THE ENCHANTED CANYON

by

HONORÉ WILLSIE

Author of

"The Forbidden Trail, " "Still Jim, " "The Heart of the Desert, " "Lydiaof the Pines, " etc. 

A. L. Burt CompanyPublishers -------- New YorkPublished by arrangement with William Morrow and Company, Inc. Copyright, 1921, byHonoré Willsie MorrowAll rights reserved, including that of translation into foreignlanguagesPrinted in the United States of America

CONTENTS

BOOK I

BRIGHT ANGEL

Chapter

 I MINETTA LANE II BRIGHT ANGEL

BOOK II

THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR

 III TWENTY-TWO YEARS LATER IV DIANA ALLEN V A PHOTOGRAPHER OF INDIANS VI A NEWSPAPER REPORTER

BOOK III

THE ENCHANTED CANYON

 VII THE DESERT VIII THE COLORADO IX THE CLIFF DWELLING X THE EXPEDITION BEGINS XI THE PERFECT ADVENTURE XII THE END OF THE CRUISE XIII GRANT'S CROSSING XIV LOVE IN THE DESERT

BOOK IV

THE PHANTASM DESTROYED

 XV THE FIRING LINE AGAIN XVI CURLY'S REPORT XVII REVENGE IS SWEET

BOOK I

BRIGHT ANGEL

CHAPTER I

MINETTA LANE

"A boy at fourteen needs a mother or the memory of a mother as he doesat no other period of his life. "--_Enoch's Diary_. 

Except for its few blocks that border Washington Square, MacDougalStreet is about as squalid as any on New York's west side. 

Once it was aristocratic enough for any one, but that was nearly acentury ago. Alexander Hamilton's mansion and Minetta Brook are lessthan memories now. The blocks of fine brick houses that coveredRichmond Hill are given over to Italian tenements. Minetta Brook, ifit sings at all, sings among the sewers far below the dirty pavements. 

But Minetta Lane still lives, a short alley that debouches on MacDougalStreet. Edgar Allan Poe once strolled on summer evenings throughMinetta Lane with his beautiful Annabel Lee. But God pity thesweethearts to-day who must have love in its reeking precincts! It isa lane of ugliness, now; a lane of squalor; a lane of poverty andhopelessness spelled in terms of filth and decay. 

About midway in the Lane stands a two-story, red-brick house with anexquisite Georgian doorway. The wrought-iron handrail that borders thecrumbling stone steps is still intact. The steps usually are crowdedwith dirty, quarreling children and a sore-eyed cat or two. Nobodyknows and nobody cares who built the house. Enough that it is now thehome of poverty and of ways that fear the open light of day. Just whenthe decay of the old dwelling began there is none to say. But NewYorkers of middle age recall that in their childhood the Lane alreadyhad been claimed by the slums, with the Italian influx just beginning. 

One winter afternoon a number of years ago a boy stood leaning againstthe iron newel post of the old house, smoking a cigarette. He wasperhaps fourteen or fifteen years of age, but he might have been eitherolder or younger. The city gives even to children a sophisticated lookthat baffles the casual psychologist. 

The children playing on the steps behind the boy were stocky, swarthyItalians. But he was tall and loosely built, with dark red hair andhard blue eyes. He was thin and raw boned. Even his smartly cutclothes could not hide his extreme awkwardness of body, his big loosejoints, his flat chest and protruding shoulder blades. His face, too, could not have been an Italian product. The cheek bones were high, thecheeks slightly hollowed, the nose and lips were rough hewn. The suavelines of the three little Latins behind him were entirely alien to thisboy's face. 

It was warm and thawing so that the dead horse across the street, withthe hugely swollen body, threw off an offensive odor. 

"Smells like the good ol' summer time, " said the boy, nodding his headtoward the horse and addressing the rag picker who was pulling a burlapsack into the basement. 

"Like ta getta da skin. No good now though, " replied Luigi. "Yougotta da rent money, Nucky?"

"Got nuttin', " Nucky's voice was bitter. "That brown Liz you let inlast night beats the devil shakin' dice. "

"We owe three mont' now, Nucky, " said the Italian. 

"Yes, and how much trade have I pulled into your blank blank secondfloor for you durin' the time, you blank blank! If I hear any moreabout the rent, I'll split on you, you--"

But before Nucky could continue his cursing, the Italian broke in witha volubility of oaths that reduced the boy to sullen silence. Havingeased his mind, Luigi proceeded to drag the sack into the basement andslammed the door. 

"Nucky! Nucky! He's onlucky!" sang one of the small girls on thecrumbling steps. 

"You dry up, you little alley cat!" roared the boy. 

"You're just a bastard!" screamed the child, while her playmates tookup the cry. 

Nucky lighted a fresh cigarette and moved hurriedly up toward MacDougalStreet. Once having turned the corner, he slackened his gait andclimbed into an empty chair in the bootblack stand that stood in frontof the Café Roma. The bootblack had not finished the first shoe when apoliceman hoisted himself into the other chair. 

"How are you, Nucky?" he grunted. 

"All right, thanks, " replied the boy, an uneasy look softening his coldeyes for the moment. 

"Didn't keep the job I got you, long, " the officer said. "What was therip this time?"

"Aw, I ain't goin' to hold down ho five-dollar-a-week job. What do youthink I am?"

"I think you are a fool headed straight for the devil, " answered theofficer succinctly. "Now listen to me, Nucky. I've knowed you eversince you started into the school over there. I mind how the teachertold me she was glad to see one brat that looked like an old-fashionedAmerican. And everything the teachers and us guys at the policestation could do to keep you headed right, we've done. But you justwon't have it. You've growed up with just the same ideas the youngtoughs have 'round here. All you know about earnin' money is bygambling. " Nucky stirred, but the officer put out his hand. 

"Hold on now, fer I'm servin' notice on you. You've turned down everyjob we got you. You want to keep on doing Luigi's dirty work for him. Very well! Go to it! And the next time we get the goods on you, you'll get the limit. So watch yourself!"

"Everybody's against a guy!" muttered the boy, "Everybody's against a fool that had rather be crooked than straight, "returned the officer. 

Nucky, his face sullen, descended from the chair, paid the boy andheaded up MacDougal Street toward the Square. 

A tall, dark woman, dressed in black entered the Square as Nuckycrossed from Fourth Street. Nucky overtook her. 

"Are you comin' round to-night, Liz?" he asked. 

She looked at him with liquid brown eyes over her shoulder. 

"Anything better there than there was last night?" she asked. 

Nucky nodded eagerly. "You'll be surprised when you see the bird I gotlined up. "

Liz looked cautiously round the park, at the children shouting on thewet pavements, at the sparrows quarreling in the dirty snow drifts. Then she started, nervously, along the path. 

"There comes Foley!" she exclaimed. "What's he doin' off his beat?"

"He's seen us now, " said Nucky. "We might as well stand right here. "

"Oh, I ain't afraid of that guy!" Liz tossed her head. "I got thingson him, all right. "

"Why don't you use 'em?" Nucky's voice was skeptical. "He's going downWaverly Place, the blank, blank!"

Liz grunted. "He's got too much on me! I ain't hopin' to starttrouble. You go chase yourself, Nucky. I'll be round about midnight. "

Nucky's chasing himself consisted of the purchase of a newspaper whichhe read for a few minutes in the sunshine of the park. Even as he saton the park bench, apparently absorbed in the paper, there was an airof sullen unhappiness about the boy. Finally, he tossed the paperaside, and sat with folded arms, his chin on his breast. 

Officer Foley, standing on the corner of Washington Place and MacDougalStreet waved a pleasant salute to a tall, gray-haired man whoseautomobile drew up before the corner apartment house. 

"How are you, Mr. Seaton?" he asked. 

"Rather used up, Foley!" replied the gentleman, "Rather used up!Aren't you off your beat?"

The officer nodded. "Had business up here and started back. Then Istopped to watch that red-headed kid over there. " He indicated thebench on which Nucky sat, all unconscious of the sharp eyes fastened onhis back. 

"I see the red hair, anyway, "--Mr. Seaton lighted a cigar and puffed itslowly. He and Foley had been friends during Seaton's twenty years'residence on the Square. 

"I know you ain't been keen on boys since you lost Jack, " the officersaid, slowly, "but--well, I can't get this young Nucky off my mind, blast the little crook!"

"So he's a crook, is he? How old is the boy?"

"Oh, 'round fourteen! He's as smart as lightning and as crooked as heis smart. He turned up here when he was a little kid, with a woman whomay or may not have been his mother. She lived with a Dago down inMinetta Lane. Guess the boy mighta been six years old when she diedand Luigi took him on. We were all kind of proud of him at first. Teachers in school all said he was a wonder. But for two or threeyears he's been going wrong, stealing and gambling, and now this fellowLuigi's started a den on his second floor that we gotta clean out soon. His rag-picking's a stall. And he's using Nucky like a kid oughtn't tobe used. "

"Why don't you people have him taken away from the Italian and a properguardian appointed?"

"Well, he's smart and we kinda hoped he'd pull up himself. We got asettlement worker interested in him and we got jobs for him, butnothing works. Judge Harmon swears he's out of patience with himand'll send him to reform school at his next offense. That'll endNucky. He'll be a gunman by the time he's twenty. "

"You seem fond of the boy in spite of his criminal tendencies, " saidSeaton. 

"Aw, we all have criminal tendencies, far as that goes, " growled Foley;"you and I and all of us. Don't know as I'm what you'd call fond ofthe kid. Maybe it's his name. Yes, I guess it's his name. Now whatis your wildest guess for that little devil's name, Mr. Seaton?"

The gray-hatred man shook his head. "Pat Donahue, by his hair. "

"But not by his face, if you could see it. His name is EnochHuntingdon. Yes, sir, Enoch Huntingdon! What do you think of that?"

The astonishment expressed in Seaton's eyes was all that the officercould desire. 

"Enoch Huntingdon! Why, man, that gutter rat has real blood in him, ifhe didn't steal the name. "

"No kid ever stole such a name as that, " said Foley. "And for all he'shomely enough to stop traffic, his face sorta lives up to his name. Want a look at him?"

Mr. Seaton hesitated. The tragic death of his own boy a few yearsbefore had left him shy of all boys. But his curiosity was roused andwith a sigh he nodded. 

Foley crossed the street, Seaton following. As they turned into theSquare, Nucky saw them out of the tail of his eye. He rose, casually, but Foley forestalled his next move by calling in a voice that carriedabove the street noises, "Nucky! Wait a moment!"

The boy stopped and stood waiting until the two men came up. Seatoneyed the strongly hewn face while the officer said, "That person youwere with a bit ago, Nucky--I don't think much of her. Better cut herout. "

"I can't help folks talking to me, can I?" demanded the boy, belligerently. 

"Especially the ladies!" snorted Foley. "Regular village cut-up, youare! Well, just mind what I say, " find he strolled on, followed bySeaton. 

"He'll never be hung for his beauty, " said Seaton. "But, Foley, I'llwager you'll find that lad breeds back to Plymouth Rock!"

Foley nodded. "Thought you'd be interested. Every man who's seen himis. But there's nothing doing. Nucky is a hard pill. "

"Maybe he needs a woman's hand, " suggested Seaton, "Sometimes thesehard characters are clay with the right kind of a woman. "

"Or the wrong kind, " grunted the officer. 

"No, the right kind, " insisted Mr. Seaton. "I'm telling you, Foley, agood woman is the profoundest influence a man can have. There's a deepwithin him he never gives over to a bad woman. "

Foley's keen gray eyes suddenly softened. He looked for a moment abovethe tree tops to the clouds sailing across the blue. "I guess you'reright, Mr. Seaton, " he said, "I guess you're right! Well, poor Nucky!And I must be getting back. Good day, Mr. Seaton. "

"Good day, Foley!"

And Nucky, staring curiously from the Square, saw the apartment housedoor close on the tall, well-dressed stranger, and saw a taxi-cabdriver offer a lift to his ancient enemy, Officer Foley. 

"Thinks he's smart, don't he!" he muttered aloud, starting slowly backtoward the Café Roma. "I wonder what uplifter he's got after me now?"

In the Café Roma, Nucky sat down at a little table and ordered a bowlof ministrone with red wine. He did not devour his food as the normalboy of his age would have done. He ate slowly and without appetite. When he was about half through the meal, a young Irishman in his earlytwenties sat down opposite him. 

"Hello, Nucky! What's doin'?"

"Nothin' worth talking about. What's doin' with you?"

"O, I been helping Marty, the Dude, out. He's going to be aldermanfrom this ward, some day. "

"That's the idea!" cried Nucky. "That's what I'd like to be, apolitician. I'd rather be Mayor of N' York than king of the world. "

"I thought you wanted to be king o' the dice throwers, " laughed theyoung Irishman. 

"If I was, I'd buy myself the job of Mayor, " returned Nucky. "Comingover to-night?"

"I might, 'long about midnight. Anything good in sight?"

"I hope so, " Nucky's hard face looked for a moment boyishly worried. 

"Business ain't been good, eh?"

"Not for me, " replied Nucky. "Luigi seems to be goin' to the bankregular. You bet that guy don't risk keepin' nothin' in the house. "

"I shouldn't think he would with a wonder like you around, " said theyoung Irishman with a certain quality of admiration in his voice. 

Nucky's thin chest swelled and he paid the waiter with an air thatexactly duplicated the café manner of Marty, the Dude. Then, with acasual nod at Frank, he started back toward Luigi's, for his evening'swork. 

It began to snow about ten o'clock that night. The piles of dirty iceand rubbish on MacDougal Street turned to fairy mountains. The deadhorse in Minetta Lane might have been an Indian mound in miniature. Anoccasional drunken man or woman, exuding loathsome, broken sentences, reeled past Officer Foley who stood in the shadows opposite Luigi'shouse. He was joined silently and one at a time by half a dozen othermen. Just before midnight, a woman slipped in at the front door. Andon the stroke of twelve, Foley gave a whispered order. The group ofofficers crossed the street and one of them put a shoulder against thedoor which yielded with a groan. 

When the door of the large room on the second floor burst open, Nuckythrew down his playing cards and sprang for the window. But Foleyforestalled him and slipped handcuffs on him, while Nucky cursed andfought with all the venom that did the eight or ten other occupants ofthe room. Tables were kicked over. A small roulette board smashedinto the sealed fire-place. Brown Liz broke a bottle of whiskey on anofficer's helmet and the reek of alcohol merged with that of cigarettesmoke and snow-wet clothes. Luigi freed himself for a moment andturned off the gas light roaring as he did so. 

"Get out da back room! Da backa room!"

But it was a well-planned raid. No one escaped, and shortly, Nucky wasclimbing into the patrol wagon that had appeared silently before thedoor. That night he was locked in a cell with a drunken Greek. It washis first experience in a cell. Hitherto, Officer Foley had protectedhim from this ignominy. But Officer Foley, as he told Nucky, wasthrough with him. 

The Greek, except for an occasional oath, slept soddenly. The boycrouched in a corner of the cell, breathing rapidly and staring intoblack space. At dawn he had not changed his position or closed hiseyes. 

It was two days later that Officer Foley found a telephone messageawaiting him in the police station. "Mr. John Seaton wants you to callhim up, Foley. "

Foley picked up the telephone. Mr. Seaton answered at once. "It wasnothing in particular, Foley, except that I wanted to tell you that thered-headed boy and his name, particularly that name, in Minetta Lane, have haunted me. If he gets in trouble again, you'd better let meknow. "

"You're too late, Mr. Seaton! He's in up to his neck, now. " Theofficer described the raid. "The judge has given him eighteen monthsat the Point and we're taking him there this afternoon. "

"You don't mean it! The young whelp! Foley, what he needs is alicking and a mother to love him, not reform school. "

"Sure, but no matter how able a New York policeman is, Mr. Seaton, hecan't be a mother! And it's too late! The judge is out o' patience. "

"Look here, Foley, hasn't he any friends at all?"

"There's several that want to be friends, but he won't have 'em. He'ssittin' in his cell for all the world like a bull pup the first timehe's tied. "

Mr. Seaton cleared his throat. "Foley, let me come round and see himbefore you send him over the road, will you?"

"Sure, that can be fixed up. Only don't get sore when the kid snubsyou. "

"Nothing a boy could do could hurt me, Foley. You remember that Jackwas not exactly an angel. "

"No, that's right, but Jack was always a good sport, Mr. Seaton. That's why it's so hard to get hold of these young toughs down here!They ain't sports!" And Foley hung up the receiver with a sigh. 

Mr. Seaton preferred to introduce himself to Nucky. The boy wassitting on the edge of his bunk, his red hair a beautiful bronze in thedim daylight that filtered through the high window. 

"How are you, Enoch?" said Mr. Seaton. "My name is John Seaton. Officer Foley pointed you out to me the other day as a lad who wasmaking bad use of a good name. That's a wonderful name of yours, doyou realize it?"

"Every uplifter I ever met's told me so, " replied Nucky, ungraciously, without looking up. 

Mr. Seaton smiled. "I'm no uplifter! I'm a New York lawyer!Supposing you take a look at me so's to recognize me when we meetagain. "

Nucky still kept his gaze on the floor. "I know what you look like. You got gray hair and brown eyes, you're thin and tall and about fiftyyears old. "

"Good work!" exclaimed Enoch's caller. "Now, look here, Enoch, can't Ihelp you out of this scrape?"

"Don't want to be helped out. I was doin' a man's job and I'll take mypunishment like a man. "

Seaton spoke quickly. "It wasn't a man's job. It was a thief's job. You're taking your sentence like a common thief, not like a man. "

"Aw, dry up and get out o' here!" snarled Nucky, jumping to his feetand looking his caller full in the face. 

Seaton did not stir. In spite of its immaturity, its plainness and itssullenness, there was a curious dignity in Nucky's face, that made astrong appeal to his dignified caller. 

"You guys always preachin' to me!" Nucky went on, his boyish voicebreaking with weariness and excitement. "Why don't you look out foryour own kids and let me alone?"

"My only boy is beyond my care. He was killed three years ago, "returned Seaton. "I've had nothing to do with boys since. And I don'tgive a hang about you. It's your name I'm interested in. I hate tosee a fine name in the hands of a prospective gunman. "

"And you can't get me with the sob stuff, either, " Nucky shrugged hisshoulders. 

Seaton scowled, then he laughed. "You're a regular tough, eh, Enoch?But you know even toughs occasionally use their brains. Do you want togo to reform school?"

"Yes, I do! Go on, get out o' here!"

"You infernal little fool!" blazed Seaton, losing his temper. "Do youthink you can handle me the way you have the others? Well, it can't bedone! Huntingdon is a real name in this country and if you think anypig-headed, rotten-minded boy can carry that name to the pen, withoutme putting up a fight, you're mistaken! You've met something more thanyour match this time, you are pretty sure to find out sooner or later, my sweet young friend. My hair was red, too, before--up to three yearsago. "

Seaton turned and slammed out of the cell. When Foley came to the doora half hour later, Nucky was again sitting on the edge of the bunk, staring sullenly at the floor. 

"Come out o' this, Nucky, " said the officer. 

Nucky rose, obediently, and followed Foley into the next room. Mr. Seaton was leaning against the desk, talking with Captain Blackly. 

"Look here, Nucky, " said Blackly, "this gentleman has been telephoningthe judge and the judge has paroled you once more in this gentleman'shands. I think you're a fool, Mr. Seaton, but I believe in giving akid as young as Huntingdon the benefit of the doubt. We've all failedto find a spark of decent ambition in him. Maybe you can. Just oneword for you, young fellow. If you try to get away from Mr. Seaton, we'll get you in a way you'll never forget. "

Nucky said nothing. His unboyish eyes traveled from one face toanother, then he shrugged his shoulders and dropped his weight to theother hip. John Seaton, whose eyes were still smoldering, tapped Nuckyon the arm. 

"All right, Enoch! I'm going to take you up to my house to meet Mrs. Seaton. See that you behave like a gentleman, " and he led the way intothe street. Nucky followed without any outward show of emotion. Hisnew guardian did not speak until they reached the door of the apartmenthouse, then he turned and looked the boy in the eye. 

"I'm obstinate, Enoch, and quick tempered. No one but Mrs. Seatonthinks of me as a particularly likable chap. You can do as you pleaseabout liking me, but I want you to like my wife. And if I have anyreason to think you've been anything but courteous to her, I'll breakevery bone in your body. You say you don't want sob stuff. You'll getnone of it from me. "

Not a muscle of Nucky's face quivered. Mr. Seaton did not wait for areply, but led the way into the elevator. It shot up to the top floorand Nucky followed into the long, dark hall of the apartment. 

"Put your hat and coat here, " said his guardian, indicating the hatrack on which he was hanging his own overcoat. "Now follow me. " Heled the boy into the living room. 

A small woman sat by the window that overlooked the Square. Her brownhair was just touched with gray. Her small round face was a littlefaded, with faint lines around eyes and lips. It was not anintellectual face, but it was sweet and patient, from the delicatecurve of the lips to the slight downward droop of the eyebrows abovethe clear blue eyes. All the sweetness and patience was there withwhich the wives of high tempered, obstinate men are not infrequentlyblessed. 

"Mary, this is young Enoch Huntingdon, " said Seaton. 

Mrs. Seaton offered her hand, which Nucky took awkwardly andunsmilingly. "How do you do, Enoch! Mr. Seaton told me about your redhair and your fine old name. Are you going to stay with us a littlewhile?"

"I don't know, ma'am, " replied Enoch. 

"Sit down, Enoch! Sit down!" Seaton waved Enoch impatiently toward aseat while he took the arm chair beside his wife. "Mary, I've got totake that trip to San Francisco, after all. Houghton and Companyinsist on my looking into that Jameson law-suit for them. "

Mary Seaton looked up, a little aghast. "But mercy, John! I can't getaway now, with Sister Alice coming!"

"I know that. So I'm going to take Enoch with me. "

"Oh!" Mary looked from her husband to Enoch, sitting awkwardly on theedge of the Chippendale chair. His usually pale face was a littleflushed and his thin lips were set firmly together. From her scrutinyof Enoch's face, she turned to his hands. They were large and bony andthe thumb and first two fingers of his right hand were yellow. 

"You don't look as if you'd been eating the right kind of things, Enoch, " she said, kindly. "And it's cigarettes that give your lipsthat bad color. You must let me help you about that. When do youstart, John dear?"

"To-morrow night, and I'm afraid I'll be gone the best part of threeweeks. By that time, I ought to know something about Enoch, eh?"

For the first time Enoch grinned, a little sheepishly, to be sure, anda little cynically. Nevertheless it was the first sign of tolerance hehad shown and Mr. Seaton was cheered by it. 

"That will give time to get Enoch outfitted, " said Mary. "We'll go upto Best's to-morrow morning. "

"This suit is new, " said Nucky. 

"It looks new, " agreed Mrs. Seaton, "but a pronounced check like thatisn't nice for traveling. And you'll need other things. "

"I got plenty of clothes at home, and I paid for 'em myself, " Nucky'svoice was resentful. 

"Well, drop a line to that Italian you've been living with, and tellhim--" began Mr. Seaton. 

"Aw, he'll be doin' time in Sing Sing by the time I get back, "interrupted Nucky, "and he can't read anyhow. I always 'tended toeverything but going to the bank for him. "

"Did you really?" There was a pleasant note of admiration in Mrs. Seaton's voice. "You must try to look out for Mr. Seaton then on thistrip. He is so absent-minded! Come and I'll show you your room, Enoch. You must get ready for dinner. "

She rose, and led the boy down the hall to a small room. It wasfurnished in oak and chintz. Enoch thought it must have been the deadboy's room for there was a gun over the bureau and photographs of afootball team and a college crew on the walls. 

"Supper will be ready in ten or fifteen minutes, " said Mrs. Seaton, asshe left him. A moment later, he heard her speaking earnestly in theliving-room. He brushed his hair, then amused himself by examining thecontents of the room. The supper bell rang just as he opened thecloset door. He closed it, hastily and silently, and a moment later, Mr. Seaton spoke from the hall:

"Come, Enoch!" and the boy followed into the dining-room. 

His table manners were bad, of course, but Mrs. Seaton found these lessdifficult to endure than the boy's unresponsive, watchful ways. Atlast, as the pudding was being served, she exclaimed:

"What in the world are you watching for, Enoch? Do you expect us torob you, or what?"

"I dunno, ma'am, " answered Nucky, "Do you enjoy your supper?" asked Mrs. Seaton. 

"It's all right, I guess. I'm used to wine with my supper. "

"Wine, you young jack-donkey!" cried John Seaton. "And don't youappreciate the difference between a home meal like this and one youpick up in Minetta Lane?"

"I dunno!" Nucky's face darkened sullenly and he pushed his puddingaway. 

There was silence around the table for a few moments. Mrs. Seaton, quietly watching the boy, thought of what her husband had told her ofOfficer Foley's account. The boy did act not unlike a bull pup put forthe first time on the lead chain. She was relieved and so was Mr. Seaton when Nucky, immediately after the meal was finished, said thathe was sleepy, and went to bed. 

"I don't envy you your trip, John, " said Mary Seaton, as she settled toher embroidery again. "What on earth possesses you to do it? The boyisn't even interesting in his badness. "

"He's got the face either of a great leader or a great criminal, " saidSeaton, shaking out his paper. "He makes me so mad I could tan hishide every ten minutes, but I'm going to see the thing through. It'sthe first time in three years I've felt interested in anything. "

Quick tears sprang to his wife's eyes. "I'm so glad to have you feelthat way, John, that I'll swallow even this impossible boy. What makeshim so ugly? Did he want to go to reform school?"

"God knows what any boy of his age wants!" replied John briefly. "ButI'm going to try in the next three weeks to find out what's frozen himup so. "

"Well, I'll dress him so that he won't disgrace you. "

Mrs. Seaton smiled and sighed and went on with her careful stitching. 

Nobody tried to talk to Nucky at the breakfast table. After the mealwas over and Mr. Seaton had left for the office, the boy sat lookingout of the window until Mrs. Seaton announced herself ready for theshopping expedition. Then he followed her silently to the waitingautomobile. 

The little woman took great care in buying the boy's outfit. The taskmust Have been painful to her. Only three years before she had beenbuying clothes for Jack from this same clerk. But Mary Seaton was agood soldier and she did a good job. When they reached home inmid-afternoon Nucky was well equipped for his journey. 

To Mary's surprise and pleasure he took care of her, helping her in andout of the automobile, and waiting on her vigilantly. He was awkward, to be sure, and silent, but Mary was secretly sure that he was lessresentful toward her than he had been the day before. And she began tounderstand her husband's interest in the strong, immature, sullen face. 

The train left at six o'clock. Mrs. Seaton went with them to the verytrain gates. 

"You'll really try to look out for Mr. Seaton, won't you, Enoch?" shesaid, taking the boy's limp hand, after she had kissed her husbandgood-by. 

"Yes, ma'am, " replied Nucky. 

"Good-by, Enoch! I truly hope you'll enjoy the trip. Run now, oryou'll miss the train. See, Mr. Seaton's far down the platform!"

Nucky turned and ran. Mr. Seaton waited for him at the door of thePullman. His jaw was set and he looked at Nucky with curiosity notuntinged with resentment. Nucky had not melted after a whole day withMary! Perhaps there were no deeps within the boy. But as the trainmoved through the tunnel something lonely back of the boy's hard staretouched him and he smiled. 

"Well, Enoch, old man, are you glad to go?"

"I dunno, " replied Nucky. 

CHAPTER II

BRIGHT ANGEL

"I was sure, when I was eighteen, that if I could but give to the worlda picture of Boyhood, flagellated by the world's stupidity andbrutality, the world would heed. At thirty, I gave up thehope. "--_Enoch's Diary_. 

No one could have been a less troublesome traveling companion thanNucky. He ate what was set before him, without comment. He sat forendless hours on the observation platform, smoking cigarettes, his keeneyes on the flying landscape. His blue Norfolk suit and his carefullychosen cap and linen restored a little of the adolescent look of whichthe flashy clothing of his own choosing had robbed him. No one glancedaskance at Mr. Seaton's protegé or asked the lawyer idle questionsregarding him. 

And yet Nucky was very seldom out of John Seaton's thoughts: Over andover he tried to get the boy into conversation only to be checked by areply that was half sullen, half impertinent. Finally, the lawyer fellback on surmises. Was Nucky laying some deep scheme for mischief whenthey reached San Francisco? John had believed fully that he and Nuckywould be friends before Chicago was passed. But he had been mistaken. What in the world was he to do with the young gambler in San Francisco, that paradise of gamblers? He could employ a detective to dog Nucky, but that was to acknowledge defeat. If there were only some placealong the line where he could leave the boy, giving him a taste of outof door life, such as only the west knows!

For a long time Seaton turned this idea over in his mind. The trainwas pulling out of Albuquerque when he had a sudden inspiration. Heknew Nucky too well by now to ask him for information or for anexpression of opinion. But that night, at dinner, he said, casually, "We're going to leave the main line, at Williams, Enoch, and go up tothe Grand Canyon. There's a guide at Bright Angel that I camped withtwo years ago. It's such bad weather that I don't suppose there'll bemany people up there and I telegraphed him this afternoon to give me aweek or so. I'm going to turn you over to him and I'll go on to theCoast. I'll pick you up on my way back. "

"All right, " said Nucky, casually. 

Mr. Seaton ground his teeth with impatience and thought of what Jack'senthusiasm would have been over such a program. But he said nothingand strolled out to the observation car. 

It was raining and sleeting at Williams. They had to wait for hours inthe little station for the connecting train to the Canyon. It came in, finally, and Seaton and Nucky climbed aboard, the only visitors for theusually popular side trip. It was a wild and lonely run to theCanyon's rim. Nucky, sitting with his face pressed against the window, saw only vague forms of cactus and evergreens through the sleet which, as the grade rose steadily, changed to snow. It was mid-afternoon whenthey reached the rim. A porter led them at once into the hotel andafter they were established, Seaton went into Nucky's room. The boywas standing by the window, staring at the storm. 

"We can't see the Canyon from our windows, " said John. "I took care ofthat! It isn't a thing you want staring at you day and night! Nucky, I want you to get your first look at the Canyon, alone. One alwaysshould. You'd better put on your coat and go out now before the stormgets any worse. Don't wander away. Stick to the view in front of thehotel. I'll be out in a half hour. "

Nucky pulled on his overcoat, picked up his cap and went out. A porterwas sweeping the walk before the main entrance. 

"Say, mister, I want to see the Canyon, " said Nucky. 

"Nothin' to hinder. Yonder she lies, waiting for you, son!" jerkinghis thumb over his shoulder. 

Nucky looked in the direction indicated. Then he took a deep, shockedbreath. The snow flakes were falling into nothingness! A bitter windwas blowing but Nucky felt the sweat start to his forehead. Throughthe sifting snow flakes, disappearing before his gaze, he saw a void, silver gray, dim in outline, but none the less a void. The earth gapedto its center, naked, awful, before his horrified eyes. Yet, the sameurgent need to know the uttermost that forces one to the edge of theskyscraper forced Nucky to the rail. He clutched it. A great gust ofwind came up from the Canyon, clearing the view of snow for the moment, and Nucky saw down, down for a mile to the black ribbon of the Coloradobelow. 

"I can't stand it!" he muttered. "I can't stand it!" and turning, hebolted for the hotel. He stopped before the log fire in the lobby. Alittle group of men and women were sitting before the blaze, reading orchatting. One of the women looked up at the boy and smiled. It seemedimpossible to Nucky that human beings could be sitting so calmly, doingquite ordinary things, with that horror lying just a few feet away. For perhaps five minutes he struggled with his sense of panic, then hewent slowly out and forced himself to the railing again. 

While he had been indoors, it had ceased to storm and the view layclear and clean before him. Although there was a foot of level snow onthe rim, so vast were the ledges and benches below that the driftsserved only as high lights for their crimson and black and orange. Just beneath Nucky were tree tops, heavy laden with white. Far, farbelow were tiny shrubs that the porter said were trees and belowthese, --orderly strips of brilliant colors and still below, andbelow--! Nucky moistened his dry lips and once more bolted to thehotel. 

Just within the door, John Seaton met him. 

"Well, Enoch?"

There was no coldness in Nucky's eyes now. They were the frightenedeyes of a child. 

"I can't stand that thing!" he panted. "I gotta get back to N' York, now!"

Seaton looked at Nucky curiously. "For heaven's sake, Enoch! Where'syour nerve?"

"What good would nerve do a guy lookin' at hell!" gasped Nucky. 

"Hell? Why the Canyon is one of the beautiful sights of the world!You're crazy, Enoch! Come out with me and look again. "

"Not on your life!" cried Nucky. "I'm going back to little old N'York. "

"It can't be done, my boy. There'll be no trains out of here for atleast twelve hours, because of the storm. And listen, Enoch! Nononsense! Remember that if you wander away from the hotel, you'relost. There are no trolleys in this neck of the woods, and notelephones and no police. Wait a moment, Enoch, there's Frank Allen, the guide. "

Seaton hailed a tall, rather heavily built man in corduroys and highlaced boots, who had lounged up to the cigar stand. As he approached, Nucky saw that he was middle aged, with a heavily tanned face out ofwhich the blue of his eyes shone conspicuously. 

"Here he is, Frank!" exclaimed Seaton. "Nucky, this is the man who isgoing to look out for you while I'm gone. "

"Well, young New York! What're you going to do with the Canyon?"Frank slapped the boy on the shoulder. 

Nucky grinned uncertainly. "I dunno!" he said. 

"Had a look at it?" demanded the guide. 

"Yes!" Nucky spoke with sudden firmness. "And I don't like it. Iwant to go back to New York. "

"Come on out with Frank and me and get used to it, " suggested JohnSeaton. 

"I'm not going near it again, " returned Nucky. 

Allen looked at the boy with deliberate interest. He noted the pastyskin, the hollow chest, the strong, unformed features, the thin lipsthat were trembling, despite the cigarette stained fingers that pressedagainst them. 

"Did you ever talk to Indians?" asked Allen, suddenly. 

"No, " said Nucky. 

"Well, let's forget the Canyon and go over to the hogan, yonder. Isthat the best you two can do on shoes? I'm always sorry for youlady-like New Yorkers. Come over here a minute. I guess we can rentsome boots to fit you. "

"I'm going to write letters, Frank, " said Seaton. "You and Enoch'llfind me over at one of the desks. Fit the boy out as you think best. "

Not long after, Nucky trailed the guide through the lobby. He waswearing high laced boots, with a very self-conscious air. Onceoutside, in the glory of the westering sun, Frank took a deep breath. 

"Great air, boy! Get all you can of it into those flabby bellows ofyours. Before we go to the hogan, come over to the corral. My Tomhorse has got a saddle sore. A fool tourist rode him all day with afold in the blanket as big as your fist. "

"Is he a bronco?" asked Nucky, with sudden animation. 

"He was a bronco. You easterners have the wrong idea. A bronco is aplains pony before he's broken. After he's busted he's a horse. See?"

"Aw, you're dead wrong, Frank!" drawled a voice. 

Nucky looked up in astonishment to see a tall man, whose skin was arich bronze, offering a cigarette to the guide. 

"Dry up, Mike!" returned Frank with a grin. "What does a Navaho knowabout horses! Enoch, this is a sure enough Indian. Mike, let meintroduce Mr. Enoch Huntingdon of New York City. "

The Navaho nodded and smiled. "You look as if a little Canyon climbingwould do you good, " said he. "I was looking at Tom horse, Frank. He'sin bad shape. How much did that tender-foot weigh that rode him?"

"I don't know. I wasn't here the day they hired him out. I know thecuss would have weighed a good deal less if I'd been here when thatsaddle was taken off! Going down to-morrow with Miss Planer?"

"Not unless some one breaks trail for us. Are you going to try it?"

"Not unless my young friend here gets his nerve up. Want to try it, Enoch?"

"Try what?" asked Nucky. 

"The trip down Bright Angel. "

"Not on your life!" cried Nucky. 

Both men laughed, the Indian moving off through the snow in thedirection of a dim building among the cedars, while Frank led on to thecorral fence. Fifteen or twenty horses and mules were moving about theenclosure. Allen crossed swiftly among them, with Nucky following, apprehensively, close behind him. Frank's horse was in the stable, butwhile he seemed to examine the sore spot on the animal's back, Frank'sreal attention was riveted on Nucky. The boy was obviously ill at easeand only half interested in the horse. 

"These are the lads that take us down the trail, " said Allen finally, slapping a velvety black mule on the flank. 

"We can't trust the horses. A mule knows more in a minute than a horseknows all his life. "

"Will you go with me to take another look at it?" asked Nucky. 

An expression of understanding crossed Frank's weather-beaten face. "Sure I will, boy! Let's walk up the rim a little and see if you cansteady your nerves. "

"I'd rather stay by the rail, " replied Nucky, doggedly. 

"All right, old man! Don't take this thing too hard, you know! Afterall, it's only a crack in the earth. "

Nucky grinned feebly, and trudged steadily up to the rail. The sun wassetting and the Canyon was like the infinite glory of God. Untiring aswas his love for the view Allen preferred, this time, to watch thestrange young face beside him. Nucky's pallor was still intense inspite of the stinging wind. His deep set eyes were strained like achild's, listening to a not-to-be-understood explanation of somethingthat frightens him. For a full five minutes he gazed without speaking. Then the sun sank and the Canyon immediately was filled with gloom. Nucky's lips quivered. "I can't stand it!" he muttered again, "I can'tstand it!" and once more he bolted. 

This time he went directly to his room. Neither Allen nor Seatonattempted to follow him. 

"He is some queer kid!" said Frank, taking the cigar Seaton offeredhim. "He may be a born crook or he may not, but believe me, there'ssomething in him worth finding out about. "

"Just what I say!" agreed Seaton. "But don't be sure you're the onethat can unlock him. Mrs. Seaton couldn't and if she failed, any womanon earth would. And I still believe that a chap that's got any good inhim will open up to a good woman. "

"_His_ woman, man! _His_! Not to somebody else's woman. " Allen'stone was impatient. 

"_His_ woman! Don't talk like a chump, Frank! Enoch's only fourteen. "

"Makes no difference. Your wife is an angel as I learned two yearsago, but she may not have Enoch's number, just the same. If I wereyou, I'd mooch up to the kid's room if he doesn't come down promptly tosupper. His nerves are in rotten shape and he oughtn't to be alone toolong. "

Seaton nodded, and shortly after seven he knocked softly on Nucky'sdoor. There was an inarticulate, "Come in!" Nucky was standing by thewindow in the dark room. 

"Supper's ready, old man. You'd better have it now and get to bedearly. Jumping from sea level to a mile in the air makes a chapsleepy. Are you washed up?"

"I'm all ready, " mumbled Nucky. 

He went to bed shortly after eight. Something forlorn and childishabout the boy's look as he said good night moved John Seaton to say, "Tell a bell boy to open the door between our rooms, will you, Enoch?"and he imagined that a relieved look flickered in Nucky's eyes. 

Seaton himself went to bed and to sleep early. He was wakened aboutmidnight by a soft sound from Nucky's room and he lay for a few momentslistening. Then he rose and turned on the light in his room, and inNucky's. The boy hastily jerked the covers over his head. Seatonpulled the extra blanket at the bed foot over his own shoulders, thenhe sat down on the edge of the bed and put his hand on Nucky's heavingback. 

"Don't you think, if it's bad enough to make you cry, that it's timeyou told a friend about it, Enoch?" he said, his voice a little husky. 

For a moment sobs strangled the boy's utterance entirely. Finally, hepulled the covers down but still keeping his head turned away, he said, "I want to go home!"

"Home, Enoch? Where's your home?"

"N' York's my home. This joint scares me. "

"Whom do you want to see in New York, Enoch?"

"Anybody! Nobody! Even the police station'd look better'n that thing. I can feel it out there now, waitin' and listenin'!"

Seaton stared blankly at the back of Nucky's head. His experiment wasnot turning out at all as he had planned. Jack often had puzzled himbut there had always been something to grasp with Jack. His own boyhad been such a good sport! A good sport! Suddenly Seaton cleared histhroat. 

"Enoch, among the men you know, what is the opinion of a squealer?"

"We hate him, " replied the boy, shortly. 

"And the other night when you were arrested, you were rather proud ofstanding up and taking your punishment without breaking down. If oneof the men arrested at that time had broken down, you'd all havedespised him, I suppose?"

"Sure thing, " agreed Nucky, turning his head ever so little toward theman. 

"Enoch, why are you breaking down now?"

"Aw, what difference does it make?" demanded the boy. "You despise meanyhow!"

"Oh!" ejaculated Seaton as a sudden light came to his groping mind. "Oh, I see! What a chump you are, old man! Of course, I despise thekind of life you've led, but I blame Minetta Lane for that, not you. And I believe there is so much solid fine stuff in you that I'm givingyou this trip to show you that there are people and things outside ofMinetta Lane that are more worth a promising boy's time than gambling. But, you won't play the game. You are so vain and ignorant, you refuseto see over your nose. "

"I told you, you despised me, " said Nucky, sullenly. 

The man smiled to himself. Suddenly he took the boy's hand in both hisown. 

"I suppose if Jack had been reared in Minetta Lane, he'd have been justas wrong in his ideas as you are. Look here, Enoch, I'll make abargain with you. I want you to try the Canyon for a week or so, untilI get back from the Coast. If, at the end of that time, you still wantMinetta Lane, I'll land you back there with fifty dollars in yourpocket, and you can go your own gait. "

Nucky for the first time turned and looked Seaton in the face. "Honest?" he gasped. 

Seaton nodded. 

"Do I have to go down the Canyon?" asked Nucky. 

"You don't have to do anything except play straight, till I get back. "

"I--I guess I could stand it, "--the boy's eyes were a little pitiful intheir fear. 

"That isn't enough. I want your promise, Enoch!"

Nucky stared into Seaton's steady eyes. "All right, I'll promise. And--and, Mr. Seaton, would you sit with me till I get to sleep?"

Seaton nodded. Nucky had made no attempt to free his hand from thekindly grasp that imprisoned it. He lay staring at the ceiling for along moment, then his eyelids fluttered, dropped, and he slept. He didnot stir when Seaton rose and went back to his own bed. 

It did not snow during the night and the train that had brought Nuckyand Mr. Seaton up announced itself as ready for the return trip toWilliams, immediately after breakfast. Nucky slept late and onlyopened his eyes when Frank Allen clumped into the room about nineo'clock. 

"Hello, New York! Haven't died, have you? Come on, we're going tobreak trail down the Canyon, you and I. "

"Not on your life!" Nucky roused at once and sat up in bed, his facevery pale under its thatch of dark red hair. 

"John Seaton turned you over to me. Said to tell you he thought youneeded the sleep more than you did to say good-by to him. "

"He told me last night, " exclaimed Nucky; "that I didn't have to godown the Canyon. "

"And you don't, you poor sissy! You aren't afraid to get up and dress, are you?" Allen's grin took away part of the sting of his speech. "Meet me in the lobby in twenty minutes, Enoch, " and he turned on hisheel. 

Nucky was down in less than the time allotted. As he leaned againstthe office desk, waiting for the guide, the room clerk said, "So you'rethe kid that's afraid to go down the trail. Usually it's the oldladies that kick up about that. Most boys your age are crazy for thetrip. "

Nucky muttered something and moved away. In front of the fire thewoman who had smiled at him the day before, smiled again. 

"Afraid too, aren't you! They can't get me onto that trail, either. "

Nucky smiled feebly then looked about a little wildly for Frank Allen. When he espied the guide at the cigar-stand, he crossed to himhurriedly. 

"Say now, Mr. Allen, listen!"

"I'm all ears, son!"

"Now don't tell everybody I'm afraid of the trail!"

"Oh, you're the kid!" exclaimed a bell boy. "Say, there was an oldlady here once that used to go out every morning and pray to the Lordto close the earth's gap, it made her so nervous! Why don't you trythat, kid? Maybe the Lord would take a suggestion from a New Yorker. "

Nucky rushed to the dining room. He was too angry and resentful to eatmuch. He drank two cups of coffee, however, and swallowed some toast. 

"Ain't you going to eat your eggs?" demanded the waitress. "What's thematter with you? Folks always stuff themselves, here. Say, don't letthe trail scare you. I was that way at first, but finally I got mynerve up and there's nothing to it. Say, let me give you some advice. There's only a few folks here now, so the guides and the hotel peoplehave got plenty of time on their hands. They're awful jokers andthey'll tease the life out of you, till you take the trip. You justget on a mule, this morning, and start. Every day you wait, you'llhate it more. "

Nucky's vanity had been deeply wounded. Greater than his fear, whichwas very great indeed, was Nucky's vanity. He gulped the second cup ofcoffee, then with the air of bravado which belonged to Marty the Dude, he sauntered up to the cigar stand where the guide still lounged. 

"All right, Frank, " said Nucky. "I'm ready for Bright Angel when youare. "

The guide looked at the boy carefully. Two bright red spots wereburning in Nucky's cheeks. He was biting his lips, nervously. But hisblue eyes were hard and steady. 

"I'll be ready in half an hour, Enoch. Meet me at the corral. We'llcamp down below for a night or two if you hold out and I'll have tohave the grub put up. You go over to the store room yonder and get aflannel shirt and a pair of denim pants to pull on over those you'rewearing. Mr. Seaton left his camera for you. I put it on your bureau. Bring that along. Skip now!"

Nucky's cheeks were still burning when he met Allen at the corral. Three mules, one a well loaded pack mule, the others saddled, werewaiting. Frank leaned against the bars. 

"Enoch, " said the man, "there's no danger at all, if you let your mulealone. Don't try to guide him. He knows the trail perfectly. All youhave to do is to sit in the saddle and look up, not down! Remember, up, not down! I shall lead. You follow, on Spoons. Old Foolish Facebrings up the rear with the pack. Did you ever ride, before?"

"I never touched a horse in my life, " replied Nucky, trying to curb thechattering of his teeth. 

"You had better mount and ride round the road here, for a bit. Takethe reins, so. Stand facing the saddle, so. Now put this foot in thestirrup, seize the pommel, and swing the other leg over as you spring. That's the idea!"

Nucky was awkward, but he landed in the saddle and found the otherstirrup, the mule standing fast as a mountain while he did so. Spoonsmoved off at Allen's bidding, and Nucky grasped at the pommel. Butonly for a moment. 

"Don't he shake any worse than this?" he cried. 

"No, but it's not so easy to stay in the saddle when the grade's steep. Pull on your right rein, Enoch, and bring old Spoons in behind me. Well done! We're off! See the bunch on the hotel steps! Guess youfooled 'em this time, New York!"

Half a dozen people, including the clerk were standing on the steps, watching the little cavalcade. As the mules filed by, somebody beganto clap. 

"What's the excitement, Frank?" demanded Nucky. 

Frank turned in his saddle to smile at the boy. "Out in this countrywe admire physical nerve because we need a lot of it. And you'reshowing a good quality, old chap. Just sit easy now and when you wantme to stop, yell. "

Nucky was sitting very straight with his thin chest up, and he managedto maintain this posture as the trail turned down over the rim. Thenhe grasped the pommel in both hands. 

It was a wonderful trail, carved with infinite patience and ingenuityout of the canyon wall. To Allen it was as safe and easy as a flightof stairs. Nucky, trembling in the saddle would have felt quite ascomfortable standing on the topmost window ledge of the Flat Ironbuilding, in New York. And, to Nucky, there was no trail! Only anarrow, corkscrew shelf, deep banked with snow into which the mules settheir small feet gingerly. For many minutes, the boy saw only thistrackless ledge, and the sickening blue depths below. 

"I can never stand it!" he muttered. "I can never stand it! If thismule makes just one mis-step, I'm dead. " He felt a little nauseated. "I can never stand it! 'Twould have been better if I'd just let 'emtease me. Hey, Frank!"

The guide looked back. The red spots were gone from Nucky's cheeks now. 

"We got to go back! I can't get away with it!" cried the boy. 

"It's impossible to turn here, Enoch! Look up, man! Look up! Andjust trust old Spoons! Are you cold? It was only eight above zero, when we left the top. But the snow'll disappear as we go down and whenwe reach the river it'll be summer. See that lone pine up on the rimto your right? They say an Indian girl jumped from the top of thatbecause she bore a cross-eyed baby. Look up, Enoch, as we round thiscurve and see that streak of red in the wall. An Indian giant bled todeath on the rim and his blood seeped through the solid rock to thispoint. Watch how the sky gets a deeper blue, the farther down we go. And now, Enoch look out, not down. You may come down Bright Angel athousand times and never see the colors you see to-day. The snowfallhas turned the world into a rainbow, by heck!"

Slowly, very slowly, Nucky turned his head and clinging to the pommel, he stared across the canyon. White of snow; sapphire of sky; black ofsharp cut shadow. Mountains rising from the canyon floor thrustscarlet and yellow heads across his line of vision. Close to his left, as the trail curved, a wall of purest rose color lifted from a bank ofsnow that was as blue as Allen's eyes. Beyond and beyond and everbeyond, the vast orderliness of the multi-colored canyon strata meltedinto delicate white clouds that now revealed, now concealed themountain tops. 

Nucky gazed and gazed, shuddering, yet enthralled. Another sharp twistin the trail and his knee scraped against the wall. He cried outsharply. Frank turned to look but he did not stop the mules. 

"Spoons thinks it's better to amputate your leg, once in a while thanto risk getting too close to the outer edge of the trail in all thissnow. He's an old warrior, is Spoons! He could carry a grand pianodown this trail and never scrape the varnish. Look up, Enoch! We'llsoon reach a broad bench where I'll let you rest. "

"Don't you think I'll ever get off this brute till we reach bottom!"shuddered Nucky. 

The guide laughed and silence fell again. The mules moved as silentlythrough the snow as the mists across the mountain tops. In carefulgradation the trail zigzagged downward. The snow lessened in depthwith each foot of drop. The bitter cold began to give way to theincreasing warmth of the sun. Sensation crept back into Nucky's feetand hands. By a supreme effort for many moments he managed to fix hiseyes firmly on Frank's broad back, and though he could not give up hishold on the pommel, he sat a little straighter. Then, of a sudden, Spoons stopped in his tracks, and as suddenly a little avalanche ofsnow shot down the canyon wall, catching the mule's forelegs. Spoonspromptly threw himself inward, against the wall. Nucky gave a startledlook at the sickening depths below and when Frank turned in his saddle, Nucky had fainted, half clinging to Spoons' neck, half supportedagainst the wet, rocky wall. 

With infinite care, and astonishing speed, Frank slid from his mule andmade his way back to the motionless Spoons. 

"Always said you were more than human, old chap, " said Allen, kickingthe snow away from the mule's fore legs. "Easy now! Don't lose yourpassenger!" The mule regained his balance and stepped carefullyforward out of the drift, while the guide, balanced perilously on theouter edge of the trail, kept a supporting hand on Nucky's shoulders. 

But there was no need of the flask Frank pulled from his pocket. Nuckyopened his eyes almost immediately. Whatever emotion Frank may havefelt, he kept to himself. "I told you Spoons was better than a lifeinsurance policy, Enoch. "

Enoch slowly pushed himself erect. He looked from Frank's quizzicaleyes to Spoons' twitching ears, then at his own shaking hands. 

"I fainted, didn't I?" he asked. 

Allen nodded, and something in the twist of the man's lips maddenedNucky. He burst forth wildly:

"You think I'm a blank blank sissy! Well, maybe I am. But if New Yorkcouldn't scare me, this blank blank hole out here in this blank blankjumping off place can't. I'm going on down this trail and if I falland get killed, it's up to you and Mr. Seaton. "

"Good work, New York!" responded Allen briefly. He edged his waycarefully back to his mule and the cavalcade moved onward. Perhapsfive minutes afterward, as they left the snow line, the guide lookedback. Nucky was huddled in the saddle, his eyes closed tight, but histhin lips were drawn in a line that caused Allen to change his purpose. He did not speak as he had planned, but led the way on for a long halfhour, in silence, his eyes thoughtful. 

But Nucky did not keep his eyes closed long. The pull of horror, ofmystery, of grandeur was too great. And after the avalanche, hisconfidence in Spoons was established. He was little more than a childand under his bravado and his watchfulness there was a child'srecklessness. If he were to fall, at least he must see whither he wasto fall. He forced himself to look from time to time into the depthsbelow. The trail dropped steadily, while higher and higher soaredcanyon wall and mountain peak. It was still early when the trail metthe plateau on which lie the Indian gardens. 

Frank's mule suddenly quickened his stride as did Spoons. But Nucky, although he was weary and saddle sore had no intention of crying ahalt, now that the trail was level. His pulse began to subside andonce more he sat erect in the saddle. When the mules rushed forward tobury their noses in a cress-grown spring, he grinned at Frank. 

"Well, here I am, after all!"

Frank grinned in return. "If I could put through a few more stuntslike this, you'd look almost like a boy, instead of a potato sprout. Get down and limber up. "

Nucky half scrambled, half fell off his mule. "Must be spring downhere, " he cried, staring about at grass and cottonwood. 

"Just about. And it'll be summer when we reach the river. "

"That was some trail, wasn't it, Frank! Do many kids take it?"

"Lots of 'em, but only with guides, and you were the worst case ofscared boy I've ever seen. "

Nucky flushed. "Well, you might give me credit for hanging to it, evenif I was scared. "

"I'll give you a lot of credit for that, old man. But if the averageNew York boy has nerves like yours, I'm glad many of them don't come tothe Canyon, that's all. Your nerves would disgrace a girl. "

"The guys I gamble with never complained of my lack of nerves, " criedNucky, angrily. 

"Gambling! Thunder! What nerve does it take to stack the cardsagainst a dub? But this country out here, let me tell you, it takes aman to stand up to it. "

"And I've been through police raids too, and never squealed and I knowtwo gunmen and they say I'm as hard as steel. "

"They should have seen you with your arms around Spoons' neck, back upthe trail there, " said Allen dryly. "Come! Mount again, Enoch! Iwant to have lunch at the river. "

Enoch was sullen as they started on but his sullenness did not lastlong. As his fear receded, his curiosity increased. He gazed abouthim with absorbed interest, and he began to bombard the guide withquestions in genuine boy fashion. 

