week he had begun to wonder if she were not really a product +of his own imagination. His fancy had played upon her so +extravagantly that he feared he would not know her if ever they +came face to face. His mental picture of her had lost all +distinctness; her face was no longer clear-cut before his mind's +eye, but so blurred and hazy that even to himself he could not +describe her with any accuracy. + +This was most unsatisfactory, and he reproached himself bitterly +for the involuntary faithlessness that could allow her image to +grow dim. He was almost without hope of seeing her again. And +then, with the inconsequence of dreams and sprites, she appeared +to him. + +It was but a glimpse he had, and a tantalizing flash of +recognition from her eyes. It happened in the dusk during the +confusion that accompanied the arrival of No. 7 at Panama, and it +came with a suddenness that stunned him. The station was jammed +with a roaring flood of negroes, another crowd was forcing its way +through the exits in the high iron fence, the street was a crush +of Spiggoty coaches. + +Kirk had volunteered to assist an old lady, and his arms were full +of bundles as he guided her between the clicking teeth of a +turnstile. He was helping her into a carriage when he heard the +sharp clatter of hoofs upon the brick pavement, and looked up to +see a fine Peruvian mare hitched to a tan-colored surrey skirting +the confusion. A black coachman was driving, and there were +several people in the carriage. Kirk cast it a casual glance, and +just as he looked it swept into the glare of an electric light. +Out from the back seat shone a perfect oval face, with soft, +luminous eyes. It was just as he had pictured it, only more +beautiful. + +Kirk nearly upset his little old lady, who was struggling into her +equipage. He swept his armful of bundles into the coach, seized +his scandalized companion under the arms, and deposited her bodily +upon a seat. Without waiting to hear from her, he dashed away +through the bedlam. Under horses' heads he went, past flying hoofs +and scraping wheels, jostling pedestrians, and little, brown +policemen, until he had reached the outskirts of the crowd, where +he vaulted into a vacant vehicle and called upon the driver to +whip up. + +"Quick! Quick! Follow that tan-colored surrey! I'll give you a +dollar gold not to lose sight of it." + +With the blandest of smiles the coachman started his horses, then, +turning, he inquired, politely: + +"'Otel Tivoli?" + +"No, NO! Follow that carriage!" + +"No sabe Ingles!" said the coachman. + +Before Kirk had succeeded in making him understand, the street had +become jammed with carriages and the Peruvian mare was lost to +sight. After a half-hour of futile clattering back and forth, Kirk +dismissed the driver. + +But there was no doubt that she had recognized him, and nothing +now could prevent him from continuing his search. The trouble was +that his present occupation allowed him no opportunity. He was +tied to the railroad except at night. + +It was perhaps two weeks later that a serious shake-up occurred in +the office force, of which no one seemed to know the cause. There +was a mad scramble for advancement all along the line, in which +Kirk took no part. But unexpectedly Runnels summoned him to his +office. + +"How would you like an inside position?" said the Master of +Transportation, eying him keenly. + +"So soon?" + +"I said I'd advance you if you made good." He paused an instant, +then said, deliberately, "When you get the hang of things here +you'll have a chance to be my assistant." + +Kirk opened his eyes in amazement. + +"Gee! That's great! But do you think I can get away with it?" + +"Not at once. It will take time, of course, and you'll have to +work like the devil." Runnels regarded him curiously, recalling +the letter so carefully filed away. Then he yielded to his natural +impulse. + +"Look here, Anthony," he said, "I'm partly selfish in this, for I +believe you're the sort I'm going to want within the next year. +The superintendent has had an offer from a big system in the +States, and he's going to quit when his vacation comes. He likes +me, and he says I'll probably step into his shoes. Do you +understand what that means? I'll need fellows I can count on-- +fellows who won't double-cross me to make a dollar for themselves, +or knife me when my back is turned. I've got to have an efficient, +noiseless organization. Otherwise we'll all go under, for we'll be +into politics up to our necks. I think you're my sort, so if +you'll stick to me I'll help you, and for every step I take I'll +drag you up one." + +"It's a go!" The two young men clasped hands heartily. Runnels had +struck the right note. Beside his former desire to prove himself a +man, Kirk now felt a strong sense of loyalty to the one who had +recognized his worth. This was no mere matter of promotion. He and +Runnels would work shoulder to shoulder. A sense of responsibility +descended upon him. For the first time he thoroughly understood +the spirit of the ardent toilers who were giving their best to the +Big Job. He was really one of them now, and the thought +electrified him. + +When he told his good news to Mrs. Cortlandt, her surprise was so +cleverly simulated that he never dreamed that she had been at +great pains to bring this thing about. Not that Runnels was +indisposed to act upon his own initiative, but the circumstances +that had made his action possible had been due to her. It was hard +to help a man against his will; but she profited by experience, +and took the line of least resistance. + +The young man himself did not inquire too closely into the +occasion of his advancement, and Edith Cortlandt was but little in +his mind. He was consumed with the thought of Chiquita. He hoped +that his new work would allow him more control of his time, and +perhaps put him in the way of learning her name. He could move in +better society now. Meanwhile he laid other plans. He took Allan +into his confidence, and told him frankly that he was in love with +a woman he did not know. + +Of course his faithful follower was delighted, and made +extravagant promises of aid. + +"Now that the dry season has come," said Kirk, "people must be +living at the Savannas, and I want you to haunt the region round +that swimming-pool until you discover who she is. You must be my +detective." + +"Oh, boss, I would--" + +"Don't tell me you'd die and kill yourself for me. I want you to +live and find this girl for me. I'll take you out to-day, after +office hours, and show you the place; then you'll have to do the +rest. You talk Spanish, you know. But, above all, don't tip off." + +"Tip h'off? What shall I be climbing, sar?" + +"I mean you mustn't tell a soul." + +"Never fear, boss. H'Allan will discover your female." + +"And don't call her a 'female,' it sounds indecent. Remember, she +has a Bajan with her, six feet tall, named Stephanie. Who knows? +Maybe you can win Stephanie for yourself." Kirk chuckled at the +thought. + +"No, sar, if you please. Those Bajan 'oomen is all very +disagreeable." + +"You understand, I can't quit work to go looking for the girl, +because I've simply got to tend to business. But I'll spend Sunday +out there if you haven't already discovered her. Now, I'll chant +this all over again on the way out, so you won't forget anything." + + + + +XVII + +GARAVEL THE BANKER + + +These were busy days for the Cortlandts. They entertained +constantly, and the occasions when they dined without from one to +a dozen guests became so exceptional as to elicit remark around +the hotel. Most of their efforts were devoted to certain +Panamanians of the influential class, and in company with one or +more of these Cortlandt made frequent trips to the various +quarters of the Republic, sometimes absenting himself for days at +a time. + +During these intervals his wife assumed the direction of affairs, +and continued to entertain or be entertained. Her energy and +resource seemed inexhaustible. The officials of both governments +treated her with punctilious respect, and the prestige gained in +this way she used to enhance her reputation as a hostess. Soon she +became the social dictator of the city, and the most exclusive +circles, American and Panamanian alike, allowed her to assume +control. + +The result was just what had been designed. Tourists and visiting +newspaper people spoke glowingly of the amity between the two +nations, and wondered at the absence of that Spanish prejudice of +which they had heard so much. Those who chanced to know the deeper +significance of it all, and were aware of the smouldering +resentment that lay in the Latin mind, commented admiringly upon +her work, and wondered what effect it would have upon the coming +election. Already this event had cast its shadow ahead, bringing +memories of the last election with its disturbances and ragged +uncertainty. That had been a pregnant epoch. Armed guards, hidden +behind American walls, had listened to the growing clamor and +prepared to fire. American marines had been held in readiness to +take such action as might have convulsed the other watchful World +Powers. + +Since then the fuse had burned steadily, if slowly. As the time +drew near, there were those who openly predicted trouble. Others +scoffed at the idea, although they claimed that this would be the +last election ever held in Panama. But all united in declaring +that, whatever the work to which the Cortlandts had been assigned, +they were doing it well. + +No one but the woman herself and her husband really understood the +tremendous difficulties of their task or the vital issues at +stake. Although they seemed to be making progress, they knew that +they were dealing with a people not only excitable and egotistic, +but steeped in guile, and distrustful by nature. The fire was +close to the magazine. But this was Edith Cortlandt's chosen +field, and she brought to bear a manlike power of cool +calculation, together with a brilliant intuition of her own. Never +had her tact, her knowledge of human nature, her keen realization +of political values been called into such play as now. So +triumphantly did she exercise these qualities that all who came +into contact with her recognized the master mind directing the +campaign, and, consciously or unconsciously, relegated her husband +to the background. + +To the Latin intellect this display of power, on the part of a +woman, was a revelation. She knew the effect she produced, and +made the most of it. + +Old Anibal Alfarez was, perhaps, the last fully to appreciate her. +He did, however, learn in time that while he could successfully +match his craft against that of the husband, the wife read him +unerringly. The result was that he broke with them openly. + +When news of this reached the members of the Canal Commission, +they were alarmed, and Colonel Jolson felt it necessary to make +known their views upon the situation. Accordingly, a few nights +later, the Cortlandts dined at his handsome residence on the +heights above Culebra. After their return to Panama, the Colonel, +in whom was vested the supreme authority over his nation's +interests, acknowledged that his acquaintance with diplomacy was +as nothing compared with Edith Cortlandt's. + +It was to Colonel Bland, in charge of the Atlantic Division, that +he confessed: + +"In all my life I never met a woman like her. Cortlandt, as you +know, is a clever fellow, and I flatter myself that I'm no mental +invalid; but we were like children in her hands. He sided with me +at first, but she talked us both around in spite of ourselves. I +agree with her now, perfectly, and I am content to let her have +free rein." + +"General Alfarez is the strongest man in the Republic," said +Colonel Bland. "As Governor of Panama Province, he's the logical +next President. Besides that, he has the machinery behind him. I +don't see who there is to defeat him." + +"We argued the same thing. She thinks Garavel is the proper man." + +"Garavel is a banker; he's not a politician." + +The chief-engineer laughed. + +"All Spanish-Americans are politicians, Colonel; they can't help +it." + +"Would he accept?" + +"It is her business to find out. I had my doubts." + +"But could he win? It would be a calamity if he had American +backing and failed; it would mean a disaster." + +"Cortlandt has been working carefully, and he has been in all the +seven Provinces. He admits that it might be done; and she is +certain. You see, their part in the Colombian affair makes them +strong with the leaders, and they have already whipped the foreign +influences into line. Of course, it will mean a fight--Alfarez +won't give up easily--but, if Garavel should be the next +President, it would be a fine thing for both countries." + +The other commissioner shook his white head doubtfully. "I +supposed it was all settled; Cortlandt himself told me Alfarez was +a good man the last time I talked with him. My God, it seems to me +we've got enough on our hands without being guardians for a two- +by-four republic filled with maniacs. We've got to finish this job +on time. I can't understand this change of sentiment." + +"Oh, it isn't settled. There is ample time for anything to happen. +When the psychological moment comes, Cortlandt will be in position +to swing his influence whichever way he thinks best." + +"Well, it's a puzzling situation," Colonel Bland admitted. "And I +wish it were over." Then he branched off on the subject of a cargo +of cement which had not been up to standard and might have to be +rejected. + +Over at Panama the Cortlandts were looking for a house to lease. +Affairs had reached a point where it seemed advisable to give up +their quarters at the Tivoli and enter into closer contact with +the life of the Spanish city. One reason for the move was the +necessity for a greater privacy than the hotel afforded, for the +time was not far distant when privacy might prove of paramount +importance. + +Meanwhile they gave a ceremonious little dinner, the one and only +guest being Andres Garavel, the banker. + +Of all the charming peoples of Central America there are, perhaps, +none more polished and well-bred than the upper-class Panamanians. +Of this agreeable type, Senor Garavel was an admirable example, +having sprung from the finest Castilian stock, as a name running +back through the pages of history to the earliest conquests +attested. Other Garavels had played important parts in the +troubled affairs of Guatemala, and it was the banker's proud boast +that one of his ancestors had assisted Alvarado to christen the +first capital of that country--the city of St. James the +Gentleman--in 1524. The name had later figured prominently in +Antigua, that Athens of the New World where the flower of Spanish +America gathered. A later forebear had fled southward at the time +of the disturbances incidental to the revolt of the colonies, but +in his departure there had been no disgrace, and since that time +the Garavels had worthily maintained the family traditions of +dignity and honor. + +The present bearer of the name was of distinguished appearance. He +was swarthy of skin, his hair was snow-white, and he had stern, +black eyes of great intelligence. In size he was not above the +medium, but his manner fully made up for any deficiency of +stature. He was courtly and deliberate, evincing a pride that +sprang not only from good blood but from good deeds. His poise was +that of a man with heavy responsibilities, for Andres Garavel was +a careful banker and a rich one. He was widely travelled, well- +informed, an agreeable talker, and the conversation at Mrs. +Cortlandt's table did not lag. + +"I am so disappointed that your daughter could not come," Edith +told him for the second time. "I'm afraid she objects to our +American informality." + +"No, no, my dear lady," said their guest. "She admires American +customs, as I do. We are progressive--we have travelled. In my +home, in my private life, perhaps, I am Panamanian, but in my +business and in my contact with other peoples I am as they are. It +is the same with my daughter." + +"When you Latins really become cosmopolitan you are more so than +we Americans," Cortlandt acknowledged. "We assume foreign airs and +customs that please us and forget to retain our own, while you-- +well, with Germans you are German, with Englishmen you are +English, and yet you never forget to be Spaniards." + +The banker smiled. "My daughter has had a wide education for a +child. She has travelled, she speaks five languages--and yet, +underneath it all she is a Garavel and hence a Panamanian. She is +all I have, and my life is hers." + +"When we are settled in our new house we hope to see something of +you both." + +"You have effected a lease of the Martinez home, I believe?" + +"Yes. Do you know it?" + +"As my own. You are indeed fortunate to secure so fine a place. I +wish that in some way I might be of service to you." + +"The wish is mutual," Cortlandt answered, meaningly, but Senor +Garavel concealed any recognition of the tone by a formal bow, and +the meal progressed with only the customary small talk to enliven +it. + +As soon as the three had adjourned to the Cortlandt's suite the +host of the evening proceeded to approach the subject in his mind +as directly as the circumstances permitted. Through a series of +natural transitions the conversation was brought around to +politics, and Garavel was adroitly sounded. But he displayed +little interest, maintaining a reserve that baffled them. It was +impossible to betray him into an expression of feeling favorable +to their views. When at last he consented to show his awareness of +the suggestion so constantly held out, he spoke with deliberate +intention. + +"General Alfarez is my respected friend," he said, with a +quietness that intensified his meaning, "and I rejoice that he +will be the next President of Panama." + +"You, of course, know that there is opposition to him?" + +"All Panama knows that." + +"General Alfarez does not seem to be a friend of the United +States." + +"There are few who hold the views I do. He is a man of strong +character, he has no commercial interests to influence him as I +have, and so we differ. Yet I respect him--" + +"It is precisely because of those views of yours that I wish to +consult you," said Cortlandt, slowly. "In all the Republic there +is no one so progressive as you. May I speak frankly?" + +Garavel inclined his white head without removing his intense, dark +eyes from the speaker. + +"Don Anibal Alfarez can never be President of Panama!" + +The banker made no visible movement, yet the effect of this +positive declaration was almost like that of a blow. After a pause +he said: + +"May I tell him you said so?" + +"If you wish, but I do not think you will." + +The hearer let his eyes flit questioningly to Mrs. Cortlandt's +face to find her smiling at him. + +"Believe me, dear lady," he said, "I suspected that there were +grave reasons for this interview, but as yet I am at sea. I am not +a politician, you know. I shall have no voice in our political +affairs." + +"Of course we know that, Senor Garavel, and of course there are +grave reasons why we wished to talk with you. As Stephen has said, +General Alfarez cannot be President--" + +"Madame," he said, coldly, "Panama is a republic. The voice of the +people is supreme." + +"Down in your heart do you really think so?" She was still smiling +at him. "No! The United States is supreme." + +"Ah! That day will come, perhaps--I have said so; I look forward +to it as the best solution, but--" + +"The day has come." + +"Even so, Alfarez is an honorable man, a strong man, and the +wealthiest man in our country. He is a politician--" + +"But he is not a friend of our country." + +"I am not so sure." Garavel frowned at his cigar for a moment, +while the room became silent. "What has this to do with me, +madame?" he asked, at last. + +"Can't you guess?" The intensity of her look caused him to rise +hurriedly and cast a quick glance from one to the other. + +"You are also a rich man, a man of ability," said Cortlandt, quick +to seize the momentary advantage. "Your name is second to none in +all Central America. The next President must possess intelligence, +honor, ability; he must be a friend of our people. There is no one +better--" + +"Impossible!" exclaimed the banker, in a strange voice. "_I_? No, +no!" + +"And why not? Have you never had political aspirations?" + +"Of course. All men have dreams. I was Secretary of Finance under +Amador, but the Garavels have never really been public men. +Politics have been a curse to our house. My grandfather--" + +"I know," broke in Mrs. Cortlandt. "But times have changed. Panama +has seen her last revolution, and she needs a business man at her +head. Presidents are not made now by rifle and sword, and the man +with the machete must give way to the man with a capacity for +handling big affairs. There will be no more swineherd Presidents +like your Guatemalan countryman Corera, nor tyrants like Zelaya. +Panama is a healthy country, with no national debt; she is +growing, developing. She holds the gateway to the Western World, +and her finances must be administered wisely. You, Mr. Garavel, +are one of the few who are clear-headed enough to see that her +destiny is linked with ours, and there is no one who can direct +her so well as you." + +"It is impossible!" repeated Garavel, his agitation growing more +pronounced. "General Alfarez is my friend. His son will be my +son." + +"Ramon! Is Ramon engaged to your daughter?" + +"Yes," exclaimed the banker, shortly. He began to pace the room. + +"What difference would that make, if the young people love each +other?" + +"Certainly," Cortlandt agreed. "They are not children." + +"As for love, Ramon loves, and--my daughter will love also, once +she is married, for she is a Garavel." + +"If Ramon isn't satisfactory to her, ought you to force her +inclination?" Mrs. Cortlandt offered, eagerly. But the banker +flung his arms aloft in a gesture of half-humorous despair. + +"Oh-h! These young ladies!" he cried. "They do not know what they +want. What pleases to-day, displeases to-morrow. It is 'Yes' and +'No,' 'Yes' and 'No,' until one must decide for them. That, after +all, is best." He paused abruptly. "This comes upon me like a +flood, my friends. I am swept away, and yet I--I will need to +think seriously." + +"Certainly." + +"To an honorable man the salary will mean nothing. I have many +affairs; I fear I cannot afford this sacrifice." + +"Would you retire in favor of some one who could afford it?" + +"Alfarez is honest." + +"Alfarez cannot be President." + +"It would require a great deal of money. I am considered a rich +man, but I have discounted the future, and my enterprises--" He +flung out his arms. "I have spread out. I must be careful. It is +not alone MY money that I have invested." + +"It will require very little money," said Cortlandt. "I have been +from David to Darien, from Bocas to Colon and I know the public +sentiment." + +"Speaking of David," his wife added; "it was you who first +projected the railroad to that point, Senor Garavel." + +"Yes, I saw that it was needed. It would make Panama," he said, +simply. + +"Under your administration it can be built. Mr. Cortlandt can +assure you of our government's earnest co-operation. That would +not be the case if General Alfarez were elected. Perhaps the +Colombian boundary can be settled. There also our influence might +avail. Those two steps forward would make the name of Garavel as +famous in Panama as it is in Guatemala." + +"Those are important issues for any loyal Panamanian," he +admitted. + +"And you love your daughter--you say your life is, hers. Your +honor would be hers also. Senorita Garavel would have no cause to +regret her father's presidency." + +"Oh, it is useless to argue," smiled the Spaniard. "I am weak. I +am human. I am also patriotic, and I realize that our little +country must look to your great one for its stimulus. Our life +must be moulded after yours. For years I have dreamed of a +railroad to David, which would some day form a link in the great +system that will join the three Americas. I have pictured our +inland jungles replaced with homes; a great traffic flowing from +end to end of the Republic. But I have also seen that our people +would not profit by it. The languor of the tropics is in their +blood, and you Yankees would be needed to inspire them." His voice +shook with emotion as he went on: "They are good, simple people, +no more than children, and I love them. A gracious Providence gave +us the key to the world's commerce, but we could not use it. It +needs all our wisdom now to adapt ourselves to the conditions that +have arisen. 'Andres Garavel, President of the Republic of +Panama!' It has a sweet sound, my friends, and yet--I have fears." + +"Let's take them one by one," laughed his host, "and prove them +imaginary. I see a great good-fortune in store for you." + +It was midnight before Senor Andres Garavel, the banker, bade his +friends good-bye. When he descended the hotel steps to his +carriage, he held his white head proudly erect, and there was new +dignity in his bearing. As he was whirled homeward behind his +spirited Peruvian mare, a wonderful song was singing in his heart. + + + + +XVIII + +THE SIEGE OF MARIA TORRES + + +The faithful Allan was not long in fulfilling his mission. Such +devotion as his, it seemed, could hardly fail, and, if there had +been a hundred Chiquitas, doubtless he would have corralled them +all. He conveyed the impression that, if it had been necessary to +journey beyond the grave and bring back the ghost of some dead- +and-gone Chiquita, he would have gloriously succeeded. One +morning, a few days later, he appeared to Kirk, bursting with +importance and news. + +"Well, sar! I have discovered your female," he announced, +pompously. + +"No? What's her name? Who is she?" + +"Her is named Maria Torres, sar, and resides in the small 'ouse +you h'observed upon the 'ill." + +"Did you SEE her?" Anthony could hardly believe his ears. + +"Oh yes, very h'extensively." + +"What does she look like? Is she dark?" + +"Very dark, sar." + +"And small?" + +"Not too small," opined Allan. + +"Of course, just right. And her eyes, like--like--" + +"H'ink! Spots of h'ink. Oh, it is she, Master h'Auntony." + +"Jove! I believe it is! You're an ace, Allan. You're my ace of +spades." Out of pure joy he began to pummel him playfully. "Why +don't you rejoice? Lift up your voice and sing. Maria Torres! It's +a heavenly name--Why don't you make a joyful noise?" + +Allan voiced a feeble hurrah. + +"It was only by chawnce that I h'encountered her, boss, for she is +residing in the city. I h'ascertained all those facts--" + +"Good! Find the street and number, quick! I'm going a-wooing! Say! +When these Spaniards court a girl they hang around her window and +roll their eyes, don't they? Me for that! I'll haunt the Torres +neighborhood until she shows herself, or die in the attempt. I'll +play their game. I'll get a guitar, I'll--Oh, from this moment I'm +a Spaniard of the Spaniards. I'm the incarnation of ten thousand +fiery cavaliers. I'll stand in front of her house until she sends +me a chair. Maria Tor--What the deuce are you loafing for? Get a +move on; hustle those kidney feet of yours. Don't come back until +you have located her; for to-night--ah, blessed night! My life's +romance begins in earnest. GET OUT!" + +Allan fled while Kirk proceeded to dream over his breakfast of +bacon and cold-storage eggs. + +He was beaming when he appeared at the office. He sang, he +whistled, he performed his duties with a joyous uproar that +interfered seriously with all around him and set the whole place +in confusion. Nor did his spirits lessen when, later in the day, +Allan informed him that the residence of Senor Luis Torres, whom +the gods had selected as father to the delectable Maria, was at +number 89 Avenida Norte. + +Anthony did not taste his dinner that evening. As darkness settled +he planted himself conspicuously on the corner opposite No. 89 and +began to study the premises. + +It was a trifle disappointing to note that Chiquita lived in such +poor style; the place was not at all impressive. The first floor +of the building was given over to a Chinese bazaar, and the upper +story seemed neither extremely clean nor at all modern. But, +although this clashed a bit with his preconceived ideas, he knew +that many of the nicest Panamanian families lived in modest +quarters. + +His natural impulse was to apply boldly at the door, but he had +learned something of local customs, and he determined to give no +possible ground for offence. After she had recognized him and seen +his willingness to follow the habit of her Spanish suitors, it +would be feasible, perhaps, to adopt a more Americanized method. +Meanwhile, he must run no risk of antagonizing her people. + +In the Central American scheme of courtship patience plays a large +part. It is the young man's practice to martyr himself until the +sight of him becomes such a reproach that the family must perforce +express its sympathy. Although this procedure struck Anthony as +ludicrous in the extreme, its novelty was not without charm, and +he had lived through such a period of torturing uncertainty that +the mere fact of the girl's presence was compensation enough for +his pains. + +For an hour he stood motionless, staring at the upper windows of +No. 89. Then his feet began to hurt, and he paraded slowly back +and forth "playing the bear," as he had heard it termed. Another +hour passed, and he discovered that, if his presence had not been +marked by the members of the Torres household, it was at least +exciting comment elsewhere in the neighborhood. Faces appeared at +near-by windows; he heard sounds of muffled merriment which made +him uncomfortable; passers-by smiled at him and dropped +encouraging remarks which he could not translate. The little +policeman, lounging at the next corner, watched him complacently +and agreed with his neighbors that the Americano was undoubtedly a +fine-appearing lover. + +Kirk took his stand at last beneath a street light and gazed +languorously upon the windows opposite until his eyes ached as +well as his feet. At last a curtain parted, and he saw the flash +of a white dress back of it. His heart leaped; he raised his hat; +there was a titter from beyond the iron grating. Presently another +figure was dimly revealed. The watcher held his position +stubbornly until the last light in the Torres house winked out, +then limped homeward, warmed by the glad conviction that at least +he had been recognized. + +Promptly at seven o'clock on the following evening he returned to +his post, and before he had been there five minutes knew that his +presence was noticed. This was encouraging, so he focused his +mental powers in an effort to communicate telepathically with the +object of his desires. But she seemed unattuned, and coyly +refrained from showing her face. He undertook to loiter +gracefully, knowing himself to be the target of many eyes, but +found it extremely hard to refrain from sitting on the curb, a +manifestly unromantic attitude for a love-lorn swain. He swore +grimly that, if usage required a suitor to make an exhibition of +himself before the entire neighborhood, he would do the job +thoroughly. It did not cheer him to reflect that the girl had a +keen sense of humor and must be laughing at him, yet he determined +to put in a week at this idiotic love-making before he attempted +anything else. Later in the evening he was rewarded by the glimpse +of a handkerchief cautiously waved, and he was delirious with joy +as he hobbled homeward. + +Night after night he spent assiduously studying the cracks and +blemishes in the stucco walls of No. 89 Avenida Norte, encouraged +by the occasional flutter of a hand or a soulful sigh from behind +the lace screen at the third window from the corner. But when +Sunday came he was in no mood to continue this roundabout and +embarrassing mode of courtship longer. He made an early start from +his quarters, taking Allan with him. + +"I'll catch her going to mass," he explained, hopefully. "I've +just got to put an end to this performance." + +"Will you h'accost her h'openly?" inquired Allan. + +"You bet! If she runs away you trip her up. Oh, it's great to be +in love!" + +"Without doubt, sar." + +"She's a corker, isn't she?" + +"I do not know as to that," Allan demurred. "What may be a +carker?" + +"I mean she's beautiful." + +"Oh, h'indeed so! And her h'eyes--like h'ink spots, as you say." + +"Was she wearing a denim dress when you saw her?" + +"Yes, yes," eagerly agreed the negro. "Oh, there is no mistake. It +was a red dress." + +"No, it wasn't. It was blue." + +"H'exactly, sar--a sort of reddish blue." + +"And she was--petite?" + +"Rather more dark, I should say." + +"I mean she was small." + +"Oh, it is the same female. It is h'exciting, is it not?" + +Kirk acknowledged that it was exciting, for, now that he had a +full day in which to besiege No. 89, he felt certain of gaining a +word at least with his inamorata. He was in good time, it seemed, +for hardly had he taken his customary station before the Cathedral +bells awoke the slumberous echoes of the city. + +"Praise God, she will be coming soon!" Allan exclaimed. "I shall +h'expire from fright. Look! There! THERE!" + +Down the wide stairs leading from the living-rooms of Senor Torres +came two women, and the negro danced in excitement. As they +emerged upon the sidewalk the younger one flashed a glance at the +men opposite, and Kirk saw that she was a mulatto--evidently a +housemaid. His eager eyes flew back to the entrance. Allan hissed +at him: + +"Yonder goes! Quick, or you will be losing she." + +"Where?" + +"There! The young female in w'ite. It is h'indeed the Senorita +Torres." + +"THAT!" Anthony stared at the girl amazedly as she cast him a +second and more coquettish flash of her black eyes. "Why, damn it, +that--why, she's a--NIGGER!" + +"No, no!" shrilly expostulated the Jamaican. "It is she. H'alas! +They have turned the corner." + +Kirk wheeled upon his detective in overwhelming disgust. "You +idiot!" he breathed. "That girl is a 'dinge.' So, SHE'S the one +I've been--Oh, it's unspeakable! Let's get away from here." + +"You h'informed me in particular that she is dark," protested +Allan. + +"Come on!" Kirk dragged his companion away as fast as he could. +His thoughts were too deep for tears. As soon as his emotion +permitted coherent speech, he launched into a tirade so eloquent +and picturesque that Allan was reduced to a state of wondering +awe. Pausing at length in his harangue, he turned smouldering eyes +upon the black boy. + +"I ought to punch you right in the nose," he said, with mournful +calmness. "Let me feel your head." Allan obediently doffed his +cap, and Kirk rapped the woolly cranium with his knuckle. "Do you +feel that? Is there any sensation?" + +"Yes, sar! Shortly I shall suffer a swelling." Allan stroked the +spot tenderly. + +"It's all imagination; there's no feeling to solid bone. You've +got an ivory 'nut,' my friend, just like a cane." + +"Ivory-nuts grow upon trees, sar, in the Darien region." + +Anthony regarded him sourly. "The Brunswick-Balke people never +turned out anything half so round and half so hard. That burr of +yours is a curio. I told you Chiquita was small and beautiful and +dainty and--Oh, what's the use! This dame is a truck-horse. She's +the color of a saddle." + +"Oh, she is not too dark, sar." Allan came loyally to the defence +of Miss Torres. "Some of the finest people in Panama is blacker +than that. There is but few who are h'all w'ite." + +"Well, SHE'S all white, and I want you to find her to-day--TO-DAY, +understand? You gallop out to the Savannas and make some +inquiries." He shook his fist in Allan's face. "If you don't learn +something this trip, I'll have your lignum-vitae cranium in a +bowling-alley by dark. Lord! If I only spoke Spanish!" + +Allan reluctantly departed, and Kirk went back to his quarters in +high displeasure. It seemed as if the affair had actually left a +bad taste in his mouth. He could not compose his features into +anything like a decently amiable expression, but went about with a +bitter smile upon his lips. Every time some new aspect of his +grotesque and humiliating mistake occurred to him he suffered a +nervous twinge. That afternoon a card was brought to him bearing +the ornate inscription in a beautiful Spencerian hand: + +PROFESSOR JESUS HERARA THE HERARA COLLEGE OF BUSINESS + +Reconciling himself as best he could to the prospect of an +interview with some importunate stranger, he grudgingly consented +to have the visitor brought in. Professor Herara was not alone. He +was accompanied by a very short, very fat man, whose smooth skin +had the rich, dark coloring of a nice, oily Cuban cigar. + +"Senor Anthony, it is?" inquired the Professor, bowing +ceremoniously. + +"That's my name." + +"It is my privilege to consult you upon a business of importance." + +"I'm afraid you have the wrong party. I don't care to learn +shorthand." + +"Ah, no, it is not concerning my academy. Allow me to present +Senor Luis Torres." + +Kirk felt the room begin to revolve slowly. + +"My friend does not possess a card at the moment, eh?" continued +the Professor. + +The little, rotund man bowed, his hand-polished, mahogany features +widening in a smile. + +"'Sveree hot wedder!" he exclaimed. + +"He begs one thousand pardons for not speaking of your language +the more perfectly, and so he is request of me to be his +interpreter." + +Something urged Kirk to flee while there was yet time, but the +father of Maria Torres was between him and the door, and he could +not bring himself to push the little man out of the way. So he +bade them both be seated in the only two chairs which the room +contained, while he rested gingerly upon the edge of the bed. The +new-comers let their eyes roll curiously about the chamber, and an +embarrassing silence descended. Senor Torres maintained a set +smile designed to be agreeable; Professor Herara, serene in the +possession of his linguistic acquirements, displayed the +insouciance of an undertaker. Together they beamed benignantly, +almost patronizingly, upon the young man. Plainly they meant to +put him at his ease--but they failed. At length, after clearing +his throat impressively, the interpreter began again: + +"Of course, you have been expecting this visit, senor?" + +"N--not exactly." + +"My friend is deeply disappointed that he has not the honor of +before meeting you." + +"I am flattered, but--" + +"Indeed, yes! Then you are perhaps acquainted with Senor Torres by +reputation? You know who he is?" Professor Jesus Herara raised his +brows and inclined his head like a polite school-teacher +endeavoring to encourage a diffident pupil. + +"I regret that I do not." + +"He is one of our most estimable citizens. He is possess' not only +of the magnificent residence at No. 89 Avenida Norte, but also of +a comfortable abode at Las Savannas, and he has a large trade in +sponges and hides. His place of business you will have noticed +upon the water-front, perhaps?" + +Kirk wiped his brow nervously and cursed Allan. + +"And now, as for you, senor?" The principal of the Herara College +of Business awaited an answer with unctuous deference. Evidently +attributing the young man's silence to modesty, he went on, +helpfully: "Senor Torres has instituted inquiries, and ascertained +your excellent position with the P. R. R., but he would know more, +if soch is not disagreeable to you." + +"Well--I--there isn't much to tell. It is my first job." + +This was quickly put into Spanish, whereupon Mr. Torres nodded +with vigor, as if this information were indeed gratifying--nay, +splendid. + +"It is agreeable to my friend to ascertain your industry, and I +may say you are most highly spoke of at the railroad office. +Therefore, Senor Torres affords you an invitation to call at his +residence on Thursday evening." + +"That's awfully--nice," gasped Anthony; "but--er--what's the +idea?" + +"Ah!" The interpreter beamed; Mr. Torres beamed. They combined to +radiate a gentle effulgence which was most disquieting. "It is +indeed pleasing to encounter a gentleman so truly modest, so +possessed of delicacy; but I may say that Senor Torres is look +with favor upon your suit. Of course"--he checked Kirk's hasty +words--"it is not completely settle, by no means; the young lady +is but partly won. However"--he winked one black eye reassuringly-- +"as friend of the family I bid you not to permit discouragement +and despair." + +Anthony broke out in desperation: "Hold on! Let me explain! +There's been an awful mistake." + +"Mistake?" The tone was blandly incredulous. + +"Yes. I'm not in love with Miss Torres." + +Professor Jesus Herara stared at the speaker as if his mastery of +the English language was, after all, incomplete. Torres, seeing +that he was missing something, interpolated a smiling inquiry; +then, as his interpreter made the situation clear, his honeyed +smile froze, his sparkling eyes opened in bewilderment. He stared +about the room again, as if doubting that he had come to the right +place. + +"There's really a mistake," Kirk persisted. "I don't even know +Miss Torres." + +"Ah! Now I understand." The Professor was intensely relieved. "It +is precisely for that purpose we arrived. Bueno! You admire from a +distance, is it not so? You are struck with the lady's beauty; +your heart is awakened. You are miserable. You pine away. You +cannot find courage to speak. It is admirable, senor. We +understand fully, and I, who know, assure you of her many +virtues." + +"No, it's nothing like that, either. I have no doubt Miss Torres +is altogether charming, but--I--there's just a mistake, that's +all. I'm not the least bit in love with her." + +"But, senor! Is it not you who have stood beneath her window +nightly? Is it not you who have laid siege to her these many +days?" The speaker's eyes were glowing with anger as he turned to +make his inquiry clear to the young lady's father. + +Mr. Torres began to swell ominously. + +"If you'll just let me explain. I'm in love with a young woman, +true enough, but it doesn't happen to be Miss Torres. I thought it +was, but it isn't." + +There was another vibrant exchange of words between the Spaniards. + +"You were making sport, then, of my friend--" + +"No, no! It's another person altogether." + +"Who?" + +"I don't know her name." + +"WHAT?" Herara was about to burst forth when his friend nudged him +and he was obliged to put this amazing declaration into Spanish. +Senor Torres breathed heavily and exploded an oath. + +"I met her in the country and made a mistake in the town houses," +Kirk floundered on. "I never knew till this morning that I was on +the wrong trail. It is all my fault. I thought the lady's name was +Torres." + +"Eh? So you love one whom you do not know? Incredible!" + +"It does sound a little fishy." + +"And it is a grave affront to my friend. How will the senorita +understand?