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About The Red Cloud chief. (Red Cloud, Webster Co., Neb.) 1873-1923 | View Entire Issue (April 12, 1917)
RED CLOUD, NEBRASKA, CHIEF WEB OF STEEL By CYRUS TOWMSEND BRADY Father and Sosn . Here Is a Powerful Story of Failure and Sacrifice and Love and Courage and Success Copyright by Fleming H. Revell Co. THREE CRUSHING SORROWS BEAR DOWN UPON YOUNG BERTRAM MEADE-DEATH, LOSS OF REPU TATION AND LOSS OF FRIENDS Bertram Meade, 8r., plans a great international bridge for the Martlet Construction company. His son, Bertram Meade, Jr., resident engineer at the bridge site, and Helen llllngworth, daughter of Colonel llllngworth, president of the Martlet concern, are engaged to marry as soon as tho work is finished. The young engineer had questioned his father's Judgment on certain calculations and was laughed at for his fears. The bridge collapses and 150 workmen die. This Installment describes a memorable scene In the elder Meade's office. CHAPTER VII. Continued. "I hoven't lot-t nny confidence, sir. Wo nil moke mistakes. I inndo one, you know, and you took mo up." "It's too lntc for anybody to tnko mo up. Men enn't mako mistakes at my age. No more of that. Wo hnvo still one thing to do, set tho boy right beforo tho world." "But If I wcro your son, sir, said tho secretary, "rather than sco you ruined I would take tho blame on my self. Ho can live It down." "But ho Is not to blame. On tho contrary, ho was right, nnd I was wrong. Here, Shurtllff, Is his own let ter. You know It; you saw hint glvo It to me. You heard tho conversation, and I hnvo written out a little account explaining It, stating that I mado light of his protests, acknowledging that ho was right and I was wrong, taking tho wholo blamo upon myself. Ho will bo back here tonight. I nm sure. I Intend ed to give It to him." "Oh, don't do that, Mr. Meade." Tho telephone bell rang. "The bridge 1" clamored tho Insistent bell. Staggering almost llko n drunken man, ShurtllfT left his placo by tho door, reached his thin hand out nnd lifted up the telephone, its bell vibrat ing, it seemed, with angry, venomous persistence through tho quiet room. "It's a telegram," ho whispered. "Yes, this Is Mr. Meade's private sec retary. Go on," ho answered Into tho mouthpiece of tho telephone. There was another moment of ghast ly silence while he took tho messnge. It was typical of ShurtllfTs character that In spite of tho horrlblo ngltatlon that filled him, he put tho instrument down carefully on tho desk, method ically hnnglng up tho receiver beforo he turned to faco tho other man. Ho spoko deprecntlngly. No woman could exceed the tenderness ho managed to Infuse Into his ordinarily dry, emotion less voice. "Tho bridge Is In the river, sir." "Of course ; nny more." "Abbott nnd ono hundred nnd fifty toon with It." "Oh, my God I" snid tho old man. Ho staggered forward. Shurtllff caught him and helped him down Into tho big chair beforo tlto desk. The news had been discounted in his mind, still some kind of hopo had lingered there. Now It was over, "Wa must wlro Martlet," ho gasped oat "The telegraph office said the nies sago was addressed to you and Mart let, bo they hnvo got tho news, sir." "It won't bo too Into tor tho last edi tions of the evening papers, either," "We Must Wire Martlet," He Gasped f. Out Bald tho old man. "ShurtllfT, I was going to give these documents to tho boy when he got back, but I want them to appear simultaneously with tho nows of the falluro of tho bridge. Walt." Ho seized tho pen and signed his name to the brlsf letter of excul pation. Tho writing In tho boy of tho doc ument wns weak nnd feeble, tho slgna- turo strong and bold. Ho gathered tho papers up loosely, t "Here," ho said, "I want you to tako them to n newspaper tho Gazette that will bo certain to lssuo un extra if it is too lato for tho last edition. - I want this letter of his with mine to go sldo by sldo with tho news. There must not bo a moment of uncertainty about it." "Mr. Meade, for God's snke " "Don't stop to nrguo with mo now. Tnko n tnxl and get there as quickly as you can. You ure carrying my