RED CLOUD, NEBRASKA, CHIEF
WEB OF STEEL
By CYRUS TOWNSEND BRADY and CYRUS TOWNSEND BRADY, Jr.
Author and Clergyman Civil Engineer
This Is a Thrilling Story
of American Life as Strong,
Courageous Men Live It
Copyright by Firming II. Revell Co.
BERTRAM MEADE CUTS OFF HIS OLD LIFE ENTIRELY AND
GOES FORTH INTO STRANGE COUNTRY TO MAKE
A NEW CAREER
Hcrtrnm Monde, Sr plans n great International bridge for the Mart
let Construction company. Ills Hon, Bertram Meade, Jr., resident
engineer at thu bridge site, und Helen Illlngworth, daughter of Colonel
Illlngworth, president of the Martlet concern, uru engaged to marry uh
soon as the work In finished. Thu young engineer had questioned hlH
'father's Judgment on certain calculations and was laughed at for Ida
fears. The bridge collnpeoH and lfiO workmen are killed. Meade,
senior, drops dead after giving orders that hl failure should bu made
public. The orders lire not carried out. Young Meade takes the
blame und releases Helen from her engagement.
CHAPTER IX Continued.
"Shurtllfr," sold tho young engineer,
after the mound had been heaped up
and covered with sods and strewn with
flowers and tho workmen had gone, "I
havo left everything I possess In your
charge. You huve n power of attor
acy to receive and pay out all moneys ;
to deposit, Invest, and carry on my fa
ther's estate. The ofllco Is to be closed
and the house Is to bo sold. My will,
In which I leave everything to Miss Il
llngworth, Is In your hands. You are
t?npowcred to draw from tho revenue
"Oh. my Cod," suld Meude, "this Is
more than I can bear."
"I don't wunt to force you to do any
thing you don't want to do and you
are not In any tuood to discuss these
things," she suld la quick compassion.
"Some day you will come back to me."
He stretched out his hands toward
her over the gruve.
"I don't know," ho cried. "I duru
not hope."
"With love like ours," sho answered,
"all things are possible."
"I can't bind you. You must bo free,"
he said slowly, turning his head.
"You are breaking my heart, but I
shall live and fight on for lovo und
you."
"God bless you."
"You uro going awuy?" she nsked at
lust.
"I must break with everything. I
must give you your chunco of free
dom." "Very well," said the woman. "Now
hear me. You can't go so far on this
earth or hide yourself away so cun
ningly but that I van find you and
maybe follow you. And I will. Now,
I must go. I left my car down tho
road yonder. Will you go with me?"
The man shook his head and knelt
down before her suddenly and caught
her skirt In his grasp. His arms swept
urouud her knees. Sho yielded ouo
hand to the pressure of his lips and
laid the other upon his head.
"Go now," he whispered, "for God's
sake. If I look at you I must follow."
I Want to 8Uy Here a Little Whllo
by Myself."
CHAPTER X.
of the estate your present salary so
long as you live. If anything happens
to mo you will havo thu will probated
and be governed accordingly."
"Mr. Meade," said tho old man, and
ho somehow found himself transferring
tho affection which ho had thought had
been burled beneath tho sod on that
long mound before him, to tho younger
man. He hnd loved and served u
Meado all his llfo and he began to see
that ho could not stop now, nor could
fco lavish what ho had to glvo merely
on a remembrance, "Mr. Meade," he
said, "where are you going and what
do you Intend to do?"
"I don't know whero I shall go, or
what I shnll undertake eventually,"
said tho man. "I'm going to leavo
everything behind now and try to get a
Uttlo rest at first."
"And you will keep mo advised of
your whereabouts?"
"Perhaps I don't know. Ono last
Injunction: you are not to tell uuyono
tho truth."
"God forbid," snld Shurtllfr, "wo
have lied to prcscrvo tho honor and
fame of him wo loved who lies here."
"Don't render our perjuries of uoa
affect" "I will not, sir. I haven't found that
paper. I guess It was destroyed."
"I prcsuuio ho. And now, good-by."
"Aren't you coming with mo?"
"I want to stay here u Uttlo whllo by
myself."