--she in whose breast is awakened already an answering +thrills?" + +"I'm mighty sorry. If you wish, I'll apologize in person to Miss +Torres." + +At this Herara cried out in horror; then, after a brief colloquy +with the father, he rose stiffly, saying: "I offer no words from +my friend. For the present he does not believe, nor do I. +Inquiries will be institute, of that be assured. If you have +deceived--if your intentions were not of the most honorable"--the +head of the Herara Business College glared in a horrible manner-- +"you will have occasion to regret those foolish jokes." + +Kirk tried to explain that his present regrets were ample for all +time, but, bowing formally, the visitors withdrew, leaving him to +revile anew the name of Allan Allan. + +When the black boy returned, foot-sore but cheerful, his +appearance was the signal for an outburst that left him +disconsolate and bewildered. He apologized over and over for his +little error, and tried to reinstate himself by announcing, with a +confidence he was far from feeling, that this time he had +identified the elusive Chiquita beyond the peradventure of a +doubt. This welcome intelligence did much to make Kirk forget his +wrath. + +"What's her name?" he inquired, eagerly. + +"Fermina, sar." + +"Are you sure?" + +"H'entirely. But it will not h'avail to be courting of those +ladies, Master h'Auntony." + +"Is there more than one?" + +"Two of they--sisters--very rich. They h'occupy the 'ouse +h'adjoining Senor Torres." + +Allan spoke in a hushed voice, and shook his head as if to show +the hopelessness of aspiring to such aristocracy. Surely Kirk knew +of the Ferminas? Arcadio Fermina was the owner of the pearl- +fishery concession and a person of the highest social distinction. +He was white, all white, there was no doubt on that score. +Undoubtedly Chiquita would prove to be his daughter and a joint +heiress to his fabulous fortune. But she was not the sort to be +courted from the street, even Allan knew that much; for, after +all, such a procedure was followed only by the middle classes, and +in this instance would result in nothing less than disaster. + +It sounded reasonable, and Kirk allowed himself to be half +convinced. It was no later than the following day, however, that +Runnels pointed out two young ladies who were driving past and +informed him that they were the Misses Fermina. + +"Their old man has made a fortune out of the Pearl Islands," he +remarked. "They say those girls have the finest collection of +pearls in Central America." + +Kirk gazed after them eagerly, but it took no more than a glance +to show him that they were not even distantly related to the +object of his search. Once more he set Allan upon the trail with +instructions to find out who lived in the large house upon the +hill--the one with the driveway of royal palms--and not to return +without the information. But by now the Jamaican was beginning to +weary of this running back and forth and to consider the quest a +vain imagining. So, being wishful to dream another lottery number, +he brought back with him a fanciful tale designed to quiet his +employer and to assure himself ample leisure in the future. + +"Master h'Auntony, your female is gone," he informed him, sadly. + +"Gone! Where?" + +"Somewhere--on a ship." + +"Are you sure?" + +"There is no doubt, sar. Her name is Garavel, and she h'occupies +the big 'ouse on the 'ill. I discovered those h'impartant facts +from the Bajan 'ooman." + +"Stephanie! You saw her? By Jove! Then you are right this time. +Quick! tell me all you learned." + +Allan lied fluently, elaborately, and, finding his hero plunged +into despair, resigned himself gratefully to another period of +blissful idleness. This was much the simplest way, he decided; for +even should Kirk meet a Garavel or a Fermina, there was no chance +of his winning her, and love, after all, is but a passing impulse +which may be summoned or banished at will by such simple mediums +as charms. The boy did go out of his way to ease his benefactor's +malady by taking a lock of his own fuzzy wool and placing it +beneath Kirk's mattress, after certain exorcisms. + +There followed a period of blank dejection. Kirk's first +disappointment, when the girl had failed to keep her tryst, was as +nothing compared to this, for now he felt that she was +unattainable. He did not quite give up hope; so many strange +experiences had befallen him since his involuntary departure from +New York that it all seemed like a dream in which anything is +possible. But he was deep in the doldrums when, with magic +suddenness, the scene changed, and his long discouragement came to +an end. + + + + +XIX + +"LA TOSCA" + + +The winter season was at its height now. For weeks there had been +no rain, and the Pacific side of the Isthmus was growing sere and +yellow beneath the ceaseless glare of the sun. The musty dampness +of the rainy season had disappeared, the steady trade-winds +breathed a dreamy languor, and the days fled past in one long, +unending procession of brilliant sameness. Every ship from the +North came laden with tourists, and the social life of the city +grew brilliant and gay. There were receptions, dinners, dances; +the plazas echoed to the strains of music almost nightly. Now that +Nature smiled, the work upon the Canal went forward with ever- +growing eagerness. Records were broken in every department, the +railroad groaned beneath its burden, the giant human machine was +strained to its fullest efficiency. + +Young Anthony mastered the details of his work very rapidly, for +railroading had been bred into him. He needed little help from +Runnels, and soon began to feel a conscious grasp of affairs as +surprising to himself as to his chief. Being intensely interested +in his work, he avoided all social entanglements, despite repeated +invitations from Mrs. Cortlandt. But, when the grand-opera season +began, he made an exception, and joined her box-party on the +opening night. + +It seemed quite like old times to don an evening suit; the stiff, +white linen awakened a pang of regret. The time was not far +distant when he had felt never so much at home as in these togs; +but now they were hot and uncomfortable--and how they accentuated +his coat of tan! + +There was a somewhat formal dinner in the Cortlandts' new home, at +which there were a dozen guests; so Kirk had no opportunity of +speaking with his hostess until they had reached the theatre, +where he found himself seated immediately behind her. + +"I've scarcely seen you lately," she said, at the first +opportunity. "You're a very neglectful young man." + +"I knew you were getting settled in your house, and we've been +tremendously busy at the office." + +"I began to think you were avoiding us." + +"You must know better than that." + +She regarded him shrewdly over her shoulder. "You're not still +thinking of--that night at Taboga? You haven't seemed the same +since." + +He blushed, and nodded frankly. "I can't help thinking about it. +You were mighty nice to overlook a break like that, but--" +Unconsciously his eyes shifted to Cortlandt, who was conversing +politely with a giggly old lady from Gatun. + +She tapped his cheek lightly with her fan. "Just to show you how +forgiving I am, I am going to ask you to go riding with me. The +late afternoons are lovely now, and I've found a good horse for +you. I suppose you ride?" + +"I love it." + +"Wednesday, at five, then." She turned to another guest, and Kirk +leaned back to take in the scene about him. + +Like most Latin-American cities, Panama prides herself upon her +government theatre, which is in truth very beautiful. Although it +remains dark most of the year, its brief period of opera is +celebrated by a notable outpouring. To-night the magnificent +white-and-gold auditorium was filled to the topmost gallery, and +the two circles of boxes were crowded with the flower of +Panamanian society, tourists from the North, and Americans from +the whole length of the Canal Zone. Kirk himself had seen to +running a theatre special from Colon, and recognized all six of +the Commissioners, with their families. It was an exceedingly +well-dressed audience, and although the pit was plentifully +sprinkled with men in white, the two lower galleries were in solid +full-dress. Bejewelled women in elaborate gowns lent the affair +almost the elegance of a night at the Metropolitan, while the +flash of many uniforms made the scene colorful. + +Suddenly the orchestra broke into the national air, and with a +great rustling and turning of heads the audience rose to its feet. +In the centre box of the first tier, ornately hung with flags and +a coat of arms, Anthony beheld a giant black man of majestic +appearance, drawn to his full height and flanked by a half-dozen +aides in uniform, all at a stiff military salute. + +"That is President Galleo," Edith told him. + +"Jove! He's a regal-looking chap," Kirk exclaimed. + +"He's very much of a man, too, yet even here there is a color +line. Nobody acknowledges it, but the old Castilian families are +keenly aware of it just the same." + +As the last measured strain died out the audience reseated itself, +the introduction to "La Tosca" sounded, and the curtain rose. +Although the names of the performers were unknown to Kirk, their +voices were remarkably good, and he soon became absorbed in the +drama. A sudden lonesomeness surged over him as he recalled +another night when he and Darwin K. Anthony had heard these same +notes sung. But then they had sat enthralled by the art of Caruso, +Scotti, and the ravishing Cavalieri. It had been one of the rare +hours when he and his father had felt themselves really in +sympathy. The Governor had come down for some fabulous directors' +meeting, he remembered, and had wired his son to run in from New +Haven for the evening. They had been real chums that night, and +even at their modest little supper afterward, when the old +gentleman had rowed with the waiter and cursed his dyspepsia, they +had laughed and chatted like cronies. Yet a week later they had +quarrelled. + +With an unexpected access of tenderness, Anthony Jr. longed to see +once more that tumbled shock of white hair, that strong-lined +face; to hear again the gruff tones of that voice he loved so +well. After all, there were only two Anthonys left in the world, +and he had been to blame. He acknowledged that he had been a +ne'er-do-well. No wonder his father had been harsh, but still--old +Darwin K. should not have been so domineering, so ready to credit +all he heard. Kirk pressed his lips together and swore to make +good, if for no other reason than to show his dad. + +As the curtain fell on the first act, he rose with the others and, +accompanied by Mrs. Cortlandt, made his way down the long +passageway and out into a brightly lighted, highly decorated foyer +filling now with voluble people. It was a splendid room; but he +had no eyes for it. His gaze was fixed upon the welcome open-air +promenade outside, and his fingers fumbled with his cigarette- +case. + +"Oh, wait, please," he heard Edith say, "I want you to meet some +one." + +He had done little except respond to meaningless introductions all +the evening, and nothing could have pleased him less at the +moment. But, somewhat awkwardly, he began to edge his way through +the press in the wake of his hostess. The next moment he halted +and stood stock-still in helpless surprise. + +There, not a yard away, was the girl of his dreams demurely bowing +to Edith Cortlandt, her hand upon the arm of a swarthy man whom +Kirk knew at once as her father. He felt the blood rush blindingly +to his head, felt it drumming at his ears, knew that he must be +staring like a man bereft. Mrs. Cortlandt was speaking, and he +caught the name "Garavel" like a bugle-call. They turned upon him, +the Spanish gentleman bowed, and he saw that Chiquita's little +white-gloved hand was extended toward him. + +She was the same dainty, desirous maid he had met in the forest, +but now splendidly radiant and perfect beyond his imagining. She +was no longer the simple wood-sprite, but a tiny princess in filmy +white, moulded by some master craftsman. As on that earlier +meeting, she was thrilling with some subtle mirth which flickered +on her lips or danced in the depths of her great, dark eyes. + +How he ever got through that wild introductory moment without +making a show of himself, Anthony never knew, for his first +overwhelming impulse was to seize the girl and never let her +escape. It was the same feeling he had had at Las Savannas, only +ten times harder to resist. The general confusion, perhaps, helped +to hide his emotion, for around them eddied a constant human tide, +through which at last came Mr. Cortlandt and the other members of +his party. There were more introductions, more bows and polite +exchanges of words which had the maddening effect of distracting +Miss Garavel's attention. Then, by some glorious miracle, Kirk +found himself moving toward the open air at her side, with Mrs. +Cortlandt and the banker in advance of them. + +"Oh, Chiquita," he said, softly, "I thought I'd NEVER find you. +I've hunted everywhere." + +At the tremulous intensity of his tone, she gave an uncertain +laugh and flashed him a startled glance. + +"Chiquita is not my name," she said, reprovingly. + +"Yes, it is; it must be. I can't think of you by any other. Hasn't +it been whispering at my ears ever since you said it? It has +nearly driven me mad." + +"Senor Antonio! I have seen you but once." + +"I have seen you every day, every hour-" + +"Indeed?" + +"I can't see anything else. Don't you understand?" + +"You forget that we have but just been introduced." + +"Don't be offended; you see, I can't realize that I have found you +at last. When I learned you had gone away, I thought I would +surely-" + +"I have been nowhere." + +"Didn't you go away on a ship?" + +"That is absurd! I have remained always in my father's house." + +"Then wait until I catch that boy of mine! Didn't you know I was +looking for you? Couldn't you FEEL it?" + +"Indeed, why should I imagine such things?" + +"Why, if you couldn't feel a thing like that, you can't love me." + +"Of a certainly not," she gasped. "You should not joke about such +things." + +"I'm not joking; I never was so serious in my life. I-I'm afraid I +can't tell you everything-it all wants to come out at once. Why +didn't you come back as you promised?" + +"It was Stephanie-she is such a ferocious person! I was brought to +the city that day-but no, senor. I did not promise. I said only +'perhaps.'" + +"Have you done your penance?" + +"It was finished yesterday. This is the first time I have been +out. Oh, it is delightful. The music-the people!" + +"And I can come to see you now?" + +"Very well do you know that you cannot. Have you not learned our +customs?" Then, with an abrupt and icy change of tone: "I forget. +Of course you are familiar with those customs, since you have +become the wooer of Miss Torres." + +"Oh, Lord! Where did you hear about that?" + +"So! It is true. You are fickle, senor-or is it that you prefer +dark people?" + +"I was looking for you. I thought it was you behind those curtains +all the time." He began a flurried defence of his recent +outrageous behavior, to which Miss Garavel endeavored to listen +with distant composure. But he was so desperately in earnest, so +anxious to make light of the matter, so eager to expose all his +folly and have done with it, that he must have been funnier than +he knew. In the midst of his narrative the girl's eyes showed an +encouraging gleam, and when he described his interview with Torres +and Heran their surprise and dramatic indignation, she laughed +merrily. + +"Oh, it wasn't funny at the time," he hastened to add. "I felt as +though I had actually proposed, and might have to pay alimony." + +"Poor Maria! It is no light thing to be cast aside by one's lover. +She is broken-hearted, and for six months she will do penance." + +"This penance thing is a habit with you girls. But I wasn't her +lover; I'm yours." + +"Do not be foolish," she exclaimed, sharply, "or I shall be forced +to walk with my father." + +"Don't do that. Can't you see we must make haste while the curtain +is down?" + +"I do not see. I am strolling in search of the cool air." She +bowed and smiled at some passing friends. She seemed very +careless, very flippant. She was not at all the impetuous, +mischievous Chiquita he had met in the woods. + +"See here!" he said, soberly. "We can't go on this way. Now that +I've met your father, I'm going to explain my intentions to him, +and ask his permission to call on you." + +"We have a--proverb, senor, 'Ir por lana, y volver trasquilado,' +which means, 'Take heed lest you find what you do not seek.' Do +not be impetuous." + +"There's only one thing I'm seeking." + +"My father is a stern man. In his home he is entirely a Spaniard, +and if he learned how we met, for instance"-even under the +electric light he saw her flush-"he would create a terrible +scene." She paused in her walk and leaned over the stone +balustrade, staring out across the ink-black harbor. + +"Trust me! I shan't tell him." + +"There are so many reasons why it is useless." + +"Name one." + +"One!" She shrugged lightly. "In the first place I care nothing +for you. Is not that enough?" + +"No, indeed. You'll get over that." + +"Let us imagine, then, the contrary. You Americans are entirely +different from our people. You are cold, deliberate, wicked-your +social customs are not like ours. You do not at all understand us. +How then could you be interested to meet a Spanish family?" + +"Why, you're half American." + +"Oh yes, although it is to be regretted. Even at school in your +Baltimore I learned many improper things, against which I have had +to struggle ever since." + +"For instance?" + +"Ah," she sighed, "I saw so much liberty; I heard of the shocking +conduct of your American ladies, and, while I know it is quite +wrong and wicked, still-it is interesting. Why, there is no other +nice girl in all Panama who would have talked with you as I did in +the forest that day." + +"But what has all this to do with my coming to see you?" + +"It is difficult to explain, since you will not understand. When a +young man is accepted into a Spanish house, many things are taken +for granted. Besides that, we do not know each other, you and I. +Also, if you should come to see me, it would cause gossip, +misunderstanding among my friends." + +"I'll declare myself in advance," he promised warmly. + +"No, no, no! We Spanish-Americans do not care for strangers. We +have our own people and we are satisfied. You Yankees are not very +nice; you are barbarous; you assume such liberties. Our young men +are gentle, modest, sweet--" + +"Um-m! I hadn't noticed it." + +"This is the first time I have ever talked so freely with a +gentleman, and I suppose it is immodest. After all, it is much +better that old people who are of more experience should discuss +these questions." + +"But don't you want to have a voice in your own affairs?" he +eagerly urged. "Do you really want your relatives to tell you whom +to meet, whom to love, and whom to marry?" + +She answered, frankly: "Sometimes I feel that way. Yet at other +times I am sure they must know best." + +"I don't believe you are the sort to shut your eyes and do exactly +as you're told." + +"I do rebel sometimes. I protest, but it is only the American +blood in me." + +"If you'd learn to know me a little bit, maybe you'd enjoy having +me around the house." + +"But I cannot know you, any more than you can know me," she cried, +with a little gesture of despair at his dullness. "Don't you see-- +before we could get acquainted nicely people would be talking?" + +"Let's try. You're living at the country place again, aren't you? +Suppose I should get lost some day--tomorrow, for instance?" + +"No, no! Listen. It is the warning bell, and we must return." + +The crowd was filing into the theatre now. They fell in behind +Senor Garavel and Mrs. Cortlandt. + +"I'm going hunting again tomorrow," prophesied Kirk, "and I'm +almost certain to lose my way-about three o'clock." + +"You should take with you a guide." + +"That's not a bad idea. I'd like to talk it over with you. Suppose +we have another stroll after the next act?" + +"I shall be with my father. Never before have I enjoyed so much +liberty." She sighed gratefully. + +"Oh, I detest your blamed, straitlaced Spanish customs," he cried, +hotly. "What do they amount to, anyhow? I love you. I do, I do-" + +She laughed and darted to her father's side. + +"Don't you think Miss Garavel is a pretty girl?" Mrs. Cortlandt +questioned, as they strolled toward their box. + +"She's a dream." Anthony's tone left nothing unsaid. + +"You got along together capitally. Most of the senoritas are +impossible." + +"By the way, what is her name?" + +"Gertrudis. Rather pleasing, I think." + +Kirk thought so, too. In fact, it pleased him so greatly that he +thought of nothing else during the entire second act of "La +Tosca." It was even sweeter than the music of her hesitating +accent. + +When, after an age, the curtain fell for a second time, he escaped +from his companions, mumbling some excuse or other, and made haste +to find her again. But as he approached he felt a sudden pang of +jealous rage. + +Ramon Alfarez was beside her, and the two were chatting with an +appearance of intimacy that made him furious. Close at hand stood +Garavel, deep in conversation with Colonel Jolson. + +"Ah, Ramon, I wish you to meet Mr. Anthony," said Gertrudis. "So! +You have met before?" + +"In Colon," Kirk explained, while Alfarez scorched him with his +eyes. "Mr. Alfarez was very hospitable to me." + +"Yes," the Spaniard exclaimed. "It is my great regret that Senor +Ant'ony did not remain for longer." + +"Ramon is with the President's party this evening. He is Senor +Galleo's Secretary, you know." + +"I informed you concerning those good fortunes some time since, +eh?" Ramon's insulting stare made Kirk long to take him by the +throat. + +"Yes, you told me. I suppose it is a fine position." + +Alfarez swelled pompously. "I 'ave many responsibilities." + +"It brings you very close to the Chief Executive, no doubt." + +"I 'ave indeed the honor to be his intimate!" + +"He's the tallest negro I ever saw," Kirk said, simply, at which +the haughty Ramon seemed about to explode, and Miss Garavel quite +shamelessly giggled. + +"That is funny," she exclaimed. "But you must not tease Ramon. You +understand, the voice of the people has made Galleo President, but +no one forgets that he is not one of us." + +Her youthful countryman twisted his mustache with trembling +fingers. + +"It is politics!" he declared. "And yet Galleo is a great man; I +am honor' to be his Secretary. But by the grace of God our next +President will be w'ite." + +"Ramon's father, Don Anibal, you know." Gertrudis nodded wisely at +the American. "We are very proud of Ramon, he is so young to be +high in politics." + +"Eh! Yes, and many of our bravest patriots 'ave been black men." + +"Oh, we've had some brave negroes, too," Kirk acknowledged. + +"So! You see!" Alfarez was triumphant. + +"The greatest fighter we ever had was a colored chap." + +"Ah!" + +"His name was Gans--Joe Gans." + +"You are still joking," said Miss Garavel. "In Baltimore I read +the newspapers about that Gans. He was a-box-fighter, what?" + +"Exactly. But he never carried a Secretary." + +Alfarez's countenance was sallow as he inquired: + +"Does Senor Ant'ony discover our climate to be still agreeable?" + +"Very. It hasn't grown too warm for me yet." + +"We are but approaching our 'ot season." The speaker's eyes +snapped. + +"Oh, I'll stand the heat all right, and the mosquitoes, too." + +"Eh! Do not be too sure. The mosquito makes a leetle buzzing-but +it is well to take warning. If not, behol', some day you grow ver' +seeck." + +Heretofore Kirk had hated Ramon in a careless, indifferent sort of +way, feeling that he owed him a good drubbing, which he would be +pleased to administer if ever a fitting time arrived. But now, +since he saw that the jackanapes had the audacity to love +Gertrudis, his feeling became intense. The girl, of course, was +fully alive to the situation, and, although she evidently enjoyed +it, she did her best to stand between the two men. + +As for Alfarez, he was quick to feel the sudden fierce hostility +he had aroused, and it seemed to make him nervous. Moreover, he +conceived that he had scored heavily by his last retort, at which +Kirk had only smiled. It therefore seemed best to him to withdraw +from the conversation (annoyingly conducted in English), and a few +moments later he stalked majestically away. This was just what +Kirk wanted, and he quickly suggested the balcony. But Gertrudis +was obstinate. + +"I must remain with my father," she said. + +"May I sit beside you, then? I've been thinking of a lot of things +to say. I always think of bully remarks when it's too late. Now +I've forgotten them. Do you know, I'm going to nestle up to your +father and make him like me?" + +"Again you are speaking of that subject. I have known you but an +hour, and you talk of nothing but my father, of me, of coming to +call." + +"Well, I can't think of anything else." + +"You are too bold. Spanish fathers do not like such young men. But +to hear me talk!" She flushed slightly. "I have lost all modesty +to speak of those things. You force me to embarrass myself." + +"I was an instantaneous success with Miss Torres' father. He was +ready to send a dray for my trunks." + +"Let us discuss other things." + +"I haven't the strength. You once spoke of a chap your people had +picked out. It isn't-Alfarez?" + +She let her dark eyes rest upon his a moment, and his senses swam. +Then she nodded slowly. + +"You do not like him?" + +"Just like a nose-bleed. The day you and I are married I'm going +to send him a wreath of poison ivy." + +"It pleases you always to joke." + +"No joke about that. You won't give in, will you?" + +"There is no question of force nor of surrender, senor. I insist +now that we shall speak of other things." + +A few moments later he was constrained to rejoin his hostess' +party. + +"When are you going back to Las Savannas?" he asked, as he +reluctantly arose. + +"To-morrow." + +"The hunting ought to be good-" + +But she frowned at him in annoyance, and he left her, after all, +without knowing whether he had gained or lost ground. Of one thing +only he was sure-their meeting had been in some respects a +disappointment. She was not by any means so warm and impulsive as +he had supposed. Her girlishness, her simplicity, her little +American ways, cloaked a deep reserve and a fine sense of the +difference in their positions. She could be Spanish enough when +she chose, he perceived, and he felt, as he was intended to feel, +that the little lady of quality he had met to-night would be much +harder to win than the girl of the woods. The plague of it was +that, if anything, he was more in love with the definite and +dazzling Gertrudis Garavel than he had been with the mysteriously +alluring Chiquita. If only she were all American, or even all +Spanish, perhaps he would know better how to act. But, +unfortunately, she was both-just enough of both to be perplexing +and wholly unreliable. And then, too, there was Alfarez! + + + + +XX + +AN AWAKENING + + +He was in no more satisfactory frame of mind when, on the next +afternoon, he shouldered his gun and set out for the country. He +went directly to the fairy pool, and waited there in a very fever +of anxiety. Despite the coolness and peace of the place, he felt +his pulses throb and his face burn. If she came, it would mean +everything to him. If she stayed away-why, then he would have to +believe that, after all, the real Gertrudis Garavel had spoken +last night at the opera, and that the sprightly, mirthful little +maid who had bewitched him on their first meeting no longer +existed. An odd bashfulness overtook him. It did not seem to him +that it could possibly have been he who had talked to her so +boldly only the evening before. At the thought of his temerity he +felt almost inclined to flee, yet he would not have deserted his +post for worlds. The sound of a voice shot through his troubled +thoughts like a beam of sunlight through a dark room. + +"Oh, Senor Antonio! How you startled me!" + +Instantly his self-possession came back. He felt relieved and gay. + +"Good-afternoon, queen!" He rose and bowed politely. "I thought I +saw one underneath the waterfall just now." + +"Who would have expected you to be here?" she cried, with an +extreme and obviously counterfeit amazement that filled him with +delight. + +"I'm lost," he declared; then, after one look into her eyes, he +added, "Absolutely, utterly, irretrievably lost." + +"It is very fortunate that I chanced to be passing, for this is a +lonely spot; nobody ever comes here." + +"Well, I hardly ever lose myself in busy places. Won't you sit +down?" + +"Since we have met quite by accident, perhaps it would not be so +very improper," She laughed mischievously. + +"You know I've been lost now for several months. It's a delightful +feeling-you ought to try it." + +She settled uncertainly beside him like a butterfly just +alighting, ready to take flight again, on the instant. + +"Perhaps I can help you to find your way, senor?" she said, with +ingenuous politeness. + +"You are the only one who can, Miss Garavel. I don't know that I +ever told you, but I'm in love." + +"Indeed?" + +"I am the most miserably happy person in the world, for I have +just this moment begun to believe that the young lady likes me a +little bit." + +"Oh! But I forgot the real reason why I came. I have something I +must tell you." + +"All right. But honestly now, didn't you WANT to come?" + +She turned upon him in a little burst of passion. "Yes!" she +cried. "Of course I did! I wished to come, madly, senor. There is +no use to lie. But wait! It is wholly because I am a-what you call +fleert-a very sad fleert." No one could possibly describe the +quaint pronunciation she gave the word. "It makes my heart patter, +like that"--she made her little fingers "patter"-"to be wooed even +by a Yankee. But I do not love you in the least. Oh no! Even if I +wished to do so, there are too many reasons why I could not, and +when I explain you will understand." + +"I know; it's Ramon Alfarez. You're half-way engaged to him--but +you know you don't love him." + +"Ah! It is not too sure. He is of fine family, he is rich, he is +handsome-not possibly could I care for any man who was not all of +those. All my life I have thought him a very sweet gentleman, and +for a long time it has been agreed that I should be his wife. Even +all the young ladies are furious at me, which is very nice also-so +it is only because I am disobedient that I rebelled. But I was +punished for my evil disposition." She sighed mournfully. "And now +it is all arranged once more." + +"Is it really signed, sealed, stamped, and delivered in the +presence of?" + +"No, no; but 'Arco siempre armado'-" + +"Of course. Is that a prescription?" + +'"A bow long bent grows weak.' And there are so many reasons why I +should say yes." + +"You haven't mentioned any that would be binding in law." + +"My father's wish. Is not that sufficient?" + +"You disregarded that once." + +"That was but a flutter. All the time I knew I should be Ramon's +wife when the time arrived. But it made him so unhappy that I was +quite pleased. Only for those ugly blue dresses, I would have +greatly enjoyed my penance. Perhaps I could refuse to wed a man my +father chose for me, but no nice Spanish girl would dare to wed a +man her father did not like. Do you see?" + +"But it's no cinch your father won't positively hunger for me, +once we get chummy." + +"And I for Ramon? How sad that would be, eh?" + +"Really, now, couldn't you bring yourself to marry a chap who +wasn't aristocratic, rich, and handsome? You know that's a tough +combination. Most aristocratic people are poor, and the rich ones +have dyspepsia." + +"Oh no! I am quite certain." + +"Suppose I should show you a family tree that you couldn't throw a +stone over?" + +"It would not do at all. I am so extravagant." + +"I fully intend to be rich, some time." + +"But you are not handsome, senor." Her eyes travelled over him +with a mischievous twinkle. "You are too beeg." + +"I'm very durable; I'd last a long time." + +She shook her dark head decisively, and he saw the lights that +rippled in her profuse crown of hair. + +"You are too different, you disregard our customs, you are bold. +You continue to come here against my wishes, which no Spanish +gentleman would dare to do." + +"Oh, I'm no Spanish gentleman. I'm just an emotional blond; but +I'm bound to marry you." + +"If one of my countrymen found me so indiscreet as to talk with +him alone like this, he would go away and never come back. I am +amazed at you, senor. Have you no pride?" + +"Not a bit; and now that I have met all your objections, let's +arrange the details. Shall it be a church wedding?" + +She laughed deliciously. "What a nice game it is we have played! +But now I must talk seriously." + +"You witch!" he breathed. "Do you think I could ever give you up?" + +She checked him gravely. "Truly, it was just a game--and yet it was +not altogether so, either. But here is what I came to say. The +strangest thing has happened-not until last night after the opera +did I even dream of it, and-even now I cannot believe. Oh, I am so +proud!" + +"More bad news for me, I suppose." + +"Yes. But such good news for me that I am sure you will be glad." +Timidly he reached out and touched a fold of her white dress. She +seemed to be slipping from him. "Coming home from the theatre my +father told me-oh, the most wonderful thing! He said-but how shall +I speak of such a secret?" + +"Evidently you don't intend to." + +"I promised very faithfully not to tell, so-he is to be the next +President of Panama." + +"Pres--" Anthony stared at her in frank amazement. "Why, I thought +old man Alfarez--" + +"It seems your country does not like him because he hates +Americans-see? This is the work of that Mr. Cortlandt. Think! Is +it not wonderful? Now that you know the truth, you must see at +once that by no means could I marry to a person like you." + +"Why not?" + +"Ohe! Don't you understand? I shall be the finest lady in the +Republic. All men will adore me. I will have suitors-not one or +two as now, but many. I will be 'the beautiful Senorita Garavel,' +for all the great people are beautiful. I shall be proud, also, +and I shall not even speak to Yankees any more. My father will be +the most famous man of all the Republic-perhaps in the whole +world, I don't know." + +"I don't think it will make any difference with him when he knows +who I am." + +"Then you also are a great man, eh?" She hitched herself about, to +face him more squarely. "That is truly interesting. He would +scarcely wish a railroad conductor to address the daughter of +President Garavel." + +"Oh, I've been promoted since I was out here last. Anyhow, I guess +my dad is pretty nearly as good as anybody in Panama." + +"He is, then, of blue blood?" + +"No! Red." + +"Oh, but a gentleman!" + +"He is now. He used to be a brakeman." + +"You appear to be-proud of such a thing! How strange! My father's +blood runs back to the conquistadors; even in the earliest books +one finds Garavels. They were conquerors, they ruled this country +and all these people." + +"That's something to be proud of, but it isn't everything. High- +bred horses run well, but they can't pull. It's the old farm nag +that delivers the merchandise. But I'll tackle your father, and +I'll promise to vote for him." + +"You are very fonny." She gazed at him seriously, one tiny foot +curled under her, her chin nestling into her palm. + +"Do you love me?" + +"Not one single speck. I merely like you to make love at me and +cause my heart to jomp! But that is not fair to you, is it?