"How far is it to the river? Do we have any steeper trails than theones we've been on, already? Did any one ever swim across the river?Was any one ever killed when he minded what the guide told him? Whatguys camp in the Indian gardens? How much does it cost? Did any oneever climb up the side of the Canyon, say like one yonder where itlooked like different colored stair steps going up? Did any one everfind gold in the canyon? How did they know it when they found it? DidFrank ever do any mining? What was placer mining?" And on and on, only the intermittently returning fear of the trail silencing him untilFrank ordered him to dismount in a narrow chasm within sight of theroaring, muddy Colorado. 

"One of the ways Seaton employed to persuade me to take care of you fora week was by telling me you were a very silent kid, " added the guide. 

Nucky grinned sheepishly, and turned to stare wonderingly at the blackwalls that here closed in upon them breathlessly. Their lunch had beenprepared at the hotel. Frank fed the mules, then handed Nucky his boxlunch and proceeded to open his own. 

"Does it make you sore to have me ask you questions?" asked the boy. 

"No! I guess it's more natural for a kid than the sulks you've beenkeeping up with Seaton. "

"I'm not such a kid. I'm going on fifteen and I've earned my own waysince I was twelve. And I earn it with men, too. " Nucky jerked hishead belligerently. 

Frank ate a hard boiled egg before speaking. Then, with one eyebrowraised, he grunted, "What'd you work at?"

"Cards and dice!" this very proudly. 

"You poor nut!" Frank's voice was a mixture of contempt andcompassion. Nucky immediately turned sulky and the meal was finishedin silence. When the last doughnut had been devoured, Frank stretchedhimself in the warm sand left among the rocks by the river at flood. 

"Must be eighty degrees down here, " he yawned. "We'll rest for a halfhour, then we'll make the night camp. It's after two now and it willbe dark in this narrow rift by four. "

Nucky looked about him apprehensively. The Canyon here was little morethan a gorge whose walls rose sheer and menacing toward the narrowpatch of blue sky above. He could not make up his mind to lie down andrelax as Frank had done. All was too new and strange. 

"Are there snakes round here?" he demanded. 

Frank's grunt might have been either yes or no. Nucky glancedimpatiently at the guide's closed eyes, then he began to clamberaimlessly and languidly over the rocks to the river edge. At adistance of perhaps a hundred feet from Frank he stopped, looked at thebleak, blank wall of the river opposite, bit his nails and shudderingturned back. He crouched on a rock, near the guide, smoking onecigarette after another until Frank jumped to his feet. 

"Three o'clock, New York! Time to get ready for the night. "

"I don't want to stay in this hole all night!" protested Nucky, "Icouldn't sleep. "

"You'll like it. You've no idea how comfortable I'm going to make you. Now, your job is to gather drift wood and pile it on that flat toppedrock yonder. Keep piling till I tell you to quit. The nights are coldand I'll keep a little blaze going late, for you. "

"What's the idea?" demanded Nucky. "Why stay down here, like lostdogs, when there's a first class hotel back up there?"

Frank sighed. "Well, the idea is this! A real he man likes camping inthe wilds better'n he likes anything on earth. Seaton thought maybesomewhere in that pindling carcass of yours there was the making of ahe man and that you'd like the experience. I promised him I'd try youout and I'm trying you, hang you for an ungrateful, cowardly cub. "

Nucky turned on his heel and began to pick up drift wood. He was inpoor physical trim but the pile, though it grew slowly, grew steadily. By the time Frank announced the camp ready, Nucky's fuel pile was ofreally imposing dimensions. And dusk was thickening in the gorge. 

Before a great flat faced rock that looked toward the river, was astretch of clean dry sand. Against this rock, the guide had placed arubber air-mattress and a plentiful supply of blankets. A smallfolding table stood before a rough stone fire place. A canvas shelterstretched vertically on two strips of driftwood, shut off the nightwind that was beginning to sweep through the Canyon. The mules weretethered close to the camp. 

"Where'd that mattress come from?" exclaimed Nucky. 

"Partly off old Funny Face's back and part out of a bicycle pump. Didn't want to risk your sickly bones on the ground until you harden upa bit. Pretty good pile of timber for an amateur, New York. " Franklooked up from the fire he was kindling into Nucky's thin, tired face. "Now, son, you sit down on the end of your bed and take it easy. I'man old hand at this game and before we've had our week together I'mbanking on you being glad to help me. But to-day you've had enough. "

"Thanks, " mumbled Nucky, as he eagerly followed the guide's suggestions. 

The early supper tasted delicious to the boy although every muscle inhis body ached. Bacon and flap jacks, coffee and canned peaches hedevoured with more appetite than he ever had brought to ministrone andred wine. A queer and inexplicable sense of comfort and a desire totalk came over him after the meal was finished, the camp in order, andthe fire replenished. 

"This ain't so bad, " he said. "I wish some of the guys that used tocome to Luigi's could see me now. "

"And who was Luigi?" asked Frank, lighting his pipe and stretchinghimself on a blanket before the fire. 

"He was the guy I lived with after my mother died. He ran a gamblingjoint, and we was fixing the place up for women, too, when we all gotpinched. " This very boastfully. 

"Who were your folks, Enoch?"

"Never heard of none of 'em. Luigi's a Dago. He wouldn't have been sobad if he didn't pinch the pennies so. Were you ever in New York, Frank?" This in a patronizing voice. 

"Born there, " replied the guide. 

Nucky gasped with surprise. "How'd you ever happen to come out here?"

"I can't live anywhere else because of chronic asthma. I don't knownow that I'd want to live anywhere else. I used to kick against thepricks, but you get more sense as you grow older--after it's too late. "

"I should think you'd rather be dead, " said Nucky sincerely. "If Ithought I couldn't get back to MacDougal Street I'd want to die. "

"MacDougal Street and the dice, I suppose, eh? Enoch, you're on thewrong track and I know, because that's the track I tried myself. And Igot stung. "

"But--" began Nucky. 

"No but about it. It's the wrong track and you can't get to decency orhappiness or contentment on it. There's two things a man can nevermake anything real out of; cards or women. "

"I didn't want to make anything out of women. I want to get even with'em, blank blank 'em all, " cried Nucky with sudden fury. And he burstinto an obscene tirade against the sex that utterly astonished theguide. He lay with his chin supported on his elbow, staring at theboy, at his thin, strongly marked features, and at the convulsiveworking of his throat as he talked. 

"Here! Dry up!" Frank cried at last. "I'll bet these canyon wallsnever looked down on such a rotten little cur as you are in all theirhistory. You gambling, indecent little gutter snipe, isn't there aclean spot in you?"

"You were a gambler yourself!" shrieked Nucky. 

"Yes, sir, I know cards and I know women, and that's why I know justwhat a mess of carrion your lovely young soul is. Any kid that can seethe glory o' God that you've seen to-day and then sit down and talklike an overflowing sewer isn't fit to live. I didn't know that beforeI came out to this country, but I know it now. You get to bed. Idon't want to hear another word out of you to-night. Pull your bootsoff. That's all. "

Half resentful, half frightened, Nucky obeyed. For a while, withnerves and over-tired muscles twitching, he lay watching the fire. Then he fell asleep. 

It was about midnight when he awoke. He had kicked the blankets offand was cold. The fire was out but the full moon sailed high over thegorge. Frank, rolled in his blankets, his feet to the dead fire, sleptnoisily. Nucky sat up and pulled his blankets over him, but he did notlie down again. He sat staring at the wonder of the Canyon. For along half hour he was motionless save for the occasional moistening ofhis lips and turning of his head as he followed the unbelievablecontour of the distant silvered peaks. Then of a sudden he jumped fromhis bed and, stooping over Frank, shook him violently. 

"Wake up!" he cried. "Wake up! I gotta tell somebody or the Canyon'lldrive me crazy. I'll tell you why I'm bad. It's because my mother wasbad before me. She was Luigi's mistress. She was a bad lot. It wasborn in me. "

Frank sat up, instantly on the alert. "How old were you when shedied?" he demanded. 

"Six, " replied Nucky. 

"Shucks! you don't know anything about it, then! Who told you she wasbad?"

"Luigi! I guess he'd know, wouldn't he?"

"Maybe he did and maybe he didn't. At any rate, I wouldn't take theoath on his deathbed of a fellow who ran a joint like Luigi's andtaught a kid what he's taught you. He told you that, of course, tokeep a hold on you. "

"But she lived with him. I remember that myself. "

"I can't help that. I'll bet you my next year's pay, she wasn't yourmother!"

"Not my mother?" Nucky drew himself up with a long breath. "Certainlyshe was my mother. "

Frank uncovered some embers from the ashes and threw on wood. "I'llbet she wasn't your mother, " he repeated firmly. "Seaton told me thatthat policeman friend of yours said she might and might not be yourmother. Seaton and the policeman both think she wasn't, and I'm with'em. "

"But why? Why?" cried Nucky in an agony of impatience. 

"For the simple reason that a fellow with a face like your's doesn'thave a bad mother. "

In the light of the leaping flames Nucky's face fell. "Aw, what yougiving us! Sob stuff?"

"I'm telling you something that's as true as God. You can't see Him ortalk to Him, but you know He made this Canyon, don't you?"

Nucky nodded quickly. 

"All right, then I'm telling you, every line of your face and head saysyou didn't come of a breed like the woman that lived with Luigi. I'llbet if you show you have any decent promise, Seaton will clear thatpoint up. A good detective could do it. "

"I never thought of such a thing, " muttered Nucky. He continued tostare at Frank, his pale boy's face tense with conflicting hope andfear. The guide picked up his blanket, but Nucky cried out:

"Don't go to sleep for a minute, please! I can't stand it alone inthis moonlight. I never thought such thoughts in my life as I havedown here, about God and who I am and what a human being is. I tellyou, I'm going crazy. "

Frank nodded, and began to fill his pipe. "Sit down close to the fire, son. That's what the Canyon does to anybody that's thin skinned. Iwent through it too. I tell you, Nucky, this life here in the Canyonand the thoughts you think here, are the only real things. New Yorkand all that, is just the outer shell of living. Understand me?"

The boy nodded, his eyes fixed on Frank's with pitiful eagerness. 

"It's clean out here. This country isn't all messed up with men andwomen's badness. Everybody starts even and with a clean slate. Lordknows, I was a worthless bunch when I struck here, fifteen years ago. I'd been expelled from Yale in my senior year for gambling. I'd runthrough the money my father'd left me. I'd gotten into a woman scrapeand I'd alienated every member of my family. Just why I thought a deckof cards was worth all that, I can't tell you. But I did. Then I camedown here to see what the Canyon could do for my asthma and it curedthat, and by the Eternal, it cured my soul, too. Now listen to me, son! You go back and lie down and put yourself to sleep thinking aboutyour real mother. Boys are apt to take their general build from theirmothers, so she was probably a big woman, not pretty, but with anintellectual face full of character. Go on, now, Enoch! You need therest and we've got a full day to-morrow. "

Nucky passed his hand unsteadily over his eyes, but rose without aword, and Frank tucked him into his blankets, then sat quietly waitingby the fire. It was not long before deep breaths that werepathetically near to sobs told the guide that Nucky was asleep. Thenhe rolled himself in his own blankets. The moon passed the Canyon walland utter darkness enwrapped the Canyon and the river which murmuredharshly as it ran. 

Nucky wakened the next morning to the smell of coffee. He sat up andeyed Frank soberly. 

"Hello, New York! This is the Grand Canyon!" Frank grinned as helifted the coffee pot from the fire. 

Nucky grinned in response. Shortly after, when he sat down to hisbreakfast the grin had disappeared, but with it had gone the look ofsullenness that had seemed habitual. 

"Frank, " said Nucky, when breakfast was over, "do you care if I talk toyou some more about--you know--you know what you said last night? Inever talked about it to any one but Luigi, and it makes me feelbetter. "

"Sure, go ahead!" said Frank. 

"My mother--" began Nucky. 

"You mean Luigi's wife, " corrected the guide. 

"Luigi's wife was crazy about me. She loved me just as much as anymother could. Luigi's always been jealous about it. That's why hetreated me so rotten. "

"Bad women can be just as fond of kids as good women, " was Frank'scomment. "What did she look like? Can you remember?"

"I don't know whether I remember it or if it's just what folks told me. She had dark blue eyes and dark auburn hair. Luigi said she wasItalian. "

"If she was, she was North Italian, " mused the guide. "Did any oneever give you any hints about your father?"

A slow, painful red crept over Nucky's pale face. "I never asked butonce. Maybe you can guess what Luigi said. "

"If Luigi were in this part of the country, " growled Allen, "I'd lead alynching party to call on him. " He paused, eying Nucky's boyish faceclosely, then he asked, "Did you love your mother?"

"I suppose I did. But Luigi kept at me so that now I hate her and allother women. Mrs. Seaton seemed kind of nice, but I suppose she islike the rest of 'em. "

"Don't you think it! And did you know that Seaton thinks you werekidnapped?"

Nucky drew a quick breath and the guide went on, "I think so too. Younever belonged to an Italian. I can't tell you just why I feel socertain. But I'd take my oath you are of New England stock. JohnSeaton is a first-class lawyer. As I said to you last night, if youshow some decent spirit, he'd try to clear the matter up for you. "

Nucky's blue eyes were as eager and as wistful as a little child's. His thin, mobile lips quivered. "I never thought of such a thing, Frank!"

"Well, you'd better think of it! Now then, you clean up these dishesfor me while I attend to the stock. I want to be off in a half hour. "

During the remainder of that very strenuous day, Nucky did not referagain to the matter so near his heart. He was quiet, but no longersullen, and he was boyishly interested in the wonders of the Canyon. The sun was setting when they at last reached the rim. For an hourNucky had not spoken. When Allen had turned in the saddle to look atthe boy, Nucky had nodded and smiled, then returned to his absorbedwatching of the lights and shadows in the Canyon. 

They dismounted at the corral. "Now, old man, " said Frank, "I want youto go in and tuck away a big supper, take a hot bath and go to bed. To-morrow we'll ride along the rim just long enough to fight off theworst of the saddle stiffness. "

"All right!" Nucky nodded. "I'm half dead, that's a fact. But I'vegot to tell the clerk and the bell boy a thing or two before I doanything. "

"Go to it!" Frank laughed, as he followed the mules through the gate. 

Nucky did not open his eyes until nine o'clock the next morning. Whenhe had finished breakfast, he found the guide waiting for him in thelobby. 

"Hello, Frank!" he shouted. "Come on! Let's start!"

All that day, prowling through the snow after Allen, Nucky might havebeen any happy boy of fourteen. It was only when Frank again left himat dusk that his face lengthened. 

"Can't I be with you this evening, Frank?" he asked. 

Frank shook his head. "I've got to be with my wife and little girl. "

"But why can't I--" Nucky hesitated as he caught the look in Frank'sface. "You'll never forget what I said about women, I suppose!"

"Why should I forget it?" demanded Allen. 

The sullen note returned to Nucky's voice. "I wouldn't harm 'em!"

"No, I'll bet you wouldn't!" returned Allen succinctly. 

Nucky turned to stare into the Canyon. It seemed to the guide that itwas a full five minutes that the boy gazed into the drifting depthsbefore he turned with a smile that was as ingenuous as it was wistful. 

"Frank, I guess I made an awful dirty fool of myself! I--I can't like'em, but I'll take your word that lots of 'em are good. And nobodywill ever hear me sling mud at 'em again, so help me God--and theCanyon!"

Frank silently held out his hand and Nucky grasped it. Then the guidesaid, "You'd better go to bed again as soon as you've eaten yoursupper. By to-morrow you'll be feeling like a short trip down BrightAngel. Good-night, old top!"

When Nucky came out of the hotel door the next morning, Frank, with acavalcade of mules, was waiting for him. But he was not alone. Seatedon a small mule was a little girl of five or six. 

"Enoch, " said Frank, "this is my daughter, Diana. She is going downthe trail with us. "

Nucky gravely doffed his hat, and the little girl laughed, showing twofront teeth missing and a charming dimple. 

"You've got red hair!" she cried. 

Nucky grunted, and mounted his mule. 

"Diana will ride directly behind me, " said Frank. "You follow her, Enoch. "

"Can that kid go all the way to the river?" demanded Nucky. 

"She's been there a good many times, " replied Frank, looking proudly athis little daughter. 

She was not an especially pretty child, but had Nucky been a judge offeminine charms he would have realized that Diana gave promise of abeautiful womanhood. Her chestnut hair hung in thick curls on hershoulders. Her eyes were large and a clear hazel. Her skin, thoughtanned, was peculiarly fine in texture. But the greatest promise ofher future beauty lay in a sweetness of expression in eye and lip thatwas extraordinary in so young a child. For the rest, she was thin andstraight and wore a boy's corduroy suit. 

Diana feared the trail no more than Nucky feared MacDougal Street. Shewas deeply interested in Nucky, turning and twisting constantly in hersaddle to look at him. 

"Do you like your mule, Enoch? He's a very nice mule. "

"Yes, but don't turn round or you'll fall. "

"How can I talk if I don't turn round? Do you like little girls?"

"I don't know any little girls. Turn round, Diana!"

"But you know me!"

"I won't know you long if you don't sit still in that saddle, Miss. "

"Do you like me, Enoch?"

Nucky groaned. "Frank, if Diana don't quit twisting, I'll fall myself, even if she don't!"

"Don't bother Enoch, daughter!"

"I'm not bothering Enoch, Daddy. I'm making conversation. I like him, even if he has red hair. "

Nucky sighed, and tried to turn the trend of the small girl's ideas. 

"I'll bet you don't know what kind of stone that is yonder where thegiant dripped blood. "

"There isn't any giant's blood!" exclaimed Diana scornfully. "That isjust red quartz!"

"Oh, and what's the layer next to it?" demanded Nucky skeptically. 

"That's black basalt, " answered the little girl. Then, leaning far outof the saddle to point to the depths below, "and that--"

"Frank!" shouted Nucky. "Diana is bound to fall! I just can't standlooking at her. "

This time Frank spoke sternly. "Diana, don't turn to look at Enochagain!" and the little girl obeyed. 

Had Nucky been other than he was, he might have been amused and not alittle charmed by Diana's housewifely ways when they made camp thatafternoon. She helped to kindle the fire and to unpack the provisions. She lent a hand at arranging the beds and set the table, all with eagerdocility and intelligence. But Nucky, after doing the chores Frank sethim, wandered off to a seat that commanded a wide view of the trail, where he remained in silent contemplation of the wonders before himuntil called to supper. 

He was silent during the meal, giving no heed to Diana's small attemptsat conversation, and wandered early to his blankets. In the morning, however, he was all boy again, even attempting once or twice to teaseDiana, in a boy's offhand manner. That small person, however, hadbecome conscious of the fact that Enoch was not interested in her, andshe had withdrawn into herself with a pride and self-control that washighly amusing to her father. Nor did she unbend during the day. 

The return trip was made with but one untoward incident. This occurredafter they had reached the snow line. Much of the snow had thawed andby late afternoon there was ice on the trail. Frank led the way verygingerly and the mules often stopped of their own accord, while theguide roughened the path for them with the axe. In spite of this care, as they rounded one last upper curve, Diana's mule slipped, and it wasonly Diana's lightning quickness in dismounting and the mule's skill inthrowing himself inward that saved them both. 

Diana did not utter a sound, but Nucky gave a hoarse oath and, beforeFrank could accomplish it, Nucky had dismounted, had rushed up thetrail and stood holding Diana in his lank, boyish arms, while the muleregained his foothold. 

"Now look here, Frank, Diana rides either in your lap or mine!" saidNucky shortly, his face twitching. 

Frank raised his eyebrows at the boy's tone. "Set her down, Enoch!We'll all walk to the top. It's only a short distance, and the ice isgetting pretty bad. "

Nucky obediently set the little girl on her feet, and Diana tossed hercurls and followed her father without a word. And Frank, as he led theprocession, wore a puzzled grin on his genial face. 

 * * * * * *

Exactly ten days after Nucky's first trip down Bright Angel trail, JohnSeaton descended somewhat wearily from the Pullman that had landed himonce more at the Canyon's rim. He had telegraphed the time of hisarrival and Nucky ran up to meet him. 

"Hello, Mr. Seaton!" he said. 

Seaton's jaw dropped. "What on earth--?" Then he grinned. 

Nucky was wearing high laced boots, a blue flannel shirt, gauntletgloves and a huge sombrero. 

"Some outfit, Enoch! Been down Bright Angel yet?"

"Three times, " replied the boy, with elaborate carelessness. "Say, Mr. Seaton, can't we stay one more day and you take the trip with us?"

"I think I can arrange it. " Seaton was trying not to look at the boytoo sharply. "I'll be as sore as a dog, for I haven't been in a saddlesince I was out here before. But Bright Angel's worth it. "

"Sore!" Nucky laughed. "Say, Mr. Seaton, I just don't try to sit downany more!"

They had reached the hotel desk now and as Seaton signed the registerthe clerk said, with a wink:

"If you'll leave young Huntingdon behind, we'll take him on as a guide, Mr. Seaton. "

Nucky tossed his head. "Huh! and you might get a worse guide than me, too. Frank says I got the real makings in me and I'll bet Frank knowsmore about guiding than any white in these parts. Navaho Mike told meso. And Navaho Mike says he knows I could make money out here even atfourteen. "

"How, Enoch?" asked Seaton, as they followed the bell boy upstairs. Hewas not looking at Nucky, for fear he would show surprise. "How? atcards?"

"Aw, no! Placer mining! It don't cost much to outfit and there'smillions going to waste in the Colorado! Millions! Frank and Mike sayso. You skip, Billy, "--this to the bell boy, --"I'm Mr. Seaton's bellhop. "

The boy pocketed the tip Nucky handed him, and closed the door afterhimself. Nucky opened Seaton's suitcase. 

"Shall I unpack for you?" he asked. 

"No, thanks, I shan't need anything but my toilet case, for I'm goingto get into an outfit like yours, barring the hat and gloves. "

"Ain't it a pippin!" giving the hat an admiring glance. "Frank gave itto me. He has two, and I rented the things for you, Mr. Seaton. Herethey are, " opening the closet door. "Shall I help you with 'em? Willyou take a ride along the rim now? Shall I get the horses? Now? I'llbe waiting for you at the main entrance with the best pony in thebunch. "

He slammed out of the room. John Seaton scratched his head after hehad shaken it several times, and made himself ready for his ride. Frank rapped on the door before he had finished and came in, smiling. 

"Well, I understand you're to be taken riding!" he said. 

"For the love of heaven, Frank, what have you done to the boy?"

"Me? Nothing! It was the Canyon. Let me tell you about that firsttrip. " And he told rapidly but in detail, the story of Nucky's firsttwo days in the Canyon. 

Seaton listened with an absorbed interest. "Has he spoken of hismother to you since?" he asked, when Frank had finished. 

"No, and he probably never will again. Do you think you can clear thematter up for him?"

"I'll certainly try! Do you like the boy, Frank?"

"Yes, I do. I think he's got the real makings in him. Better leavehim out here with me, Seaton. "

Seaton's face fell. "I--I hoped he'd want to stick by me. But thedecision is up to the boy. If he wants to stay out here, I'll raise noobjections. "

"I'm sure it would be better for him, " said Frank. "Gambling is apersistent disease. He's got years of struggle ahead of him, no matterwhere he goes. "

"I know that, of course. Well, we'll take the trip down the trailto-morrow before we try to make any decisions. I must go along now. He's waiting for me. "

"Better put cotton in one ear, " suggested Allen, with a smile. 

The ride was a long and pleasant one. John Seaton gave secondary heedto the shifting grandeur of the views, for he was engrossed by hisendeavor to replace the sullen, unboyish Nucky he had known with thisvoluble, high strung and entirely adolescent person who bumped alongthe trail regardless of weariness or the hour. 

The trip down Bright Angel the next day was an unqualified success. They took old Funny Face and camped for the night. After supper, Frankmuttered an excuse and wandered off toward the mules, leaving Nucky andSeaton by the fire. 

"Frank thinks you ought to stay out here with him, Enoch, " said Seaton. 

"What did you say to him when he told you that?" asked Nucky eagerly. 

"I said I hoped you'd go back to New York with me, but that thedecision was up to you. "

Nucky said nothing for the moment. Seaton watched the fire glow on theboy's strong face. When Nucky looked up at his friend, his eyes wereembarrassed and a little miserable. 

"Did Frank tell you about our talk down here?"

Seaton nodded. 

"Do you know?" the boy's voice trembled with eagerness. "Was she mymother?"

"Foley thinks not. He says she spoke with an accent he thought wasItalian. When I get back to New York I'll do what I can to clear thematter up for you. Queer, isn't it, that human beings crave to knoweven the worst about their breed. "

"I got to know! I got to know! Mr. Seaton, I ran away from Luigi onetime. I guess I was about eight. I wanted to live in the country. And I got as far as Central Park before they found me. He got thepolice on my trail right off. And when he had me back in Minetta Lane, first he licked me and then he told me how bad my mother was, and hesaid if folks knew it, they'd spit on me and throw me out of school, and that I was lower than any low dog. And he told me if I did exactlywhat he said he'd never let any one know, but if I didn't he'd go overand tell Miss Brannigan. She was a teacher I was awful fond of, andhe'd tell the police, and he'd tell all the kids. And after that hewas always telling me awful low things about my mother--"

Seaton interrupted firmly. "Not your mother. Call her Luigi's wife. "

Nucky moistened his lips. "Luigi's wife. And it used to drive mecrazy. And he told me all women was like that only some less and someworse. Mr. Seaton, is that true?"

"Enoch, it's a contemptible, unspeakable lie! The majority of womenare pure and sweet as no man can hope to be. I'd like to kill Luigi, blast his soul!"

"Maybe you don't know!" persisted Nucky. 

"I know! And what's more, when we get back to New York, I'll prove itto you. The world is full of clean, honest, kindly people, Enoch. I'll prove it to you, old man, if you'll give me the chance. "

"But if she was my mother, how can I help being rotten?"

"Look here, Enoch, a fellow might have the rottenest mother androttenest father on earth, but the Lord will start the fellow out witha clean slate, just the same. Folks aren't born bad. You can'tinherit your parents' badness. You could inherit their weak wills, forinstance, and if you live in Minetta Lane where there's only badnessabout you, your weak will wouldn't let you stand out against thebadness. But you can't inherit evil. If that were possible, humanitywould have degenerated to utter brutality long ago. And, Enoch, youhaven't inherited even a weak will. You're as obstinate as old FunnyFace!"

"Then you think--" faltered the boy. 

"I don't think! I know that you come of fine, upstanding stock! Andit's about time you moved out of Minetta Lane and gave your good blooda chance!"

Enoch's lips quivered, and he turned his head toward the fire. Seatonwaited, patiently. After a while he said, "Enoch, the most importantthing in a man's life is his philosophy. What do you think life isfor? By what principles do you think a man ought to be guided? Do youthink that the underlying purpose of life is dog eat dog, every man forhimself, by whatever method? That's your gambler's philosophy. Or doyou think we're put here to make life better than we found it? Thatwas Abraham Lincoln's philosophy. Before you decide for the GrandCanyon or for New York, you ought to discover your philosophy. Do yousee what I'm driving at?"

"Yes, " said Nucky, "and I don't have to wait to discover it, for I'vedone that this week. I want to go into politics so I can clean outMinetta Lane. "

Seaton looked at the lad keenly. "Good work, Nucky, old man!"

The boy spoke quickly. "Don't call me Nucky! I'm Enoch, from now on!"

"From now on, where?" asked Frank, strolling into the firelight. 

"New York!" replied Enoch. "I'd rather stay here, but I got to goback. "

"Mr. Seaton, have you been using bribery?" Frank was half laughing, half serious. 

"Well, nothing as attractive as guiding on Bright Angel trail!"exclaimed John. 

"And that's the only job I was ever offered I really wanted!" criedEnoch ruefully. 

The men both laughed, and suddenly the boy joined them, laughing longand a little hysterically. "O gee!" he said at last, "I feel as freeand light as air! I got to take a run up and down the sand, " and amoment later they heard his whistle above the endless rushing of theColorado. 

"Ideas are important things, " said Seaton, thoughtfully. "Such a oneas that beast Luigi has planted in Enoch's mind can warp his entirelife. He evidently is of a morbidly sensitive temperament, proud to afault, high strung and introspective. Until some one can prove to himthat his mother was not a harlot, he'll never be entirely normal. Andit's been my observation that one of the most fundamentally weakeningthings for a boy's character is his not being able to respect hisfather or mother. Luigi caught Enoch when his mind was like modelingclay. "

"Do you think you can clear the matter up?" asked Frank. 

"I'll try my utmost. It's going to be hard, for Foley's no fool, andhe's done a lot of work on it with no results. If I don't settle thematter, Enoch is going to be hag-ridden by Minetta Lane all his life. I know of a chap who was lame for twenty years because when he wasabout ten, he had a series of extraordinarily vivid dreams portraying acurious accident that he was not able to distinguish from actualhappenings. It was not until he was a man and had accidentally come incontact with a psychologist who analyzed the thing down to facts forhim that he was cured. I could cite you a hundred cases like thiswhere the crippling was mental as well as physical. And nothing but anabsolute and tangible proof of the falsity of the idea will make acure. Some day there are going to be doctors who will handle nothingbut ideas. "

"The boy's worth saving!" Frank lighted his pipe thoughtfully. "There's a power of will there for good or evil that can't be ignored. And I have faith in any one the Canyon gets a real grip on. It surehas got this boy. I never saw a more marked case. "

The lawyer nodded and both men sat smoking, their eyes on the distantrim. 

BOOK II

THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR

CHAPTER III

TWENTY-TWO YEARS LATER

"It sometimes seemed to me that the Colorado said as it rushed throughthe Canyon, 'Nothing matters! Nothing! Nothing!'"--_Enoch's Diary_. 

One burning morning in July, Jonas, in a cool gray seersucker suit, hisblack face dripping with perspiration, was struggling with the electricfan in the private office of the Secretary of the Interior. Thewindows were wide open and the hideous uproar of street traffic filledthe room. It was a huge, high-ceilinged apartment, with portraits offormer Secretaries on the walls. The Secretary's desk, a large, polished conference table, and various leather chairs, with a handsomeOriental rug, completed the furnishings. 

As Jonas struggled vainly with the fan, a door from the outer officeopened and a young man appeared with the day's mail. Charley Abbottwas nearing thirty but he looked like a college boy. He was big andbroad and blonde, with freckles disporting themselves frankly on a nosethat was still upturned. His eyes were set well apart and his lipswere frank. He placed a great pile of opened letters on Enoch's desk. 

"Better peg along, Jonas, " he said. "The Secretary's due in a minute!"

Jonas gathered the fan to his breast and scuttled out the side door asEnoch Huntingdon came in at the Secretary's private entrance. 

The years had done much for Enoch. He stood six feet one in his socks. He was not heavy but still had something of the rangy look of hisboyhood. He was big boned and broad chested. College athletics haddeveloped his lungs and flattened his shoulder blades. His hair wascopper-colored, vaguely touched with gray at the temples and very thickand unruly. His features were still rough hewn but time had hardenedtheir immaturity to a rugged incisiveness. His cheek bones were highand his cheeks were slightly hollowed. His eyes were a burning, brilliant blue, deep set under overhanging brows. His mouth was large, thin lipped and exceedingly sensitive; the mouth of the speaker. Hewore a white linen suit. 

"Good morning, Mr. Abbott, " he said, dropping his panama hat on acorner of the conference table. 

"Good morning, Mr. Secretary! I hope you are rested after yesterday. Seems to me that was as hard a day as we ever had. "

Enoch dropped into his chair. "Was it really harder, Abbott, or was itthis frightful weather?"

"Well, we didn't have more appointments than usual, but some of themwere unusually trying. That woman who wanted to be reappointed to thePension Office, for example. "

Enoch nodded. "I'd rather see Satan come into this office than awoman. Try to head them off, Abbott, whenever you can. "

"I always do, sir! Will you run through this correspondence, Mr. Huntingdon, before I call in the Idaho contingent?"

Enoch began rapidly to read letters and to dictate terse replies. Theywere not more than a third of the way down the pile when a buzzersounded. Enoch looked up inquiringly. 

"I told Jonas to buzz for me at 9:20, " explained young Abbott. "Idon't dare keep the people in the waiting-room watching the clocklonger than that. We'll fit this in at odd times, as usual. Remember, Mr. Secretary, you can't give these people more than fifteen minutes. Shall I come in and speak to you, at that time?"

"Perhaps you'd better, " replied Enoch. 

Abbott opened the door into the outer room. "Gentlemen, the Secretarywill receive you, " he said. "Mr. Secretary, allow me to present Mr. Reeves, Mr. Carleton, Mr. Schmidt, Mr. Dunkel, Mr. Street, Mr. Swiftwater and Mr. Manges. "

The men filing into the room bowed and mumbled. Enoch looked afterAbbott's retreating back admiringly. "I've been hearing Abbott do thatsort of thing for two years, but it never fails to rouse myadmiration, " he said. 

"A wonderful memory!" commented one of the visitors. 

"Abbott is going into politics later, " Enoch went on. "A memory suchas his will carry him far. "

"Not as far as a silver tongue, " suggested another man, with a twinklein his eye. 

"That remains to be seen, " smiled Enoch. He had a very pleasant smile, showing even, white teeth. "Well, gentlemen, what can I do for you?"

"Mr. Secretary, " said the spokesman of the delegation, "as you know, werepresent the business men of the State of Idaho. There is a verybitter controversy going on in our State over your recent ruling on thematter of Water Power Control. We believe your ruling works aninjustice on the business men of our state and as nothing came ofcorrespondence, we thought we'd come along East and have a talk withyou. "

"I'm glad you did, " said Enoch. "You see, my work is of such a naturethat unless you people on the firing line keep in touch with me, I maygo astray on the practical, human side. You are all States' Rightsmen, of course. "

The delegation nodded. 

"My ideas on Water Power are simple enough, " said Enoch. "The time isapproaching when oil, gas, and coal will not supply the power needed inAmerica. We shall have to turn more and more to electricity producedby water power. There is enough water in the streams of this countryto turn every wheel in every district. But it must be harnessed, andafter it is harnessed it must be sold to the people at a just price. What I want to do is to produce all the available water power latent inour waterways. Then I want the poorest people in America to haveaccess to it. There is enough power at a price possible even to thepoorest. "

"We all agree with you so far, Mr. Secretary, " said the chair-man ofthe delegation. 

"I thought you would!" Enoch's beautiful voice had a curious dignityfor all its geniality. "Now my policy aims to embody the idea that themen who develop the water power of America shall not develop forthemselves and their associates a water power monopoly. "

"We fear that as much as you do, Mr. Secretary, " said one of thedelegates. "But let the state control that. We fear too muchbureaucracy and centralization of authority here in Washington. Anddon't forget, if it came to a scratch, we could say to Uncle Sam, youown the stream, but you shan't use a street or a town facility reachingit. "

Enoch raised his eyebrows. "Uncle Sam doesn't want more power. If thestates had not been so careless and so corrupt in regard to theirpublic lands and their waters, there would be no need now for theDepartment of the Interior to assert its authority. Show me, Mr. Delegate, that there are neither politics nor monopolistic dreams inIdaho's attitude toward her Water Power problem and I'd begin tode-centralize our policy toward your state. "

Abbott opened the door and tip-toed to Enoch's desk. "I'm sorry, Mr. Secretary, " he said softly, "but Senator Far has been waiting fiveminutes. "

"I'm sorry too, " replied Enoch. "Gentlemen, we have used up the timeallotted. Will you make arrangements with Mr. Abbott for a longerconference, to-morrow? Come back with the proofs!" He smiled, and thegentlemen from Idaho smiled in return, but a little ruefully. The lastone had not turned his back when Enoch began an attack on the pile ofletters. 

A ruddy-faced, much wrinkled man appeared in the door. 

"Senator Far, Mr. Secretary, " announced Abbott. Enoch rose and heldout his hand. "Senator, you look warm. Oh, Abbott, tell Jonas to turnon the fan. What can I do for Arkansas, Senator?"

Jonas came in hurriedly. "Mr. Secretary, that fan's laid down on me. How come it to do it, I haven't found out yet. I tried to borrow onefrom a friend of mine, but--"

"Never mind, Jonas, " said Enoch. "I don't expect you to be anelectrician. Perhaps the power's still off in the building. I noticedthere were no lights when I came in. "

Jonas' eyes grew as big as saucers. "It sure takes brains to be aSecretary, " he muttered, as he turned to hurry from the room. 

The two men grinned at each other. "What I wanted was an appointmentfor a friend of mine, " said Senator Far. "He's done a lot for theparty and I want to get him into the Reclamation Service. "

"He's an engineer?" asked Enoch, lighting the cigar the Senator gavehim. 

"I don't think so. He's been playing politics ever since I knew him. He has a good following in the state. "

"Why the Reclamation Service then! By the eternal, Senator, can't youfellows leave one department clear of the spoils system? I'm here totell you, I'm proud of the Service. It's made up of men with brains. They get their jobs on pure ability. And you fellows--"

"Oh, all right, Mr. Huntingdon!" interrupted Senator Far, rising, "I'malways glad to know where you stand! Good morning!"

He hurried from the room and Enoch sighed, looked out the window, thenread a half dozen letters before Abbott announced the next caller, aman who wanted his pension increased and who had managed to reach theSecretary through a letter from the president of a great college. Thenfollowed at five and ten minute intervals a man from Kansas who hadideas on the allotment of Indian lands; a Senator who wanted light on abill the Secretary wished introduced; a man from Alaska who objected tothe government's attitude on Alaskan coal mines; the chairman of aState Central Committee who wanted three appointments, and a well knownengineer who had a grievance against the Patent Office. Followedthese, an hour's conference with the Attorney General regarding the NewPension Bill, and at noon a conference with the head of the ReclamationService on the matter of a new dam. 

When this conference was over, Enoch once more attacked thecorrespondence pile which, during the morning, having been constantlyfed by the indefatigable Abbott, was now of overwhelming proportions. It was nearly two o'clock when Jonas, having popped his head in and outof the door a half dozen times, evidently waiting for the Boss to lookup, entered the room with a tray. 

"Luncheon is served, sir, " he said. 

"Put it right here, Jonas. " Enoch did not raise his head. 

Jonas set the tray firmly on the conference table. "No, sir, Mr. Secretary, I ain't goin' to sit it there. You're going to git up andcome over here and keep your mind on your food. How come you think yougot iron insides?"

Enoch sighed. "All right, Jonas, I'm coming. " He rose, stretched andmoved over to the table. The man ceremoniously pulled out a chair forhim, then lifted the towel from the tray and hung it over his arm. Onthe tray were a bottle of milk, a banana and some shredded wheatbiscuit, with two cigars. 

"Any time you want me to change your lunch, Mr. Secretary, you say so, "said Jonas. 

Enoch laughed. "Jonas, old man, how long have I been eating thisfodder for lunch?"

"Ever since you was Secretary to the Mayor, boss!"

"And how many times do you suppose you've told me you were willing tochange it, Jonas?"

"Every time, boss. How come you think I like to see a smart man likeyou living on baby food?"

Enoch grunted. "And how many times have I told you the only way for meto live through the banquets I have to attend is to keep to this sortof thing when I am alone?"

Jonas did not reply. Enoch's simple lunches never ceased to troublehim. 

"Where do I go to-night, Jonas?"

"The British Ambassador's, Mr. Secretary. "

Enoch finished his lunch rapidly and had just lighted the first of thecigars when Abbott appeared. 

"There's a woman out here from the Sunday Times, Mr. Secretary. Shewants to interview you on your ideas on marriage. She has a letterfrom Senator Brownlee or I wouldn't have disturbed you. She looks asif she could make trouble, if she wanted to. "

"Tell her I'm sorry, but that I have no ideas about marriage and thatJonas is as near a wife as I care to get. He henpecks me enough, don'tyou, Jonas, old man! Abbott, just remember, once for all, I won't seethe women. "

"Very well, " replied Abbott. "Will you dictate a few moments on yourreport to the President on the Pension controversy?"

"Yes!" Enoch pulled a handful of notes out of his pocket and began todictate clearly and rapidly. For ten minutes his voice rose steadilyabove the raucous uproar that floated in at the window. Then thetelephone rang. Abbott answered it. 

"The White House, Mr. Secretary, " he said. Enoch picked up thereceiver. After a few moments' conversation he rose, his face eager. 

"Abbott, the Mexican trouble appears to be coming to a crisis and thePresident has called a cabinet meeting. I doubt if I can get back hereuntil after five. Will you express my regrets to the Argentinedelegation and make a new appointment? Is there any one in thewaiting-room?"

"Six people. I can get rid of them all except Alton of the Bureau ofMines. I think you must see him. "

"Send him in, " said Enoch. "I'll ask him to ride as far as the WhiteHouse with me. And I'll be back to finish the letters, Abbott. I darenot let them accumulate a single day. "

Abbott nodded and hurried out. A tall, bronzed man, wiping the sweatfrom his bald head, came in just as Jonas announced, "The carriage, Mr. Secretary. "

"Come along, Alton, " said Enoch. "We'll talk your model coal mine aswe go. "

It was six o'clock when Enoch appeared again in his office. His linensuit was wrinkled and sweat stained between the shoulders. He tossedhis hat on a chair. 

"Abbott, will you telephone Seńor Juan Cadiz and ask him to meet me atmy house at ten thirty to-night? He is at the Willard. Tell Jonas tointerrupt us promptly at seven, I mustn't be late to dinner. Now, forthis mess. "

Once more he began the attack on the day's mail, which Abbott hadalready reduced to its lowest dimensions. Enoch worked with a power ofconcentration and a quick decisiveness that were ably seconded byCharley Abbott. It was a quarter before seven when Enoch picked up thelast letter. He read it through rapidly, then laid it down slowly, andstared out of the window for a long moment. Abbott gave his chief'sface a quick glance, then softly shoved under his hand the pile ofletters that were waiting signature. The letter that Enoch had justread was dated at the Grand Canyon. 

"Dear Mr. Secretary, " it ran, "it is twenty-two years since I took ared-headed New York boy down Bright Angel trail. You and I have neverheard from each other since, but, naturally I have followed your careerwith interest. And now I'm going to ask a favor of you. My daughterDiana wants a job in the Indian Bureau and she's coming to Washingtonto see you. Don't give her a job! She doesn't have to work. I cantake care of her. I'm an old man and selfish and I don't like to bedeprived of my daughter for my few remaining years. 

"With heart-felt congratulations on your great career, "I am yours most respectfully, "FRANK ALLEN. "

Enoch drew a deep breath and took up his fountain pen. He signed witha rapid, illegible scrawl that toward the end of the pile became a merehieroglyphic. Jonas put his black face in at the door just as hefinished the last. 

"Coming, Jonas!" said the Secretary. "By the way, Abbott, I'll answerthat letter from Frank Allen the first thing in the morning. Goodnight, old man! Rather a lighter day than yesterday, eh?"

"Yes, indeed, Mr. Secretary!" agreed Abbott, as Enoch picked up his hatand went hastily out the door Jonas held open for him. 

It was seven twenty when Enoch reached home. His house was small, witha lawn about the size of a saucer in front, and a back yard entirelymonopolized by a tiny magnolia tree. Enoch rented the house furnishedand it was full of the home atmosphere created by the former diplomat'swife from whom he leased it. Jonas was his steward and his valet. While other servants came and went, Jonas was there forever. Hefollowed Enoch upstairs and turned on the bath water, then hurried tolay out evening clothes. During the entire process of dressing the twomen did not exchange a word but Jonas heaved a sigh of satisfactionwhen at ten minutes before eight he opened the hall door. Enochsmiled, patted him on the shoulders and ran down the stairs. 

A dinner at the British Ambassador's was always exceedingly formal asto food and service, exceedingly informal as to conversation. Enochtook in a woman novelist, a woman a little past middle age who was verysmall and very famous. 

"Well, " she said, as she pulled off her gloves, "I've been wanting tomeet you for a long time. "

"I'm not difficult to meet, " returned Enoch, with a smile. 

"As to that I've had no personal experience but three; several friendsof mine have been trampled upon by your secretary. They all werewomen, of course. "

"Why, of course?" demanded Enoch. 

"One of the qualities that is said to make you so attractive to my sexis that you are a woman hater. Now just why do you hate us?"

"I don't hate women. " Enoch spoke with simple sincerity. "I'm afraidof them. "

"Why?"

"I don't think I really know. Do you like men?"

"Yes, I do, " replied Mrs. Rotherick promptly. 

"Why?" asked Enoch. 

"They aren't such cats as women, " she chuckled. "Perhaps cat fear isyour trouble! What are you going to do about Mexico, Mr. Huntingdon?"

Enoch smiled. "I told the President at great length, this afternoon, what I thought we ought to do. He gave no evidence, however, that hewas going to take my advice, or any one else's for that matter. "

"Of course, I'm not trying to pick your confidence. Mr. Secretary!"Mrs. Rotherick spoke quickly. "You know, I've lived for years inGermany. I say to you, beware of Germany in Mexico, Mr. Huntingdon. "

"What kind of people did you know in Germany?" asked Enoch. 

"Many kinds! But my most intimate friend was an American woman who wasmarried to a German General, high in the confidence of the Kaiser. Iknow the Kaiserin well. I know that certain German diplomats aredeeply versed in Mexican lore--its geography, its geology, its people. I know that Germany must have more land or burst. Mr. Secretary, remember what I say, Germany is deeply interested in Mexico and she isthe cleverest nation in the world to-day. "

"What nation is that, Mrs. Rotherick?" asked the Ambassador. 

"Germany!" replied the little woman. 

"Possibly you look at Germany through the eyes of a fiction writer, "suggested the Englishman. 

"It's impossible to fictionize Germany, " laughed Mrs. Rotherick. "Onecould much more easily write a rhapsody on--"

"On the Secretary of the Interior, " interrupted the Ambassador. 

"Or on the Bank of England, " laughed Mrs. Rotherick. "Very well, gentlemen! I hope you never will have cause to remember my warning!"

It was just as the ladies were leaving the table that Enoch said toMrs. Rotherick: "Will you be so kind as to write me a letter telling meof your suspicions of Germany in Mexico? I shall treat it asconfidential. "

Mrs. Rotherick nodded, and he did not see her again that evening. Justbefore Enoch departed for his engagement with Seńor Cadiz, theAmbassador buttonholed him. 

"Look here, Huntingdon, " he said, "that little Mrs. Rotherick knows athing or two. She's better informed on international relations thanmany chaps in the diplomatic service. If I were you I'd pump her. "

"Thanks, Mr. Johns-Eaton, " replied Enoch. "Look here, just how much ofa row are you fellows going to make about those mines in the Alaskanborder country? Why shouldn't Canada take that trouble on?"

"Just how much trouble are you going to make about the sealmisunderstanding?" demanded Johns-Eaton. 

"Well, " replied Enoch, with a wide smile, "I have a new gelding I'dlike to try out, to-morrow morning. If you'll join me at seven-thirtyon that rack of bones you call a bay mare, I'll tell you all I know. "

"You will, like thunder!" laughed Johns-Eaton. "But I'll be there andjolly well give you the opportunity!"

Seńor Juan Cadiz was prompt and so was Enoch. For a long hour the twosat in the breathless heat of the July night while the Mexican answeredEnoch's terse questions with a flow of dramatic speech, accentuated bywild gestures. Shortly after eleven-thirty Jonas appeared in thedoorway with two tinkling glasses. 

"You are sure as to your facts about this bandit leader?" asked Enochin a low voice. 

"Of an absolute sureness. If I--"

The Secretary interrupted. "Could you go to Mexico for me, in entiresecrecy?"

"Yes! Yes! Yes! If you could but see him and he you! If he couldbut know an American of your type, your fairness, your kindness, yourjustice! We have been taught to despise and hate Americans, you mustknow. "

"Who has taught you?"

"Sometimes, I think partly by the Germans who have come among thepeople. But why should Germany do so?"

"Why indeed?" returned Enoch, and the two men stared at each other, deep intelligence in the gaze of each. Jonas tinkled the glasses againand Seńor Cadiz jumped to his feet. 

"I know, Seńor Jonas!" he laughed. "That is the good night cap, eh!"

Jonas grinned acquiescence, and five minutes later he turned off thelights in the library. Enoch climbed the stairs, somewhat wearily. His room was stifling despite the wide-flung windows and the electricfan. He slowly and thoughtfully got himself into his pajamas, lighteda cigarette, and walked over to the table that stood in the bay window. He unlocked the table drawer and took out a large blank book of looseleafed variety, opened it, and seating himself he picked up his pen andbegan to write. 

"July 17. --Rather an easier day than usual, Lucy, which was fortunate, for the heat has been almost unbearable and at the end of the officeday came that which stirred old memories almost intolerably. A letterfrom Frank Allen! You remember him, Lucy? I told you about him, whenI first began my diary. Well, he has written that his daughter, Diana, is coming to Washington to ask me for a job which he does not wish meto give her. I cannot see her! Only you know the pain that such ameeting could give me! It would be like going to Bright Angel again. And while the thought of going back to the Grand Canyon has intriguedme for twenty-two years, I must go in my own way and in my own time. And I am not ready yet. I had forgotten, by the way, that Frank had adaughter. There was, now that I think of it, a little thing of five orsix who went down Bright Angel with us. I have only the vaguestrecollection of what she looked like. 

"Minetta Lane and the Grand Canyon! What a hideous, what a grotesquecoupling of names! I have never seen the one of them since I wasfourteen and the other but once, yet these two have absolutely made mylife. Don't scold me, Lucy! I know you have begged me never tomention Minetta Lane again. But to you, I must. Do you know what Ithought to-night after I left the British Ambassador? I thought thatI'd like to be in Luigi's second floor again, with a deck of cards andthe old gang. The old gang! They've all except Luigi been inSing-Sing or dead, these many years. Yet the desire was so strong thatonly the thought of you and your dear, faithful eyes kept me fromcharging like a wild elephant into a Pullman office and getting a berthto New York. "

Enoch dropped his pen and stared long at the only picture in his room, a beautiful Moran painting of Bright Angel trail. Finally, he rose andturned off the light. When Jonas listened at the door at half aftermidnight, the sound of Enoch's steady, regular breathing sent thatfaithful soul complacently to bed. 

CHAPTER IV

DIANA ALLEN

"If only someone had taught me ethics as Christ taught them, while Iwas still a little boy, I would be a finer citizen, now. "--_Enoch'sDiary_. 

It rained the next day and the Secretary of the Interior and theBritish Ambassador did not attempt the proposed ride. Enoch did hisusual half hour's work with the punching bag and reached his officepunctual to the minute, with his wonted air of lack of haste andgeneral physical fitness. Before he even glanced at his morning'smail, he dictated a letter to Frank Allen. 

"Dear Frank: Your letter roused a host of memories. Some day I shallcome to Bright Angel again and you and I will camp once more in thebottom of the Canyon. Whatever success I have had in after life is dueto you and John Seaton. I wonder if you know that he has been dead fortwenty years and that his devoted wife survived him only by a year?

"I will do my best to carry out your request in regard to your daughter. 

"Cordially and gratefully yours, "ENOCH HUNTINGDON. "

After he had finished dictating this, the Secretary stared out of thewindow thoughtfully. Then he said, "Let me have that at once, Mr. Abbott. Who is waiting this morning?"

"Mr. Reeves of Idaho. I made an appointment yesterday for thedelegation to meet you at nine-fifteen. Reeves has turned up alone. He says the committee decided it would get further if you saw himalone. "

"Reeves was the short, stout man with small eyes set close together!"

"Yes, Mr. Secretary. "

Enoch grunted. "Any one else there you want to tell me about beforethe procession begins?"

"Do you recall the man Armstrong who was here six months ago with ideason the functions of the Bureau of Education? I didn't let him see you, but I sent you a memorandum of the matter. He is back to-day and I'vepromised him ten minutes. I think he's the kind of a man you want inthe Bureau. He doesn't want a job, by the way. "

"I'll see him, " said Enoch. "It you can, let us have fifteen minutes. "

Abbott sighed. "It's impossible, Mr. Secretary. I'll bring Reeves innow. "

The delegate from Idaho shook hands effusively. 

"The rain is a great relief, Mr. Secretary. "

"Yes, it is. Washington is difficult to endure, in the summer, isn'tit? Well, did you bring in the proofs, Mr. Reeves?" Enoch seatedhimself and his caller sank into the neighboring chair. 

"Mr. Secretary, " he began, with a smile, "has it ever occurred to youthat we have been stupid in the number and kind of Bureaus we haveaccumulated in Department of the Interior?"

"Yes, " replied Enoch. "I suppose you are thinking of Patents, Pensions, Parks, Geological Survey, Land, Indians and Education. Doyou know that beside these we have, American Antiquities, theSuperintendent of Capitol Buildings, the Government Hospital for theInsane, Freedman's Hospital, Howard University, and the ColumbiaInstitution for the Deaf and Dumb?"

Reeves laughed. 

"No, I didn't. But it only goes to prove what I say. It's impossiblefor the Secretary of the Interior to find time to understand localconditions. Why not let the states manage the water and land problems?"

"It would be illegal, " replied Enoch briefly. 

"Oh, illegal! You're too good a lawyer, Mr. Secretary, to let thatthought hamper your acts!"

"On the contrary, " returned Enoch, succinctly, "I was a poor lawyer. In some ways of course it is impossible for me to understand localconditions in Idaho. I am told, though, that your present stateadministration is corrupt as Tammany understands corruption. "

Reeves cleared his throat and would have spoken, but Enoch pushed on. 

"I have found, as the head of this complex Department that I must limitmyself as much as possible to formulating simple, basic policies andputting these policies into the hands of men who will carry them out. In general, my most important work is to administer the public domain. That is, I must discover how best the natural resources that theFederal Government still controls can be put into public service andpublic service that is the highest and best. I believe that the water, the land, the mines, ought to be given to the use of the averagecitizen. I do not think that a corrupt politician nor a favor-seekingbusiness man has the best good of the plain citizen at heart. "

"That is very interesting from the dreamer's point of view, " saidReeves. "But a government to be successful must be practical. Who'sgoing to develop the water power in our Idaho streams?"