Shurtlllt turned und walked awuy.
When ho reached tho roud, down which
ho must go, ho stopped und faced about
again. Meado was standing where he
bad been. Tho old man took oft his
hat In reverent farewell.
Meado was not left alone. Beyond
tho htllsldo whero his father had been
burled rose a clump of trees. Hushes
grow ut their feet. A woman should
man bo burled without woman's tears?
hnd stood concealed there waiting.
Helen Illlngworth had wept over tho
dreariness, the inournfulncss of It all.
Sho hud hoped that Meadu might stay
after tho other went and now that ho
was alono sho camo to him. Sho laid
her hand upon his arm. He turned and
looked at her.
"I knew that you would bo here," he
aid.
"Did you hco mo?"
"I felt your presence."
"Listen," said tho woman. "You nro
c ecklug your llfo for your father's
Came. A man has n right perhaps to
do with his own llfo what ho will, but,
when ho loves n woman und when ho
has told her so and Bho has given him
her heart, did It over occur to you
that when bo wrecks his llfo ho wrecks
hers, and has ho a right to wreck her
M4e far unjono elsot"
The New Rodman.
There are no more beautiful valleys
anywhero than thoso cut by the waters
of primeval Hoods through the foothills
of tho great snow-covered Rocky moun
tains. The erosions and washings of
untold centuries have flung out In front
of tho granlto ramparts of succession
of lower elevations llko tho bastions of
a fortress. At first scurcely to bo dis
tinguished from tho main rango In
height and ruggedness these ravelins
nud escarpments gradually decreaso In
ultltudc und slzo until they turn Into
u scries of moro or less disconnected,
softly rounded hills, llko outflung
earthworks, finally merging themselves
by gradual slopes Into tho distant
plains overlooked by tho grent peaks
of tho mountulns.
Tho monotony of theso pine-cind,
wind-swept slopes Is broken even In
tho low hills by out-thrustlngs of stone,
sometimes tho hard Igueous rock, tho
granlto of the mountains, moro fre
quently tho softer red sandstono of n
period later, yot Ineffably old. Theso
cliffs, button, hills and mesas huvo
been weathered Into strango and fan
tustlc shapes which diversify tho land
scape and udd cliurm to tho country.
Tho narrow canons In which tho
snow-bed streams take their rise grad
ually widen us tho water follows Its
tortuous course down the mountains
through tho subsiding ranges and out
among the foothills to tho sandy, nrld,
windy plains beyond. At tho entranco
of ono of the loveliest of these broad
und verdant valleys, a short distance
nbovo Its confluenco with n narrower,
moro rugged ruvluo through tho hills,
lny the thriving Uttlo town of Coro
nado. Some twenty miles back from tho
town at u place where tho valley was
narrowed to u quarter of n mile, and
separating It from tho paralleling ra-
vine, rose a hugo sandstone rock called '
Spanish Mesa. Its top, some hundreds ;
of feet higher than tho trce-clud hasu '
of tho hills, was mainly level. From
Its high elevation the country could bo
seen for many miles, mountains on one
hand, plains on the other. It stood
llko an Island In n sen of verdure. Lit
tlo spurs and ridges ran from It. To
ward thu range It descended and con
tracted Into a narrow saddle, vulgarly
known as a "hog-back," whero the
granlto of the mountains was hidden
under a deep covering of grass-grown
earth, which formed tho only division
between the valley und tho gorgo or
ravine, before tho lund, widening, roso
Into tho next hill.