honor, and my sou's reputation. Go." CHAPTER VIII. For the Father. Two and one-half hours later a group of anxious reporters, clustered at tho door of tho Uplift building, wero gnlvanlzed Into life by the arrival of a taxicab. Out of It lenped Bertram Meade, no was recognized Instantly. "You know about tho bridge, Meade?" asked one, forcing bin wny through the crowd, which broko Into a sudden clnmor of questioning. Mcndo nodded. Ho recognized tho speaker, their hnnds met. This was a man of his own ago named Itodncy, who had been Meade's classmnto at Cambridge, his devoted friend there after. Instead of active practice, ho had chosen to become a writer on sci entific subjects nnd wns there as a representative of tho Engineering News. There were sympnthy and af fection In his voice nnd look, and In tho grasp of his hnnd. "Ilavo you seen my father, Rodney?" Mcndo nsked, quickly moving to tho clevntor, followed by nil tho men. "At tho house they snid ho was not there, nnd hero nt the office wo get no answer." As Mende turned ho saw his father's secretary coming slowly through tho entrance. "ShurtllfT," ho called out. "Sly father?" "I left him In tho offlco two hours ngo. Ho told mo to to go away and leave him alone. I hnvo been wan dering about tho streets." Outside In tho street tho newsboys were shrieking: "Extry I Extry I All nbout tho col lnpso of the International bridge. Two hundred engineers nnd workmen lost" ShurtllfT had ono of tho papers in Ills hnnd. Mcndo tore It from him. "Who Is Responsible?" stared at hlra in big red headlines. "Gentlemen," said Meade, "I can answer that question" ho held up tho paper so that all might see "tho fault tho blame Is mine." "We'll have to seo your father, Bert," snid Rodney. "no Is In this building, wo know, nnd he'll never leavo It without run ning tho gantlet of us all," cried an other nmld a chorus of approval. Mcado realized thero wus no escape. They all piled Into the elevator with him and ShurtllfT. They followed him up tho corridor. Ho stopped beforo tho door of the office. "I forbid you to come In," ho said. "This is my father's private" "Have no fenr, Bert," said Rodney firmly. "Wo don't intend to breuk in. Wo understand how you feel. Wo will wait here until you Bay tho word, and then ull wo shall want will bo a state ment from your father." "Thnnk you, old man. Come, Shurt llfT," said Meade, turning his key in tho lock. Tho two men entered and carefully closed tho door behind them. Tho door wns senrcely shut when Helen llllngworth left the clovntor and camo rapidly up tho corridor. Sho hnd called at tho offlco beforo and hnd no need to nsk tho way. Tho reporters gathered around tho door moved to glvo her pnssngo while they stared at her with deep If respectful curiosity. "Furdon me, gentlemen," she began, "but I am very anxious to see tho younger Bertram Mende." "Ho hns Just gono Into tho office," answered Rodney respectfully. Tho girl raised her hand to knock. "A moment, please; perhaps you had better understand tho situation. The International bridge " Tho girl cumo to a sudden determi nation. Sho could not declaro herself too soon or too publicly. "My nnmo Is llllngworth," she snid, nnd as tho hats of tho surprised report ers camo off, sho continued, "I nm tho daughter of tho president of tho Mart let Brldgo company, which was erect ing tho International." "Yes, Miss llllngworth," answered Rodney, "and did you como hero to represent him?" "I nm Mr. Bertram Meade, Jr.'s, promised wife, and I am hero becnuso It Is tho placo whero I ought to be. When tho man I lovu la In trouble, I must bo with hltn." Sho raised her hand again, but Rod ney was too quick for her. Ho knocked lightly on tho door, nnd then struck It heavily several times. Tho sound rang hollowly through tho corridor, as It always does when the door of nn empty room Is beaten upon. Thero wns no answer for u moment. "Oh, I must get In," snid tho worn nn. Rodney knocked ngnln, nnd this time the door wus opened. ShurtllfT stood in the wny. He hnd been white nnd shnken before, but now so anguished and shocked was his appearance thnt everybody stored. ShurtllfT