-since +you can have no hope." + +The little hypocrite continued to voice words of warning and +denial, though her eyes invited him, and for a long time they +continued this delightful play of pleading and evasion. But at +last Chiquita jumped up with a great appearance of alarm. + +"Heavens! the time," she cried. "I have stayed too long by much. +Stephanie will miss me." + +He rose and stretched out his hand as if to hold her. + +"Shall I come again to-morrow?" + +She grew suddenly earnest. + +"No, no, senor. That is something you should not ask. If ever we +are to meet again, it must be with my father's consent. Please! Do +not urge, for truly I would have to refuse." She let her palm rest +in his an instant, and her cheek went scarlet as he pressed it to +his lips. Then she said: "Go, Mr. Brazen One. How greatly it +surprised me to find you here I cannot say. It gave me such a +start! And, Senor Antonio--my father may be found any day at his +bank." Before he could detain her she was gone, flitting up the +path with just one flashing smile of mischief over her shoulder. + +Anthony went home with his head in the clouds. All his doubts were +now at rest; for while Chiquita had stubbornly denied him all +encouragement, he felt sure that her heart had answered. It was in +the highest spirits, therefore, that he opened a letter he found +awaiting him, and read as follows: + +DEAR KIRK,--I hope you are heartily sick of yourself and ready to +do something decent for a change. Knowing your aristocratic habits +as I do, I realize you must owe a lot of money by this time, and +your new friends must be getting tired of you. I have been +expecting you to draw on me daily, and am taking this occasion to +warn you in your own expensively acquired college English that +"THERE IS NOTHING DOING"--except upon one condition. If you will +agree to behave yourself in future, I will pay your debts, send +you West, and give you a job as operator at forty dollars a month. +BUT--you will go where I send you, and you will stay where you are +put. I will do the thinking for both of us and judge of your +associates. Maybe if you prove to be any good at all, I will +arrange with the police to let you spend your vacations in "that +dear New York," which still shows signs of your red--paint brush. +I would be pleased to have an apology by return mail, so that I +may meet you in New Orleans and start you off once more on the +road to decency and self-respect. You will never be a success at +anything, but I am always ready to do my duty. This is my last +offer, and if you refuse you may distinctly and definitely go to +the devil. As ever, + +Your loving father, DARWIN K. ANTHONY. + +P.S.--I can get GOOD operators for thirty dollars a month. The +extra ten dollars is pure sentiment. + +Kirk had known in advance just about what the letter contained, +and now laughed aloud. It was so like the old gentleman! Why, he +could almost hear him dictating it. + +Spurred by his present exhilaration, he wrote an answer, which he +read with a good deal of satisfaction before sealing it up. + +DEAR DAD,-Your affectionate letter, with the kind offer to take +charge of a siding out in the Dakotas, is at hand. I would like to +help you along with your business, but "Upward and onward" is my +motto, and you'll have to raise that salary a bit. I am drawing +two hundred and twenty-five dollars a month at present, quarters +furnished and promotion promised. I have made some good +investments, and there are no debts to settle. Enclosed find my +last bank statement, which will doubtless prove a great +disappointment to you. + +If you need a good Master of Transportation, I would be pleased to +consider an offer at any time, provided the salary is +satisfactory, but your proposal to edit my acquaintances is out of +the question. My decency and self respect are doing well, thank +you, and I like the climate. + +Outside my window a mocking-bird sings nightly, and I have a tame +rabbit with ears like a squirrel and baby-blue eyes--also a +Jamaican negro boy who, I fear, could not stand our harsh Northern +winters. + +The salary would have to be about six thousand a year. As always, + +Your devoted and obedient son, KIRK. + +P.S.--I would not care to locate farther west than Buffalo. My +wife might not like it. + +"If he survives the first part, that tag line will put him down +for the count," mused the writer, with a grin. "And, yet, +something tells me he will not embrace my offer. Ah, well! +Promotion is slow." He whistled blithely as he sent Allan off to +the post-office. + +Kirk lost no time in calling at the bank, but was disappointed to +learn that Senor Andres Garavel had left the city for an +unexpected business tour of the Provinces and would not return for +at least two weeks. At first he was inclined to doubt the truth of +this statement, but a casual inquiry from Mrs. Cortlandt confirmed +it, and, cursing his luck, he sought distraction where he could +most easily find it. + +In the days that followed he saw nothing of Gertrudis, but a good +deal of Edith Cortlandt. She had redeemed her promise of getting +him a good horse-something rare in this country-and he was +grateful for the exercise, which came as a welcome relief from his +indoor toil. They rode almost daily; he dined at her house, and +once again made one of her party at the opera. Soon their old +friendly intercourse was going on as if it had never been +interrupted. + +As for Edith, this unsatisfying, semi-public intimacy came to be +quite as much a pain as a pleasure to her. During these past few +weeks she had been plunged in a mental turmoil, the signs of which +she had concealed with difficulty. She had fought with herself; +she had tried to reason; she had marshalled her pride, but all in +vain. At last she awoke to the terrifying certainty that she was +in love. It had all begun with that moment of impulsive surrender +at Taboga. The night following had been terrible to her. In its +dark hours she had seen her soul for the first time, and the +glimpse she got frightened her. Following this, she became furious +with herself, then resentful toward Anthony; next she grew +desperate and reckless. + +She began to look upon her husband with a quickened curiosity, and +found him a stranger. For years she had made allowance for his +weaknesses, ignoring them as she ignored his virtues; but never +before had he appeared so colorless, so insignificant, above all +so alien. She had barely tolerated him hitherto, but now she began +to despise him. + +If Cortlandt was aware of her change of feeling and its cause, his +method of dealing with her showed some keenness. Silent contempt +was what she could least endure from him of all men; yet this was +just what his manner toward her expressed-if it expressed +anything. Beyond those words as they were leaving the island, he +had said nothing, had never referred to the incident, had not so +much as mentioned Anthony's name unless forced to do so, and this +offended her unreasonably. She caught him regarding her strangely +at times with a curious, faltering expression, but he was so icy +in his reserve, he yielded so easily to her predominance, that she +could divine nothing and turned the more fiercely to her inward +struggle. Even if he did suspect, what then? It was no affair of +his; she was her own mistress. She had given him all he possessed, +she had made a man of him. He was her creature, and had no rights +beyond what she chose to give. They saw less and less of each +other. He became more formal, more respectfully unhusbandlike. He +spent few daylight hours in the house, coming and going as he +pleased, frequenting the few clubs of the city, or riding alone. +On more than one occasion he met her and Anthony on their horses. +Only before others, or at their frequent political councils, were +they quite the same as they had been. + +Of Anthony, on the other hand, she arranged to see more than ever, +flattering him by a new deference in her manner, making him feel +always at ease with her, watching him vainly for the least sign of +awakening desire. In their frequent rides they covered most of the +roads about the city, even to the ruins of old Panama. Then they +began to explore the by-paths and trails. + +One afternoon they turned into an unfrequented road that led off +to the jungle from the main highway, walking their horses while +they marvelled at the beauty of the foliage. The trail they knew +led to a coffee plantation far up among the hills, but it was so +little travelled that the verdure brushed them as they went, and +in many places they passed beneath a roof of branches. Before they +had penetrated a quarter of a mile they were in the midst of an +unbroken solitude, shut off from the world by a riotous glory of +green, yellow, and crimson. They had not spoken for a long time, +and were feeling quite content with the pleasant monotony of-- +their journey, when they burst out into a rocky glen where a +spring of clear water bubbled forth. With a common impulse they +reined in; Twenty feet farther on the trail twisted into the +screen of verdure and was lost. + +"What a discovery!" exclaimed Edith. "Help me down, please, I'm +going to drink." + +Kirk dismounted and lent her a hand; the horses snorted +appreciatively, and stepping forward, thrust their soft muzzles +eagerly into the stream, then fell to browsing upon the tender +leaves at their shoulders. + +Edith quenched her thirst, shook the cramp from her limbs, and +said: "Some time we will have to see where this road leads. There +may be more surprises beyond." She broke a flower from its stem +and fastened it in Kirk's buttonhole, while he gazed down at her +with friendly eyes. + +"You're looking awfully well lately," he declared. + +Glancing up, she met his gaze and held it for an instant. "It's +the open air and the exercise. I enjoy these rides with you more +than I can say." Something in her look gave him a little thrill of +embarrassment. + +"I think I'll give Marquis and Gyp their dessert," he said, and, +turning aside, began to gather a handful of the greenest leaves. +The instant his eyes were off her, she took the horses by their +bridles, swung them about, and with a sharp blow of her riding- +crop sent them snorting and clattering down the trail. Kirk +wheeled barely in time to see them disappearing. + +"Here!" he cried, sharply. "What are you doing?" + +"They bolted." + +"They'll hike straight for town. Now I'll have to chase--" He +glanced at her sharply. "Say, why did you do that?" + +"Because I wanted to. Isn't that reason enough?" Her eyes were +reckless and her lips white. + +"You shouldn't do a thing like that!" he cried, gruffly. "It's +foolish. Now I'll have to run them down." + +"Oh, you can't catch them." + +"Well, I'll have a try at it, anyhow." He tossed away his handful +of leaves. + +"Silly! I did it because I wanted to talk with you." + +"Well, those horses wouldn't overhear." + +"Don't be angry, Kirk. I haven't seen you alone since that night." + +"Taboga?" he said, guiltily. "You're not going to lecture me +again? I'm sorry enough as it is." Never in all his life had he +felt more uncomfortable. He could not bring himself to meet her +gaze, feeling that his own face must be on fire. + +"What a queer chap you are! Am I so unattractive that you really +want to rush off after those horses?" He said nothing, and she +went on after a moment of hesitation: "I have known men who would +have thought it a privilege to be left alone with me like this." + +"I--have no doubt." + +"You remember, for instance, I told you there was one man at +Taboga whom I did not wish to see?" + +"Yes--at the sanitarium." + +"Well, something like this happened once--with him--and I told +Stephen." + +"And did you tell Mr. Cortlandt what I did?" + +"Do you think I would have come riding with you if I had?" She +shook her head. "Kirk, I used to think you were an unusually +forward young man, but you're not very worldly, are you?" + +"N-no--yes! I guess I'm as wise as most fellows." + +"Sometimes I think you are very stupid." + +He began firmly: "See here, Mrs. Cortlandt, you have been mighty +good to me, and I'm indebted to you and your husband for a whole +lot. I am terribly fond of you both." + +She clipped a crimson bloom from its stem with a vicious blow of +her crop, then, with eyes fixed upon the fallen flower, broke the +awkward pause that followed. + +"I suppose," she said, half defiantly, "you know how things are +with Stephen and me--everybody must know, I suppose. I have done a +lot of thinking lately, and I have made up my mind that the last +appeal of what is right or wrong lies with one's self. I'm not +going to care any longer what the world thinks of my actions so +long as my own heart justifies them. Happiness--that is what I +want, and I will have it--I will have it at any cost. It is my +right. Because a woman marries without love, is it right for her +to forego love all her life? I think not." + +She looked up, and with a change of tone ran on swiftly: "I have +studied you for a long time, Kirk. I know the sort of man you are. +I know you better than you know yourself. Very lately I have begun +to study myself, too, and I know, at last, the sort of woman I +am." She drew near and laid a hand on each shoulder, forcing him +to look straight into her eyes. "I am not like most women; I can't +do things by halves; I can't temporize with vital things; I prefer +to experiment, even blindly. I used to think I was born to rule, +but I think now that a woman's only happiness lies in serving; and +I used to believe I was contented, when all the time I was waiting +for something and didn't know it. Don't be silly now; you're just +like every other man." + +"I can't pretend to misunderstand you, although--Listen!" He cut +his words short. "Here comes some one." + +She turned her head, as from the direction their mounts had taken +came the sound of approaching hoots. + +"Natives from the hills." She nodded carelessly toward the purple +mountains back of them. But the next moment she gave a little gasp +of consternation. Out from the overhung path, with a great +rustling of leaves, came, not the expected flea-bitten Panama +horse, but a familiar bay, astride of which was Stephen Cortlandt. +He was leading Marquis and Gyp by their bridles, and reined in at +sight of his wife and her companion. + +"Hello!" he said. "I caught your horses for you." + +"Jove! That's lucky!" Kirk greeted the husband's arrival with +genuine relief. "They bolted when we got down to take a drink, and +we were getting ready for a long walk. Thanks, awfully." + +"No trouble at all. I saw them as they came out on the main road." +Cortlandt's pigskin saddle creaked as he bent forward to deliver +the reins. He was as cool and immaculate as ever. He met Edith's +eyes without the slightest expression. "Nice afternoon for a +ride." + +"If I had known you were riding to-day you might have come with +us," she said. + +He smiled in his wintry fashion, then scanned the surroundings +appreciatively. + +"Pretty spot, isn't it? If you are going back, I'll ride with +you." + +"Good enough. May I give you a hand, Mrs. Cortlandt?" Kirk helped +Edith to her seat, at which her husband bowed his thanks. Then the +three set out in single file. + +"Which way?" inquired Stephen as they reached the highroad. + +"Back to town, I think," Edith told him, "And you?" + +"I'm not ready yet. See you later." He raised his hat and cantered +easily away, while the other two turned their horses' heads toward +the city. + + + + +XXI + +THE REST OF THE FAMILY + + +The time for Senor Garavel's return having arrived, Kirk called at +the bank, and found not the least difficulty in gaining an +audience. Indeed, as soon as he had reminded the banker of their +former meeting, he was treated with a degree of cordiality that +surpassed his expectations. + +"I remember quite well, sir," said Garavel--"'La Tosca.' Since you +are a friend of Mrs. Cortlandt I shall be delighted to serve you." + +Now that they were face to face, Kirk felt that he distinctly +approved of Chiquita's father. This dignified, distinguished- +looking gentleman awaited his pleasure with an air of leisurely +courtesy that would have made him under other circumstances very +easy of approach. But there was a keenness in his dark eyes that +suggested the futility of beating round the bush. Kirk felt +suddenly a little awkward. + +"I have something very particular to say to you," he began, +diffidently, "but I don't know just how to get at it." + +Garavel smiled graciously. "I am a business man." + +"This isn't business," blurted Kirk; "it's much more important. I +want to have it over as quickly as possible, so I'll be frank. I +have met your daughter, Mr. Garavel"--the banker's eyes widened in +a look of disconcerting intensity--"and I am in love with her-- +sort of a shock, isn't it? It was to me. I'd like to tell you who +I am and anything else you may wish to know." + +"My dear sir, you surprise me--if you are really serious. Why, you +have seen her but once--a moment, at the theatre!" + +"I met her before that night, out at your country place. I had +been hunting, and on my way home through the woods I stumbled upon +your swimming-pool. She directed me to the road." + +"But even so!" + +"Well, I loved her the first instant I saw her." + +"I knew nothing of this. If you had reason to think that your suit +would be acceptable, why did you not come to me before?" + +"I couldn't. I didn't know your name. I was nearly crazy because I +couldn't so much as learn the name of the girl I loved!" Kirk +plunged confusedly into the story of his search for Chiquita. + +"That is a strange tale," said Senor Garavel, when he had +finished--"a very strange tale--and yet you did well to tell it +me. At present I do not know what to think. Young men are prone to +such romantic fancies, rash and ill-considered. They are, perhaps, +excusable, but---" + +"Oh, I suppose you can't understand how a fellow falls so deep in +love on such short acquaintance, but I have been brooding over +this for months--there's nothing hasty or ill-considered about it, +I can assure you. I am terribly hard hit, sir; it means everything +to me." + +"If you would tell me something about yourself, I might know +better in what light to regard this affair." + +"Gladly--though there isn't much to tell. Just now I'm working on +the P.R.R. as assistant to Runnels--the Master of Transportation, +you know. I like the work and expect to be promoted. I have a +little money--just enough to give me a fresh start if I should +lose out here, and--oh, well, I'm poor but honest; I suppose +that's about the size of it." He paused, vaguely conscious that he +had not done himself justice. What else was there to say about +Kirk Anthony? Then he added as an afterthought: + +"My father is a railroad man, in Albany, New York." + +"In what capacity is he employed, may I ask?" said Garavel, +showing something like real interest. + +Kirk grinned at this, and, seeing a copy of Bradstreet's on the +banker's table, turned to his father's name, which he pointed out +rather shamefacedly. Senor Garavel became instantly less distant. + +"Of course the financial world knows Darwin K. Anthony," said he. +"Even we modest merchants of the tropics have heard of him; and +that his son should seek to win success upon his own merits is +greatly to his credit. I congratulate you, sir, upon your +excellent progress." + +"I hope to make good," said Kirk, simply, "and I think I can." +Then he flushed and hesitated as a realization of the situation +swept over him. Could he gain the favor of Chiquita's father under +false pretences? Surely it was only just that a man should stand +upon his own merits, and yet--it didn't seem quite right. At +length, he said, with an effort: + +"I ought to tell you, sir, that I am not on good terms with my +father, at present. In fact, he has cast me off. That is why I am +here supporting myself by hard work, instead of living in +idleness. But I'm beginning to like the work--and I'll make good-- +I'll do it if only to show my father his mistake. That's what I +care about most. I don't want his money. It's easier to make money +than I thought. But I must succeed, for his sake and my own." + +Despite his embarrassment, his face shone with sudden enthusiasm. +He looked purposeful and aggressive, with a certain sternness that +sat well upon his young manhood. Garavel lifted his brows. + +"May I inquire the cause of this--estrangement?" + +"Oh, general worthlessness on my part, I suppose. Come to think of +it, I must have been a good deal of a cross. I never did anything +very fierce, though." He smiled a little sadly. "I don't wonder +that I fail to impress you." + +A quick light of thought flashed through the banker's eyes. He was +a keen judge of men. + +"Well, well," he said, with a trace of impatience, "there is no +need to go into the matter further. Your proposal is impossible-- +for many reasons it is impossible, and yet--your spirit is +commendable." + +"Does that mean you won't even allow me to see your daughter?" + +"It would be useless." + +"But I love Gertrudis," said Kirk, desperately. + +Garavel looked a trifle pitying. + +"You are by no means the first," he said; "I have been besieged by +many, who say always the same thing--without Gertrudis they +cannot, they will not, they should not live. And yet I have heard +of no deaths. At first I was greatly concerned about them--poor +fellows--but most of them are married now, so I not do take your +words too seriously." He laughed good-naturedly. "You unemotional +Americans do not love at first sight." + +"I_ do, sir." + +"Tut! It is but admiration for a beautiful girl who--I say it--is +wicked enough to enjoy creating havoc. Take time, my boy, and you +will smile at this madness. Now, let us talk of something else." + +"It is no use, sir, I have it bad." + +"But when you make such a request as this, you assume to know the +young lady's wishes in the matter." + +"Not at all. Without your consent I don't believe she'd allow +herself to even like me. That is why I want to fix it with you +first." + +"In that, at least, you are quite right, for Gertrudis is a good +girl, and obedient, as a general rule; but--it is impossible. Her +marriage has been arranged." + +"Do you think that is quite fair to her? If she loves Ramon +Alfarez---" + +Once again Garavel's brows signalled surprise. "Ah, you know?" + +"Yes, sir. I was about to say, if she really loves him, I can't +make any difference; but suppose she should care for me?" + +"Again it could make no difference, once she had married Ramon. +But she is too young to know her own mind. These young girls are +impressionable, romantic, foolish. I can see no object in +deliberately courting trouble. Can you? In affairs of the heart it +is well to use judgment and caution--qualities which come only +with age. Youth is headstrong and blinded by dreams, hence it is +better that marriage should be arranged by older persons." + +"Exactly! That's why I want you to arrange mine." The banker +smiled in spite of himself, for he was not without a sense of +humor, and the young man's sincerity was winning. + +"It is out of the question," he said; "useless to discuss. +Forgetting for the moment all other considerations, there is an +obstacle to your marriage into a Spanish family, which you do not +stop to consider--one which might well prove insurmountable. I +speak of religion." + +"No trouble there, sir." + +"You are, then, a Catholic?" + +"It was my mother's faith, and I was brought up in it until she +died. After that, I--sort of neglected it. You see, I am more of a +Catholic than anything else." + +"What we call a 'bad Catholic'?" + +"Yes, sir. But if I were not, it wouldn't make any difference. +Chiquita is my religion." "Who?" The father started. + +"I--I call her that," Kirk explained, in confusion. "To myself, of +course." + +"Indeed! So do I," said Senor Garavel, dryly. For a moment he +frowned in meditation. There were many things to consider. +He felt a certain sympathy for this young man, with his +straightforwardness and artless brusquerie. Moreover, though the +banker was no great respecter of persons, the mention of Darwin K. +Anthony had impressed him. If Kirk were all that he seemed, he had +no doubt of the ultimate reconciliation of father and son. At all +events, it would do no harm to learn more of this extraordinary +suitor, and meanwhile he must treat him with respect while +carefully guarding his own dignity against possibly impertinent +advances. + +"She has been promised to Ramon," he said, at last, "and I have +considered her future quite settled. Of course, such arrangements +are frequently altered for various causes, even at the last +moment, but--quien sabe?" He shrugged his shoulders. "She may not +wish to entertain your suit. So why discuss it? Why make plans or +promises? It is a matter to be handled with the greatest delicacy; +there are important issues linked with it. Where there is the +prospect of an alliance between two houses--of business or +politics--you will understand that according to our ideas, those +considerations must govern--absolutely. Otherwise--I do not know-- +I can say nothing to encourage you except--that, for a young man I +have known so very short a time"--he smiled genially--"you have +impressed me not unfavorably. I thank you for coming to me, at any +rate." + +The two men rose and shook hands; Kirk was not altogether cast +down by the result of the interview. He understood the banker's +allusion to the possible change of arrangements, and felt sure +from what Chiquita had told him that the marriage with Ramon could +not take place after the true nature of Garavel's political +aspirations became known. In that case, if all went well, it did +not seem impossible that Garavel would give his consent, and then +Gertrudis alone would remain to be won. If, on the other hand, her +father refused his permission--well, there are many ways of +winning a bride. Kirk believed in his lucky star, and had a +constitutional inability to imagine failure. + +The truth was that Andres Garavel had not hesitated long after +that memorable night at the Tivoli before accepting the brilliant +prize which the Cortlandts had dangled so alluringly before his +eyes, and, the decision once made, he had entered into the scheme +with all his soul. He was wise enough, however, to leave his +destiny largely in their hands. This meant frequent councils among +the three, a vast amount of careful work, of crafty intrigue, of +untiring diplomacy, and, although his candidacy had not as yet +been more than whispered, the purple robe of power was daily being +woven, thread by thread. + +It was not long after Kirk's visit to the bank that Garavel, +during one of these conferences, took occasion to bring up the +young man's name. Cortlandt had been called to the telephone, and +Edith was left free to answer without constraint. + +"I have seen you and him riding quite frequently," her guest +remarked, with polite interest. "Is he, then, an old friend?" + +"Yes, we are very fond of him." + +"Your Mr. Runnels believes him most capable; we were speaking of +him but yesterday." + +"Oh, he will be successful, if that's what you mean; I shall see +to that. He has his father's gift for handling men---" + +"You know his father?" + +"Not personally, only by reputation. Kirk will be promoted soon, +by-the-way, although he doesn't know it. He is to replace Runnels +as soon as he is able." + +"Remarkable--and yet I have seen the marvels you work, dear lady. +But is not this a strange sphere of activity for the son of Darwin +K. Anthony?" + +"Oh, he had some kind of falling-out with his father, I believe, +which occasioned his coming here. There was nothing really to +Kirk's discredit--of that I am perfectly sure." + +"It would be unfortunate, indeed, if this breach between father +and son should prove serious." + +"Oh, I dare say it won't. Kirk is certain to succeed, and old +Anthony will come round, if I know American fathers." + +Garavel smiled, well pleased that he had treated his recent +visitor with proper consideration. After all, why not invite the +young fellow to his house? That would be rather a significant step +according to Spanish custom; yet he need not be bound by it. He +could put a stop to the affair at any time. Besides, despite his +frequent protestations to the contrary, he was somewhat influenced +by his daughter's desire for more liberty. It was not fair to her, +he thought in his heart, that she should know only Ramon. One +reason especially appealed to his pride. If a break came between +him and Alfarez, Ramon must not appear to have jilted Gertrudis. +If, meanwhile, she had another suitor, and one of distinguished +family, the affair would wear a better look. It cannot be denied +that the name of Darwin K. Anthony rang musically in his ears. + +"The boy has the right stuff in him," Edith went on. "He began at +the bottom, only a few months ago, preferring to work his way up, +though he was offered a first-rate position to begin with." + +She would have said more, but just at that moment her husband +entered. "You were saying that Alfarez suspects," said Cortlandt, +addressing Garavel. "Has he said anything?" + +"Not to me, as yet, but he surely must know; the rumors must have +reached him. He is cold--and Ramon acts queerly. I feel guilty-- +almost as if I had betrayed a friend." + +"Nonsense! There is no room for fine scruples in politics. We +mustn't be in too great a hurry, though. Things are going +smoothly, and when the time comes you will be called for. But it +must be the voice of the people calling. Bocas, Chiriqui, Colon-- +they must all demand Garavel." Cortlandt sighed. "I shall be very +glad when it is over." He looked more pale, more bloodless, more +world-weary than ever. + +"You need have no fear that it will cause serious trouble between +you and the General," Mrs. Cortlandt assured Garavel. "Ramon +should be able to effect peace, no matter what happens." + +"Ah, I am not so sure that there will be a marriage between +Gertrudis and him. Young ladies are most uncertain when allowed +the slightest liberty." + +"Is she growing rebellious?" Cortlandt inquired. "If I were you, +then, I wouldn't force her. A loveless marriage is a tragic +thing." + +His wife nodded her agreement. + +"Not exactly rebellious. She would do whatever I asked regardless +of her own feelings, for that is the way we Spaniards bring up our +daughters, but--she is cold to Ramon, and he, I believe, is +suspicious of my intentions toward his father. Therefore, the +situation is strained. It is very hard to know what is right in a +case of this sort. The young are impressionable and reckless. +Often what seems to them distasteful is in reality a blessing. It +is not every love-match that turns out so happily as yours, my +dear friends. Well, I suppose I am weak. With Gertrudis I cannot +be severe; but unless it becomes necessary to make conditions with +my old friend Alfarez, I should prefer to let the girl have her +own way." + +As Cortlandt escorted his caller to the door, the Panamanian +paused and said, with genuine solicitude: + +"You look badly, sir. I am afraid you work too hard. I would not +easily forgive myself if this affair of ours caused you to fall +ill." + +"Oh, I am all right--a little tired, that's all. I don't sleep +well." + +"It is worry over this thing." + +Cortlandt smiled crookedly. "I am not the one to worry; I am not +the one at the head. Surely you know what people say--that I am +her office-boy?" + +Garavel found it hard to laugh this off gracefully. "You are too +modest," he said. "I admire the trait, but I also chance to know +the wonderful things you have accomplished. If people say such +things, it is because they do not know and are too small to +understand your voluntary position. It is very fine of you to let +your wife share your work, senor." But he shook his head as the +door closed behind him, really doubting that Cortlandt would prove +physically equal to the coming struggle. + +It was about this time--perhaps two weeks after Kirk had replied +to his father's letter--that Runnels called him in one day to ask: + +"Do you know a man named Clifford?" + +"No." + +"He dropped in this morning, claiming to be a newspaper man from +the States; wanted to know all about everything on the Canal and-- +the usual thing. He didn't talk like a writer, though. I thought +you might know him; he asked about you." + +"Me?" Kirk pricked up his ears. + +"I gathered the impression he was trying to pump me." Runnels eyed +his subordinate shrewdly. "I boosted you." + +"Is he short and thick-set?" + +"No. Tall and thin." As Kirk merely looked at him in a puzzled +way, he continued: "I suppose we're all suspicious down here, +there's so much of that sort of thing. If he has anything on you--" + +"He's got nothing on me." + +"I'm glad of that. You're the best man I have, and that shake-up I +told you about is coming off sooner than I expected. I'd hate to +have anything happen to you. Do you think you could hold down my +job?" + +"WHAT? Do you really mean it?" + +"I do." + +"I think I could, if you would help me." + +Runnels laughed. "That remark shows you haven't developed +Isthmitis, anyhow." + +"What is that?" + +"Well, it's a sort of mental disorder most of us have. We believe +everybody above us is incompetent, and everybody below us is after +our jobs. You'll get it in time--even some of the Commissioners +have it." + +"It goes without saying that I'd like to be Master of +Transportation, but not until you're through." + +"Well, the old man has had another row with Colonel Jolson, and +may not wait for his vacation to quit. I'm promised the vacancy." + +"Then you have seen the Colonel?" + +"No--but I have seen Mrs. Cortlandt. I felt I had a right to ask +something from her in return for what I did for you. I know that +sounds rotten, but you'll understand how it is. Colonel Jolson +wants his brother-in-law, Blakeley, to have the place, but I'm +entitled to it, and she has promised to fix it for me. If I go up, +you go, too; that's why I was worried when this Clifford party +appeared." + +"There IS something, I suppose, I ought to tell you, although it +doesn't amount to much. I was mixed up in a scrape the night I +left New York. A plain-clothes man happened to get his head under +a falling bottle and nearly died from the effects." + +"What was the trouble?" + +"It really wasn't the least bit of trouble, it was fatally easy. +We were out on a grape carnival, six of us. It was an anti- +prohibition festival, and he horned in." + +"There is nothing else?" + +"Nothing." + +"Well, this Clifford party is stopping at the Hotel Central. +Better look him over." + +"I will," said Kirk, feeling more concern than he cared to show, +but his apprehension turned out to be quite unfounded. On +inspection, Clifford proved to bear no resemblance whatever to +Williams, nor did he seem to have any concealed design. He was a +good sort, apparently, with a knack of making himself agreeable, +and in the weeks that followed he and Kirk became quite friendly. +Meanwhile, no word had come from Senor Garavel, and Kirk was +beginning to fret. But just as he had reached the limit of his +patience he received a note which transported him with joy. + +Senor Andres Garavel, he read, would be in the city on the +following Tuesday evening, and would be pleased to have him call. + +Even with his recent experiences of Spanish etiquette, Kirk hardly +realized the extent of the concession that had been made to him. +He knew nothing of the tears, the pleadings, and the spirited +championship of his cause that had overborne the last parental +objection. It was lucky for him that Chiquita was a spoiled child, +and Garavel a very Americanized Spaniard. However, as it was, he +went nearly mad with delight, and when Tuesday came round he +performed his office-work so badly that Runnels took him to task. + +"What the devil has got into you the last few days?" he exclaimed, +irritably. + +"I'm going to see a certain party to-night and I can't contain +myself. I'm about to blow up. That's all." + +"Woman, eh?" + +Kirk grinned. "It has taken months, and I'd begun to think I +wasn't wanted. Oh, I've had a battle." + +"Anybody I know?" + +"Yes, but I can't talk about her. There's a man in the case, see! +I'm going slow to start with." + +Runnels, who had never seen Kirk with any woman except Edith +Cortlandt, formed his own conclusions, helped a bit, perhaps, by +the memory of that conversation with John Weeks on the day of +their ride across the Isthmus. That these conclusions were not +pleasing to him, he showed when he returned to his office. He +stood an instant in thought, looking rather stern, then murmured, +half aloud: "That's one thing I wouldn't stand for." + +Kirk had hard work to refrain from shaving himself twice that +evening, so overcareful was he about his toilet, yet his +excitement was as nothing compared to that of Allan, who looked on +with admiration tempered by anxious criticism. The boy, it seemed, +appropriated to himself the entire credit for the happy ending of +this affair. + +"It will be a grand wedding, sar," he exclaimed. "H'Allan will be +there for giving you away." + +"You don't know enough about me to give me away," Kirk returned, +lightly. + +"I shall be needing some h'expensive garments for the