Tho people camo from miles away
to boo that Interesting nnd curious
mesa, much moro striking In Its np
penrnnco than Baldwin's knob, tho last
foothill below It. Transcontinental
travelers oven broko Journey to visit
It Tho town prospered accordingly,
especially as It was admirably situated
as a placo of departure for hunters, ex
plorers, prospectors and udventurers,
who sought what they craved In tho
wild hills. There were ono or two good
hotels for tourists, unusually extensive
general stores of the better clnss,
where hunting nnd prospecting parties
could be outfitted, and the high-living,
extrnvagant cattle ranchers could get
what they demanded. Resides ull
these there were tho modest homes of
the lovers of the rough but exhilarating
und health-giving llfo of the Itocky
mountains. Of course there were nu
merous saloons nnd gambling halls,
and the town was the haunt of cow
boys, hunters, miners, Indians the old
frontier with a few touches of civiliza
tion added I
What was left of the river, which
had made the valley and during tho
Infrequent periods of rnln too brief to
be known ns the rainy season, It really
lived up to the namo of river flowed
merrily through tho town, when It
flowed at all, under tho name of Picket
Wire. When the railroad came tho
Picket Wire hud been first studied In
the hope, of finding n practicable wny
over the mountains, but the rnvlno on
tho other sldo of the mesa had been
found to offer a shorter nnd more prac
ticable route. And, by tho way, this
ravine, taking Its name from the Uttlo
brook far down In Its narrows, was
known ns the "Kicking Horse."
So tho railroad ran up the ravine
und the Picket Wire was left still vir
gin to the ussnults of man. But tho
day camo when It was despoiled of Its
hitherto long standing, unruvlshed In
nocence. Shouts of men, cracking of
whips, trampling of horses, gronnlng
of wheels, wordless but vocal protests
of beasts of burden mingled with tho
ringing of nxes, tho detonations of dy
namite. The whistle of engines nnd
the roar of steam filled tho valley. Un
der tho direction of engineers, a hugo
mound of earth arose across Its nar
rowest part, nearest a shoulder, or
spur, of the mesa reaching westward.
No moro should the silver Picket Wire
flow unvcxed on Its way to the sea. It
was to be dammed.
All that tho huge, hot Inferno of
baked plain, whero Bago brush and
buffalo grass alono grow, needed to
make It burgeon with wheat und corn
wns water. Tho little Picket Wlro,
which had meandered and sparkled
and chattered on at Its own sweet will
was now to be held until It filled a
great lakelike reservoir In tho bills
back of tho new earth dam. Then
through skillfully located Irrigation
ditches tho water was to bo given to
tho millions of hungry little whentlcts
aud cornlcts, which would clamor for a
drink. Tho fierce sun was no longer to
work Its unthwartcd will In burning
up tho prairie.
With tho promise of water on tho
plain beyond, Coronado sprang Into
newer and moro vigorous life. In tho
language of tho West it "boomed." Tho
railroad had been a forlorn branch
running up Into the mountains nnd
ending nowhere. Its first builders had
been daunted by difficulties nnd lack
of money, but as soon as the great dam
was projected, which would open sev
eral hundred thousand acres for culti
vation and servo us an Inspiration In
Its practical results to other similar
attempts, people came swarming Into
tho country buying up the land, tho
prlco for ncreago steadily mounting.
Tho railroad accordingly found It
worth while to tnko up tho long-abandoned
construction work of mounting
tho range and crossing It Men sud
denly observed thnt It was tho short-
gorge past the other side of the Span
ish Mesa another higher trestle had al
ready been replnced by a splendid
steel arch. A siding hud been built
near the ravine, a path made to the
foot of the mesu, und arrangements
were being made to run n local train
up from the town when all was com
pleted to give the people an oppor
tunity to ride up the gorge nnd see the
great pllo of rock, on which enterprise
wuh nlrcudy planning the desecration
of n summer hotel, ttio blasphemy of
an amusement park I
Up the vulley of tho Picket Wire one
morning In curly fall came a young
man roughly dressed llko the uveruge
cow-puncher from tho ranches further
north. He rode well, yet with u cer
tain attention to detail und n nlceuess
that betruyed him to the real rough
rider of the range, Just as thu clothes
he wore, although they were tho or
dinary cattleman's outfit, wero worn
In n Uttlo different way that again be
trayed him. One look Into the faco of
the man, albeit his mustache and beurd
hid thu revealing outlines of mouth
and chin, sufficed to show that here
was no ordinary cow-puncher. Ho rode
boldly enough among tho rocks of tho
trail und along tho rough roud, which
hud been made by tho wheels of tho
wagons und hoofs of tho horses. There
was ubout him some of the quiet con
fidence begot of achievement, some of
the power which knowledge brings und
which success emphasizes, yet there
were uncertainty and hesitation, too,
as if ull had not been plain sailing on
his course.