"The people of Idaho, if they show a desire to make a fair interest ontheir investment. The government of the United States, if the peopleof Idaho fail to show the proper spirit. "

"And who is to be the judge in the matter?" demanded Reeves. 

"The Secretary of the Interior will be the judge. And he is not onewhit interested in you and your friends growing wealthy. He isinterested in Bill Jones getting electricity up on that lonely ranch ofhis. Never forget, Mr. Reeves, that the ultimate foundations of thisnation rest on the wise distribution of its natural resources. Theaverage citizen, Mr. Reeves, must have reason to view the future withhope. If he does not, the nation cannot endure. "

"And why do you consider yourself competent to deal with theseproblems?" asked the caller, with a half-concealed sneer. 

"Any man with education and horse sense can handle them, provided thathis philosophy is sound. You have come to Washington with the idea, Mr. Reeves, of getting at me, of tempting me with some sort of share inthe wealth you see in your streams. Other men have come to the Capitolwith the same purpose. I have my temptations, Mr. Reeves, but they donot lie in the desire to graft. I think there are jobs moreinteresting in life than the job of getting rich. All the grafting inthe world couldn't touch in interest the job of directing America'sinland destiny. And I have a foolish notion that a man owes hiscountry public service, that he owes it for no reward beyond a livingand for no other reason than that he is a man with a brain. "

Reeves, whose face had grown redder and redder, half rose from hischair. 

"One moment, " said Enoch. "Have you a sound, fair, policy for Idahowater power, that will help Bill Jones in the same proportion that ithelps you?"

"I had no policy. I came down here to get yours. I've got it allright, and I'm going back and tell my folks they'd better give up anyidea of water power during the present administration. "

"I wouldn't tell them that, " said Enoch, "because it wouldn't be true. I am considering a most interesting proposition from Idaho farmers. Ithought perhaps you had something better. "

Reeves jumped to his feet. "I'll not be made a monkey of any longer!"he shouted. "But I'll get you for this yet, " and he rushed from theoffice. 

Enoch shrugged his shoulders as he turned to the inevitable pile ofletters. Abbott came in with a broad smile. 

"Mr. Secretary, Miss Diana Allen is in the outer office. "

Enoch scowled. "Have I got to see her?"

"Well, she's mighty easy to look at, Mr. Secretary! And more thanthat, she announces that if you're engaged, she'll wait, a day, a week, or a month. "

Enoch groaned. "Show her in, Abbott, and be ready to show her out infive minutes. "

Abbott showed her in. She entered the room slowly, a tall woman in abrown silk suit. Everything about her it seemed to Enoch at first wasbrown, except her eyes. Even her skin was a rich, even cream tint. But her eyes were hazel, the largest, frankest, most intelligent eyesEnoch ever had seen in a woman's head. And with the eyes went anexpression of extraordinary sweetness, a sweetness to which everyfeature contributed, the rather short, straight nose, the full, sensitive lips, with deep, upturned corners, the round chin. 

True beauty in a woman is something far deeper, far less tangible thanmere perfection of feature. One grows unutterably weary of the Venusde Milo type of face, with its expressionless perfection. And yet, socareless is nature that not twice in a lifetime does one see a woman'sface in which are combined fineness of intelligence and of character, and beauty of feature. But Diana was the thrice fortunate possessor ofthis combination. She was so lovely that one's heart ached while itexulted in looking at her. For it seemed a tragic thing that beauty sodeep and so rare should embody itself in a form so ephemeral as thehuman body. 

She was very slender. She was very erect. Her small head with themasses of light brown hair shining beneath the simple hat, was heldproudly. Yet there was a matchless simplicity and lack ofself-consciousness about Diana that impressed even the carelessobserver: if there was a careless observer of Diana!

Enoch stood beside his desk in his usual dignified calm. His keen eyesswept Diana from head to foot. 

"You are kind to see me so quickly, Mr. Secretary, " said Diana, holdingout her hand. 

Enoch smiled, but only slightly. It seemed to Diana that she never hadseen so young a man with so stern a face. 

"You must have arrived on the same train with your father's note, MissAllen. Is this your first trip east?"

"Yes, Mr. Huntingdon, " replied Diana, sinking into the chair oppositeEnoch's. "If he had had his way, bless his heart, I wouldn't have hadeven a first trip. Isn't it strange that he should have such anantipathy to New York and Washington!"

The Secretary looked at the girl thoughtfully. "As I recall yourfather, he usually had a good reason for whatever he felt or did. You're planning to stay in Washington, are you, Miss Allen?"

"If I can get work in the Indian Bureau!" replied Diana. 

"Why the Indian Bureau?" asked Enoch. 

"I'm a photographer of Indians, " answered Diana simply. "I've beenengaged for years in trying to make a lasting pictorial record of theIndians and their ways. I've reached the limit of what I can dowithout access to records and books and I can't afford a year of studyin Washington unless I work. That's why I want work in the IndianBureau. Killing two birds with one stone, Mr. Secretary. "

Enoch did not shift his thoughtful gaze from the sweet face oppositehis for a long moment after she had ceased to speak. Then he pressedthe desk button and Abbott appeared. He glanced at his chief, then hiseyes fastened themselves on Diana's profile. 

"Mr. Abbott, will you ask the Commissioner of Indian Affairs to comein? I believe he is with the Assistant Secretary this morning. "

Charley nodded and disappeared. 

"I brought a little portfolio of some of my prints, " Diana spokehesitatingly. "I left them in the other room. Mr. Abbott thought youmight like to see them, but perhaps--you seem so very busy and I thinkthere must be at least a thousand people waiting to see you!"

"There always are, " said Enoch, without a smile as he pressed anotherbutton. Jonas' black head appeared. "Bring in the portfolio MissAllen left in the other room, please, Jonas!"

"Yes, Mr. Secretary, " replied Jonas, withdrawing his eyes slowly fromDiana's eager face. 

The portfolio and the Indian Commissioner arrived together. After theintroduction had been made, Enoch said:

"Watkins, do you know anything about Indians?"

"Very little, Mr. Secretary, " with a smile. 

"Would you be interested in looking at some photographs of Indian life?"

"Made by this young lady?" asked Watkins, looking with unconcealedinterest at Diana. 

"Yes, " said Enoch. 

"And shown and explained by her?" asked the Indian Commissioner, atwinkle in his brown eyes. 

Diana laughed, and so did Abbott. Enoch's even white teeth flashed fora moment. 

"I wish I had time to join you, " he said. "What I want to suggest, Mr. Watkins, is that you see if Miss Allen will qualify to take care ofsome of the research work you received an appropriation for the otherday. You were speaking to Abbott, I think, of the difficulty offinding people with authentic knowledge of the Indians. "

The Indian Commissioner nodded and tucked Diana's portfolio under hisarm. "Come along, Miss Allen!"

Diana rose. "If we don't leave now, I have an idea we will be asked todo so, " she said, the corners of her mouth deepening suddenly. "Whathappens if one doesn't leave when requested?"

"One is cast in a dungeon, deep under the Capitol building, " repliedEnoch, holding out his hand. 

Diana laughed. "Thank you for seeing me and helping me, Mr. Huntingdon, " she said, and a moment later Jonas closed the door behindher and the Commissioner. 

"How come that young lady to stay so long, Mr. Abbott?" Jonas askedCharley in a low voice, as he helped the young man bring in a huge pileof Reclamation reports. 

"Did you get a good look at her, Jonas?" demanded Abbott in the sametone. 

"Yes, " replied Jonas. 

"Then why ask foolish questions?"

"The boss don't like 'em, no matter what they look like. "

"Every man has his breaking point, Jonas, " smiled Charley. 

Enoch turned from the window where he had been standing for a moment inunprecedented idleness. 

"I think you'd better let me have ten or fifteen minutes on that reportto the President, Abbott. "

"I will, Mr. Secretary. By the way, here is the data you asked me toget for your speech at the Willard to-night. "

Enoch nodded, pocketed the notes and began to dictate. The day went onas usual, but it seemed to Jonas, when he helped the Secretary to dressfor dinner that night that he was unusually weary. 

"How come you to be so tired to-night, boss?" he asked finally. 

"I don't know, old man! Jonas, how long since I've had a vacation?"

"Seven years, boss. "

"Sometimes I think I need one, Jonas. "

"Need one! Boss, they work you to death! They all say so. Your ownwork's enough to kill three men. And now they do say the President iscalling on you for all the hard jobs he don't dare trust nobody else todo. How come he don't do 'em hisself?"

"Oh, I'm not doing more than my share, Jonas! But you and I'll have tohave a vacation one of these days, sure. Maybe we'll go to Japan. I'll be home early, if I can make it, Jonas. "

Jonas nodded, and looked out the window. "Carriage's here, sir, " andEnoch ran quickly down the stairs. It was only eleven o'clock when hereached home. The rain had ceased at sundown and the night was humidand depressing. When Enoch was once more in his pajamas, he unlockedthe desk drawer and, taking out the journal, he turned to the firstpage and began to read with absorbed interest. 

"May 12. --This is my eighteenth birthday. I've had a long ride on thetop of the bus, thinking about Mr. Seaton. He was a fine chap. Hegave me a long lecture once on women. He said a guy must have a fewclean, straight women friends to keep normal. Of course he was right, but I couldn't tell him or anybody else how it is with me. He saidthat if you can share your worries with your friends they're finished. And he was right again. But they're some things a guy can't share. Idid it once, back there in the Canyon, and I'll always be glad I did. But I was just a kid then. The hunch that pulled me up straight thenwouldn't work now. They never did prove she was not my mother. Theynever found out a thing about me, except what Luigi and the neighborshad to tell. She was my mother, all right. And I don't feel as if Iever can believe in any of them. I don't want to. All I want of womenis for them to let me alone and I'll let them alone. But a few weeksago I had a fine idea--to invent a girl of my own! I got the idea inEnglish Literature class, from a poem of Wordsworth's. 

 "Three years she grew in sun and shower; Then nature said, A lovelier flower On earth was never sown; This child I to myself will take, She shall be mine and I will make A lady of my own. "

"I've invented her and I'm going to keep a journal to her and I'll tellher all the things I'd tell my mother, if she'd been decent, and to mysweetheart, if I could believe in them. I don't know just how old sheis. Somewhere in her twenties, I guess. She's tall and slim and shehas a creamy kind of skin. Her hair is light brown, almost gold. It'svery thick. She has it in braids wound all round her head. Her eyesare hazel and she has a sweet mouth and she is very beautiful. And sheis good, and tender, and she understands everything about me. Sheknows just how bad I've been and the fight I'm putting up to keepstraight. And every night before I go to bed, I'll tell her what myday has been. I'll begin to-night by telling her about myself. 

"I don't know where I was born, Lucy, or who my father was. My motherwas the mistress of an Italian called Luigi Giuseppi. She died arotten death, leaving me at six to Luigi. He treated me badly but heneeded me in his gambling business, and he kept me by telling me howbad my mother was and threatening to tell other people. From the timeI was eight till I was fourteen, I don't suppose a day passed withouthis telling me of the rot I had inherited from my mother. I begangambling for him when I was about ten. 

"When I was fourteen I was arrested in a gambling raid and paroled inthe care of John Seaton, a lawyer. He took me to the Grand Canyon. Heand Frank Allen, a guide, suggested to me the idea that Luigi'smistress was not my mother. Such an idea never had occurred to mebefore. They first gave it to me in the bottom of the Canyon. 

"I can't put into writing what that suggestion, coupled with my firstview of the Canyon meant to me. But it was as if I had met God face toface and He had taken pity on a dirty little street mucker and He hadlifted me in His great hands and had told me to try to be good and Hewould help me. I never had believed in God before. And I came backfrom that trip resolved to put up a fight. 

"Mr. Seaton began the search for my folks right off, but he didn't findanything before he died, which was only a year later. But I made him asolemn promise I'd go through college and study law and I'm going to doit. He was not a rich man but he left me enough money to see methrough college. In one more year I'll finish the High School. Istill play cards once in a while in a joint on Sixth Avenue. I knowit's wrong and I'm trying hard to quit. But sometimes I just can'thelp it, especially when I'm worried. 

"Luigi will be in the pen another seven years. When he comes out I amgoing to beat him up till he tells me about my mother and father. Though perhaps he's been telling the truth!"

"May 13. --Lucy, I made a speech in third year rhetoric to-day and theteacher kept me after class. He said he'd been watching me for sometime and he wanted to tell me he thought I'd make a great orator, someday. He's going to give me special training out of school hours, fornothing. I'm darned lucky. If a guy's going into politics, oratory'sthe biggest help. But to be famous as a speaker isn't why I'm goinginto politics. I'm going to clean Minetta Lane up. I'm going to tryto fix it in New York so's a fellow couldn't have a mother and astepfather like mine. You know what I mean, don't you? Darn it, a kidsuffers so! You know that joint on Sixth Avenue where I go and playcards once in a while? Well, it was raided to-day. I wonder what Mr. Seaton would have said if he'd been alive and I'd been there and gotpinched again!

"I'm going to throw no bluffs with you, Lucy. Gambling's in my blood. Luigi used to say I came by my skill straight. And I get the same kindof craving for it that a dope fiend does for dope. I don't care totell anybody about it, or they'd send me to an insane asylum. When Ifirst came from the Canyon and moved out of Minetta Lane, I swore I'dnever put foot in it again until I went in to clean it up. And Ihaven't and I won't. But for the first year my nails were bitten tothe quick. If my mother--but what's the use of that! Mr. Seaton saidevery man has to have a woman to whom he opens up the deep within him. I have you and you know you've promised to help me. "

"June 1. --Lucy, I've got a job tutoring for the summer. The rhetoricteacher got it for me. It's the son of an Episcopal vicar. He is aboy of twelve and they want him taught English and declamation. Lord!If they knew all about me! But the kid is safe in my hands. I knowhow kids of twelve feel. At least, the Minetta Lane variety. So I'llbe at the sea shore all summer. Going some, for Minetta Lane, eh?

"Lucy, I made fifty dollars last night at poker from a Senior in theStudent's Club. This morning I made him take it back. "

Enoch closed the book and leaned back in his chair as Jonas appeared atthe door with a pitcher of ice water. 

"How come you don't try to get a little rest, boss?" asked Jonas, glancing disapprovingly at the black book. 

"I am resting, old man! Don't bother your good old head about me, buttumble off to sleep yourself!"

"I don't never sleep before you do. I ain't for thirteen years, and Idon't calculate to begin now. " Jonas turned the bed covers back andmarched out of the room. 

Enoch smiled and, opening the book again, he turned the pages slowlytill another entry struck his eye. 

"February 6. --If I could only see you, touch you, cling to your tenderhand to-night, Lucy! You know that I was chosen to represent Columbiain the dedication of the Lincoln statue. It was to have taken placenext Wednesday. But the British Ambassador, who was to be the chiefMogul there, was called home to England for some reason or other andthey shoved the dedication forward to to-day, so as to catch him beforehe sailed. And some of the speakers weren't prepared, so it came aboutthat I, an unknown Columbia senior, had to give the chief speech of theday. Not that anybody, let alone myself, realized that it was going tobe the chief speech. It just turned out that way. Lucy dear, theywent crazy over it! And all the papers to-night gave it in full. Itwas only a thousand words. Why in the name of all the fiends in Hadesdo you suppose nothing relieves me in moments of great mental stressbut gambling? You notice, don't you, that I talk to you of MinettaLane only when something tremendous, either good or bad, has happenedto me? Other men with the same weakness, you say, turn to drink. Isuppose so, poor devils. Oh, Lucy, I wish I were in the Grand Canyonto-night! I wish you and I were together in Frank's camp at the footof Bright Angel. It is sunset and the Canyon is full of unspeakablewonder. Even the thought of it rests me and makes me strong. . . . Those stars mean that I've torn into a million pieces a hundred-dollarbill I won in Sixth Avenue to-night. "

Enoch turned many pages and then paused. 

"March 28. --There is a chance, Lucy, that I may be appointed secretaryto the reform Mayor of New York. I would be very glad to give up thepractice of law. Beyond my gift for pleading and a retentive memory, Ihave no real talents for a successful legal career. You look at mewith those thoughtful, tender gray eyes of yours. Ah, Lucy, you are somuch wiser than I, wise with the brooding, mystical wisdom of theCanyon in the starlight. You have intimated to me several times thatlaw was not my end. You are right, as usual. Law has its face foreverturned backward. It is searching always for precedent rather thanjustice. A man who is going into politics should be ever facing thefuture. He should use the past only in helping him to avoid mistakesin going forward. And, perhaps I am wrong. I am willing to admit thatmy unfortunate boyhood may have made me over inclined to brood, but itseems to me very difficult to stick to the law, make money, and bemorally honest, in the best sense. If I clear Bill Jones, who is, as Iknow, ethically as guilty as Satan, though legally within his rights, can I face you as a man who is steel true and blade straight? I hope Iget that appointment! I was tired to-night, Lucy, but this little talkwith you has rested me, as usual. "

"March 29. --I have the appointment, Lucy. This is the beginning of mypolitical career--the beginning of the end of Minetta Lane. You have aheavy task before you, dear, to keep me, eyes to the goal, running therace like a thoroughbred. Some day, Lucy, we'll go back to the Canyon, chins up, work done, gentlemen unafraid!"

Enoch turned more pages, covering a year or so of the diary. 

"March 30. --I've been in the City Hall two years today. Lucy, the onlychance on earth I'll ever have to clean out the rookeries of New Yorkwould be to be a Tammany Police Commissioner. And Tammany wouldcertainly send its best gunman after a Police Commissioner who didn'tdote on rookeries. Lucy, can't city governments be clean? Is humannature normally and habitually corrupt when it comes to governing acity? The Mayor and all his appointees are simply wading through thevast quagmire of the common citizen's indifference, fought every stepby the vile creatures who batten on the administration of the city'saffairs. Do you suppose that if the schools laid tremendous stress onclean citizenship and began in the kindergarten to teach children howto govern in the most practical way, it would help? I believe itwould. I'm going to tuck that thought in the back of my head and someday I may have opportunity to use it. I wish I could do something forthe poor boys of New York. I wish the Grand Canyon were over inJersey!"

"Sept. 4. --I am unfit to speak to you, but oh, I need you as I neverdid before. Don't turn those kind, clear-seeing eyes away from me, Lucy! Lucy! It happened this way. I wanted, if possible to make ourPolice Commissioner see Minetta Lane through my eyes. And I took himdown there, three days ago. It's unchanged, in all these years, exceptfor the worse. And Luigi was dragging a sack of rags into hisbasement. He was gray and bent but it was Luigi. And he recognized meand yelled 'Bastard!' after me. Lucy, I went back and beat him, tillthe Commissioner hauled me off. And the dirty, spluttering littledevil roared my story to all that greedy, listening crowd! I slippedaway, Lucy, and I hid myself in a place I know in Chinatown. No! No!I don't drink and I don't hit the pipe. I _gamble_. My luck isunbelievable. And when the fit is on me, I'd gamble my very soul away. Jonas found me. Jonas is a colored porter in the City Hall who hasrather adopted me. And Jonas said, 'Boss, how come you to do a stuntlike this? The Police Commissioner say to the Mayor and I hear 'em, anItalian black hander take you for somebody else and he have him run in. I tell 'em you gone down to Atlantic City. You come home with me, Boss. ' He put his kind black hand on my shoulder, and Lucy, his eyeswere full of tears. I left my winnings with the Chinaman, and cameback here with Jonas. Lucy! Oh, if I could really hear your voice!"

"Sept. 5. --I had a long talk with the Police Commissioner to-day. Ican trust him the way I used to trust Mr. Seaton, Lucy. I told him thetruth about Luigi and me and he promised to do what he could to ferretout the truth about my people. If I could only know that my father washalf-way decent, no matter what my mother was, it would make anenormous difference to me. "

Enoch turned another year of pages. 

"Oct. 12. --Lucy, the Police Commissioner says he has to believe thatLuigi's mistress was my mother. He advises me to close that part of mylife for good and all and give myself to politics. Easy advice! But Iam going to play the game straight in spite of Minetta Lane. "

Enoch paused long over this entry, then turned on again. 

"Nov. 6. --Well, my dear, shake hands with Congressman Huntingdon. Yes, ma'am! It's true! Aren't you proud of me? And, Lucy, listen! Don'thave any illusions on how I got there. It wasn't brains. It wasn'tthat the people wanted me to put over any particular idea or ideal forthem. I simply so intrigued them with flights of oratory that theydecided I was a natural born congressman! Well, bless 'em for doingit, anyhow, and I'll play the game for them. If I ever had had afather I'd like to talk politics with him. He must have had somedecency in him, or I'd have been all bad, like my mother. Or maybe I'ma throw-back from two degenerate parents. Well, we'll end the breedwith me. 

"Lucy, it would have been romantic if I could have cleaned out MinettaLane and other New York rookeries. But it would have been about likesatisfying one's self with washing a boy's face when his body was amass of running sores. We've got to cure the sores and in order to dothat we've got to find the cause. No one thing is going to prove apanacea. I wonder if it's possible to teach children so thoroughlythat each one owes a certain amount of altruistic, clean service to hislocal and his federal government that an honest, responsible citizenrywould result?"

Enoch drank of the ice water and continued to turn the close-writtenpages. 

"April 12. --I don't boast much about my career as a Congressman. I'vebeen straight and I've gabbed a good deal. That about sums up myhistory. If I go back as Police Commissioner, I shall feel much moreuseful. 

"Lucy, love is a very important thing in a man's life. Sometimes, Ithink that the less he has of it, the more important it becomes. I hadthought that as I grew older my career would more and more fill mylife, that youth and passion were synonymous and that with maturitywould come calm and surcease. This is not the truth. The older I growthe more difficult it becomes for me to feel that work can fullysatisfy a man. Nor will merely caring for a woman be sufficient. Aman must care for a woman whom he knows to be fine, who can meet hismental needs, or love becomes merely physical and never satisfies him. Well, I must not whimper. I have talent and tremendous opportunities, many friends and splendid health. And I have you. And each year youbecome a more intrinsic part of my life. How patient you have beenwith me all these years! I've been wondering, lately, if you haven'trather a marked sense of humor. It seems to me that nothing else couldmake you so patient, so tender and so keen! I'm sure I'm an object ofmirth to Jonas at times, so I must be to you. All right! Laugh away!I laugh at myself!

"Lucy, it has been over eighteen months since I touched a card. "

Jonas put his head in at the door, but Enoch turned on to the middle ofthe book. 

"Dec. 1. --They won't let me keep it up long, Lucy, but Lord, Lord, hasn't the going been good, my dear, while it lasted! I've twistedTammany's tail till its head's dropped off! I've 'got long poles andpoked out the nests and blocked up the holes. I shall consult with thecarpenters and builders and leave in our town not even a trace of therats. ' I've routed out hereditary grafters and looters. I've run downwealthy gunmen and I've turned men's fame to a notoriety that carried astench. But they'll get me, Lucy! They'll either kill me or send meback to Congress. "

Enoch turned more pages. 

"Nov. 1. --Congress again, eh, Lucy? And you care for Washington aslittle as I! Dear, this has been a hard day. I've been saying good-byto the force! By the eternal, but they are men! And now all thatwonderful machine, built up, really, by the men themselves, must fallapart! What a waste of human energy! Yet, I've come to the conclusionthat the man who devotes himself to public service loses much of hisusefulness if he allows himself to grow pessimistic about human nature. If there were not more good than bad in the world, we'd still bemonkeys! I have ceased to search for some great single ideal for whichI can fight. Whatever abilities I have in me I shall devote to helpingto administer government cleanly. After all, we gave New York a greatobject lesson in the possibilities of cleaning out Tammany's pesthouse. Perhaps somebody's great-grandchild, inspired by the history ofmy attempt will try again and be successful for a longer period. Andoh, woman! It was a gorgeous fight!

"Jonas is delighted that we are returning to Washington. He says weare to keep house. I am a great responsibility to Jonas. He is veryfirm with me, but I think he's as fond of me as I am of him. 

"Lucy, how am I to go on, year after year like this, with only my dreamof you? How am I to do my work like a man, with only half a man's lifeto live? What can all the admiring plaudits mean to me when I knowthat you are only a dream, only a dream?"

Enoch sat forward in his chair, laid the book on the desk, opened tothe last entry and seized his pen. 

"So your name is not Lucy, but Diana! Oh, my dearest, and you did notrecognize me at all, while my very heart was paralyzed with emotion!You must have been a very lovely little girl that the memory of youshould have been so impressed on my subconsciousness. Oh, howbeautiful you are! How beautiful! And to think that I must never letyou know what you are to me. Never! Never! The strain stops with me. "

He dropped his pen abruptly and, turning off the light, flung himselfdown on his bed. Jonas, listening long at the door, waited for thefull, even breathing that would mark the end of his day's work. But itdid not come, and dawn struggling through the hall window found Jonassitting on the floor beside the half-opened door, his black headdrooping on his breast, but his eyes open. 

Enoch reached his office on the stroke of nine, as usual. His face wasa little haggard and set but he came in briskly and spoke cheerfully toCharley Abbott. 

"A little hotter than ever, eh, Abbott? I think you're lookingdragged, my boy. When are you going to take your vacation?"

"In the fall, after you have had yours, Mr. Secretary. " The two mengrinned at each other. 

"Did the Indian Commissioner find work for Miss Allen?" asked Enochabruptly. 

"Oh, yes! And she was as surprised and pleased as a child. "

"How do you know that?" demanded the Secretary. 

Charley looked a little confused. "I took her out to lunch, Mr. Huntingdon. Jove, she's the most beautiful woman I ever saw!"

"Well, let's finish off that report to the President, Mr. Abbott. Thatmust go to him to-morrow, regardless of whom or what I have to neglectto-day. "

Abbott opened his note book. But the dictation hardly had begun whenthe telephone rang and Enoch was summoned to the White House. It wasnoon when he left the President. Washington lay as if scorching undera burning glass. The dusty leaves drooped on the trees. Even thecarefully cherished White House lawn seemed to have forgotten therecent rains. Enoch dismissed his carriage and crossed slowly toPennsylvania Avenue. It had occurred to him suddenly that it had beenmany weeks since he had taken the noon hour outside of his office. Hehad found that luncheon engagements broke seriously into his day'swork. He strolled slowly along the avenue, watching the swelteringnoon crowds unseeingly, entirely unconscious of the fact that manypeople turned to look at him. He paused before a Johnstown Lunch sign, wondering whimsically what Jonas would say if it were reported that theboss had eaten here. And as he paused, the incessantly swinging dooremitted Miss Diana Allen. 

Enoch's pause became a full stop. "How do you do, Miss Allen?" he said. 

Diana flushed a little. "How do you do, Mr. Secretary! Were youlooking for a cheap lunch?"

"Jonas provides the cheapest lunch known to Washington, " said Enoch. "I was looking for some one to walk up Pennsylvania Avenue with me. "

"You seem to be well provided with company. " Diana glanced at the knotof people who were eagerly watching the encounter. 

Enoch did not follow her glance. His eyes were fastened on Diana'slovely curving lips. "And I want to hear about the work in the IndianBureau. "

Diana fell into step with him. "I think the work is going to beinteresting. Mr. Watkins is more than kind about my pictures. I'm tosend home for the best of my collection and he is going to give anexhibition of them. "

"Is he giving you a decent salary?" asked Enoch. 

"Ample for all my needs, " replied Diana. 

"Do your needs stop with the Johnstown Lunch?" demanded Enoch. 

"Well, " replied Diana, "if you'd lived on the trail as much as I have, you'd not complain of the Johnstown Lunch. I've made worse coffeemyself, and I've seen more flies, too. "

Enoch chuckled. "What does Watkins call your job?"

"I'm a special investigator for the Indian Bureau. "

Enoch chuckled again. "Right! And that title Watkins counts as worthat least five dollars a week. The remainder is the equivalent of astenographer's salary. I know him!"

"He is quite all right, " said Diana quickly. "It must be extremelydifficult to manage a budget. No matter how large they are, they'realways too small. To administer the affairs of a dying race withinadequate funds--"

Diana hesitated. 

"And in entire ignorance of the race itself, " added Enoch quietly. "Iknow! But I had to choose between a rattling good administrator and arattling good ethnologist. "

Diana nodded slowly. "Your choice was inevitable, I suppose. And Mr. Watkins seems very efficient. "

"Well, and where does your princely salary permit you to live?" Enochconcluded. 

"On New Jersey Avenue, in a brown stone front with pansies in front andcats in the rear, an old Confederate soldier in the basement and ratsin the attic. As for odors and furniture, any kind whatever, providedone is not too particular. "

"My word! how you are going to miss the Canyon!" exclaimed Enoch. 

Diana nodded. "Yes, but after all one's avocation is the mostimportant thing in life. "'

"Is it?" asked Enoch. "I've tried to make myself believe that, but sofar I've failed. "

"You mean, " Diana spoke quickly, "that I ought to have stayed with myfather?"

"No, I don't!" returned Enoch, quite as quickly. "At least, I meanthat I know nothing whatever about that. I would say as a generalprinciple, though, that parents who have adequate means, are selfish tohang on the necks of their grown children. "

"Father misses mother so, " murmured Diana, with apparent irrelevance. 

Enoch said nothing. They were opposite the Post Office now and Dianapaused. "I must go to the Post Office! Good-by, Mr. Secretary. "

"Good-by, Miss Allen, " said Enoch, taking off his hat and holding outhis hand. "Let me know if there is anything further I can do for you!"

"Oh, I'm quite all right and shall not bother you again, thank you, "replied Diana cheerfully. 

Enoch was very warm when he reached his office. Jonas and the bottleof milk were awaiting him. "How come you to be so hot, boss?" demandedJonas. 

"I walked back. It was very foolish, " replied Enoch meekly. 

"I don't dare to let you out o' my sight, " said Jonas severely. 

"I think I do need watching, " sighed Enoch, beginning his belatedluncheon. 

That night the Secretary wrote to Diana's father. 

"My dear Frank: Diana came and I found a job for her in the Indianoffice. I feel like a dog to have broken my word with you, but herwork is very interesting and very important, and I feel that she oughtto have her few months of study in Washington. She is very beautiful, Frank, and very fine. You must try to forgive me. Faithfully yours, "ENOCH HUNTINGDON. "

CHAPTER V

A PHOTOGRAPHER OF INDIANS

"When I tutored boys I wondered most at their selfishness and theirgenerosity. They had so much of both! And I believe that as men theylose none of either. "--_Enoch's Diary_. 

Enoch knew what it was to fight himself. Perhaps he knew more aboutsuch lonely, unlovely battles than any man of his acquaintance. Theaverage man is usually too vain and too spiritually lazy to fight hisinner devils to the death. But Enoch had fought so terribly that itseemed to him that he could surely win this new struggle. Nothingshould induce him to break his vow of celibacy. He cursed himself fora weak fool in not obeying Frank Allen's request. Then he gatheredtogether all his resources, to protect Diana from himself. 

A week or so went by, during which Enoch made no attempt to see Dianaor to hear from her. The office routine ground on and on. The Mexicancloud thickened. Alaska developed a threatening attitude over her coalfields. The farmers of Idaho suddenly withdrew their proposalsregarding water power. Calmly and with clear vision, Enoch met eachday's problems. But the lines about his mouth deepened. 

One day, early in August, Charley Abbott came to the Secretary's desk. "Miss Diana Allen would like to see you for a few moments, Mr. Secretary. "

Enoch did not look up. "Ask her to excuse me, Mr. Abbott, I am verybusy. "

Charley hesitated for an instant, then went quickly out. 

"Luncheon is served, boss, " said Jonas, shortly after. 

"Is Abbott gone?" asked Enoch. 

"Yes, sir! He's took that Miss Allen to lunch, I guess. He's suregone on that young lady. How come everybody thinks she's so beautiful, boss?"

"Because she is beautiful, Jonas, very, very beautiful. "

The faithful steward looked keenly at the Secretary. He had not missedthe appearance of a line in the face that was the whole world to him. 

"Boss, " he said, "don't you ever think you ought to marry?"

Enoch looked up into Jonas' face. "A man with my particular historyhad best leave women alone, Jonas. "

Jonas' mouth twitched. "They ain't the woman ever born fit to darnyour socks, boss. "

Enoch smiled and finished his lunch in silence. He would have given amonth of his life to know what errand had brought Diana to his office. But Charley Abbott, returning at two o'clock with the complacent lookof a man who has lunched with a beautiful girl, showed no intention ofmentioning the girl's name. And Enoch went on with his conferences. But it was many days before he opened the black book again. 

Diana's exhibition must have been of unusual quality, for jaded andcynical Washington learned of its existence, spoke of it and went tosee it. It seemed to Enoch that every one he met took special delightin mentioning it to him. 

Even Jonas, one night, as he brought in the bed-time pitcher of icewater, said, "Boss, I saw Miss Allen's pictures this evening. Theysure are queersome. That must be hotter'n Washington out there. Howcome you ain't been, Boss?"

"How do you know I haven't seen them, Jonas?" asked Enoch quickly. 

"Don't I know every place you go, boss? Didn't you tell me that was myjob, years ago? How come you think I'd forget?" Jonas was eyeing theSecretary warily. "Mr. Abbott, he's got a bad case on that Miss Allen. He's give me at least a dollar's worth of ten cent cigars lately so'sI'll stand and smoke and let him talk to me about her. "

Enoch grunted. 

"He says she--" Jonas rambled on. 

Enoch looked up quickly. "I don't want to hear it, Jonas. " Jonas drewhimself up stiffly. The Secretary laid his own broad palm over theblack hand that still held the handle of the water pitcher. "Spare methat, old friend, " he said. 

Jonas put his free hand on Enoch's shoulder. "Are you sure you'reright, boss?" he asked huskily. 

"I know I'm right, Jonas. "

"Well, I don't see it your way, boss, but what's right for you is rightfor me. Good night, sir, " and shaking his head, Jonas slowly left theroom. 

But Enoch was destined to see the pictures after all. One day, afterCabinet meeting, the President, in his friendly way, clapped Enoch onthe shoulder. 

"First time in a great many years, Huntingdon, that the Indian Bureauhas distinguished itself for anything but trouble! I saw Miss Allen'spictures last night. My word! What a sense of heat and peace and, yes, by jove, passion! those photographs tell. The Bureau ought to ownthose pictures, old man. Especially the huge enlargement of BrightAngel trail and the Navaho hunters. Eh?"

"Well, to tell the truth, Mr. President, " said Enoch slowly, "I haven'tseen the pictures. "

"Not seen them! Why some one said you discovered Miss Allen!"

"In a way I did, but I don't deserve any credit for that. "

"Not if he saw her first!" exclaimed the Secretary of State, who hadloitered behind the others. 

The President nodded. "She is very lovely. I saw her at a distance, and I want to meet her. Now, Mr. Huntingdon, it's very painful for meto have to chide you for dereliction in office. But a man who willneglect those pictures for the--well, the coal fields of Alaska, shouldbe dealt with severely. "

"Hear! Hear!" cried the Secretary of State. 

The President laughed. "And so I must ask you, Mr. Huntingdon, tobring Miss Allen to see me, after you have gone carefully over thepictures. Jokes aside, you know my keen interest in Indian ethnology?"Enoch nodded, and the President went on. "If this girl has the brainsand breadth of vision I'm sure she must have to produce a series ofphotographs like those, I want to know her and do what I can to pushher work. So neglect Mexico and Alaska for a little while, tomorrow, will you, Huntingdon?"

Enoch's laughter was a little grim, but with a quick leap of his heart, he answered. "A man can but obey the Commander in Chief, I suppose!"

As the door swung to behind him, the President said to the Secretary ofState, "Huntingdon is working too hard, I'm afraid. Does he ever play?"

"Horseback riding and golf. But he's a woman hater. At least, if nota hater, an avoider!"

"I like him, " said the President. "I want him to play. "

That evening Enoch went to see the pictures. There were perhaps ahundred of them, telling the story of the religion of the Navahos. Only one whom the Indians loved and trusted could have procured suchintimate, such dramatic photographs. They were as unlike the usualposed portraits of Indian life as is a stage shower unlike an actualthunder storm. There was indeed a subtle passion and poignancy aboutthe pictures that it seemed to Enoch as well as to the President, onlya fine mind could have found and captured. He had made the rounds ofthe little room twice, threading his way abstractedly through thecrowd, before he came upon Diana. She was in white, standing beforeone of the pictures, answering questions that were being put to her bya couple of reporters. She bowed to Enoch and he bowed in return, thenstood so obviously waiting for the reporters to finish that theyactually withdrew. 

Enoch came up and held out his hand. "These are very fine, Miss Allen. "

"I thought you were not coming to see them, " said Diana. "It makes mevery happy to have you here!"

"Does it?" asked Enoch quickly. "Why?"

"Because--" here Diana hesitated and looked from Enoch's stern lips tohis blue eyes. 

"Yes, go on, do!" urged Enoch. "For heaven's, sake, treat me as if Iwere a human being and not--"

It was his turn to hesitate. 

"Not the Washington Monument?" suggested Diana. 

Enoch laughed. "Am I as bad as that?" he asked. 

Diana nodded. "Very nearly! Nevertheless, for some reason I don'tunderstand, I've had the feeling that you would like the pictures andget what I was driving at, better than any one. "

"Thank you, " said Enoch slowly. "I do like them. So much so that Iwish that I might own them, instead of the Indian Bureau. ThePresident, to-day, told me the Indian Bureau ought to buy them. Andalso, he asked me to bring you to see him to-morrow. "

A sudden flush made roses in Diana's beautifully modeled cheeks. 

"Did he! Mr. Huntingdon, how am I ever going to thank you?"

"I deserve no thanks at all. It was entirely the President's own idea. In fact, I had not intended to come to your exhibition. "

"No? Why not? Do you dislike me so much as that? And, after all, Mr. Secretary, if the pictures are interesting, the fact that a woman tookthem should not prejudice you against them. "

"Abbott's been giving me a bad reputation, I see, " said Enoch. "I'llhave to get Jonas to tell you what a really gentle and affectionate ander--mild, person I am. I've a notion to reduce Abbott's salary. "

"Charley Abbott is a dear, and he's a devoted admirer of yours, " Dianaexclaimed. 

"And of yours, " rejoined Enoch. 

"He's very discerning, " said Diana, her eyes twinkling and the cornersof her mouth deepening. "But you shall not evade me this way, Mr. Huntingdon. Why didn't you want to see my pictures?"

"I didn't say that I didn't want to see them. Women are alwaysinaccurate, or at least, so I have heard. "

"I would say that Mr. Abbott had a great deal more data on the generalsubject of women than you, Mr. Secretary. You really ought to get himto check you up! Please, why didn't you intend to come to myexhibition?"

"I have been swamped with extra work of late, " answered Enoch. 

"Yes?" Diana's eyebrows rose and her intelligent great eyes werefastened on Enoch's with an expression so discerning and sosympathetic, that he bit his lip and turned from her to the Navaho, whoprayed in the burning desert before him. The reporters, who had beenhovering in the offing, closed in on Diana immediately. When she wasfree once more, Enoch turned back and held out his hand. 

"Good night, Miss Allen. If you don't mind coming over to my office attwelve to-morrow, I can take you to the White House then. "

"I shall not mind!--too much! Good night, Mr. Secretary, " repliedDiana, with the deepening of the corners of her mouth that Enoch nowrecalled had belonged to the little girl Diana. 

Enoch made an entry in the black book that night. 

"I wonder, Diana, how much Frank has told you of me and my unhappyhistory. I wonder how you would feel if a man whose mother was aharlot who died of an unspeakable disease were to ask you to marry him. Oh, my dear, don't be troubled! I shall never, never, ask you. Yourpictures moved me more than I dared try to express to you. It was asif you had carried me in a breath to the Canyon and once more I beheldthe wonder, the kindliness, the calm, the inevitableness of God's ways. I'm going to try, Diana, to make a friend of you. I believe that Ihave the strength. What I am very sure of is that I have not thestrength to know that you are in Washington and never see you. "

The clock struck twelve the next day, when Abbott came to theSecretary's desk. Enoch was deep in a conference with the AttorneyGeneral. 

"Miss Allen is here, " he said softly. 

"Give me five minutes!" exclaimed the Attorney General. 

"I'm sorry. " Enoch rose from his desk. "I'm very sorry, old fellow, but this is an appointment with the President. Can you come aboutthree, if that suits Abbott's schedule?"

"Not till to-morrow, I'm afraid, " said the Attorney General. 

Enoch nodded. "It's just as well. I think I'll have some privateadvices from Mexico by then that may somewhat change our angle ofattack. All right, Jonas! I'm coming. Ask Miss Allen to meet me atthe carriage. "

But he overtook Diana in the elevator. She wore the brown silk suit, and Enoch thought she looked a little flushed and a little more lovelythan usual. 

"I'm a marked person, Mr. Secretary, " she said, with a twinkle in hereyes. "You'd scarcely believe how many total strangers have asked meto introduce them to you, since you walked up Pennsylvania Avenue withme. "

"I'm glad you have an appreciative mind, " returned Enoch. "I hope thatyou are circumspect also, and won't impose on me because of mycondescension. "

"I'll try not to, " Diana answered meekly, as Enoch followed her intothe carriage. 

They smiled at each other, and Enoch went on, "Of course, I've beenfeeling rather proud of the opportunity to display myself beforeWashington with you. I've been called indifferent to women. I'mhoping now that the gossips will say, 'Aha! Huntingdon's a deep one!No wonder he's been indifferent to the average woman!'"

Diana eyed him calmly. "That doesn't sound at all like WashingtonMonument, " she murmured. 

"More like Charley Abbott, I suppose!" retorted Enoch. 

"No, " answered Diana thoughtfully, "hardly like Mr. Abbott's method. Iwould say that he belonged to a different school from you. "

"Yes? What school does Abbott represent?"

"Well, he has a dash, an ease, that shows long and varied experience. Charley Abbott is a finished ladies' man. It almost discourages mewhen I contemplate the serried ranks of women that must havecontributed to his perfect finesse. "

"Discourages you?" queried Enoch. 

Diana did not answer. "But, " she went on, "while Charley is a graduateof the school of experience and you--"

She paused. 

"Yes, and I--, " pressed Enoch. 

"I won't impose on your condescension by telling you, " said Diana. 

"Pshaw!" muttered the Secretary of the Interior. 

Suddenly Diana laughed. Enoch, after a moment, laughed with her, andthey entered the White House grounds still chuckling. 

The President did not keep them waiting. "I may not be able to ordermy wife and daughter about, " he said, as he shook hands with Enoch, "but I certainly have my official family well under control. Did yousee the pictures, Huntingdon?"

"I saw and was conquered, Mr. President, " replied Enoch. 

"What would you say, Miss Allen, if I tell you that I had to force thisfellow into going to see your wonderful pictures?" the President asked. 

"It wouldn't surprise me, " replied Diana, in an enigmatical voice thatmade both men smile. 

"I see you understand our Secretary of the Interior, " the Presidentsaid complacently. "Sit down, children, and Miss Allen, talk to me. How long did it take you to make that collection of photographs?"

"I began that particular collection ten years ago. Those pictures havebeen sifted out of nearly two thousand prints. "

"Did you take any other pictures during that period?" asked thePresident. 

"Oh, yes! I was, I think, fourteen or fifteen when I first determinedto give my life to Indian photography. I didn't at that time think ofmaking a living out of it. I had a dream of making a photographichistory of the spiritual life of some of the South-western tribes. Itdidn't occur to me that anything but a museum or possibly a librarywould care for such a collection. But to my surprise there was a readymarket for really good prints of Indians and Indian subjects. So whileI have kept always at work on my ultimate idea, I've made and soldmany, many pictures of Indians on all sorts of themes. "

Enoch looked from Diana's half eager, half abashed eyes, to thePresident's keen, hawk-like face, then back to Diana. 

"What gave you the idea to begin with?" asked the President. 

Diana looked thoughtfully out of the window. Both men watched her withinterest. Enoch's rough hewn face, with its unalterably somberexpression, was set in an almost painful concentration. ThePresident's eyes were cool, yet eager. 

"It is hard for me to put into words just what first led me into thework, " said Diana slowly. "I was born in a log house on the rim of theGrand Canyon. My father was a canyon guide. "

"Yes, Frank Allen, an old Yale man. I know him. "

"Do you remember him?" cried Diana. "He'll be so delighted! He tookyou down Bright Angel years ago. "

"Of course I remember him. Give him my regards when you write to him. And go on with your story. "

"My mother was a California woman, a very good geologist. My nurse wasa Navajo woman. Somehow, by the time I was into my teens, I wasconscious of the great loss to the world in the disappearance of thespiritual side of Indian life. I knew the Canyon well by then and Iknew the Indians well and the beauty of their ceremonies was even thenmore or less merged in my mind with the beauty of the Canyon. Theirmysticism was the Canyon's mysticism. I tried to write it and Icouldn't, and I tried to paint it, and I couldn't. And then one day mymother said to me, 'Diana, nobody can interpret Indian or Canyonphilosophy. Take your camera and let the naked truth tell the story!'"

Diana paused. "I'm not clever at talking. I'm afraid I've given youno real idea of my purpose. "

"One gets your purpose very clearly, when one recalls your Death andthe Navajo, for instance, eh, Huntingdon?"

"Yes, Mr. President!"

"I suppose the two leading Indian ethnologists are Arkwind and Sherman, of the Smithsonian, are they not, Miss Allen?" asked the President. 

"Oh, without doubt! And they have been very kind to me. "

The President nodded. "They both tell me that your work is ofextraordinary value. They tell me that you have actually photographedceremonies so secret, so mystical, that they themselves had only heardvaguely of their existence. And not only, they say, have youphotographed them, but you have produced works of art, pictures'pregnant with celestial fire. '"

Diana's cheeks were a deep crimson. "Oh, I deserve so little credit, after all!" she exclaimed. "I was born in the midst of these things. And the Indians love me for my old nurse's sake! But human nature isweak and what you tell me makes me very happy, sir. "

The men glanced at each other and smiled. 

"Suppose, Miss Allen, " said the President, "that you had the means tooutfit an expedition. How long would it take you to complete theentire collection you have in mind?"

Diana's eyes widened. "Why, I could do nothing at all with anexpedition! I simply wander about canyon and desert, sometimes withold nurse Na-che, sometimes alone. The Indians have always known me. I'm as much a part of their lives as their own daughters. I--I believemuch of their inner hidden religion and so--oh, Mr. President, anexpedition would be absurd, for me!"

"Well, then, without an expedition?" insisted the President. 

Diana sighed. "You see, I'm not able to give all my time to the work. Mother died five years ago, and father is lonely and, while he thinkshis little income is enough for both of us, it's enough only if I stayat home and play about the desert with my camera, cheaply as I do, andkeep the house. It does not permit me to leave home. It seems to me, that working as I have in the past, it would take me at least ten yearsmore to complete my work. "

"The patience of the artist! It always astounds me!" exclaimed thePresident. "Miss Allen, I am not a rich man, but I have some wealthyfriends. I have one friend in particular, a self-made man, of enormouswealth. The interest he and I have in common is American history inall its aspects. It seems to me that you are doing a truly importantwork. I want you to let this friend of mine fund you so that you maygive all your time to your photography. "

"Oh, Mr. President, I don't need funds!" protested Diana. "There is nohurry. This is my life work. Let me take a life-time for it, ifnecessary. "

"That is all very well, Miss Allen, but what if you die, before youhave finished? No one could complete your work because no one has yourpeculiar combination of information and artistic ability. People likeyou, my dear, belong not to themselves, but to the country. "

Enoch spoke suddenly. "Why not arrange the matter with the IndianBureau, Mr. President?"

"Why not arrange it with the Circumlocution Office!" exclaimed thePresident. "I'm surprised at you, Huntingdon! You know what thebudget and red tape of Washington does to a temperament like MissAllen's. On the other hand, here is my friend, who would give herabsolutely free rein and take an intense pride in providing the money. "

Diana laughed. "You speak, sir, as if I needed some vast fund. Itcosts a dollar a day in the desert to keep a horse and another dollarto keep a man. Camera plates and clothing--why a hundred dollars amonth would be luxury! And I don't need help, truly I don't! The merefact of your interest is help enough for me. "

"A hundred dollars a month for your expenses, " said the President, making a memorandum in his notebook, "and what is your time worth?"

"My time? You mean what would I charge somebody for doing this work?Why, Mr. President, this is not a job! It's an avocation! I wouldn'ttake money for it. It's a labor of love. "

The chief executive suddenly rose and Diana, rising too, was surprisedat the look that suddenly burned in the hawk-like eyes. 

"You are an unusual woman, Miss Allen! Your angle on life is oneseldom found in Washington. " He took a restless turn up and down theroom, glanced at Enoch, who stood beside the desk, utterly absorbed incontemplation of Diana's protesting eyes, then said, "This friend ofmine is a disappointed man. He had believed that in amassing a greatfortune he would find satisfaction. He has found that money of itselfis dust and ashes and it is too late for him to take up a new work. Miss Allen, I too am a disappointed man. I had believed that thePresident of a great nation was a full man, a contented man. I findmyself an automaton, whirled about by the selfish desires of apolitically stupid and indifferent constituency. One of the fewconsolations I find in my high office is that once in a while I comeupon some one who is contributing something permanent to this nation'sreal advancement, and I am able to help that person. Miss Allen, willyou not share your great good fortune with my friend and me?"

"Gladly!" exclaimed Diana quickly. Then she added, with a littlelaugh, "I think I understand now, why you are President of the UnitedStates!"

Enoch and the President joined in the laugh, and Diana was stillsmiling when they descended the steps to the waiting carriage. But thesmile faded with a sudden thought. 

"The President mustn't think I will take more than expense money!" sheexclaimed. 

Enoch laughed again as he replied, "I don't think that need bother you, Miss Allen. I imagine a yearly sum will be placed at your disposal. You will use what you wish. "

Diana shook her head uneasily. "I don't more than half like the idea. But the President made it very difficult to refuse. "

Enoch nodded. The carriage stopped before the Willard Hotel. "MissAllen, will you lunch with me?" he asked. 

Diana hesitated. "I'll be late getting back to the office, " she said. 

"I'll ask Watkins not to dock you, " said Enoch soberly. 

"Docking my salary, " touching Enoch's proffered hand lightly as shesprang to the curb, "would be almost like taking something fromnothing. I've never lunched in the Willard, Mr. Secretary. "

"The Johnstown lunch still holds sway, I suppose!" said Enoch, following Diana down the stairs to Peacock Row. 

They were a rather remarkable pair together. At least the occupants ofthe Row evidently felt so, for there was a breathless craning of necksand a hush in conversations as they passed, Diana, with herheart-searching beauty, Enoch with his great height and his splendid, rugged head. The head waiter did not actually embrace Enoch inwelcoming him, but he managed to convey to the dining-room that herewas a personal and private god of his own on whom the public had theprivilege of gazing only through his generosity. Finally he had themseated to his satisfaction in the quietest and most conspicuous cornerof the room. 

"Now, my dear Mr. Secretary, what may we give you?" he asked, rubbinghis hands together. 

Enoch glanced askance at Diana, who shook her head. "This is entirelyout of my experience, Mr. Secretary, " she said. 

"Gustav, " said Enoch, "it's not yet one o'clock. We must leave here atfive minutes before two. Something very simple, Gustav. " He checkedseveral items on the card and gave it to the head waiter with a smile. 

Gustav smiled too. "Yes, Mr. Secretary!" he exclaimed, and disappeared. 

"And that's settled, " said Enoch, "and we can forget it. Miss Allen, when shall you go back to the Canyon?"

"Why, " answered Diana, looking a little startled, "not till I'vefinished the work for Mr. Watkins, and that will take six months, atleast. "

"I think the President's idea will be that you must get to your ownwork, at once. Some one else can carry on Watkins' researches. "

"I ought to do some studying in the Congressional library, " protestedDiana. "Don't you think Washington can endure me a few months longer, Mr. Secretary?"

"Endure you!" Enoch's voice broke a little, and he gave Diana a glancein which he could not quite conceal the anguish. 

A sudden silence fell between the two that was broken by the waiter'sappearance with the first course. Then Diana said, casually:

"My father is going to be very happy when I write him about this. Doyou remember him at all clearly, Mr. Secretary?"

"Yes, " replied Enoch. Then with a quick, direct look, he asked, "Didyour father, ever give you the details of his experience with me in theCanyon?"

Diana's voice was low but very steady as she replied, "Yes, Mr. Secretary. He told me long ago, when you made your famous Boyhood onthe Rack speech in Congress. It was the first word he had heard of youin all the years and he was deeply moved. "

"I'm glad he told you, " said Enoch. "I'm glad, because I'd like to askyou to be my friend, and I would want the sort of friend you would maketo know the worst as well as the best about me. "

"If that is the worst of you--" Diana began quickly, then paused. "Asfather told me, it was a story of a boy's suffering and the finaltriumph of his mind and his body. "

Enoch stared at Diana with astonishment in every line of his face. Then he sighed. "He couldn't have told you all, " he muttered. 

"Yes, he did, all! And nothing, not even what the President saidto-day, can mean as much to me as your asking me to be your friend. "

Enoch continued to stare at the lovely, tender face opposite him. 

Diana smiled. "Don't look so incredulous, Mr. Secretary! It's notpolite. You are a very famous person. I am nobody. We are lunchingtogether in a wonderful hotel. I don't even vaguely surmise the namesof the things we are eating. Don't look at me doubtingly. Lookcomplacent because you can give a lady so much joy. "

Enoch laughed with a quick relief that made his cheeks burn. "And soyou are nobody! Curious, then, that you should have impressed yourselfon me so deeply even when you were a child!"

It was Diana's turn to laugh. "Oh, come, Mr. Secretary! Of course Idon't recall it myself, but Dad has always said that you were bored todeath at having a small girl taking the trail with you. "

"Do you remember that your mule slipped on the home trail and that Isaved your life?" demanded Enoch. 

Diana shook her head. "I was too small and there were too many canyontrips and too many tourists. I wish--"

She did not finish her sentence, but Enoch said, with a thread ofearnestness in his deep voice that made Diana look at him keenly, "Iwish you did remember!"