ceremony. I +would h'ahsk you to be so kind--" + +"Not too fast. It hasn't gone quite that far yet." + +"But I shall need to have those garments made by a tailor, and +that will require time. They will be made precisely to resemble +yours, then nobody can tell h'us apart." + +"That's considered genuine flattery, I believe." + +"Would you do me a favor, Master h'Auntony?" + +"Surest thing you know." + +"I shall be waiting in the street to-night. Could you h'arrange to +h'ahsk those fatal questions h'adjoining the window so that I +might h'overhear?" + +"NO! And I don't want you prowling around outside, either. You're +not to follow me, understand! I have enough on my mind as it is." + +The residence of Senor Garavel is considered one of the show +places of Panama. It is of Spanish architecture, built of brick +and stucco, and embellished with highly ornamental iron balconies. +It stands upon a corner overlooking one of the several public +squares, guarded from the street by a breast-high stone wall +crowned with a stout iron fence. Diagonally opposite and running +the full length of the block is a huge weather-stained cathedral, +the front of which is decorated with holy figures, each standing +by itself in a separate niche. In the open church tower are great +chimes which flood the city with melody, and in the corner +fronting upon the intersecting street is a tiny shrine with an +image of the Madonna smiling downward. It is only a little recess +in the wall, with barely room for a few kneeling figures, but at +night its bright radiance illumines the darkness round about and +lends the spot a certain sanctity. + +Contrary to the usual custom, the Garavel mansion has a narrow +yard, almost smothered in tropical plants that crowd one another +through the iron bars and nod at the passers-by. Riotous vines +half screen the balconies: great overhanging red-tiled eaves give +the place an air of coziness which the verdure enhances. A subdued +light was glowing from the lower windows when Anthony mounted the +steps and rang. + +An Indian woman, clad in barbarous colors, her bare feet encased +in sandals, admitted him, and the banker himself met him in the +hall. He led the way into a great barren parlor, where, to Kirk's +embarrassment, he found quite a company gathered. His host +formally presented him to them, one after another. There were +Senor Pedro Garavel, a brother of Andres; Senora Garavel, his +wife, who was fat and short of wind; the two Misses Garavel, their +daughters; then a little, wrinkled, brown old lady in stiff black +silk who spoke no English. Kirk gathered that she was somebody's +aunt or grandmother. Last of all, Gertrudis came shyly forward and +put her hand in his, then glided back to a seat behind the old +lady. Just as they were seating themselves another member of the +family appeared--this time a second cousin from Guatemala. Like +the grandmother, he was as ignorant of English as Kirk was of +Spanish, but he had a pair of frightfully intense black eyes with +which he devoured the American. These orbs exercised an unusual +effect upon the caller; they were unwinking, the lids were wide +open, and the brilliance of the pupils was heightened by the +startling whiteness surrounding them. They were like the eyes of a +frightened horse. + +It was very trying to be the target of so many glances and to know +that he was being studied like a bug beneath a microscope, yet +Kirk managed to keep a degree of self-possession, making up his +mind to display a modest reticence that could not help appearing +admirable. But he soon found that this did not suit. Instead of +resuming their conversation, the entire assemblage of Garavels +waited calmly for their caller to begin, and he realized in a +panic that he was expected to make conversation. He cast about +madly for a topic. + +His host helped him to get started, and he did fairly well until +one of the Misses Garavel began to translate his remarks to the +old lady and the ferocious cousin from Guatemala. As their replies +were not rendered into English, he was left stranded. He knew that +his whole salvation lay in properly impressing his auditors, so he +began again and floundered through a painful monologue. It was not +at all pleasant. It was like being initiated into some secret +order. These strange people sitting so stiff and watchful formed +an inquisitorial body. The night suddenly turned off swelteringly +hot; perspiration began to trickle down his brow, his collar +became a tourniquet, and he cast appealing glances at the silent +figure hidden demurely behind the rustly old lady in the black +harness. The look of mingled pity and understanding she gave him +somewhat revived his fainting spirit, and he determined to stick +it out until the family were ready to retire and allow him a word +with her alone. But, idle hope! Gradually it dawned upon him that +they had no such intention. To relieve the strain, he became +facetious and told funny stories; but this was an unlucky +experiment, for his witticisms fell with a ghastly hollowness. No +one laughed save the grandmother and the Guatemalan cousin, who +could not understand, and at this Kirk fled helter-skelter from +the realms of humor. + +By now his collar had given up the struggle and lain limply down +to rest. The whole experience was hideous, yet he understood quite +well that these people were not making sport of him. All this was +only a part of their foreign customs. They were gentlefolk, reared +to a different code from his--that was all--and, since he had +elected to come among them, he could only suffer and be strong. + +In time he became sufficiently inured to the situation to take in +the details of the room, which were truly markable. To begin with, +the parlor walls entirely lacked the sort of decoration to which +he was used; the furniture, costly and rare in itself, was +arranged stiffly in a square about the room, the precise +geometrical centre being occupied by a great urn of impressive +ugliness. A richly carved mahogany "what-not" against one wall was +laden with sea-shells and other curios. At various points about +the room were many statuettes, vases, and figures, of every +conceivable size and shape--some of bisque, others of common +pottery, a few of exquisite marble--all standing upon the floor. A +tremendous French chandelier of sparkling crystal cascaded +downward from an American ceiling of pressed metal; at regular +intervals around the wall were panels painted to resemble marble. +Crouched upon a rug in one corner was a life-size figure of what +seemed to be a tiger, perfectly colored and made of porcelain. It +had tremendous glass eyes, larger even than the cousin's from +Guatemala, and they shone with a hypnotic intensity that was +disturbing. Kirk wanted to kick it and cry "Scat!" Hidden in other +desolate quarters of the room were similar studies in animal life. +These anomalous surroundings by turns depressed him and provoked +an insane desire to laugh. + +What he ever talked about during that evening he never quite +remembered. At one time the Cholo girl who had admitted him +entered noiselessly, bearing silver plates of fruit, and shortly +afterward he found himself trying to balance upon his knee a plate +of pineapple soaked in spice and wine, a fork, a napkin starched +as stiffly as a sheet of linoleum, and a piece of cake which +crumbled at a look. It was a difficult bit of juggling, but he +managed to keep one or two of the articles in the air almost +continuously. + +When it came time to leave he expected at least to be allowed a +farewell word or two with Gertrudis, but instead he was bowed out +as ceremoniously as he had been bowed in, and, finding himself at +last in the open, sighed with relief. He felt like a paroled +prisoner, but he thought of the girl's glance of sympathy and was +instantly consoled. He crossed slowly to the Plaza, pausing a +moment for a good-night look at the house, then, as he turned, he +caught a glimpse of a figure slinking into the shadows of the +side-street, and smiled indulgently. Evidently Allan had been +unable to resist the temptation to follow, after all, and had hung +about hoping to overhear his hero at his best. But when he had +reached his quarters he was surprised to find the boy there ahead +of him. + +"How did you beat me home?" he inquired. + +"I have been waiting h'impatiently ever since you went out. To be +sure, I have had one little dream--" + +"Didn't you follow me to the Garavels'?" + +"Oh, boss! Never would I do such." + +Seeing that the negro was honest, Kirk decided that somebody had +been spying upon him, but the matter was of so little consequence +that he dismissed it from his mind. + +"And what said your female upon your proposal of marriage?" Allan +inquired. "Praise God, I shall h'expire of suspense if you do not +cha-at me the truth." + +"Oh, there was a chorus of her relatives in the room. They sat in +my lap all the evening." + +"Perhaps it is fartunate, after all. This senorita is rich 'ooman, +and therefar she would be h'expensive for us." + +Kirk managed to drive him forth after some effort, and straightway +retired to dream of timid Spanish girls who peeped at him from +behind old ladies, porcelain tigers that laughed inanely at his +jokes, and Guatemalan gentlemen with huge hypnotic eyes of glass. + + + + +XXII + +A CHALLENGE AND A CONFESSION + + +Although Runnels had spoken with confidence of the coming shake-up +in the railroad organization, it was not without a certain +surprise that he awoke one morning to find himself actively in +charge of the entire system. He lost no time in sending for Kirk, +who took the news of their joint advancement with characteristic +equanimity. + +"Now, there is nothing cinched yet, understand," the Acting +Superintendent cautioned him. "We're all on probation, but if we +make good, I think we'll stick." + +"I'll do my best to fill your shoes." + +"And I have the inside track on Blakeley, in spite of Colonel +Jolson, so I'm not alarmed. The break came sooner than I expected, +and now that we chaps are in control it's the chance of our +lifetimes." + +Kirk nodded. "You're entitled to all you get, but I've never quite +understood how I managed to forge ahead so fast. Why, there are +dozens of fellows here who know more than I, and who could do +better. I've been mighty lucky." + +"You don't really call it luck, do you?" Runnels looked at him +curiously. + +"I'm not conceited enough to think I'm a downright genius." + +"Why, the Cortlandts engineered everything. It was they who +arranged your promotion to the office in the first place, and +they're behind this last affair. They have stood back of you at +every step, and, incidentally; back of me and the other boys." + +"When you say 'they' you of course mean 'she'." + +"Of course. One has to recognize him, though--as the head of the +family. And he really did have a part in it, too; at least, if he +had been against us we never would have won." + +"I can't pretend that I didn't suspect," said Kirk slowly, "but I +did hope I'd made good on my own merits." + +Runnels laughed. "You have made good all right, or you couldn't go +forward; but this is a government job, and fellows like us aren't +big enough to get through on our own merits. One has to be a real +world-beater to do that. If the Cortlandts hadn't backed us, some +other chaps with influence would have stepped in above us. Take +Blakeley, for instance. He is nothing extra, and he doesn't know +half as much about this business as I do; but he's the brother-in- +law of Colonel Jolson, and he'd have landed the job sure if it +hadn't been for our friends. You'd better let your conscience take +a nap." + +"I'd like to show the Cortlandts that we appreciate what they've +done, but we can't openly thank her without humiliating him. I'd +like to give him something." + +"Suppose we give him a quiet little supper, some night, and tell +him frankly how grateful we are. He's the sort to appreciate a +thing like that, and it would be a delicate way of thanking his +wife, too." + +"Good! I'll speak to the other fellows, and now the Acting Master +of Transportation is going to shake with the new Acting +Superintendent, and wish him every success." + +Runnels grasped the outstretched hand. + +"Say, Anthony," he said, "we're young and we have a start. I have +what you lack, and you have what I lack; if we stick together, +we'll own a railroad some day. Is it a go?" + +"You bet!" + +With a warm glow in his breast, the new Master of Transportation +plunged into his duties. He really was making a success, it +seemed, although it was a bit disappointing to learn that he owed +so much of it to Edith Cortlandt. At the same time he couldn't +help thinking that his efforts had entitled him to reasonable +success, and, anyhow, it was pleasant to feel that at no point in +his scramble up the ladder had he elbowed off some other man more +deserving, perhaps, than he. This last advancement, too, was very +timely, for it would surely have its effect upon Andres Garavel. + +But his new work brought new troubles and worries. Runnels helped +him whenever he could, yet Kirk was left largely to his own +devices, and learned for the first time what real responsibility +was like. He began to sleep shorter hours; he concentrated with +every atom of determination in him; he drove himself with an iron +hand. He attacked his task from every angle, and with his fine +constitution and unbounded youthful energy he covered an amazing +quantity of work. He covered it so well, moreover, that Runnels +complimented him. + +This stress of labor served one purpose for which he was very +grateful; it separated him from Edith Cortlandt and took his mind +from that occurrence in the jungle. Ever since the day of his last +ride with her, he had been tortured with the most unpleasant +thoughts. He confessed to forgetting himself briefly that night at +Taboga, but he had believed that she understood--that she regarded +him only as a chum and a companion. Therefore her open surrender, +coming so unexpectedly had dumfounded him. As he looked back upon +the incident now, it seemed inconceivable, yet her words, her +expression, her reckless abandon at that moment, were too +significant to allow of misunderstanding. Still, by dint of +determination and stern attention to his tasks, he was able to put +the matter almost wholly from his mind. + +Soon after his promotion he received from Andres Garavel a warmly +worded note of congratulation, and some few days later an +invitation to dine, which he accepted eagerly. + +The dinner proved to be another disappointing ordeal, for again he +was allowed no opportunity of speaking with Gertrudis, and had to +content himself with feasting his eyes upon her. But although the +family were present en masse, as on the former occasion, they +unbent to a surprising degree, and he found them truly gracious +and delightful. He realized, nevertheless, that he was under the +closest scrutiny and upon the strictest probation. The Garavels +still held him at a noticeable distance, and he was far from +feeling wholly at ease. + +Later in the evening he found himself alone with Chiquita and the +old Spanish lady, and, knowing that the latter could not +understand a word of his tongue, he addressed himself to the girl +with some degree of naturalness. + +"I was sorry for you the last time, senor," she said, in reply to +his half-humorous complaint, "and yet it was fonny; you were so +frightened." + +"It was my first memorial service. I thought I was going to see +you alone." + +"Oh, that is never allowed." + +"Never? How am I going to ask you to marry me?" + +Miss Garavel hid her blushing face behind her fan. "Indeed! You +seem capable of asking that absurd question under any +circumstances." + +"I wish you would straighten me out on some of your customs." + +"What, for instance?" + +"Why does the whole family sit around and watch me? I don't intend +to steal any bric-a-brac. They could search me just as well when I +go out." + +"They wish to satisfy themselves as to your character, perhaps." + +"Yes, but a fellow feels guilty causing them to lose so much +sleep." + +She gave him an odd look, smiling timidly. + +"As for to-night, do you attribute any meaning to my father's +request that you dine with us?" + +"Of course. It means I wasn't blackballed at the first meeting, I +suppose. After I've become a regular member, and there is nothing +missed from the lodgerooms, I'll be allowed to proceed in the +ordinary manner." + +She blushed delightfully again. "Since you are so ignorant of our +ways you should inquire at your earliest convenience. I would +advise you, perhaps, to learn Spanish." + +"Will you teach me? I'll come every evening." + +She did not answer, for the old lady began to show curiosity, and +a conversation in Spanish ensued which Kirk could not follow. + +When it came time for their chaperon to leave, she excused herself +with royal dignity, and, going to the door, called Stephanie, the +giant St. Lucian woman. Not until the negress had entered did the +grandmother retire, which showed, so Kirk imagined, that even yet +the Garavel household had no more confidence in him than in a +badgeless building inspector. He was not grateful for the change, +for he did not like Stephanie, and, judging from the sombre +suspicion of the black woman's glances, the feeling was mutual. +The conversation took perforce a less personal nature in her +presence, yet Kirk departed with a feeling of exaltation. Beyond +doubt his suit was progressing, slowly, perhaps, but still +progressing. + +His understanding of Spanish customs received a considerable +enlargement on the following day, when he met Ramon Alfarez +outside the railroad office. Ramon had evidently waited purposely +for him, and now began to voice some unintelligible protest in the +greatest excitement. + +"You'll have to play it all over again," Kirk advised him. "I'm +only just learning to conjugate the verb 'amar.' What seems to be +the trouble this time?" + +"Ha! For the moment I forgot your ignorance, but onderstan' this, +detestable person, it is time you shall answer to me." + +"Cheerfully! Ask your questions slowly." + +"Onderstan' further," chattered the Spaniard, "regardless of the +'appenings to me, it shall never come to pass. Soch disgraceful +occurrence shall never transpire; of that be assure', even if it +exac' the las' drops of blood in the veins of me. I 'ave despised +you, senor, an' so I 'ave neglec' to keel you, being busy with +important affairs of government. Bot, 'ow am I reward for those +neglec'? Eh!" Alfarez breathed ferociously through his nostrils. + +"I don't know, I'm sure. What is your reward?" + +"Very well are you aware, PIG." + +"Nix on those pet names," the American ordered, gruffly. + +"You 'ave insolt me," cried Ramon, furiously, "and now you 'ave +the insolence to interfere in my affairs." He paused dramatically. +"Make it yourself ready to fight on to-morrow." + +"What's the use of putting it off? I couldn't make your weight in +that time. I'll do it now, if you say." + +"No, no! Onderstan' we shall fight like gentlemen. I shall keel +you with any weapon you prefer." + +"By Jove!" Kirk exclaimed, in amazement. "This is a challenge; you +want to fight a duel! Why, this reads like a book." He began to +laugh, at which Ramon became white and calm. "Listen," Kirk went +on, "I'll tell you what we'll do; we'll fight with fire-hose +again. I suppose you want satisfaction for that ducking." + +"I prefer to shoot you, senor," the other declared, quietly. +"Those marriage shall never occur until first I walk upon your +dead body. As matter of honor I offer you this opportunity biffore +it is too late." + +"I guess you have been drinking. You're a little premature in +talking about my marriage, aren't you?" + +"So! You fear to confess the truth! Oh, I am not to be deceive'. +All Panama is speaking of those engagements to Senorita Garavel. +Come, then, must I insolt you further?" + +Kirk replied, dryly, looking the Spaniard over with, cold blue +eyes. "No! I think you've gone about far enough." + +"You riffuse?" exclaimed Ramon, triumphantly. + +"Look here!" said Kirk, "I've had enough of this." He advanced +threateningly, and the Spaniard nervously gave way. "I don't fight +duels; it's against the law. In my country it's a crime to kill a +man in cold blood; and we don't tie a fellow up and beat him when +he's helpless and then offer him the HONORABLE satisfaction of +either committing murder or being killed. They're not wearing +duels this season." His hands clenched involuntarily. "I don't +want to hurt you, Alfarez, but I may not be able to help it if you +don't keep out of my way." + +He left the fiery little Panamanian still scowling and muttering +threats, and went his way wondering vaguely how his attentions to +Chiquita had become so quickly known. He was informed later in the +afternoon. + +As he left the office for the day he was handed a note from Mrs. +Cortlandt requesting him to call at once, and, summoning a coach, +he was driven directly to her house. Unlike the Garavel home, the +house which the Cortlandts had leased was set upon the water- +front, its rear balcony overlooking the sea where it lapped the +foundation of the city wall. It was a delightful old place, shut +off from the street by a yard filled with flowering plants and +shrubs, and, though flanked in true Spanish fashion by stores and +shops, it was roomy and comfortable. + +Edith kept him waiting a moment before she descended, dressed for +her afternoon ride. + +"You see, I haven't given up my horse in spite of your neglect," +she said, as she gave him her hand, "You got my note?" + +"Yes, and I came straight from the office." + +"I suppose you know what it is about and are wondering how I heard +the news." + +"What news?" + +"Your 'engagement.'" She laughed with an amusement that did not +ring quite true. + +"You're the second one to speak about that. I'm not engaged." + +"Of course not. Don't think for a moment I believed it. I was +calling on some Spanish people this afternoon and heard the +report--I admit it was a shock. When I learned the details I knew +at once you ought to be told before it developed into something +embarrassing. Come into the other room; there is a breeze from the +water." She led him into the parlor, from which the open windows, +shielded now by drawn shutters, gave egress to the rear porch with +its chairs and hammock. + +"Dear, dear! You foolish boy, you're always in trouble, aren't +you? You really don't deserve to be helped. Why, you have avoided +me for weeks." + +"The new arrangement has swamped us with work. I have had no time +to go out." + +"Indeed! You had time to run after the first pretty Spanish face +you saw. I'm really angry, though I suppose I can't blame you. +After all, she is charming, in her way." + +"You mean Miss Garavel?" + +"Yes. Didn't you realize what you were doing?" + +"I realized what I was trying to do." + +"Naughty! But why select her of all people? There are dozens of +others who could amuse you and whose people would not object. +Andres Garavel isn't that sort; he is a rich man, he has political +ambitions, he's a very proud sort. Now, I suppose I must get you +out of this difficulty as best I can. You ought to be more +careful." + +"Please!" he said, crossly. "I could understand better what you +are talking about if I knew just what this difficulty is." + +"Why, this silly 'engagement' of yours. Don't pretend to be so +stupid." + +"Ramon Alfarez heard that same report, and very courteously +invited me to wait a few minutes while he killed me. It's +tremendously flattering to be linked up with Miss Garavel, of +course, but I haven't asked her to marry me." + +"But you've seen her; you have called at her house!" + +"Sure! Twice; at the invitation of the old gentleman. All the +little Garavels were lined up like mourners." + +"And you dined there last night. Is that all you have seen of +her?" + +"N-no! I've seen her at Las Savannas. That's why I went hunting so +often." + +At this confession, which Kirk delivered with sheepish reluctance, +Mrs. Cortlandt drew herself up with an expression of anger. + +"Then this has been going on for some time," she cried. "Why, +Kirk, you never told me!" + +"Why should I?" + +She flushed at this unconscious brutality, but after a moment ran +on bravely; "Oh, well, I suppose any man would enjoy that sort of +an adventure, particularly with such a pretty girl, but why did +you let it go so far? Why did you let them commit you?" + +"Am I committed?" + +Her look was half offended, half incredulous. "Are you trying to +be disagreeable, or is it possible you don't know the meaning of +those invitations to call, and to dine with the family, and all +that? Why, they expect you to MARRY her. It is all settled now, +according to the Spanish custom. The whole town is talking about +it, I can't understand, for the life of me, how you ever allowed +yourself to go there the second time and to DINE." Seeing the look +in his face, she cried, sharply, "You don't mean--that you're in +earnest?" She was staring at him as if disbelieving her eyes. + +"Certainly, I'm in earnest." + +Edith turned away abruptly. + +"I hope you're not joking," said Kirk. "Jove! I--I'm knocked clear +off my pins." A tremendous wave of excitement surged over him. +"So, that's what Alfarez meant. That's what SHE meant last night +when she told me to look up--" He broke off suddenly, for Edith's +face had gone chalk-white. + +"But, Kirk, what about me?" she asked, in a strained voice. + +There was deathlike silence in the room. + +"You can't LOVE her," said the woman. "Why, she's only a child, +and she's--Spanish." + +They stood motionless, facing each other. At last Kirk said, +gravely and deliberately, + +"Yes, I love her better than anything in the world and I want to +marry her. I could give up my country, my dad--anything for her." + +Pressing her gloved fingers to her temples she turned her head +blindly from side to side, whispering as if to herself: + +"What will become of me?" + +"Don't," he cried, in a panic, and cast a hurried look over his +shoulders. "You'll be overheard--you'll be seen. You don't know +what you're saying. Where's Cortlandt?" + +"At his club, I suppose. I don't know--I--I don't care." Then the +paralysis that had numbed her vanished, and she spoke with +quivering intensity. "You've been dishonest with me, Kirk." + +"Don't act this way," he ordered, roughly. "I'm terribly fond of +you, but I never knew--" + +"You MUST have known." + +"I knew NOTHING. I chose not to think. What I saw I forgot. I +supposed you merely liked me as I liked you." + +"That night at Taboga!" she flared up. "What about that? Couldn't +you tell then? I fought--fought--fought--but I had to give up. You +haven't forgotten--those wonderful hours we had together?" She +began to sob, but steadied herself with an effort. "You say you +didn't know, then what about that afternoon in the jungle? Oh, +you're not blind; you must have seen a thousand times. Every hour +we've been alone together I've told you, and you let me go on +believing you cared. Do you think that was right? Now you are +shocked because I admit it," she mocked. "Well, I have no pride. I +am not ashamed. It's too late for shame now. Why, even my husband +knows." + +With an exclamation he seized her by the arm. "You don't mean +that!" he cried, fiercely. But she wrenched herself away. + +"Why, do you think, I made a man of you? Why did I force you up +and up and over the heads of others? Why are you in line for the +best position on the railroad? Did you think you had made good by +your own efforts?" She laughed harshly. "I took Runnels and Wade +and Kimble and the others that you liked and forced them up with +you, so you'd have an organization that couldn't be pulled down." + +"Did--did you do all that?" + +"I did more. I broke with Alfarez because of what his son did to +you. I juggled the politics of this country, I threw him over and +took Garavel--Garavel! My God! What a mockery! But I won't let +you--I won't let that girl spoil my work." Her voice trailed off +in a kind of rasping whisper. She struggled a moment for +composure, then went on: "It was I who promoted you to Runnels' +position--he'll tell you that. It was I who put ideas of +advancement into his head. I fostered this quarrel between Jolson +and the Superintendent, and I've used Runnels to break trail for +you. Why? Ask yourself why! Oh, Kirk," she cried, "you mustn't +marry that girl! I'll make you a great man!" + +"You seem to forget Cortlandt," he said, dully. + +She gave a scornful laugh. "You needn't bring Stephen in. He +doesn't count. I doubt if he'd even care. Our marriage amounts to +nothing--nothing. You'd better consider ME, and the sacrifice I'm +willing to make." + +"I'm not going to listen to you," he cried. "I suppose I've been a +fool, but this must end right here." + +"You can't marry that girl," she reiterated, hysterically. She was +half sobbing again, but not with the weakness of a woman; her +grief was more like that of a despairing man. + +"For Heaven's sake, pull yourself together," said Kirk. "You have +servants. I--I don't know what to say. I want to get out, I want +to think it over. I'm--dreadfully sorry. That's all I can seem to +think about now." He turned and went blindly to the door, leaving +her without a look behind. + +When he had gone she drew off her riding-gloves, removed her hat, +and dropped them both upon the nearest chair, then crept wearily +up the stairs to her room. + +A moment later the latticed wooden blinds at the end of the parlor +swung open, and through the front window stepped Stephen +Cortlandt. Behind him was a hammock swung in the coolest part of +the balcony. The pupils of his eyes, ordinarily so dead and +expressionless, were distended like those of a man under the +influence of a drug or suffering from a violent headache. He +listened attentively for an instant, his head on one side, then, +hearing footsteps approaching from the rear of the house, he +strolled into the hall. + +A maid appeared with a tray, a glass, and a bottle. "I could not +find the aspirin," she said, "but I brought you some absinthe. It +will deaden the pain, sir." + +He thanked her and with shaking fingers poured the glass full, +then drank it off like so much water. + +"You're not going out again in the heat, sir?" + +"Yes. Tell Mrs. Cortlandt that I am dining at the University +Club." He went slowly down the steps and out through the flowering +shrubs. + + + + +XXIII + +A PLOT AND A SACRIFICE + + +Kirk never passed a more unpleasant night than the one which +followed. In the morning he went straight to Runnels with the +statement that he could take no part in the little testimonial +they had intended to give Cortlandt. + +"But it's too late now to back out. I saw him at the University +Club last evening and fixed the date for Saturday night." + +"Did you tell him I was in the affair?" + +"Certainly. I said it was your idea. It affected him deeply, too. +I never saw a chap so moved over a little thing." + +Kirk thought quickly. Perhaps Edith had spoken rashly in her +excitement, and her husband did not know her feelings after all. +Perhaps he only suspected. In that case it would never do to +withdraw. It would seem like a confession of guilt. + +"If he has accepted, that ends it, I suppose," he said, finally. + +"What has happened?" Runnels was watching him sharply. + +"Nothing. I merely wish I hadn't entered into the arrangement, +that's all. I've ordered a watch for him, too, and it's being +engraved. I wanted to give him something to show my own personal +gratitude for what he and his wife have done for me. Lord! It took +a month's salary. I know it's a jay present, but there's nothing +decent in these shops." + +"Look here! I've wanted to say something to you for some time, +though it's deuced hard to speak of such things. Maybe I have more +moral scruples than some people, but--" Runnels stirred +uncomfortably in his chair. "Steve Cortlandt has put us where we +are--you understand, when I speak of him I include his wife, too. +Well, I like him, Kirk, and I'd hate to see him made unhappy. If a +chap loves a married woman, he ought to be man enough to forget +it. Rotten way to express myself, of course--" + +Kirk looked the speaker squarely in the eyes as he answered: "I +don't understand what you're driving at. I haven't the least +interest in any married man's affairs--never have had, in fact. +I'm in love with Gertrudis Garavel, and I'm engaged to marry her." + +"The devil!" + +"It's a fact. I didn't know until last night that I'd been +accepted." + +"Then just forget what I said. I was going north on a south-bound +track--I ran ahead of orders. I really do congratulate you, old +man; Miss Garavel is--well, I won't try to do her justice--I had +no idea. Please pardon me." + +"Certainly! Now that it's settled I'm not going to let any grass +grow under my feet." + +"Why, say! Garavel is to be the next President! Jove! You ARE +lucky! Cortlandt told me last night that the old fellow's +candidacy was to be announced Saturday night at the big ball; +that's how he came to accept our invitation. He said his work +would be over by then and he'd be glad to join us after the dance. +Well, well! Your future wife and father-in-law are to be his +guests that night, I suppose you know." + +"Then they have patched up a truce with Alfarez? I'm glad to hear +that." + +"It's all settled, I believe. This dance is a big special event. +The American Minister and the various diplomatic gangs will be +there, besides the prominent Spanish people. It's precisely the +moment to launch the Garavel boom, and Cortlandt intends to do it. +After it's over, our little crowd will have supper and thank him +for what he has done for us. Oh, it will be a big night all +around, won't it? Do you realize the skyrockety nature of your +progress, young man? Lord! You take my breath." + +"It does seem like a dream. I landed here with a button-hook for +baggage, and now--Say, Runnels, her eyes are just like two big +black pansies, and when she smiles you'll go off your trolley." + +"Your promotion came just in time, didn't it? Talk about luck! We +ought to hear from Washington before Saturday and know that our +jobs are cinched. This uncertainty is fierce for me. You know I +have a wife and kid, and it means a lot. When you give Cortlandt +that watch you'll have to present him with a loving-cup from the +rest of us. I think it's coming to him, don't you?" + +"I--I'd rather you presented it." + +"Not much! I can run trains, but I can't engineer social +functions. You'll have to be spokesman. I suppose jobs and +increased salaries and preferments, and all that, don't count for +much with a young fellow who is engaged to the fabulous Miss +Garavel, but with the Runnels family it's different. Meanwhile, +let's just hold our thumbs till our promotions are ratified from +headquarters. I need that position, and I'm dying of uneasiness." + +The night had been as hard for Edith Cortlandt as it had been for +Kirk, but during its sleepless hours she had reached a +determination. She was not naturally revengeful, but it was +characteristic of her that she could not endure failure. Action, +not words or tears, was the natural outlet of her feelings. There +was just one possible way of winning Kirk back, and if instead it +ruined him she would be only undoing what she had mistakenly done. +As soon after breakfast as she knew definitely that her husband +had gone out, she telephoned to General Alfarez, making an +appointment to call on him at eleven. + +It was the first time she had ever gone to see him, for she was in +the habit of bringing people to her, but this was no ordinary +occasion, and she knew the crafty old Spaniard would be awaiting +her with eagerness. + +Her interview with him was short, however, and when she emerged +from his house she ordered the coachman to drive directly to the +Garavel Bank. This time she stayed longer, closeted with the +proprietor. What she told him threw him into something like a +panic. It seemed that Anibal Alfarez was by no means so well +reconciled to the death of his political hopes as had been +supposed. On the contrary, in spite of all that had been done to +prevent it, he had been working secretly and had perfected the +preliminaries of a coup which he intended to spring at the +eleventh hour. Through Ramon, he had brought about an alliance +with the outgoing Galleo, and intended to make the bitterest +possible fight against Garavel. Such joining of forces meant +serious trouble, and until the banker's position was materially +strengthened it would be most unwise to announce his candidacy as +had been planned. The General had worked with remarkable +craftiness, according to Mrs. Cortlandt's account, and Galleo's +grip upon the National Assembly was so strong as to threaten all +their schemes. She did not go into minute details--there was no +need, for the banker's fears took fire at the mere fact that +Alfarez had revolted. He was dumfounded, appalled. + +"But it was only last week that we were assured that all was +well," he cried in despair. + +She shrugged her shoulders. "One is privileged to change his mind +overnight, I suppose. Politics is not a child's game." + +"Oh, I am sorry I ever entertained the proposal. To be defeated +now would do me immeasurable harm, not only in my pride, but in my +business affairs. My affiliations with the government are of the +closest--they must be, for me to live. To be a candidate, to make +the fight, and to be beaten! What consideration will come to the +firm of Garavel Hermanos, think you?" + +"Not much, but you are not so deeply committed that you cannot +withdraw." + +This cool suggestion brought the expected outburst. "Rather than +such a disgrace," cried Garavel, "I would go to certain defeat. +One's pride is not for sale, madame. What has caused this so +sudden change of sentiment?" + +"Ramon is partly to blame. He is just as proud as you or as his +father. When he heard of your daughter's engagement to our friend +Anthony--" + +"Ah! Now I see it all." His face darkened. "So, this is my reward +for heeding your advice in regard to Gertrudis. She should have +wed Ramon, as was intended, then I would have had a lever with +which to lift his father from my path. Very well, then, there is +no engagement with this Anthony. It may not be too late even yet +to capture Ramon." + +"The city is already talking about Gertrudis and Kirk." + +"No word has been spoken, no promise given. There is not even an +understanding. It is merely an old custom that has caused this +report. He seemed a pleasant fellow, she had dreams, so--I +yielded. But do you suppose I would allow my great ambition to be +thwarted by the whim of