To be the resident engineer charged
with the construction of a grent eurth
dam llko that across tho Picket Wire,
requires knowledgo of a great many
things besldo tho technicalities of the
profession, chief among them being a
knowledge of men. As the newcomer
threw his leg over the saddle-horn,
stepped lightly to the ground, drop
ping tho reins of his pony to tho soil nt
the same time, Vandoventer, tho en
gineer in question, looked nt him with
approval. Somo subtle recognition of
tho man's quality camo Into his mind.
Here was one who seemed distinctly
worth while, one who stood out abovo
the ordlnnry applicant for jobs who
came In contact with Vandoventer, as
tho big mesa rose abovo tho foothill.
However, the chief kept theso things
to himself as ho stood looking and
waiting for tho other man to begin :
"Are you the resident engineer?"
asked tho newcomer quietly, yet there
was a certain nervous uoto In his voice,
which tho alert and observant engineer
found himself wondering at, such a
strain as might como when a man Is
about to enter upon a course of action,
to take a strange or perilous step, such
a Uttlo shiver In his speech ns a nuked
man might feel In his body before he
plunged Into tho Icy waters of the
wintry sea.
"I am."
"I'd like a Job."
"Wo huvo no use for cow-punchers
on this dam."
"I'm not exactly a cow-puncher, sir."
"What aro you?"
"Look here," said tho man, smiling
a little, "I've been out In this country
long enough to learn that nil that it Is
necessary to know about a man Is 'Will
ho make good?' Let us say that I am
nothing and let It go at that."
"Out of nothing, nothing comes,"
laughed tho engineer, genuinely
amused.
Somo men would hnvo been angry,
but Vandeventer rather enjoyed this.
"I didn't say I wus good for noth-
I lug," unswercd the other man, smiling
I In turn, though ho was evidently serl
ous enough in his application.
"Well, what cua you do? Are you an
engineer?"
' "We'll pass over thu lust question,
too, If you please. I think I could
curry u rod If I hud a chunco aud there
was u vucuncy."
"Umph," said Vandeventer, "you
think you could?"
"Yes, sir. Give mo u trial."
"All right, take that rod over thero
and go out on tho edge of tho dam
where that stake shows, and I'll take a
sight on It."
Now thero are two ways a hundred
perhaps of holding n rod; ono right
wny aud ull tho others wrong. A new
comer Invariably grasps It tightly In
his fist and Jams It down, coucclvlng
that the only wuy to get It plumb and
hold It steady. Tho experienced man
strives to balnnco it erect on Its own
In line of promotion lias been given the
level. Ono of tho men went Must Inst
night. You can hnve the Job, which
Is"
"I don't care anything about the de
tails," said the man quickly and gludly.
"It's tho work I wunt."
"Well, you'll get what the rest do,"
said Vandeventer. "Now, as you Just
ly remnrked, I have found that It Is
not polite out here to Inquire too close
ly Into n man's antecedents und I have
learned to respect local customs, but
wo must hnve somo name by which to
identify you, make out your pay check,
und"
"Do you pay in checks?"
"No, but you hnve to sign u check."
"Well, cull mo Smith."
Vandeventer threw back his head
and laughed. The other man turned u
little red. Tho chief engineer observed
the glint In his new friend's eye.
"I'm not exactly laughing at you," he
explained, "but nt the singular lack of
Inventiveness of the American. We
have at least thirty Smiths out of two
hundred men on our pay roll, aud It Is
n bit confusing. Would you mind se
lecting some other nnme?"
"If It's all tho same to you," an
nounced the newcomer umusedly the
chief's laughter was Infectious "I'm
ugreeublo to Jones, or Brown, or "
"We huvo numbers of nil of those,
too."
"Really," said the man hesitatingly,
"I haven't given the subject any
thought."
"Whni ubout some of your family
nunies?"
"Thnt gives me an Idea," suld the
newcomer, who decided to use his
mother's name, "you can call mo Rob
erts." "And I suppose John for the prefix?"
"John will do us well us any, I am
sure."