There was a moment's silence, then Enoch went on, "Shall you carry onyour work with the Indians alone as you always have done? I believe Ican quite understand your father's uneasiness. "

"Oh, yes!" exclaimed Diana, glad of an opportunity to redirect theconversation. "Just as I always have done. I shall have no troubleunless I get soft, living at the Johnstown Lunch! Then I may have towaste time till I get fit again. Have you ever lived on the trail, excepting on your trip to the Grand Canyon, Mr. Secretary?"

"Yes, in Canada and Maine, while I was in college. I used to tutorrich boys, and they had glorious summers, lucky kids! But sincegetting into national politics, I've had no time for real play. "

"Some day, " said Diana, "you ought to get up an outfit and go down theColorado from the Green River to the Needles. That's a real adventure!Only a few men have done it since the Powell expeditions. "

Enoch's eyes brightened. "I know! Some day, perhaps I shall, if Jonaswill let me! How long do you suppose such a trip would take?"

Diana plunged into a description of a recent expedition down thecanyons of the Colorado, and she managed to keep the remainder of theluncheon conversation on this topic. But as far as Enoch wasconcerned, Diana's effort was merely a conversational detour. Theluncheon finished and the Gulf of California safely reached, he said ashe handed Diana into the carriage:

"I've never had a friendship with a woman before, " he said. "What do Ido next?"

 Diana sighed, while her lips curled at the corners. "Well, Mr. Secretary, I think the next move is to think the matter overfor a few days, quietly and alone. "

"Do you?" Enoch smiled enigmatically. "I don't know that it's safe forme to rely on your experience after all!" But he said no more. 

Enoch spent the evening in his living-room with Seńor Juan Cadiz and asmall, lean, brown man in an ill-fitting black suit. The latter didnot speak English, and Seńor Cadiz acted as interpreter. The strangerwas uneasy and suspicious, until the very last of the evening. Then, after a long half hour spent in silent scowling while he stared atEnoch and listened to the Secretary's replies to Cadiz's eagerquestions, he suddenly burst into a passionate torrent of Spanish. Alook of great relief came to Cadiz's face, as he said to Enoch:

"Now he says he trusts you and will tell you the names of the Americanswho are paying him. "

Enoch began to jot down notes. When Cadiz's translation was finishedEnoch said:

"This in brief, then, is the situation. A group of Americans own vastoil fields in Mexico. They have enormous difficulty policing andcontrolling the fields. The Mexican method of concession making isexceedingly expensive and uncertain. They wish the United States totake Mexico over, either through actual conquest or by mandate. Theyhave hired a group of bandits to keep trouble brewing until the UnitedStates is forced by England, Germany, or France, to interfere. Thisgroup of men is partly German though all dwell in the United States. Your friend here, and several of his associates, if I personally swearto take care of them, will give me information under oath whenever Iwish. "

"Yes! Yes! Yes! That is the story!" cried Seńor Cadiz. "Oh, Mr. Secretary, if you could only undo the harm that your cursed Americanmethod of making the public opinion has done, both here and in Mexico. Why should neighbors hate each other? Mr. Secretary, tell theseAmericans to get out of Mexico and stay out! We are foolish in manyways, but we want to learn to govern ourselves. There will be muchtrouble while we learn but for God's sake, Mr. Secretary, forceAmerican money to leave us alone while we struggle in our birth throes!"

Enoch stood up to his great height, tossing the heavy copper-coloredhair off his forehead. He looked at the two Mexicans earnestly, thenhe said, holding out his hand, "Seńor Cadiz, I'll help you to the bestof my ability. I believe in you and in the ultimate ability of yourcountry to govern itself. Now will you let me make an appointment foryou with the Secretary of State? Properly, you know, you should havegone to him with this. "

The Mexican shook his head. "No! No! Please, Mr. Secretary! We donot know him well. He has shown no willingness to understand us. You!you are the one we believe in! We have watched you for years. We knowthat you are honest and disinterested. "

"But I shall have to give both the President and the Secretary of Statethis information, " insisted Enoch. 

"That is in your hands, " said Seńor Cadiz. 

"Then, " Enoch nodded as Jonas appeared with the inevitable tinklingglasses, "remain quietly in Washington until you hear from me again. "

Jonas held the door open on the departing callers with disapproval inevery line of his face. 

"How come that colored trash to be setting in the parlors of thegovernment, boss?" asked he. 

"They are Mexicans, Jonas, " replied Enoch. 

"Just a new name for niggers, boss, " snapped Jonas, following Enoch upthe stairs. "Don't you trust any colored man that ain't willing tocall hisself black. "

Enoch laughed and settled himself to an entry in the journal. 

"This was the happiest day of my life, Diana. We are going to be greatfriends, are we not! And the philosophers tell us that friendship isthe most soul-satisfying of all human relationships. I have been veryvacillating in my attitude to you, since you came to Washington. But Icannot lose the feeling that those wise, wistful eyes of yours haveseen my trouble and understood. I wonder how soon I can see you again. I'm rather proud of my behavior to-day, Diana, dearest. "

CHAPTER VI

A NEWSPAPER REPORTER

"I wonder if Christ ever cared for a woman. He may have, for Godwished Him to know and suffer all that men know and suffer, and alllove must have been noble in His eyes. "--_Enoch's Diary_. 

"Abbott, " said Enoch the next day, "do you recall that I have commentedto you several times on the fact that some of the southwestern statesdid not back the Geological Survey in its search for oil fields as wehad expected they would?"

"Yes, Mr. Secretary, " answered Charley, looking up from his notebookwith keen interest in eye and voice. "I have wondered just why thematter bothered you so. "

"It has bothered me for several different reasons. It has, to beginwith, conflicted with my idea of the fundamental purpose of thisoffice. What could be a stronger reason for being for the GeologicalSurvey than to find and show the public the resources of the publiclands? When the Bureau of Mines reports to me that certain oil fieldsare diminishing at an alarming rate, and when any fool knows that avital part of our future history is to be written in terms of oil, itbehooves the Secretary of the Interior to look for remedial steps. Certain sections of our Southwest are saturated with oil and yet, Abbott, the states resent our locating oil fields. As far as I knownow, no open hostility has been shown, unless"--Enoch interruptedhimself suddenly, --"do you recall last year that some Indians drove aSurvey group out of Apache Canyon and that young Rice was killed andall his data lost?"

"Certainly, I recall it. I knew Rice. "

Enoch nodded. "Do you recall that a number of newspapers took occasionthen to sneer at government attempts to usurp State and commercialfunctions?"

"Now you speak of it, I do remember. The Brown papers were especiallynasty. "

"Yes, " agreed Enoch. "Now listen closely, Abbott. When my suspicionshad been sufficiently roused, I went to the Secretary of State, and helaughed at me. Then, the Mexico trouble began to come to a head and Itold the President what I feared. This was after I'd had that letterfrom Juan Cadiz. Last night, as you know, I had a session with Cadizand one of his bandit friends. Here is what I drew from them. "

Enoch reviewed rapidly his conversation of the night before. Abbottlistened with snapping eyes. 

"It looks as if Secretary Fowler would have to stop laughing, " he said, when Enoch had finished. 

"Abbott, " Enoch's voice was very low, "John Fowler, the Secretary ofState, always will laugh at it. "

"Why?" asked Charley. 

"I don't know, " replied Enoch. 

The two men stared at each other for a long moment. Then Abbott said, "I've known for a long time that he was jealous of you, politically. Also he may own Mexican oil stock or he may merely wish to have thepolitical backing of the Brown newspapers. "

"Can you think of any method of persuading him that I am not apolitical rival, that I merely want to go to the Senate, when I havefinished here?" asked Enoch earnestly. 

Abbott shook his head, "He might be convinced that you want to be aSenator. But he's a clever man. And even a fool knows that you areAmerica's man on horseback. " Charley's voice rose a little. "Why, even in this rotten, cynical city of Washington, they believe in you, they feel that you are the man of destiny. Mr. Fowler is just cleverenough to be jealous of you. "

A look of sadness came into Enoch's keen gaze. "I wonder if the gameis worth it, after all, " murmured he. "Abbott, I'd swap it all for--"he stopped abruptly, looked broodingly out of the window, then said, "Charley, my boy, why are you going into political life?"

The younger man's eyes deepened and he cleared his throat. "A fewyears ago, if I'd answered that question truthfully, I'd have said forpersonal aggrandizement! But my intimate association with you, Mr. Huntingdon, has given me a different ideal. I'm going into politics toserve this country in the best way I can. "

"Thanks, Abbott, " said Enoch. "I've been wanting to say to you forsome time that I thought you had served your apprenticeship as asecretary. How would you like an appointment as a specialinvestigator?"

Charley shook his head. "As long as you are Secretary of the Interior, I prefer this job; not only because of my personal feeling for you butbecause I can learn more here about the way a clean political game canbe played than I can anywhere else. "

"All right, Abbott! I'm more than grateful and more than satisfied athaving you with me. See if I can have a conference with first theSecretary of State and then the President. Now let me finish thisreport before the Attorney General arrives. "

Enoch's conference with Secretary Fowler was inconclusive. TheSecretary of State chose to take a humorous attitude toward what hetermed the Secretary of the Interior's midnight conference withbandits. Enoch laughed with him and then departed for his audiencewith the chief executive. 

The President listened soberly. When the report was finished, hescowled. 

"What attitude does Mr. Fowler take in this?"

"He thinks I'm making mountains out of mole hills. It seems to me, Mr. President, that I must be extremely careful not to encroach on thedomain of the Secretary of State. My idea is very deliberately to pushthe work of the Geological Survey and to follow very carefully anyactivities against its work. "

"All very well, of course, " agreed the President, "but what of the biggame back of it all--what's the means of fighting that?"

"Publicity, " replied Enoch briefly. 

"Exactly!" exclaimed the President, "There are other newspapers. Browndoes not own them all. As fast as evidence is produced, let the storybe told. By Jove, if this war talk grows much more menacing, Huntingdon, I think I'll ask you to go across the country and make afew speeches, --on the Geological Survey!"

"I'm willing!" replied Enoch, with a little sigh. 

The President looked at him keenly. "Huntingdon, we're working you toohard! You look tired. I try not to overload you, but--"

"But you are so overloaded yourself that you have to shift some of theload, " said Enoch, with a smile. "I'm not seriously tired, Mr. President. "

"I hope not, old man. By the way, what did you think of Miss Allenyesterday?"

"I thought her a very interesting young woman, " replied Enoch. 

"My heavens, man!" exclaimed the chief executive. "What do you want!Why, Diana Allen is as rare as--as a great poem. Look here, Huntingdon, you make a mistake to cut all women out of your life. It'snot normal. "

"Perhaps not, " agreed Enoch briefly. "I would be very glad, " he added, as if fearing that he had been too abrupt, "I would be very glad to seemore of Miss Allen. "

"You ought to make a great effort to do, " said the President. "Keep meinformed on this Mexican matter, please, and take care of yourself, myboy. Good-by, Mr. Secretary. Think seriously of a speaking tour, won't you?"

"I will, " replied Enoch obediently, as he left the room. 

The remainder of the day was crowded to the utmost. It was not untilmidnight that Enoch achieved a free moment. This was when in theprivacy of his own room Jonas had bidden him a final good night. Enochdid not open his journal. Instead he scrawled a letter. 

"Dear Miss Allen: After deliberating on the matter a somewhat shortertime, I'll admit, than you suggested, but still having deliberated onit, I have decided that friendship is an art that needs attention andstudy. Will you not dine with me to-morrow, or rather, this evening, at the Ashton, at eight o'clock? Jonas, who will bring you this, canbring your answer. Sincerely yours, Enoch Huntingdon. "

He gave the note to Jonas the next morning. Jonas' black eyes, when hesaw the superscription, nearly started from their sockets: for duringall the years of his service with Enoch, he never had carried a note toa woman. It was mid-morning when he tip-toed to the Secretary's deskand laid a letter on it. Enoch was in conference at the time with BillTimmins, perhaps the foremost newspaper correspondent in America. Heexcused himself for a moment and opened the envelope. 

"Dear Mr. Secretary: Thank you, yes. Sincerely, Diana Allen. "

He slipped the letter into his breast pocket and went on with theinterview, his face as somber as ever. But all that day it seemed tothe watchful Jonas that the Secretary seemed less tired than he hadbeen for weeks. 

There was a little balcony at the Ashton, just big enough for a tablefor two, and shielded from the view of the main dining-room by palms. It was set well out from the second floor, overlooking a quiet park. Enoch was in the habit of dining here with various men with whom hewished semi-privacy yet whom he did not care to entertain at his ownhome. 

Diana was more than charmed by the arrangement. The corners of hermouth deepened as if she were also amused, but Enoch, engrossed inseating her where the light exactly suited him, did not note thecurving lips. He did not know much about women's dress, but he likedDiana's soft white gown, and the curious turquoise necklace she woreinterested him. He asked her about it. 

"Na-che gave it to me, " she said. "It was her mother's. It has nospecial significance beyond the fact that the workmanship is very fineand that the tracery on the silver means joy. "

"Joy? What sort of joy?" asked Enoch. 

"Is there more than one sort?" countered Diana, in the bantering voicethat Enoch always fancied was half tender. 

"Oh, yes!" replied the Secretary. "There's joy in work, play, friends. There are as many kinds of joy as there are kinds of sorrow. Onlysorrow is so much more persistent than joy! A sorrow can stay by oneforever. But joys pass. They are always short lived. "

"Joy in work does not pass, Mr. Secretary, " said Diana. 

Enoch laid down his spoon. "Please, Miss Allen, don't Mr. Secretary meany more. "

Diana merely smiled. "Granted that one has a real friend, I believejoy in friendship is permanent, " she went on. 

"I hope you're right, " said Enoch quietly. "We'll see, you and I. "

Diana did not reply. She was, perhaps, a little troubled by Enoch'scalm and persistent declaration of principles. It is not easy for awoman even of Diana's poise and simple sincerity to keep in order agentleman as distinguished and as courteous and as obviously in earnestas Enoch. 

Finally, "Do you mind talking your own shop, Mr. Huntingdon?" she asked. 

"Not at all, " replied Enoch eagerly. "Is there some aspect of my workthat interests you?"

"I imagine that all of it would, " said Diana. "But I was not thinkingof your work as a Cabinet Official. I was thinking of you as PoliceCommissioner of New York. "

Enoch looked surprised. 

"Father wrote to me the other day, " Diana went on, "and asked me tosend him the collection of your speeches. I bought it at Brentano'sand I don't mind telling you that it pinched the Johnstown lunches agood bit to do so, but it was worth it, for I read the book beforemailing it. "

"You're not hinting that I ought to reimburse you, are you?" demandedEnoch, with a delighted chuckle. 

"Well, no--we'll consider that the luncheon and this dinner square theJohnstown pinching, perhaps a trifle more. What I wanted to say wasthat it struck me as worth comment that after you ceased being PoliceCommissioner, you never again talked of the impoverished boyhood ofAmerica. And yet you were a very successful Commissioner, were younot?"

Enoch looked from Diana out over the balcony rail to the fountain thattwinkled in the little park. 

"One of the most difficult things in public life, " he said slowly, "isto hew straight to the line one laid out at the beginning. "

"I should think, " Diana suggested, "that the difficulty would depend onwhat the line was. A man who goes into politics to make himself rich, for example, might easily stick to his original purpose. "

"Exactly! But money of itself never interested me!" Here Enochstopped with a quick breath. There flashed across his inward visionthe picture of a boy in Luigi's second story, throwing dice withpassionate intensity. Enoch took a long sip of water, then went on. "I wanted to be Police Commissioner of New York because I wanted tomake it impossible for other boys to have a boyhood like mine. I don'tmean that, quite literally, I thought one man or one generation couldaccomplish the feat. But I did truly think I could make a beginning. Miss Allen, in spite of the beautiful fights I had, in spite of thespectacular clean-ups we made, I did nothing for the boys that mysuccessor did not wipe out with a single stroke of his pen, his firstweek in office. "

Diana drew a long breath. "I wonder why, " she said. 

"I think that lack of imagination, poor memory, personal selfishness, is the answer. There is nothing people forget quite so quickly as thegriefs of their own childhood. There is nothing more difficult forpeople to imagine than how things affect a child's mind. And yet, nothing is so important in America to-day as the right kind ofeducation for boys. It has not been found as yet. "

"Have you a theory about it?" asked Diana. 

"Yes, I have. Have you?"

Diana nodded. "I don't think boys and girls should be educated fromthe same angle. "

"No? Why not?" Enoch's blue eyes were eager. 

"Wandering about the desert among the Indians, one has leisure to thinkand to observe the workings of life under frank and simple conditions. It has seemed to me that the boy approaches life from an entirelydifferent direction from a girl and that our system of education shouldrecognize that. Both are primarily guided by sex, their femaleness ortheir maleness is always their impelling force. I'm talking now on thematter of the spiritual and moral training, not book education. "

"Why not include the mental training? I think you'd be quite right indoing so. "

"Perhaps so, " replied Diana. 

They were silent for a moment, then Enoch said, with a quiet vehemence, "Some day they'll dare to defy the creeds and put God into the publicschools. I don't know about girls, but, Miss Allen, the growing boysneed Him, more than they need a father. Something to cling to, something high and noble and permanent while sex with all its thousandvaried impulses flagellates them! Something to go to with thoseexquisite, generous fancies that even the worst boy has and that eventhe best boy will not share even with the best mother. The homes todaydon't have God in them. The churches with their hide-bound creedsfrighten away most men. Think, Miss Allen, think of the travesty ofour great educational system which ignores the two great facts of theuniverse, God and sex. "

"You've never put any of this into your public utterances. "

"No, " replied Enoch, "I've been saving it for you, " and he looked ather with a quiet smile. 

Diana could but smile in return. 

"And so, " said Enoch, "returning to the answer to your originalquestion, I have found it hard to keep to any sort of fine idealism, partly because of my own inward struggles and partly because politicsis a vile game anyhow. "

"We Americans, " Diana lifted her chin and looked into Enoch's eyes verydirectly, "feel that at least one politician has played a clean game. It is a very great privilege for me to know you, Mr. Huntingdon. "

"Miss Allen, " half whispered Enoch, "if you really knew me, with all myinward devils and my half-achieved dreams, you would realize that it'sno privilege at all. Nevertheless, I wish that you did know all aboutme. It would make me feel that the friendship which we are formingcould stand even 'the wreckful siege of battering days'!"

"There was a man who understood friendships!" said Diana quickly. "Hesaid in his sonnets all that could be said about it. "

"Now don't disappoint me by agreeing with the idiots who try to provethat Shakespeare wrote the sonnets to a man!" cried Enoch. "Only awoman could have brought forth that beauty of song. "

Diana rose nobly to do battle. "What nonsense, Mr. Huntingdon! As ifa man like Shakespeare--" She paused as if struck by a sudden thought. "That's a curious attitude for a notorious woman hater to take, Mr. Secretary. "

Enoch laid down his fork. "Do you think I'm a woman hater, MissAllen?" looking steadily into Diana's eyes. 

"I didn't mean to be so personal. Just like a woman!" sighed Diana. 

"But do you think I'm a woman hater?" insisted Enoch. 

Diana looked up earnestly. "Please, Mr. Huntingdon, if our friendshipis to ripen, you must not force it. "

Enoch's face grew suddenly white. There swept over him with bitterrealism a conception of the falseness of the position into which he waspermitting himself to drift. He answered his own question with anattempted lightness of tone. 

"I can never marry, but I don't hate women. "

Diana's chin lifted and Enoch leaned forward quickly. All the aplombwon through years of suffering and experience deserted him. For themoment he was again the boy in the bottom of the Grand Canyon. 

"Oh, I am stupid, but let me explain. I want you to--"

"Please don't!" said Diana coldly. "I need no warning, Mr. Huntingdon. "

"Oh, my dear Miss Allen, you must not be offended! What can I say?"

"You might ask me if it's not time to go home, " suggested Diana, coolly. "You mustn't forget that I'm a wage earner. "

Enoch bit his lip and turned to sign the check. Then he followed Dianato the door. Here they came upon the Indian Commissioner and his wife, and all opportunity for explanations was gone for the two invitedthemselves to walk along to Diana's rooming place. Enoch went up thesteps with Diana, however, and asked her tensely:

"Will you lunch with me to-morrow, Miss Allen, that I may explainmyself?"

"Thank you, no. I shall be very busy to-morrow, Mr. Huntingdon. "

"Let me call here in the evening, then. "

"I'd rather you wouldn't, " answered the girl, coldly. "Good night, Mr. Secretary, " and she was gone. 

Enoch stood as if struck dumb, then he made an excuse to Mr. And Mrs. Watkins, and started homeward. The night was stifling. When Jonas lethim into the house, his collar was limp and his hair lay wet on hisforehead. 

"I'm going to New York to-night, Jonas, " he said huskily. 

"What's happened, boss?" asked Jonas breathlessly, as he followed Enochup the stairs. 

"Nothing! I'm going to give myself a day's rest. Give me something totravel in, " pulling off his coat. 

"I'm going with you, boss, " not stirring, his black eyes rolling. 

"No, I'm going alone, Jonas. Here, I'll pack my own grip. You go onout. " This in a voice that sent Jonas, however reluctantly, into thehall, where he walked aimlessly up and down, wringing his hands. 

"He ain't been as bad as this in years, " he muttered. "I wonder whatshe did to him!"

Enoch came out of his room shortly. "Tell every one I'm in New York, Jonas, " he said, and was gone. 

But Enoch did not go to New York. There was, he found on reaching thestation, no train for an hour. He checked his suitcase, and thewatching Jonas followed him out into the dark streets. He knew exactlywhither the boss was heading, and when Enoch had been admitted into abrick house on a quiet street not a stone's throw from the station, Jonas entered nimbly through the basement. 

He had a short conference with a colored man in the kitchen, then hewent up to the second floor and sat down in a dark corner of the hallwhere he could keep an eye on all who entered the rear room. Welldressed men came and went from the room all night. It was nearing sixo'clock in the morning when Jonas stopped a waiter who was carrying ina tray of coffee. 

"How many's there now?" he demanded. 

"Only four, " replied the waiter. "That red-headed guy's winning theshirts off their backs. I've seen this kind of a game before. It'sgood for another day. "

"Are any of 'em drinking?" asked Jonas. 

"Nothing but coffee. Lord, I'm near dead!"

"Let me take that tray in for you. I want to get word to my boss. "

The waiter nodded and, sinking into Jonas' chair, closed his eyes. 

Jonas carried the tray into a handsome, smoke filled room, where fourmen with intent faces were gathered around a card table. Enoch, in hisshirt sleeves, was dealing as Jonas set a steaming cup at his elbow. Perhaps the intensity of the colored man's gaze distracted Enoch'sattention for a moment from the cards. He looked up and when he metJonas' eyes he deliberately laid down the deck, rose, took Jonas by thearm and led him to the door. 

"Don't try this again, Jonas, " he said, and he closed the door afterhis steward. 

Once more Jonas took up his vigil. He left his chair at nine o'clockto telephone Charley Abbott that the Secretary had gone to New York, then he returned to his place. Noon came, afternoon waned. As duskdrew on again, Jonas went once more to the telephone. 

"That you, Miss Allen? . . . This is Jonas. . . . Yes, ma'am, I'mwell, but the boss is in a dangerous condition. . . . Yes, ma'am, Ithought you'd feel bad because you see, it's your fault. . . . No, ma'am, I can't explain over the telephone, but if you'll come to thestation and meet me at the news-stand on the corner, I'll tellyou. . . . Miss Allen, for God's sake, just trust me and come along. Come now, in a cab, and I'll pay for it. . . . Thank you! Thank you, ma'am! Thank you!"

He banged up the receiver and flew out the basement door. When hereached the news-stand, he stood with his hands twitching, talking tohimself for a half hour before Diana appeared. She walked up to him asdirectly as a man would have done. 

"What's happened, Jonas?"

"You and the boss must have quarreled last night. When anythingstrikes the boss deep, he wants to gamble. Of late years he's mostlyfought it off, but once in a while it gets him. He's been at it sincelast night over yonder, and for the first time in years I can't doanything with him. And if it gets out, you know, Miss Allen, he'sruined. I don't dast to leave him long, that's why I got you to comehere. "

Diana's chin lifted. "Do you mean to tell me that a man of Mr. Huntingdon's reputation and ability, still stoops to that sort ofthing?"

"Stoop! What do you mean, stoop? O Lord, I thought, seeing he setsthe world by you, that you was different from the run of women andwould understand. " Jonas twisted his brown hands together. 

"Understand what?" asked Diana, her great eyes fastened on Jonas withpity and scorn struggling in them. 

"Understand what it means to him. How it's like a conjur that Luigiwished on him when he was a little boy. How he's pulled himself awayfrom it and he didn't have anybody on earth to help him till I comealong. What do you women folks know about how a strong man like himfights Satan? I've seen him walk the floor all night and win, and I'veseen him after he's given in, suffer sorrow and hate of himself like aman the Almighty's forgot. That's why he's so good, because he sinsand then suffers for it. "

As Jonas' husky voice subsided, a sudden gleam of tears shone inDiana's eyes. 

"I'll send him a note, Jonas, and wait here for the answer. If thatdoesn't bring him, I'll go after him myself. "

"The note'll bring him, " said Jonas, "and he'll give me thunder fortelling. "

"Let me have a pencil and get me some paper from the news-stand. " Shewrote rapidly. 

"Dear Mr. Huntingdon:

"I must see you at once on urgent business. I am in the railwaystation. Could you come to me here?

"DIANA ALLEN. "

Jonas all but snatched the note and dashed away. Enoch was scowling atthe cards before him when Jonas thrust the note into his hand. Enochstared at the address, laid the cards down slowly, and read the note. 

"All right, gentlemen, " he said quietly. "I've had my fun! Goodnight!" He took his hat from Jonas and strode out of the room. He didnot speak as the two walked rapidly to the station. Diana was standingby a cab near the main entrance. 

"This is good of you, Mr. Huntingdon, " she said gravely, shaking hands. "Thank you, Jonas!" She entered the cab and Enoch followed her. 

"Let me have your suitcase check, boss. " Jonas held out a black handthat still shook a little. 

"I'll get Miss Allen to drop me at the house, Jonas, " said Enoch. 

Jonas nodded and heaved a great sigh as the cab started off. 

"How did you come to do it?" asked Enoch, looking strangely at Diana. 

"I heard you were in New York, Mr. Secretary. Jonas called me up!"

"Jonas had no business to do so. I am humiliated beyond words!"

Enoch spoke with a dreary sort of hopelessness. 

"I thought we were friends, " said Diana calmly. "It isn't as if wehadn't known each other and all about each other since childhood. Youmust not say a word against Jonas. "

"How could I? He is my guardian angel, " said Enoch. 

Diana went on still in the commonplace tone of the tea table. "I wantto apologize for my fit of temper, Mr. Secretary. I was very stupidand I'm thoroughly ashamed of myself. You may tell me anything youplease!"

"I don't deserve it!" Enoch spoke abruptly. 

Diana's voice suddenly deepened and softened. "Ah, but you do deserveit, dear Mr. Secretary. You deserve all that grateful citizens can dofor you, and even then we cannot expect to discharge our full debt toyou. Here's my house. Perhaps when you're not too busy, you'll ask meto dine again with you. "

Enoch did not reply. He stood with bared head while she ran up thesteps. Then he reentered the cab and was driven home. But it was nottill two weeks later that Enoch sent a note to Diana, asking her totake dinner with him. Even his diary during that period showed norecord of his inward flagellations. He did not receive an answer untillate in the afternoon. 

It had been an exceptionally hectic day. Enoch had been summonedbefore the Senate Committee on appropriations, and with the director ofthe Reclamation Service had endured a grilling that had had someaspects of the third degree. 

After some two hours of it the Director had lost his temper. 

"Gentlemen!" he had cried, "treat me as if I were a common thief, attempting to loot the public funds, if you find satisfaction in it, but at least do not humiliate the Secretary of the Interior in the samemanner!"

"These people can't humiliate me, Whipple. " Enoch had spoken quietly. 

The blow had struck home and the Senator who was acting as chairman hadapologized. 

Enoch had nodded. "I know! You are in the position of having toappropriate funds for the carrying on of a highly specialized businessabout which you are utterly ignorant. You are uneasy and you mistakeimpertinent questioning for keen investigation. "

"I move we adjourn until to-morrow, " a member had said hastily. Themotion had carried and Enoch, as though it was already past sixo'clock, had started for his office, Whipple accompanying him. 

"After all this howl over the proposed Paloma Dam, " said Whipple, "wemay not be able to build it. There's a bunch of Mexicans both this andthe other side of the border that have made serious trouble with thepreliminary survey, and I have the feeling that there is some powerbehind that wants to start something. "

"Is that so?" asked Enoch with interest. "Come in and talk to me a fewmoments about it. "

Whipple followed to the Secretary's office. A sealed letter was lyingon the desk. Enoch opened it, and read it without ceremony. 

"Dear Mr. Huntingdon: I find that some old friends are starting for theGrand Canyon this afternoon and they have given me an opportunity tomake one of their party. I have been able to arrange my work to Mr. Watkins' satisfaction and so, I'm off. I want to thank you very deeplyfor the wonderful openings you have made for me and for the very greatpersonal kindness you have shown me. When I return in the winter, Ihope I may see you again. 

"Very sincerely yours, "DIANA ALLEN. "

Enoch folded the note and slipped it into his pocket, then he looked atthe waiting Director. "I hope you'll excuse me, Whipple, but this issomething to which I must give my personal attention, " and without aword further, he put on his hat and walked out of the office. He didnot go to his waiting carriage but, leaving the building by anotherdoor, he walked quickly to the drug store on the corner and, entering atelephone booth, called the railroad station. The train connecting forthe Southwest had left an hour before. Enoch hung up the receiver andwalked out to the curb, scowling and striking his walking stick againsthis trouser leg. Finally he got aboard a trolley. 

It was a little after three o'clock in the morning when Jonas locatedhim. Enoch was leaning against the wall watching the roulette table. 

"Good evening, boss, " said Jonas. 

Enoch looked round at him. "That you, Jonas? I haven't touched a cardor a dollar this evening, Jonas. "

Jonas, who had already ascertained this from the owner of the gamblinghouse, nodded. 

"Have you had your supper yet, boss?"

Enoch hesitated, thinking heavily. "Why, no, Jonas, I guess not. "Then he added irritably, "A man must rest, Jonas. I can't slave allthe time. "

"Sure!" returned the colored man, holding his trembling hands behindhim. "But how come you to think this was rest, boss? You better comeback now and let me fix you a bite to eat. "

"Jonas, what's the use? Who on earth but you cares what I do? What'sthe use?"

"Miss Diana Allen, " said Jonas softly, "she told Mr. Abbott this noon, at lunch, that you was one of the great men of this country and that hewas a lucky dog to spend all his time with you. "

Enoch stood, his arms folded on his chest, his massive head bowed. Finally he said, "All right, old man, I'll try again. But I'm lonely, Jonas, lonely beyond words, and all the greatness in the world, Jonas, can't fill an empty heart. "

"I know it, boss! I know it!" said Jonas huskily, as he led the way tothe street. There, Enoch insisted on walking the three or four mileshome. 

"All right, " agreed Jonas, cheerfully. "I guess ghosteses don't mindtravel, and that's all I am, just a ghost. "

Enoch stopped abruptly, put a hand on Jonas' shoulder and hailed apassing night prowler. Once in the cab, Jonas said:

"The White House done called you twice to-night. Mr. Secretary. Itold 'em you'd call first thing in the morning. "

"Thanks!" replied Enoch briefly. 

The house was silent when they reached it. Jonas never employedservants who could not sleep in their own homes. By the time theSecretary was ready for bed, Jonas appeared with a tray, Enoch silentlyand obediently ate and then turned in. 

The White House called before the Secretary had finished breakfast. 

"You saw last night's papers?" asked the President. 

"No! I'm sorry. I--I took a rest last evening. "

"I'm glad you did. Well, I think you'd better plan--come up here, willyou, at once? I won't try to talk to you over the telephone. "

Enoch, in the carriage, glanced over the paper. The Brown paper of theevening before contained a nasty little story of innuendo about thework of the Survey near Paloma. The morning paper declared in glaringheadlines that the President by his pacifist policy toward Mexico wastainting the nation's honor and that it would shortly bring England, France and Germany about our ears. 

The President was still at breakfast when Enoch was shown in to him. The chief executive insisted that Enoch have a cup of coffee. 

"You don't look to me, my boy, like a man who had enjoyed his rest. And I'm going to ask you to add to your burdens. Could you leave nextweek for a speaking trip?"

The tired lines around Enoch's mouth deepened. "Yes, Mr. President. Have you a general route planned?"

"Yes, New York, Chicago, Denver, San Francisco and in between as can bearranged. Take two months to it. "

"I shall be glad to be free of office routine for a while, " said Enoch. He sipped his coffee slowly, then rose as he added:

"I shall stick strictly to the work of my department, Mr. President, inthe speech making. "

"Oh! Absolutely! And let me be of any help to you I may. "

"Thank you, " Enoch smiled a little grimly. "You might come along andsupply records for the phonograph. "

"By Jove, I would if it were necessary!" said the President. 

Jonas and Abbott each was perfect in his own line. In five days' timeEnoch was aboard the private car, with such paraphernalia as was neededfor carrying on office work en route. The itinerary had been arrangedto the last detail. A few carefully chosen newspaper correspondentswere aboard and one hot September evening, a train with the Secretary'scar hitched to it, pulled out of Washington. 

Of Enoch's speeches on that trip little need be said here. Neverbefore had he spoken with such fire and with such simple eloquence. The group of speeches he made are familiar now to every schoolboy. Onecannot read them to-day without realizing that the Secretary was tryingas never before to interpret for the public his own ideals of serviceto the common need. He seemed to Abbott and to the newspaper men whofor six weeks were so intimately associated with him to drawinspiration and information from the free air. And there was to all ofhis speeches an almost wistful persuasiveness, as if, Abbott said, hepicked one listener in each audience, each night, and sought anew tomake him feel the insidious peril to the nation's soul that lay inpersonal complacency and indifference to the nation's spiritualwelfare. Only Jonas, struggling to induce the Secretary to take adecent amount of sleep, nodded wisely to himself. He knew that Enochmade each speech to a lovely, tender face, that no man who saw everforgot. 

Little by little, the newspapers of the country began to take Enoch'spoint of view. They not only gave his speeches in full, but theycommented on them editorially, at great length, and with the exceptionof the Brown papers, favorably. By the time Enoch was on his way home, with but two weeks more of speech making before him, it looked asthough the thought of war with Mexico had been definitely quashed. AndEnoch was tired to the very marrow of his bones. 

But the Brown papers were not finished. One evening, in Arizona, shortly after the train had pulled out of a station, Enoch asked forthe newspapers that had been brought aboard from the desert city. Charley Abbott, who had been with the newspaper men on the observationplatform for an hour or so, answered the Secretary's request with acuriously distraught manner. 

"I--that is--Mr. Huntingdon, Jonas says you slept worse than ever lastnight. Why not save the papers till morning and try to sleep now?"

Enoch looked at his secretary keenly. "Picked up some Brown papershere, eh! Nothing that bunch can say can hurt me, old man. "

"Don't you ever think it!" exclaimed Charley vehemently. "You might aswell say you were immune to rattler bites, Mr. Huntingdon--" here hisvoice broke. 

"Look here, Abbott, " said Enoch, "if it's bad, I've got to fight it, haven't I?"

"But this sort of thing, a man--" Charley suddenly steadied himself. "Mr. Secretary, they've put some nasty personal lies about you in thepaper. The country at large and all of us who know you, scorn the liesas much as they do Brown. In a day or so, it we ignore them, the stuffwill have been forgotten. I beg of you, don't read any newspapersuntil I tell you all's clear. "

Enoch smiled. "Why, my dear old chap, I've weathered all sorts of mudslinging!"

"But never this particular brand, " insisted Charley. 

"Let's have the papers, Abbott. I'm not afraid of anything Brown cansay. "

Charley grimly handed the papers to the Secretary and returned to theobservation platform. 

A reporter had seen Enoch in the gambling house on the evening ofDiana's departure for the Canyon. He had learned something from thegambling house keeper of the Secretary's several trips there. Thereporter had then, with devilish ingenuity, followed Enoch back toMinetta Lane, where he had found Luigi. Then followed eight or tenparagraphs in Luigi's own words, giving an account of Enoch and Enoch'smother. The whole story was given with a deadly simplicity, that itseemed to the Secretary must carry conviction with it. 

As Enoch had told Abbott, he had weathered much political mud slinging, but even his worst political enemies had spared him this. Hisadherents had made much of the fact that Enoch was slum bred and selfmade. That was the sort of story which the inherent democracy ofAmerica loved. But the Brown account made of Enoch a creature of theunderworld, who still loved his early haunts and returned to them inall their vileness. And in all the years of his political life, nonewspaper but this had ever mentioned Enoch's mother. The tale closedwith a comment on the fact that Enoch, who shunned all women, had beenseen several times in Washington giving marked attention to Miss DianaAllen. Diana and her work were fully identified. 

Enoch read the account to the last word, a flush of agonizinghumiliation deepening on his face as he did so. When he had finished, he doubled the paper carefully, and laid it on the chair next to his. Then he lighted a cigarette and sat with folded arms, unseeing eyes onthe newspaper. When Jonas came in an hour later, the cigarette, unsmoked, was cold between the Secretary's lips. With trembling hands, the colored man picked up the paper and with unbelievable venomgleaming in his black eyes, he carried it to the rear door, spat uponit and flung it out into the desert night. Then he returned to Enoch. 

"Mr. Secretary, " he said huskily, "let me take your keys. "

Mechanically Enoch obeyed. Jonas selected a small key from the bunchand, opening a large leather portfolio, he took out the black diary. This he placed carefully on the folding table which stood at Enoch'selbow. Then he started toward the door. 

The Secretary did not look up. Nor did he heed the colloquy which tookplace at the door between Jonas and Abbott. 

"How is he, Jonas?"

"I ain't asked him. He's a sick man. "

"God! Let me come in, Jonas. "

"No, sir, you ain't! How come you think you kin talk to him when evenI don't dast to?"

"But he mustn't be alone, Jonas. "

"He ain't alone. I left him with his Bible. Ain't nobody going totrouble him this night. "

"I didn't know he read the Bible that way. " Abbott's voice wasdoubtful. 

"I don't mean the regular Lord's Bible. It's a book he's been writingfor years and he always turns to it when he's in trouble. I don't knownothing about it. What he don't want me to know, I don't know, " andJonas slammed the door behind him. 

It was late when Enoch suddenly straightened himself up and, with anair of resolution, opened the black book. He uncapped his fountain penand wrote:

"Diana, how could I know, how could I dream that such a thing couldhappen to you, through me! You must never come back to Washington. Perhaps they will forget. As for myself, I can't seem to think clearlyjust what I must do. I am so very tired. One thing is certain, younever must see me again. For one wild moment the desire to return tothe Canyon, now I am in its neighborhood overwhelmed me. I decided togo up there and see if I could find the peace that I found in myboyhood. Then I realized that you were at home, that all the worldwould see me go down Bright Angel, and I gave up the idea. Butsomehow, I must find rest, before I return to Washington. Oh, Diana, Diana!"

It was midnight when Enoch finally lay down in his berth. To Jonas'delight, he fell asleep almost immediately, and the faithful steward, after reporting to the anxious group on the platform, was soon asleephimself. 

But it was not one o'clock when the Secretary awoke. The train wasrumbling slowly, and he looked from the window. Only the moonlit flatsof the desert were to be seen. Enoch rose with sudden energy anddressed himself. He chucked his toilet case, with his diary and achange of underwear, into a satchel, and scrawled a note to Abbott:

"Dear Charley: I'm slipping off into the desert for a little rest. You'll hear from me when I feel better. Give out that I'm sick--Iam--and cancel the few speaking engagements left. Tell Jonas he is notto worry. Yours, E. H. "

He sealed this note, then he pulled on a soft hat and, as the trainstopped at a water tank, he slipped off the platform and stood in theshadow of an old shed. It seemed to him a long time before the engine, with violent puffing and jolting, started the long train on again. Butfinally the tail lights disappeared in the distance and Enoch was alonein the desert. For a few moments he stood beside the track, drawing indeep breaths of the warm night air. Then he started slowly westwardalong the railway tracks. He had noted a cluster of adobe houses amile or so back, and toward these he was headed. In spite of the agonyof the blow he had sustained Enoch, gazing from the silver flood of thedesert, to the silver arch of the heavens, was conscious of a thrill ofexcitement and not unpleasant anticipation. Somewhere, somehow, in thedesert, he would find peace and sufficient spiritual strength tosustain him when once more he faced Washington and the world. 

BOOK III

THE ENCHANTED CANYON

CHAPTER VII

THE DESERT

"If I had a son, I would teach him obedience as heaven's first law, forso only can a man be trained to obey his own better self. "--_Enoch'sDiary_. 

The Secretary had no intention of waking the strange little village atnight. He thought that, once he had relocated it, he would wait untildawn before rousing any one. But he had not counted on the villagedogs. These set up such an outcry that, while Enoch leaned quietlyagainst a rude corral fence waiting for the hullaballoo to cease, thedoor of the house nearest opened, and a man came out. He stood for amoment very deliberately staring at the Secretary, whose polite "Goodmorning" could not be heard above the dogs' uproar. 

Enoch, with a half grin, dropped his satchel and held up both hands. The man, half smiling in response, kicked and cursed the dogs intosilence. Then he approached Enoch. He was a small, swarthy chap, cladin overalls and an undershirt. 

"You're a Pueblo Indian?" asked the Secretary. 

The Indian nodded. "What you want?"

"I want to buy a horse. "

"Where you come from?"

"Off that train that went through a while ago. "

"This not Ash Fork, " said the Indian. "You make mistake. Ash Forkthat way, " jerking his thumb westward. "You pass through Ash Fork. "

Enoch nodded. "You sell me a horse?"

"I rent you horse. You leave him at Hillers' in Ash Fork. I get him. "

"No, I want to buy a horse. Now I'm in the desert I guess I'll see alittle of it. Maybe I'll ride up that way, " waving a careless armtoward the north. "Maybe you'll sell me some camping things, blanketsand a coffee pot. "

"All right, " said the Indian. "When you want 'em?"

"Now, if I can get them. "

"All right! I fix 'em. "

He spoke to one of the other Indians who were sticking curious headsout of black doorways. In an incredibly short time Enoch was thepossessor of a thin, muscular pony, well saddled, two blankets, one anArmy, the other a Navajo, a frying pan, a coffee pot, a canteen andenough flour, bacon and coffee to see him through the day. He alsoachieved possession of a blue flannel shirt and a pair of overalls. Hepaid without question the price asked by the Indians. Dawn was justbreaking when he mounted his horse. 

"Where does that trail lead?" he asked, pointing to one that startednorth from the corral. 

"To Eagle Springs, five miles, " answered the Indian. 

"And after that?"

"East to Allman's ranch, north to Navajo camp. "

"Thanks, " said Enoch. "Good-by!" and he turned his pony to the trail. 

The country became rough and broken almost at once. The trail led upand down through draws and arroyos. There was little verdure savecactus and, when the sun was fully up, Enoch began to realize that astrenuous day was before him. The spring boasted a pepper tree, alovely thing of delicate foliage, gazing at itself in the mirrored blueof the spring. Enoch allowed the horse to drink its fill, then heunrolled the blankets and clothing and dropped them into the waterbelow the little falls that gushed over the rocks, anchoring them withstones. After this, awkwardly, but recalling more and more clearly hiscamping lore, he prepared a crude breakfast. 

He sat long at this meal. His head felt a little light from the lackof sleep and he was physically weary. But he could not rest. For daysa jingling couplet had been running through his mind:

 "Rest is not quitting this busy career. Rest is the fitting of self to one's sphere. "

Enoch muttered this aloud, then smiled grimly to himself. 

"That's the idea!" he added. "There's a bad spot somewhere in myphilosophy that'll break me yet. Well, we'll see if I can locate it. "

The sun was climbing high and the shade of the pepper tree wasgrateful. The spring murmured for a few feet beyond the last quiveringshadow of the feathery leaves, then was swallowed abruptly by theburning sand. Enoch lifted his tired eyes. Far on every side lay theuneven, rock strewn desert floor, dotted with cactus and greasewood. To the east, vivid against the blue sky, rose a solitary mountain peak, a true purple in color, capped with snow. To the north, a green blackshadow was etched against the horizon. Except for the slight rustle ofthe pepper tree, the vague murmur of the water, the silence wascomplete. 

"It's not a calming atmosphere, " thought Enoch, "as I remember theCanyon to have been. It's feverish and restless. But I'll give it atry. For to-day, I'll not think. I'll concern myself entirely withgetting to this Navajo camp. First of all, I'll dry the blankets andclothing. "

He had pulled off his tweed coat some time before. Now he hung hisvest on the pepper tree and went about his laundry work. He drapedblankets and garments over the greasewood, then moved by a suddenimpulse, undressed himself and lay down under the tiny falls. Thewater, warmed by its languid trip through the pool above, wasrefreshing only in its cleansing quality. But Enoch, lying at lengthin the sand, the water trickling ceaselessly over him, felt his tautmuscles relax and a great desire to sleep came upon him. But he wasstill too close to the railroad and possible discovery to allow himselfthis luxury. By the time he had finished his bath the overalls weredry and the blue flannel shirt enough so for him to risk donning it. He rolled up his tweed suit and tied it to the saddle, fastened theblankets on in an awkward bunch, the cooking utensils danglinganywhere, the canteen suspended from the pommel. Then he smiled at hisreflection in the morning pool. 

The overalls, a faded brown, were patched and, of course, wrinkled anddrawn. The blue shirt was too small across the chest and Enoch foundit impossible to button the collar. The soft hat was in keeping withcostume, but the Oxford ties caused him to shake his head. 

"A dead give-away! I'll have to negotiate for something else when Ifind the Navajos. All right, Pablo, " to the horse, "we're off, " andthe pony started northward at a gentle canter. 

The desert was new to Enoch. Neither his Grand Canyon experience norhis hunting trips in Canada and Maine had prepared him for thehardships and privations of desert travel. Sitting at ease on theIndian pony, his hat well over his eyes, his pots and pans clanginggently behind him, he was entirely oblivious to the menace that laybehind the intriguing beauty of the burning horizon. He was givingsmall heed, too, to the details of the landscape about him. He wasconscious of the heat and of color, color that glowed and quivered andwas ever changing, and he told himself that when he was rested he wouldfind the beauty in the desert that Diana's pictures had said was there. But for now, he was conscious only of pain and shame, the old, oldshame that the Canyon had tried to teach him to forget. He wasdetermined that he would stay in the desert until this shame was goneforever. 

It was a fall and not a summer sun, so the pony was able to keep asteady pace until noon. Gradually the blur of green that Enoch hadobserved to the north had outlined itself more and more vividly, and atnoon he rode into the shade of a little grove of stunted pińon andjuniper. He could find no water but there was a coarse dried grassgrowing among the trees that the horse cropped eagerly. Enoch removedthe saddle and pack from Pablo, and spread his half dried blankets onthe ground. Then he threw himself down to rest before preparing hismidday meal. In a moment slumber overwhelmed him. 

He was wakened at dusk by the soft nuzzling of the pony against hisshoulder. 

"By Jove!" he exclaimed softly. "What a sleep!" He jumped to his feetand began to gather wood for his fire. He was stiff and hisunaccustomed fingers made awkward work of cooking, but he managed, after an hour's endeavor, to produce an unsavory meal, which hedevoured hungrily. He wiped out the frying pan with dried grass, repacked his outfit, and hung it on the horse. 

"It's up to you, Pablo, old boy, to get us to water, if you want anyto-night, " he said, as he mounted, and headed Pablo north on the trail. 

The pony was quite of Enoch's opinion, and he started forward at aneager trot. The trail was discernible enough in the starlight, butEnoch made no attempt to guide Pablo, who obviously knew the countrybetter than his new owner. 

Enoch had dreamed of Diana, and now, the reins drooping limply from hishands, he gave his mind over to thought of her. There was no one onearth whom he desired to see so much or so little as Diana! No oneelse to whom in his trouble his whole heart and mind turned with suchunutterable longing or such iron determination never to see again. Hehad no intention of searching for her in the desert. He knew that herwork would keep her in the Grand Canyon country. He knew that it wouldbe easy to avoid her. And, in spite of the fact that every fiber ofhis being yearned for her, he had not the slightest desire to see her!She would, he knew, see the Brown story. No matter what her father mayhave told her, the newspaper story, with its vile innuendoes concerninghis adult life, must sicken her. There was one peak of shame whichEnoch refused to achieve. He would not submit himself either toDiana's pity or to her scorn. But there was, he was finding, apeculiar solace in merely traveling in Diana's desert. He had completefaith that here he would find something of the sweet philosophy thathad written itself in Diana's face. 

For Enoch had not come to middle life without learning that on a man'sphilosophy rests his ultimate chance for happiness, or if not forhappiness, content. He knew that until he had sorted and separatedfrom each other the things that mattered and the things that did notmatter, he must be the restless plaything of circumstance. In hisyounger days he had been able to persuade himself that if his point ofview on his life work were right and sane, nothing else could hurt himtoo much. But now, easing himself to the pony's gentle trot andstaring into the exquisite blue silence of the desert night, he toldhimself that he had been a coward, and that his cowardice had made himshun the only real experience of life. 

Public service? Yes, it had been right for him to make that his lifework. And such service from such men as himself he knew to be the onlyvital necessity in a nation's life. But the one vital necessity in aman's spiritual life he had missed. If he had had this, he toldhimself, life's bludgeons, however searching, however devastating, hecould have laughed at. A man must have the thought of some goodwoman's love to sustain him. But for Enoch, the thought of any woman'slove, Luigi had tainted at its source. He had neither mother nor mate, and until he had evolved some philosophy which would reconcile him todoing without both, his days must be feverish and at the mercy of themob. 

Pablo broke into a canter and Enoch roused himself to observe a glow offire far ahead on the trail. His first impulse was to pull the horsein. He did not want either to be identified or to mingle with humanbeings. Then he smiled ruefully as he recalled the poverty of hisoutfit and he gave Pablo his way again. In a short time Pablo hadreached a spring at a little distance from the fire. As the horseburied his nose in the water, a man came up. Enoch judged by the longhair that he was an Indian. 

"Good evening, " said Enoch. "Can you tell me where I can buy somefood?"

"What kind of grub?" asked the Indian. 

"Anything I can cook and eat, " replied Enoch, dismounting stiffly. "What kind of camp is this?"

"Navajo. What your name?"

"Smith. What's yours?"

"John Red Sun. How much you pay for grub?"

"Depends on what kind and how much. Which way are you folks going?"

"We take horses to the railroad, " replied John Red Sun. "Me and mybrother, that's all, so we haven't got much grub. You come over by thefire. " Enoch dropped the reins over Pablo's head and followed to thefire. An Indian, who was boiling coffee at the little blaze, looked upwith interest in his black eyes. 

"Good evening, " said Enoch. "My name is Smith. "

The Indian nodded. "You like a cup of coffee? Just done. "

"Thanks, yes. " Enoch sat down gratefully by the fire. The desertnight was sharp. 

"Where you going, Mr. Smith?" asked John Red Sun. 

"I'm an Easterner, a tenderfoot, " replied Enoch. "I am very tired andI thought I'd like to rest in the desert. I was on the train when theidea struck me, and I got off just as I was. I bought the horse andthese clothes from an Indian. "

"Where you going?" repeated John's brother. "To see Injun villages?"

"No, I don't think so. I just want to be by myself. "

"It's foolish for tenderfoot to go alone in desert, " said John. "Youdon't know where to get water, get grub. "

"Oh, I'll pick it up as I go. "

The Indians stared at Enoch in the firelight. His ruddy hair wastumbled by the night wind. His face was deep lined with fatigue thatwas mental as well as physical. 

"You mustn't go alone in desert. " John Red Sun's voice was earnest. "You sleep here to-night. We'll talk it over. "

"You're very kind, " said Enoch. "I'll unsaddle my pony. Ought I tohobble him or stake him out?"

"I fix 'im. You drink your coffee. " The brother handed Enoch a tincup as he spoke. "Then you go to sleep. You mucho tired. "

Their hospitality touched Enoch. "You're very kind, " he repeatedgratefully, and he drank the vile coffee without blinking. Then, conscious that he was trembling with weariness, he rolled himself inhis blankets. But he slept only fitfully. The sand was hard, and hislong afternoon's nap had taken the edge from his appetite for sleep. He spent much of the night wondering what Washington, what thePresident was saying about him. And his sunburned face was new dyedwith his burning sense of shame. 

At the first peep of dawn, John Red Sun rose from the other side of thefire, raked the ashes and started a blaze going. Enoch discovered thatthe camp lay at the foot of a mesa, close in whose shadow a small herdof scraggly, unkempt ponies was staked. The two Indians moved aboutdeftly. They watered the horses, made coffee and cakes and friedbacon. By the time Enoch had shaved, a pie tin was waiting for him inthe ashes. 

"We sell you two days' grub, " said John. "One day north on this trailgo two men up to the Canyon, to placer mine. They're good men. I know'em many years. They got good outfit, but burros go slow, so you caneasy overtake 'em to-day. You tell 'im you want a job. Tell 'im JohnRed Sun send you. Then you get rested in the desert. Not good for anywhite man to go alone and do nothing in the desert. He'll go loco. See?"

Enoch suddenly smiled. "I do see, yes. And I must say you're mightykind and sensible. I'll do as you suggest. By the way, will you sellme those boots of yours? I'll swap you mine and anything you say, beside. I believe our feet are the same size. "

Red Sun's brother was wearing Navajo moccasins reaching to the knee, but Red Sun was resplendent in a pair of high laced boots, into whichwere tucked his corduroy pants. The Indians both looked at Enoch'ssmart Oxford ties with eagerness. Then without a word, Red Sun beganrapidly to unlace his boots. It would be difficult to say which madethe exchange with the greater satisfaction, Enoch or the Indian. Whenit was done Enoch, as far as his costume was concerned, might have beena desert miner indeed, looking for a job. 