a girl--to be upset by a stranger's smile? +Bah! At their age I loved a dozen. I could not survive without +them." He snapped his fingers. "You see now the truth of what I +told you when we first spoke of my daughter. It is the older heads +that must govern, always. I should have foreseen this effect, but +Ramon was offended, and he said too little. Now, I admire his +spirit; he is desperate; he will fight; he is no parrot to sit by +and see his cage robbed. So much the better, since he is the pivot +upon which this great affair revolves. You see what must be done?" + +"Certainly." + +"Come! We will see my friend Anibal at once." + +But Mrs. Cortlandt checked him, saying, quietly: + +"That is all right as far as it goes, but you forget the other +young man." + +Garavel paused in his heavy strides across the room. + +"Eh? How so? Gertrudis will not marry this Anthony." + +"Perhaps she loves him." + +"Love is a fancy, a something seen through a distant haze, an +illusion which vanishes with the sun. In a month, a year, she will +have forgotten; but with me it is different. This is my life's +climax; there will be no other. I am a Garavel; I have looked into +the future and I cannot turn back. I think also of Panama herself. +There are great issues at stake." + +"But how will you handle Anthony?" + +Garavel looked at her blankly. "He is in my way. He is ended! Is +not that all?" + +"I am glad you are practical; so many of you Latin-Americans are +absurdly romantic." + +"And why should I not be practical? I am a business man. I love +but two things, madame--no, three: my daughter, my success, and-- +my country. By this course I will serve all three." + +"Since you take this view of it, I am sure that with Ramon's help +we can dissuade Don Anibal from his course. The General is +sensible, and doesn't want a fight any more than you do. If your +daughter will consent--" + +"My dear lady, give yourself no uneasiness. She does not know the +meaning of rebellion. If necessary--but there is not the slightest +question. It is done." + +"Then let me look up Ramon. He and I will approach the General +together." She gave him her neatly gloved hand. "Things are never +so bad as they seem." + +"And I thank you for your promptness, which alone, perhaps, has +saved our hopes and our ambitions." He escorted his caller to her +carriage, then hurriedly returned to his office. + +That afternoon Kirk received a formal communication from the +banker which filled him with dismay. It ran: + +MY DEAR MR. ANTHONY,--To my extreme distress, I hear a rumor that +Gertrudis is to become your wife. I assure you that neither she +nor I blame you in the least for this unfortunate report; but +since busy tongues will wag upon the slightest excuse, we feel it +best that no further occasion for gossip should be given, I am +sure you will co-operate with us. + +Sincerely and respectfully, your friend, ANDRES GARAVEL. + +A sense of betrayal crept over him as he read. What the letter +signified, beyond the fact that Mr. Garavel had changed his mind, +he could not make out, and he resolved to go at once and demand an +explanation. But at the bank he was told that the proprietor had +gone home, and he drove to the house only to learn that Senor +Garavel and his daughter had left for Las Savannas not half an +hour before. So, back through the city he urged his driver, across +the bridge, and out along the country road. + +Darkness had settled when he returned, raging at the trickery that +had been practised upon him. If they thought to gain their point +by sending him on wildgoose chases like this, they were greatly +mistaken. He proposed to have Chiquita now, if he had to burst his +way to her through barred doors. Never in all his easy, careless +life had anything of moment been denied him, never had he felt +such bitterness of thwarted longing. Reared in a way to foster a +disregard of all restraint and a contempt for other people's +rights, he was in a fitting mood for any reckless project, and the +mere thought that they should undertake to coerce an Anthony +filled him with grim amusement. He had yielded to their left- +handed customs out of courtesy; it was time now to show his +strength. + +What folly he might have committed it is hard to tell, but he was +prevented from putting any extravagant plan into operation by a +message from the girl herself. + +As he dismissed his coachman and turned toward his quarters, +Stephanie came to him out of the shadows. + +"I have been waiting," she said. + +"Where is Chiquita? Tell me quickly." + +"She is at the house. She wants to see you." + +"Of course she does. I knew this wasn't any of her doing. I've +been hunting everywhere for her." + +"At nine o'clock she will be in the Plaza. You know the dark place +across from the church?" + +"I'll be there." + +"If we do not come, wait." + +"Certainly. But, Stephanie, tell me what it is all about?" + +The black woman shook her head. "She is sick," she said, in a +harsh voice, "that is all I know. I have never seen her act so." +From her expression Kirk fancied that she held him responsible for +her mistress's sufferings. + +"Now, don't be angry with me," he made haste to say. "I'm sick, +too, and you're the only friend we have. You love her, don't you? +Well, so do I. and I'm going to make her happy in spite of her +father and all the rest. Run along now, I won't keep you waiting +to-night." + +Long before the appointed time he was at the place of meeting, but +scarcely had the city chimes rung out nine when he saw two women +emerge from the dark side-street next the Garavel mansion and come +swiftly toward him. + +He refrained from rushing out to meet them, but when they were +close to his place of concealment he stepped forward, with +Chiquita's name upon his lips and his arms outstretched. She drew +away. + +"No, no, senor!" she cried. "I sent for you because there was no +other way--that is all. My father would not let you come to the +house. You will not think me bold?" + +"Of course not." + +"I could not let you go until you knew the truth. You do not-- +believe it was my fault?" + +"I don't know what to believe, because I don't know what has +happened. All I know is that I got a note from your father. But +that won't make me let you go." + +She clung desperately to the Bajan woman as if afraid to trust +herself near him. "Wait--wait," she said, "until you have heard it +all." + +Never had she appeared so beautiful as now, with her face white, +her bosom heaving, as the half-light dimly revealed. + +"No matter what it is, I'll never give you up," he declared, +stubbornly. + +"Ah! I feared you would say those very words; but you must do it, +just the same. It will be hard for us both, I know--but--" She +choked and shook her head as the words refused to come. + +Stephanie laid a great copper hand soothingly upon her shoulder, +and growled at Kirk in a hoarse, accusing voice: + +"You see?" + +"Tell me first why I must give you up?" + +"Because, in spite of all, I am to marry Ramon," Gertrudis said, +wretchedly. + +"Who said so?" + +"My father. He has forbidden me to think of you, and ordered that +I marry Ramon. Sick or well, living or dead, I must marry him." + +"I'm hanged if you do!" + +"It is those miserable politics again. If I do not obey, my father +cannot be President, do you see?" Pausing an instant to master her +agitation, she hurried on. "To be President means a great deal to +him and to our family; it is the greatest honor that has ever come +to a Garavel. Senor Alfarez is terribly angry that I refused to +marry his son, to whom since I was a little child I have been +engaged. Ramon also is furious; he threatened to kill himself. So, +it comes to this then: if I will not bind myself to the agreement, +Senor Alfarez will contest the election--I do not know how you say +those things--but my father will be defeated--perhaps he will be +humbled. Many other terrible things which I cannot understand will +happen also. If I agree, then there will be no opposition to his +plans. He will be President, and I will be a grand lady." + +"I won't stand for it. They're making you a sacrifice, that's all. +What kind of a father is it who would sell his daughter--" + +"No, no! You do not understand. He is proud, he cannot accept +defeat, he would rather give his life than be humiliated. +Furthermore--he wishes me to marry Ramon, and so that ends it." +Her lips were trembling as she peered up at him to see if he +really understood. + +"Let them rave, dear. What does it matter who is President? What +does anything matter to you and me?" + +"He says I am too young to know my own mind, and--perhaps that is +true, Senor Antonio; perhaps I shall soon forget you and learn to +love Ramon as he loves me, I do not know--" + +In spite of the pathetic quaver in her voice, Kirk cried with +jealous bitterness: + +"You don't seem to object very strongly; you seem to care about as +much for Alfarez as you do for me. Is that it?" + +"Yes, senor," she said, bravely. + +"You are lying!" declared Stephanie, suddenly. + +The girl burst into a perfect torrent of weeping that shamed him. +Then, without any invitation, she flung herself recklessly into +his arms and lay there, trembling, palpitating like an imprisoned +bird. "Forgive me, dear," he exclaimed, softly. "I knew better all +the time. You mustn't think of doing what they ask; I won't allow +it." His own heart-beats were shaking him, and he hardly knew what +he was saying. The sight of her grief maddened him. It was as if +they had taken advantage of his helpless little maid to hurt her +maliciously, and his indignation blazed forth. She looked up with +eyes gleaming through her tears and said, brokenly: + +"Senor, I love you truly. You see, I cannot lie." + +Her breath intoxicated him, and he bent his head to kiss her, but +Stephanie tore her roughly from his arms. The woman showed the +strength of a man, and her vulture-like face was working fiercely +as she cried: + +"No! She is mine! She is mine! She is a good girl." + +"Stephanie! She loves me, don't you see?" + +"No, no!" The black woman drew the girl into the shelter of her +own arms. + +"Oh, I am wicked," Gertrudis said. "I love you, Keerk--yes, I love +you very dearly, but my father--he refuses--I must obey--he has +the right, and I must do as he wishes." + +"Come with me now. We'll be married to-night," he urged; but she +only clung to Stephanie more closely, as if to hold herself from +falling. + +"You are very sweet to me," she said, with piteous tenderness, +"and I shall never forget the honor; but you see I cannot. This is +more to my father than his life; it is the same to all our family, +and I must do my duty. I will pray for strength to keep from +loving you, senor, and some day, perhaps, the dear God will hear. +You must do likewise, and pray also for me to have courage, I +could not let you go away thinking this was my doing, so I sent +for you. No, one must obey one's people, for they are wise--and +good. But one should be honest." + +The tears were stealing down her cheeks, and she thrilled to his +pleadings as to some wondrous music, yet she was like adamant, and +all his lover's desperation could not shake her. It was strange to +see this slender, timid slip of a girl so melting and yet so +cruelly firm. He appealed to Stephanie, but she was as +unresponsive as a bronze image. Seeing that his urging only made +matters worse, he said, more gently: + +"You are exalted now with the spirit of self-sacrifice, but later +you will see that I am right. I am not discouraged. A thousand +things may happen. Who knows what to-morrow may bring? Let's wait +and see if we can't find a way out. Now that I know you love me, I +have the courage to face anything, and I am going to win you, +Chiquita. I have never lost in all my life, and I don't intend to +begin now. I'll see your father in the morning, and I'll be here +again, to-morrow night--" + +But at this Gertrudis cried out: "No, no! I cannot meet you again +in this manner." And Stephanie nodded her agreement. + +"Then I'll see you the next night, that is Saturday. You are +coming to the big ball at the Tivoli with him and the Cortlandts-- +I must see you then, so make sure to be there, and meanwhile don't +give up." + +"Oh, there is no hope." + +"There is always hope. I'll think of something." + +"We must go," said the Barbadian woman, warningly. + +"Yes, yes! It is of no avail to resist," came the girl's choking +voice. She stretched out her little hand, and then, looking up at +him, said, uncertainly: "I--may never speak with you again alone, +senor, and I must pray to--cease loving you; but will you--kiss me +once so that I may never forget?" + +He breathed a tender exclamation and took her gently to his +breast, while the negress stood by scowling and muttering. + +The memory of that long, breathless moment lived with him for +years. Strangely enough, at the touch of her lips he felt his +courage forsake him--it ran out like water. He became weak, +fearful, despairing, as if it were his life that was ebbing away. +And the pang when she drew herself from him was like a bayonet- +thrust. Even when she and Stephanie had melted into the shadows, +he stood motionless under the spell of that caress, its ecstasy +still suffusing him. + +He found himself following slowly in the direction they had taken +in the hope of catching just one more glimpse of her, but as he +emerged from the darkness of the park he paused. There across the +street, in the little open shrine set in the corner of the great +cathedral, she was kneeling before the shining figure of the +Madonna. The candle-glow that illumined the holy image and shone +out so hopefully against the gloom showed her crouched close +before the altar, her dark head bowed in uttermost dejection. +Outside, and barely revealed, stood the tall, gaunt Bajan woman, +silent, watchful, and forbidding. + +With a painful grip at his throat Kirk watched until the girl rose +and hurried away into the shadows. Then he, too, turned and made +his way up the street, but he went slowly, unseeingly, as if he +had beheld a vision. + +For the first time in his life he was a prey to fear. A thousand +panics clamored at him, his mind began working with the +exaggerated speed of a person in dire peril. Once more, as upon +that night when he had first called at her father's house, he +turned abruptly at the corner to stare at her window, and again he +surprised a figure skulking after him. Without a moment's +hesitation he made after it at a run, but the fellow dodged into +the Plaza and disappeared among the shrubbery. Not caring to +pursue the chase into those lurking shadows Kirk desisted, certain +only of one thing--that he was not Allan who was trailing him. He +recalled the oft-repeated threats of Ramon Alfarez, and returned +to his quarters by way of the lighted thoroughfares. + + + + +XXIV + +A BUSINESS PROPOSITION + + +Edith Cortlandt's interview with the rival candidates for the +Panamanian Presidency formed but a part of her plan. She next held +a long conversation with Colonel Jolson, to the end that on Friday +morning Runnels heard a rumor that threw him into the greatest +consternation. It was to the effect that instead of his succeeding +to the office of Superintendent, he was to retain his old post, +and that Colonel Jolson's brother-in-law was to supersede him. +Although the word was not authoritative, it came with sufficient +directness to leave him aghast. If true, it was, of course, +equivalent to his discharge, for it meant that he could not even +continue in his former position without putting himself in a light +intolerable to any man of spirit. Since he was entitled to the +promotion, had been promised it, in fact, and had made his plans +accordingly, there was no course open except resignation. If he +did not resign voluntarily, he knew that his new superior would +eventually force him to do so, for Blakeley would build up an +organization of his own, and in it there would be no place for one +who had aspired to the highest office. + +Inasmuch as his assistant was concerned in this threatened +calamity, Runnels made haste to lay the matter before him. At +first Kirk was inclined to take it as a joke, but his friend +quickly brought him to a more serious frame of mind. + +"No," he said, "Blakeley has finally put it over. He's wanted this +position for a long time, and I guess the Cortlandts weren't +strong enough to prevent it--or else they have broken with the +Colonel." + +"Didn't he promise you the job?" + +"Sure! But what are promises? I've been double-crossed, that's +all. It means I must quit." + +"Of course. I'm trying to figure out what it will mean to me." + +Runnels smiled grimly. "The same thing it would mean to me if I +stayed, I'd go back to my desk; in a month I'd have a row with +Blakeley, no matter what I did; then I'd be fired and have a tough +time getting a job with another railroad. Of course, the +Cortlandts might do more for you than they would for me, and you +might be able to hang on." + +"Then this would seem to end our fine hopes, eh?" + +"Rather!" Runnels broke out, bitterly. "I've worked like a nigger, +Kirk, and I deserve promotion if anybody ever did. This other +fellow is a dub--he has proven that. Why, I've forgotten more +railroading than he'll ever know. Every man on the system hates +him and likes me; and on top of it all I was PROMISED the job. +It's tough on the wife and the kid." + +He stopped to swallow his emotion. He was a single-purposed, +somewhat serious man, a little lacking in resilience, and he could +not meet misfortune with Kirk's careless self-confidence. + +"I gave this job the best I had in me," he went on, "for I had the +idea that I was doing something patriotic, something for my +country--that's the way they used to talk about this Canal, you +know. I've put in four years of hell; I've lost step with the +world; I've lost my business connections in the States; and I +haven't saved up any money, I CAN'T quit, and yet I'll have to, +for if I'm fired it'll mean I'll have to go back there and start +at the bottom again. Those people don't know anything about these +damned politics; they'll think I made a failure here in government +work, and I'll have to live it down. Still, I suppose I ought not +to kick--it's happening all the time to other fellows who came +down here with hopes as high as mine--fellows who have given even +more to the job than I have. What are YOU going to do?" + +Kirk started. "Oh, I don't know. I was thinking about you. This +job doesn't worry me, for I'm on my feet at last, and I know I +have the goods with me--they can have my position and welcome. +Now, about you. I haven't spent much of that lottery coin. It's in +the bank, all that Allan hasn't used, and half of it is yours, if +you'll take it. You and Mrs. Runnels and the kid, and Allan and I +--and one other party--will hike back home and get something else +to do. What do you say?" + +Runnels' voice shook as he answered: "By Jove! You're the--real +stuff, Anthony. I'll think it over." He turned away as if ashamed +of his show of feeling, only to whirl about with the question, +"Who is this 'other party'?" + +"My wife." + +"Good Lord! You're not married?" + +"No, but I'm going to be. You talk about YOUR troubles; now listen +to mine. I'll make you weep like a fog." Briefly he told his +friend of the blow that had so suddenly fallen upon him. + +"You ARE up against it, old man," agreed Runnels, when he had +heard all. "Garavel has set his heart on the Presidency, and he'll +pay any price to get it. It's the same all over Central America; +these people are mad on politics. There are never more than two +parties, you know--the Wanters and the Hasers. The Wanters are out +and the Hasers are in; that's what makes these wicked little +revolutions at every change of the moon--it isn't a question of +policy at all. Now, if Miss Gertrudis were an American girl, she +might rebel, elope, do something like that, but she's been reared +with the Spanish notions of obedience, and I dare say she will +submit tamely because she doesn't know how to put up a fight. +That's an admirable characteristic in a wife, but not very helpful +in a sweetheart." + +"Well, she's half American," said Kirk. + +"What do you mean by that?" + +"I mean the game isn't over. I carried the ball forty yards once +for a touchdown in the last ten seconds of play, and Yale won. I +had good 'interference' then, and I need it now. Somebody'll have +to run ahead of me." + +Runnels smiled. "I guess you can count on me. What is the plan?" + +For the next half-hour the two talked earnestly, their heads +together, their voices low. + +"I don't believe it will work, my boy," Runnels said at last. "I +know these people better than you, and yet--Lord! if it does come +off!" He whistled softly. "Well, they may kick the political props +out from under us, but there will be an awful crash when we hit. +Now, don't mention this rumor about Blakeley. I want to see Steve +Cortlandt first." + +"Cortlandt! By-the-way, do you happen to remember that he's to be +our guest for supper to-morrow night? Kind of a joke now, trying +to thank him for what he's done, isn't it?" + +"Not at all. It may be our one chance of salvation; he may be the +one person who can help us." + +"Well," Kirk reflected, "I have a good deal to thank him for, I +suppose, outside of this, and I'll go through with my part." + +He proceeded at once to put his plan into execution, his first +step being to rent a room at the Tivoli, taking particular care to +select one on the first floor in the north wing. That evening he +and Allan moved. It was a simple process, yet he felt that he was +engaged in the most momentous act of his Hie. As to its outcome +much depended upon Runnels and much more upon himself--so much, in +fact, that when he came to look at the matter coldly he confessed +the hope of success was slender. But such as it was he clung to it +desperately. + +Runnels telephoned during the evening that he had been equal to +his part of the task, so there remained nothing to do but wait for +the hour of the dance. + +Over and over Anthony asked himself if he were not foolish to pin +his faith to so slight a chance, but he could find no answer. He +slept little amid his new surroundings that night, and awoke +Saturday morning thrilled with the certainty that his life's +crisis was but a few hours away. + +It was considerably after dark on Saturday evening that John +Weeks, American Consul at Colon, received a caller who came to him +direct from the Royal Mail steamer just docked. At first sight the +stranger did not impress Mr. Weeks as a man of particular +importance. His face was insignificant, and his pale-blue eyes +showed little force. His only noticeable feature was displayed +when he removed his hat. Then it could be seen that a wide, white +scar ran from just over his temple to a point back of his right +ear. + +He made his name known as Williams, which, of course, meant +nothing to the consul, and while drinking one of Weeks' high- +balls, inquired idly about the country, the climate, and the +people, as if in no hurry to come to his point. Weeks watched him +shrewdly, convinced at last by his visitor's excessive caution +that his first judgment had been wrong, and that the man was more +knowing than he seemed. Mr. Williams was likewise studying the fat +man, and when he had satisfied himself, came out openly with these +words: + +"I'm looking for a chap named Wellar. He landed here some time +late in November." + +"Friend of yours?" + +"Um--m--not exactly." Mr. Williams ran a hand meditatively over +the ragged scar on his scalp, as if from force of habit. + +"Wellar? I never heard of him." + +"He may have travelled under another name. Ever hear of a fellow +called Locke?" + +The consul's moist lips drew together, his red eyes gleamed +watchfully. "Maybe I have, and maybe I haven't," said he. "Why do +you want him?" + +"I heard he was here. I'd enjoy meeting him again." + +"What does he look like?" + +Mr. Williams rattled off a description of Kirk Anthony so +photographic that the consul suddenly saw a great light. + +"Yes, I know him all right," he confessed, warmly. "He's a good +friend of mine, too; in fact, he lived with me for a while." +Misconstruing the eager expression that came to his caller's face, +he rose heavily and thrust out a thick, wet hand. "Don't let's +beat about the bush, Mr. Anthony; your son is safe and well and +making a name for himself. I'm happy to say I helped him--not +much, to be sure, but all I could--yes, sir, I acknowledge the +corn--and I'm glad to meet you at last. I have been waiting for +you to arrive, and I'm glad you dropped in on me. I have a lot of +things to talk about." + +But the other stared upward impatiently. "No, no! You've got me +wrong. I'm a detective, and I'm after your friend Wellar, alias +Locke, alias Anthony. He's wanted for embezzlement and assault and +a few other things, and I'm going to take him." The indistinctive +Mr. Williams spoke sharply, and his pale blue eyes were suddenly +hard and bright. + +Weeks stared open-mouthed for an instant. "Then you're really not +Darwin K. Anthony?" he gasped. + +"Certainly not. Here's the warrant. I'm sorry this chap is your +pal, but--" + +"My pal! Hell, I hate him like the smallpox. Good thing you spoke +or I'd have sold you a cocoanut grove. I KNEW he was wrong. +Embezzler, eh? Well, well!" + +"Eighty thousand, that's all, and he's got it on him." + +"You're wrong there; he was broke when he landed. I ought to +know." + +"Oh no! He came down on the Santa Cruz; I've seen the purser. He +travelled under the name of Jefferson Locke. There's no mistake, +and he couldn't have blown it all. No, it's sewed into his shirt, +and I'm here to grab it." + +Weeks whistled in amazement. "He IS a shrewd one. Eighty thou-- +Lord, I wish I'd known that! He's here, all right, working for the +railroad and living at Panama. He's made good, too, and got some +influential friends. Oh, this is great!" + +"Working, hey? Clever stall! Do you see that?" Williams inclined +his head for a fuller display of the disfiguration over his ear. +"He hung that on me, with a bottle. I damn near died." He laughed +disagreeably. "He'll go back, and he'll go back quick. How do I +get to Panama?" + +Weeks consulted his watch hastily. + +"You've missed the last train; but we'll go over together in the +morning. I want to have a hand in this arrest for reasons of my +own; I don't like him or his influential friends." He began to +chuckle ponderously. "No, I don't like his influential friends, in +particular." + +While this scene was being enacted on the north side of the +Isthmus, Kirk Anthony, over at the Tivoli Hotel, was making +himself ready for the ball with particular pains. Even his +personal appearance might have a bearing upon the outcome of this +adventure, and he dared not overlook the slightest advantage. + +Allan regarded him admiringly from many angles. + +"Oh, Master h'Auntony," he exclaimed, rapturously, "you are +beautiful!" + +"Thanks! Again thanks! Now, can you remember to do as I have told +you?" + +"I would die--" + +"DON'T say that again, I'm too nervous. Here are your +instructions, once more. Keep both doors to this room locked and +stand by the one to the veranda! Don't let any one in except Mr. +Runnels and the man he'll bring. DON'T--LEAVE--THIS--SPOT, no +matter what happens. Does that penetrate your teakwood dome? Does +your ivory cue-ball encompass that thought?" + +"I shall watch this h'apartment carefully, never fear." + +"But I do fear. I'm scared to death. My hands are go cold they are +brittle. Remember, when I knock, so, let me in instantly, and keep +your wits about you." + +"H'Allan never fails, sar. But what is coming to pahss?" + +"Never mind what is coming to pass. This is going to be a big +night, my boy--a very big night." Kirk strolled out into the hall +and made his way to the lobby. + +Already the orchestra was tuning up, the wide porches were filling +with well-dressed people, while a stream of coaches at the door +was delivering the arrivals on the special from Colon. It was a +very animated crowd, sprinkled plentifully with Spanish people-- +something quite unusual, by-the-way--while the presence of many +uniforms gave the affair almost the brilliance of a military +function. There were marine officers from Bas Obispo, straight, +trim, brown of cheek; naval officers from the cruisers in the +roadstead, clad in their white trousers and bell-boy jackets; army +officers detailed from Washington on special duty; others from the +various parts of the work itself. + +Kirk wandered about through the confusion, nodding to his friends, +chatting here and there, his eyes fixed anxiously upon the door. + +Clifford approached and fell into conversation with him. + +"Great doings, eh? I came up from the Central just to see what +these affairs are like. Did you see to-night's paper?" + +"No." + +"Garavel is going to run for President. This is a kind of +political coming-out party." + +"So I believe." + +"It looked like a fight between him and General Alfarez, but +they've patched it up, and the General is going to withdraw. +Garavel is to have Uncle Sam's congratulations and co-operation. +It's a joke, isn't it, this international good feeling?" + +"Excuse me." Anthony saw Runnels searching the room with anxiety. +He hurried toward him and inquired, breathlessly: + +"Have you got him?" + +"Sure, I showed him your room." + +"Did you lock him in?" + +"Certainly not." + +"He'll get away." + +"Oh no, he'll be on the job. Has she come?" + +Kirk shook his head. "Gee! I'm nervous." He wiped his brow with a +shaking hand. + +"Don't weaken," Runnels encouraged. "I'm beginning to believe +you'll pull it off. I told my wife all about it--thought we might +need her--and she's perfectly crazy. I never saw her so excited. +Let me know as soon as you can which dance it will be. This +suspense--Gad! There they are now! Go to it, old man." + +Into the lobby came a mixed group, in which were Andres Garavel, +his daughter, Ramon Alfarez, and the Cortlandts. Kirk's face was +white as he went boldly to meet them, but he did his best to smile +unconcernedly. He shook hands with Edith and her husband, bowed to +Gertrudis, then turned to meet her father's stare. + +"May I have a word with you, sir?" + +Garavel inclined his head silently. As the others moved on he +said: "This is hardly a suitable time or place, Mr. Anthony." + +"Oh, I'm not going to kick up a fuss. I didn't answer your note, +because there was nothing to say. You still wish me to cease my +attentions?" + +"I do! It is her wish and mine." + +"Then I shall do so, of course. If Miss Garavel is dancing to- +night I would like your permission to place my name on her +programme." + +"No!" exclaimed the banker. + +"Purely to avoid comment. Every one knows I have been calling upon +her, and that report of our engagement got about considerably; it +would set people talking if she snubbed me. That is the only +reason I came to this dance. Believe me, I'd rather have stayed +away." + +"Perhaps you are right. Let us have no unpleasantness and no +gossip about the affair, by all means. I consent, then." Garavel's +voice altered and he said, with more of his natural geniality, "I +am very glad you take the matter so sensibly, Mr. Anthony; it was, +after all, but a dream of youth." + +"And permit me to offer my congratulations upon the honor your +country is about to bestow upon you." Conversing in a friendly +manner, they followed the rest of the party. + +As the banker appeared upon the threshold of the ballroom a murmur +ran through the crowd; faces were turned in his direction, +whispers were exchanged, showing that already the news had +travelled. Conscious of this notice and its reason, Garavel drew +himself up; he walked with the tread of an emperor. + +Kirk ignored Ramon's scowl as he requested the pleasure of seeing +Chiquita's programme; then pretended not to notice her start of +surprise. After a frightened look at her father, she timidly +extended the card to him, and he wrote his name upon it. + +As he finished he found Mrs. Cortlandt regarding him. + +"Will you dance with me?" he inquired. "Yes. I saved the fourth +and the tenth." As he filled in the allotted spaces, she said, in +a low voice, "You are the boldest person! Did Mr. Garavel give you +leave to do that, or--" + +"Of course! Thank you." He made his way out of the press that had +gathered and toward the open air. He was shaking with nervousness +and cursed all government hotels where a man is denied the solace +of a drink. + +Runnels pounced upon him just outside. + +"Well, well, quick! Did you make it?" + +"Number nine." + +"Good! I was gnawing my finger-nails. Whew! I'm glad that is over. +Now pull yourself together and don't forget you have the first +dance with Mrs. Runnels. There goes the music. I--I'm too rattled +to dance." + +Anthony found his friend's wife bubbling with excitement, and +scarcely able to contain herself. + +"Oh, I'll never live through it, I know," she cried, as soon as +they were out upon the floor. "How CAN you be so calm?" + +"I'm not. I'm as panicky as you are." + +"And she, poor little thing! She seems frightened to death." + +"But--isn't she beautiful?" + +Mrs. Runnels admitted the fact cheerfully, and at the same time +noted how her partner's muscles swelled and hardened as Miss +Garavel glided past in the arms of Ramon Alfarez. It gave her a +thrill to see a real drama unfolding thus before her very eyes. + +To Kirk, Chiquita had never appeared so ravishing, nor so purely +Spanish as to-night. She was clad in some mysterious filmy white +stuff that floated about her form like a mist. The strangeness and +brilliance of her surroundings had frightened her a little, and +the misery at her heart had filled her wide, dark eyes with a +plaintive melancholy. But she was entirely the fine lady through +it all, and she accepted the prominence that was hers as the +leading senorita of the Republic with simple dignity and +unconcern. The women began to whisper her name, the men followed +her with admiring glances. At every interval between dances she +was besieged by gayly clad officers, civilians in white--the +flower of her own people and of the American colony as well--all +eager to claim her attention or to share in her shy, slow smile. + +Now and then her eyes strayed to Kirk with a look that made his +blood move quicker. It boded well for the success of his plans, +and filled him with a fierce, hot gladness. But how the moments +dragged! + +General Alfarez entered the room amid a buzz of comment. Then, as +he greeted his rival, Garavel, with a smile and a handshake, a +round of applause broke forth. The members of the Commission +sought them both out, and congratulations were exchanged. At last +the Garavel boom was launched in earnest. + +Mrs. Cortlandt expressed a desire to sit out the fourth dance. + +"So, your engagement to Miss Garavel is broken?" she began, when +she and Kirk had seated themselves in two of the big rockers that +lined the porch. + +"All smashed to pieces, running-gear broken, steering-knuckle +bent, gasolene tank punctured. I need a tow." + +"You take it calmly." + +"What's the use of struggling? I'm no Samson to go around pulling +down temples." + +"Did you expect her to yield so tamely?" + +"I didn't know she had yielded. In fact, I haven't had a chance to +talk to her." + +"But she has. Mr. Garavel told me not an hour ago that as soon as +he explained his wishes she consented to marry Ramon without a +protest." + +"A refusal would have meant the death of the old man's chances, I +presume. She acted quite dutifully." + +"Yes. If she had refused Ramon, I doubt if we could have saved her +father. As it is, the General withdraws and leaves the field +clear, the two young people are reunited, quite as if you had +never appeared, and you--My dear Kirk, now what about you?" + +"Oh, I don't count. I never have counted in anything, you know. +That's the trouble with good-natured people. But is it true that +Garavel is practically elected?" + +"General Alfarez couldn't very well step in after he had publicly +stepped out, could he? That would be a trifle too treacherous; +he'd lose his support, and our people could then have an excuse to +take a hand. I'm tremendously glad it's all settled finally, I +assure you. It was a strain; and although I'm sorry you got your +fingers pinched between the political wheels, I'm relieved that +the uncertainty is ended." + +So far they had been speaking like mere acquaintances, but now +Kirk turned upon her a trifle bitterly. + +"I think you worked it very cleverly, Mrs. Cortlandt," he said. +"Of course, I had no chance to win against a person of your +diplomatic gifts. I had my nerve to try." + +She regarded him without offence at this candor, then nodded. + +"Yes. You see, it meant more to me than to you or to her. With you +two it is but a romance forgotten in a night. I have pretty nearly +outlived romance." + +"You think I will forget easily? That's not flattering." + +"All men do. You will even forget my part in the affair, and we +will be better friends than ever." + +"Suppose I don't choose to accept what it pleases people to hand +me?" + +"My dear Kirk!" She smiled. "You will have to in this case. There +is nothing else to do." + +He shook his head. "I hoped we could be friends, Mrs. Cortlandt, +but it seems we can't be." + +At this she broke out, imperiously, her eyes flashing. + +"I ask nothing you can't give. I have never been denied, and I +won't be denied now. You can't afford to break with me." + +"Indeed! Why do you think that?" + +"Listen! I've shown you what I can do in a few months. In a year +you can be a great success. That's how big men are made; they know +the short-cuts. You are too inexperienced yet to know what success +and power mean, but you are beginning to learn, and when you have +learned you will thank me for breaking up this foolish romance. I +don't ask you to forget your manhood. I ask nothing. I am content +to wait. You want to become a big man like your father. Well, +Runnels will be out of the way soon; Blakeley amounts to nothing. +You will be the Superintendent." + +"So! That's not merely a rumor about Blakeley? Runnels is fired, +eh?" + +"Yes." + +"If I choose not to give up Chiq--Miss Garavel, then what? It +means the end of me here, is that it?" + +"If you 'choose'! Why, my dear, you have no choice whatever in the +matter. It is practically closed. You can do nothing--although, if +you really intend to make trouble, I shall walk inside when I +leave and inform the old gentleman, in which case he will probably +send the girl home at once, and take very good care to give you no +further opportunity. Ramon is only too anxious to marry her. As