moistened his lips and tried to speak. He could not utter n word, hut ho did mnnngo to point toward tho private office. "Perhaps I would better go first," said Rodney, as tho sccrctnry stepped bnck and gave them passage. Helen nilngworth followed, nnd then tho rest. Young Mende wns stnnding erect by his father's chair. The great bulk of tho old engineer wns slouched down, his body bent over, his hend on tho desk, face downward. One great arm, his left, extended, shot straight across tho desk. Ills fist was clenched, his right arm hung limp by his side. lie was still. Thero was something unmistakably tcrrlblo In his motionless nspect. They had no need to ask what had hap pened. A slinrp exclumatlon from tho woman wns the only sound thnt broko tho silence, ns sho stepped to her lov er's side. "You can't question my father now, gentlemen," said Meade; "ho Is dead." In tho outer offlco they heard Shurt llfT brokenly calling the doctor on the telephone nnd nsklng him to notify tho police. "Did he " begnn one, hesitatingly. "Ho was too big n mnn to do himself nny hurt, I know," answered Mcado proudly, as he divined tho question. "Tho nutopsy will tell. But I nm suro thnt tho falluro of tho brldgo hns broken his henrt." "And wo enn't fix tho responsibility now," said Rodney, who for his friend's sako was glad of this consequence of tho old man's death. "Yes, you can," snid tho young man. no leaned forward nnd laid his right hnnd on his dead father's shoulder. Helen llllngworth hnd possessed her self of his left hnnd. Sho lifted it nnd held It to her henrt Tho engineer seemed unconscious of tho nctlon, nnd still It wns tho grentcst thing ho had ever experienced. Meade spoko slowly and with tho most weighty delibera tion in nn obvious endeavor to glvo his statement such clear dcflnlteness that no ono could mlstnko It "Hero in tho presenco of my dead father," ho begun, "I solemnly declare that I alono am responsible for tho de sign of tho member that failed. My father was getting nlong In years. Ho left a great part of the work to tne. Ho pointed out whnt he thought wns a structural wenkness in tho trusses, but I overboro his objections. I nloue nm to blame. Tho Martlet Brldgo company employed us both. They said they wanted tho benefit of my father's long cxperlcnco and my later trnlnlng nnd research." "Do you realize, Meade," said Rod ney, as tho pencils of tho reporters flew across their pads, "that In assum ing this responsibility which, your fa ther being dead, cannot be " "I know It means tho end of my ca reer," Bald Meade, forcing himself to speak. "My father's reputation is dearer to mo than anything on earth." "Even than I?" whispered tho woman. "Oh, my God!" burst out tho mnn, and then ho checked himself and con tinued with tho samo monotonous de liberation ns before, nnd with even moro cmphnsls, "I enn allow no other interest in life, however great, to pro vent mo from doing my full duty to my father." no had been fully resolved to pro tect his old father's fnmo had tho fa ther survived tho shock. Tho appeal of tho dead mnn wns even moro power ful thnn If ho hnd lived. Mendo could not glnnco down at that crushed, broken, Impotent flguro nnd fall to re spond. It wns not so much lov! never hnd ho loved JWu Illlngworthso much ns then ns It wns" hcsGrTTho obligation must bo met though his henrt broko llko his father's; oven If it killed him, too. And tho womnnl How If It killed her? Ho could not think of that. Ho could think of nothing but of that In ert body and its demand. "Have you no witnesses, no cvldcnco to substantiate your extraordinary statement?" asked Rodney. "I can substnntlnto It," said Shurt llfT, coming Into tho room, having fin ished his telephoning. "Tho doctor nnd tho pollco will bo hero immediately, but beforo they come " and ho drow himself tip nnd fuccd tho reporters boldly. "Gentlemen, I can testify that everything thnt Mr. Bertram Meado hns snid Is true. I hnppcned to bo hero when my dcud friend nnd employer got tho telegram announcing tho falluro of tho brldgo and, although ho know It wns his son's fault, ho bravely ofTcred to assumo tho