The sun was not over an hour high when Pablo and Enoch started northonce more, the little horse loaded with supplies and Enoch loaded withsuch trail lore as the two Indians could impress upon him in the shorttime at their command. Enoch was not deeply impressed by their adviceexcept as to one point, which they repeated so often that it reallypenetrated his distraught and weary mind. He was to keep to the trail. No matter what or whom he thought he saw in the distance, he was tokeep to the trail. If a sand storm struck him, he was to campimmediately and on the trail. If he needed water, he was to keep tothe trail in order to find it. At night, he must camp on the trail. The trail! It was, they made him understand, a tenderfoot's onlychance of life in this section. And, thus equipped, Enoch rode awayinto the lonely, shimmering, intriguing morning light of the desert. 

He rode all the morning without dismounting. The trail was verycrooked. It seemed to him at such moments as he took note of thisfact, he would save much time by riding due north, but he could notforget the Indian brothers' reiterated warnings. And, although hecould not throw off a sense of being driven, the desire to arrivesomewhere quickly, still he was strangely content to let Pablo set thepace. 

At noon he dismounted, fed Pablo half the small bag of oats John hadgiven him, and ate the cold bacon and biscuits John's brother had urgedon him. There was no water for the horse, but Enoch drank deeply fromthe canteen and allowed Pablo an hour's rest. Then he mounted andpushed on, mindful of the necessity of overtaking the miners. 

His mind was less calm than it had been the day before, and histhinking less orderly. He had begun to be nagged by recollections ofoffice details that he should have settled, of important questions thatawaited his decision. And something deep within him began to tell himthat he was not playing a full man's part in running away. But to thishe replied grimly that he was only seeking for strength to go back. And finally he muttered that give him two weeks' respite and he wouldgo back, strength or no strength. And over and about all his brokenthinking played an unceasing sense of loss. The public had invaded hislast privacy. The stronghold wherein a man fights his secret weaknessshould be sacred. Not even a clergyman nor a wife should invade itsprecincts uninvited. Enoch's inner sanctuary had been laid open to theidle view of all the world. The newspaper reporter had pried where noreal man would pry. The Brown papers had published that from which adecent editor would turn away for very compassion. Only a very dirtyman will with no excuse whatever wantonly and deliberately breakanother man. 

When toward sundown Enoch saw a thread of smoke rising far ahead ofhim, again his first thought was to stop and make camp. He wished thatit were possible for him to spend the next few weeks without seeing awhite man. But he did not yield to the impulse and Pablo pushed onsteadily. 

The camp was set in the shelter of a huge rock pile, purple, black, yellow and crimson in color, with a single giant ocotilla growing fromthe top. A man in overalls was bending over the fire, while anotherwas bringing a dripping coffee pot from a little spring that bubbledfrom under the rocks. A number of burros were grazing among the cactusroots. 

Enoch rode up slowly and dismounted stiffly. "Good evening, " he said. 

The two men stared at him frankly. "Good evening, stranger!"

"John Red Sun told me to ask you people for work in return forpermission to trail with your outfit. "

"Oh, he did, did he!" grunted the older man, eying Enoch intently. "Myname is Mackay, and my pardner's is Field. "

"Mine is Smith, " said Enoch. 

"Just Smith?" grinned the man Field. 

"Just Smith, " repeated Enoch firmly. 

"Well, Mr. Just Smith, " Mackay nodded affably, as though pleased by hisappraisal of the newcomer, "wipe your feet on the door mat and come inand have supper with us. We'll talk while we eat. "

"You're very kind, " murmured Enoch. "I--er--I'm a tenderfoot, soperhaps you'd tell me, shall I hobble this horse or--"

"I'll take care of him for you, " said Field. "You look dead tuckered. Sit down till supper's ready. "

Enoch sat down on a rock and eyed his prospective bosses. Mackay was atall, thin man of perhaps fifty. He was smooth shaven except for aniron gray mustache. His face was thin, tanned and heavily lined, andhis keen gray eyes were deep set under huge, shaggy eyebrows. He worea gray flannel shirt and a pair of well worn brown corduroys, tuckedinto the tops of a pair of ordinary shoes. Field was younger, probablyabout Enoch's own age. He was as tall as Mackey but much heavier. Hewas smooth shaven and ruddy of skin, with a heavy thatch of curly blackhair and fine brown eyes. His clothing was a replica of his partner's. 

Mackay gave his whole attention to the preparation of the supper, whileField unpacked Pablo and hobbled him. 

"You're just in time for a darn good meal, Mr. Smith, " said Field. "Mack is a great cook. If he was as good a miner as he is cook--"

"Dry up, Curly, and get Mr. Smith's cup and plate for him. We're shyon china. Grub's ready, folks. Draw up. "

They ate sitting in the sand, with their backs against the rocks, theirfeet toward the fire, for the evening was cold. Curly had notexaggerated Mack's ability. The hot biscuits, baked in a dutch oven, the fried potatoes, stewed tomatoes, the bacon, the coffee were eachdeliciously prepared. Enoch ate as though half starved, then helped towash the dishes. After this was finished, the three establishedthemselves with their pipes before the fire. 

"Now, " said Mack, "we're in a condition to consider your proposition, Mr. Smith. Just where was you aiming for?"

"I have a two or three weeks' vacation on my hands, " replied Enoch, "and I'm pretty well knocked up with office work. I wanted to rest inthe desert. I thought I could manage it alone, but it looks as if Iwere too green. I don't know why John Red Sun thought I could intrudeon you folks, unless--" he hesitated. 

"John an old friend of yours?" asked Curly. 

"No, I met him on the trail. He was exceedingly kind and hospitable. "

Curly whistled softly. "You must have been in bad shape. John's notnoted for kindness, or hospitality either. "

"I wasn't in bad shape at all!" protested Enoch. The two men, eyingEnoch steadily, each suppressed a smile. 

"Field and I are on a kind of vacation too, " said Mack. "I'm asuperintendent of a zinc mine, and he's running the mill for me. Wehad to shut down for three months--bottom's dropped clean out of theprice of zinc. We've been talking about prospecting for placer gold upon the Colorado, for ten years. Now we're giving her a try. "

He paused, and both men looked at Enoch expectantly. "In other words, "said Enoch, refilling his pipe, "you two fellows are off for the kindof a trip you don't want an utter stranger in on. Well, I don't blameyou. "

"Depends altogether on what kind of a chap the stranger is, " suggestedCurly. 

"I have no letters of recommendation. " Enoch's smile was grim. "I'ddo my share of the work, and pay for my board. I might not be the bestof company, for I'm tired. Very tired. "

His massive head drooped as he spoke and his thin fine lips betrayed apain and weariness that even the fitful light of the fire could notconceal. There was a silence for a moment, then a burro screamed, andMackay got to his feet. 

"There's Mamie burro making trouble again. Come and help me catch her, Curly. "

Enoch sat quietly waiting while a low voiced colloquy that did not seemrelated to the obstreperous Mamie went on in the shadow beyond therocks. Then the two men came back. 

"All right, Smith, " said Mack. "We're willing to give it a try. Acamping trip's like marriage, you know, terrible trying on the nerves. So if we don't get on together, it's understood you'll turn back, eh?"

"Yes, " Enoch nodded. 

"All right! We'll charge you a dollar and a half a day for yourselfand your horse. We're to share and share alike in the work. "

"I'm exceedingly grateful!" exclaimed Enoch. 

"All right! We hope you'll get rested, " said Curly. "And I advise youto begin now. Have you been sleeping well? How long have you beenout?"

"Three nights. I've slept rottenly. "

"I thought so. Let me show you how to scoop out sand so's to make ahollow for your hips and your shoulders, and I'll bet you'll sleep. "

And Enoch did sleep that night better than for several weeks. He wasstiff and muscle sore when he awoke at dawn, but he felt clearer headedand less mentally feverish than he had the previous day. Curly andMack were still asleep when he stole over to the spring to wash andshave. It was biting cold, but he felt like a new man when he hadfinished his toilet and stood drawing deep breaths while he watched thedawn approach through the magnificent desert distances. He gatheredsome greasewood and came back to build the fire, but his camp mates hadforestalled him. While he was at the spring the men had both wakenedand the fire was blazing merrily. 

Breakfast was quickly prepared and eaten. Enoch established himself asthe camp dish washer, much to the pleasure of Curly, who hitherto hadborne this burden. After he had cleaned and packed the dishes, Enochwent out for Pablo, who had strayed a quarter of a mile in his searchfor pasturage. After a half hour of futile endeavor Mack came to hisrescue, and in a short time the cavalcade was ready to start. 

They were not an unimposing outfit. Mack led. The half dozen burros, with their packs followed, next came Curly, and Enoch brought up therear. There was little talking on the trail. The single file, theheavy dust, and the heat made conversation too great an effort. AndEnoch was grateful that this was so. 

To-day he made a tremendous endeavor to keep his mind off Luigi and theBrown papers. He found he could do this by thinking of Diana. And sohe spent the day with her, and resolved that if opportunity arose thatnight, to write to her, in the black diary. 

The trail, which gradually ascended as they drew north, grew rougherand rougher. During the latter part of the day sand gave way to rock, and the desert appeared full of pot holes which Mack claimed led tosubterranean rivers. 

They left these behind near sunset, and came upon a huge, rude, cave-like opening in a mesa side. A tiny pool at the back and theevidence of many camp fires in the front announced that this was one ofthe trail's established oases. There was no possible grazing for theanimals, so they were watered, staked, and fed oats from the packs. 

"Well, Mr. Just Smith, " said Curly, after the supper had beendispatched and cleared up and the trio were established around thefire, pipes glowing, "well, Mr. Just Smith, are you getting rested?"He grinned as he spoke, but Mack watched their guest soberly. Enoch'sgreat head seemed to fascinate him. 

"I'm feeling better, thanks. And I'm trying hard to behave. "

"You're doing very well, " returned Curly. "I can't recommend you yetas a horse wrangler, but if I permit you to bring Mamie in everymorning, perhaps you'll sabez better. "

"This is sure one devil of a country, " said Mack. "The Spanish calledit the death trail. Wow! What it must have been before they opened upthese springs! Even the Indians couldn't live here. "

"I'd like to show it to old Parsons, " said Curly. "He claims thereain't a spot in Arizona that couldn't grow crops if you could get waterto it. He's a fine old liar! Why, this country don't even growcactus! I'd like to hobble him out here for a week. "

"Those Survey fellows were up here a few years back trying to fix it toget water out of those pot holes, " said Mack. 

"Nuts! Sounds like a government bunch!" grunted Curly. 

"What came of it?" asked Enoch. 

"It ended in a funny kind of a row, " replied Mack. "Some folks thinkthere's oil up here, and there was a bunch here drilling for wells, when the government men came along. They got interested in the oilidea, and they began to study the country and drill for oil too. Andthat made these other chaps mad. This was government land, of course, but they didn't want the government to get interested in developing oilwells. Government oil would be too cheap. So they got some Mexicansto start a fight with these Survey lads. But the Survey boys turnedout to be well armed and good fighters and, by Jove, they drove thewhole bunch of oil prospectors out of here. Everybody got excited, andthen it turned out there was no oil here anyhow. That was Fowler'sbunch, by the way, that got run out. Nobody ever thought he'd beSecretary of State!"

"But Fowler is not an Arizona man!" exclaimed Enoch. 

"No, " said Curly, "but he came out here for his health for a few yearswhen he was just out of college. He and my oldest brother were lawpardners in Phoenix. I always thought he was crooked. All lawyersare. "

Enoch smiled to himself. 

"Fowler sent his prospectors into Mexico after that, " Mack went onreminiscently. "Curly and I were in charge of the silver mine near RioChacita where they struck some gushers. They were one tough crowd. Weall slept in tents those days, and I remember none of us dared to lighta lamp or candle because if one of those fellows saw it, they'd take apot shot at it. One of my foremen dug a six-foot pit and set his tentover it. Then he let 'em shoot at will. Those were the days!"

"Government ought to keep out of business, " said Curly. "Let theStates manage their own affairs. "

"What's Field sore about?" asked Enoch of Mack. 

"He's just ignorant, " answered Mack calmly. "Hand me some tobacco, Curly, and quit your beefing. When you make your fortune washing goldup in the Colorado, you can get yourself elected to Congress and doFowler up. In the meantime--"

"Aw, shut up, Mack, " drawled Curly good-naturedly. "What are youtrying to do, ruin my reputation with Just Smith here? By the way, Just, you haven't told us what your work is. "

"I'm a lawyer, " said Enoch solemnly. 

The three men stared at each other in the fire glow. Suddenly Enochburst into a hearty laugh, in which the others joined. 

"What was the queerest thing you've ever seen in the desert, Mack?"asked Enoch, when they had sobered down. 

Mack sat in silence for a time. "That's hard to judge, " he saidfinally. "Once, in the Death Valley country, I saw a blind priestriding a burro fifty miles from anywhere. He had no pack, just acanteen. He said he was doing a penance and if I tried to help him, he'd curse me. So I went off and left him. And once I saw a fat womanin a kimono and white satin high heeled slippers chasing her horse overthe trackless desert. Lord!"

"Was that any queerer sight than Just Smith chasing Pablo thismorning?" demanded Curly. 

"Or than Field tying a stone to Mamie's tail to keep her from brayingto-night?" asked Enoch. 

"You're improving!" exclaimed Curly, "Dignity's an awful thing to takeinto the desert for a vacation. "

"Let's go to bed, " suggested Mack, and in the fewest possible minutesthe camp was at rest. 

The trail for the next two days grew rougher and rougher, while thebrilliancy of color in rock and sand increased in the same ratio as thearidity. Enoch, pounding along at the rear of the parade, hour afterhour, was still in too anguished and abstracted a frame of mind to heeddetails. He knew only that the vast loveliness and the naked austerityof the desert were fit backgrounds, the first for this thought ofDiana, the second for his bitter retrospects. 

Mid-morning on the third day, after several hours of silent trekking, Curly turned in his saddle:

"Just, have you noticed the mirage?" pointing to the right. 

Far to the east where the desert was most nearly level appeared thesea, waters of brilliant cobalt blue lapping shores clad in richestverdure, waves that broke in foam and ran softly up on quiet shores. Upon the sea, silhouetted against the turquoise sky were ships withsails of white, of crimson, of gold. Then, as the men stared withparted lips, the picture dimmed and the pitiless, burning desertshimmered through. 

The unexpected vision lifted Enoch out of himself for a little whileand he listened, interested and amused, while Curly, half turned in hissaddle, discanted on mirages and their interpretations. Nor did Enochfor several hours after meditate on his troubles. Not an hour afterthe mirage had disappeared the sky darkened almost to black, thenturned a sullen red. Lightning forked across the zenith and thethunder reverberated among the thousand mesas, the entangled gorges, until it seemed almost impossible to endure the uproar. Rain did notbegin to fall until noon. There was not a place in sight that wouldprovide shelter, so the men wrapped their Navajos about them and forcedthe reluctant animals to continue the journey. The storm held withfury until late in the afternoon. The wind, the lightning and the rainvied with one another in punishing the travelers. Again and again, theburros broke from trail. 

"Get busy, Just!" Curly would roar. "Come out of your trance!" andEnoch would ride Pablo after the impish Mamie with a skill thatdeveloped remarkably as the afternoon wore on. Enoch could not recallever having been so wretchedly uncomfortable in his life. He wassodden to the skin, aching with weariness, shivering with cold. But hemade no murmur of protest. It was Curly who, about five o'clock, called:

"Hey, Mack! I've gone my limit!"

Mack pulled up and seemed to hesitate. As he did so, the storm, with asuddenness that was unbelievable, stopped. A last flare of lightningseemed to blast the clouds from the sky. The rain ceased and the sunenveloped mesas, gorges, trail in a hundred rainbows. 

"How about a fire?" asked Mack, grinning, with chattering teeth. 

"It must be done somehow, " replied Curly. "Come on, Just, shake it up!"

"Look here, Curly, " exclaimed Mack, pausing in the act of throwing hisleg over the saddle, "I think you ought to treat Mr. Smith with morerespect. He ain't your hired help. "

"The dickens he isn't!" grinned Curly. 

"It's all right, Mack! I enjoy it, " said Enoch, dismounting stiffly. 

"If you do, " Mack gave him a keen look, "you aren't enjoying it the wayCurly thinks you do. "

Enoch returned Mack's gaze, smiled, but said nothing further. Mack, however, continued to grumble. 

"I'm as good as the next fellow, but I don't believe in givingeverybody a slap on the back or a kick in the pants to prove it. Youmay be a lawyer, all right, Mr. Smith, but I'll bet you're on thebench. You've got that way with you. Not that it's any of mybusiness!"

He was leading the way, as he spoke, toward the face of a mesa thatabutted almost on the trail. Curly apparently had not paid theslightest attention to the reproof. He was already hobbling his horse. 

They made no attempt to look for a spring. The hollows of the rockswere filled with rain water. But the search for wood was long andarduous. In fact, it was nearly dusk before they had gathered enoughto last out the evening. But here and there a tiny cedar or mesquiteyielded itself up and at last a good blaze flared up before the mesa. The men shifted to dry underwear, wrung out their outer clothing andput it on again, and drank copiously of the hot coffee. In spite ofdamp clothing and blankets Enoch slept deeply and dreamlessly, and rosethe next day none the worse for the wetting. Even in this short timehis physical tone was improving and he felt sure that his mind mustfollow. 

CHAPTER VIII

THE COLORADO

"We had a particularly vile place to raid to-day, and as I listenedwith sick heart to the report of it, suddenly I saw the Canyon and F. 'sbroad back on his mule and the glorious line of the rim lifting fromopalescent mists. "--_Enoch's Diary_. 

They had been a week on the trail when they made camp one night at aspring surrounded by dwarf junipers. Mack, who had taken the tripbefore, greeted the spring with a shout of satisfaction. 

"Ten miles from the river, boys! To-morrow afternoon should see uspanning gold. "

And to-morrow did, indeed, bring the river. There was a wide view ofthe Colorado as they approached it. The level which had graduallylifted during the entire week, making each day cooler, rarer, as itcame, now sloped downward, while mesa and headland grew higher, the wayunderfoot more broken, the trail fainter and fainter, and thethermometer rose steadily. 

By now deep fissures appeared in the desert floor, and to the northlifted great mountains that were banded in multi-colored strata, acrosswhich drifted veils of mist, lavender, blue and gauzy white. Enoch'sheart began to beat heavily. It was the Canyon country, indeed! Thecountry of enchantment to which his spirit had returned for so manyyears. 

They ate lunch in a little canyon opening north and south. 

"At the north end of this, " said Mack, "we make our first sharp drop athousand feet straight down. She's a devil of a trail, made by Indiansnobody knows when. Then we cross a plateau, about a mile wide, as Iremember, then it's an easy grade to the river. We've got to go overthe girths careful. If anything slips now it's farewell!"

The trail was a nasty one, zig-zagging down the over-hanging face ofthe wall. Enoch, to his deep-seated satisfaction, felt no sense ofpanic, although in common with Mack and Curly, he was apprehensive andat times a little giddy. It required an hour to compass the drop. Atthe bottom was a tiny spring where men and beasts drank deeply, thenstarted on. 

The plateau was rough, deep covered with broken rock, but the trail, though faint, held to the edge. At this edge the men paused. TheColorado lay before them. 

Fifty feet below them was a wide stretch of sand. Next, the river, smooth brown, slipping rapidly westward. Beyond the water, on theopposite side, a chaos of rocks greater than any Enoch had yet seen, apile huge as if a mountain had fallen to pieces at the river's edge. Behind the broken rock rose the canyon wall, sheer black, forbidding, two thousand feet into the air. Its top cut straight and sharp acrossthe sky line, the sky line unbroken save where rising behind the wall amountain peak, snow capped, flecked with scarlet and gold, towered inthe sunlight. 

"There you are, Curly!" exclaimed Mack. "There's a spring in the cavebeneath us. There's drift wood, enough to run a factory with. Have Idelivered the goods, or not?"

"Everything is as per advertisement except the gold, " replied Curly. 

"Oh, well, I don't vouch for the gold!" said Mack. "I just said theIndians claim they get it here. There's some grazing for the crittersup here on the plateau, you see, and not a bit below. So we'll drive'em back up here and leave 'em. With a little feed of oats once in awhile, they'll do. Come ahead! It'll be dark in the Canyon inside oftwo hours. "

The cave proved to be a hollow overhang of the plateau ten or fifteenfeet deep, and twice as wide. The floor was covered with sand. 

"All ready to go to housekeeping!" exclaimed Curly. "Judge, youwrangle firewood while Mack and I just give this placer idea a tenminutes' trial, will you?"

"Go ahead!" said Enoch, "all the gold in the Colorado couldn't tempt melike something to eat. If you aren't ready by the time the fire'sgoing, Mack, I shall start supper. "

"Go to it! I can stand it if you can!" returned Mack, who had alreadyunpacked his pan. 

From that moment Enoch became the commissary and steward for theexpedition. Curly and Mack, whom he had known as mild and jovialcompanions of many interests and leisurely manners, changed in atwinkling to monomaniacs who during every daylight hour except for theshort interim which they snatched for eating, sought for gold. Atfirst Enoch laughed at them and tried to get them to take an occasionalhalf day off in which to explore with him. But they curtly refused todo this, so he fell back on his own resources. And he discovered thatthe days were all too short. Curly had a gun. There was plenty ofammunition. Quail and cottontails were to be found on the plateauwhere the stock was grazing. Sometimes on Pablo, sometimes afoot, Enoch with the gun, and sometimes with the black diary rolled in hiscoat, scoured the surrounding country. 

One golden afternoon he edged his way around the shoulder of a gnarledand broken peak, in search of rabbits for supper. Just at theoutermost point of the shoulder he came upon a cedar twisting itselfabout a broad, flat bowlder. Enoch instantly stopped the search forgame and dropped upon the rock, his back against the cedar. Lightinghis pipe, he gave himself up to contemplation of the view. Below himyawned blue space, flecked with rose colored mists. Beyond this mightyblue chasm lay a mountain of purest gold, banded with white andsilhouetted against a sky of palest azure. An eagle dipped lazilyacross the heavens. 

When he had gazed his fill, Enoch put his pipe in his pocket, unrolledthe diary and, balancing it oh his knee, began to write:

"Oh, Diana, no wonder you are lovely! No wonder you are serene andpure and reverent!

 'And her's shall be the breathing balm And her's the silence and the calm'--

"You remember how it goes, Diana. 

"I heard Curly curse yesterday. A thousand echoes sent his words backto him and he looked at the glory of the canyon walls and was ashamed. I saw shame in his eyes. 

"It was not cowardice that drove me away for this interval, Diana. Never believe that of me! I was afraid, yes, but of myself, not of thenewspapers. If I had stayed on the train, I would have returned atonce to Washington and have shot the reporter who wrote the stuff. Perhaps I shall do it yet. But if I do, it will be after the Canyonand I have come to agreement on the subject. I am very sure I shallshoot Brown. Some one should have done it, long ago. 

"I wonder what you are doing this afternoon. Somewhere between ahundred and a hundred and fifty miles we are from Bright Angel, Macksays, via the river. And only a handful of explorers, you told me, ever have completed the trip down the Colorado. I would like to try it. 

"Diana, you look at me with your gentle, faithful eyes, the corners ofyour lips a little uncertain as if you want to tell me that I amdisappointing you and yet, because you are so gentle, you did not wantto hurt me. Diana, don't be troubled about me. I shall go back, longenough at least to discharge my pressing duties. After that, who knowsor cares! Oh, Diana! Diana! What is the use? There is nothing leftin my life. I am empty--empty!

"Even all this is make believe, for, as soon as you saw that I wasbeginning to care for you, --beginning is a good word here!--you wentaway. 

"Good-by, Diana. "

Enoch's gun made no contribution to the larder that night. Curlyuttered loud and bitter comment on the fact. 

"You're getting spoiled by high living, " said Enoch severely. "Whatwould you have done if I hadn't come along and taken pity on you? Why, you and Mack would have starved to death here in the Canyon, for it'smorally certain neither of you would have stopped panning gold longenough to prepare your food. "

"Right you are, Judge, " replied Curly meekly. "I'm going to try to getMack to rebate two bits a day on your board, as a token of ourappreciation. "

"Not when his biscuits have to be broken open with a stone, " objectedMack, as he sopped in his coffee one of the gray objects Enoch hadserved as rolls. 

"They say when a woman that's done her own cooking first gets a hiredgirl, she becomes right picky about her food, " rejoined Curly. 

"I'd give notice if I had any place to go, " said Enoch. "What was theluck to-day, boys?"

"Well, I've about come to the conclusion, " replied Mack, "that byworking eight hours a day you can just about wash wages out of thissand, and that's all. "

"You aren't going to give it up now, are you, Mack?" asked Curly, inalarm. 

"No, I'll stay this week out, if you want to, and then move on up toDevil's Canyon. "

They were silently smoking around the fire, a little later, when Curlysaid:

"I have a hunch that you and I're not going to get independent wealthout of this expedition, Mack. "

"What would you do with it, if you had it, Curly?" asked Enoch. 

"A lot of things!" Curly ruminated darkly for a few moments, then helooked at Enoch long and keenly. "Smith, you're a lawyer, but Ibelieve you're straight. There's something about you a man can't helptrusting, and I think you've been successful. You have that way withyou. Do you know what I'd do if I was taken suddenly rich? Well, I'dhire you, at your own price, to give all your time to breaking two men, Fowler and Brown. "

"Easy now, Curly!" Mack spoke soothingly. "Don't get het up. What'sthe use?"

"I'm not het up. I want to get the Judge's opinion of the matter. "

"Go ahead. I'm much interested, " said Enoch. 

"By Brown, I mean the fellow that owns the newspapers. When my brotherand Fowler were in law together--"

"You should make an explanation right there, " interrupted Mack. "Yousaid all lawyers was crooks. "

"My brother Harry was straight and I've just given my opinion of Smithhere. I never liked Fowler, but he had great personal charm and Harrynever would take any of my warnings about him. Brown was ashort-legged Eastern college boy who worked on the local paper for hishealth. How he and Fowler ever met up, I don't know, but they did, andthe law office was Brown's chief hang-out. Now all three of 'em wereas poor as this desert. Nobody was paying much for law in Arizona inthose days. Our guns was our lawyers. But by some fluke, Harry wasmade trustee of a big estate--a smelting plant that had been left to akid. After a few years, the courts called for an accounting, and itturned out that my brother was short about a hundred thousand dollars. He seemed totally bewildered when this was discovered, swore he knewnothing about it and was terribly upset. And this devil of a Fowlerturns round and says Harry made way with it and produces Brown as awitness. And, by the lord, the court believed them! My brother killedhimself. " Curly cleared his throat. "It wasn't six months after thatthat Fowler and Brown, who left the state right after the tragedy, bought a couple of newspapers. They claimed they got the money fromsome oil wells they'd struck in Mexico. "

"How is it the country at large doesn't know of Fowler's associationwith Brown?" asked Enoch. 

"Oh, they didn't stay pardners as far as the public knows, but a fewyears. They were too clever! They gave out that they'd had a splitand they say nobody ever sees them together. All the same, even whenthey were seeming to ignore him, the Brown papers have been makingFowler. "

"And you want to clear your brother's name, " said Enoch thoughtfully. "That ought not to be difficult. You could probably do it yourself, ifyou could give the time, and were clever at sleuthing. The papers inthe case should be accessible to you. "

"Shucks!" exclaimed Curly. "I wouldn't go at it that way at all. Igot something real on Fowler and Brown and I want to use it to makethem confess. "

"Sounds like blackmail, " said Enoch. 

"Sure! That's where I need a lawyer! Now, I happen to know a personalweakness of Fowler's--"

"Don't go after him on that!" Enoch's voice was peremptory. "If he'sdone evil to some one else, throw the light of day on his crime, but ifby his weakness you mean only some sin he commits against himself, keepoff. A man, even a crook, has a right to that much privacy. "

"Did Brown ever have decency toward a man's seclusion?" demanded Curly. 

"No!" half shouted Enoch. "But to punish him don't turn yourself intothe same kind of a skunk he is. Kill him if you have to. Don't be afilthy scandal monger like Brown!"

"You speak as if you knew the gentleman, " grunted Mack. 

"I don't know him, " retorted Enoch, "except as the world knows him. "

"Then you don't know him, or Fowler either, " said Curly. "But I happento have discovered something that both those gentlemen have been mixedup in, in Mexico, something--oh, by Jove, but it's racy!"

"You've managed to keep it to yourself, so far, " said Mack. 

"Meaning I'd better continue to do so! Only so long as it serves mypurpose, Mack. When I get ready to raise hell about Fowler's andBrown's ears, no consideration for decency will stop me. I'll be justas merciful to them as they were to Harry. No more! I'll string theirdirty linen from the Atlantic to the Pacific. His and Brown's! But Iwant money enough to do it right. No little piker splurge they can buyup! I'll have those two birds weeping blood!"

Enoch moistened his lips. "What's the story, Curly?" he asked evenly. 

Curly filled and lighted his pipe. But before he could answer Enoch, Mack said;

"Sleep on it, Curly. Mud slinging's bad business. Sleep on it!"

"I've a great contempt for Brown, " said Enoch. "I'm a good dealtempted to help you out, that is, if it is to the interest of thepublic that the story be told. "

"It will interest the public. You can bet on that!" Curly laughedsardonically. Then he rose, with a yawn. "But it's late and we'llfinish the story to-morrow night. Judge, I have a hunch you're my man!I sabez there's heap devil in you, if we could once get you mad. "

Enoch shrugged his shoulders. "Perhaps!" he said, and he unrolled hisblankets for bed. 

But it was long before he slept. The hand of fate was on him, he toldhimself. How else could he have been led in all the wide desert tofind this man who held Brown's future in his hands? Suddenly Enoch sawhimself returning to Washington with power to punish as he had beenpunished. His feeble protests to Curly were swept away. He felt theblood rush to his temples. And anger that had so far been submerged bypain and shame suddenly claimed its hour. His rage was not only atBrown. Luigi, his mother, most of all this woman who had been hismother, claimed his fury. The bitterness and humiliation of a lifetimeburst through the gates of his self-control. He stole from the cave tothe sandy shore and there he strode up and down like a madman. He wasphysically exhausted long before the tempest subsided. But graduallyhe regained his self-control and slipped back into his blankets. There, with the thought of vengeance sweet on his lips, he fell asleep. 

Curly was, of course, entirely engrossed the next day by his miningoperations. Enoch had not expected or wished him to be otherwise. Hefelt that he needed the day alone to get a grip on himself. 

That afternoon he climbed up the plateau to the entering trail, up thetrail to the desert. He was full of energy. He was conscious of apurposefulness and a keen interest in life to which he had long been astranger. As he filled the gunny sack which he carried for a game bagwith quail and rabbits, he occasionally laughed aloud. He was thinkingof the expression that would appear on Curly's face if he learned intowhose hands he was putting his dynamite?

The sun was setting when he reached the head of the trail on his waycampward. All the world to the west, sky, peaks, mesas, sand and rockhad turned to a burning rose color. The plateau edge, near his feet, was green. These were the only two colors in all the world. Enochstood absorbed by beauty when a sound of voices came faintly frombehind him. 

His first thought was that Mack and Curly had stolen a march on him. His next was that strangers, who might recognize him, were near athand. He started down the trail as rapidly as he dared. It was duskwhen he reached the foot. For the last half of the trip voices hadbeen floating down to him, as the newcomers threaded their way slowlybut steadily. Enoch stood panting at the foot of the trail, listeningacutely. A voice called. Another voice answered. Enoch suddenly lostall power to move. The full moon sailed silently over the plateauwall. Enoch, grasping his gun and his game bag, stood waiting. 

A mule came swiftly down the last turn of the trail and headed for thespring. The man who was riding him pulled him back on his hauncheswith a "Whoa, you mule!" that echoed like a cannon shot. Then he flunghimself off with another cry. 

"Oh, boss! Oh, boss! Here he is, Miss Diana! O dear Lord, here heis! Boss! Boss! How come you to treat me so!"

And Jonas threw his arms around Enoch with a sob that could not berepressed. 

Enoch put a shaking hand on Jonas' shoulder. "So you found your badcharge, old man, didn't you?"

"Me find you? No, boss, Miss Diana, she found you. Here she is!"

Diana dropped from her horse, slender and tall in her riding clothes. 

"So Jonas' pain is relieved, eh, Mr. Huntingdon! Are you having a goodholiday?"

"Great!" replied Enoch huskily. 

"I told Jonas it was the most sensible thing a man could do, who was astired as you are, but he would have it you'd die without him. If youdon't want him, I'll take him away. "

"You'd have to take me feet first, Miss Diana, " said Jonas, with agrin. "Where's that Na-che?"

"Here she comes!" laughed Diana. "Poor Na-che! She hates to hurry!She's got a real grievance against you, Jonas. "

Two pack mules lunged down the trail, followed by a squat figure on anIndian pony. 

"This is Na-che, Mr. Huntingdon, " said Diana. 

Enoch shook hands with the Indian woman, whose face was as dark asJonas' in the moonlight. "Where's your camp, Mr. Huntingdon?" Dianawent on. 

"Just a moment!" Enoch had recovered his composure. "I am with twominers, Mackay and Field. To them, I am a lawyer named Smith. I wouldlike very much to remain unknown to them during the remaining two weeksof my vacation. "

Jonas heaved a great sigh that sounded curiously like an expression ofvast and many sided relief. Then he chuckled. "Easy enough for me. You can't never be nothing but Boss to me. "

But Diana was troubled. "I thought we'd camp with your outfitto-night. But we'd better not. I'd be sure to make a break. Are youpositive that these men don't know you?"

"Positive!" exclaimed Enoch. "Why, just look at me, Miss Allen!"

Diana glanced at boots, overalls and flannel shirt, coming to pause atthe fine lion-like head. "Of course, your disguise is veryimpressive, " she laughed. "But I would say that it was impressive inthat it accents your own peculiarities. "

"That outfit is something fierce, boss. I brung you some ridingbreeches, " exclaimed Jonas. 

"I don't want 'em, " said Enoch. "Miss Allen, Field calls me Judge. How would that do?"

"Well, I'll try it, " agreed Diana reluctantly. "I know both the men, by the way. Mack, especially, is well known among the Indians. Whatexplanation shall we make them?"

"Why not the truth?" asked Enoch. "I mean, tell them that I slippedaway from my friends and that Jonas tagged. "

"Very well!" Diana and Jonas both nodded. 

"And now, " Enoch lifted his game bag, "let's get on. My partners aregoing to be worried. And I'm the cook for the outfit, too. "

"Boss, " Jonas took the game bag, "you take my mule and go on with MissDiana and Na-che and I'll come along with the rest of the cattle. "

Enoch obediently mounted, Diana fell in beside him, and lookedanxiously into his face. "Please, Judge, are you very cross with mefor breaking in on you? But poor Jonas was consumed with fear for you. "

Enoch put his hand on Diana's as it rested on her knee. "You mustknow!" he said, and was silent. 

"Then it's all right, " sighed Diana, after a moment. 

"Yes, it's quite all right! How did Jonas find you?"

"It seems that he and Charley concluded that you must have headedtoward Bright Angel. Charley went on to Washington to keep things inorder there. Jonas went up to El Tovar. I had just outfitted for atrip into the Hopi country when Jonas came to me. He had talked to noone. He is wonderfully circumspect, but he was frantic beneath hiscalm. He begged me to find you for him and--well, I was a littleanxious myself--so I didn't need much urging. We had only been out aweek when we met John Red Sun. The rest was easy. If a person sticksto the trails in Arizona it's difficult not to trace them. Look, Judge, your friends have lighted a signal fire. "

"Poor chaps! They're starved and worried!" Enoch quickened his mule'space and Diana fell in behind him. 

Mack and Curly were standing beside the blaze at the edge of theplateau. Enoch jumped from the saddle. 

"I'm awfully sorry, fellows! But you see, I was detained by a lady!"

"For heaven's sake, Diana!" cried Mack. "Where did you come from?"

"Hello, Mack! Hello, Curly!" Diana dismounted and shook hands. "Well, the Judge gave his friends the slip. Everybody was satisfied but hiscolored man, Jonas. He was absolutely certain the Judge wouldn't keephis face clean or his feet dry and he so worked on my feelings that Itrailed you people. I was going into the Hopi country anyhow. "

Curly gave Enoch a knowing glance. "We thought he was puttingsomething over on us. What is he, Diana, a member of the SupremeBench?"

"Huh! Hardly!"

Everybody laughed at Diana's derisive tone and Curly added, "Anyhow, he's a rotten cook. I was thinking of putting Mack back on his oldjob. "

"Don't intrude, Curly, " said Enoch. "I've been out and brought in anassistant who's an expert. "

"That's you, I suppose, Diana!" Mack chuckled. 

"No, it's Jonas, the colored man. He'll be along with Na-che in amoment. This isn't your camp?"

"Come along, Miss Allen!" exclaimed Enoch. "I'll show you a campthat's run by an expert. "

Mack and Curly groaned and followed Enoch and Diana down to the cave, Jonas and Na-che appearing shortly. Jonas, hobbling to the caveopening stood for a moment, gazing at the group around the fire insilent despair. Finally he said:

"When I get back to Washington, if I live to get there, they'll put meout of the Baptist Church as a liar, if I try to tell 'em what I beenthrough. Boss, what you trying to do?"

"Dress these quail, " grunted Enoch. 

Jonas gave Curly and Mack a withering glance, started to speak, swallowed something and said, "How come you to think you was a butcher, boss? Leave me get my hands on those birds. I should think you doneenough, killing 'em. "

"No, " said Enoch, "I'm the cook for to-night. But, Jonas, old man, ifyou aren't too knocked up, you might make some biscuit. "

"Jonas looks to me, " suggested Mack, "like a cup of coffee and a seatby the fire was about his limit to-night. I'll get the rest of thegrub, if you'll tend to the quail, Judge. Curly, you go out and unpackfor Diana. We'll turn the cave over to you and Na-che to-night, Diana. "

Diana, who was sitting on a rock by the fire, long, slender legscrossed, hands clasping one knee, an amused spectator of the scene, looked up at Mack with a smile. 

"Indeed you won't, Mack. Na-che and I have our tent. We'll put it upin the sand, as usual. And tomorrow, having delivered our prizepackage, we'll be on our way. "

Enoch looked up quickly. "Don't be selfish, Miss Allen!" he exclaimed. 

"That's the idea!" Mack joined in vehemently. Then he added, with agrin, "The Judge has plumb ruined our quiet little expedition anyhow. And after two weeks of him and Curly, I'm darn glad to see you, Diana. How's your Dad?"

"Very well, indeed! If he had had any idea that I was going on thissort of trip, though, I think he'd have insisted on coming with me. Judge, let me finish those birds. You're ruining them. "

"Whose quail are these, I'd like to know?" demanded Enoch. 

"Yours, " replied Diana meekly, "but I had thought that some edibleportion besides the pope's nose and the neck ought to be left on them. "

Jonas, who had been crouching uneasily on a rock, a disapprovingspectator of the scene, groaned audibly. Na-che now came into the glowof the fire. She was a comely-faced woman, of perhaps forty-five, neatly dressed in a denim suit. Her black eyes twinkled as she took inthe situation. 

"Na-che, you come over here and sit down by me, " said Jonas. "If Ican't help, neither can you. "

Na-che smiled, showing strong white teeth. "You feel sick from thesaddle, eh, Jonas?"

"Don't you worry about that, woman! I'll show you I'm as good as anyIndian buck that ever lived!"

Na-che grunted incredulously, but sat down beside Jonas nevertheless. 

In spite of the gibes, supper was ready eventually and was devouredwith approval. When the meal was finished, Na-che and Jonas clearedup, then Jonas took his blanket and retired to a corner of the cave, whence emerged almost immediately the sound of regular snoring. Theothers sat around the fire only a short time. 

"You'll stick around for a little while, won't you, Diana?" said Curly, as he filled his first pipe. 

"I really ought to pull out in the morning, " replied Diana. "There aresome very special pictures I want to get at Oraibai about now. "

"There is a cliff dwelling down the river about three miles, " saidEnoch. "I haven't found the trail into it yet, but I saw the dwellingdistinctly from a curve on the top of the Canyon wall. It's a hugeconstruction. "

"Is that so?" exclaimed Diana eagerly. "Why, those must be the Grayruins. I didn't realize we were so close to them. Well, you'vetempted me and I've fallen. I really must give a day to those remains. Only one or two whites have ever gone through them. "

Enoch smiled complacently. 

"How long have you and the Judge known each other, Diana?" asked Curlysuddenly. 

Diana hesitated but Enoch spoke quickly. "The first time I saw MissAllen she was a baby of five or six on Bright Angel trail. "

Curly whistled. "Then you've got it on the rest of us. I first sawher when she was a sassy miss in school at Tucson. "

"Nothing on me!" said Mack. "I held her in my arms when she was tendays old, and my wife was with her mother and Na-che when she was born. You were a red-faced, squalling brat, Diana. "

"She was a beautiful baby! She never cried, " contradicted Na-cheflatly. 

Diana laughed and rose. "This is getting too personal. I'm going tobed, " she said. The men looked at her, admiration in every face. 

"Anything any of us can do for your comfort, Diana?" asked Curly. "Na-che seemed satisfied with the place I put your tent in. "

"Everything is fine, thank you, " Diana held out her hand, "Good night, Curly. I really think you're handsomer than ever. "

"Lots of good that'll do me, " retorted Curly. 

Diana made a little grimace at him and turned to Mack. "Good night, Mack. I'll bet you're homesick for Mrs. Mack this minute. "

"She's a pretty darned fine old woman!" Mack nodded soberly. 

"Old!" said Diana scornfully. "You ought to have your ears boxed!Good night, Judge!"

"Good night, Miss Allen!"

The three men watched the tall figure swing out into the moonlight. 

"There goes the most beautiful human being I ever hope to see, " saidCurly, turning to unroll his blankets. 

"If I was a painter and wanted to tell what this here country wasreally like, at its best, I'd paint Diana. " Mack's voice was veryearnest. 

"Shucks!" sniffed Curly, "that isn't saying anything, is it, Judge?"

"It's hard to put her into words, " replied Enoch carefully. "Curly, are you too tired to continue our last night's talk?"

"Oh, let's put it over till to-morrow! We've lots of time!" Curlygave a great yawn. 

Enoch said nothing more but rolled himself in his blankets, with thefull intention of formulating his line of conduct toward Diana beforegoing to sleep. He stretched himself luxuriously in the sand and thenext thing he heard was Diana's laugh outside. He opened his eyes inbewilderment. It was dawn without the cave. Jonas was hobbling downtoward the river. 

"Oh, Jonas, you poor thing! Do let Na-che give you a good rubdownbefore you try to do anything!"

"No, Miss Diana. If the boss can stand these goings on, I can. Howcome he ever thought this was sport, I don't know. I'll never live toget him back home!"

"Where are you going, Jonas?" called Curly. 

Jonas paused. "I ain't going to turn myself round, unless I have to. What's wanted?"

"I just wanted to warn you that the Colorado's no place for a morningswim, " Curly said. 

"I'm just going to get the boss's shaving water. "

"There's a hint for you, Judge, " Curly turned to Enoch. "I hope youplan to give more attention to your toilet after this. "

"You go to blazes, Curly, " said Enoch amiably. "I haven't got thereputation for pulchritude to live up to that you have. "

"Diana's imagination was in working order last night, " volunteeredMack. "To my positive knowledge Curly ain't washed or shaved for threedays. "

"You've drunk of the Hassayampa too, Mack!" Curly ran the comb throughhis black locks vindictively. 

"What's the effect of that draught?" asked Enoch. 

"You never tell the truth again, " said Curly. 

Na-che's voice floated in. "Jonas, you tell the men I got breakfastalready for 'em. Tell 'em to bring their own cups and plates. "

"Sounds rotten, huh?" Curly sauntered out of the cave. 

It was a very pleasant meal. To Enoch it was all a dream. It seemedimpossible for him to absorb the fact that he and Diana were togetherin the Colorado Canyon. When the last of the coffee was gone, Curlylooked at his watch, then turned severely to Enoch. 

"We're an hour earlier than we've ever been, and all because of women!Aren't you ashamed?"

"Run along and wash dirt, " returned Enoch. "For two cents I'd tell howlong it took me to get you up yesterday morning. "

"What's your program, Diana?" asked Mack. 

"Na-che and I are going over to the cliff dwelling. We'll be gone allday. "

"I'll act as guide, " said Enoch with alacrity. 

"It's not necessary!" exclaimed Diana. "I don't want to interrupt yourcamp routine at all. You just give us directions, Judge. Na-che and Iare old hands at this, you know. "

"Oh, take him along, Diana! He'll be crying in a minute, " sniffedCurly. "Jonas, you'll stay and give us a feed, won't you?"

"I got to look out for the boss, " Jonas spoke anxiously. 

A shout went up. "Jonas, old boy, " said Enoch, "you stay in campto-day and er--look over my clothes. "

"I will, boss, " with intense relief, "and I'll make you a stew out ofthose rabbits nobody'll forget in a hurry. "

Mack and Curly hurried off to the river's edge. Na-che and Jonas wentinto the cave. Enoch looked at Diana. She was standing by thebreakfast fire slender and straight in her brown corduroy riding suit, her wide, intelligent eyes studying Enoch's face. There was a glow ofcrimson in the cream of her cheeks, for the morning air held frost inits touch. 

"May I go with you?" repeated Enoch. "I'll be very good!"

Diana did not reply at first. Moonlight and firelight had notpermitted her before to read clearly the story of suffering that was inEnoch's face. During breakfast he had been laughing and chattingconstantly. But now, as he stood before her, she was appalled by whatshe saw in the rugged face. There were two straight, deep linesbetween his brows. The lines from nostril to lip corner were doublypronounced. The thin, sensitive lips were compressed. The clear, kindly blue eyes were contracted as if Enoch were enduring actualphysical pain. Tall and powerful, his dark red hair tossed back fromhis forehead, his look of trouble did not detract from the peculiarforcefulness of his personality. 

"If you hesitate so long, " he said, "I shall--"

Diana laughed. "Begin to cry, as Curly said? Oh, don't do that! Ishall be very happy to have you with me, but before we start, I think Ishall develop some of the films I exposed on the way over. A teno'clock start will be early enough, won't it? I have a developingmachine with me. It may not take me even until ten. "

Enoch nodded. "How does the work go?" he asked eagerly. "Did youattend the ceremony Na-che sent word to you about?"

"Yes! Out of a hundred exposures I made there, I think I got onefairly satisfactory picture. " Diana sighed. "After all, the cameratells the story no better than words, and words are futile. Look!What medium could one use to tell the world of that?"

She swept her arm to embrace the view before them. The tiny sandybeach was on a curve of the river so sharp that above and below themthe rushing waters seemed to drive into blind canyon walls. To theright, the Canyon on both sides was so sheer, the river bed so narrowthat nothing but sky was to be seen above and beyond. But to the left, the south canyon wall terraced back at perhaps a thousand feet in aseries of magnificent strata, yellow, purple and crimson. Still southof this, lifted great weathered buttes and mesas, fortifications of thegods against time itself. The morning sun had not yet reached thecamp, but it shone warm and vivid on the peaks to the south, burningthrough the drifting mists from the river, in colors that thrilled theheart like music. 

Enoch's eyes followed Diana's gesture. "I know, " he said, softly. "It's impossible to express it. I've thought of you and your work sooften, down here. Somehow, though, you do suggest the unattainable inyour pictures. It's what makes them great. "

Diana shook her head and turned toward her tent, while Enoch lightedhis pipe and began his never-ending task of bringing in drift wood. Hepaused, a log on his shoulder, before Curly, who was squatting besidehis muddy pan. 

"Curly, " he said, "is that stuff you have on Fowler and Brown, political, financial, or a matter of personal morals?"

"Personal morals and worse!" grunted Curly. "It's some story!"

Enoch turned away without comment. But the lines between his eyesdeepened. 

CHAPTER IX

THE CLIFF DWELLING

"Love! that which turns the meanest man to a god in some one's eyes!Yet I must not know it! Suppose I cast my responsibility to the windsand . . . And yet that sense of responsibility is all thatdifferentiates me from Minetta Lane. "--_Enoch's Diary_. 

Diana began work on her films on a little folding table beside thespring. Enoch, throwing down his log close to the cave opening, pausedto watch her. Jonas and Na-che, putting the cave in order, talkedquietly to each other. Suddenly from the river, to the right, thererose a man's half choking, agonized shout and around the curve shot askiff, bottom up, a man clinging to the gunwale. The water was toowild and swift for swimming. 

"The rope, Judge, the rope!" cried Mack. 

Enoch picked up a coil of rope, used for staking the horses, and ran toMack who snatched it, twirled it round his head and as the boat rushedby him, the noosed end shot across the gunwale. The man caught it overhis wrist and it was the work of but a few moments to pull him ashore. 

He was a young man, with a two days' beard on his face, clad in theuniversal overalls and blue flannel shirt. He lay on the sand, tooexhausted to move for perhaps five minutes, while Jonas pulled off hissodden shoes, and Na-che ran to kindle a fire and heat water. After amoment, however the stranger began to talk. 

"Almost got me that time! Forgot to put my life preserver on. Don'tbother about me. I'm drowned every day. Another boat with the rest ofus should be along shortly. Hope they salvaged some of the stuff. "

"What in time are you trying to do on the river, anyhow?" demandedCurly. "There's simpler ways of committing suicide. "

The young man laughed. "Oh, we're some more fools trying to get fromGreen River to Needles!"

"On a bet?" asked Mack. 

"Hardly! On a job! Geological Survey! Four of us! There they come!Whoo--ee!"

He staggered to his feet, as another boat shot around the curve. Butthis one came through in proper style, right side up, two men manningthe oars and a third with a steering paddle. With an answering shout, they ran quickly up on the shore. They were a rough-bearded, overalledlot, young men, all of them. 

"Gee whiz, Harden! We thought you were finished!" exclaimed thetallest of the trio. 

"I would have been, but for these folks, " replied Harden. "Here, let'smake some introductions!"

They were stalwart fellows. Milton, the leader, was sandy-haired andfreckled, a University of California man. Agnew was stocky andswarthy, an old Princeton graduate and Forrester, a thin, blonde chaphad worked in New York City before he joined the Geological Survey. They were astonished by this meeting in the Canyon, but delightedbeyond measure. They had been on the river for seven months and up tothis time had met no one except when they went out for supplies. 

"We camped up above those rapids, last night, " said Milton. "Of coursewe didn't know of this spot. We really had nothing but a ledge, upthere. This morning Harden undertook to patch his boat, with thisresult. " He nodded toward the shivering cast-a-way, who had crowdedhimself to Na-che's fire. "Have you folks any objection to ourstopping here to make repairs?"

"Lord, no! Glad to have you!" said Mack. 

Enoch laughed. "Mack, it's no use! You and Curly are doomed to takeon guests as surely as a dog takes on fleas. They started out alone, Milton, for a little vacation prospecting trip. I caught them a fewdays out and made them take me on. Then Miss Allen came along lastnight, and now your outfit! I'm sorry for you, Mack. "

"I'll try to live through it, " grinned Mack. 

"Did you fellows find any pay gravel, coming down?" asked Curly. 

"We didn't look for any, " answered Agnew, "But a few years ago, Ipicked this out of the river bed. "

He showed Curly a nugget as large as a pea. "Where the devil did youfind that?" exclaimed Curly, eagerly. 

"I can show you on our map, " replied Agnew. 

"I'll go fifty-fifty with you, " proffered Curly. "Me to do all thework. "

"No, you won't, " laughed Agnew. "Say, old man, I put in four years, trying to make money out of the Colorado and I swear, the only realcash I've ever made on it has been the magnificent wages the Secretaryof the Interior allows me. I'll keep the nugget. You can havewhatever else you find there. Believe me, you'll earn it, before youget it!"

"You're foolish but I'm on! Mack, when shall we move?"

"I want to know a lot more before I break up my happy home. " Mack'svoice was dry. "In the meantime you fellows make yourselvescomfortable. Come on, Curly. Let's get back to work!"

"Mr. Curly, " said Jonas, "will you let me see that nugget?"

"Sure, Jonas, here it is!"

Jonas turned it over on his brown palm. "You mean to say you pick upgold like that, down here?"

"That's what I did, " replied Agnew. 

"Kin any one do it?"

"Yes, sir!"

"How come it everybody ain't down here doing it right now?"

"The going is pretty stiff, " said Harden, with a grin, glancing at hissteaming legs. 

"Boss, " Jonas turned the nugget over and over, "let's have a try atthese ructions, before we go back!"

"Are you game to take to the boats, Jonas?" asked Enoch. 

"No, boss, we'll just go over the hills, like Miss Diana does. For theLord's sake, who'd want to go back to--"

"Jonas, " interrupted Diana. "If you and Na-che will put together alunch for us, the Judge and I will get started. "

"I didn't quite get your name, sir, " said Milton to Enoch. 

"Just Smith, " called Curly, from over his pan of gravel. "Mr. JustSmith! Judge, for short. "

"Oh!" Milton continued to stare at Enoch in a puzzled way. "I begyour pardon! Come on, Harden, you're pretty well steamed out. Let'sgo back and see what we can salvage, while Ag and Forr begin tooverhaul the stuff we've already pulled out. "

Not a half hour later, Enoch, Diana and Na-che were making their wayslowly up the plateau trail, not however, to climb up the old trail tothe main land. They turned midway toward their right. There was notrail, but Enoch knew the way by the distant peaks. They traveledafoot, single file, each with a canteen, a little packet of food andNa-che with the camera tripod, while Enoch insisted on toting thecamera and the coil of rope. The sun was hot on the plateau and theway very rough. They climbed constantly over ragged boulders, andchaotic rock heaps, or rounded deep fissures that cut the plateau likespider webs. Muscular and in good form as was the trio, frequent restswere necessary. They had one mishap. Na-che, lagging behind, slippedinto a fissure. Enoch and Diana blanched at her sudden scream and ranback as she disappeared. Mercifully a great rock had tumbled into thecrevice some time before and Na-che landed squarely on this, six feetbelow the surface. When Diana and Enoch peered over, she was sittingcalmly on the rock, still clinging to the tripod. 