to +this being the end of you here, well, I really don't see how it +could be otherwise. No Kirk, it's for you to decide whether you +wish to be shown the secret path up the mountain or to scale the +cliffs unaided. There are no conditions. You merely mustn't play +the fool." + +"And if I don't agree you will tell Mr. Garavel that I'm going to +make trouble?" He mused aloud, watching her out of the corner of +his eye. She said nothing, so he went on cautiously, sparring for +time. + +"Well, inasmuch as this seems to be a plain business proposition, +suppose I think it over. When it comes time for our next dance, +I'll say yes or no." + +"As you please." + +"Very well. The music has stopped; we'd better go in." + +As they rose she laid her hand upon his arm and he felt it tremble +as she exclaimed: + +"Believe me, Kirk, this isn't at all easy for me, but--I can't +bear to lose." + + + + +XXV + +CHECKMATE! + + +Anthony had no partner for the eighth dance, and was very glad of +it, for he could not have carried off the necessary small talk. As +it was, he felt that his excitement must be patent to those around +him. His mind was filled with tormenting doubts, his chance for +success seemed so infinitely small, his plan so extravagantly +impracticable, now that the time had come! + +As the music ceased and the dancers came pouring out into the cool +night air, Runnels approached with his wife. + +"Well, are you equal to it?" he asked. + +Kirk nodded; he could not speak. + +"Why, you look as cold as ice," exclaimed the woman, half- +resentfully. "I'm the only one who seems to feel it. I--I'm +positively delirious. My partners look at me in the strangest way, +as if they thought I were liable to become dangerous at any +moment." + +"Not too loud!" her husband cautioned, then to Kirk: "Good-luck, +old man. Lord! I need a bracer." His words stuck in his throat, +and Kirk realized that he was himself the calmest of the three. +Together, Runnels and his wife strolled off through the crowd, +disappearing in the direction of the north wing of the hotel. + +It seemed ages before the orchestra struck up; Kirk began to fear +that something had happened to the musicians. He edged closer to +the door and searched out Chiquita with his eyes. There she was, +seated with her father, Colonel Bland from Gatun, and some high +officer or other--probably an admiral. Ramon Alfarez was draped +artistically over the back of her chair, curling his mustache +tenderly and smiling vacantly at the conversation. + +Kirk ground his teeth together and set his feet as if for the +sound of the referee's whistle. He heard the orchestra leader tap +his music-stand; then, as the first strains of the waltz floated +forth, he stepped into the ballroom and made toward his +sweetheart. All at once he found that his brain was clear, his +heart-beats measured. + +Of course she saw him coming; she had waited all the long evening +for this moment. He saw her hand flutter uncertainly to her +throat; then, as he paused before her, she rose without a word. +His arm encircled her waist, her little, cold palm dropped into +his as lightly as a snowflake, and they glided away together. He +found himself whispering her name over and over again +passionately. + +"Why--why did you do this, senor?" she protested, faintly. "It is +very hard for me." + +"It is the last time I shall ever hold you--this way." + +She faltered, her breath caught. "Please! My father is looking. +Ramon--" + +"Have you agreed to marry him?" + +"Yes! No no! Oh, I have prayed to the Virgin every hour. I cannot, +and yet I must. See! I cannot waltz, senor, I have s-stepped upon +you. Take me back to my seat." + +For answer he pressed her closer to his breast, holding her up +without effort. The incense from her hair was robbing him of his +wits, his old wild desire to pick her up and carry her away swept +over him. + +"Don't--esqueeze--me--so!" she exclaimed. "I cannot hold back--the +tears. I am so unhappy. If I could die quickly--now." + +"Let us go out on the porch." + +"No, no! We must remain in my father's sight. Will you take me to +my seat?" + +"No, I want you to listen carefully to what I'm going to say." He +spoke low and earnestly. "Try to show nothing in your face, for +they are watching us." Seeing her more composed and attentive, he +went on: + +"Don't stop dancing now, when I tell you. Chiquita dear, you must +marry me, to-night, right away! I have arranged everything. No, +don't look up at me until I have finished. Try to smile. I've +planned it all out and everything is in readiness. I have a room +just around the corner of the veranda; there's a judge waiting for +us, and Runnels and his wife--" + +"You are mad!" she gasped. + +"No, no. We'll slip through one of the French windows, and we'll +be back again before they miss us. Nobody will know. I tell you +they're waiting. If we are missed they'll think--it doesn't matter +what they think, you'll be my wife, and Ramon can't marry you +then. We'll say nothing about it until your father is elected +President." + +"Senor, one cannot be married in a moment. I am Catholic--the +banns--" + +"I've thought of all that, but a civil marriage is binding. We'll +have the religious ceremony afterward; meanwhile this will stop +Ramon, at least. I promise not to see you again until you send for +me, until your father's hopes are realized. You may wait as long +as you wish, and nobody will know. They tricked you, Chiquita +dear; I can't explain, but it wasn't all politics, by any means. +Oh, girl! Don't you understand, I love you--love you? It's our +only chance." The words were tumbling from his lips incoherently; +he was pleading as if for his life, while she clung to him to +support herself. Through it all their feet moved rhythmically, +their bodies swayed to the cadences of the waltz as they circled +the ballroom. He guided her among the other whirling figures, +under the very eyes of her father and her fiance, while more than +one of the onlookers commented upon the handsome appearance of +these young people, the one so stalwart and blond and Northern, +the other so chic and dark and tropical. + +He knew it was her lifelong loyalty, her traditional sense of +obedience, that made her hesitate. + +"It was treachery to both of us," he urged; "they imposed upon +your father, but when he has won he'll forgive us. I know what I'm +saying; Mrs. Cortlandt told me to-night." + +"Mother of God!" she exclaimed, faintly. "Is it that I am +dreaming?" + +"They are waiting for us; the dance is half over already. I love +you--better than all the world. Do you remember two nights ago? +You kissed me then, and--I--I can't live without you. We'll go +away together, you and I, through all the world--just we two." She +trembled against him. "Quick!" he cried in her ear. "We're coming +to the spot. They can't see us now. If you feel weak, hold to my +arm until we are outside." + +She gave a hysterical, choking sob that was half a sigh; then her +eyes flashed upward to his--they were wide and bright and shining-- +her lips were parted, her body was lithe and full of life. She +slipped from his embrace, whispering: + +"Yes, yes! Quickly, senor!" And the next instant they were out +upon the wide gallery with the dance behind them. "Hurree, hurree! +Or they will follow." + +Together they fled along the north wing of the hotel; the girl was +panting, with one hand held to her bare throat; but there was no +need for him to help her, for she ran like a fawn. + +"Here!" He swung her around the corner and rapped sharply at a +door. + +"Quickly! Quickly!" she moaned. "For the love of--" + +With terrific force the door was fairly jerked from its hinges and +slammed to behind them. The next moment Allan's big body was +leaning against it, as if the wall were about to fall inward upon +him. Runnels leaped forward with an exclamation, his wife stood +staring, her face as white as snow. With them was the genial gray- +haired judge from Colon, whom Kirk had met at the Wayfarers Club +on the night of his arrival. + +"You made it!" Runnels cried, triumphantly. + +"Miss Garavel!" his wife echoed. "Thank Heaven you came!" + +"Quick, the music will stop! Judge, this is Miss Garavel--you must +marry us just as fast as you can." + +"I presume you consent?" the judge asked, with a smile at the +girl. + +"I--I want to be happy," she said, simply. Her bosom was heaving, +her pansy eyes were fastened upon the magistrate with a look of +pleading that drove the smile from his lips. She clung to +Anthony's arm as if she feared these strangers might tear him +away. + +"You understand, Judge, she's of age; so am I. They want to force +her to marry a man she doesn't--" + +The muffled strains of music ceased. There came the faint clapping +of hands. + +"Madre de Dios!" Miss Garavel cried. "We are too late." She beat +her little palms together in desperation. + +There was a breathless interval. Then the music began again, and +to its throbbing measures the marriage ceremony was performed. As +the last word was pronounced, Mrs. Runnels burst into tears and +hid her face against her husband's breast. Runnels himself held +forth a shaking hand to Kirk, then patted the bride clumsily upon +her shoulder. + +"I know you will be happy now, Mrs. Anthony," he said. + +With an incoherent cry of delight, Kirk folded his wife in his +arms, and she kissed him before them all. + +"Senor, I will love you always," she said, shyly. + +During the progress of this scene, Allan Allan of Jamaica had +stood frozen with amazement, a door-knob wedged firmly into the +small of his back, his eyes distended and rolling; but when Mrs. +Runnels collapsed, as at a signal he too dissolved in tears. + +"Oh, glory to God, boss," he sobbed, "you is a beautiful +bridegroom!" + +"Come, we must get back, the music has stopped again." Kirk turned +to the judge. "Nothing is to be said until Miss Gar--Mrs. Anthony +gives the word; you understand? I can't thank you all half enough. +Now, Allan, see if the coast is clear, quickly!" He was still in a +panic, for there yet remained a chance of discovery and ruin. One +more instant of suspense, then the two stepped out; the door +closed softly behind them and they strolled around the corner of +the north wing and into the crowd. It had all happened so quickly +that even yet they were dazed and disbelieving. + +"My wife!" Kirk whispered, while a tremendous rush of emotion +swept over him. She trembled in answer like a wind-shaken leaf. +"You're mine, Chiquita! They can't take you away." His voice +broke. + +"I am still dreaming. What have I done? Oh-h--they will know; in +my face they will read the truth. But I do not care. Is--it indeed +true?" + +They were at the entrance to the ballroom now, through which they +had come a few minutes before, and, pausing, she gave him a half- +serious, half-timid glance. + +"Senor, I do not know if some time you will be sorry for this +action, but I shall never cease loving you. I prayed hourly to the +Blessed Virgin, and she heard. Now, I shall perish until you +come." + +"When you give me leave; through steel and stone, through fire and +water." + +"Quick, for the one more time, call me--that--" She hesitated, +blushing vividly. "I will hear it in my dreams." + +"My wife!" he whispered, tenderly. + +"Ho! Chiquita mia!" her father cried, as they came to him. "There +you are then. I have missed you." His eyes smouldered as he gazed +suspiciously at Kirk. + +"Ah, but I was too warm," she said, easily. "Yonder by the door we +have been standing in the night breeze. And where is Ramon?" + +"He is looking for you." + +"One would think him a jealous husband already," she exclaimed, +lightly. Then, extending her hand coolly to Kirk, "I thank you, +senor, for the--dance." + +Her husband bowed. "I shall not soon forget it." To the father he +added, in a low voice: "I thank you, also, for your courtesy. We +have been discussing your daughter's marriage during the dance, +and it is my one greatest hope that she will never regret it." + +The banker acknowledged the words ceremoniously. "Love is a thing +that comes and goes; marriage alone can bind it. Some day you will +thank me, and then perhaps you will honor our house again, eh?" + +"I shall be happy to come whenever you wish." As he walked away, +the banker said, with relief: + +"He takes it well; he is proud--almost like a Spaniard." + +Kirk moved through the crowd as if in a trance, but he was +beginning to realize the truth now; it surged over him in great +waves of gladness. He longed to shout his news aloud. What luck +was his! The world was made for him; there was no such thing as +adversity or failure--Chiquita was his wife! All Christendom might +go to pot for all he cared; that marvellous fact was unalterable. +Yes, and he could speak his mind to Mrs. Cortlandt. His tentative +acceptance of the terms she made sickened him. He wanted to rid +himself of this false position as soon as possible. What mattered +her threats? What did he care for the things she could give or +withhold when all the glad open world was beckoning to him and to +his bride? Success! Riches! He could win them for himself. +Chiquita was all and more than they, and he was a god! + +In the midst of his rhapsody he heard a bell-boy speaking his +name, and smiled at him vacantly as he turned away. But the negro +followed him persistently, saying something about a letter. + +"Letter? I have no time to write letters. Oh, I beg pardon, letter +for ME?" He took the missive from the silver tray and stuffed it +absent-mindedly into a pocket, fumbling meanwhile for a tip. "I +don't seem to have any money, my boy, but money, after all, means +nothing." + +"It is h'impartant, sar." + +"Oh yes, the letter. Very well." He opened the envelope and +pretended to read, but in reality the sheet held nothing for him +but a ravishing, mischievous face, with pansy eyes. He must have +stood staring unseeingly at it for several seconds. Then the +dancing visions faded and the scrawl stood out plainly: + +Williams, detective, St. Louis, arrived at Colon this evening on +the Prince Joachim. You'd better take it on the run. + +It was written upon Tivoli paper, but the hand was strange and it +was not signed. + +"Well!" Kirk came suddenly to himself, and a spasm of disgust +seized him. "What a rotten inconvenience!" he said aloud. But +before he had time to measure the effect of this new complication +the swelling music reminded him that this dance belonged to Mrs. +Cortlandt and that her answer was due. + +She was waiting for him in the gallery, and motioned him to the +chair adjoining hers. + +"I can't two-step and talk at the same time," she said, "and here +we'll be quite private." + +Kirk remained standing. "What I have to say won't take long. I've +made up my mind, and I--" + +Edith interrupted him with a lightness that her look belied: + +"Oh, let's not discuss it. I don't want you to answer. I don't +want to think of it. I just want to forget--and to plan. You +understand how I feel?" She faced him with eyes bright and +lustrous, her red lips parted in a smile. She was a very beautiful +woman, Kirk realized--a very compelling, unusual woman, and one +whose capabilities seemed unbounded. He began dimly to perceive +that all women have great capabilities for good or evil, depending +largely upon the accident of their environment, and with this +thought came the feeling that he must speak frankly now or prove +himself worse than base. If only she were of the weakly feminine +type his task would be far easier. But it was hard to strike her, +for the very reason that he knew she would take the blow bravely +and meet its full force. + +"I must answer," he said. "I don't want to pretend; I'm not good +at lying. I can't go through with any such arrangement as you +suggested. Why, the very idea is positively--fierce. You've been +awfully nice to me, but I had no idea of--this. Besides, +Cortlandt's an awfully decent chap, and--and, well," he concluded, +lamely, "there are lots of reasons." + +"Oh no! There is only one reason; all the others count for +nothing." She spoke in a voice that he could scarcely hear. + +"Perhaps! But it's--just impossible." + +"You know what it means?" She stared at him with hard, level eyes. +"I'm not a moderate person--I can't do things by halves. No! I see +you don't think of that, you are mad over this Garavel girl. But +you can't get her." Something in his dazzled, love-foolish smile +enraged her. "So! You are planning even now. Well, then, +understand there are practical reasons, political reasons, why you +can't have her. If Garavel were insane enough to consent, others +would not. She is part of--the machine, and there are those who +will not consent to see all their work spoiled. That is altogether +apart from me, you understand. I can build, and I can destroy--" + +"There's nothing more to say," he interrupted her, quietly, "so +I'd better excuse myself." + +"Yes! I would prefer to be alone." + +When he had bowed himself away she crushed the fan in her hand, +staring out across the lights of the city below, and it was thus +that Cortlandt found her a few moments later, as he idled along +the veranda, his hands in his pockets, a cigarette between his +lips. He dropped into the empty chair beside her, saying: + +"Hello! Thought you had this with Anthony?" + +"I had." + +"What's the trouble?" + +"There is no trouble." She began to rock, while he studied her +profile; then, conscious of his look, she inquired, "Aren't you +dancing?" + +"No, just looking on, as usual. I prefer to watch. You have broken +your fan, it seems." He flung his cigarette into the darkness and, +reaching out, took the fan from her hand. She saw that his lips +were drawn back in a peculiar smile. + +"Well! Is that so strange?" she answered, sharply. "You seem--" +She broke off and looked deliberately away from him. + +"Row, eh?" he inquired, softly. + +She could barely hold back her hatred of the man. He had worked +powerfully upon her nerves of late, and she was half hysterical. + +"Why do you take pleasure in annoying me?" she cried. "What ails +you these last few weeks? I can't stand it--I won't--" + +"Oh! Pardon! One quarrel an evening is enough. I should have known +better." + +She turned upon him at this, but once more checked the words that +clamored for utterance. Her look, however, was a warning. She bit +her lip and said nothing. + +"Too bad you and he don't hit it off better; he likes me." + +There was no answer. + +"He's giving me a party after the dance, sort of a gratitude +affair. A delicate way to acknowledge a debt, eh?" + +She saw that his hand shook as he lit a fresh cigarettes, and the +strangeness of his tone made her wonder. "You know very well it is +Runnels' doing," she said. + +"Oh, there are six of them in it altogether, but Anthony +originated the little surprise. It's intended for you, of course." + +"I don't see it. Are you going?" + +"I accepted." + +"What do you mean by that?" + +"Bah! They won't give it," he said, harshly. + +"And why not? I think it is rather nice of those chaps. Of course, +Runnels would like to ingratiate himself with you--" + +"Funny spectacle, eh? Me the guest of--Anthony!" + +There was a trace of anxiety in her voice as she answered, and, +though she spoke carelessly, she did not meet his eyes. + +"I--I'd rather you'd make an excuse. I'll have to go home alone, +you know." + +He raised his brows mockingly. "My DEAR! I'm to be the honored +guest." + +"Suit yourself, of course." + +A marine officer approached, mopping his face, and engaged her in +conversation, whereupon Cortlandt rose languidly and strolled away +through the crowd that came eddying forth from the ballroom. + +Meanwhile, Kirk had found Runnels, who was looking for him, eager +to express his congratulations and to discuss their exploit in +detail. + +"I've just taken the wife home," he explained. "I never saw +anybody so excited. If she'd stayed here she'd have given the +whole thing away, sure. Why, she wasn't half so much affected by +her own marriage." + +"I--I haven't pulled myself together yet. Funny thing--I've just +been watching my wife dancing with the man she is engaged to. Gee! +It's great to be married." + +"She's the dearest thing I ever saw; and wasn't she game? Alice +will cry for weeks over this. Why, it's the sob-fest of her +lifetime. She's bursting with grief and rapture. I hope your wife +can keep a secret better than mine, otherwise there will be a +tremendous commotion before to-morrow's sun sets. I suppose now +I'll have to hang around home with my finger on my lip, saying +'Hist!' until the news comes out. Whew! I am thirsty." + +Anthony did not tell his friend about the detective in Colon and +his mysterious warning, partly because he was not greatly +disturbed by it and trusted to meeting the difficulty in proper +time, and partly because his mind was once more too full of his +great good-fortune to permit of any other interest. Now that he +had some one to whom he could talk freely, he let himself go, and +he was deep in conversation when Stephen Cortlandt strolled up and +stopped for an instant to say: + +"Quite a lively party, isn't it?" + +Kirk noticed how sallow he had grown in the past few months, and +how he had fallen off in weight. He looked older, too; his cheeks +had sunken in until they outlined his jaws sharply. He seemed far +from well; a nervous twitching of his fingers betokened the strain +he had been under. He was quite as immaculate as usual, however, +quite as polished and collected. + +"How is our little 'stag' coming on?" he asked. + +"Fine! Everything is ready," said Runnels. "You won't expect an +elaborate layout; it's mostly cold storage, you know, but we'll at +least be able to quench our thirst at the Central." + +"Then it's really coming off? I was--afraid you'd forgotten it." +Cortlandt cast a curious glance at Kirk, who exclaimed, heartily: + +"Well, hardly!" Then, as their prospective guest moved off, "What +a strange remark!" + +"Yes," said Runnels, "he's a queer fellow; but then, you know, +he's about as emotional as a toad." + + + + +XXVI + +THE CRASH + + +Kirk had no further chance of speaking with his wife, for after +the dance she was whisked away, leaving him nothing but the memory +of an adoring, blissful glance as she passed. With Runnels and +Cortlandt and the rest, he was driven to the Hotel Central, where +they found a very attractive table set in a private dining-room. +It was a lively party, and Kirk's secret elation enabled him to +play the part of host with unforced geniality. The others joined +him in a hearty effort to show their guest the high regard in +which they held him, and if Cortlandt did not enjoy himself, it +was entirely his own fault. + +Toward Kirk, however, he preserved a peculiar attitude, which only +the young man's self-absorption prevented him from noticing. If he +had been less jubilant, he must have felt the unnatural aloofness +of the other man's bearing; but even had he done so, he would +doubtless have attributed it to Cortlandt's well-recognized +frigidity. + +At the propitious moment, Runnels, who had reluctantly agreed to +share the social responsibility, made a little speech, explaining +that he and his boys had been sensible from the first of their +guest's interest in them, and were deeply grateful for it. They +were all working together, he said, and what helped one helped +another. They had banded together, and now tendered him a token of +their regard in a form which he could preserve. + +"It's a little late," he smiled, "in view of the rumor that has +been going round within the last day or so, but, no matter what +happens to any one of us in the readjustment of our department, we +appreciate the help you have given us collectively." + +He handed a handsome loving-cup to Cortlandt, who thanked him +appropriately, then waited courteously for the party to break up. +But Anthony rose, saying: + +"I simply have to say a word on my own account, fellows, for I owe +Mr. Cortlandt more than any of you." + +The object of these remarks shot a swift, questioning glance from +his stony eyes, and raised a hand as if to check him. But Kirk ran +on unheeding: + +"I want to thank him before all of you for what he has done for me +personally. When I landed in Panama I was a rotter. I'd never +worked, and never intended to; I rather despised people who did. I +represented the unearned increment. I was broke and friendless, +and what ideas I had were all wrong. This is something you don't +know, perhaps, but no sooner had I landed than I got into trouble +of the worst sort, and Mr. Cortlandt got me out. He was my bail- +bond; he put me up at his hotel; gave me clothes, and paid my way +until I got started. I was a stranger, mind you, but he's been +just like one of my own people, and if I ever succeed in doing +anything really worth while, it will be due to the start he gave +me." + +Though the words were commonplace enough, they carried a sincere +message, and Cortlandt saw by the faces about him that the others +were pleased. His own gaunt features turned more sallow than ever. +The memory of what he had heard on the porch of his own house a +few afternoons ago, of what he had seen at other times, of his +wife's telltale behavior on this very evening, swept over him, +fanning anew the sullen emotions he had cherished all these +months. How far would this fellow dare to go, he wondered? What +motive inspired him thus to pose before his friends, and openly +goad his victim under the cloak of modesty and gratitude? Was he +enhancing his triumph by jeering at the husband of whom he had +made a fool? He dropped his eyes to hide the fury in them. + +"I want to give you a little remembrance of my own." Anthony was +speaking directly to him. "It isn't much, but it means a good deal +to me, and I hope it will have some sort of personal association +for you, Mr. Cortlandt." He drew from his pocket a plush case and +took from it a very handsome thin Swiss watch with the letters "S. +C." artfully enamelled upon the back. Runnels, who knew the local +shops, wondered how it had been procured in Panama. The others +openly expressed their admiration. + +Cortlandt accepted the gift mechanically; then, as it touched his +flesh, a sudden color mounted to his cheeks, only to recede, +leaving them bloodless again. He stared at it uncertainly, then +looked up and ran his eyes slowly around the table. They came to +rest at last upon the broad frame of the giver, crowned with its +handsome, sun-tanned face and close-cropped shock of yellow hair. +Anthony was all that he was not--the very embodiment of youth, +vigor, and confidence, while he was prematurely aged, worn, and +impotent. + +They noted how ill he appeared, as if he had suffered from a +jungle fever, how his well-cut evening clothes refused to conceal +the frail lines of his figure, and how the hollows in his cheeks +added to his age. But for the first time since they had known him +they saw that his eyes were alive and burning dully. + +"I really didn't expect this," he began, slowly, as he rose. +"Anthony exaggerates; he is too kind. But since he has chosen to +publicly call attention to our relations, I will confess that what +he tells you is all true. He was everything he says when he first +came to Panama. He did get into trouble, and I helped him out; he +had no money, and I put him up as my guest; he needed work, and I +helped to place him. Through my assistance--partly, at any rate-- +he has made a man of himself. He has been welcome at my house, at +my table; he has come and gone as he pleased, like one of the +family, you might say. But those are little things; they count for +nothing." He smiled in a way that seemed ironical, his lips +writhed away from his teeth until his visage resembled a death- +head. His tone had gripped his hearers, and Anthony stirred +uneasily, thinking this an odd way of accepting a gift. + +Unclasping his long, white fingers, Cortlandt held up the watch to +public view. + +"In payment for my poor friendship he has given me this +magnificent thing of gold and jewels, the finest I ever saw. I +never counted upon such gratitude. It is too much, and yet a man +cannot refuse the gift of his friend and not seem ungracious, can +he? Somewhere in the Orient they have a custom of exchanging +gifts. No man may accept a thing of value without making adequate +return, and it has always struck me as a wise practice." He turned +full upon Kirk for the first time since he had begun speaking, and +his voice rose a tone as he said: "I can't let the obligation rest +entirely upon me. We have been friends, Anthony, and I am going to +give you something in return which I have prized highly; it would +be counted of great value by some." Once more he paused and drew +his lips back in that grimace of mockery--it could no longer be +termed a smile. "It is this--I am going to give you--my wife. You +have had her from the first, and now she is yours." For one +frightful moment there was no sound; even the men's breathing was +hushed, and they sat slack-jawed, stunned, half-minded to believe +this some hideous, incredible jest. But the maniacal light in +Cortlandt's eyes, and Anthony's chalk-white, frozen countenance +soon showed them the truth. Some one gasped, another laughed +hysterically, the sound breaking in his throat. Cortlandt turned +away gloatingly. + +Kirk was the last to recover his powers, but when they did revive +they came with a prodigious rush. He plunged upward out of his +chair with a cry like a wounded animal, and the others rose with +him. The table rocked, something smashed, a chair was hurled +backward. The room broke into instant turmoil. Kirk felt hands +upon him, and then went blind with fury, struggling in a passion +too strong for coherent speech. He was engulfed in chaos. He felt +things break beneath his touch, felt bodies give way before him. + +How or when Cortlandt left the room he never knew. Eventually he +found himself pinned in his chair, with Runnels' white face close +against his own and other hands upon his arms. His first frenzy +quickly gave way to a sickening horror. Some one was commanding +him to be still, to create no scene; but those were not words, +they were simply mutterings that conveyed no meaning. + +"It's a lie! The man's crazy!" he cried, hoarsely; then, as his +companions drew away from him, he rose to his feet. "Why are you +looking at me like that? I tell you it's a damned lie! I never--" + +Runnels turned to the table, and with shaking hand put a glass to +his lips and gulped its contents. Wade and Kimble exchanged +glances, then, avoiding each other's eyes, took their hats from +the hooks behind them. + +"Wait! Bring him back!" Kirk mumbled. "I'll get him and make him +say it's a lie." But still no one answered, no one looked at him. +"God! You don't believe it?" + +"I'm going home, fellows. I'm kind of sick," Kimble said. One of +the others murmured unintelligibly, and, wetting a napkin, bound +up his hand, which was bleeding. They continued to watch Kirk as +if fearful of some insane action, yet they refused to meet his +eyes squarely. There was no sympathy in their faces. + +The knowledge of what these actions meant came to him slowly. Was +it possible that his friends believed this incredible accusation? +The thought made him furious, too agitated as yet to realize that +such a charge made under such circumstances could not well prove +less than convincing. As he began to collect himself he saw his +plight more clearly. His first thought had been that Cortlandt was +insane, but the man's actions were not those of a maniac. No! He +actually believed and--and these fellows believed also. No doubt +they would continue to think him guilty in spite of all that he +could do or say; for after this shocking denunciation it would +take more than mere words to prove that he had not betrayed his +friend and benefactor. It was incredible, unbearable! He wanted to +shout his innocence at them, to beat it into their heads; but the +more he expostulated the more distant they became. + +One by one they took their hats and went out, mumbling good-night +to one another, as if intending to go home singly in order to +avoid all discussion of this thing that had fallen among them +Runnels alone remained. + +"YOU don't believe I did--that?" Anthony asked, in a strained +voice. + +"I--I think I do." There was a miserable silence, and then: "It +isn't the thing itself, you know, so much as the rotten-- +underhanded advantage you took. If he'd been a stranger, now-- +Honestly, isn't it true?" + +Kirk shook his head, listlessly. "I wouldn't lie to you." + +Runnels drew a deep breath.. "Oh, come, now, the man MUST have +known what he was saying. Do you realize what it means--if--well, +if he were mistaken? It would be bad enough if he were not, but +this would be ten times worse. Don't you see?" + +"I don't see much of anything yet. I'm stunned." + +"Ugh! To make it public that way, he must be made of iron." +Runnels shuddered; then, with cold eyes on Kirk, continued: "He +must have known, Anthony. Men don't do things like that on +suspicion." + +"He misunderstood our friendship," said Kirk, heavily, then roused +himself for a last plea. "Look here!" he cried. "You know +Cortlandt and you know me. The man was insanely jealous! I know it +sounds weak, but it's the truth, and it's all I can say. I'll go +mad if you doubt me." + +Runnels' face showed the pain he felt, but his eyes looked +incredulous. + +"Another thing," Kirk went on, desperately: "do you suppose that +if what you believe were true I could have the inhuman nerve to +come here to-night? That would make me a fool or a monster!" + +"I don't know," said Runnels. + +"You do know. You know ME. If we weren't such friends I wouldn't +argue with you like this, but--I can't bear it. And to-night of +all--" He broke off sharply. "My God! I'd forgotten that I'm +married! Suppose Gertrudis hears of this! If it ever gets to her-- +I--believe I could kill him." + +"Don't talk like that." + +"I never really thought I could take a person's life, but if she +heard she might believe; everybody else seems to believe. +Understand, she hardly knows me. She might--she might--" Anthony +seized his temples in despair. + +Runnels took a sudden illogical decision. He never knew exactly +what had influenced him, but his whole past knowledge of Anthony +surged up in him with a force that he could not resist. He found +that he could not really believe him capable of this abomination +any more than he could believe it of himself. Little of our life +is ruled by reason, and it is something else than logic that +produces the last feeling of conviction. Here, this something was +present where logic was lacking. + +He laid his hand on Kirk's shoulder. "Take it easy, old man," he +said. "I believe you. I've always known that they didn't get along +together, although--well, I won't try to understand it. He may not +do anything further, and these fellows won't mention what happened +here; they can't." + +"You know we're only half married," moaned Kirk, hardly heeding +him. "Women are apt to be jealous, aren't they, Runnels? What do +you suppose she'd do?" + +"Don't worry about that. I'm thinking about Cortlandt. If he finds +out he's mistaken, what will HE do?" + +"He'll have to find out. I'm going to tell him. His wife will tell +him. Good God! Do you see what an awful light it puts me in? You +don't doubt me, do you, really, old man?" + +"No--but what a night this has been! It seems a year old. Come +along, now, you must get out of here. You must turn in." + +"Oh, I don't feel as if I'd ever sleep again until this thing is +cleared up." His anguish swept over him in a fresh tide. "Those +boys think I did that trick to the man who befriended me!" + +"Well, don't let's talk about it any more; we can't stay here all +night, anyhow. The waiters are wondering what this row is about. I +think we'd better take a walk." Runnels dragged his companion out, +trying to calm him as best he could. + +In passing through the deserted lobby of the hotel, they saw +Clifford idling about; but they were too much absorbed to wonder +what had kept him up so late. By the clock across the Plaza they +saw it was two hours after midnight as they stepped into the +street; then, finding no coaches in sight, they set out to walk +toward Ancon, both badly in need of the open air. + +A moment later Clifford followed them, taking pains to keep at a +distance. + +Now that the full import of Cortlandt's accusation had sunk into +his mind, Kirk lapsed into a mood of sullen bitterness. He said +little, but his set face worried his companion, who was loath to +bid him goodnight even when they were close to the Tivoli. After +they had parted Runnels was upon the point of going back and +offering to spend the night with him, but thought better of it. +After all, he reflected, his apprehensions were probably quite +unfounded. Anthony was too sensible a chap to do anything he might +repent of, now that his gust of passion had died down. So he went +on homeward wondering vaguely how Cortlandt would dare to meet his +wife, or, if he really found himself mistaken, how he could ever +summon courage to look his hosts in the face. + +Instead of passing through the office, Kirk mounted to the porch +of the Tivoli and entered his room from the outside, as he and +Chiquita had done earlier that evening. He found Allan waiting, +and bursting with a desire to gossip, but cut him short. + +"Get my street-clothes, I'm going out." He tore the white tie from +his throat as if it were choking him. + +"It is too late, sar. You will be h'exposing yourself to a fever +in the mist," expostulated the boy; but Kirk would not hear +argument. + +"Come along if you want to, I can't sleep. I want to walk--walk +until I'm tired." + +Mystified and frightened at this behavior, Allan obeyed. "Never +have I h'observed you so h'angry, boss," he observed. "Is it Ramon +Alfarez?" His eyes began to roll in excitement, for the spectacle +of his master's agitation never failed to work upon him +powerfully. + +"No, not Ramon; another. I've been hurt, Allan. I can't explain, +for you wouldn't understand, but I've been hurt." + +The negro's lips drew apart in an expression of ape-like ferocity, +and he began to chatter threats of vengeance, to which Kirk paid +little heed. A few moments later they went out quietly, and +together took the rock road down toward the city, the one silent +and desperate, the other whining like a hound nearing a scent. + + + + +XXVII + +A QUESTION + + +Edith Cortlandt did not retire immediately upon her return from +the ball. Her anger at Anthony's behavior kept her wakeful, and +the night had turned off so dead and humid that sleep was in any +case a doubtful possibility. It was the lifeless period between +seasons