responsibility and ho told mo to go to tho newspapers and tell them that it was his fault and that Ids son had protested in vain against his design." "Why, didn't you do It?" nsked ono of tho reporters. "I couldn't, sir," fullered the old mnn. "It wasn't true. The son there was to blame." He sank down in his sent ond cov ered ids faco with his hands nnd broke Into dry, horrible sobs. It wns not easy for him either, this shifting of responsi bility. "You see," said young Mende, "I guess thnt settles tho mntter. Now you have nothing moro to do here." "Nothing," said Rodney nt Inst, "not in this office nt lenst Wo must wait for tho doctor, but we can do thnt out side." Ono by ono the men filed out, lenv ing the dead engineer with his son, tlio secretary, nnd tho woman In the room. "Bert," snid tho woman, luylng her hand on his shoulder, "why or how I feel It I cannot tell, but I know In my "He Will Point Out Some Way f henrt that you are doing this for your father's sake, that what you said was not true. Things you havo said to mo " "Did I ever say anything to you," began Meado In fierco alarm, while Shurtllff started to speak but checked himself, "to lead you to think thnt I suspected nny wenkness In tho bridge?" Tho woman wns watching him keen ly nnd listening to him with every senso on the alert. Nothing wns es caping her nnd sho detected in his voice a noto of sharp alarm and nnx lety as If ho might have said some thing which could bo used to discredit his assertion now. "Perhaps not in words but In llttlo things, suggestions," sho nnswered quietly. "I enn't put my hnnd on uny of them, I can hardly recall anything, but tho Impression Is there." Meade smiled miserably at her and again her searching eyes detected re lief In his. "It Is your affection thnt mnkes you say that," ho suld, "and as you admit thero Is really nothing. What I said Just now Is true." It wns much harder to spenk tho Ho to this clear-eyed womnn, who loved him, than to tho reporters. Ho could scarcely complcto his sentence, and In the end sought to look away. "Bertram Meade," said the woman, putting both her hands upon his shoul der, "look mo In tho faco and tell mo that you hnvo spoken tho truth nnd that tho blamo is yours." Meado tried his best to return her glance, but thoso bluo eyes plunged through him llko steel blades. Ho did not dream in their Boftness could bo developed such fire. Ho was speech less. After a moment ho looked away. Ho shut his lips firmly. Ho could not sustain her glance, but nothing could mako him retract cr unsay his words. "I havo said it," ho managed to get out hoarsely. "It's bravo of you. It's splendid of you," sho said. "I won't betray you. I don't hnvo to." "What do you mean?" nsked tho man. But tho woman had now turned to Shurtllff. In his turn sho also seized him In her emotion and sho shook him almost eagerly. "You, you know thnt It Is not true. Spenk l" But sho hnd not tho power over tho older man that sho had over tho young er. Tho secretary forced himself to look nt her. Ho cared nothing for Miss ll llngworth, but ho had a passion for tho older Mcado that matched hers for tho younger. "no has told tho truth," ho cried al most llko a baited animal. "No ono Is going to ruin tho reputation of tho man I havo served and to whom I hnvo given my llfo without protest from me. It's his fnult, his, his, his!" ho cried, his voice rising with every repetition of tho pronoun as ho pointed at Mende. Helen llllngworth turned to her lover iitrnln. Klin wnn nuletcr now. "I know that uolther of you Is telling tho truth," sho said. "Lying for u great cause, lying In splendid self-sacrifice. You ure ruining yourself for your fnther's nnmo and he Is abetting. Why? It can't make any difference to him now. But It makes a gri-tt differ ence to me. Hnvc you thought of that? I'm going to marry you utiyway. Only tell me the truth, Bert. By our love I ask you. If you want me to keep your secret I'll do It. But if you won't tell mo I'll get that evidence, I will find out the truth, ond then I shall publish It to tho whole world ond then" "And you would mnrry me then?" nsked Meade, swept away by