"I lost my lunch!" she grumbled as she looked up at them. 

Diana laughed. "You may have mine! Better no lunch than no Na-che. Give us hold of the end of the tripod, honey, and we'll help you out. "

A few moments of strenuous scrambling and pulling and Na-che was on theplateau brushing the sand from her clothes. 

"Sit down and get your breath, Na-che, " said Enoch. 

"I'm fine! I don't need to sit, " answered Na-che. "Let's get along. "She started on briskly. 

"I suppose things like that are of daily occurrence!" exclaimed Enoch. "Miss Allen, don't you think you could be more careful!"

Again Diana laughed. "It wasn't I who slipped into the crevice!"

"No, but I'll wager you've had many an accident. "

"That's where part of the fun comes in. Why, only yesterday we had themost thrilling escape. We--"

"Please! I don't want to hear it!" protested Enoch, "Pshaw! There's no more daily risk here, than there is in the streetsof a large city. "

Enoch grunted and followed as Diana hurried after Na-che. The coursenow led along the edge of the plateau which here hung directly abovethe river. The water twisted far below like a sinuous brown ribbon. The nooning sky was bronze blue and burning hot. The world seemed veryhuge, to Enoch; the three of them, toiling so carefully over the yellowplateau, very small and insignificant. He did not talk much during therest intervals. He would light his pipe and smoke as if in physicalcontentment, but his deep blue eyes were burning and somber as theyrested on the vast emptiness about them. Na-che always dozed duringthe stops. Diana, after she had observed the look in Enoch's eyes, occupied herself in writing up her note book. 

It was just noon when they came to an old trail which Enoch believeddropped to the cliff dwelling. Before descending it, they ate theirlunch, Enoch and Diana sharing with Na-che. This done, they began towork carefully down the faint old trail. For ten or fifteen minutes, they wormed zig-zag downward, the angle of descent so great thatfrequently they were obliged to sit down and slide, controlling theirspeed by clinging to the rocks on either side. They could not see thecliff dwelling; only the river winding so remotely below. But at theend of the fifteen minutes the trail stopped abruptly. Sounexpectedly, in fact, that Enoch clung to a rock while his legsdangled over the abyss. He shouted to the others to wait while hepeered dizzily below. A great section of the wall had broken away andthe trail could not be taken up again until a sheer gap of twenty feethad been bridged. 

Diana crept close behind Enoch and peered over his shoulders. 

"If we tie the rope to this pointed rock, I think we can lowerourselves, don't you?" he asked. 

"Easily!" agreed Diana. "I'll go first. "

"Well, hardly! I'll go first and Na-che can bring up the rear, asusual. "

They knotted the rope around the rock and Enoch and Diana quickly andeasily made the descent. Na-che lowered the camera and tripod to them, then examined, with a sudden exclamation, the rock to which the ropewas tied. "That rock will give way any minute, " she cried. "Yourweight has cracked it. "

Even as she spoke, the rock suddenly tilted and slid, then bounded outto the depths below, carrying the rope with it. For a moment no onespoke, then Na-che, her round brown face wrinkled with amusement, said, "Almost no Na-che, no Diana, no Judge, eh?"

"Jove, what an escape!" breathed Enoch. 

"Na-che, " said Diana, "you'll just have to return to the camp foranother rope. You'd better ride back here. In the meantime, the Judgeand I'll explore the dwelling. "

Na-che nodded and without another word, disappeared. Diana turned toEnoch. "Lead ahead, Judge!"

The trail now led around a curve in the wall. Enoch edged gingerlybeyond this and paused. The trail again was broken, but they were infull view of the cliff dwelling, which was snuggled in an inward curveof the Canyon, filling entirely a gigantic gap in the gray wall. 

Diana exclaimed over its mute beauty. "I must see it!" she said. "Butwe can't bridge this gap without more ropes and more people to help. "

"It looks to me, " Enoch spoke with a sudden smile, "as though the Lordintended me to have a few moments alone with you!"

Diana smiled in return. "It does, indeed, " she agreed. 

"Let's try to settle ourselves comfortably here in view of thedwelling. I like to look at it. We can hear Na-che when she calls. "

The trail was several feet wide at this point. Diana sat down on arock, her back to the wall, clasping one knee with her brown fingers. For a little while Enoch stood looking from the dwelling to Diana, thenfar out to the glowing peaks across the Canyon to the north. Finally, he turned to silent contemplation of the lovely, slender figure againstthe wall. Diana's dignity, her utter sweetness, the something quietingand steadying in her personality never had seemed more pronounced toEnoch than in this country of magnificent heights and depths. 

"Well, " said Diana, finally, "after you've finished your inspection, perhaps you'll sit down and talk. "

Enoch smiled and established himself beside her. He refilled his pipe, lighted it and laid it down. "Miss Allen, " he said abruptly, "you sawthe article in the Brown papers?"

"Yes, " replied Diana. 

"What did you think of it?"

"I thought what others think, that Brown is an unspeakable cur. "

"I can't tell you how keenly I feel for you in the matter, Miss Allen. I would have given anything to have saved you from it. "

"Would you? I'm not so sure that I would! You see, I'm just enough ofa hero worshiper to be proud to have my name coupled in friendship withthat of a great man. "

"A great man!" repeated Enoch quietly, yet with a bitterness in hisvoice that wrung Diana's heart. 

"Yes, Mr. Huntingdon, " Diana's voice broke a little and she turned herhead away. 

The utter silence of the Canyon enveloped them. 

At last Enoch said, "You have a big soul, Miss Allen, but you shall notsacrifice one smallest fragment of--of your perfection for me. If itis necessary for me to kill Brown, I shall do so. "

Diana gasped, "Enoch!"

Enoch, at the sound of his name on her lips, touched her hand quicklyand softly with his own, and as quickly drew it away, jumped to hisfeet and began to pace the trail. 

"Yes, kill him, the cur! Diana, he did not even leave me a mother inthe public mind! He maligned you. The burdens that I have carried forall the years, the horrors that I've wrestled with, the secret shamesthat I've hidden, he's exposed them all in the open marketplace. Andhe dragged you into my mire! Diana, each man must be broken in adifferent way. Some are broken by money, some by physical fear, someby spiritual fear, some--"

Diana interrupted. "Enoch, are you a friend of mine?"

Enoch turned his tortured eyes to hers. "I shall never tell you howmuch a friend I am to you, Diana. But my friendship is a fact you maydraw on all the days of your life, as heavily as you will. "

"And I am your friend. Though I know you so little, no friend is asdear to me as you are. " She rose and coming to his side, she took hishand in both of hers. 

"Dear Enoch, what a man like Brown can say of you in an article or two, has no permanent weight with the public. Scurrilous stories of thattype kill themselves by their very scurrility. No matter how eagerlythe public may lap up the stuff, it cannot really heed it for, Enoch, America knows you and your service. America loves you. Brown cannotdislodge you by slandering your mother. The real importance and dangerof that story lies in its reaction on you. I--I could not helprecalling the story of that tormented, red-haired boy who went downBright Angel trail with my father and I had to come to help him, if Icould. O Enoch, if the Canyon could only, once more, wipe LuigiGuiseppi out of your life!"

Enoch watched Diana's wide gray eyes with a look of painful eagerness. 

"Nothing matters, nothing can matter, Enoch, except that you find thestrength in the Canyon to go back to your work and that you leave Brownalone. That is what I want to demand of your friendship, that youpromise me to do those two things. "

"I shall go back, of course, " replied Enoch, gravely. "I had nothought of doing otherwise. But about Brown, I cannot promise. "

"Then will you agree not to go back until you have talked to me again?"

"Again? But I expect to talk to you many times, Diana! You are notgoing away, are you?"

Diana nodded. "I'm using another person's money and I must get on, to-morrow, with the work I agreed to do. Promise me, Enoch. "

"But, Diana--O Diana! Diana! Let me go with you!"

Diana turned to face the dwelling. "The Canyon can do more for youthan I can, Enoch. But we'll meet, say at El Tovar before you go backto Washington. Promise me, Enoch. "

"Of course, I promise. But, Diana, how can I let you go!"

Enoch put his arm across Diana's shoulders and stood beside her, staring at the silent, deserted dwelling. It seemed to Enoch, standingso, that this was the sweetest and saddest moment of his life; saddestbecause he felt that in nothing more than friendship must he ever touchher hand with his: sweetest because for the first time in his historyhe was beginning to understand the depth and beauty that can exist in afriendship between a man and a woman. 

"Diana, " he said at last, "you may take yourself away from me, butnevertheless, I shall carry with me the thought of your loveliness, like a rod and a staff to sustain me. "

When Diana turned to look at him there were tears in her eyes. 

"I've always been glad that I was not ugly, " she said, "butnow, "--smiling through wet lashes--"you make me proud of it, though Ican't see how the thought of it can--"

She paused and Enoch went on eagerly: "It's a seamy, rough world, Diana, all higgledy-piggledy. The beautiful souls are misplaced inugly carcasses and the ugly souls in beautiful. Those who might befriends and lovers too often meet only to grieve that it is too latefor their joy. In such a world, when one beholds a body that naturehas chiseled and molded and polished to loveliness like yours anddiscovers that that loveliness is a true index of the intelligence andfineness of the character dwelling in the body--well, Diana, it givesone a new thought about God. It does, indeed!"

"Enoch, I don't deserve it! I truly don't!" looking at him with thatcurious mingling of tenderness and courtesy and understanding in herwide eyes that made Diana unique. 

Enoch only smiled and again silence fell between them. Finally, Enochsaid, "I would like to go down the river with Milton and his crowd. "

Diana's voice was startled. "O no, Enoch! It's a frightfullydangerous trip! You risk your life every moment. "

"I want to risk my life, " returned Enoch. "I want a real man'sadventure. I've got a battle inside of me to fight that will rend meunless I have one of equal proportions to fight, externally. "

A loud halloo sounded from above. "There's Na-che!" exclaimed Diana. "We'll talk this over later, Enoch. "

But Enoch shook his head. "No, Diana, please! I've dreamed all mylife of this canyon trip. You mustn't dissuade me. Milton will bestarting to-morrow and I'm going to crowd in, somehow. "

Na-che called again. Diana turned silently and in silence theyreturned to the end of the broken trail. Here they explained to Na-chethe conditions of the trail beyond and that they had determined to giveup the expedition for that day. 

"I doubt if I try to investigate it at all, on this trip, " said Diana, when they had made the difficult ascent to the plateau. "I reallyought to get into the Hopi country. My conscience is troubling me. "

Na-che looked disappointed. "That is a good camp, by the river, " shesaid. "But maybe, " eagerly, "the Judge and Jonas will come with us. "

"You like Jonas, don't you, Na-che?" asked Enoch. 

The Indian woman laughed and tossed her head, but did not answer. 

It was only four o'clock when they reached camp, but already dusk wassettling in the Canyon. A good fire was going in front of the cave andJonas was guarding his stew which simmered over a smaller blaze nearDiana's tent. Na-che lifted the lid of the kettle, sniffed and turnedaway with a shrug of her shoulders. 

"What's troubling you, woman?" demanded Jonas. 

"I thought you was making stew, " replied Na-che. 

"Oh, you did! Well, what do you think now?"

"Oh, I guess you're just boiling the mud out of the river water. Yougive me the kettle and I'll show you how to make rabbit stew. "

"I'll give you a piece of my mind, Miss Na-che, that's what I'll giveyou. How come you to think you can sass a Washington man, huh, agovernment man, huh? How come you suppose I don't know women, huh?Why child, I was taking girls to fancy dress balls when you Indians wasstill wearing nothing but strings. I was--"

"O Jonas!" called Enoch, who had been standing by the cave fire, anamused auditor of Jonas' tirade; "treat Na-che gently. She's leavingto-morrow. "

"Leaving? Don't we go, too, boss?" asked Jonas. 

"No, I'm going to see if I can go down river with the boats. "

Curly, who was cleaning up in the cave, came out, comb in hand. 

"You haven't gone crazy, have you, Judge?"

"No more than usual, Curly. How about it, Milton?" as that sturdypersonage came up from the river and dropped wearily down by the fire. "Don't you need another man?"

"Yes, Judge, we're two short. One of our fellows broke an arm a weekago and we had to send him out, with another chap to help him. "

"Will you let me work my passage as far as Bright Angel?" asked Enoch. 

Milton scowled thoughtfully. "It's a god-awful job. You realize that, do you?"

Enoch nodded. Milton turned to Harden and the other two men. "What doyou fellows think?"

"We're awful short-handed, " replied Harden, cautiously. "Can you swim, Judge?"

"I'm a strong swimmer. "

"But gee willikums, Judge, what're we going to do without you?"demanded Mack. "Ain't that just the usual luck? You get a cooktrained and off he goes!"

"And how about that deal of ours, Smith?" asked Curly, in a low voice. 

"I haven't forgotten it for a moment, Curly, " Enoch replied. "I'lltalk to you about it, to-night. How about it, Milton?"

"Can you stand rotten hard luck without belly-aching?" asked Agnew. 

"Yes, he can!" exclaimed Mack, "but he's a darn fool to think of going. It's as risky as the devil and nobody that's got a family dependent on'em ought to consider it for a moment. "

"I have no one, " said Enoch quietly. "And I'm strong and hard asnails. "

"What fool ever sent you folks out?" asked Curly. 

"It's not a fool trip, really, " expostulated Milton. "It's verynecessary for a good many reasons that the government have moreaccurate geographical and geological knowledge of this section. "

"What part of the government do you work for?" asked Mack. 

"The Geological Survey. It's a bureau in the Department of theInterior. "

"Oh, then Huntingdon's your Big Boss!" exclaimed Mack. "Do you knowhim?"

"Never met him, " replied Milton. "He doesn't know the small fry in hisdepartment. "

"He sits in Washington and gets the glory while you guys do the work, eh!" said Curly. 

"I don't think you should put it that way, Curly, " protested Mack. "Enoch Huntingdon's a big man and he's done more real solid work forhis country than any man in Washington to-day and I'll bet you on it. "

"Right you are!" exclaimed Forrester. "My oldest brother was incollege with Huntingdon. Says he was a good fellow, a brilliantstudent and even then he could make a speech that would break yourheart. His one vice was gambling. He--"

"My father knew Huntingdon!" Diana spoke quickly. "He knew him when hewas a long-legged, red-headed boy of fourteen. My father was his guidedown Bright Angel trail. Dad always said that he never met asinteresting a human being as that boy. "

"Queer thing about personal charm, " contributed Agnew. "I heardHuntingdon make one of his great speeches when he was PoliceCommissioner. I was just a little kid and he was a big, homely, red-headed chap, but I remember how my kid heart warmed to him and howI wished I could get up on the stage and get to know him. "

"So he was a gambler, was he?" Curly spoke in a musing voice. "Well, if he was once, he is now. It's a worse vice than drink. "

"How come you say that, Mr. Curly?" demanded Jonas. 

"In the meantime, " interrupted Enoch, gruffly, "how about my trip downthe Canyon?"

"Well, " replied Milton, "if you go at it with your eyes open, I don'tsee why you can't try it as far as Grant's Crossing. That'sseventy-five miles west of here. Barring accidents, we should reachthere in a week, cleaning up the survey as we go along. If you live toreach there, you can either go out or come along, as you wish. Butunderstand that from the time we leave here till we reach Grant'sCrossing, there's no way out of the Canyon, at least as far as the mapsindicate. "

"Say, the placer where I found my nugget is just above Grant's!"exclaimed Harden. "Why don't you placer fans start on west and we'llall try to meet there in a week's time. I couldn't tell Field where itwas in a hundred years. "

"Suits me!" exclaimed Curly. 

"Me too!" echoed Mack. 

"Then, " said Enoch, "will you take Jonas along as cook, Mack?"

"You bet!" cried Mack. 

"Does that suit you, Jonas?" asked Enoch. 

"No, boss, it don't suit me. I've gotta go with you. I ain't nevergoing to live through it, but I'll die praying. "

A shout went up of laughter and expostulation, but Jonas, though grimwith terror, was entirely unmoved. Nothing, not even mortal horror ofthe Colorado could break his determination never to be separated fromEnoch again. His agitation was so deep and so obvious that Enoch andMilton finally gave in to him. 

"All right!" said Milton. "A daylight start will about suit us all, Iguess. I don't think I can give you much previous instruction, Judge, that will help you. We'll put Jonas in Harden's boat and you in mine. You must wear your life preserver all the time that we are on thewater. When we are in the boat, do as I tell you, instantly, andyou'll soon pick up what small technique we have. It's mostly horsesense and brute strength that we use. No two rapids are alike and theportages are nearly all difficult beyond words. "

"My Gawd!" muttered Jonas. 

"You go over to the Hopi country with us, " said Na-che, softly. 

"I dassen't do it!" groaned Jonas. "You'll have to serve that stew, Na-che. My nerves is just too upset. I gotta go off and sit downsomewhere. "

"Don't you worry, " whispered Na-che, "I'll give you a Navajo charm. You can't drown if you wear it. "

Jonas' black face grew less tense. "Honest, Na-che?"

Na-che nodded emphatically. 

"Well, " said Jonas, "I had a warming of my heart to you the minute Ilaid eyes on you, up there at the Grand Canyon. Any woman as handsomeas you is, Na-che, is bound to be a comfort to a man in his hours oftrouble. "

Again Na-che nodded and began to dish the stew, which came quite up toJonas' estimate of it. After supper, the big fire was replenished andMack produced a deck of cards. 

"Who said draw-poker?" he inquired. 

"Most any of our crowd will shout, " said Agnew. 

"Judge?" Mack looked at Enoch, who was sitting before the fire, armsclasped about his knees. 

Enoch pulled his pipe out of his mouth to answer. "No!" with a look ofrepugnance that caused Milton to exclaim, "Got conscientious scruplesagainst cards, Judge?"

"Yes, but don't stop your game for me, " replied Enoch, harshly. Thenhis voice softened. "Miss Allen, the moon is shining, up on theplateau. While these chaps play, will you take a walk with me?"

"I'd like to very much!" Diana spoke quickly. 

"Well, don't be gone over an hour, children, " said Curly. "Cards don'tdraw me like a good gab round the fire. And Diana's our best gabber. "

"An hour's the bargain then, " said Enoch. "Come along, Miss Allen!"

It was, indeed, glorious moonlight on the plateau. The two did notspeak until they reached the upper level, then Enoch laughed. 

"Jove! This is the greatest luck a game of cards ever brought me!Think, Diana, three days ago I was fighting my despair at the thoughtthat I must never see you again and that you despised me. And here Iam, with moonlight and you and a whole hour. Are you a little bitglad, Diana?"

"A little bit! I'd be gladder if I weren't so disturbed at the thoughtof the trip you are to begin to-morrow!"

"Nonsense, Diana! I'm learning more about my own Department every day. Aren't they a fine lot of fellows? Milton scares me to death. I don'tdoubt for a moment that if he tells me to dash to destruction in awhirlpool, I shall do so. There's a chap that could exact obediencefrom a mule. I'll look up his record when I get back to Washington. "

"Shall you reveal your identity before you leave them?" asked Diana. 

"No, certainly not! Not for worlds would I have them know who I am. And now tell me, Diana, just what are your plans?"

"Oh, nothing at all exciting! I am going to make some studies ofIndian children's games. They are picturesque and ethnologically, veryinteresting. I shall come home across the Painted Desert and take somepictures in color. My adventures will be very mild compared withyours. "

"And you and Na-che will be quite alone, out in this trackless country!I shall worry about you, Diana. "

Diana laughed. "Enoch, you have no idea of what you are undertaking!You'll have no time to give me a thought. For a week you're going tostruggle as you never did before to keep breath in your body. "

"Oh, it'll not be that bad!" exclaimed Enoch. "Are you cold, Diana? Ithought you shivered. What a strange, ghostlike country it is! Itwould be horrible up here alone, wouldn't it!"

They paused to gaze out over the fantastic landscape. 

In the gray light the strangely weathered mesas were ruined castles, stupendous in bulk; the mighty buttes and crumbled peaks were colossalcities overthrown by the cataclysm of time. It seemed to Enoch, thatnowhere else in the world could one behold such epic loneliness. Theexcitement that had buoyed him up since Diana's arrival suddenlydeparted, and his life with all its ugly facts was vividly in hisconsciousness again. 

"Diana, " he said, abruptly, "when you were talking to me thisafternoon, you spoke of the Brown matter in the plural. Was there morethan one article about me?"

Diana turned her tender eyes to Enoch's. "Let's not spoil thisbeautiful evening, " she pleaded. 

"I don't want to bother you, Diana. Just tell me the facts and we'lldrop it. "

"I'd rather not talk about it, " replied Diana. 

"Please, Diana! Whatever fight I have down here, whatever conclusion Ireach, I want to work with my eyes open, so that my decisions shall befinal. I don't want to have to revamp and revise when I get out. "

"As far as I know, " said Diana, in a low voice, "there was but oneother reference to the matter. The day after the first articleappeared, Brown published a photograph of you and me in front of aJohnstown lunch place. There was a long caption, which said that youhad always been proud that you were slum-reared and a woman hater. That you had persisted in keeping some of your early habits, perhapsout of bravado. That Miss Allen was an intimate friend, the only womanfriend you had made and kept. That was all. "

"All!" echoed Enoch. The pale, silver landscape danced in a crimsonmist before him. He stood, clenching and unclenching his fists, breathing rapidly. 

"Oh, Enoch! Enoch! Since you had to know, it was better for you toknow from me than any one else. And as far as I am concerned, as Itold you before, I'm only amused. It's only for the reaction on youthat I'm troubled. "

"You mustn't be troubled, Diana. " said Enoch, huskily. "But I'd beless than a man, if I didn't pay that yellow cur up. You see that, don't you?"

"A Dutch family I have heard of has this family motto: 'Eagles do notsee flies. '"

Enoch gave a dry, mirthless laugh. For a long time they tramped insilence. Then Diana said, "We've been out half an hour, Enoch. "

Enoch turned at once, taking Diana's hand as he did so. He did notrelease it until they had reached the edge of the trail and the soundof men's voices floated up to them. Then taking off his hat, he liftedthe slender fingers to his lips. "This is our real good-by, Diana, forwe'll not be alone, again. If anything should happen to me, I want youto have my diary, if they save it. I'll have it with me, on the trip. "

Diana's lips quivered. "God keep you, Enoch, and help you. " Then sheturned and led the way to the cave. 

CHAPTER X

THE EXPEDITION BEGINS

"After all, there is a place still untouched by humanity, where skiesare unmarred and the way leads through uncharted beauty. When I haveearned the right, I shall go there again. "--_Enoch's Diary_. 

Before dawn the camp fires were lighted and the various breakfasts werein preparation. When these had been eaten there was light from thepale sky above by which to complete the packing of the boats. 

These were strongly built, wooden skiffs with three water tightcompartments in each; one amidships, one fore and one aft, with decksflush with the gunwales. There was room between the middle and endcompartments for the oarsmen to sit. The man who worked thesteersman's oar sat on the rear compartment. In these compartmentswere packed all the dunnage, clothing, food, tools, surveying andgeological instruments and cameras. Each man was allowed about fiftypounds of personal luggage. Everything that water could hurt waspacked in rubber bags. 

Milton was troubled when he found that Enoch had no change of shoes. 

"You'll reach camp each night, " said he, "soaked to the skin. You musthave warm, dry clothing to change to. Shoes are especially important. Jonas must have them, too. "

"How about Indian moccasins, Mr. Milton?" asked Jonas. "I bought threepairs while I was with Miss Diana. "

"Well, they're better than nothing, " grumbled Milton. "Are you ready, Harden?"

"Aye! Aye! sir!" said Harden, pulling his belt in tightly. "Are youall set, Ag and Jonas?"

"All set, Harden, " Agnew picked up his oar. "Are you ready, Matey?" toJonas, who was saying good-by in a whisper to Na-che. 

"I'm as ready as I'll ever be, Mr. Agnew, " groaned Jonas. "Good-by, everybody!" stepping gingerly into the boat. 

"All aboard then, Judge and Forr, " cried Milton. "I'll shove off. "

"Good-by, Diana! Good-by, Curly and Mack!" Enoch waved his hand andtook his place, and the racing water seized the boats. Hardly hadEnoch turned to look once more at the four watching on the beach, whenthe boats shot round the curving western wall. For the first halfhour, the water was smooth and swift, sweeping between walls that wereabrupt and verdureless and offered not so much as a finger hold for alanding place. 

Enoch, following instruction did not try to row at first. He satquietly watching the swift changing scenery, feeling awkward and alittle helpless in his life preserver. 

"We're due, sometime this morning, to strike some pretty stiffcataracts, " said Milton, "but the records show that we can shoot mostof them. Keep in to the left wall, Forr, I want to squint at that bendin the strata. "

They swung across the stream, and as they did so they caught a glimpseof Jonas. He was crouched in the bottom of the boat, his eyes rollingabove his life preserver. 

"Didn't Na-che give you that Navaho charm, Jonas?" called Forrester. 

"It'll take more than a charm to help poor old Jonas, " said Enoch. "Ireally think he'll like it in a day or so. He's got good pluck. "

"He's only showing what all of us felt on our maiden trip, " chuckledMilton. Then he added, quickly, "Listen, Forr!"

Above the splash of the oars and the swift rush of the river rose asound like the far roar of street traffic. 

"Our little vacation is over, " commented Forrester. 

"Easy now, Forr! We'll land for observation before we tackle a racketlike that. Let the current carry us. Be ready to back water when Ishout. " He raised his voice. "Harden, don't follow too closely! Youknow your failing!"

They rounded a curving wall, the current carrying them, Milton said, atleast ten miles an hour. A short distance now, and they saw spraybreaking high in the middle of the stream. 

"We'll land here, " said Milton, steering to a great pile of bowldersagainst the right wall. 

Enoch watched with keen interest the preparation for the descent. First sticks were thrown into the water, to catch the trend of the maincurrent. Milton pointed out to Enoch that if the stick were deflectedagainst one wall or another, great care had to be exercised to preventthe boats being dashed against the walls in like manner. But, he said, if the current seemed to run a fairly unobstructed course, it washopeful that the boats would go through. There were a number of rocksprotruding from the water, but the current appeared to round thesecleanly and Milton gave the order to proceed. They worked backupstream a short distance so as to catch the current straight prow on, and in a moment they were dashing through a sea of roaring waves thatdrenched them to the skin. 

Forrester and Milton steered a zigzag course about the menacing rocks, grazing and bumping them now and again, but emerging finally, withoutaccident, in quieter waters. Here they hugged the shore and waited forHarden's boat, the Mary, to come down. And come it did, balancinguncannily on the top of the waves, with Jonas' yells sounding evenabove the uproar of the waters. 

"More of it below, Harden, " said Milton as the Mary shot alongside. 

More indeed! It seemed to Enoch that the first rapid was child's playto the one that followed. The jutting rocks were more frequent. Thefall greater. The waves more menacing. But they shot it safely untilthey reached its foot and there an eddy caught them and carried themback upstream in spite of all that could be done. Enoch seized theoars that were in readiness beside him and pulled with all his mightbut to no avail. And suddenly the Mary rushed out of the mist strikingthem fairly amidship. The Ida half turned over, but righted herselfand the Mary darted off. Milton shouted hoarsely, Forrester and Enochobeyed blindly and after what seemed to Enoch an endless struggle, spray and waves suddenly ceased and they found themselves in quieterwaters where the Mary awaited them. 

Harden and Agnew were laughing. "Thought you knew an eddy when you sawone, Milt!" cried Agnew. 

"I don't know anything!" grinned Milton, "except that Jonas is going tobe too scared to cook. "

"If ever I get to land, " retorted Jonas, "I'll cook something for athanksgiving to the Lord that you all will never forget. "

They examined the next fall and passed through it successfully. TheCanyon was widening now and an occasional cedar tree could be seen. Enoch was vaguely conscious, too, that the colors of the walls weremore brilliant. But the ardors of the rapids gave small opportunityfor aesthetic observations. 

Curiously enough, after the passage of this last fall the waters didnot subside in speed, though the waves disappeared. The spray ofanother fall was to be seen beyond. 

"We mustn't risk shooting her without observation, " cried Milton. "Make for that spit of sand with the cedars on it, fellows. "

Enoch and Forrester put their backs into their strokes in theirendeavor to guide the Ida to the place indicated, which appeared to bethe one available landing spot. But the current carried them at suchvelocity that when within half a dozen feet of the shore it seemedimpossible to stop and make the landing. 

"Overboard!" shouted Milton. 

All three plunged into the water, clinging to the gunwale. The waterwas waist deep. For a few feet boat and men were dragged onward. Thenthey found secure foothold on the rocky river bottom and, with hugeeffort, beached the Ida. Scarcely was this done, when the Mary hove inview and with Milton shouting directions, they rushed once more intothe current to help with the landing. 

"The cook and the bacon both are in your boat, Harden!" chuckledMilton, "or you'd be getting no such delicate attentions from the Ida. "

Jonas crawled stiffly out of his compartment. Enoch began preparationfor a fire, white the others busied themselves with notes andobservations. It was 90 degrees on the little sandy beach and the wetclothing was not chilling. They ate enormously of Jonas's dinner, thenthe Survey men scattered to their work for an hour or so, while Enochexplored the region. There was no getting to the top of the walls, sohe contented himself with crawling gingerly over the rocks to a pointwhere a little spring bubbled out of a narrow cave opening. Peeringthrough this, Enoch saw that it was dimly lighted, and he crawledthrough the water. 

To his astonishment, he was in a great circular amphitheater, a hundredfeet in diameter, domed to an enormous height, with the blue skyshowing through a rift at the top. The little spring trickled down thewall, now dropping sheer in spray, now trickling in a delicate, glistening sheet. But the greatest wonder of the cave was in thetexture of its walls, which appeared to Enoch to be of purest marble ofa deep shell pink and translucent creamy white. Moisture had collectedon the walls and each tiny globule of water seemed to hold a miniaturerainbow in its heart. There was a holy sort of loveliness about thespot, and before he returned to the rugged adventure outside, Enochpulled off his hat and christened the place Diana's Chapel. Nor didhe, on his arrival at the camp, tell of his find. 

Shortly after two o'clock Milton ordered all hands aboard. But beforethis he had shown them all the map, adding a rough sketch of his own. The next rapid appeared to be no more dangerous than the previous one. But below it the river widened out into a circular bay, a great tureenwithin which the waters moved with an oil-like smoothness. But whenMilton threw a stick into this strange basin, it was whirled the entirecircumference of the bay with a velocity that all the men agreed bodedill for any boat that did not cling to the wall. The west end of thebay, where it was all but blocked by the closing in of the Canyonsides, could not be seen from the rocks where the men stood. But theold maps reported a steep fall which must be portaged. 

"Cling to the right-hand wall, " ordered Milton. "If you steer out, Harden, for the sake of the short cut, you may be lost. The reportsshow that two other boats were lost here. Cling to the wall! When wereach the mouth we must go ashore again and examine the falls. Be sureyour life preservers are strapped securely. "

"Mr. Milton, " said Jonas, "you better let me get my hands on a oar. IfI got to die, I'm going to die fighting. "

"Good stuff, Jonas!" exclaimed Harden. "Can you row?"

"Brought up on the Potomac, " replied Jonas. 

"All right, folks, " cried Milton. "We're off. "

The Ida would have shot the rapid successfully, but for one importantpoint. It was necessary, in order to land on the right side of thewhirlpool, to steer to the right of a tall, finger-like rock, thatprotruded from the water at the bottom of the rapids. About a boat'slength from this rock, however, a sudden wave shot six feet into theair, throwing the Ida off its course, and drenching the crew, so thatthey entered the churning tureen at a speed of twenty miles an hour andalmost at the middle of the stream. 

"Pull to the right wall! To the right!" roared Milton. But he mightas well have roared to the wind. Enoch and Forrester rose from theirseats and threw the whole weight of their bodies on their oars. Butthe noiseless power of the whirlpool thrust the Ida mercilessly towardthe center. 

"Harder!" panted Milton, straining with all his might at the steeringoar. "Put your back into her, Judge! Bend to it, Forr!"

Enoch's breath came in gasps. His palms, the cords of his wrists feltpowerless. His toe muscles cramped in agony. As in a mist he saw theright wall recede, felt the boat twist under his knees like adisobedient horse. Suddenly there was a crack as of a pistol shotbehind him. One of Forrester's oars had snapped. Forrester drew inthe other and crawled back to add his weight to the steering oar. 

"It's up to you, Judge!" cried Milton. 

They were in the center of the bay now and the boat began to spin. Forone terrible moment it seemed as if an overturn were imminent. Out ofthe tail of his eyes, Enoch saw the Mary hugging the right wall. 

"Judge!" shouted Milton. "If you can back water into that rough spotsix feet to your right, I think we can stop the spin. "

Enoch was too spent to reply but he gathered every resource in his bodyto make one more effort. The boat slowly edged into the rough spot andfor a moment the spin ceased. 

"Now shoot her downstream! We'll have to trust to the Mary to keep usfrom entering the falls, " Milton shouted. 

With Enoch giving all that was left in him to the oars, and Forresterand Milton steering with their united strength and skill, the Idaslowly worked toward the narrow opening which marked the head of thefalls. The crew of the Mary had landed and Harden stood on theoutermost rock at the opening, swinging a coil of rope, while Agnewcrawled up behind him with another. Jonas hung onto the Mary's rope. 

Perhaps a half dozen boat lengths from the falls the whirling motion ofthe water ceased, and it leaped ferociously toward the narrow opening. When the Ida felt this straight pull, Milton roared:

"Back her, Judge, back her! Now the rope, Harden! You too, Ag!"

Her prow was beyond the opening before the speed of the Ida was stoppedby the ropes. A moment later her crew had dropped flat on the rocks, panting and exhausted. 

"Well, Milt, of all the darn fools!" exclaimed Harden. "After tellingus to keep to the right, what did you try to do yourself? If you'dgone inside that big finger rock at the end of the rapid you'd have hadno trouble. "

"I never had a chance to go inside that rock, " panted Milton. "Apot-hole spouted a boat's length ahead and threw me clear to the left. "

"Say, " said Agnew, "we got some crew in our boat now. Jonas, you aresome little oarsman!"

"Scared as ever, Jonas?" asked Enoch. 

"I wasn't never so much scared, you know, boss, as I was nervous. Butthis charm is sure a good one. If we can live through this here day, we can live through anything. I want you to wear it, to-morrow, boss. Seems like the head boat needs it more'n us folks. "

Jonas' liquid black eyes twinkled. Enoch laughed. "If I hadn't knownyou were a good sport, Jonas, I'd never have let you come with us. Keep your charm, old man. I don't expect ever to gather togetherenough strength to get into the boat again!"

"Nobody's going to try to get in to-night, " said Milton, withoutlifting his head from the rocks on which he lay. "We camp right here. It's four o'clock anyhow. "

"Then I've something still left to be thankful for!" Enoch closed hiseyes with a deep sigh of relief. 

When he next opened them it was dusk. Above him, on the narrow canyontop, gleamed the wonder of the desert stars. There was a glow offirelight on the rocks about him. Enoch sat up. It was aninhospitable spot for a camp. The roar of the falls was harsh andmenacing. The canyon walls shot two thousand feet into the air oneither side of the sliding waters. Enoch was suddenly oppressed by avague sense of suffocation. He realized, fully, for the first timethat the menace of the Canyon was very real; that should a sudden riseof the waters come at this point, there was no climbing out, no goingback; that should the boats be lost---- He shook himself, rose stifflyand joined the group around the fire. 

"Ship ahoy, Judge!" cried Harden. "Are you still traveling in circles?"

"Humph!" grunted Milton. "The Judge may be a tenderfoot in the Canyon, but he's no tenderfoot in a boat. Ever on a college crew, Judge?"

"Yes, Columbia, " replied Enoch. 

"I thought you'd raced! Jove, how you did heave the old tub round!Jonas, how about grub for the Judge?"

"How come you to think you have to tell me to look out for my boss, Mr. Milton?" grumbled Jonas, coming up with a pie tin loaded with beans andbacon. 

"Hello, Jonas, old man! What do you think of this parlor, bedroom andbath?" asked Enoch. 

"I feel like Joseph in the pit, boss! Folks back home wouldn't neverbelieve me if Mr. Agnew hadn't promised to take some pictures of me andmy boat. That's an awful good boat, the Mary, boss. She is some boat!Did you see me jerk her round?"

"No, I missed that, Jonas. I was a little preoccupied at the time. Isto-day a fair sample of every day, you fellows?"

"Lately, yes, " replied Forrester. "To-morrow'll be a bell ringer too, from the looks of that portage. Need any help on those dishes, Jonas, before I go to bed?"

"All done, thanks, " answered Jonas. "Say, Mr. Milton, you know what Iwas thinking? Mary's no name for a sassy, gritty boat like ours. Letme give her a good name. "

"What name, for instance?" demanded Harden. 

Jonas cleared his throat. "I was thinking of the Na-che. "

"My word!" exclaimed Harden. "Say, Ag, would you want our boat renamedthe Na-che?"

"Who'd repaint the name?" asked Agnew carefully. "That's the pointwith me. "

"The trouble with you, Ag, " said Harden, "is that you haven't any soul. "

"I'd do the painting, " Jonas went on eagerly. "I was thinking ofgetting her all fixed up with that can of paint I see to-day. Redpaint, it was. "

"Do you think that Na-che would mind our making free with her name?"Milton's tone was serious. 

"Mind!" cried Jonas. "Well, if you knew women like I do you'd neverask a question like that! A woman would rather have a boat or a racehorse named after her any time than have a baby named for her. I knowwomen!"

"In that case, let's rename the Mary, " said Milton. "Everybody readyto turn in?"

"I am, sir, " replied Harden. "Jonas, you turn off the lights and putthe cat down cellar. Good night, everybody!"

Jonas chuckled and hobbled off to his blankets. It was not seveno'clock when the rude camp was silent and every soul in it in profoundslumber. 

Enoch was stiff and muscle-sore in the morning but he ate breakfastwith a ravenous appetite and with a keen interest in the day's program. In response to his questions Milton said:

"We unload the boats and make the dunnage up into fifty pound loads. Then we look over the trail. Sometimes we have merely to get up on ourtwo legs and walk it. Other times we have to make trail even forourselves, let alone for the boats. Sometimes we can portage thefreight and lower the boats through the water by tow ropes. But forthis falls, there's nothing to do but to make trail and drag the boatsover it. "

"It's no trip for babes!" exclaimed Enoch. "That's certain! Do youlike the work, Milton?"

"It's a work no one would do voluntarily without liking it, " repliedthe young man. "I like it. I wouldn't want to give my life to it, but--" he paused to look over toward the others busily unloading theNa-che, --"but nothing will ever do again for me what this experiencehas. "

"And may I ask what that is?" Enoch's voice was eager. 

Milton searched Enoch's face carefully, then answered slowly. "Sometime when we are having a rest, I'll tell you, if you really wantto know. "

"Thanks! And now set me to work, Captain, " said Enoch. 

The way beside the falls was nothing more than a narrow ledgecompletely covered with giant bowlders. Beyond the falls, the riverhurled itself for a quarter of a mile against broken rocks that madethe passage of a boat impossible. It was a long portage. After thebowlder-strewn ledge was passed, however, it was not necessary to maketrail, for although the shore was strewn with broken rock anddriftwood, the way was fairly open. 

After the contents of the boats had been made up into rough packs, bothcrews attacked the trail-making. It was mid-morning before pick-ax, shovel and crowbar had opened up a way which Jonas claimed was fit onlyfor kangaroos or elephants. Rough as it was, when Milton declared itfit for their purposes, the rest without protest heaved the packs totheir shoulders. 

It was hot at midday in the Canyon. The thermometer registered 98degrees in the shade. Enoch, following Milton, dropped his third packat the end of the quarter mile portage and sat down beside it. 

"Old man!" he groaned, "you've got to give me a ten minutes' rest. "

Milton grinned and nodded sympathetically. "Take all the time youwant, Judge!"

"I'm ashamed, " said Enoch, "but don't forget you fellows have had tenmonths of this, as against my two days. "

"I don't forget for a minute, Judge. And just let me tell you that ifever I were on trial for a serious offense of any kind I'd be perfectlysatisfied to be tried before a real he-man, like you. " And Miltondisappeared over the trail, leaving Enoch with a warm glow in hisheart, such as he had scarcely felt since his first public speech wonthe praise of the newspapers. 

For a quarter of an hour he sat with his back against a half buriedmesquite log smoking, and now eying the magnificent sheer crimson wallwhich lay across the river, now wondering where Diana was and nowcontemplating curiously the sense of his own unimportance which theCanyon was thrusting into his consciousness more persistently everyhour. Jonas joined him for the last part of his rest, but when Miltonannounced that they had finished the packing and must now portage theboats, Jonas was on the alert. 

"That name isn't dry yet!" he exclaimed. "I got to watch the prow ofmy boat myself, " and he started hurriedly back over the trail, Enochfollowing him more slowly. 

Sometimes lifting, sometimes skidding on drift logs, sometimes draggingby main strength, the six men finally landed the Ida and the Na-che inquiet waters. Jonas and Agnew prepared a simple dinner and immediatelyafter they embarked. For two hours the river flowed swiftly andquietly between sheer walls of stratified granite, white and paleyellow, shot with rose. Now and again a cedar, dwarfed and distorted, found toe hold between the strata and etched its deep green against thewhite and yellow. 

About four o'clock the river widened and the walls were broken bylateral canyons that led back darkly and mysteriously into the bowelsof the desert. For half an hour more Milton guided the Ida onward. Then Enoch cried, "Milton, see that brook!" and he pointed to atumbling little stream that issued from one of the side canyons. 

Milton at once called for a landing on the grassy shore beside thebrook. Never was there a sweeter spot than this. Willows bent overthe brook and long grass mirrored itself within its pebbly depths for amoment before the crystal water joined the muddy Colorado. The Canyonno longer overhung the river suffocatingly, but opened widely, showingbehind the fissured white granite peaks, crimson and snow capped andappalling in their bigness. 

"Here's where we put in a day, boys!" exclaimed Milton. "I'm sure wecan scramble to the top here, somehow, and get a general idea of thecountry. "

His crew cheered this statement enthusiastically. The landing waseasily made and the boats were beached and unloaded. 

"Never thought I could unload a boat again without bursting intotears, " said Enoch, grunting under three bed rolls he was carrying upto the willows, "but here I am, full of enthusiasm!"

"You need a lot of it down here, I can tell you, " growled Forrester, who had skinned his chin badly in a fall that morning. 

"You look like a goat, Forr, " said Harden, sympathetically, as he set afolding table close to the spot where Jonas was kindling a fire. 

"I'd rather look like a goat than a jack-ass, " returned Forrester withan edge to his voice. 

"Forr, " said Milton, "don't you want to try your luck at some fish forsupper? The salmon ought to be interested in a spot like this. "

Forrester's voice cleared at once. "Sure! I'd be glad to, " he said, and went off to unload his fishing tackle. When he was out of hearing, Milton said sharply to Harden:

"Why can't you let him alone, Hard! You know how touchy he is whenanything's the matter with him. "

"I'm sorry, " replied Harden shortly. 

Enoch glanced with interest from one man to the other, but saidnothing, not even when, Milton's back being turned, Harden winked athim. And when Forrester returned with a four-pound river salmon, therewas no sign of irritation in his face or manner. 

This night, for the first time, they sat around the fire, luxuriatingin the thought that for the next twenty-four hours they were free ofthe terrible demands of the river. Forrester possessed a good tenorvoice and sang, Jonas joining with his mellow baritone. Harden, lyingclose to the flames, read a chapter from "David Harum, " the one book ofthe expedition. Agnew, on request, told a long and involved story of aChinese laundryman and a San Francisco broker which evoked muchlaughter. Then Milton, as master of ceremonies, turned to Enoch:

"Now then, Judge, do your duty!"

"I haven't a parlor trick to my name, " protested Enoch. 

"I like what you call our efforts!" cried Harden. "Hit him for me, Ag!He's closest to you. "

"Not after the way he wallops the Ida, " grunted Agnew. "Let Milt doit. "

"Boss, " said Jonas suddenly, "tell 'em that poem about mercy I heardyou give at--at that banquet at our house. "

Enoch smiled, took his pipe from his lips, and began:

 "'The quality of mercy is not strained, It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven, Upon the place beneath--'"

Enoch paused a moment. The words held a new and soul-shatteringsignificance for him. Then as the others waited breathlessly, he wenton. His beautiful, mellow voice, his remarkable enunciation, themagnetism of his personality stirred his little audience, just asthousands of greater audiences had been stirred by these same qualities. 

When he had finished, there was a profound silence until Milton said:

"That's the only thing I have heard said in the Canyon that didn'tsound paltry. "

"If any of the rest of us had repeated it, though, it might havesounded so. " Harden's tone was dry. 

"Shakespeare couldn't sound paltry anywhere!" exclaimed Enoch. 

"Hum!" sniffed Agnew. "Depends on what and when you're quoting. Giveus another, Judge. "

Enoch gazed thoughtfully at the fire for a moment, then slowly andquietly he gave them the prayer of Habakkuk. The liquid phrases rolledfrom his lips, echoed in the Canyon, then dropped into silence. Enochsat with his great head bowed, his sensitive mouth compressed as ifwith pain. His friends stared from him to one another, then one by oneslipped away to their blankets. When Enoch looked up, only Milton wasleft. 

"And so, " said Enoch, "the Canyon has been a great experience for you, Milton!"

"Yes, Judge. I became engaged to a girl who is a Catholic. I am aProtestant, one of the easy going kind that never goes to church. Yet, do you know, when she insisted that I turn Catholic, I wouldn't do it?We had a fearful time! I didn't have any idea there was so much creedin me as I discovered I had. In the midst of it the opportunity camefor this Canyon work, and this trip has changed the whole outlook oflife for me. Judge, creeds don't matter any more than bridges do to astream. They are just a way of getting across, that's all. Creeds maycome and creeds may go, but God goes on forever. Nothing changes truereligion. Christ promulgated the greatest system of ethics the worldhas known. The ethics of God. He put them into practical working formfor human beings. Whatever creed helps you to live the teachings ofChrist most truly, that's the true creed for you. That's what theCanyon's done for me. And when I get out, I'm going back to Alice andlet her make of me whatever will help her most. I'm safe. I've gotthe creed of the Colorado Canyon!"

Enoch looked at the freckled, ruddy face and smiled. "Thank you, Milton. You've given me something to think about. "

"I doubt if you lack subjects, " replied Milton drily. "But--well, Ihave an idea you came out here looking for something. There are linesaround your eyes that say that. So I just thought I'd hand on to youwhat I got. "

Enoch nodded and the two smoked for a while in silence. Then Enochsaid in a low voice:

"Do you have trouble with Forrester and Harden?"

"Yes, constant friction. They're both fine fellows, but naturallyantagonistic to each other. "

"A fellow may be ever so fine, " said Enoch, "yet lack the sense of teamplay that is absolutely essential in a job like this. "

"Exactly, " replied Milton. "The great difficulty is that you can'tjudge men until they're undergoing the trial. Then it's too late. InPowell's first expedition, soon after the Civil War, there was constantfriction between Powell and three of his men. At last, although theyhad signed a contract to stick by him, they deserted him. "

"How was that?" asked Enoch with interest. 

"They simply insisted on being put ashore and they climbed out of theCanyon with the idea of getting to some of the Mormon settlements. Butthe Indians killed them almost at once, poor devils! Powell got thestory of it on his second expedition. The history of those twoexpeditions, I think, are as glorious as any chapter in our Americanannals. "

"Was it so much harder than the work you are doing?"

"There is no comparison! We're simply following the trail that Powellblazed. Think of his superb courage! These terrible waters wereenshrouded in mystery and fear. He did not know even what kind ofboats could live in them. Hostile Indians marauded on either hand. And as near as I recall the only settlements he could call on, if hesucceeded in clambering out of the Canyon, were Ft. Defiance in NewMexico, and Mormon settlements, miles across the desert in Utah. "

"Hum!" said Enoch slowly, "it doesn't seem to me that things are somuch better now, that we need to boast about them. There are noIndians, to be sure, but the river is about all human endurance andingenuity can cope with, just as it was in Powell's day. "

"She's a bird, all right!" sighed Milton. "Well, Judge, I'm going toturn in. To-morrow's another day! Good night. "

"Good night, Captain!" replied Enoch. He threw another stick ofdriftwood on the fire and after a moment's thought fetched the blackdiary from his rubber dunnage bag. When the fire was clear and bright, he began to write. 

"Diana, you were wrong. No matter how strenuous the work is, you arenever out of the background of my thoughts. But at least I am havingsurcease from grieving for you. I have had no time to dwell on thefact that you cannot belong to me. I am afraid to come out of theCanyon. Afraid that when these wonderful days of adventure are over, the knowledge that I must not ask you to marry me will descend on melike a stifling fog. As for Brown! Diana, why not let me kill him!I'd be willing to stand before any jury in the world with his blood onmy hands. What he has done to me is typical of Brown and all hisworks. He is unclean and clever, a frightful combination. Considerthe class of readers he has! The majority of the people who readBrown, read only Brown. His readers are the great commonalty ofAmerica, the source, once, of all that was best in our life. Browntells them nasty stories, not about people alone, but about systems;systems of money, systems of work, systems of government. And becausenasty stories are always luscious reading, and because it is easier tobelieve evil than good about anything, twice every day, as he produceshis morning and evening editions, Brown is polluting the head waters ofour national existence. I say, why not let me kill him? What moreuseful and direct thing could I do than rid the nation of him? And ODiana, when I think of the smut to which he coupled your loveliness, Ifeel that I am less than a man to have hesitated this long. "

Enoch closed the book, replaced it in the bag, and sat for a long hourstaring into the fire. Then he went to bed. 

CHAPTER XI

THE PERFECT ADVENTURE

"Who cares whether or not my hands are clean? Does God? Wouldn't Godexpect me to punish evil? God is mercilessly just, is He not? Elsewhy disease and grief in the world? If you could only tellme!"--_Enoch's Diary_. 

It was nipping cold in the morning. Ice encrusted the edges of thelittle brook. But by the time breakfast was finished, the sun hadappeared over the distant mountain peaks and the long warm rays soonbrought the thermometer up to summer heat. Milton expounded hisprogram at breakfast. Jonas was to keep the camp. Enoch and Miltonwere to climb to the rim for topographical information. Harden was tolook for fossils. Agnew and Forrester were to make a geological reporton the strata of the section. 

Jonas was extraordinarily well pleased with his assignment. 

"I'm going to finish painting the Na-che, " he said. "Mr. Milton, haveyou got anything I can mend the tarpaulins with that go over the decks?"

"Needles and twine in the bag labeled Repairs, " replied Milton. "Howabout giving the Ida the once over, too, Jonas. "

"All right! If I get around to it!" Jonas' manner was vague. 

"Can't love but one boat at a time, eh, Jonas?" asked Enoch. 

"I always wanted to have a boat to fix up, " said Jonas. "When I was akid my folks had an old flat-bottom tub, but I never earned enough fora can of paint. Will you folks be home by twelve for dinner?"

There was a chorus of assent as the crew scattered to its severaltasks. Milton and Enoch started at once up the edge of the brook, hoping that the ascent might be made more easily thus. But thecrevice, out of which the little stream found its way to the Colorado, narrowed rapidly to the point where it became impossible for the twomen to work their way into it. They were obliged, after a half hour'sstruggle, to return to the camp and start again. 

A very steep slope of bright orange sand led from the shore to ascarcely less oblique terrace of sharp broken rock. There were severalhundred feet of the sand and, as it was dry and loose, it caused aconstant slipping and falling that consumed both time and strength. The rocky terrace was far easier to manage, and they covered thatrapidly, although Enoch had a nasty fall, cutting his knee. They werebrought to pause, however, when the broken rock gave way to a sheerhard wall, which offered neither crack nor projection for hand or foothold. 

Milton led the way carefully along its foot for a quarter of a mileuntil they reached a fissure wide enough for them to enter. The wallsof this were crossed by transverse cracks. By utilizing these, nowpulling, now boosting each other, they finally emerged on a flat, smooth tableland, of which fissures had made a complete island. At thesouthern end of the island rose an abrupt black peak. 

"If we can get to the top of that, " said Milton, "it ought to bring usto the general desert level. Is your knee bothering you, Judge?"

"Not enough to stop the parade, " replied Enoch. "How high do you thinkthat peak is, Milton?"

"Not less than a thousand feet, I would guess. I bet it's as easy toclimb as a greased pole, too. "

The pinnacle, when they reached it, appeared very little less difficultthan Milton had guessed it would be. The north side offered no hopewhatever. It rose smooth and perpendicular toward the heavens. Butthe south side was rough and though a yawning fissure at its base addedfive hundred feet to its southern height they determined to try theirfortunes here. Ledges and jutting rocks, cracks and depressionsfinally made the ascent possible. The top, when they achieved it, wasnot twenty feet in diameter. They dropped on it, panting. 

The view which met their eyes was superb. To the south lay the desert, rainbow colored. Rising abruptly from its level were isolated peaks ofbright purple, all of them snow capped, many of them with crevicesmarked by the brilliant white of snow. Miles to the south of theisolated peaks lay a long range of mountains, dull black against theblue sky, but with the white of snow caps showing even at thisdistance. To the north, the river gorge wound like a snake; the gorgeand one huge mountain dominating the entire northern landscape. Satiated by wonders as Milton was, he exclaimed over the beauty of thisgiant, sleeping in the desert sun. 

A sprawling cone in outline, there was nothing extraordinary about itin contour, but its size and color surpassed anything that Enoch had asyet seen. From base to apex it was a perfect rose tint, deepeningwhere its great shoulders bent, to crimson. As if still not satisfiedwith her work, nature had sent a recent snow storm to embellish theverdureless rock, and the mountain was lightly powdered with whitewhich here was of a gauze-like texture permitting pale rose to glimmerthrough, there lay in drifts, white defined against crimson. 

Enoch sat gazing about him while Milton worked rapidly with his notebook and instruments. Finally he slipped his pencil into his pocketwith a sigh. 

"And that's done! What do you say to a return for lunch, Judge?"

