Argosy, Vol. 112, No. 2 — page 124: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

290 “ That’s the spirit!”” Hoyt rose, his eyes shining, and held out his hand. “ Object? Miss Peddar, I would be only too thankful to you if you can learn anything which would help us to circumvent these scoun- drels! I don’t mind telling you that there may be grave trouble ahead; they are hin- dering us more than appears on the sur- face, and they are only waiting for us to do something lawless in retaliation in order to get the marshal from Juneau and stop our work altogether. But I will go in now, with your permission, and have a look at your patient to see if that brute Malison has injured him seriously.” Jane waited, gazing out over the bleak, dismal prospect to the foot-hills beyond with dreamy eyes. She was no longer angry, but rather glad of the interview, glad that she had explained her position to this mas- terful and yet singularly attractive young man. To him, of course, she was merely a little shop-girl, and he must believe that the idea of worming herself into Pietro’s confidence had only occurred to her on the spur of the moment. He had approved, he had trusted her, and his hand-clasp had been the most en- couraging and comforting thing that had happened to her since her arrival. It was odd, she reflected, how a little thing like that, a mere gesture from one of her own employees could so hearten her for the task which all unknown to him lay before her. If he, with his queer socialistic ideas, had suspected whom she was, of course, he wouldn’t have shaken hands with her for anything! He was frankly friendly with her because he thought her merely a working girl, and he had been proud to declare himself only a working man, and yet he wasn’t at all. There was something of the unmistak- able university breeding which would crop out, something beneath the purposely as- sumed roughness of his bearing which told her that if not actually of her own world he was at least beyond the class to which he almost defiantly allied himself. Of course, perfectly nice young men of good family became construction engineers, but they would try to appear at their best, to raise, not lower, themselves, and she THE ARGOSY. shrewdly suspected that they would look largely and patronizingly down upon a girl who came to a rough Alaskan town to work in a mining company’s store. It was all very puzzling. | Peddar came to the door and roused her. ‘ J-Jane,” he stammered, mindful for once of the listeners within. ‘“‘ Mr. Hoyt thinks I had better walk down with the man to Mrs. Heaney’s. He can’t get out to his own company’s bunk-houses to-night, and that’s the only place for him to stay. Mrs. Heaney is rather down on that other com- pany, and I understand I shall have to per- suade her to take him in.” Peddar’s tone suggested no pleasure at the prospect, but Jane ignored it. ‘““* His own bunk-houses ’?” she repeated. “You don’t mean to say he is going back—”’ “Yes. He says he must work as soon as he is able until pay-day, so as to get the money that is coming to him, if I can under- stand his lingo, and then he will go home. Mr. Hoyt offered him a place on the North- ern Star, but he says they would kill him; the other people, I mean!” Peddar’s voice had lowered with horror. ‘“ I—I’m sure I hope they don’t offer him any violence on the way to Mrs. Heaney’s, seeing him with me and knowing we are connected with the company here, as you might say.” ‘Of course they won’t, father; don’t be silly!”’ Jane rose and turned to enter the shack. ‘Is he really able to go? His ribs aren’t broken or anything?” It was Hoyt who answered her. “Not broken, but very badly bruised. He has taken a terrific beating, but I can’t get out of him what it was all about.” Pietro, his swarthy skin pale beneath the bandages, was sitting on the side of the cot, and as he turned a grateful eye upon the girl his swollen lips moved. “He mad-a at me, maybe beat-a, too, if he know,” he muttered, gesturing with one white swathed hand toward the engi- neer. ‘“ No, Pietro, I’m sure he won’t be angry, and I know he wouldn’t hurt you if he were,” Jane responded encouragingly. “Was it because you bought things from our store that Malison attacked you?” GEomichbooks