"Wo havo about fifty Johns. Every
Smith uppcars to havo been born
John."
"How did you arrange It?" asked tho
other with daring freedom, for a rod
man does not enter conversation on
terms of equality with the chief en
gineer.
"I got n Uttlo pocket dictionary down
at tho town with a list of names and I
went through thnt list with the Smiths,
dealing them out In order. Well, that
will do for your name," he said, mak
ing n memorandum in the little book
ho pulled out of his fluuncl shirt pocket.
Ho turned to n man who had come up
to the level. "Smith," ho said "by tho
way this Is Mr. Claude Smith, Mr. Rob
erts here's your new rodmnn. You
know your Job, Roberts. Get to work."
And that Is how Bertram Meade, a
few months after the failuro of tho
great bridge, ouco again entered tho
ranks of engineers, beginning, as was
necessary and Inevitable, very low
down In the scale.
nnd tho letter had not been discovered
nnywny. He did not even regret tho
bold falsehood he had uttered or tho
practical subornation of perjury of
which he had been guilty In drawing
out nnd accepting nnd emphasizing
ShurtllfTs testimony.
There hnd been no Inquest over his
father's death. Tho autopsy had
showed clearly heart failure. He had
not been compelled to go on the witness
stand and under oath ns to that. Al
though, If that had been demanded, ho
must needs have gone through with It.
Indeed so prompt and public had been
his nvowals of responsibility that ho
had not been seriously questioned
thereon. He had left nothing uncer
tain. There was nothing concealed.
Ho had Inherited a competence from
his father. It wns Indeed much moro
than he or anyone hnd expected, no
had realized enough ready money from
tho sale of certain securities for his
present needs. The remainder he
placed In ShurtllfTs care nnd n few
duys after the funeral, having settled
everything possible, he took n train for
the West.
The whole world wns before him,
and he was measurably familiar ,wltb
many portions of It. He could have
burled himself In out-of-the-wuy cor-
T499S9BalaBHfBfiawl
CHAPTER XI.
The Valley of Decision.
Much water had run under the
bridges of tho world nnd Incidentally
over tho wreck of tho International,
since thnt bitter farewell between
Bertram Meade aud Helen Illlngworth
over tho grave of tho old engineer. Llfo
had seemed to hold absolutely noth
ing for Meado as he knelt by that low
mound and watched tho woman wnllffl
slowly away with many n backward
glance, with many n pause, obviously
reluctant Ho realized that the lifting
of a hand would hnvo called her bnck.
How hard It was for him to remain
quiet; and, finally, before sho disap
peared and before she took her last
look at him, to turn his back resolutely
as If to murk tho termination of the
situation.
Father, fume, reputation, love, taken
. nwny at one nnd the snmo moment ! A
weaker man might have sent llfo to fol
low. In tho troubled dnys nfter tho
fall of tho bridge, his father's death,
tho inquests, his testimony and evi
dence freely given, und that parting,
something llko despair had filled tho
young engineer's henrt Llfo held noth
ing. Ho debated with himself whether
It would not bo better to end it thun
to live It no envied -his father his
broken henrt. SIngulnrly enough, tho
thing thnt mndo llfo nt least value
wns tho thing that kept him from
throwing it away tho woman.
Striving to analyze tho complex
emotions that centered about his losses
ho was forced to admit, although It
seemed n sign of weakness, that love
He Debated With Himself Whether It
Would Not Be Better to End It
Than to Live.
ncrs of far countries, In strange conti
nents. These possibilities did not at
tract him. ne wnnted to get uwuy
from, out of touch with, the life ho had
led. He wished to go to somo placo
where he could be practically alone,
where he could huve time to recover
his poise, to think things out, to plan
his future, to try to devise a meuns for
rehabilitation, if It were possible. Ho
could do that just as well, perhaps bet
ter, In America than In any pluco else.
And there was another reason that
held him to his native land. Ho would
still tread the same soil, breathe tho
same air, with the woman, ne did not
desire to put seas between them.