"I'm very much with you, " replied Enoch. "Here! Hold up, old man!What's the matter?" For Milton was swaying and would have fallen ifEnoch had not caught him. 

Milton clung to Enoch's broad shoulder for a moment, then straightenedhimself with a jerk. 

"Sorry, Judge. It's that infernal vertigo again!"

"What's the cause of it?" asked Enoch. "Might be rather serious, mightit not, on a trip such as yours?"

"I think the water we have to drink must be affecting my kidneys, "replied Milton. "I never had anything of the sort before this trip, but I've been troubled this way a dozen times lately. It only lastsfor a minute. "

"But in that minute, " Enoch's voice was grave, "you might fall down amountain or out of the boat. "

"Oh, I don't get it that bad! And anyhow, I haven't gone off alonesince these things began. When we get to El Tovar I'll try to locate adoctor. "

Enoch looked admiringly at the grim young freckled face beneath thefaded hat. "I see I shall have to appoint myself bodyguard, " he said. "I'd suggest Jonas, only he's deserted me for the Na-che, and I doubtif you could win him from her. "

Milton laughed. "Nothing on earth can equal the joy of puddling aboutin boats, to the right kind of a chap, as the _Wind in the Willows_ hasit. And Jonas certainly is the right kind of a chap!"

"Jonas is a man, every inch of him, " agreed Enoch. "Shall we try thedescent now, Milton?"

"I'm ready, " replied the young man, and the slow and arduous task wasbegun. 

Jonas was just lifting the frying pan from the fire when they slid downthe orange sand bank. The rest of the crew was ready and waitingaround the flat rock that served as dining table. 

"What's the matter with your knee, boss?" cried Jonas, standing withthe coffee pot in his hand. 

Enoch laughed as he glanced down at his torn and blood-stainedoveralls. "Of course, if you were giving me half the care you giveyour boat, Jonas, these things wouldn't happen to me!"

"You better let me fix you up, before you eat, boss, " said Jonas. 

"Not on your life, old man! Food will do this knee more good than abandage. "

"It's a wonder you wouldn't offer to help the rest of us out once in awhile, Jonas!" Harden looked up from his plate of fish. "Look at thisscratch on my cheek! I might get blood poisoning, but lots you care ifmy fatal beauty was destroyed! As it is, I look as much like an inmateof a menagerie as old goat Forrester here. "

"Too bad the scratch didn't injure your tongue, Harden, " returnedForrester, sarcastically. 

"Nothing seems able to stop your chin, though, Forr! Why do you haveto get sore every time I speak to you?"

"Because you're always going out of your way to say something insultingto me. "

"Don't make a mountain out of a mole hill, Forr, " said Milton. "If youfellows aren't careful you'll have a real quarrel, and that's the lastthing I'm going to stand for, I warn you. "

"Very well, Milt, " replied Forrester, "if you don't want trouble makeHarden keep his tongue off me. "

"The fault is primarily yours, Hard, " Milton went on. "You knowForrester is foolishly sensitive and you can't control your love ofteasing. Now, once for all, I ask you not to speak to Forrester excepton the business of the survey. "

Harden shrugged his shoulders and Forrester scowled a littlesheepishly. Agnew, a serene, kindly fellow, began one of his endlessIrish stories, and the incident appeared to be closed. The workassigned for the day was accomplished in shorter order than Milton hadanticipated. By two o'clock all hands were back in camp and Miltondecided to embark and move on as far as possible before nightfall. Butscarcely had they finished loading the boats and tied on the tarpaulinswhen a heavy rain began to fall, accompanied by lightning andtremendous peals of thunder that echoed through the Canyon deafeningly. 

Milton, in his anxiety to get on with his task, would have continued inspite of the rain, but the others protested so vigorously that he gavein and the whole party crawled under a sheltering ledge beside thebrook. For an hour the storm raged. A few flakes of snow mingled withthe descending rain drops. Then with a superb flash of lightning andcrash of thunder the storm passed as suddenly as it had come, thoughfor hours after they heard it reverberate among the distant peaks. 

At last they embarked and proceeded along a smooth, swift-flowing riverfor a short time. Then, however, the familiar roar of falls was heard, the current increased rapidly in velocity and Milton made a landing forobservation. 

They were at the head of the wildest falls that Enoch had yet seen. The Canyon walls were smooth and perpendicular. There was nopossibility of a portage. The river was full of rocks against whichdashed waves ten to twelve feet high. 

"We'll have to run it!" shouted Milton above the din of the waters. "Powell did it and so can we. Give the Ida five minutes' start, Hard. Then profit by the mistakes you see us make. All ready, Judge andForr!"

Under Milton's directions, they rowed back upstream far enough to gaincomplete control of the boat before entering the falls. Then they shotforward. Instantly the oars became useless. They were carried upwardon the crest of a wave that seemed about to drop them down anunbelievable depth to a jagged rock. But at this point, another waveseized them and hurled them sidewise, half rolled them over, thenuptilted them until the Ida's nose was deep in the water. 

They bailed like mad but to little avail for the waves broke over thesides constantly. They could see little for the air was full ofblinding spray. Suddenly, after what had seemed an eternity but wasreally five minutes of time, there was a rending crash and the Ida slidinto quieter water, turning completely over as she did so. 

Enoch, as the sucking current seized him, was convinced that his hourhad come, and a quick relief was his first sensation. Then Diana'swistful eyes flashed before him and he began to fight the Colorado. Ashis head emerged from the water, he saw the Na-che land on all foursfrom the top of a wave upon the overturned Ida, then whirl away. Hebegan to swim with all his strength. The mud forever suspended in theColorado weighed down his clothing. But little by little he drew nearthe Ida, to which he could see two dark bodies clinging. The Na-che, struggling to cross a whirlpool toward him, made slow progress. Hehad, indeed, dizzily grasped the Ida, before the other boat came up. 

"We can hang on, Hard!" gasped Milton. "Give us a tow to that sandspit yonder. "

They reached the sand spit and staggered to land, while Harden and hiscrew turned the Ida over and beached her. She had a six-inch gap inher side. 

"Well, " panted Enoch, "I'm glad we managed to keep dry during therainstorm!"

"My Lord, Judge!" exclaimed Milton, "your own mother wouldn't own younow! I don't see how one human being could carry so much mud on hisface!"

"I'll bet it's not as bad as yours at that, " returned Enoch. "Jonas, as long as it's not the Na-che that's hurt--"

"Coming, boss, coming!" cried Jonas. "Here's your moccasins and here'syour suit. Sure you aren't hurt any?"

"Jonas, " replied Enoch in a low voice that the others might not hear, "Jonas, I'm having the greatest time of my life!"

"So am I, Mr. Secretary! Honest, I'm so paralyzed afraid that I enjoyit!" And Jonas hurried away to inspect the Ida. 

It was so biting cold, now that the afternoon was late, that all thewrecked crew changed clothing before attempting to make camp or unloadthe Ida. 

"How many miles have we made by this venture, Milton?" called Enoch, ashe pulled on his moccasins. 

"One and a half!"

Enoch grinned, then he began to laugh. The others looked at him, thenjoined him, and Homeric laughter echoed for a long minute above thesnarl of the water. Fortunately the hole in the Ida did not open intoone of the compartments, so there was no damage done to the baggage. It was too dark by the time this had been ascertained to attemptrepairs that night, so Milton agreed to call it a day, and after supperwas over every one but Enoch and Milton went to bed. These two satlong in silence before the fire, smoking and enjoying the sense ofcompanionship that was developing between them. Finally Enoch spoke ina low voice:

"You're going to have trouble between Forrester and Harden. "

"It certainly looks like it, I've tried every sort of appeal to each ofthem, but trouble keeps on smoldering. " Milton shook his head. "That's one of the trivial things that can wreck an expedition likethis; just incompatibility among the men. What would you do about it, Judge?"

"I'd put it to them that they could either keep the peace or draw lotsto see which of them should leave the expedition at the Ferry. Infact, I don't believe I'd temporize even that much. I'd certainly setone of them ashore. My experience with men leads me to believe thatwith a certain type of men, there is no appeal. As you say, they'reboth nice chaps but they have a childish streak in them. The majorityof men have. A leader must not be too patient. "

"You're right, " agreed Milton. "Judge, couldn't you complete the tripwith us?"

"How long will you be out?" asked Enoch. 

"Another six months!"

Enoch laughed, then said slowly: "There's nothing I'd like to dobetter, but I must go home, from the Ferry. "

Milton gazed at Enoch for a time without speaking. Then he said, alittle wistfully, "I suppose that while this is the most importantexperience so far in my life, to you it is the merest episode, thatyou'll forget the moment you get into the Pullman for the East. "

"Why should you think that?" asked Enoch. 

"I can't quite tell you why. But there's something about you thatmakes me believe that in your own section of the country, you're apower. Perhaps it's merely your facial expression. I don't know--youlook like some one whom I can't recall. Perhaps that some one has thepower and I confuse the two of you, but--I beg your pardon, Judge!" asEnoch's eyebrows went up. 

"You have nothing to beg it for, Milton. But you're wrong when youthink this trip is merely an episode to me. All my life I have longedfor just such an experience in the Canyon. It's like enchantment toreally find myself here. "

Milton smiled. "Well, we all have our Carcasonnes. "

"What's yours?" demanded Enoch. 

The younger man hesitated. "It's so absurd--but--well, I've alwayswanted to be Chief of the Geological Survey. "

"Why?"

"Why did you dream of a wild trip down the Colorado as the realizationof your greatest desire?" asked Milton. 

"I couldn't put it into words, " answered Enoch. "But I suppose it'sthe pioneer in me or something elemental that never quite dies in anyof us, of Anglo-Saxon blood. "

Milton nodded. "The Chief of the Geological Survey's job is toadminister nature in the raw. I'd like to have a chance at it. "

"I believe you'd get away with it, too, Milton, " Enoch repliedthoughtfully. 

Milton laughed. "Too bad you aren't Secretary of the Interior! Well, I'm all in! Let's go to bed. "

"You go ahead. I'll sit here with my pipe a bit longer. "

But, after all, Enoch did not write in his diary that night. BeforeMilton had established himself in his blankets, Harden rose and went toa canteen for a drink of water. On his return he stumbled overForrester's feet. Instantly Forrester sat erect. 

"What're you doing, you clumsy dub foot?" he shouted. 

"Oh, dry up, Forr; I didn't mean to hurt you, you great boob!"

"We'll settle this right now!" Forrester was on his feet and his fisthad landed on Harden's cheek before Enoch could cross the camp. Andbefore he or Milton could separate the combatants, Harden had returnedthe blow with interest, and with a muttered:

"Take that, you sore-headed dog, you!"

Forrester tried to twist away from Enoch, but could not do so. Hardenfreed himself from Milton's grasp, but did not attempt to go on withthe fight. 

"One or the other of you, " said Milton briefly, "leaves the expeditionat the Ferry. I'll tell you later which it will be. I'm ashamed ofboth of you. "

"I'd like to know what's made a tin god of you, Jim Milton!" shoutedForrester. "You don't own us, body and soul. I've been in the Surveylonger than you! I joined this expedition before you did. And I'llleave it when I get ready!"

"You'll leave it at the Ferry, Forrester!" Milton's voice was quiet, but his nostrils dilated. 

"And I'm telling you, I'll leave it when I please, which will be atNeedles! If any one goes, it'll be that skunk of a Harden. "

Harden laughed, turned on his heel and deliberately rolled himself inhis blankets. Forrester stood for a moment, muttering to himself, thenhe took his blankets off to an obscure corner of the sand. And Enochforgot his diary and went to bed, to ponder until shortly sleepovertook him, on the perversity of the male animal. 

In the morning Jonas constituted himself ship's carpenter and mendedthe Ida very creditably. Forrester was surly and avoided every one. Harden was cheerful, as usual, but did not speak to his adversary. Thesun was just entering the Canyon when the two boats were launched andonce more faced the hazards of the river. 

During the morning the going was easy. The river was swift and ledthrough a long series of broken buttes, between which one caught wildviews of a tortured country; twisted strata, strange distorted cedarand cactus, uncanny shapes of rock pinnacles, in colors somber andstrange. They stopped at noon in the shadow of a weathered overhangingrock, with the profile of a witch. The atmosphere of dissension had bythis time permeated the crew and this meal, usually so jovial, waseaten with no general conversation and all were glad to take to theboats as soon as the dishes were washed. 

The character of the river now changed again. It grew broader and oncemore smooth canyon walls closed it in. As the river broadened, however, it became more shallow and rocks began to appear above thesurface at more and more frequent intervals. At last the Na-che wentaground amid-stream on a sharp rock. The Ida turned back to herassistance but Enoch and Milton had to go overboard, along with thecrew of the Na-che, in order to drag and lift her into clear water. Then for nearly two hours, all thought of rowing must be given up. Both crews remained in the water, pushing the boats over the roughbottom. 

It was heartbreaking work. For a few moments the boats would float, plunging the men beyond their depths. They would swim and flounderperhaps a boat's length, clinging to the gunwale, before the boat wouldonce more run aground. Again they would drag their clumsy burden ahundred yards over sand that sucked hungrily at their sodden boots. This passed, came many yards of smooth rock a few inches below thesurface of the water, which was so muddy that it was impossible to seethe pot holes into which some one of the crew plunged constantly. 

Jonas suffered agonies during this period; not for himself, though hetook his full share of falls. His agony was for the Na-che, whosefreshly painted bottom was abraded, scraped, gorged and otherwisedefaced almost beyond Jonas's power of endurance. 

"Look out! Don't drag her! Lift her! Lift her!" he would shout. "Oh, my Lord, see that sharp rock you drag her onto, Mr. Hard! Ain'tyou got any heart?"

Once, when all three of the Na-che's crew had taken a bad plunge, andJonas had come up with an audible crack of his black head against thegunwale, he began to scold while the others were still fighting forbreath. 

"You shouldn't ship her full of water like that! All that good paint Iput on her insides is gone! Hey, Mr. Agnew, don't drip that blood offyour hand on her!"

"Shut up, Jonas, " coughed Agnew good-naturedly. 

"Let him alone, Ag!" exclaimed Harden, between a strangling cough and asneeze. "What do you want to divulge your cold-heartedness for? Go toit, Jonas! You're some lover, all right!"

The shallows ended in a rapid which they shot without more than theusual difficulties. They then had an hour of quiet rowing throughgorges that grew more narrow and more dusky as they proceeded. Aboutfour o'clock snow began to fall. It was a light enough powder, atfirst, but shortly it thickened until it was impossible to guide theboats. They edged in shore where a ledge overhanging a heap of brokenrock offered a meager shelter. Here they planned to spend the night. The shore was too precipitous to beach the boats. Much to Jonas'sorrow, they could only anchor them before the ledge. There was plentyof driftwood, and a brisk fire dispelled some of the discomfort of thesnow, while a change to dry clothing did the rest. 

To Enoch it was a strange evening. The foolish quarrel between Hardenand Forrester was sufficient to upset the equanimity of the whole groupwhich before had seemed so harmonious. The situation was keenlyirritating to Enoch. He wanted nothing to intrude on the wild beautyof the trip, save his own inward struggle. The snow continued to falllong after the others had gone to sleep. Enoch, with his diary on hisknees, wrote slowly, pausing long between sentences to watch the snowand to listen to the solemn rush of waters so close to his feet. 

"I've been sitting before the fire, Diana, thinking of our variousconversations. How few they have been, after all! And I've concludedthat in your heart you must look on me as presumptuous and stupid. Younever have given me the slightest indication that you cared for me. You have been, even in the short time we have known each other, agallant and tender friend. A wonderful friend! And you are asunconscious of my passion for you, of the rending agony of my givingyou up as the Canyon is of the travail of Milton and his little group. And I'm glad that this is so. If I can go on through life feeling thatyou are serene and happy it will help me to keep my secret. Strangethat with every natural inclination within me to be otherwise, I shouldbe the custodian of ugly secrets; secrets that are only the uglierbecause they are my own. It seems a sacrilegious thing to add mybeautiful love for you to the sinister collection. But it must be so. 

"I am so glad that I am going to see you so soon after I emerge fromthe Canyon. There will be much to tell you. I thought I knew men. But I am learning them anew. And I thought I had a fair conception ofthe wonders of the Colorado. Diana, it is beyond human imagination toconceive or human tongue to describe. "

Enoch had looked forward with eager pleasure to seeing the Canyonsnowbound. But he was doomed to disappointment. During the night thesnow turned to rain. The rain, in turn, ceased before dawn and thecamp woke to winding mists that whirled with the wind up and out of theCanyon top. The going, during the morning, offered no greatdifficulties. But toward noon, as the boats rounded a curve, a reefpresented itself with the water of the river boiling threateningly oneither side. As the Canyon walls offered no landing it was necessaryto make one here and Forrester volunteered to jump with a rope to aflat rock which projected from the near end of the reef. 

"Leap just before we are opposite the rock, Forr, " directed Milton. "When that rough water catches us, we're going to rip through at topspeed. "

Forrester nodded and, after shipping his oars, he clambered up onto theforward compartment. 

"Now, " shouted Milton. 

Forrester leaped, jumped a little short, and splashed into the boilingriver. The Ida, in spite of Enoch madly backing water, shot forward, dragging Forrester, who had not let go the rope, with her. Miltonrelinquished the steering oar, dropped on his stomach on thecompartment deck, his arms over the stern, and began to haul with mightand main on the rope. Now and again Forrester, red and fighting forbreath, showed a distorted face above the waves. The Na-che shot by atuncontrollable speed, her crew shouting directions as she passed. Milton at last, just as the Ida entered a roaring fall, broughtForrester to the gunwale, but having achieved this, the end of the ropedropped from his fingers and he lay inert, his eyes closed. Forresterclung to the edge of the boat and roared to Enoch:

"Milt's fainted!"

But Enoch, fighting to guide the Ida, dared not stop rowing. The fallswere short, with a vicious whirlpool at the foot. One glance showedthe Na-che broken and inverted, dancing in this. Enoch bent to hisright oar and by a miracle of luck this, with a wave from a pot hole, threw them clear of the sucking whirlpool, but dashed them so violentlyagainst the rocky shore that the Ida's stern was stove in and Miltonrolled off into the water. Enoch dropped his oars, seized the sternrope, jumped for the rocks and sprawled upon one. He made a quick turnof the rope, then leaped back for Milton, whose head showed a boat'slength downstream. 

Forrester staggered ashore, then with a life preserver on the end of arope, he started along the river's edge. Half a dozen strokes broughtEnoch to Milton. He lifted the unconscious man's mouth out of waterand caught the life preserver that Forrester threw him. It seemed fora moment as if poor Forrester had reached the limit of his strength, but Enoch, after a violent effort, brought Milton into a quiet eddy andhere Forrester was able to give help and Milton was dragged up on therocks. 

At this moment, Jonas, his eyes rolling, clothes torn and dripping, clambered round a rocky projection, just beyond where they were placingMilton. 

"Got 'em ashore!" he panted, "but they can't walk yet. "

"Anybody hurt?" asked Enoch. 

"Nobody but the Na-che. I gotta take the Ida out after her. "

"She's beyond help, Jonas, " said Enoch. "Go up to the Ida and bring methe medicine chest. "

He was unbuttoning Milton's shirt as he spoke, and feeling for hisheart. 

"He's alive!" exclaimed Forrester, who was holding Milton's wrist. 

"Yes, thank God! But I don't like that!" pointing to Milton's left leg. 

"It's broken!" cried Forrester. "Poor old Milt!"

Poor old Milt, indeed! When he finally opened his eyes, he was lyingon his blankets on a flat rock, and Jonas and Harden, still dripping, were finishing the fastenings of a rude splint around his left leg. Enoch was kindling a fire. Forrester and Agnew were unloading the Ida. He tried to sit up. 

"What the deuce happened?" he demanded. 

"That's what we want to know!" exclaimed Harden cheerfully. 

"You had a dizzy attack after you pulled Forr in, " said Enoch, "androlled off the boat. Just how you broke your leg, we don't know. "

"Broke my leg!" Dismay and disbelief struggled in Milton's face. "Broke my leg! Why, but I can't break my leg!"

"That's good news, " said Agnew unsmilingly, "and it would be importantif it were only true. "

"But I can't!" insisted Milton. "What becomes of the work?"

"The work stops till you get well. " Harden stood up to survey his andJonas's surgical job with considerable satisfaction. "We'll hurry ondown to the Ferry and get you to a doctor. "

Milton sank back with a groan, then hoisted himself to his elbow to say:

"You fellows change your clothes quick, now. "

The men looked at each other, half guilty. 

"What is it!" cried Milton. "What are you keeping from me. "

"The Na-che's gone!" Jonas spoke huskily. 

"How'd she go?" demanded Milton. 

"A sucking whirlpool up there took her, after we struck a rock at thebottom of the falls, " answered Harden. "We struck at such speed thatit stove in her bottom and threw us clear of the whirlpool. But she'sgone and everything in her. "

"How about the Ida?" Milton's face was white and his lips werecompressed. 

"She'll do, with some patching, " replied Enoch. 

"Some leader, I am, eh?" Milton lay back on his blanket. 

"I think I've heard of a number of other leaders losing boats on thistrip, " said Enoch. "Now, you fellows can dry off piecemeal. This firewould dry anything. We've got to shift Milton's clothes somehow. Lucky for you your clothes were in the Ida, Milt. Mine were in theNa-che. "

"And two thirds of the grub in the Na-che, too!" exclaimed Agnew. 

Jonas had rooted out Milton's change of clothing and very tenderly, ifawkwardly, Agnew and Harden helping, he was made dry and propped upwhere he could direct proceedings. 

"Forrester, I wish you'd bring the whole grub supply here, " Miltonsaid, when his nurses had finished. 

It was a pitifully small collection that was placed on the edge of theblanket. 

"I wonder how many times, " said Milton, "I've told you chaps to loadthe grub half and half between the boats? Somebody blundered. I'm notgoing to ask who because I'm the chief blunderer myself, for neglectingto check you over, at every loading. With care, we've about two days'very scanty rations here, and only beans and coffee, at that. With thebest of luck and no stops for Survey work we're five days from theFerry. "

"Guess I'd better get busy with my fishing tackle!" exclaimed Forrester. 

"Ain't any fishing tackle, " said Jonas succinctly. "She must 'a'washed out of the hole in the Ida. I was just looking for it myself. "

"Suppose you put us on half rations, " suggested Enoch, "and one of uswill try to get to the top, with the gun. "

Milton nodded. "Judge, are you any good with a gun?"

"Yes, I've hunted a good deal, " replied Enoch. 

"Very well, we'll make you the camp hunter. The rest understand theriver work better than you. Forrester, you and Agnew and Jonas, patchup the Ida; and Harden, you stay with me and let's see what the mapssay about the chances of our getting out before we reach the Ferry. When the rest have finished the patch, you and Agnew row downstream andsee if you can pick up any wreckage from the Na-che. "

Jonas made some coffee and Enoch, after resting for a half hour, tookthe gun and started slowly along the river's edge. 

His course was necessarily downstream for, above the heap of stoneswhere he had tied the Ida, the river washed against a wall on which afly could scarcely have found foothold. There was a depression in thewall, where the camp was set. Enoch worked out of this depression andfound a foothold on the bottom-most of the deep weathered, narrowstrata that here formed a fifty-foot terrace. These terraced stratagave back for half a mile in uneven and brittle striations that werenot unlike rude steps. Above them rose a sheer orange wall, straightto the sky. Far below a great shale bank sloped from the river's edgeup to a gigantic black butte, whose terraced front seemed to Enoch tooffer some hope of his reaching the top. 

He slung the gun across his back and began gingerly to clamber alongthe stratified terrace. He found the rock extremely brittle and he wasa long hour reaching the green shale. He was panting and weary and hishands were bleeding when he finally flung himself down to rest at thefoot of the black butte. 

A near view of this massive structure was not encouraging; terraces, turrets, fortifications, castles and above Enoch's head a deep cavern, out of which the wind rushed with a mighty blast of sound that drownedthe sullen roar of the falls. Beyond a glance in at the black void, Enoch did not attempt to investigate the cave. He crept past theopening on a narrow shelf of rock, into a crevice up which he climbedto the top of the terrace above the cavern. Here a stratum of dullpurple projected horizontally from the black face of the butte. Withhis face inward, his breast hard pressed against the rock, hands andfeet feeling carefully for each shift forward, Enoch passed on thisslowly around the sharp western edge of the butte. 

Here he nearly lost his balance, for there was a rush of wings close tothe back of his head. He started, then looked up carefully. Far abovehim an eagle's nest clung to the lonely rock. The purple stratumcontinued its way to a depression wide enough to give Enoch sittingroom. Here he rested for a short moment. The back of the depressionoffered an easy assent for two or three hundred feet, to the top ofanother terrace along whose broad top Enoch walked comfortably for aquarter of a mile to the point where the butte projected from the maincanyon wall. The slope here was not too steep to climb and Enoch madefair speed to the top. 

The view here was superb but Enoch gave small heed to this. To hisdeep disappointment, there was no sign of life, either animal orvegetable, as far as his eye could reach. He stood, gun in hand, thewind tossing his ruddy hair, his great shoulders drooping withweariness, his keen eyes sweeping the landscape until he becameconscious that the sun was low in the west. With a start, he realizedthat dusk must already be peering into the bottom of the Canyon. 

Then he bethought himself of the eagle's nest. It was a terribleclimb, before he lay on a ledge peering ever into the guano-stainedstructure of sticks from which the eagle soared again at his approach. As he looked, he laughed. The forequarters of a mountain goat lay inthe nest. Hanging perilously by one hand, Enoch grasped the long, bloody hair and then, rolling back on to the ledge, he stuffed his lootinto his game bag and started campward. 

The way back was swifter but more nerve wracking than the upward climbhad been. By the time he reached the green shale, Enoch was tremblingfrom muscle and nerve strain. It was purple dusk now, by the river, with the castellated tops of butte and mountain molten gold in theevening sun. When he reached the brittle strata, the water reflectedfirelight from the still unseen camp blaze. Enoch, clinging perilouslyto the breaking rock, half faint with hunger, his fingers numb with thecold, laughed again, to himself, and said aloud:

 "'. . . . . . . . . . . . . And yet Dauntless the slug horn to my lips I set And blew, Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came. '"

CHAPTER XII

THE END OF THE CRUISE

"Christ could forgive the unforgivable, but the Colorado in the Canyonis like the voice of God, inevitable, inexorable. "--_Enoch's Diary_. 

Jonas stood on a projecting rock peering anxiously down the river. Enoch, staggering wearily into the firelight, called to him cheerfully:

"Ship ahoy, Jonas!"

"My Gawd, boss!" exclaimed Jonas, running up to take the gunny sack andthe gun. "Don't you never go off like that alone again. How come youstayed so late?"

"Now the Na-che's gone I suppose I'll have a few attentions again!"said Enoch. "How are you, Milton?"

He turned toward the stalwart figure that lay on the shadowy rockbeyond the fire. 

"Better than I deserve, Judge, " replied Milton. 

"What luck, Judge?" cried Harden, who had been watching a game of pokerbetween Agnew and Forrester. 

"My Lawdy Lawd!" shouted Jonas, emptying the gunny sack on the rockwhich served as table. 

There was a chorus of surprise. 

"What happened, Judge! Did you eat the rest raw?"

"A goat, by Jove! Where on earth did it come from?"

"What difference does that make? Get it into the pot, Jonas, for thelove of heaven!"

"As a family provider, Judge, you are to be highly recommended. "

Enoch squatted against Milton's rock and complacently lighted his pipe, then told his story. 

"There are goats still here, then! I wish we'd see some, " said Milton, when Enoch had finished. 

"But what would they live on?" asked Enoch. 

"That's easy, " replied Milton. "There are hidden canyons and gulchesin this Colorado country that are veritable little paradises, with allthe verdure any one could ask for. "

"Wish we could locate one, " sighed Forrester. 

"That wouldn't help me much, " grunted Milton. 

"What luck with the Ida?" Enoch turned to Agnew who, next to Jonas, took the greatest interest in ship repair and building. 

"The forward compartment was pretty well smashed, but another hour'swork in the morning will make the old girl as good as ever. "

"She'll never be the boat the Na-che was, " groaned Jonas mournfullyfrom his fire. "What are we all going to do now, with just one boat?"

For a moment no one spoke, then Enoch said drily, "Well, Jonas, seeingthat you and I don't really belong to the expedition anyhow and that weinvited ourselves, I think it's up to us to walk. "

There was a chorus of protests at this. But Enoch silenced the othersby saying with great earnestness:

"Milton, you know I'm right, don't you?"

Milton, who had been saying nothing, now raised himself on his elbow. 

"Two of you fellows will have to walk it; which two we'd better decideby lot. We're up against a rotten situation. It would be bad, even ifI weren't hurt. But with a cripple on your hands, well--it's awful foryou chaps! Simply awful!"

"With good luck, and no Survey work, how many days are we from theFerry?" asked Enoch. 

"Between four and five, is what Milton and I calculated thisafternoon, " replied Harden. 

"What's the nearest help by way of land?"

"There's a ranch, about eighty miles south of here. I guess thetraveling would be about as bad as anybody would hope for. The fellowsthat go out have got to be used to desert work, like me. " Hardenscratched a match and by its unsteady light scrutinized the detail mapspread open on his knee. 

"Isn't Miss Allen working nearer than eighty miles from here?" askedAgnew. 

"She's in the Hopi country, whatever distance that may be, " repliedEnoch. "I should suppose it would be rather risky trying to catch someone who is moving about, as she is. "

"I guess maybe she's on her way to the Ferry now. " Jonas straightenedup from his stew pot. "Leastways, Na-che kind of promised to kind ofsee if maybe they couldn't reach there about the time we did. "

The other men laughed. "I guess we won't gamble too heavily on thewomen folks, " exclaimed Forrester. 

"I guess Miss Allen's the kind you don't connect gambling with, "retorted Agnew. 

Enoch cut in hastily. "Then two of us are to go out. What about thosewho stay?"

"Well, you have to get my helpless carcass aboard the Ida and we'llmake our way to the Ferry, as rapidly as we can. The food problem isserious, but we won't starve in four days. We won't attempt any morehunting expeditions but we may pot something as we go along. It's thefellows who go out who'll have the worst of it. "

Enoch had been eying Milton closely. "Look here, Milton, I believeyou're running a good deal of temperature. Why don't you lie down andrest both mind and body until supper's ready? After you've eaten, we'll make the final decisions. "

"I don't want any food, " replied Milton, dropping back on his blankets, nevertheless. 

"The beans is done but you only get a handful of them in the stew, to-night, " said Jonas, firmly. "I'm cooking all the meat, 'cause itwon't keep, but you only get half of that now. "

Agnew groaned. "Well, there doesn't seem much to look forward to. Let's finish that game of poker, Forr. Take a hand, Judge and Hard?"

"No, thanks, " replied Enoch. "I'll just rest my old bones right here. "

"I'll help you out, if Forr won't pick on me. " Harden glanced atMilton, but the freckled face gave no sign that Harden's remark hadbeen heeded. 

Enoch quietly took the injured man's pulse. It was rapid and weak. Enoch shook his head, laid the sturdy hand down and gave his attentionto his pipe and the card game. It was not long before an altercationbetween Forrester and Harden began. Several times Agnew interfered butfinally Forrester sprang to his feet with an oath. 

"No man on earth can call me that!" shouted Harden, "Take it back andapologize, you rotter!"

"A rotter, am I?" sneered Forrester. "And what are you? You come of afamily of rotters. I know your sister's history! I know--"

Enoch laid a hand on Agnew's arm. "Don't interfere! Nothing but bloodwill wipe that out. "

But Milton roared suddenly, "Stop that fight! Stop it! Judge! Agnew!I'm still head of this expedition!"

Reluctantly the two moved toward the swaying figures. It was not aneasy matter to stop the battle. Forrester and Harden were clinched butEnoch and Agnew were larger than either of the combatants and at a wordfrom Enoch, Jonas seized Forrester, with Agnew. After a scuffle, Harden stood silent and scowling beside Enoch, while Forrester pantedbetween Agnew and Jonas. 

"I'm ashamed of you fellows, " shouted Milton. "Ashamed! You know thechief's due in the morning. " He stopped abruptly. "I'm ashamed ofyou. You know what I mean. The chief--God, fellows, I'm a sick man!"He fell back heavily on his blankets. 

Enoch and Harden hurried to his side. "Quit your fighting, Judge!Quit your fighting!" muttered Milton. "Here! I'll make you stop!" Hetried to rise and Jonas rushed to hold the injured leg while Harden andEnoch pressed the broad shoulders back against the flinty bed. It wasseveral moments before he ceased to struggle and dropped into a dullstate of coma. 

"It doesn't seem as if a broken leg ought to do all that to a man ashusky as Milt!" said Agnew, who had joined them with a proffer of water. 

"I'm afraid he was sickening with something before the accident, " Enochshook his head. "Those dizzy spells were all wrong, you know. "

"We'd better get this boy to a doctor as soon as we can, " said Agnew. "Poor old Milton! I swear it's a shame! His whole heart was set onputting this trip through. "

"He'll do it yet, " Enoch patted the sick man's arm. 

"Yes, but he'll be laid up for months and his whole idea was to put itthrough without a break. The Department never condones accidents, youknow. "

"I guess I can give you all some supper now, " said Jonas. "Better getit while he's laying quiet. "

"Where's Forrester?" asked Enoch as they gathered round the stew pot. 

"He mumbled something about going outside to cool down, " replied Agnew. "Better let him alone for a while. "

"Too bad you couldn't have kept the peace, under the circumstances, Harden, " said Enoch. 

"You heard what he said to me?" demanded Harden fiercely. 

"Yes, I did and I heard you deliberately tease him into a fury. Ofcourse, after what he finally said there was nothing left to do but tosmash him, " said Enoch. 

"I don't see why, " Agnew spoke in his calm way. "I never couldunderstand why a bloody nose wiped out an insult. A thing that's saidis said. Shooting a man even doesn't unsay a dirty speech. It's notcommon sense. Why ruin your own life in the effort to punish a man forsomething that's better forgotten?"

"So you would swallow an insult and smile?" sneered Harden. 

"Not at all! I wouldn't hear the alleged insult, in most cases. Butif the thing was so raw that the man had to be punished, I'd reallyhurt him. "

"How?" asked Enoch. 

"I'd do him a favor. "

"Slush!" grunted Harden. 

Agnew shrugged his shoulders and the scanty meal was finished insilence. When Jonas had collected the pie tins and cups, Enoch said, "While you're outside with those, Jonas, you'd better persuadeForrester to come in to supper. Tell him no one will bother him. Boys, I think we ought to sit up with Milton for a while. I'll takethe first watch, if you'll take the second, Harden. "

Harden nodded. "I'll get to bed at once. Call me when you want me. "

He rolled himself in his blanket, Agnew following his example. Amoment or so later Jonas could be heard calling, "Mr. Forrester! Ohee! Mr. Forrester!" The Canyon echoed the call, but there was no answer, Enoch strolled down to the river's edge whereJonas was standing with his arms full of dishes. "What's up, Jonas?"he asked. 

"Boss, I think he's lit out!"

"Lit out? Where, Jonas?"

"Well, there's only one way, like you went this afternoon. But hiscanteen's gone. And he had his shoes drying by the fire. He must havesneaked 'em while we was working over Mr. Milton, because they're gone, and so's his coat that was lying by the Ida, with the rest of theclothes. "

Enoch lifted his great voice. "Forrester! Forrester!"

A thousand echoes replied while Agnew joined them and in a moment, Harden. Jonas repeated his story. 

"No use yelling!" exclaimed Enoch. "Let's build a fire out here. "

"Do you suppose he's had an accident?" Enoch's voice was apprehensive. 

"No, I don't, " replied Agnew, stoutly. "He's told me two or threetimes that if he had any real trouble with Hard, he'd get out. What afool to start off, this way!"

"You fellows go to bed, " Harden spoke abruptly. 

"I'll keep a fire going and if Milt needs more than me, I'll call. TheJudge had a heavy afternoon and I was resting. And this row is mineanyhow. "

Enoch, who was dropping with fatigue needed no urging. He rolledhimself in his blanket and instantly was deep in the marvelous slumberthat had blessed him since the voyage began. 

It was dawn when he woke. He started to his feet, contritely, wondering who of the others had sacrificed sleep for him. But Enochwas the only one awake. Milton was tossing and muttering but his eyeswere closed. Jonas lay with his feet in last night's ashes. Agnew wascurled up at Milton's feet. Harden was not to be seen. Enoch hurriedto the river's edge. A sheet of paper fluttered from the split end ofa stake that had been stuck in a conspicuous spot. It was unaddressedand Enoch opened it. 

"I have gone to find Forrester, and help him out. I took one-third ofthe grub and one of the guns and a third of the shells. If we havegood luck, you'll hear of us at the Ferry. I have the detail map ofthis section. 

"C. L. HARDEN. "

Enoch looked from the note up to the golden pink of the sky. Far abovethe butte an eagle soared. The dawn wind ruffled his hair. He drew adeep breath and turned to wake Jonas and Agnew, and show them the note. 

"Did you folks go to sleep when I did?" asked Enoch when they had readthe note in silence. 

Jonas and Agnew nodded. 

"Then he must have left at once. No fire has been built out in front. "

"Well, it's solved the problem of who walks, " remarked Agnew, drily. 

"How come Mr. Harden to think he could find him?" demanded Jonas, excitedly. 

"Well, they both will have had to start where I did, yesterday. Andneither could have gone very far in the dark. " Enoch spokethoughtfully. "If they don't kill each other!"

"They won't, " interrupted Agnew comfortingly. "Neither of them is thekilling kind. "

"Then I suggest, " said Enoch, "that with all the dispatch possible weget on our way. You two tackle the Ida and I'll take care of Miltonand the breakfast. "

"Aye! Aye, sir!" Agnew turned quickly toward the boat, followedeagerly by Jonas. 

Milton opened his eyes when Enoch bent over him. "Let me give you asip of this hot broth, old man, " said Enoch. "Come! just to pleaseme!" as Milton shook his head. "You've got to keep your strength and aclear head in order to direct the voyage. "

Milton sipped at the warm decoction, and in a moment his eyesbrightened. 

"Tastes pretty good. Too bad we haven't several gallons of it. Tellthe bunch to draw lots for who goes out. "

Enoch shook his head. "That's all settled!" and he gave Milton thedetails of the trouble of the night before. 

"Well, can you beat that?" demanded Milton. "The two fools! Why, there were a hundred things I had to tell the pair who went out. Judge, they'll never make it!"

"They've got as good a fighting chance as we have, " insisted Enoch, stoutly. "Quit worrying about them, Milton. You've got your handsfull keeping the rest of us from being too foolish. "

But try as he would, Milton could do little in the way of directing hisdepleted crew. His leg and his back pained him excruciatingly, and thevertigo was with him constantly. Enoch after trying several times toget coherent commands from the sufferer finally gave up. As soon asthe scanty breakfast of coffee and a tiny portion of boiled beans wasover, Enoch divided the rations into four portions and stowed away allbut that day's share, in the Ida. Then he discussed with Agnew andJonas the best method of placing Milton on the boat. 

They finally built a rough but strong framework on the forwardcompartment against which Milton could recline while seated on thedeck, the broken leg supported within the rower's space. They paddedthis crude couch with blankets. This finished, they made a stretcherof the blanket on which Milton lay, by nailing the sides to two smallcedar trunks which they routed out of the drift wood. When they hadlifted him carefully and had placed him in the Ida, stretcher and all, he was far more comfortable, he said, than he had been on his rigid bedof stone. 

By eight o'clock, all was ready and they pushed slowly out into thestream. Agnew took the steering oar, Enoch, his usual place, withJonas behind him. 

The river was wild and swift here, but, after they had worked carefullyand painfully out of the aftermath of the falls, the current wasunobstructed for several hours. All the morning, Jonas watched eagerlyfor traces of the Na-che but up to noon, none appeared. The sky wascloudy, threatening rain. The walls, now smooth, now broken bypinnacles and shoulders, were sad and gray in color. Milton sometimesslept uneasily, but for the most part he lay with lips compressed, eyeson the gliding cliffs. 

About an hour before noon, the familiar warning roar of rapids reachedtheir ears. Rounding a curve, carefully, they snubbed the Ida to arock while Agnew clambered ashore for an observation. Just below thema black wall appeared to cut at right angles across the river bed. Theriver sweeping round the curve which the Ida had just compassed, rushedlike the waters of a mill race against the unexpected obstacle andwaves ten to twenty feet high told of the force of the meeting. Agnewwith great difficulty crawled along the shore until he could look downon this turmoil of waters. Then, with infinite pains, he returned. 

"It's impossible to portage, " he reported, "but the waves simply fillthe gorge for two hundred feet. "

"Tie me in the boat, " said Milton. "The rest of you get out on therocks and let the boat down with ropes. "

Agnew looked questioningly at Enoch, who shook his head. 

"Agnew, " he said, "can you and Jonas manage to let the Ida down, withboth Milton and me aboard?"

"No, sir, we can't!" exclaimed Jonas. "That ain't to be thought of!"

"Right you are, Jonas!" agreed Agnew, while Milton nodded in agreement. 

"Then, " said Enoch, "let's land Milton and the loose dunnage on thisrock, let the boat down, come back and carry Milton round. "

"It's the only way, " agreed Agnew, "but I think we can take a hundredfeet off the portage, if you fellows are willing to risk rowing down toa bench of rock below here. You take the steering oar, Judge. I'llstay ashore and catch a rope from you at the bench. "

Cautiously, Jonas backing water and Enoch keeping the Ida almostscraping the shore, they made their way to the spot where Agnew caughtthe rope, throwing the whole weight of his body back against the pullof the boat, even then being almost dragged from the ledge. Milton waslifted out as carefully as possible, the loose dunnage was piled besidehim, then the three men, each with a rope attached to the Ida, begantheir difficult climb. 

There was nothing that could be called a trail. They made their way byclinging to projecting rocks, or stepping perilously from crack tocrevice, from shelf to hollow. The pull of the helpless Ida wastremendous, and they snubbed her wherever projecting rocks made thispossible. She danced dizzily from crest to crest of waves. She slidhelplessly into whirlpools, she twisted over and under and fought likea wild thing against the straining ropes. But at the end of a halfhour, she was moored in safe water, on a spit of sand on which a cottonwood grew. 

"Agnew, " said Enoch, "I think we were fools not to have broken a roughtrail before we attempted this. It's obviously impossible to carryMilton over that wall as it is. "

"I thought the three of us might make it, taking turns carrying Milt onour backs. It wastes a lot of time making trail and time is a worseenemy to us now than the Colorado. "

"That's true, " agreed Enoch, "but I'm not willing to risk Milton'svertigo on our backs. "

He took a pick-ax out of the rear compartment of the boat, as he spokeand began to break trail. The others followed suit. The rock provedunexpectedly easy to work and in another hour, Enoch announced himselfwilling to risk Milton and the stretcher on the rude path they hadhacked out. 

Milton did not speak during his passage. His fortitude and endurancewere very touching to Enoch whose admiration for the young leaderincreased from hour to hour. Jonas boiled the coffee and heated thenoon portions of beans and goat. It was entirely inadequate for theappetites of the hard working crew. Enoch wondered if the others feltas hollow and uncertain-kneed, as he did, but he said nothing nor didthey. 

There was considerable drift wood lodged against the spit of sand andfrom it, Jonas, with a shout that was half a sob, dragged a brokenboard on which appeared in red letters, "-a-che. "

"All that's left of the prettiest, spunkiest little boat that everfought a dirty river!" he mourned. "I'm going to put this in mydunnage bag and if we ever do get home, I'll have it framed. "

The others smiled in sympathy. "I wonder if Hard has found Forr, yet?"said Milton, uneasily. "I can't keep them off my mind. "

"I wouldn't be surprised if they both had run on Curly and Mack'soutfit by this time, " Agnew answered cheerfully. "It's funny we didn'tthink of them instead of Diana Allen, last night. "

"Not so very funny, either, " returned Milton with an attempt at asmile. "I'll bet most of us have thought of Miss Allen forty times toonce of the men, ever since we met her. "

"She's the most beautiful woman I ever saw, " said Agnew, dreamily. 

"Lawdy!" groaned Jonas, suddenly, "if I only had something to fishwith! When we make camp to-night, I'm a-going to try to rig up somekind of a line. "

"I'm glad the tobacco supply was in the Ida. " Enoch rose with a yawnand knocked the ashes from his pipe. "Well, boys, shall we move?"

Again they embarked. The river behaved in a most friendly manner untilafternoon, when she offered by way of variety a series of sand bars, across which they were obliged to drag the Ida by main strength. Thesecontinued at intervals for several miles. In the midst of them, therain that had been threatening all day began to fall while the windthat never left the Canyon, rose to drive the icy waters morevehemently through their sodden clothing. Milton, snugly covered withblankets, begged them feverishly to go into camp. "I'll have you allsick, to-night!" he insisted. "You can't take the risk of pneumonia onstarvation rations that you did on plenty of grub. "

"I'm willing, " said Agnew, finally, as he staggered to his feet after aducking under the Ida's side. 

"Oh, let's keep going, as long as there's any light to see by, " beggedEnoch. 

As if to reward his persistence, just as dusk settled fully upon them, a little canyon opened from the main wall at the right, a small stream, tumbling eagerly from it into the Colorado. They turned the Idaquickly into this and managed to push upward on it for several minutes. Then they put ashore under some dim cottonwoods, where grass was ankledeep. The mere feeling of vegetation about them was cheering, and thetrees, with a blanket stretched between made a partial shelter from therain. 

"I'll sure cook grass for you all for breakfast!" said Jonas. "Howcome folks not to bile grass for greens, I don't see. Maybe birdshere, too. Whoever's the fancy shot, put the gun close to his hand. "

"I've done some fair shooting in my day, " said Agnew, "but I neverpotted a goat in an eagle's nest. You'd better give the gun to theJudge. " He polished off his pie tin, scraped the last grain of sugarfrom his tin cup and lighted a cigarette. 

"I'm trying to bear my blushing honors modestly, " grinned Enoch, crowding closer to the great fire. "Milton, I've a bone to pick withyou. "

"Where'd you get it?" demanded Agnew. 

Enoch smiled but went on. "I accuse you of deliberately starvingyourself for the rest of us. It won't do, sir. I'm going to set yourshare aside and by Jove, if you refuse it, I'll throw it in the river!"

Milton rose indignantly on one elbow. "Judge, I forbid you to doanything of the kind! You fellows have got to have food to work on. All I need is plenty of water. "

"Especially as you think the water is making you sick, " returned Enochdrily. "You can't get away with it, Milton. Am I not right, Agnew andJonas?"

"Absolutely!" Agnew exclaimed, while Jonas nodded, vigorously. 

"So, beginning to-morrow morning, you're to do your share of eating, "Enoch concluded, cheerfully. 

But in spite of all efforts to keep a stiff upper lip, the night waswretched. The rain fell in torrents. The only way to keep the firealight was by keeping it under the blanket shelter, and Milton was halfsmothered with smoke. He insisted on the others going to sleep, but inspite of their utter weariness, the men would not do this. Hunger madethem restless and the rain crept through their blankets. Enoch finallygave up the attempt to sleep. He crouched by Milton, feeding the fireand trying as best he could to ease the patient's misery of mind andbody. 

It was long after midnight when Milton said, "Judge, I've been thinkingit over and I've come to a conclusion. I want you folks to go on forhelp and leave me here. "

"I don't like to hear you talk suicide, Milton. " Enoch shook his head. "As far as I'm concerned, I wouldn't consider such a suggestion for aminute. "

"But don't you see, " insisted Milton, "I'm imperilling all your lives. Without me, you could have made twice the distance you did to-day. "

"That's probably true, " agreed Enoch. "What of it? Would you leave mein your fix, thinking you might bring help back?"

"That's different! You're a tenderfoot and I'm not. Moreover, greatercare on my part would probably have prevented this whole series ofaccidents. "

"Now you are talking nonsense!" Enoch threw another log on the fire. "Your illness is undermining your common sense, Milton. We've got atough few days ahead of us but we'll tackle it together. If we fail wefail together. But I can see no reason why if we run as few risks aswe did to-day, we should get into serious trouble. We're going to losestrength for lack of food, so we've got to move more and more slowlyand carefully, and we'll be feeling weak and done up when we reach theFerry. But I anticipate nothing worse than that. "

Milton sighed and was silent, for a time. Then he said, "I could havemanaged Forr and Harden better, if I'd been willing to believe theywere the pair of kids they proved to be. As it is--"

"As it is, " interrupted Enoch, firmly, "both chaps are learning alesson that will probably cure them for all time of their foolishness. "

Milton looked long at Enoch's tired face; then he lifted himself on oneelbow. 

"All right, Judge, I'm through belly-aching! We'll put it throughsomehow and if I have decent luck, early Spring will see me right here, beginning where I left off. After all, Powell had to take two trialsat it. "

"That's more like you, Milton! Is that dawn breaking yonder?"

"Yes, " replied Milton. "Keep your ear and eye out for any sort ofcritters in this little spot, Judge. "

But, though Enoch, and the others, when he had roused them, beat thetiny blind alley thoroughly, not so much as a cottontail reward theirefforts. 

"Curious!" grumbled Enoch, "up at Mack's camp where we really needednothing, I found all the game in the world. The perversity of natureis incomprehensible. Even the fish have left this part of the river, "as Jonas with a sigh of discouragement tossed his improvised fishingtackle into the fire. 

Agnew pulled his belt a notch tighter. His brown face was beginning tolook sagged and lined. "Well, " cheerfully, "there are some advantagesin being fat. I've still several days to go before I reach your's andJonas' state of slats, Judge. "

"Don't get sot up about it, Ag, " returned Enoch. "You look a good deallike a collapsed balloon, you know! Shall we launch the good ship Ida, fellows?"

"She ain't anything to what the Na-che was, " sighed Jonas, "but she'spretty good at that. If I ain't too tired, to-night, I may clean herup a little. "

Even Milton joined in the laughter at this and the day's journey wasbegun with great good humor. 

It was the easiest day's course that had been experienced since Enochhad joined the expedition. There were three rapids during the day butthey rode these with no difficulties. Enoch and Jonas rowed fairlysteadily in the morning, but in the afternoon, they spelled each other. The light rations were making themselves felt. The going was so smooththat dusk was upon them before they made camp. Milton had beenwretchedly sick, all day, but he made no complaint and forced down thehandful of boiled beans and the tin cup of pale coffee that was hisshare of each meal. 

They made camp languidly. Enoch found the task of piling fire woodarduous and as the camp was in dry sand and the blankets had dried outduring the day, they did not attempt the usual great blaze. Jonasinsisted on acting as night nurse for Milton, and Enoch was asleepbefore he had more then swallowed his supper. He had bad dreams andwoke with a dull headache, and wondered if Jonas and Agnew felt as weakand light-headed as he did. But although both the men moved aboutslowly and Jonas made no attempt to clean up the Ida, they uttered nocomplaints. Milton was feeling a little better. Before the day'sjourney was begun, he and Agnew plotted their position on the map. 

"Well, does to-morrow see us at the Ferry?" asked Enoch, cheerfully, when Agnew put up his pencil with an abstracted air. 

"No, Judge, " sighed Milton, "that rotten first day after the wreck, cost us a good many miles. I thought we'd make up for it, yesterday. But we're a full day behind. "

"That is, " exclaimed Enoch, "we must take that grub pile and redivideit, stretching it over three days instead of two!"

"Yes, " replied Milton, grimly. 

"Jove, Agnew, you're going to be positively fairy like, before we'rethrough with this, " said Enoch. "Jonas, get out the grub supply, willyou?"

Jonas, standing on a rock that projected over the water, did notrespond. He was watching eagerly as his new fishline of ravelled ropepulled taut in the stream. Suddenly he gave a roar and jerked the lineso violently that the fish landed on Milton's blanket. 

"Must weigh two pounds!" cried Agnew. 

"You start her broiling, Mr. Agnew!" shouted Jonas, "while I keep ona-fishing. "

"What changed your luck, Jonas?" asked Enoch. "You're using beans andbent wire, just as you did yesterday. "

"Aha! not just as I did yesterday, boss! This time I tied Na-che'scharm just above the hook. No fish could stand that, once they got aneye on it. "

But evidently no second fish cast an eye on the irresistible charm, andEnoch was unwilling to wait for further luck longer than was necessaryto cook the fish and eat it. But during the day Jonas trolled wheneverthe water made trolling possible, hopefully spitting on the hook eachtime he cast it over, casting always from the right hand and mutteringFish! Fish! Fish! three times for each venture. Yet no other fishresponded to Na-che's charm that day. 

But the river treated them kindly. If their strength had been equal tohard and steady rowing they might have made up for the lost miles. Asit was they knocked off at night with just the number of miles for theday that Milton had planned on in the beginning, and were still a daybehind their schedule. Milton grew no worse, though he was weaker andobviously a very sick man. A light snow fell during the night but thenext morning was clear and invigorating. 

They encountered two difficult rapids on the fourth day. The first onethey portaged. The trail was not difficult but in their weakenedcondition the boat and poor Milton were heavy burdens and it took themthree times as long to accomplish the portage as it would have takenhad they been in normal condition. The second rapids, they shot easilyin the afternoon. The waves were high and every one was saturated withthe icy water. Enoch dared not risk Milton's remaining wet and as soonas they found a likely place for the camp they went ashore. The hugepile of drift wood had helped them to decide on this ratherunhospitable ledge for what they hoped would be their last night out. 

They kindled a big fire and sat about it, steaming and silent, but withthe feeling that the worst was behind them. 

They rose in a cold driving rain the next morning, ate the last of thebeans, drank the last of the coffee, covered Milton as well as could bewith blankets and launched the boat. It was a day of unspeakablemisery. They made one portage, and one let down, and dragged the boatwith almost impossible labor over a long series of shallows. Bymid-afternoon they had made up their minds to another night ofwretchedness and Agnew was beginning to watch for a camping place, whensuddenly he exclaimed, "Fellows, there's the Ferry!"

"How do you know?" demanded Enoch. 

"I've been here before, Judge. Yes, by Jove, there's old Grant'scabin. I wonder if any one's reached here yet!"