when the trades had died out, or, at best, veered about +bafflingly, too faint to offer relief. The cooling rains had not +set in as yet, and a great blanket of heat wrapped the city in its +smothering folds. The air was still and tainted, like that of a +sick-room. Through Mrs. Cortlandt's open windows came hardly a +sound; even from the sea below rose only a faint hissing, as if +the rocks at the water's edge were superheated. Earlier in the +evening the temperature had been bearable, but now it had reached +an intensity to strain tired nerves to the snapping-point. It was +the sort of night in which ailing children die and strong minds +feel the burden of living. No relief was to be had, and the +slightest physical effort was a misery. + +She was still sitting there at a late hour when she heard the +outside door close and Cortlandt's footsteps mounting the stairs. +She was glad he had his own room and never entered hers at such an +hour, for even to talk with him in her present state of mind and +body would have been more than she could bear. + +She was unreasonably annoyed, therefore, when he came boldly into +her chamber without even knocking, for all the world like a +welcome lover. To conceal her irritation, she kept her face turned +from him and continued fanning herself listlessly. She was +reclining in a wicker chair, lightly clad in a filmy silk +negligee, which she mechanically drew closer. + +"Rather late for good-nights," she said, coldly. + +"I've just come from Anthony's supper-party." + +His voice made her look round sharply. She saw that his linen, +ordinarily stiff and immaculate, was sodden and crumpled, his +collar limp, his forehead glistening with drops of moisture. She +could not remember ever having seen him in such a state. His +appearance affected her queerly. In him this dishevelment was +shocking. + +"What ails you, Stephen?" she cried. "Have you been drinking?" + +"No. I didn't drink much. I brought you something." + +He took the loving-cup from its flannel bag and set it upon the +table. "They gave me this." + +"It is very pretty, though I don't care for such things." + +"And this too." He tossed the watch with its enamelled monogram +into her lap. + +"Ah! That's very handsome." + +"Yes, I thought you'd like it; it's from Anthony." He laughed, +then shuddered, as though a cold wind had bitten through his +sodden garments. + +"Why--you seem excited over these souvenirs. You surely expected--" + +He broke in--a thing he rarely did while she was speaking: + +"Anthony made a speech when he gave it to me--a very nice speech, +full of friendship and love and gratitude." He repeated Kirk's +words as he remembered them, "What do you think of that?" + +"I think he expressed himself very frankly. But why do you tell me +now, when the morning will do just as well? I'm prostrated with +this heat." + +"He actually acknowledged his debt in public." + +Mrs. Cortlandt's eyes widened. This was not the man she knew. At +this moment he was actually insistent, almost overbearing, and he +was regarding her with that same ironical sneer that had roused +her anger earlier in the evening. + +"Well, come to the point," she cried, irritably. "I don't +understand what you are getting at. If you didn't wish to accept +anything from him, why did you go?" + +He began to chuckle, apparently without reason. His shoulders +shook, feebly at first, then more violently; his flat chest +heaved, and he hiccoughed as if from physical weakness. It was +alarming, and she rose, staring at him affrightedly. The sight of +her increased his mirthless laughter. He continued to shudder and +shake in uncontrollable hysteria, but his eyes were bright and +watchful. + +"Oh, I--I--took it all in--I let him p-put the noose around his +own neck and tie the knot. Then I hung him." His convulsive +giggling was terrible, forecasting, as it did, his immediate +breakdown. + +"Stephen!" she exclaimed, in a shocked tone, convinced that his +mind was going. "You are ill, you need a doctor. I will call +Joceel." She laid her hand on his arm. + +But he sniggered: "N-no! No! I'm all right. I t-t-t-t--" A +stuttering-fit seized him; then, with an effort of will, he calmed +himself. "Don't think I'm crazy. I was never more sane, never +cooler, in here." He tapped his head with his finger. "But I'm +tired, that's all, tired of waiting." + +"Won't you go to your room and let me call a doctor?" + +"Not yet. Wait! He told them what I had done for him, how I'd made +a man of him when he was broke and friendless, how I'd taken him +into my home like one of my family, and then I went him one +better. I acknowledged it all and made them hear it from my lips +too. Then--" He paused, and she steeled herself to witness another +spectacle of his pitiable loss of self-control. But instead he +grew icy and corpse-like, with lips drawn back in a grin. "What do +you think I said? Can't you guess? I couldn't let him get away +with that, could I? I played with him the way you have played with +me. Think!" + +Her face went suddenly ashen. He stood before her grimly +triumphant, enjoying his sense of mastery and deliberately +prolonging her suspense. + +"Well, I told him before them all that I intended to give him +something in return, and I did. I--gave--him--YOU." + +She stared at him uncomprehendingly. + +He nodded. "I said he'd had you from the first and that now I'd +give you to him." + +She gave an unintelligible cry, standing now, as if petrified. He +went on: + +"I knew all the time that I was in the way, but my work is done at +last, so I'll step out. But--you both got more than you bargained +for, didn't you?" + +"God! You didn't tell him that? You didn't say THAT--before those +men! Oh-h!" She shrank back, drawing the gauzy silk robe closer +about her breast. Her hands were shaking, her hair, which had +fallen free when she rose, cascaded about her neck and shoulders. +She let her eyes wander about the room as if to assure herself +that this was not some hideous nightmare. Then she roused to +sudden action. Seizing him by the shoulders she shook him roughly +with far more than her natural strength, voicing furious words +which neither of them understood. + +"Oh, I did it," he declared. "He's yours now. You can have him. +He's been your lover--" + +She flung him away from her so violently that he nearly fell. + +"It's a lie! You know it's a lie!" + +"It's true. I'm no fool." + +She beat her hands together distractedly, "What have you done? +What will those men think? Listen! You must stop them quickly. +Tell them it's not so." + +He seemed not to hear her. "I'm going away to-morrow," he said, +"but I'll never divorce you, no matter what you do; and I won't +let you divorce me, either. No, no! Take him now, if you want him, +but you'll never be able to marry him until I'm gone. And I won't +die soon--I promise you that, I'm going to live." + +"You can't go--" + +"There's a boat to-morrow." + +"Don't you see you must stay and explain to those men? My God! +They'll think you spoke the truth; they'll BELIEVE what you said." + +"Of course they will," he chattered, shrilly. "That's why I did it +in that way. No matter what you or he or I can do or say now, +they'll believe it forever. It came to me like a flash of light, +and I saw what it meant all in a minute. Do YOU understand what it +means, eh? Listen! No matter how you behave, they'll know. They +won't say anything, but they'll know, and you can't stand that, +can you? Even if you could fool me once more against the evidence +of my own eyes and ears, and convince me that your lies are true, +it wouldn't do any good with them." + +"'Evidence!' You have no evidence." + +"No? What about that night at Taboga? You were mad over the fellow +then, but you didn't think I saw. That day I caught you together +in the jungle--have you forgotten that? Didn't you think it +strange that I should be the one to discover you? Oh, I pretended +to be blind, but I followed you everywhere I could, and I kept my +eyes open." + +"You saw nothing, for there was nothing." + +"He's been with you day and night. You have been together +constantly, and I knew what was going on. But I waited, because I +wasn't strong enough to revolt--until to-night. Oh, but to-night I +was strong! Something gave me courage." + +In all their married life she had never known him to show such +stubborn force. He was like granite, and the unbelievable change +in him, upsetting all her preconceived notions of the man, +appalled her. There had been times in the past when they had +clashed, but he had never really matched his will with hers, and +she had judged him weak and spiritless. Now, therefore, failing to +dominate him as usual, she was filled with a strange feeling of +helplessness and terror. + +"You had no right to accept such evidence," she stormed. + +"Bah! Why try to fool me? I have your own words for it. The other +afternoon I came home sick--with my head. I was on the gallery +outside when you were pleading with him, and I heard it all. You +talked that night about Taboga, your guilty kisses and other +things; you acknowledged everything. But he was growing tired of +you. That, you know, makes it all the more effective." He smiled +in an agonized fury. + +"You--cur!" she cried, with the fury of one beating barehanded at +a barred door. "You had no right to do such a thing even if I were +guilty." + +"Right? Aren't you my wife?" + +The look she gave him was heavy with loathing. "That means nothing +with us. I never loved you, and you know it. You know, too, why I +married you. I made no secret of it at the time. You had what I +wanted, and I had what you wanted; but you were content with the +bargain because I gave you money, position, and power. I never +promised anything more than that. I made you into something like a +man. You never could have succeeded without me. All you have is +due to me--even your reputation in the service. Your success, your +influence, it is all mine, and the only thing you gave me was a +name; any other would have done as well." + +He shrank a little under this tirade, despite his exaltation. + +"Marriage!" she continued, in bitter scorn. "A priest mumbled +something over us, but it meant nothing then or now. I have +tolerated you because you were useful. I have carried you with me +as I carry a maid or a butler. I bought a manikin and dressed it +up and put breath into it for my own convenience, and I owe you +nothing, do you understand--nothing! The debt is all on your side, +as you and I and all the world know." + +"Who made me a manikin?" he demanded, with womanish fury, a fury +that had been striving for utterance these many years. "I had +ambitions and hopes and ability once--not much, perhaps, but +enough--before you married me. I was nothing great, but I was +getting along. I had confidence, too, but you took it away from +me. You--you absorbed me. You had your father's brain, and it was +too big for me; it overshadowed mine. In a way you were a vampire; +for what I had you drained me of. At first it was terrible to feel +that I was inferior, but I loved you, and although I had some +pride--" He choked an instant and threw back her incredulous stare +defiantly. "I let myself be eliminated. You thought you were doing +me a favor when you put me forward as a figurehead, but to me it +was a tragedy. I COULDN'T HELP LETTING YOU DO IT. Do you realize +what that means to a fellow? I quit fighting for my own +individuality, I became colored by you, I took on your ways, your +habits, your mental traits, and--all the time I knew what was +happening. God! How I struggled to remain Stephen Cortlandt, but +it would have taken a BIG man to mould you to his ways, and I was +only average. I began to do your work in your particular style; I +forgot my ambitions and my dreams and took up yours. That's what I +fell to, and all the time I KNEW it, and--and all the time I knew +you neither cared nor understood. My only consolation was the +thought that even though you never had loved me and never could, +you at least respected our relation. I clung to that miserably, +for it was all I had left, all that made me seem like a man. And +yet you took away even that. I tried to rebel, but I had been +drugged too long. You saw Anthony, and he had the things I lack; +you found you were not a machine, but a living woman. He +discovered the secret I had wasted away in searching for, and you +rewarded him. Oh, I saw the change in you quickly enough, and if +I'd been a man instead of what I was, I'd have--but I wasn't. I +went spying around like a woman, hating myself for permitting it +to go on, but lacking strength to stop it. But to-night, when he +got up before those other men and dangled my shame before my eyes, +I had enough manhood left in me to strike back. Thank God for that +at least! Maybe it's not too late yet; maybe if I get away from +you and try--" His voice died out weakly; in his face there was a +miserable half-gleam of hope. + +"I never knew you felt like that. I never knew you COULD feel that +way," she said, in a colorless voice. "But you made a terrible +mistake." + +"Do you mean to say you don't love him?" + +"No, I have loved him for a long time--I can't remember when it +began." She spoke very listlessly, looking past him as if at a +long-familiar picture which she was tired of contemplating. "I +never knew what love was before; I never even dreamed. I'd give my +life right now--to undo what you have done, just for his sake, for +he is innocent. Oh, don't sneer; it's true. He loves the Garavel +girl, and wants to marry her." + +"I know all that. I overheard you in the parlor below." + +"Listen, please! I don't remember what I said then, and it doesn't +matter; you took too much for granted. We must talk plainly now, +before"--she pressed her palms to her temples as if they were +bursting--"before it becomes impossible. I never lied to you, +Stephen. Is that true?" + +"I used to think so." + +"I'm going to tell you the whole truth now without sparing myself. +It began, I think, at Taboga, that night when he kissed me. It was +the only time he ever did such a thing. It was dark, we were +alone, I was frightened, and it was purely impulse on his part. +But it woke me up, and all at once I knew how much he meant to me. +I would have yielded utterly to him then if he had let me, but he +was panic-stricken. He spoke of you, he apologized; I never saw a +man in more misery. When I had time to realize the truth I tried +to fight it off. But it was no use, and at last I gave up. After +that I put myself in his way deliberately. I offered him +opportunities continually, but he never seemed to see them. That +day in the jungle I was desperate at his indifference, and I drove +the horses away when he wasn't looking. I struck them with my +crop--and I actually threw myself at him as boldly as I could, +regardless of consequences. But he was like ice; he was speaking +of you when you came. It has always been the same. When I +discovered that he cared for that girl--well, if you overheard you +must know. I frightened Garavel into dismissing him, and I set out +to break him, just to show him that he needed me. To-night I +offered to divorce you and make him all and more than I've made +you, but he scorned me. That's the truth, Stephen. If we believed +in oaths, I would swear it." + +No one who knew the woman could have disbelieved her, and to the +husband who knew her every mental and moral trait this bald, +hopeless confession came as a crushing anti-climax to his great +effort. It left him not the slightest doubt that she was honest. +He said, dully, in a feeble attempt to right himself: + +"You are shielding him. You want to make me out wrong." But she +knew he knew. + +"Those are the facts. Heaven knows they are bad enough, but they +are by no means so bad as you thought. And I'm your wife, Stephen. +That thing you did was brutal; those men will talk. I was guilty, +no doubt, in my thoughts, but I'm young, and you have no right to +blight my life and my reputation--yes, and yours--by a thing like +that. We will have to meet those men. What are you going to do?" + +"I don't know," he said. "In all my life I never felt but one +moment of power, and that, it seems, was false. For years I have +longed to show myself a man, and now--what have I done? What have +I done? I am no monster." He moaned and sank limply into a chair, +folding together in an attitude of dejection that was pitiful. He +raised his head and broke out at her in a last spasm of +desperation, as a dying ember flares even while it crumbles. "My +God! why couldn't you be consistent? Why did you go half-way? Why +couldn't you be all good or all bad and save me this?" + +"All women are half good and half bad." + +"I can't blame you for not loving me, I suppose," he mumbled. "No +woman of your kind could love a man like me." + +"Those men!" she said, in a way that made him writhe. + +"Wait until I--think. I must think." + +"You can't think now, and neither can I." + +"We must." He wrung his hands. "They'll never believe me--" There +was a long silence. + +"Perhaps in the morning we can see a way out." + +"That's it." He nodded. "You go to bed and I'll think. I'm trying +to think now, but this heat is suffocating me and my head is +tired." He brushed a hand feebly across his brow. "If it would +only rain I--could think better." + +"Yes, and we must think of Anthony, too. No matter how you blame +me, you must realize that he was innocent, and perhaps, after all, +he is the one that you wronged deepest. He will have to meet those +men, and they were his friends." + +Despite the breathless oppression of the night, she shivered. "_I_ +never can meet them now, and I don't see how you will dare to, +knowing that you were wrong." + +"Don't!" he pleaded. "The other was bad enough, but this--Tell me +what to do!" + +"I can't. I don't know myself. All I can see is that those men +will never cease to believe, no matter what you tell them." She +groped her way to the window, but there was no relief even in the +open air. By-and-by she heard him sigh, then rise and say "Good- +night." + +As she prepared for bed an hour later she heard him still stirring +about in his quarters, but afterward, as she lay staring into the +black night, she was so busied with the frightful fancies that +swarmed about her that she did not detect his cautious footsteps +when he stole out of his chamber, closing the door softly behind +him. + + + + +XXVIII + +THE ANSWER + + +Kirk was roused from a heavy, senseless slumber the next morning +by a vigorous rapping at his door. He lay still for a time, +vaguely resentful of the noise, then glanced at his watch, and +found, with a shock, that it was quite late. Realizing only that +he was due at the office, he leaped out of bed. He opened the door +and Runnels rushed in. + +"Have you heard?" + +"I heard your infernal pounding; that's what woke me up." + +Runnels calmed his excitement, which Kirk now observed was +intense. + +"Where did you go after I left you last night?" + +"I came here, of course." As the memory of the previous night +swept over him he scowled. + +"Did you stay here?" + +"No. I went out again, and was out nearly all night trying to walk +it off." + +Runnels' face blanched, and he drew back. + +"Then of course you know?" + +"What?" + +"About Cortlandt. He's dead!" + +It was Kirk's turn to start and grow pale. The last cobweb was +swept from his brain, and he gasped: + +"DEAD! When? Where? How did it happen?" + +"Nobody knows just how. He was found on the sea-wall near Alfarez' +house, shot." + +"Shot! Good Lord!" + +"It happened some time early this morning, and the whole city is +talking about it. I came to you the first thing." + +"We'd better hurry down there. Mrs. Cortlandt must be all broken +up." Kirk began to dress hastily, but paused as his friend +stammered: + +"Wait! I--I--let's understand each other first. I met Wade just +now. The news has rattled him, and he's been talking." + +"What do you mean?" + +"Did you see Cortlandt again after I left you?" Runnels swallowed +hard. + +Kirk whirled about and faced him. "Great heavens! No! See here, +that idea is ridiculous." + +Runnels sank weakly into a chair and mopped his face. "I'm glad to +hear you say that. It frightened me just the same, for I +remembered you acted so queerly when I left you, and Wade seemed +to think, perhaps--When you said you'd gone out again, it knocked +me flat, understand?" + +"I can prove where I was, for Allan was with me. I couldn't sleep, +so I tried to walk off my excitement. No, no. I couldn't do a +thing like that. I thought last night that I could, but--I +couldn't, really." + +"I'm afraid Wade will tell all about the party if we don't stop +him." + +"Then we'd better hunt him up." Kirk resumed his dressing, while +Runnels consulted his watch. + +"No. 5 is due in twenty minutes. We'll probably find him at the +office." + +Together they hastened to the railroad building, Runnels telling +all he knew of the tragedy as they went along. Cortlandt's body, +it seemed, had been found about daylight by a Spiggoty policeman, +who had identified it. Becoming panic-stricken at the importance +of his discovery, he had sounded the alarm, then reported directly +to the Governor, whose house was close by. It was General Alfarez +himself who had informed Mrs. Cortlandt over the telephone of her +husband's death. The whole city was alive with the news, the +police were buzzing like bees. Rumors of suicide, murder, robbery +were about, but no one seemed to know anything definite. Colonel +Jolson in his motor-car had just come from Culebra, and Colonel +Bland was on No. 5 from Gatun, hence Runnels' desire to be at the +station. + +"It was suicide," Kirk averred, with conviction. "The man was +insane last night, and that accounts for what he said about me. +He's been sick for a long time." + +"If those boys will only keep their mouths shut!" Runnels said, +anxiously. "There's no telling what these Spiggoties might do if +they heard about that row." + +"Cortlandt was an American." + +"But it happened in Panama, and it would be their affair." + +Although it was Sunday, the four young fellows who had taken part +in the entertainment on the night before had gathered in the +office, and at the appearance of Runnels greeted him eagerly. +Toward Kirk, however, they maintained a disheartening constraint. + +The Acting Superintendent began to caution them tersely. + +"Boys, there's no use to tell you that we must keep still about +what happened last night. Kirk thinks Cortlandt's mind was +unbalanced; but whether it was or not, he left a widow, and what +went on at that supper must never leak out." + +"Why do you think he was crazy?" Wade inquired. + +"His actions last night would show it," Kirk answered. "The man +must have been out of his mind to believe or to say such a thing." + +"You mean, then, that he shot himself?" + +Kirk nodded. + +"I don't agree with you. I've seen crazy people, but he was as +sane as any of us. And I don't believe in secrecy, either. I think +we ought to be entirely frank about the matter. The truth never +hurt anybody." + +"It's a bad business," said Runnels, "and it's something I for one +don't want to be mixed up in. I've heard rumors already about some +sort of a quarrel at our party, so I'm afraid you fellows have +been talking." + +Wade acknowledged it recklessly. "Yes, I'll answer for my part, +and I'm not going to make any promise of secrecy, either. If that +affair had anything to do with Steve Cortlandt's death, it ought +to be known, so the man who did it can be made to answer." + +Into the office behind them came Ramon Alfarez and two Panamanian +policemen, one evidently a sergeant. + +"Eh, there you are!" Alfarez cried, as he caught sight of Kirk. +Then he said something in Spanish to the sergeant, who advanced +and laid hands upon the American. "You are arrest'." + +"What for?" + +"Gentlemen, you will be so kind as to geeve the names, yes? The +jodge will desire to make inquiries regarding those sopper to +Senor Cortlan' las' night." + +"What am I arrested for?" Kirk demanded. + +"Come! You are arrest'. That is enough." + +At that moment the building began to shake and reverberate, as No. +5 rolled in from Colon, bearing John Weeks, American Consul, and +Mr. Williams, of St. Louis, in one of the forward coaches. As the +two hurried out through the turnstiles, they found the street +blocked by a considerable crowd, evidently interested in something +quite apart from the arrival of the morning train. But before they +could learn the cause, out from the near-by building came Ramon +Alfarez, accompanied by several policemen and a group of railroad +employes, among whom was Kirk Anthony. + +"There he is!" wheezed the consul, clutching at his companion's +arm. "Get him now, before his friends." But Williams had been even +quicker of eye than his fat guide, and was plunging through the +crowd toward his quarry. He thrust the policemen and the curious +onlookers aside and, laying hold of Anthony, cried in triumph: + +"Well, Mr. Jefferson Locke, I want you." + +"Hello, Williams! You got around finally, didn't you?" Kirk smiled +at him. + +A little man in blue uniform was attempting to take the prisoner +in charge, but the detective disregarded him. + +"It won't do you any good to resist," he went on. "I've come to +get you." + +Runnels elbowed his way forward with a question. + +"Oh, I've got a warrant for him," Williams declared. "What for? +Well, for one thing he embezzled eighty thousand dollars, and I'm +going to take him back." + +"Eh? W'at is this?" Alfarez bustled into the conversation. +"Embezzle? He is then a t'ief?" + +"Exactly. If you're the inspector I'll ask you to make this arrest +for me. I believe we're on foreign ground." + +"That's right, Alfarez," came the voice of John Weeks, anxious to +have a word in the affair. "I'll vouch for Mr. Williams. This chap +is a smooth one, but his name isn't Anthony at all, nor Locke, +either; it's Wellar; and he's wanted for other things besides +embezzlement." Turning his triumphant little red eyes upon the +prisoner, he puffed, "Got you, didn't we?" + +"I regret you 'ave arrive' so late," smirked Alfarez. "The +gentleman is already arrest' for the murder of Senor Cortlan'. He +will first answer to that, I assure you." + +Kirk nodded. "Too bad, Williams! I'm sorry you didn't come last +night." + +They went on down the street, leaving the detective staring and +Weeks open-mouthed. + +"Cortlandt murdered!" the consul gasped. "Lord! And to think I +nourished that viper at my breast." + +Williams wheeled and cursed the fat man furiously. It was during +the lunch-hour that Ramon Alfarez called at the Garavel home, +finding the banker and his daughter still loitering over their +midday meal and discussing the topic that had electrified the +whole city. + +"Ah, Ramon!" the old gentleman began, eagerly. "Be seated and tell +us quickly the latest news. A terrible thing, was it not, this +death of our good friend? I have been to see his unfortunate +widow, but even yet I cannot believe it to be true." + +"Yes. A terrible thing! It was only last night that we saw him +well and happy." + +Although Alfarez was trembling with eagerness to tell his news, he +also meant to extract the greatest possible satisfaction from it, +and now bent an inquiring glance upon Gertrudis. His look turned +to one of malicious triumph as he saw that he was, indeed, the +first to bring the tidings of Anthony's arrest; for the girl's +acceptance of his suit had by no means wiped out the memory of her +momentary preference for his rival, and he had hastened hither +straight from the police barracks, delighting in the chance to +make her suffer. + +"So fine a man," the father was saying. "He was, indeed, my good +friend. It is shocking." + +"Yes, and to think he should have been killed in this cowardly +manner!" + +"Killed! Is it believed that he was murdered? Caramba! I supposed +he had shot himself. That was the gossip an hour ago." Garavel was +deeply affected, and motioned for the dishes in front of him to be +removed. + +Ramon nodded. "There are suspicious circumstances, it seems. Last +night, after the ball, he had a serious quarrel--one of those +American fights, almost. That much is known." + +Gertrudis, who had remained silent until now, her dark eyes +clouded with distress, said, sympathetically: + +"And the poor lady! She must suffer terribly." + +"Ah, perhaps! One cannot always tell!" Ramon shrugged and smiled. + +"What do you mean?" cried Garavel. "This quarrel you speak of? +Continue, Ramon, I am consumed with eagerness." + +"Upon leaving the Tivoli last night, Senor Cortlan' dined with six +of his friends at the Central. There was drinking. The waiters +have been questioned; also, one of the men who was present has +recounted to me what occurred. It seems that for a long time Senor +Cortlan' has been jealous of his wife." + +"Impossible! Jealous? My dear Ramon, an admirable lady." + +"I--I shall leave you, perhaps?" questioned Gertrudis, modestly, +as she rose, but Ramon exclaimed: + +"No, no! By all means remain. I have remarkable things to +disclose, amazing news that will interest you. There was a serious +altercation, and Senor Cortlan' openly accused his enemy before +all the others. It was most dramatic, it was terrible! There was a +scene of violence, the other man made threats." + +Garavel breathed an incredulous exclamation. + +"Ah, but wait! It was Senor Cortlan's best friend, too, the man +for whom he had accomplished many favors whom he accused." He +noted with mingled anger and satisfaction the pallor that was +creeping into the girl's cheeks. "You would never guess. It was--I +hesitate, and yet you are bound to learn, my dear friends, it was +this Ant'ony." + +His moment had indeed been worth waiting for. It even went far to +atone for the sense of injury under which he smarted; for the +banker was stricken speechless, and his daughter went deathly +white. Her eyes began to fill with horror. + +Garavel was the first to recover himself. "Infamous! It is +unbelievable! The wretch, then, had betrayed his friend." + +"He is indeed a villain. That much I have always known." + +"It is a lie!" said the girl, quietly. She had risen and was +standing straight, a tragic little figure. + +"Gertrudis!" her father admonished. "You hear what Ramon has +said." + +"Yes!" said Ramon. "He deceived Senor Cortlan' very nicely; it had +been going on for months." + +"It is a lie!" she repeated. "He loved no one but me." + +"Gertrudis!" The banker was shocked beyond measure at what he +considered his daughter's jealousy. "Those are not nice words. He +told you so, yes; but if he would betray his best friend, he would +deceive you also. It was our great good-fortune to be done with +him in time. You will see now that I did well in sending him off-- +eh, Chiquita?" + +"No! I do not believe you." + +Ramon had not counted upon such a spirit, and, his anger getting +the better of him, he sneered: "I should not have spoken. I did +not know you still care." + +"She does not care," Garavel declared, loudly. + +"Ah, but I do. I love him very dearly." + +The two men were upon their feet in an instant, staring at her, +the elder in amazement, the younger with rage and resentment +blazing from his countenance. + +"Silence!" thundered the banker. "Yonder stands your affianced +husband." + +"It is a mistake--" she persisted, gently. + +"No, no, no! There is no mistake," chattered Ramon. "Those other +men have told all, and your Ant'ony is now in the Carcel under +guard. It was I who saw to his arrest." The slender figure swayed, +a tiny olive hand fluttered to her breast. + +"Ramon, you must not heed her, she is upset. This is but a girl's +foolish fancy, and it will pass. The man was handsome, and he cast +a spell over her." + +"Nor is that all," Ramon ran on, excitedly. "He is not at all the +man he pretended to be, even his name is false. This morning there +arrived an American officer of police to arrest him on other +charges. He is a thief, it seems, having stolen eighty thousand +dollars 'gold' from his employers. Oh, there is no mistake. Within +the hour I have been talking with this detective, and he has the +papers of proof. It will be in the newspapers, every one will know +shortly. Last night, when Senor Cortlan' made his accusation, +there was a frightful quarrel, and Ant'ony swore to kill him. At +dawn the poor husband is found shot on the sea wall. Is not that +enough?" + +"It is indeed!" gasped the father. "You see, then, my child, from +what you were saved. This should be a day of thanksgiving to you +as it is to me. For this deliverance I shall erect a cross of +stone on the hill by our house, so that all our lives we may offer +a prayer when our eyes rest upon it. Come, now, it is Ramon who +has unmasked this person. Have you no thanks to give him?" + +"But it is not true," maintained the girl, simply, and her eyes +were as steady as altar flames. + +"Eh? Well! He is in the barracks at this moment," snarled Ramon, +"and there he shall remain, I promise you, until he goes to +Chiriqui or--" + +Gertrudis turned to her father. + +"Take me to him, please. I must go at once to the Carcel." + +But he only answered her with a stare of amazement. "Go!" he +murmured, after an instant. "Have I lost my senses?" He began to +summon his indignation for a terrific outburst. + +"Yes, I must go, for he is my husband. We were wed last night." + +There was a moment of absolute silence, during which the clatter +of a passing coach sounded loudly in the room. Then-- + +"Mother of God!" the banker ejaculated, hoarsely, and sank into +the seat from which he had arisen. Ramon was staring from one to +the other, his head turning jerkily. + +The girl raised her face proudly. "Yes! I am his wife, although I +had not expected to tell you so soon; therefore, you see I must go +to him quickly, or he will think I believe these lies." + +"You are mad! Do you know what you are saying?" + +"Oh yes. The judge from Colon married us during the dance. I would +have liked a church wedding; but that will come later. The Senor +Ronnels and his wife were there also, and they will tell you. It +made me very happy. You see, I prayed the Virgin that I might be +happy, and she heard. Oh, I offered so many prayers, and all last +night I lay awake giving thanks for my great happiness, which even +yet I cannot believe." Her face was transfigured by a look that +left the two men no choice but to believe. + +"A civil marriage!" stammered Ramen. + +"A civil marriage, indeed!" said Garavel, in a choking voice. "So +that is where you were when I believed you to be dancing!" He +burst forth violently, pounding the table with his clenched fist +until the dishes danced, his brilliant black eyes flashing beneath +their thatch of white. "But I will not have it, understand! You +are betrothed. You have given your word to Ramon." + +"Ah, but I never loved him. You compelled me to consent, because +you said you could not be President unless I married him. And that +was not so. Ramon deceived you. Now it is all right. You will be +President, and I can be happy." + +Ramon's suspicion kindled on the instant. He turned upon the +banker. "So! I begin to see! That was a trick, then, to betray my +father." + +"But wait!" Gertrudis exclaimed, sharply. "Did you not trick us +also? Did you not use the General, your father, to make me give up +the man I love? Which of us, then, is the better?" + +Andres Garavel spoke threateningly, menacingly, to his daughter. +"Enough! Our word was given, and you have broken it! You have +brought disgrace to our name. Can a Garavel be President of the +Republic with his daughter wed to a murderer?" + +"He is not that!" + +"It was no marriage, and it will not stand. I will have it +annulled. Such things are easily done, Ramon. She is no wife. The +man was a criminal, a fugitive, even when he forced her to marry--" + +"No, no! You cannot do that. It was I who asked him to marry me." +The girl lied tremulously, panic-stricken at the threat. "Before +God, I am his wife!" she maintained. "And if this marriage has a +flaw, then I will stand beside the prison gates and remarry him as +he comes forth." + +"He will not come forth," Ramon declared, harshly. + +"Oh yes! And now will you take me to him?" + +"NO!" her father bellowed. "You are my daughter, you are under my +roof, and here you shall stay until you give up this madness and +this man." + +"That I can never do," she retorted, proudly. "You see, I am not +all Spanish, I have in me also the blood of his people, and that +makes me steadfast. I could not doubt him if I wished." + +"I forbid you to go near him. Come! Do you promise?" She inclined +her dark head. "I must learn more of this affair at once. You will +find your senses, miss, or if you do not you will spend your life +in meditation and prayer--that much I promise you." + +"I do not wish to enter a convent," she said, with white lips. "I +wish to be happy. When Keerk is free I shall go to him. Now, if +you please, I--think I shall go away." She turned and went out of +the big high-ceilinged room, and not until she had reached the +hall did her feet waver or her head droop. + +When the two men were alone, Garavel said, brokenly: "She is the +first to bring disgrace upon our name. Is there absolute proof +that the man is guilty, Ramon?" + +"Proof?" Alfarez turned dazed eyes from the door through which +Gertrudis had gone. "Proof? I believe so. I have not thought much +of the matter as yet, but--I think there will be proof in plenty. +Oh yes!" + +"Come then. I must go to see him. Perhaps--oh, God! Perhaps what? +My head is afire, my heart is broken for you, my poor boy." + + + + +XXIX + +A LAST APPEAL + + +That was not a pleasant interview for Anthony. His surroundings +were not such as to lend him assurance, and Garavel's grief at his +daughter's disgrace was really distressing. Moreover, the +unequivocal threat to annul the marriage filled him with alarm. +His only consolation came from the fact that Gertrudis had made +known the truth without the slightest hesitation. That showed that +she was loyal, at any rate. Kirk tried to assure his caller that +he would have no trouble in proving his innocence, but Garavel +seemed very little concerned with that phase of the affair, and +continued to bewail the dishonor that had fallen upon his name. + +Kirk's pride arose at this, and he exclaimed with some heat: + +"My dear Mr. Garavel, if you are so blamed sure that I did all +these things, why did you come to see me?" + +"It was to learn if she spoke the truth." + +"Oh, we're married, right enough. And you'll have some difficulty +in breaking it up before I get out." + +"You expect, then, to prove your innocence easily?" + +"I do." + +"But I hear there are other serious charges." + +"It