He swore to himself thnt the free
dom he hud offered her, that he had In
deed forced upon her unwilling und re
jecting it, should be no empty thing so
far as he wus concerned. He wouk
leave her absolutely untrummeled. He
would not write to her or communi
cate with her In nny wuy. He would
not even seek her to hear about her
and of course ns she would not know
whither ho hnd gone or whero he wuy
she could not communicate with him.
Tho silence thnt had fallen between
them should not be broken even for
ever unless nnd until Ah, yes, ho
could not sec any way to complcto that
"unless and until" at first, but perhaps
after a while ho might
Ho knew exactly where ho would go,
Dick Winters, another clnssmato und
devoted friend ut Cambridge, had gona
out West shortly nfter graduation. Ho
hnd u big cattle ranch miles from a
railroad In a young southwestern stute.
Winters, llko thu other member of tha
youthful triumvirate, Rodney, was a
bachelor. lie could be absolutely de
pended upon. He hnd often begged
Meade to visit him. Tho engineer
would do It now. no knew Winters
would respect his moods, that he would
let him severely alone, thnt ho could
get on u horse und ride Into the hills
nnd do what he pleased, think out his
thoughts undisturbed.
To Winters, therefore, he hud gone.
He hnd nn Idea that his future would
bo outside of engineering. Indeed ho
hnd put nil thought of his chosen pro
fession out of his mind and heart, ut
least so he fancied. Yet, spending an
idto forenoon In Chicago waiting for
tho depnrturo of tho western train, ho
found himself Irresistibly drnwn to tho
great steel-framed structures, tho sky
scrapers rising gaunt und rigid abovo
tho other buildings of tho city.
base aud holds It with tho tips of his i of woman was greater tluui lovo of
A Young Man Roughly Dressed.
est dlstanco between two cardinal
points, nnd ono of tne great transcon
tinental rallwuys bought It and began
Improving It to replaco Its orlgtnul
rather unsatisfactory line.
Tho long wooden trcstlo which
crossed the broad, sandy depression In
front of tho town, tho bed of tho an
cient river, through which tho Picket
Wlro and further down Us affluent tho
Kicking Horse, flowed humbly end
modestly, wus being replnced by a
great .viaduct of steel, Far up. tho
fingers on either sldo in an upright po
sition, swaying It very slightly back
ward and forwnrd. Ho does It uncon
sciously, too.
Vandoventer hud been standing by n
lovel already set up when tho new
comer arrived and tho rod was lying
on tho ground besldo It Tho latter
picked It up without n word, wulkcd
rapidly to tho stnke, loosened tho tar
get nnd balanced tho rod upon tho
stnkc. As soon ns Vandoventer ob
served thnt his new seeker after work
held tho rod In tho right wny, he did
not troublo to tako tho Bight Ho
throw his head backward and raised
bin band, beckonlngly.
"It bo happens," ha begau, "that I
can glvo you a Job, Tho rodman next
tame, that In tho bnlanco ono girl out
weighed bridge nnd father. That tho
romance was ended wns whnt mndo
llfo Insupportable. Yet tho faint, vnguo
possibility thnt It might bo resumed If
ho could. find somo way to show his
worthiness wns what mndo him cling
to It
Of courso ho could havo showed
without much difficulty and beyond
perndventuro at tho Inquest over Ab
bott nnd tho Investigation Into tho
cause of tho failuro of tho bridge un
fortunato but too obvious that tho
frightful and fatal error In tho design
vns not his nud that ho had protested
against tho accepted plan, If only ho
had found tho letter addressed to his
father. But that ho would novor do
A man of Meade's ability will
soon find a place for himself in
any environment, and so It is
with the young engineer. His
new start in life Is described
in the next Installment.
(TO nn CONTINUED.")
Sweet, Young Thing.
In u local theater, ono evening re
cently, a powerful spotlight revealed e
houso fly crawling over tho powncre
surfneo of n pretty girl's back. "Oh,
looklc," whispered n Uttlo girl, In tone
that could bo heard all about her,
"looklo nt tho flyl" "Hush, dear," tha
child's mother cautioned. Thero was a'
moment's silence, then tho Uttlo glrf
again whispered hoarsely : "I spec the!
fly thinks ho Is on a maralimallow."
Exchange,
N
i