tills pro found pleading. "I will marry you now, Instantly, nt any time," answered the girl. "Indeed you need me. Guilty or Innocent, I nm yours and you are mine." "Listen," protested tho engineer, "nothing will ever relieve me of the blnme, of tho slinme, of the disgrace of this. But I am n mnn. I hnvo youth still, nnd strength and Inspiration. Un til I enn hold up my head among men I nm nothing to you nnd you are free." Thero was a finality in his tone which the woman recognized. She could ns well brenk It down ns batter a stone wall with her naked fist. She looked at him a long time. "Very well," she said at last, "unless I shall be your wife I shall be the wife of no man. I shall wait confident In tho hope that there is a Just God, und that he will point out some way." CHAPTER IX. The Unaccepted Renunciation. The doctor and the officers of the law entered the outer office. In spite of tho brave words that had been spoken by the womnn, the mnn could only sec a long parting and an uncer tain future. Ho realized It tho more when old Colonel llllngworth entered tho room In tho wake of tho others. After he had recovered himself ho had hurried to the station in time to catch tho next train and had como to New York, rcnllzlng nt ouco whero his daughter must have gone. "My father Is dead," said Meade as tho doctor and the officers of the law examined the body of the old man. The son had eyes for no ono but the old colonel. "Tho failure of tho bridge has broken his heart; my failure, I'd better say." "I understand," said llllngworth. "He Is fortunate. I would rather hnvo died than havo seen any son of mlno forced to confess criminal incompe tency llko yours." "Father," said tho girl with a reso lution and firmness singularly like his own. "I enn't henr you spenk this way, and I will not." "Do you go with him or do you not?" thundered tho colonel. It wns Meado who nnswered for her. "Sho goes with you. I love her nnd she loves me, but I won't drag her down in my ruin." "I nm glnd to sco honor and decency nro In you still," snid tho colonel, "even If you are Incompetent" "If you say another word to him I will never go with you as long as I live," flashed out Helen llllngworth. "I deserve nil thnt ho enn say. Your duty Is with him. Good-by," snid Mende. "And I shnll seo you again?" "Of course. Now you must go with your father." Helen llllngworth turned to tho colo nel. "I shall go with you because he bids mo, not bocnuse " "Whatever tho renson," said tho old soldier, "you go." Ho paused a mo ment, looking from the dead man to tho living one. "Mende," ho exclaimed nt lnst, "I nm sorry for your father, I nm sorry for you. Good-by, nnd I never wnnt to bco you or hear of you again. Como, Helen." Tho woman stretched out her hand toward her lover as her father took her by tho arm. Mcado looked at her n moment and then turned away delib erately as If to mark tho final sever ance. With bent hcud and beating heart, sho followed her father out of tho room. Thero ho hnd to fight off tho reporters, no denied that his daugh ter was going to marry young Mende. Sho Btrovo to speak and ho strove to forco her to bo quiet In the end sho hnd her wny. "At Mr. Monde's own request," sho snid flnully, "our engngeraent hns been broken off. Personnlly I consider my self ns much bound as ever, but In defcrenco to his wishes nnd to my fa ther's" "Hnvo you snid enough?" ronrcd tho colonel, losing nil control of himself nt lnst "No, I will not bo questioned or Interrupted another minute. Come." Ho almost drugged tho girl from tho room. Within tho prlvato offlco tho phy sician said that everything pointed to n henrt lesion, but only nn nutopsy would nhsolutely determlno it. Meanwhile tho lnw would havo to toko chargo of tho body temporarily. It was lato at night beforo Bertram Mcudo and old Shurt llff wcro left alone. Carefully Bcelng that no ono was present In tho sulto of offices Mcado turned to Shurtllff. "Get mo thnt memorandum I wrote to my father. You know where he kept It." "Yes, sir, separate from the other papers concerning the International, in the third compartment." Ho turned tho big safe door