is quite the same with them." + +"But--suppose you should not clear yourself of this--murder--would +you wish to drag down my daughter's name?" + +"Of course not." + +"I understand you have not spoken of this marriage. Perhaps you +might consent to remain silent. If by any chance you should be +convicted of guilt, what satisfaction could you derive from +injuring me and mine?" + +"None at all, sir." + +"I am rich," Garavel went on, meaningly. "If you are acquitted, I +might, perhaps, arrange amply for your future--upon conditions." + +"In other words, if I am to be hanged or shot or whatever it is +they do to people down here, you'll expect me to keep my mouth +shut on general principles, and if I'm acquitted you'll pay me +well to disappear. Is that it? Well, there is some family pride to +that." He laughed lightly. + +"My political future may depend upon it." + +"If I can help you in that way I'll gladly keep silent as long as +you wish, but I don't think I care to make any further terms." + +"Make sure of this," snapped the father, "your marriage will be +annulled, no matter what you prove or fail to prove. Already +Chiquita is repentant, and I shall not rest until she is free. You +have done me a great injury, and I shall not forget it." + +On the following morning the leading American attorney of the city +called at the jail, announcing that he had been retained as +counsel, but refusing to tell who had employed him. Supposing, of +course, that he had been sent by friends who wished no publicity +in the matter, Kirk did not press him for information. Together +they outlined their defence as best they could. With +characteristic optimism, Kirk insisted upon treating the charge +against him as of little consequence, and it was not until he had +undergone his preliminary hearing that he fully realized the +gravity of his situation. + +To his unspeakable indignation, the officer who had discovered +Cortlandt's body swore that he had seen the deceased pass him +shortly before the time of his death, evidently taking a walk +along the water's edge for relief from the heat, and that +immediately afterward--perhaps a minute or so--the prisoner had +also passed, going in the same direction! There was a street light +close by, he said, and there could be no possible mistake as to +Anthony's identity. A few moments later there had been a pistol- +shot, muffled, but unmistakable, and the policeman had hastened in +the direction from which it came. The prisoner had appeared +suddenly out of the darkness and hurried past. In the politest +manner possible, the witness declared, he had questioned him +regarding the shot, but Mr. Anthony had neither stopped nor +answered; on the contrary, he had broken into a run. The officer +had considered this strange behavior, but, being at all times most +respectful toward Americans, he had made no effort to detain him. +Passing on, he had found the body of the dead man. A revolver was +beside it. It was shocking! It had quite upset the witness. He had +blown his whistle, and seeing a light in the Governor's mansion +close by had called there for assistance. Soon afterward another +officer had arrived upon the scene. + +When this amazing testimony was translated to Kirk he was +astounded; but his indignation was as nothing to that which swept +over him when a servant in the Alfarez household swore to having +actually witnessed the murder. + +This fellow declared that he had been troubled greatly with a +toothache. Toward morning of the night in question, too restless +for sleep, he had gone out upon the sea wall. Even now, his face +was swollen, and he made a determined effort to show the court the +particular tooth which had made him an unwilling beholder of the +tragedy. Overcome by exhaustion, he had fallen asleep after a +time, and he was awakened by the sounds of a quarrel. On opening +his eyes, he saw two Americans, one of whom was Senor Cortlandt, +and the other Kirk Anthony. Being utterly ignorant of their +language, he had no means of knowing what was said, nor did he +consider the altercation serious until the large man shot the +Senor Cortlandt. Then, being terror-stricken at what he had +beheld, he had run away, entirely forgetting his toothache, which, +by the grace of God, was quite gone. That was all he knew of the +matter. He recognized Anthony as the man who had done the +shooting. He was troubled greatly with toothaches. + +It all seemed like some grotesque, practical joke, and Kirk at +first could not believe that the evidence of these witnesses could +have weight. But he soon became convinced that this was no +laughing matter. Since they had perjured themselves so readily, it +was evident that some determined influence was back of them, and +how far that influence might carry it was hard to tell. The reason +for it was all very simple, of course, and yet he was at a loss +how to combat it. Wade was called next and told the story of that +damning incident at the supper-party, being corroborated by the +others. Then there were several witnesses who swore to +inconsequent things, such as waiters at the Hotel Central, and the +doctor who had examined Cortlandt. + +For once in his careless life the young man realized that he was +face to face with something bigger and stronger than his own +determination, and it daunted him. He began to see that he had +underestimated these foreigners, for it seemed an easy matter to +convict an innocent man in these Central American courts. He +recalled certain ridiculous stories of Spanish justice which he +had laughed at; he remembered Mrs. Cortlandt's vivid tale of an +execution she had once beheld in the court-yard of Chiriqui +prison; and suddenly he decided to cable for Darwin K. Anthony-- +the one man who was strong enough to save him. + +When it came time for him to speak, he told a straight story about +his own actions on that night, and he was corroborated by Allan; +but he knew that their words had little weight against that other +testimony. Of course, he was remanded for trial, and that night +the newspapers of the city were crowded with columns of +sensational reading-matter bearing upon the crime. + +Anson, the lawyer, gave him a ray of encouragement as he left. + +"Don't go too much on this hearing," he said. "I think we'll pull +you out all right." + +"You THINK! I dare say Ramon Alfarez can get a dozen men to +perjure themselves as easily as he got those two." + +"Exactly. But I have a little coup that I intend to spring at the +right moment." + +"For Heaven's sake, tell me what it is." + +"I'm sorry, but I can't just yet. In the first place, one must +handle these people exactly right or they explode." + +"But give me an idea at least. I'm really interested in the +outcome of this case, you know." + +Anson smiled. "Of course you are, and I'll tell you as soon as I +can, but not now." + +"These Spiggoties would enjoy standing me up against a wall with +my head in a rag--they'd make it a holiday and ring all the bells +in town." + +"I can't assure you that it isn't serious," Anson acknowledged, +gravely, "for it is--any time an American goes to court in this +country it is serious--but that doesn't mean that we'll lose." + +"You may be a good lawyer," said Kirk, ruefully, "but you're a +blamed poor comforter. I--I wish my dad was here; he'd fix it. He +wouldn't let 'em convict me. He's great, my dad is. He can swear-- +like the devil." His voice caught, and his eyes were unusually +bright as he turned away to hide his emotions. "I like him better +than any man I've ever met, Anson. And you watch him come when he +hears I'm in trouble." + +He wrote a lengthy cablegram, which the lawyer, with a peculiar +smile, agreed to despatch at once. He spent a sleepless night. In +the morning a message came signed by Copley--Kirk's heart leaped +at the familiar name--saying that Darwin K. Anthony had left +Albany for the West on Sunday night, and could not be located for +a few days. + +"He was never gone when I needed money," the son mused. "He'll be +worried when he hears about this, and he has enough to worry him +as it is. I'm mighty sorry, but--I simply must have him." + +Anson brought in the day's papers, which alluded, as usual, to +Cortlandt's death as a murder, and printed their customary +sensational stories, even to a rehash of all that had occurred at +the stag supper. This in particular made Kirk writhe, knowing as +he did that it would reach the eyes of his newly made wife. He +also wondered vaguely how Edith Cortlandt was bearing up under all +this notoriety. The lawyer brought the further news that Allan was +in captivity as an accessory to the crime, and that henceforth +Kirk need expect but few visitors. Somebody--probably Ramon +Alfarez--had induced the officials to treat their prisoner with +special severity. + +During the days which followed, Kirk suffered more than he chose +to confess even to his attorney. In the first place, it was hard +to be denied all knowledge of what was going on--Anson would tell +him little, except that he was working every day--and, then, too, +the long hours of solitude gnawed at his self-control. Runnels +managed to see him once or twice, reporting that, so far as he +could learn, Chiquita had disappeared. He took a message from Kirk +to her, but brought back word that he could not deliver it. Kirk +wondered if she could really believe those frightful half-complete +newspaper accounts, or if she had been unable to withstand the +combined weight of her whole family, and had given up. It was +almost too much to hope that a girl reared as she had been could +keep her mind unpoisoned, with all those lying tongues about her. +And, besides, she had the Spanish ideas of morality, which would +make the actions of which he was accused seem doubly shocking. The +more he speculated upon the cause of her silence, the wilder grew +his fancies, until it became a positive torture to think of her at +all. Instead, his thoughts turned to Edith Cortlandt in a +curiously uninterested way. Her attitude was a problem. Perhaps +she would leave him to his fate. Reviewing the circumstances +coldly, he could hardly blame her. + +It was on Sunday, a week after his arrest, that she came to him. +He was surprised to see the ravages that this short time had made +in her, for she was pale and drawn and weary-looking, as if from +sleeplessness. Strange to say, these marks of suffering did not +detract from her appearance, but rather enhanced her poise and +distinction. She was not even veiled. On the contrary, she had +driven openly to the police barracks, and ordered her coachman to +wait in the street outside, then demanded to be shown to Anthony's +cell. + +"I'm awfully glad to see you, Mrs. Cortlandt," he said, as she +extended her hand. "But do you think it was wise for you to come?" + +She shrugged. "People can say no more than they have already said. +My name is on every tongue, and a little more gossip can make +matters no worse. I had to come. I just couldn't stay away. I +wonder if you can realize what I have been through." + +"It must have been terrible," he said, gently. + +"Yes, I have paid. It seems to me that I have paid for everything +I ever did. Those newspaper stories nearly killed me, but it +wasn't that so much as the thought that you were suffering for my +acts." + +"I'm very sorry. You never thought for a moment that I did what +they claim?" + +"No, no! It has all been a mistake from the first. I was sure of +that." + +"You heard what those two men testified?" + +"Bah! That is Ramon Alfarez--but he can do nothing." + +"Nothing! I don't call a week in the Bastile 'nothing.' Why, he +has perjured two witnesses already, and I dare say he'll have the +whole native population swearing against me when the trial comes +up." + +"Never mind. I have had no time to do anything as yet. There were +--so many things to be attended to." She shuddered and sank down +upon the edge of his cot. "Stephen had a great many friends in +various parts of the world; I have been swamped with cablegrams." + +"If my dad were here he'd have me free in a jiffy; he can do +anything." + +"I don't think we'll need him," she said, in a way that comforted +him somehow, though the feeling shamed him. She laid a soft hand +upon his arm, and, looking up eagerly into his face, exclaimed: +"You will forgive me for what I said that night at the hotel, +won't you? I didn't really mean to injure you, Kirk, but I was +half hysterical. I had suffered so these last few months that I +was ready to do anything. I was torn by two great desires, one to +remain what I am and have always been, and the other--well, the +other was the stronger, or would have been if you had allowed it. +I never dreamed there was a way out of my misery, a way so close +at hand; but somehow even before General Alfarez' voice on the +'phone told me what had happened, I knew, and I--I felt--" + +"I know you had a great deal to put up with," he said, "but for +both our sakes I wish it had come in some other way." + +"Oh, I don't care," she cried, recklessly. "The one thing I can +grasp in all this turmoil, the one thing that rings in my ears +every moment, is that I am free, FREE! That is all that matters to +me. You showed your loyalty to Stephen more than once, and, though +your scruples angered me, I honor you for them now. I can see, +too, that you had no choice but to put me off even that night of +the dance. But my chains are broken, and it is all different now." + +"Your husband's death can make no difference with us, Mrs. +Cortlandt," he said, gravely. + +"We have talked openly before, and there is no need to do +otherwise now. You mean by that that you don't care for me, but I +know better. I believe there is a love so strong that it must find +an answer. Although you may not care for me now as you care for-- +some one else--I KNOW that I can make you forget her and put me in +her place. I know men, and I know you. I came here prepared to be +honest--shameless, if you like. I am young, I have money, I have +power; I work for the love of doing things, and you are learning +to do the same. I can help you, oh, so much! We can win happiness +together just as easily as we can win material success, and that +is ours now for the asking. It dazzles me to think of it, Kirk. It +is like a glimpse of paradise, and I can show it all to you." She +was bending forward, her lips parted, the color gleaming in her +cheeks, her whole face transformed by a passionate eagerness. + +"Wait!" he said, harshly. "You force me to break my word. I don't +want to tell you this, but--I am married." + +She rose slowly, her eyes fixed in bewilderment upon his, her hand +clutching at his sleeve. + +"You--never told me that! It was some mad college prank, I +suppose." + +"No, no. I married Gertrudis Garavel that night at the Tivoli." + +"Oh, that can't be. That was the night of the dance." + +"It is quite true." + +Mrs. Cortlandt stared about the squalid cell dully. + +"Miss Garavel! Why didn't you tell me? Why isn't she here? Why +does she leave you alone? No, no! You hardly know each other. Why, +she's not old enough to know her own mind--" + +"But I know my mind, and I love her." + +Her white hands strained at each other as she steadied her shaking +voice. "Love!" she cried. "You don't know what love means, nor +does she. She CAN'T know, or she'd be here, she'd have this prison +torn block from block." + +"I suppose her father would not let her come," said Kirk, slowly, +but Edith did not seem to hear him. The realization of her broken +hopes was coming home to her poignantly. + +"My happiness!" she exclaimed. "I have been unhappy so long! And I +seemed to see it just within my reach. Oh, Kirk, she thinks you +are guilty, she hasn't faith." + +"You have no right to say that." + +"See! I came to you when I was married and asked you to take me; +I'll do the same with you now." + +"You don't know what you're saying. You're hysterical, Mrs. +Cortlandt. I love Gertrudis so deeply that there's no room in me +for anything else, and never will be. Heaven only knows what they +have made her believe about me, but I don't care; I'll upset this +little plot of Alfarez's, and when she learns the truth she will +come back again." + +"This little plot!" Edith cried, in distraction. "And I suppose +you wish me to give you back to her?" + +They confronted each other a moment in silence. + +"But I won't help her," she went on. "I'm not that sort. I'm a +selfish woman. I've always been selfish because I've never had +anybody to work for. But I have it in me to be generous." + +"I'm sorry," he said. "You have suffered, I know. Don't trouble +any more about me--please." + +She stared at him defiantly, although her whole frame was shaking +as if from an ague. + +"Oh, I'd rather face the gallows as you face it than what is +before me, and I'm not sure I could help you, after all. You are +in Latin America now, remember, and your enemies are strong." + +"I am Darwin K. Anthony's son," he protested. "He won't allow it." + +"Bah! He is an American, and these are Spanish people. You have +seen how they like us, and you have seen what Alfarez can do. He's +rich, and he'll perjure more witnesses, he'll manipulate the court +with his money. Yes, and I'd rather he succeeded than see you--No, +no! What am I saying? L-let me go; let me get away from here!" She +broke down, and went sobbing out into the corridor. The iron door +clanged to behind her. + +On the same afternoon, Mr. Clifford, accompanied by Anson, the +lawyer, took the 3.20 train for Colon. As soon as he arrived, he +called up Colonel Jolson, to request that the Commissioner's +motor-car should, without fail, await him at ten o'clock sharp on +the next morning, with an open track ahead of it. Strangely +enough, the Colonel agreed very readily. + + + + +XXX + +DARWIN K. ANTHONY + + +About noon on Monday, Edith Cortlandt received a caller. The name +she read on the card her maid handed her gave her a start of +surprise, and set her wits whirling in speculation. + +"Show him into the drawing-room," she said, at length. "I'll be +right down." + +As she descended, a few moments later, she was greeted by a +gigantic old man with a rumbling voice, who, instead of seating +himself in the drawing-room as he had been requested, had flung +open the carefully closed shutters to admit more light, then +kicked aside whatever articles of furniture happened to be in his +way. He was now pacing back and forth with the restlessness of a +polar bear. + +"How do you do, Mrs. Cortlandt?" he began, at sight of her, his +big voice flooding the room. "I'm sorry to disturb you under the +circumstances." + +"You are Mr. Anthony?" + +"Yes, madam. You'll pardon my intrusion. I knew your husband +slightly, and I've heard about you. I extend my sympathy." + +She bowed. "When did you arrive?" + +"Just now; came across in one of those damned joy-wagons--fifty +miles an hour. We hit a nigger on the way, but we didn't stop. I +know everything, madam. What I didn't know before I landed, I +learned on the way across the Isthmus, so don't let's waste time. +Hell of a position for you to be in--I understand and all that-- +and I'm sorry for you. Now let's get down to business, for I must +get back to New York." + +It was impossible not to feel Darwin K. Anthony's force; it spoke +in his every tone and action. It looked out from his harsh-lined +features, and showed in his energetic movements. He was a great +granite block of a man, powerful in physique, in mind, and in +determination. He had Kirk's eyes, Mrs. Cortlandt noted, except +that they were deeper set, more fierce and eager. + +She was not used to being overridden, and his masterful air +offended her. + +"In what way may I be of service to you?" she inquired, coldly. + +"I want my boy," he said, simply, and she began to see that +underneath his cold and domineering exterior his heart was torn by +a great distress. + +"You know all the circumstances, of course?" + +"I do. That's why I came straight to you. I know you're the +keystone of the whole affair, so I didn't waste time with these +other people. Kirk's a damned idiot, and always has been; he isn't +worth the powder to blow him to--excuse me--I mean he's just a +ne'er-do-well; but I suppose I'll have to do my duty by him." + +"I understand that has always been your attitude." + +"Exactly! I got sick of his performances and cut him off; couldn't +stand for him any longer. I tried my best to make a man out of +him, but he wouldn't have it, so we severed our connections +absolutely. I just kicked him out. Sorry I didn't do it sooner." + +"If you have cut him off, why do you care what becomes of him?" + +Darwin K. Anthony's eyes dimmed, but his voice rose fiercely. +"He's my boy, and I've a right to treat him any damned way I +please, but nobody else is going to abuse him! These Spaniards +can't do it! I'll teach them to lay hands on my--boy." He tore a +handkerchief from his pocket and blew a blast into it. "I'll tear +their little Republic to pieces," he shouted. "I'll buy the whole +works and throw it away. I'll buy their President and their courts +and their whole infernal population, and if they won't sell I've +got enough men to take it. Hell's bells, madam, do you think these +little black people can shoot MY son? I don't care what he's done, +they've got to give him up. And he's going back with me. He's +going home; I--I--want him." + +"Why have you come to me?" she queried. + +"Because you must know the truth, if anybody does, and I want your +help." His voice softened suddenly, and he regarded her with a +gentle kindness that was surprising. "I've heard all about you and +Kirk. In fact, I've known what was going on all the time, for I've +had a man on his track night and day. You may know him--Clifford? +Well, he followed Kirk that night after the supper to your +husband, but Anson didn't dare call him to the stand at the +hearing for fear this Alfarez would perjure more of his black-and- +tans." He ground his teeth in rage. "By God! I'll get that Ramon, +if it costs me a million--they can't stand for such things even +here. But I want MORE proof; I want to snow him under absolutely, +completely." + +"So Clifford is your man?" + +"Yes! I took him off my system and sent him down here as soon as I +got Kirk's idiotic, impudent letter--" The old man began to +sputter with indignation. "What d'you think he wrote me, Mrs. +Cortlandt? He had the impudence to turn down a good job I offered +him because 'his wife might not like our climate!' Imagine! And I +had positively begged him to come back--on any terms. Of course, +it gave me an awful scare, and I lost no time in learning if it +was true. Thank God, he had sense enough not to do that!" + +"Then you don't know?" + +"Know what?" + +"That he is married." + +"DAMNATION!" roared Anthony, furiously. + +She nodded. "A Miss Garavel. They were married a--week ago." She +broke down miserably and hid her face in her hands. He strode to +her with a light of understanding in his eyes. Laying a great hand +upon her drooping head, he exclaimed with wonderful softness: + +"My dear Mrs. Cortlandt, I'm very sorry for you, indeed I am. How +the boy ever let you go for any other woman I don't see, but he's +always been a fool--that's why he never cared for me. Now, now, +try to face it squarely--all good women are brave, and you're a +good woman. We both love him, and I know we can save him if we +pull together." + +"Yes, yes!" She raised her drawn, white face eagerly to his. "It +will only take a word, but I have been like a mad woman. I +couldn't bear to give him up, and when I learned the truth I +thought I could let him--suffer. But I couldn't. Oh, I couldn't, +and I knew it all the time. I was distracted, that is all. You see +I have no shame in telling you this, for he is the first and only +man--" + +"I know." He patted her in a way that said more than words. + +"I couldn't have stood out much longer." + +"Then you have proof?" His face was wild with eagerness. + +"This. Take it quickly. I only found it last night. It had been +mislaid in the confusion. I meant to give it up, I really did." +With clumsy fingers she drew from the front of her dress an +unsealed letter and handed it to him. "Stephen was not a bad man, +you see, and he had no intention of wronging an innocent person." + +Darwin K. Anthony's pallor matched hers as he read the sheet, then +he exclaimed, weakly, "Thank God! Something told me to come +straight to you. Something always tells me where to find the heart +of things." + +"Quick! You must lose no time," she exclaimed. "He is in prison, +and the place is frightful. I will go with you to the Mayor. Ah, +I'm very glad he will get his freedom from your hands. I was so +weak. When this is done I shall go back North and try to live it +out. But I love him very dearly, Mr. Anthony." Her lip trembled +piteously. "And I could have done so much for him." + +Grim-faced and scowling he re-read the letter in his hand during +the moment it required for Edith to make ready. The injustice that +had been done his blood roused every passion in him. He had +himself well in hand, however, and he restrained his yearning to +burst forcibly into the police barracks and take his boy to his +heart. He determined there should be no possible slip--and he +longed ferociously to meet Ramon Alfarez. + +Kirk was considerably surprised that afternoon when a sergeant and +two policemen came to his cell, signifying that he was to +accompany them. He could not make out where they were taking him, +and, despite their unusual politeness, they were dense to all +inquiries. It was a bright, hot afternoon, and the city seemed +very beautiful and desirous as he was driven through it; but the +whole procedure filled him with uneasiness. He was sure that it +had nothing to do with his trial, or Anson would have posted him, +and he began to fear that it might concern his marriage. Perhaps +Chiquita was ill, dying, or perhaps they were trying to annul the +bond. The smiling little officer only shook his head, shrugged, +and chattered unintelligibly at his questions. + +The coach drew up at last before a large, white building, and he +was told to descend. Up a flight of stairs he was escorted, his +pulses quickening with apprehension, down a long corridor, and +into a large room, where he saw Runnels, Colonel Jolson, Anson, +Clifford, a dozen or more Panamanian officials, and--he stopped in +his tracks as his eyes fell upon a huge, white-crowned figure that +came to meet him. His heart leaped wildly, a great drumming set up +in his ears, something gripped his throat with agonizing pressure +and robbed him of speech. + +A certain harsh yet tender voice pronounced his name. He felt his +hands crushed in his father's palms, found the old man's arm about +his shoulders, and saw the deep-set, steel-blue eyes he loved so +well wet and shiny. Then, for once and for all time, he realized +that in the whole wide world there was but one man who really +mattered, one man for whom he honestly cared. A sudden sense of +security swept over him, banishing all his fears. The room with +its smiling faces became blurred and distant; a thousand words of +endearment sprang to his lips. What he really said was: + +"Hello!" And even that he pronounced as shyly as a girl. + +"My kid!" the old man said, shakingly. "H-how have they treated +you, Buster?" It was a nickname he had given his son when he was a +sturdy, round-faced urchin of eight, and which he had laid away +regretfully in lavender, so to speak, when the boy grew to +manhood. + +"You came, didn't you?" Kirk said, in a voice not at all like his +own. "I knew you'd come." + +"Of course I came, the instant Clifford cabled me that these +idiots had arrested you. By God! They'll sweat for this. How are +you anyhow, Kirk? Dammit, you need a shave! Wouldn't they give you +a razor? Hey! Clifford, Colonel Jolson, come here! These +scoundrels wouldn't give him a shave." Darwin K. Anthony's eyes +began to blaze at this indignity, and he rumbled on savagely: "Oh, +I'll smash this dinky government--try to convict my kid, eh? I +suppose you're hungry, too; well, so'm I. We'll be out of here in +a minute, then you show me the best place in town and we'll have a +decent meal, just we two, the way we used to. I'll pay the bill. +God Almighty! I've missed you, Buster." + +"Wait, dad." Kirk was smiling, but his heart ached at his father's +emotion. "I'm a jail-bird, you know. They think I--killed a +fellow. But I don't care much what they think now." + +"That's all over," Clifford broke in. "We've squared that, and +you'll be discharged in ten minutes." + +"Honest?" + +"Certainly," said the old gentleman. "Cortlandt shot himself. +Anybody but a blithering Spanish ass would have known it at the +start. We have a letter he wrote to his wife an hour before he did +it. She just found it and turned it over. She left here a moment +ago, by-the-way, all broken up. She's a great woman, Kirk. That's +not all, either. Clifford followed you that night, and knows you +didn't go near Cortlandt. Oh, you should have seen 'em jump when +we flashed it on 'em all at once and they learned who I was!" + +"But those men who swore they saw me?" + +"Bah! We've got that little Dago with the mustache, and both his +witnesses. If they don't send him up, I'll run in a shipload of my +brakemen, and we'll push this Isthmus overboard and him with it." + +"I knew you could fix things." + +"Fix 'em! Fix 'em! That's EASY! Say, how have you been getting +along, anyhow?" + +"Great!" + +"And you married one of these Panamanicures, eh?" The father +scowled. "Lord! I can trust you to make a fool of yourself." + +"Say, dad. She's only--so big." Anthony Junior indicated his +wife's stature, smiling rapturously. + +"Dwarf, eh?" + +"Oh no!" + +"Love her?" + +"DO I? It's fierce." + +"Humph! You'll have to get over it. I'll pay your debts and take +care of you, but I can't stand a mulatto around me." + +"There aren't any debts, and she's not a mulatto. She's a--dream." + +"They're waiting, Mr. Anthony," Clifford made bold to say. "I +think we'd better get this over with." + +Kirk paid little attention to the formalities of the next few +minutes. He was too busy with thoughts of his amazing good- +fortune, his mind was too dazzled by the joy of freedom. Allan +appeared from somewhere and clung to him in an ecstasy of delight. +Colonel Jolson, Runnels, Anson, even the Panamanian officials +shook hands with him. He accepted their congratulations +mechanically, meanwhile keeping very close to his father's side. + +Some time later he found himself out in the open sunlight a free +man once more, with Darwin K. Anthony and Runnels on either side +of him. But before he had gone a block, he halted suddenly, +saying: + +"Williams! I'd forgotten him and his warrant." + +"He's fixed," Runnels explained. "While your father and Mrs. +Cortlandt and Colonel Jolson were getting you out of jail, +Clifford and I told him the truth. He's rather a decent fellow. +They have caught the real Jefferson Locke, or whatever his name +is." + +"No!" + +"Yes; a week ago. He landed in Boston; couldn't stay away from his +own country any longer. Williams hadn't heard of it." + +"What has become of Higgins?" Kirk inquired of his father. + +Anthony Senior exploded: + +"Oh, he's back scorching up the Tenderloin as usual, but you'll +have to cut him out, or I'll leave you here. That's final, +understand?" + +"I intend to stay here, anyhow." + +"Huh?" The old man turned with a start. "I'm damned if you do." +Then, savagely: "What do you suppose I came down here for? I'm +lonesome. I want you to come home." + +Kirk smiled craftily and looked at Runnels. "Well, what can you +offer? I'm doing pretty well as it is, and I can't afford to lay +off." + +His father in turn appealed to the Acting Superintendent. "See! +It's nothing less than blackmail. Is he any good, Mr. Runnels?" + +"If there weren't so much politics in this job, he'd be Master of +Transportation of the P. R. R. That's doing pretty well, isn't it? +We're both going to quit and look for new work." + +"Do you drink, Kirk?" + +"I haven't even had an alcohol rub since I left New York. But, +dad, if you place me, you'll have to take care of Runnels, too. He +knows more about railroads than--you do." + +Mr. Anthony grunted a trifle sceptically at this and murmured: "He +must be a bright young man. I suppose what he doesn't know, you +do. Well, how would you both like to come North and give me some +lessons?" + +"Do you mean it?" they cried in chorus. + +"I do." + +"Oh, there's Allan, too, he'll have to go." + +"Any cats and dogs you'd like to have drawing salary from me? Now +let's go somewhere and eat. I haven't tasted anything to speak of +since Clifford's message came." + +"If you don't mind, I--I'd like to stop at the Garavels' for a +minute," Kirk said, longingly, and his father scowled. + +"I'd forgotten this--wife of yours." + +"She's not there," Runnels hastened to say. "I've tried to find +her, but I was told she was out at the country place." + +"Then I think I'd rather drive out there than eat. Won't you go +with me, dad?" + +"Well--yes! I want to see this banker fellow, and--I'm not so +damned hungry, after all. We'll settle this thing right now." + + The afternoon sun was still an hour high when Kirk Anthony came +down the hill from the Garavels' home and crossed the meadow +toward the forest glade he knew so well. The grateful coolness of +evening was stealing downward, and Nature was roused from her +midday lethargy. It was the vibrant, active hour when odors are +freshest and spirits rise. The forest was noisy with the cry of +birds, and flocks of shrill-voiced paroquets raised an uproar in +the tallest trees. The dense canopy of green overhead was alive +with fluttering wings; the groves echoed to the cries of all the +loud-voiced thicket denizens. The pastured cattle, which had +sauntered forth from shaded nooks, ceased their grazing to stare +with gentle curiosity at the hurrying figure. Of course they +recognized a lover speeding to his tryst, and gave him passage, +shaking their heads at one another and wagging their ears in +knowing fashion. + +He faltered a bit despite his haste, for this nook had grown +sacred to him, and even yet he felt that it was haunted. The +laughter of the waterfall helped to drown the sound of his +approach, but he surprised no dancing wood-sprites. Instead, he +saw what filled his heart with a greater gladness than he had ever +known. + +Chiquita was there, huddled upon the seat where they had rested +together, one foot curled beneath her like a child, her head bowed +down disconsolately. From one brown hand, now drooping listlessly, +a few wild flowers had scattered, and her slim figure was clad +once more in the stiff, coarse denim dress of blue. Her other hand +was toying with her beads mechanically, as if the fingers had +learned their task from long practice. Her dusky eyes were fast +upon the lights that wavered in the pool. + +As if to prove that the spot was really peopled by kind spirits, a +gentle voice seemed to whisper the news to her, and she turned to +find him smiling at her. She rose and met him with her hands +outstretched, her face transfigured. + +After a time she leaned backward in his arms, and said, gravely: +"You see! When one says many, many prayers, the good saints always +answer. The padre told me that I should never cease until you +came, but I grew very tired, senor." + +"And you never doubted me?" + +"Oh no!" + +"I'm free, you know." + +"Of course! What else were my prayers for? Had my father allowed, +I would have gone to your prison, but he forbade it, so I had no +choice. But every hour I prayed that he might give me leave, and I +think his heart was yielding." + +"I'm sure of that," he told her, "for I have just come from him." + +It was some time later, when the sun was dipping, that voices +sounded outside the wall of verdure, and Kirk heard Andres Garavel +saying: + +"Of a certainty I shall try that experiment, senor, for the ticks +in this country are a pest to cattle. A little to the right, and +you will find the path--So!" + +An instant later the two white-haired men appeared. + +"Hello! There you are, eh?" Darwin K. Anthony exclaimed, gruffly. +"Where's that girl?" He paused and let his hostile eyes rest upon +Gertrudis. + +She saw a great, forbidding giant of a man scowling down at her +with eyes like Kirk's, and she came forward timidly, holding out +her hands. She was smiling up at him faintly. + +"You are Keerk's father, yes? You are the Senor Antonio." + +Mr. Anthony uttered a curious, choking exclamation, and gathered +her gently in his arms. When he looked up, his eyes were wet and +his deep-lined face was working. + +"I couldn't wait any longer," he apologized humbly to his son. "I +had to come and see her." + +"Ah, then I hope you will like me," she said in her grave, quaint +way. + +"Your father has told me everything"--Garavel laid a hand upon his +new son's shoulder--"and we have become good friends already. I +fear I owe you a great apology, my boy; but if I consent that you +take my little girl away to your country, will that be +reparation?" + +"Then you WILL let her go with us?" Kirk cried, happily. + +"If she doesn't go, I'll stay," Anthony Senior rumbled. "I--I +don't see how you ever did it, you're such a blamed fool. Now +let's go back to the house, it's sundown." + +"We'll be along directly," his son assented. + +"There are chills in the evening air," Mr. Garavel protested. + +"I'm sorry, but we were waiting for the fairies. They were almost +in sight when you frightened them away." + +Gertrudis nodded. "It is quite true, Senor Antonio. We heard them +all about, everywhere." She placed her little hand in Kirk's, then +checked her father's remonstrance, saying: + +"Oh, it is quite proper for us to walk home together, even in the +dark; we are married now, you know." + +"Come on, Garavel," exclaimed Darwin K. Anthony. "You understand +how it is." Together they went out through the fragrant path a +little way, then old man Anthony paused and called back to his +son, wistfully: "But, I say, Kirk, don't stay too long; we're +lonesome." + +THE END + + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Ne'er-Do-Well, by Rex Beach + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE NE'ER-DO-WELL *** + +This file should be named nrdwl10.txt or nrdwl10.zip +Corrected EDITIONS of our eBooks get a new NUMBER, nrdwl11.txt +VERSIONS based on separate sources get new LETTER, nrdwl10a.txt + +Produced by Charles Franks and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team. + +Project Gutenberg eBooks are often created from several printed +editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the US +unless a copyright notice is included. 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