slowly. The third compartment was empty. "It's gone," he said. Meade went to the safe, a small one, and examined It carefully and fruitless ly. His letter was not there with the other papers, where It should have been If It wero in existence. It wus not anywhere. "Father told me ho wos going to de stroy It, hut I rather thought he was keeping It to have some fun with me when the bridge wns completed," ho snid at lust. "Yes, sir, that was his Intention. In fact, I know he did not destroy It at first Ho told me to file It with the plans. He must have destroyed It later. I haven't looked In this com partment for weeks." "I'll never forget the Ho you told to bnck me up, Shurtllff. I can see you loved him ns much us I." "No 'no will ever know the truth from me, sir. You saved your father's name und fame." "I think we hnd hotter search tho office now. I wouldn't have thnt pnper como to life for the world," snid Meade. Shurtllff wus the most orderly of men. The cure of the old engineer's papers and other arrangements had de volved upon him. The search wus soon completed. "I guess ho must hove destroyed it," said the young mun, "but to bo ure I will examine his private papers at home. Good night You will be going yourself?" "In n few minutes, sir." "Como to me In the morning after the nutopsy nnd we will nrrnngo for the funeral," said the younger man as ho left the office. Shurtllff wnltcd until his footsteps died nwny In the hull. lie waited un til ho heard the clang of the elevator gate. Even then ho was not sure. He got up and In his catlike way opened tho door of the office and peered down the hall. It was empty. He stood In the door waiting, while the night ele vator made several trips up nnd down without pnuslng nt thnt floor, lie sat down nt tho dend mnn's desk. From his pocket ho drew forth a pucket of pa pers. There wero no legal proceedings, al though thero wcro many Inquests ut the bridge. The cause of tho failure wns clenr. It wns recognized by every one, whose opinion wns worth consid ering, that tho dlsnster hnd resulted from n mlstnko which nny engineer could hnvo mnde. As n mutter of fnct there wus no experience to guide the designers. There never hnd been surh a bridge before. Certnln elements of empiricism had to enter Into their cal culations. They hud mnde the plan nftcr their best Judgment and It had fulled. They could be blamed, even vilified as they wero In the press, but thnt wns the extent of their punish ment Tho bitter weight of censure fell en tirely upon Bertram Mende. Ills ruin ns nn engineer wns lmmcdlnte nnd ab solute. Ho wns the senpegont No ono hnd nny good to sny of him except Rod ney, who fought vnllnntly for his friend und classmate, nt lenst striving to mitigate the censure by pointing out the quick nnd rendy acknowledgment of the error which might have been ascribed to tho dend mnn without fenr jntrndlctlon. An effort wns mnde by competitor and stock speculntors to ruin tho Mart let Brldgo company. By throwing Into tho gap their prlvato fortunes to the lnst dollnr nnd by herculean work on tho pnrt of their friends, tho directors saved tho Martlet company, nlthough Us losses were tremendous and almost Insupportable, not only In money, but in prestige nnd reputation. Colonel llllngworth camo out of tho strugglo older nnd grayer thnn ever. Tho terrific combat had left him almost broken for a time, and his daughter snw that It was not possible oven to mention Bert ram Mendo to him, then. Tho funeral of tho grent engineer hnd been strictly private. Only his confreres, men who stood high In scientific circles, certain pcoplo for whom ho had mado great nnd success ful designs, n few others whoso tlus wero personal, had been Invited to the house for tho services. The Interment wns in tho llttlo Connecticut town of Mllford, In which tho older Mcndo hnd been born, nnd from which ho hnd gono forth ns a boy to conquer the world. The next Installment tells of youna Meade's big move, which leads to even more startling con sequences than the recent hap penings In his life, (TO 1313 CONTINUED.) Optlml6tlo Thought A bad custom is hotter broken than, kept