"Well, Milton, old man, here's thanks and congratulations, " cried Enoch. 

"You'd better thank the Almighty, " returned Milton. "I certainly hadvery little to do with our getting here. "

The rain had prevented Agnew's recognizing their haven until they werefairly upon it. Even now all that Enoch could see was a wide lateralcanyon with a rough unpainted shack above the waterline. A group ofcottonwoods loomed dimly through the mist beside a fence thatsurrounded the house. 

Jonas, who had seemed overcome with joy at Agnew's announcement, recovered his power of speech by the time the boat was headed shorewardand he raised a shout that echoed from wall to wall. 

"Na-che! Ohee, Na-che! Here we are, Na-che!"

Agnew opened his lips to comment, but before he uttered the firstsyllable there rose a shrill, clear call from the mists. 

"Jonas! Ohee, Jonas!"

Enoch's pulse leaped. With sudden strength, he bent to his oars, andthe Ida slid softly upon the sandy shore. As she did so, two figurescame running through the rain. 

"Diana!" cried Enoch, making no attempt for a moment to step from theboat. 

"Oh, what has happened!" exclaimed Diana, putting a hand under Milton'shead as he struggled to raise it. 

"Just a broken leg, Miss Allen, " he said, his parched lips parting in asmile. "Have Forr and Hard turned up?"

"No! And Curly and Mack aren't here, either! O you poor things!Here, let me help! Na-che, take hold of this stretcher, there, on theother side with the Judge and Jonas. Finished short of grub, didn'tyou! Let's bring Mr. Milton right up to the cabin. "

The cabin consisted of but one room with an adobe fireplace at one endand bunks on two sides. There was a warm glow of fire and the smell ofmeat cooking. They laid Milton tenderly on a bunk and as they did soJonas gave a great sob:

"Welcome home, I say, boss, welcome home!"

CHAPTER XIII

GRANT'S CROSSING

"Perfect memories! They are more precious than hope, more pricelessthan dreams of the future. "--_Enoch's Diary_. 

"Now, every one of you get into dry clothes as quickly as you can, "said Diana. "No! Don't one of you try to stir from the cabin! Come, Na-che, we'll bring the men's bags up and go out to our tent while theyshift. "

The two women were gone before the men could protest. They were backwith the bags in a few moments and in almost less time than it takes totell, the crew of the Ida was reclothed, Enoch in the riding suit thatJonas had left with some of his own clothes in Na-che's care. Whenthis was done, Na-che put on the coffee pot, while Diana served each ofthem with a plate of hot rabbit stew. 

"Don't try to talk, " she said, "until you get this down. You'd betterhelp Mr. Milton, Na-che. Here, it will take two of us. Oh, you poordear! You're burning with fever. "

"Don't you worry about me, " protested Milton, weakly, as, with his headresting on Diana's arm, he sipped the teaspoonsful of stew Na-che fedhim. "This is as near heaven as I want to get. "

"I should hope so!" grunted Agnew. "Jonas, don't ever try to put up astew in competition with Na-che again. "

"Not me, sir!" chuckled Jonas. "That gal can sure cook!"

"And make charms, " added Enoch. "Don't fail to realize that you'restill alive, Jonas. "

"I'm going to bathe Mr. Milton's face for him, " said Na-che, with afine air of indifference. "I can set a broken leg, too. "

"It's set, " said Agnew and Enoch together, "but, " added Enoch, "thatisn't saying that Milton mustn't be gotten to a doctor with all speed. "

Diana nodded. "Where are Mr. Forrester and Mr. Harden?" she asked. 

"We lost the Na-che--" said Agnew. 

"The what?" demanded Diana. 

"Jonas rechristened the Mary, the Na-che, " Agnew replied. "We lost herin a whirlpool six days back. Most of the food was in her. Two of ushad to go out and Harden and Forrester volunteered. We are very muchworried about them. "

"And when did Mr. Milton break his leg?"

"On that same black day! The water's been disagreeing with him, makinghim dizzy, and he took a header from the Ida, after rescuing Forresterfrom some rapids, " said Enoch. 

"Doesn't sound much, when you tell it, does it!" Agnew smiled as hesighed. "But it really has been quite a busy five days. "

"One can look at your faces and read much between the lines, " saidDiana, quietly. "Now, while Na-che works with Mr. Milton, I'm going togive you each some coffee. "

"Diana, how far are we from the nearest doctor?" asked Enoch. 

"There's one over on the Navajo reservation, " replied Diana. 

"Wouldn't it be better to keep Milton right here and one of us go forthe doctor?"

"Much better, " agreed Diana and Agnew. 

"Lord, " sighed Milton, "what bliss!"

"Then, " said Enoch, "I'm going to start for the doctor, now. "

"Nonsense!" exclaimed Diana, "that's my job. We've been here two daysand we and our outfit are as fresh as daisies. "

"I'm going, myself, " Agnew rose as firmly as his weak and weary legswould permit. 

It was Na-che who settled the matter. "That's an Indian's job, " shesaid. "You take care of Mr. Milton, Diana, while I go. "

"That's sensible, " agreed Diana. "Start now, Na-che. You should reachWilson's by to-morrow night and telephone to the Agent's house. That'll save you forty miles. "

Jonas' face which had fallen greatly suddenly brightened. "Somebody'scoming!" he cried. "I hope it's our folks!"

The door opened abruptly and in walked Curly and Mack. 

"Here's the whole family!" exclaimed Curly. "Well, if you folks don'tlook like Siberian convicts, whiskers and all! Some trip, eh?"

Mack, shaking hands all round, stopped beside Milton's bunk. "Whatwent wrong, bud? and where's the rest of the bunch?"

Enoch told the story, this time. Mack shook his head as the finalplans were outlined. 

"Na-che had better stay and nurse Milton. I'm feeling fine. We justloafed along down here. I'll start out right away. I should reachWilson's to-morrow night, as you say, and telephone the doctor. ThenI'll load up with grub at Wilson's and turn back. Do you find muchgame round here?"

Diana nodded. "Plenty of rabbit and quail, and we have some bacon andcoffee. "

"I guess I'd better go out and look for the two foot-passengers, "suggested Curly. "I'll stay out to-night and report to-morrow evening. "

"We'll be in shape by morning to start on the search, " said Enoch. 

Curly turned to his former cook with a grin. "Well, Judge, is yourlittle vacation giving you the rest you wanted?"

Enoch, gaunt, unshaven, exhausted, his blue eyes blood-shot, noddedcontentedly. "I'm having the time of my life, Curly. "

"I had a bull dog once, " said Curly. "If I'd take a barrel stave andpound him with it, saying all the time, 'Nice doggie, isn't this fun!Isn't this a nice little stick! Don't you like these little lovepats?' he'd wag his tail and slobber and tell me how much he enjoyed itand beg for more. But, if I took a straw and tapped him with it, telling him he was a poor dog, that nobody loved him, that I wasbreaking his ribs which he richly deserved, why that bull pup nearlydied of suffering of body and anguish of mind. "

Enoch shook his head sadly. "A great evangelist was lost when you tookto placer mining, Curly. "

Mack had been talking quietly to Milton. "I don't believe it was theriver water, that upset you. I think you have drunk from some poisonspring. I did that once, up in this country, and it took me six monthsto get over it, because I couldn't get to a doctor. But I believe adoctor could fix you right up. Do you recall drinking water the othermen didn't?"

"Any number of times, on exploring trips to the river!" Milton lookedimmensely cheered. "I think you may be right, Mack. "

"I'll bet you two bits that's all that ails you, son!" Mack rose fromthe edge of the bunk. "Well, folks, I'm off! Look for me when you seeme!"

"I'll mooch along too, " Curly rose and stretched himself. 

"I'm not going to try to thank all you folks!" Milton's weak voice washusky. 

"That's what us Arizonians always wait for before we do the decentthing, " said Mack, with a smile. "Come along, Curly, you lazychuckawalla you!" And the door slammed behind them. 

"They're stem winders, both of them!" exclaimed Agnew. 

"Diana, " said Enoch, "I wish you'd sit down. You've done enough forus. "

Diana smiled and shook her head. "I struck the camp first, so I'mboss. Na-che and I are going out to see that everything's all rightfor the night and that Mack and Curly get a good start. While we'reout, you're all going to bed. Then Na-che is coming in to make Mr. Milton as comfortable as she can. Our tent is under the cottonwoodsand if you want anything during the night, Mr. Milton, all you have todo is to call through the window. Neither of us will undress so we canbe on duty, instantly. There is plenty of stew still simmering in thepot, and cold biscuit on the table. Good night, all of you. "

"Na-che, she don't need to bother. I'll look out for Mr. Milton, " saidJonas, suddenly rousing from his chair where he had been dozing. 

"You go to bed and to sleep, Jonas, " ordered Diana. "Good night, Judge. "

"Good night, Diana!"

The door closed softly and Diana was seen no more that night. The rainceased at midnight and the stars shone forth clear and cold, but Miltonwas the only person in the camp to be conscious of the fact. Just asthe dawn wind was rising, though, and the cottonwoods were outliningthemselves against the eastern sky, stumbling footsteps near the tentwakened both Diana and Na-che, and they opened the tent flap, hastily. 

Forrester was clinging to a cottonwood tree. At least it was a worn, bleached, ragged counterfeit of Forrester. 

"Hard's back on the trail apiece. I came on for help, " he said huskily. 

"Is he sick or hurt?" cried Diana. 

"No, just all in. "

"I'll take a horse for him, right off, " said Na-che. "You help Mr. Forrester into the house, Diana. "

"Call Jonas!" said Diana, supporting Forrester against the tree. "Oneof the men had better go for Mr. Harden. "

"Then they got here!" exclaimed Forrester. "Thank God! How's Milton?Any other accident?"

"Everything's all right! Here they all come!" For Jonas, then Agnewand Enoch were rushing from the door and amid the hubbub ofexclamations, Forrester was landed in a bunk while Agnew started up thetrail indicated by Forrester. But he hardly had set out before he metCurly, leading his horse with Harden clinging to the saddle. Both thewanderers were fed and put to bed and told to sleep, before they triedto tell their story. The day was warm and clear and Na-che and Jonasprepared breakfast outside, serving it on the rough table, under thecottonwoods. Enoch and Agnew, washed and shaved, were new men, thoughstill weak, Enoch, particularly, being muscle sore and weary. Hardenand Forrester woke for more food, at noon, then slept again. Miltondozed and woke, drank feverishly of the water brought from the springnear the cabin, and gazed with a look of complete satisfaction on theunshaved dirty faces in the bunks across the room. 

Agnew and Curly played poker all day long. Jonas and Na-che foundendless small tasks around the camp that required long consultationsbetween them and much laughter. When Enoch returned after breakfastfrom a languid inspection of the Ida, Diana was not to be seen. Shehad gone out to get some quail, Na-che said. She returned in an houror so, with a good bag of rabbit and birds. 

"To-morrow, that will be my job, " said Enoch. 

"If she wouldn't let me go, she mustn't let you!" called Curly, fromhis poker game, under the trees. 

"Yes, I'll let any of you take it over, to-morrow, " replied Diana, giving Na-che gun and bag. "To-morrow, Na-che and I turn the rescuemission over to you men and start for Bright Angel. "

"Oh, where's your heart, Miss Allen!" cried Agnew. "Aren't you goingto wait to learn what the doctor says about Milton?"

"And Diana, " urged Enoch, "Jonas and I want to go up to Bright Angelwith you and Na-che. Won't you wait a day longer, just till we're alittle more fit?"

Diana, in her worn corduroy habit, her soft hat pulled well over hergreat eyes, looked from Agnew to Enoch, smiled and did not reply. Enoch waited impatiently without the door while she made a call onMilton. 

"Diana!" he exclaimed, when she came out, "aren't you going to talk tome even? Do come down by the Ida and see if we can't be rid of thishorde of people for a while. "

"I've been wanting to see just how badly you'd treated the poor oldboat, " said Diana, following Enoch toward the shore. 

But Enoch had not the slightest intention of holding an inquest on theIda. In the shade of a gnarled cedar to which the boat was tied as aprecaution against high water, he had placed a box. Thither he ledDiana. 

"Do sit down, Diana, and let me sit here at your feet. I'll admit itshould be unexpected joy enough just to find you here. But I'm greedy. I want you to myself, and I want to tell you a thousand things. "

"All right, Judge, begin, " returned Diana amiably, as she clasped herknee with both hands and smiled at him. But Enoch could not begin, immediately. Sitting in the sand with his back against the cedar helooked out at the Colorado flowing so placidly, at the pale gray greenof the far canyon walls and a sense of all that the river signified tohim, all that it had brought to him, all that it would mean to him toleave it and with it Diana, --Diana who had been his other self since hewas a lad of eighteen, --made him speechless for a time. 

Diana waited, patiently. At last, Enoch turned to her, "All the thingsI want to say most, can't be said, Diana!"

"Are you glad you took the trip down the river, Judge?"

"Glad! Was Roland glad he made his adventure in search of the DarkTower?"

"Yes, he was, only, Judge--"

Enoch interrupted. "Has our friendship grown less since we camped atthe placer mine?"

Diana flushed slightly and went on, "Only, Enoch, surely the end ofyour adventure is not a Dark Tower ending!"

"Yes, it is, Diana! It can never be any other. " Enoch's fingerstrembled a little as he toyed with his pipe bowl. Diana slowly lookedaway from him, her eyes fastening themselves on a buzzard that circledover the peaks across the river. After a moment, she said, "Then youare going to shoot Brown?"

Enoch started a little. "I'm not thinking of Brown just now. I'mthinking of you and me. "

He paused again and again Diana waited until she felt the silencebecoming too painful. Then she said, "Aren't you going to tell me some of the details of your trip?"

"I want to, Diana, but hang it, words fail me! It was as you warnedme, an hourly struggle with death. And we fought, I think, not becauselife was so unutterably sweet to any of us, but because there was suchwonderful zest to the fighting. The beauty of the Canyon, theawfulness of it, the unbelievable rapidity with which event piled onevent. Why, Diana, I feel as if I'd lived a lifetime since I first putfoot on the Ida! And the glory of the battle! Diana, we were so puny, so insignificant, so stupid, and the Canyon was so colossal and sodiabolically quick and clever! What a fight!"

Enoch laughed joyfully. 

"You're a new man!" said Diana, softly. 

Enoch nodded. "And now I'm to have the ride back to El Tovar with youand the trip down Bright Angel with you and your father! For onceDiana, Fate is minding her own business and letting me mind mine. "

Jonas approached hesitatingly. "Na-che said I had to tell you, boss, though I didn't want to disturb you, she said I had to though shewouldn't do it herself. Dinner is on the table. And you know, boss, you ain't like you was when a bowl of cereal would do you. "

"I shouldn't have tempted fate, Diana!" Enoch sighed, as he rose andfollowed her to the cottonwood. 

Try as he would, during the afternoon, he could not bring about anothertęte-a-tęte with Diana. Finally as dusk drew near, he threw himselfdown, under the cedar tree, his eyes sadly watching the evening mistsrise over the river. His dark figure merged with the shadow of thecedar and Na-che and Jonas, establishing themselves on the gunwale ofthe Ida for one of their confidential chats did not perceive him. Hehimself gave them no heed until he heard Jonas say vehemently:

"You're crazy, Na-che! I'm telling you the boss won't never marry. "

"How do you know what's in your boss's mind?" demanded Na-che. 

"I know all right. And I know he thinks a lot of Miss Diana, too, butI know he won't marry her. He won't marry anybody. "

"But why?" urged the Indian woman, sadly, "Why should things be sowrong? When he loves her and she loves him and they were made for eachother!"

"How come you to think she loves him?" demanded Jonas. 

"Don't I know the mind of my Diana? Isn't she my little child, even ifher mother did bear her. Don't I see her kiss that little picture shehas of him in her locket every night when she says her prayers?"

"Well--" began Jonas, but he was interrupted by a call from Curly. 

"Whoever's minding the stew might be interested in knowing that it'sboiling over!"

"Coming! Coming!" cried Jonas and Na-che. 

Darkness had now settled on the river. Enoch lay motionless until theycalled him in to supper. When he entered the cabin where the table wasset, Curly cried, "Hello, Judge! Where've you been? I swear you lookas if you'd been walking with a ghost. "

"Perhaps I have, " Enoch replied, grimly, as he took his seat. 

Harden and Forrester, none too energetic, but shaven and in order, wereat the table, where their story was eagerly picked from them. 

Forrester had slept the first night in the cavern Enoch had noted. Harden never even saw the cavern but had spent the night crawlingsteadily toward the rim. At dawn, Forrester had made his way to thetop of the butte by the same route Enoch had followed, and had seenHarden, a black speck moving laboriously on the southern horizon. Hehad not recognized him, and set out to overtake him. It was not untilnoon that he had done so. Even after he realized whom he was pursuing, he had not given up, for by that time he was rueing bitterly his hastyand ill-equipped departure. 

None of the auditors of the two men needed detailed description eitherof the ardors of that trip nor of the embarrassment of the meeting. Nor did Forrester or Harden attempt any. After they had met they triedto keep a course that moved southwest. There were no trails. Forendless miles, fissures and buttes, precipices to be scaled, mountainsto be climbed, canyons to be crossed. For one day they were withoutwater, but the morning following they found a pot hole, full of water. Weakness from lack of food added much to the peril of the trip, onecottontail being the sole contribution of the gun to their larder. They did not strike the trail until the day previous to their arrivalin the camp. 

"Have you had enough desert to last you the rest of your life?" askedCurly as Harden ended the tale. 

"Not I!" said Forrester, "nor Canyon either! I'm going to find somemethod of getting Milt to let me finish the trip with him. "

"Me too, " added Harden. 

"How much quarreling did you do?" asked Milton, abruptly, from the bunk. 

Neither man answered for a moment, then Forrester, flushing deeply, said, "All we ask of you, Milt, is to give us a trial. Set us ashoreif you aren't satisfied with us. "

Milton grunted and Diana said, quickly, "What are you people going todo until Mr. Milton gets well?"

All of the crew looked toward the leader's bunk. "Wait till we get thedoctor's report, " said Milton. "Hard, you were going to show Curly aplacer claim around here, weren't you?"

"Yes, if I can be spared for a couple of days. We can undertake that, day after to-morrow. "

"You're on!" exclaimed Curly. "Judge, don't forget you and I are dueto have a little conversation before we separate. "

"I haven't forgotten it, " replied Enoch. 

"Sometime to-morrow then. To-night I've got to get my revenge onAgnew. He's a wild cat, that's what he is. Must have been born in agambling den. Sit in with us, Judge or anybody!"

"Not I, " said Enoch, shortly. 

"Still disapprove, don't you, Judge!" gibed Curly. "How about the restof you? Diana, can you play poker?"

"Thanks, Curly! My early education in that line was neglected. " Dianasmiled and turned to Enoch. "Judge, do you think you'll feel up tostarting to-morrow afternoon? There's a spring five miles west that wecould make if we leave here at two o'clock and I'd like to feel thatI'd at least made a start, to-morrow. My father is going to be verymuch worried about me. I'm nearly a week overdue, now. "

"I'll be ready whenever you are, Diana. How about you, Jonas?"

"I'm always on hand, boss. Mr. Milton, can I have the broken oar bladewe kept to patch the Ida with?"

"What do you want it for, Jonas?" asked Milton. 

"I'm going to have it framed. And Mr. Harden and Mr. Agnew, don'tforget those fillums!"

"Lucky for you the films were stored in the Ida, Jonas!" exclaimedAgnew. "I'll develop some of those in the morning, and see what sortof a show you put up. "

Diana rose. "Well, good night to you all! Mr. Milton, is thereanything Na-che or I can do for you?"

"No, thank you, Miss Allen, I think I'm in good hands. "

Enoch rose to open the door for Diana. "Thank you, Judge, " she said, "Good night!"

"Diana, " said Enoch, under cover of the conversation at the table, "before we start to-morrow, will you give me half an hour alone withyou?"

There was pain and determination both in Enoch's voice. Diana glancedat him a little anxiously as she answered, "Yes, I will, Enoch. "

"Good night, Diana, " and Enoch retired to his bunk, where he lay wideawake long after the card game was ended and the room in darkness savefor the dull glow of the fire. 

He made no attempt the next day to obtain the half hour Diana hadpromised him. He helped Jonas with their meager preparations for thetrip, then took a gun and started along the trail which led up theFerry canyon to the desert. But he had not gone a hundred yards, whenDiana called. 

"Wait a moment, Judge! I'll go with you. "

She joined him shortly with her gun and game bag. "We'll have Na-checook us a day's supply of meat before we start, " she said. "Thehunting is apt to be poor on the trail we're to take home. "

Enoch nodded but said nothing. Something of the old grim look was inhis eyes again. He paused at the point where the canyon gave place tothe desert. Here a gnarled mesquite tree and an old half-buried logbeneath it, offered mute evidence of a gigantic flooding of the river. 

"Let's sit here for a little while, Diana, " he said. 

They put their guns against the mesquite tree and sat down facing thedistant river. 

"Diana, " Enoch began abruptly, "in spite of what your father and JohnSeaton believed and wanted me to believe, the things that the Brownpapers said about my mother are true. Only, Brown did not tell all. He did not give the details of her death. I suppose even Luigihesitated to tell that because I almost beat him to death the last timehe tried it. 

"Seaton and I never talked much about the matter. He tried to ferretout facts, but had no luck. By the time I was seventeen or eighteen Irealized that no man with a mother like mine had a right to marry. ButI missed the friendship of women, I suppose, for when I was perhapseighteen or nineteen I made a discovery. I found that somewhere in myheart I was carrying the image of a girl, a slender girl, with braidsof light brown hair wrapped round her head, a girl with the largest, most intelligent, most tender gray eyes in the world, and a lovelycurving mouth, with deep corners. I named her Lucy, because I'd beenreading Wordsworth and I began to keep a diary to her. I've kept itever since. 

"You can have no idea, how real, how vivid, how vital a part of my lifeLucy became to me. She was in the very deepest truth my better self, for years. And then this summer, a miracle occurred! Lucy walked intomy office! Beauty, serenity, intelligence, sweetness, gaiety, andgallantry--these were Lucy's in the flesh as I could not even dream forLucy of the spirit. Only in one particular though had I made an actualerror. Her name was not Lucy, it was Diana! Diana! the little girl ofBright Angel who had entered my turbulent boyish heart, all unknown tome, never to leave it! . . . Diana! Lucy! I love you and God help me, I must not marry!"

Enoch, his nails cutting deep into his palms turned from the river, atwhich he had been staring steadily while speaking, to Diana. Her eyeswhich had been fastened on Enoch's profile, now gazed deep into his, pain speaking to pain, agony to agony. 

"If, " Enoch went on, huskily, "there is no probability of your growingto care for me, then I think our friendship can endure. I can crowdback the lover and be merely your friend. But if you might grow tocare, even ever so little, then, I think at the thought of your pain, my heart would break. So, I thought before it is too late--"

Suddenly Diana's lips which had grown white, trembled a little. "It istoo late!" she whispered. "It is too late!" and she put her slender, sunburned hands over her face. 

"Don't! Oh, don't!" groaned Enoch. He took her hands down, gently. Diana's eyes were dry. Her cheeks were burning. Enoch looked at hersteadily, his breath coming a little quickly, then he rose and withboth her hands in his lifted her to her feet. 

"Do you love me, Diana?" he whispered. 

She looked up into his eyes. "Yes, Enoch! Oh, yes!" she answered, brokenly. 

"How much do you love me, dear?" he persisted. 

She smiled with a tragic beauty in droop of lips and anguish of eyes. "With all there is in me to give to love, Enoch. "

"Then, " said Enoch, "this at least may be mine, " and he laid his lipsto hers. 

When he lifted his head, he smoothed her hair back from her face. "Remember, I am not deceiving myself, Diana, " he said huskily. "I haveacted like a selfish, unprincipled brute. If I had not, in Washington, let you see that I cared, you would have escaped all this. "

"I did not want to escape it, Enoch, " she said, smiling again while herlips quivered. "Yet I thought I would have strength enough to go away, without permitting you to tell me about it. But I was not strongenough. However, " stepping away from Enoch, "now we both understand, and I'll go home. And we must never see each other again, Enoch. "

"Never see each other again!" he repeated. Then his voice deepened. "Go about our day's work year after year, without even a memory to easethe gnawing pain. God, Diana, do you think we are machines to bedriven at will?"

Diana drew a long breath and her voice was very steady as she answered. "Don't let's lose our grip on ourselves, Enoch. It only makes a hardsituation harder. Now that we understand each other, let us kiss thecross, and go on. "

Enoch, arms folded on his chest, great head bowed, walked up and downunder the trees slowly for a moment. When he paused before her, it wasto speak with his customary calm and decision, though his eyessmoldered. 

"Diana, I want to take the trip with you, just as we planned, and godown Bright Angel with your father and you. I want those few days inthe desert with you to carry me through the rest of my life. You neednot fear, dear, that for one moment I will lose grip on myself. "

Diana looked at him as if she never had seen him before. She looked atthe gaunt, strong features, the massive chin, the sensitive, firmmouth, the lines of self-control and purposefulness around eyes andlips, and over all the deep-seated sadness that made Enoch's faceunforgettable. Slowly she turned from him to the desert, and after amoment, as if she had gathered strength from the far horizon, sheanswered him, still with the little note of steadiness in her voice:

"I think we'll have to have those last few days, together, Enoch. "

Enoch heaved a deep sigh then smiled, brilliantly. "And now, " he said, "I dare not go back to camp without at least discharging my gun, doyou?"

"No, Judge!" replied Diana, picking up her gun, with a little laugh. 

"Don't call me Judge, when we're alone!" protested Enoch. 

Diana with something sweeter than tenderness shining in her great eyes, touched his hand softly with hers. 

"No, dear!" she whispered. 

Enoch looked at her, drew a deep breath, then put his gun across hisarm and followed Diana to the yucca thicket where quail was to befound. They were very silent during the hour of hunting. They baggeda pair of cottontails and a number of quail, and when they did speak, it was only regarding the hunt or the preparations for the comingexodus. They reached camp, just before dinner, Diana disappearing intothe tent, and Enoch tramping prosaically and wearily into the cabin tothrow himself down on his bunk. He had not yet recovered from the lastdays in the Canyon. 

"You shouldn't have tackled that tramp this morning, Judge, " saidMilton. "You should have saved yourself for this afternoon. "

"You saw who his side pardner was, didn't you?" asked Curly. 

"Yes, " replied Milton, grinning. 

"Then why make foolish comments?"

"I am a fool!" agreed Milton. 

"Judge, " asked Curly, "how about you and me having our conflab rightafter dinner?"

"That will suit me, " replied Enoch, "if you can drag yourself fromAgnew and poker that long. "

"I'll make a superhuman effort, " returned Curly. 

The conference, which took place under the cedar near the Ida, did notlast long. 

"Curly, " said Enoch, lighting his pipe, "I haven't made up my mind yet, whether I want you to give me the information about Fowler and Brown ornot. "

"What's the difficulty?" demanded Curly. 

"Well, there's a number of personal reasons that I don't like to gointo. But I've a suggestion to make. You say you're trying to getmoney together with which to retain a lawyer and carry out a campaign, so you aren't in a hurry, anyway. Now you write down in a letter allthat you know about the two men, and send the letter to me, I'll treatit as absolutely confidential, and will return the material to youwithout reading it if I decide not to use it. "

Curly puffed thoughtfully at his cigarette. "That's fair enough, Judge. As you say there's no great hurry and I always get het up, anyhow, when I talk about it. I'd better put it down in cool black andwhite. Where can I reach you?"

"No. 814 Blank Avenue, Washington, D. C. , " replied Enoch. 

Curly pulled an old note book out of his hip pocket and set down theaddress:

"All right, Judge, you'll hear from me sometime in the next few weeks. I'll go back now and polish Agnew off. "

And he hurried away, leaving Enoch to smoke his pipe thoughtfully as hestared at the Ida. 

CHAPTER XIV

LOVE IN THE DESERT

"While I was teaching my boy obedience, I would teach him his nextgreat obligation, service. So only could his manhood be a fullone. "--_Enoch's Diary_. 

Shortly after two o'clock, Diana announced that she was ready to start. But the good-bys consumed considerable time and it was nearly threebefore they were really on their way. Enoch's eyes were a little dimas he shook hands with Milton. 

"Curly has my address, Milton, " he said, "drop me a line once in awhile. I shall be more deeply interested in your success than you canrealize. "

"I'll do it, Judge, and when I get back East, I'll look you up. You'rea good sport, old man!"

"You're more than that, Milton! Good-by!" and Enoch hurried out inresponse to Jonas' call. 

They were finally mounted and permitted to go. Na-che rode first, leading a pack mule, Jonas second, leading two mules, Diana followed, Enoch bringing up the rear. Much to Jonas' satisfaction, Enoch hadbeen obliged to abandon the overalls and flannel shirt which he hadworn into the Canyon. Even the tweed suit was too ragged and shrunk tobe used again. So he was clad in the corduroy riding breeches and coatthat Jonas had brought. But John Red Sun's boots were still doingnotable service and the soft hat, faded and shapeless, was pulled downover his eyes in comfort if not in beauty. 

There was a vague trail to the spring which lay southwest of the Ferry. It led through the familiar country of fissures and draws that madetravel slow and heavy. The trail rose, very gradually, wound around anumber of multi-colored peaks and paused at last at the foot of asmooth-faced, purple butte. Here grew a cottonwood, sheltering fromsun and sand a lava bowl, eroded by time and by the tiny stream ofwater that dripped into it gently. There was little or no view fromthe spring, for peaks and buttes closely hemmed it in. The Novembershadows deepened early on the strange, winding, almost subterraneantrail, and although when they reached the cottonwood, it was notsundown, they made camp at once. Diana's tent was set up in the sandto the right of the spring. Enoch collected a meager supply of woodand before five o'clock supper had been prepared and eaten. 

For a time, after this was done, Enoch and Diana sat before the tinyeye of fire, listening to the subdued chatter with which Jonas andNa-che cleared up the meal. 

Suddenly, Enoch said, "Diana, how brilliant the stars are, to-night!Why can't we climb to the top of the butte for a little while? I feelsmothered here. It's far worse than the river bottom. "

"Aren't you too tired?" asked Diana. 

"Not too tired for as short a climb as that, unless you are feelingdone up!"

"I!" laughed Diana. "Why, Na-che will vouch for it that I've never hadsuch a lazy trip before! Na-che, the Judge and I are going up thebutte. Just keep a little glow of fire for us, will you, so that wecan locate the camp easily. "

"Yes, Diana, and don't be frightened if you hear noises. I'm going toteach Jonas a Navajo song. "

"We'll try not to be, " replied Diana, laughing as she rose. 

It was an ascent of several hundred feet, but easily made and the viewfrom the top more than repaid them for the effort. In all his desertnights, Enoch never had seen the stars so vivid. For miles about themthe shadowy peaks and chasms were discernible. And Diana's face wasdelicately clear cut as she seated herself on a block of stone andlooked up at him. 

"Diana, " said Enoch, abruptly, "you make me wish that I were a poet, instead of a politician. "

"But you aren't a politician!" protested Diana. "You shall not malignyourself so. "

"A pleasant comment on our American politics!" exclaimed Enoch. "Well, whatever I am, words fail me utterly when I try to describe the appealof your beauty. "

"Enoch, " there was a note of protest in Diana's voice, "you aren'tgoing to make love to me on this trip, are you?"

Enoch's voice expressed entire astonishment. "Why certainly I am, Diana!"

"You'll make it very hard for me!" sighed Diana. 

Enoch knelt in the sand before her and lifted her hands against hischeek. 

"Sweetheart, " he said softly, his great voice, rich and mellow althoughit hardly rose above a whisper, "my only sweetheart, not for all thelove in the world would I make it hard for you. Not for all your lovewould I even attempt to leave you with one memory that is not all thatis sweet and noble. Only in these days I want you to learn all thereis in my heart, as I must learn all that is in yours. For, after that, Diana, we must never see each other again. "

Diana freed one of her hands and brushed the tumbled hair from Enoch'sforehead. 

"Do you realize, " he said, quietly, "that in all the years of my memoryno woman has caressed me so? I am starved, Diana, for just such agentle touch as that. "

"Then you shall be starved no more, dearest. Sit down in the sandbefore me and lean your head against my knee. There!" as Enoch turnedand obeyed her. "Now we can both look out at the stars and I cansmooth your hair. What a mass of it you have, Enoch! And you musthave been a real carrot top when you were a little boy. "

"I was an ugly brat, " said Enoch, comfortably. "A red-headed, freckled-faced, awkward brat! And unhappy and disagreeable as I wasugly. "

"It seems so unfair!" Diana smoothed the broad forehead, tenderly. "Ihad such a happy childhood. I didn't go to school until I was twelve. Until then I lived the life of a little Indian, out of doors, takingthe trail trips with dad or geologizing with mother. I don't know howmany horses and dogs I had. Their number was limited only by whatmother and father felt they could afford to feed. "

"There was nothing unfair in your having had all the joy that could becrammed into your childhood, " protested Enoch. "Nature andcircumstance were helping to make you what you are. I don't see thatanything could have been omitted. Listen, Diana. "

Plaintively from below rose Na-che's voice in a slow sweet chant. Jonas's baritone hesitatingly repeated the strain, and after a momentthey softly sang it together. 

"Oh, this is perfect!" murmured Enoch. "Perfect!" Then he drewDiana's hand to his lips. 

How long they sat in silence listening to the wistful notes thatfloated up to them, neither could have told. But when the singingfinally ceased, Diana, with a sudden shiver said, "Enoch, I want to go back to the camp. "

Enoch rose at once, with a rueful little laugh. "Our first preciousevening is ended, and we've said nothing!"

"Nothing!" exclaimed Diana. "Enoch, what was there left to say when Icould touch your hair and forehead so? We can talk on the trail. "

"Starlight and you and Na-che's little song, " murmured Enoch; "I amhard to satisfy, am I not?" He put his arms about Diana and kissed hersoftly, then let her lead the way down to the spring. And shortly, rolled in his blankets, his feet to the dying fire, Enoch was deep insleep. 

Sun-up found them on the trail again. All day the way wound throughcountry that had been profoundly eroded. Na-che led by instinct, itseemed, to Enoch, for when they were a few miles from the spring, asfar as he, at least, could observe, the trail disappeared, entirely. During the morning, they walked much, for the over-hanging ledges andsudden chasms along which Na-che guided them made even the horseshesitate. They were obliged to depend on their canteens for water andthere was no sign of forage for the horses and mules. Every one wasglad when the noon hour came. 

"It will be better, to-night, " explained Diana. "There are water holesknown as Indian's Cups that we should reach before dark. They're sureto be full of water, for it has rained so much lately. The way will befar easier to-morrow, Enoch, so that we can talk as we go. "

They were standing by the horses, waiting for Jonas and Na-che to putthe dishes in one of the packs. 

"Diana, do you realize that you made no comment whatever on what I toldyou yesterday? Didn't the story of Lucy seem wonderful to you?"

"I was too deeply moved to make any very sane comment, " replied Diana. "Enoch, will you let me see the diary?"

"When I die, it is to be yours, but--" he hesitated, "it tells so manyof my weaknesses, that I wouldn't like to be alive and feel that youknow so much about them. " He laughed a little sadly. 

"Yet you told Lucy them, didn't you?" insisted Diana with a smile. "Don't make me jealous of that person, Enoch!"

"She was you!" returned Enoch, briefly. "To-night, I'll tell you, Lucy, some of the things you have forgotten. "

"You're a dear, " murmured Diana, under her breath, turning to mount asJonas and Na-che clambered into their saddles. 

All the afternoon, Enoch, riding under the burning sun, through theever shifting miracles of color, rested in his happy dream. The pastand the future did not exist for him. It was enough that Diana, straight and slender and unflagging rode before him. It was enoughthat that evening after the years of yearning he would feel the touchof Lucy's hand on his burning forehead. For the first time in hislife, Enoch's spirit was at peace. 

The pools were well up on the desert, where pinnacles and buttes hadgiven way at last to a roughly level country, with only occasionalfissures as reminders of the canyon. Bear grass and yucca, barrel andfish-hook cactus as well as the ocotilla appeared. The sun was sinkingwhen the horses smelled water and cantered to the shallow but gratefulbasins. Far to the south, the chaos out of which they had labored wasblack, and mysterious with drifting vapors. The wind which whirledforever among the chasms was left behind. They had entered intosilence and tranquillity. 

After supper and while the last glow of the sunsets still clung to thewestern horizon, Na-che said, "Jonas, you want to see the great Navajo charm, made by Navajo god whenhe made these waterholes?"

Jonas pricked up his ears. "Is it a good charm or a hoo-doo?"

"If you come at it right, it means you never die, " Na-che nodded herhead solemnly. 

Jonas put a cat's claw root on the fire. "All right! You see, woman, that I come at it right. "

Na-che smiled and led the way eastward. 

"Bless them!" exclaimed Enoch. "They're doing the very best they canfor us!"

"And they're having a beautiful time with each other, " added Diana. "Ithink Jonas loves you as much as Na-che loves me. "

"I don't deserve that much love, " said Enoch, watching the fire glow onDiana's face. "But he is the truest friend I have on earth. "

Diana gave him a quick, wide-eyed glance. 

"Ah, but you don't know me, as Jonas does! I wouldn't want you to knowme as he does!" exclaimed Enoch. 

"I'll not admit either Lucy or Jonas as serious rivals, " protestedDiana. 

Enoch laughed. "Dearest, I have told you things that Jonas would notdream existed. I have poured out my heart to you, night after night. All a boy's aching dreams, all a man's hopes and fears, I've sharedwith you. Jonas was not that kind of friend. I first met him when Ibecame secretary to the Mayor of New York. He was a sort of porter ordoorman at the City Hall. He gradually began to do little personalthings for me and before I realized just how it was accomplished, hebecame my valet and steward, and was keeping house for me in a littleflat up on Fourth Avenue. 

"And then, when I was still in the City Hall I had a row with Luigi. He spoke of my mother to a group of officials I was taking throughMinetta Lane. 

"Diana, it was Luigi who taught me to gamble when I was not over eightyears old. I took to it with devilish skill. What drink or dope orwomen have been to other men, gambling has been to me. After I cameback from the Grand Canyon with John Seaton, I began to fight againstit. But, although I waited on table for my board, I really put myselfthrough the High School on my earnings at craps and draw poker. As Igrew older I ceased to gamble as a means of subsistence but whenever Iwas overtaxed mentally I was drawn irresistibly to a gambling den. Andso after the fight with Luigi--"

Enoch paused, his face knotted. His strong hands, clasping his kneesas he sat in the sand, opposite Diana, were tense and hard. Diana, looking at him thought of what this man meant to the nation, of whathis service had been and would be: she thought of the great gifts withwhich nature had endowed him and she could not bear to have him humblehimself to her. 

She sprang to her feet. "Enoch! Enoch!" she cried. "Don't tell meany more! You are entitled to your personal weaknesses. Even I mustnot intrude! I asked you about them because, oh, because, Enoch, youare letting your only real weakness come between you and me. "

Enoch had risen with Diana, and now he came around the fire and put hishands on her shoulders. "No! No! Diana! not my weaknesses keep usapart, bitterly as they mortify me. "

Diana looked up at him steadily. "Enoch, your great weakness is notgambling. Who cares whether you play cards or not? No one but Brown!But your weakness is that you have let those early years and Luigi'svicious stories warp your vision of the sweetest thing in life. "

"Diana! I thought you understood. My mother--"

"Don't!" interrupted Diana, quickly. "Don't! I understand and becauseI do, I tell you that you are warped. You are America's only realstatesman, the man with a vision great enough to mold ideals for thenation. Still you are not normal, not sane, about yourself. "

Enoch dropped his hands from her shoulders and stood staring at hersadly. 

"I thought you understood!" he whispered, brokenly. 

Diana wrung her hands, turned and walked swiftly toward a neighboringheap of rocks whose shadows swallowed her. Enoch breathed hard for amoment, then followed. He found Diana, a vague heap on a great stone, her face buried in her hands. Enoch sat down beside her and took herin his arms. 

"Sweetheart, " he whispered, "what have I done?"

Diana, shaken by dry sobs, did not reply. But she put her arms abouthis neck and clung to him as though she could never let him go. Enochsat holding her in an ecstasy that was half pain. Dusk thickened intonight and the stars burned richly above them. Enoch could see thatDiana's face against his breast was quiet, her great eyes fastened onthe desert. He whispered again, "Diana, what have I done?"

"You have made me love you so that I cannot bear to think of thefuture, " she replied. "It was not wise of us to take this triptogether, Enoch. "

Enoch's arms tightened about her. "We'll be thankful all our lives forit, Diana. And you haven't really answered my question, darling!"

Diana drew herself away from him. "Enoch, let's never mention thesubject again. The things you understand by weakness--why, I don'tcare if you have a thousand of them! But, dear, I want the diary. When you leave El Tovar, leave that much of yourself with me. "

Enoch's voice was troubled. "I have been so curiously lonely! You canhave no idea of what the diary has meant to me. "

"I won't ask you for it, Enoch!" exclaimed Diana. Suddenly she leanedforward in the moonlight and kissed him softly on the lips. 

Enoch drew her to him and kissed her fiercely. "The diary! It isyours, Diana, yours in a thousand ways. When you read it, you willunderstand why I hesitated to give it to you. "

"I'll find some way to thank you, " breathed Diana. 

"I know a way. Give me some of your desert photographs. Choose thosethat you think tell the most. And don't forget Death and the Navajo. "

"Oh, Enoch! What a splendid suggestion! You've no idea how I shallenjoy making the collection for you. It will take several months tocomplete it, you know. "

"Don't wait to complete the collection. Send the prints one at a time, as you finish them. Send them to my house, not my office. "

Soft voices sounded from the camping place. "We must go back, " saidDiana. 

"Another evening gone, forever, " said Enoch. "How many more have we, Diana?"

"Three or four. One never knows, in the Canyon country. "

They moved slowly, hand in hand, toward the firelight. Just beforethey came within its zone, Enoch lifted Diana's hand to his lips. 

"Good night, Diana!"

"Good night, Enoch!"

Jonas and Na-che, standing by the fire like two brown genii of thedesert, looked up smiling as the two appeared. 

"Ain't they a handsome pair, Na-che?" asked Jonas, softly. "Ain't he agrand looking man?"

Na-che assented. "I wish I could get each of 'em to wear a love ring. I could get two the best medicine man in the desert country made. "

"Where are they?" demanded Jonas eagerly. 

"Up near Bright Angel. "

"You get 'em and I'll pay for 'em, " urged Jonas. 

"We can't buy 'em! They got to be taken. "

"Well, how come you to think I couldn't take 'em, woman? You show mewhere they are. I'll do the rest. "

"All right, " said Na-che. "Diana, don't you feel tired?"

"Tired enough to go to bed, anyway, " replied Diana. "It's going to bea very cold night. Be sure that you and the Judge have plenty ofblankets, Jonas. Good night!" and she disappeared into the tent. 

The night was stinging cold. Ice formed on the rain pools and they atebreakfast with numbed hands. As usual, however, the mercury began toclimb with the sun and when at mid-morning, they entered a huge purpledepression in the desert, coats were peeled and gloves discarded. 

The depression was an ancient lava bed, deep with lavender dust thatrose chokingly about them. There was a heavy wind that increased asthey rode deeper into the great bowl and this, with the swirling sand, made the noon meal an unpleasant duty. But, in spite of thesediscomforts, Enoch managed to ride many miles, during the day, with hishorse beside Diana's. And he talked to her as though he must in theshort five days make up for a life time of reticence. 

He told her of the Seatons and all that John Seaton had done for him. He told her of his years of dreaming of the Canyon and of his days asPolice Commissioner. He told of dreams he had had as a Congressman andas a Senator and of the great hopes with which he had taken up the workof the Secretary of the Interior. And finally, as the wind began tolessen with the sinking sun, and the tired horses slowed to the trail'slifting from the bowl, he told her of his last speaking trip, of itspurpose and of its results. 

"The more I know you, " said Diana, "the more I am confirmed in theopinion I had of you years before I met you. And that is that howeverour great Departments need men of your administrative capacity andintegrity--and I'm perfectly willing to admit that their need isdire--your place, Enoch Huntingdon, is in the Senate. Yet I supposeyour party will insist on pushing you on into the White House. And itwill be a mistake. "

"Why?" asked Enoch quickly. 

"Because, " replied Diana, brushing the lavender dust from her brownhands thoughtfully, "your gift of oratory, your fundamental, sanedreams for the nation, your admirable character, impose a particularand peculiar duty on you. It has been many generations since thenation had a spokesman. Patrick Henry, Daniel Webster, have been deada long time. Most of our orators since have killed their own influenceby fanatical clinging to some partisan cause. You should be biggerthan any party, Enoch. And in the White House you cannot be. Ourspoils system has achieved that. But in the Senate is your great, natural opportunity. "

Enoch smiled. "Without the flourishes of praise, I've reached aboutthe same conclusion that you have, " he said. "I have been told, " hehesitated, "that I could have the party nomination for the presidency, if I wished it. You know that practically assures election. "

Diana nodded. "And it's a temptation, of course!"

"Yes and no!" replied Enoch. "No man could help being moved andflattered, yes, and tempted by the suggestion. And yet when I think ofthe loneliness of a man like me in the White House, the loneliness, andthe gradual disillusionment such as the President spoke of you, thetemptation has very little effect on me. "

"How kind he was that day!" exclaimed Diana, "and how many years ago itseems!"

They rode on in silence for a few moments, then Diana exclaimed, "Look, Enoch dear!"

Ahead of them, along the rim of the bowl, an Indian rode. His longhair was flying in the wind. Both he and his horse were silhouettedsharply against the brilliant western sky. 

"Make a picture of it, Diana!" cried Enoch. 

Diana shook her head. "I could make nothing of it!"

Na-che gave a long, shrill call, which the Indian returned, then pulledup his horse to wait for them. When Enoch and Diana reached the rim, the others already had overtaken him. 

"It's Wee-tah!" exclaimed Diana, then as she shook hands, she added:"Where are you going so fast, Wee-tah?"

The Indian, a handsome young buck, his hair bound with a knottedhandkerchief, glanced at Enoch and answered Diana in Navajo. 

Diana nodded, then said: "Judge, this is Wee-tah, a friend of mine. "

Enoch and the Indian shook hands gravely, and Diana said, "Can't youtake supper with us, Wee-tah?"

"You stay, Wee-tah, " Na-che put in abruptly. "Jonas and I want you tohelp us with a charm. "

"Na-che says you know a heap about charms, Mr. Wee-tah!" exclaimedJonas. 

Wee-tah grinned affably. "I stay, " he said. "Only the whites have tohurry. Good water hole right there. " He jerked his thumb over hisshoulder, then turned his pony and led the way a few hundred yards to alow outcropping of stones, the hollowed top of which held a fewprecious gallons of rain water. 

"My Lordy!" exclaimed Jonas, as he and Enoch were hobbling theirhorses, "if I don't have some charms and hoo-doos to put over on thoseBaptist folks back home! Why, these Indians have got even a Georgianigger beat for knowing the spirits. "

"Jonas, you're an old fool, but I love you!" said Enoch. 

Jonas chuckled, and hurried off to help Na-che with the supper. Thestunted cat's claw and mesquite which grew here plentifully madepossible a glorious fire that was most welcome, for the evening wascold. Enoch undertook to keep the big blaze going while Wee-tahprepared a small fire at a little distance for cooking purposes. Aftersupper the two Indians and Jonas gathered round this while Enoch andDiana remained at what Jonas designated as the front room stove. 

"What solitary trip was Wee-tah undertaking?" asked Enoch. "Or mustn'tI inquire?"

"On one of the buttes in the canyon country, " replied Diana, "Wee-tah'sgrandfather, a great chief, was killed, years ago. Wee-tah is going upto that butte to pray for his little son who has never been born. "

"Ah!" said Enoch, and fell silent. Diana, in her favorite attitude, hands clasping her knees, watched the fire. At last Enoch rousedhimself. 

"Shall you come to Washington this winter, Diana?"

"I ought to, but I may not. I may go into the Havesupai country fortwo months, after you go East, and put Washington off until latespring. "

"Don't fear that I shall disturb you, when you come, dear. " Enochlooked at Diana with troubled eyes. 

She looked at him, but said nothing, and again there was silence. Enoch emptied his pipe and put it in his pocket. 

"After you have finished this work for the President, then what, Diana?"

She shook her head. "There is plenty of time to plan for that. If Igo into the angle of the children's games and their possible relationsto religious ceremonies, there's no telling when I shall wind up! Thenthere are their superstitions that careful study might separate clearlyfrom their true spiritism. The great danger in work like mine is thatit is apt to grow academic. In the pursuit of dry ethnological factsone forgets the artistry needed to preserve it and present it to theworld. "

"Whew!" sighed Enoch. "I'm afraid you're a fearful highbrow, Diana!Hello, Jonas, what can I do for you?"

"We all are going down the desert a piece with Wee-tah. They's a charmdown there he knows about. They think we'll be gone about an hour. But don't worry about us. "

"Don't let the ghosts get you, old man, ", said Enoch. "After allyou've lived through, that would be too simple. "

Jonas grinned, and followed the Indians out into the darkness. 

"Now, " inquired Enoch, "is that tact or superstition?"

"Both, I should say, " replied Diana. "We'll have to agree that Na-cheand Jonas are doing all they can to make the match. I gather from whatNa-che says that they're working mostly on love charms for us. "

"More power to 'em, " said Enoch grimly. "Diana, let's walk out underthe stars for a little while. The fire dims them. "

They rose, and Enoch put his arm about the girl and said, with atenderness in his beautiful voice that seemed to Diana a very part ofthe harmony of the glowing stars:

"Diana! Oh, Diana! Diana!"

She wondered as they moved slowly away from the fire, if Enoch had anyconception of the beauty of his voice. It seemed to her to express theman even more fully than his face. All the sweetness, all thevirility, all the suffering, all the capacity for joy that was writtenin Enoch's face was expressed in his voice, with the addition of amelodiousness that only tone could give. Although she never had heardhim make a speech she knew how even his most commonplace sentence mustwing home to the very heart of the hearer. 

They said less, in this hour alone together, than they said in anyevening of their journey. And yet they both felt as if it was the mostnearly perfect of their hours. 

Perhaps it was because the sky was more magnificent than it had beenbefore; the stars larger and nearer and the sky more deeply, richlyblue. 

Perhaps it was because after the dusk and heat of the day, the uproarof the sand and wind, the cool silence was doubly impressive and thricegrateful. 

And perhaps it was because of some wordless, intangible reason, thatonly lovers know, which made Diana seem more beautiful, more pure, hertouch more sacred, and Enoch stronger, finer, tenderer than ever before. 

At any rate, walking slowly, with their arms about each other, theywere deeply happy. 

And Enoch said, "Diana, I know now that not one moment of theloneliness and the bitterness of the years, would I part with. All ofit serves to make this moment more perfect. "

And suddenly Diana said, "Enoch, hold me close to you again, here, under the stars, so that I may never again look at them, when I'm alonein the desert, without feeling your dear arms about me, and your dearcheek against mine. "

And when they were back by the fire again, Enoch once more leanedagainst Diana's knee and felt the soft touch of her hand on his hairand forehead. 

The three magic-makers returned, chanting softly, as magic-makersshould. Faint and far across the desert sounded the intriguing rhythmlong before the three dark faces were caught by the firelight. Whenthey finally appeared, Jonas was bearing an eagle's feather. 

"Miss Diana, " he said solemnly, "will you give me one of your longhairs?"

Quite as solemnly, Diana plucked a long chestnut spear and Jonaswrapped it round the stem of the feather. Then he joined the other twoat the water hole. Enoch and Diana looked at each other with a smile. 

"Do you think it will work, Diana?" asked Enoch. 

"Eagle feather magic is strong magic, " replied Diana. "I shall go tosleep believing in it. Good night, Enoch. "

"Good night, Diana. "

Wee-tah left them after breakfast, cantering away briskly on his pony, his long hair blowing, Na-che and Jonas shouting laughingly after him. 

It was a brisk, clear morning, with ribbons of mist blowing across thedistant ranges. By noon, their way was leading through scatteredgrowths of stunted cedar and juniper with an occasional gnarled, undersized oak in which grew mistletoe thick-hung with ivory berries. Bear grass and bunch grass dotted the sand. Orioles and robins sang asthey foraged for the blue cedar berry. All the afternoon the treesincreased in size and when they made camp at night, it was under agiant pine whose kindred stretched in every direction as far as the eyecould pierce through the dusk. There was water in a tiny rivulet nearby. 

"It's heavenly, Diana!" exclaimed Enoch, as he returned from hobblingthe horses. "We must be getting well up as to elevation. There is atang to the air that says so. "

Diana nodded a little sadly. "One night more, after this, then you'llsleep at El Tovar, Enoch. "

"I'm not thinking even of to-morrow, Diana. This moment is enough. Are you tired?"

"Tired? No!" but the eyes she lifted to Enoch's were faintly shadowed. "Perhaps, " she suggested, "I'm not living quite so completely in thepresent as you are. "

"Necessity hasn't trained you during the years, as it has me, " saidEnoch. "If the trail had not been so bad to-day and I could haveridden beside you, I think I could have kept your thoughts here, sweetheart. "

"I think you could have, Enoch, " agreed Diana, with a wistful smile. 

The hunting had been good that day. Amongst them, the travelers hadbagged numerous quail and cottontails, and Jonas had brought in at noona huge jack rabbit. This they could not eat but its left hind foot, Jonas claimed, would make a sensation in Washington. Supper was afestive meal, Na-che producing a rabbit soup, and Jonas broiling thequail, which he served with hot biscuit that the most accomplished chefmight have envied. 

After the meal was finished and Enoch and Diana were standing beforethe fire, debating the feasibility of a walk under the pines, Jonas andNa-che approached them solemnly. 

Jonas cleared his throat. "Boss and Miss Diana, Na-che and me, we wantyou to do something for us. We know you all trust us both and so wedon't want you to ask the why or the wherefore, but just go ahead anddo it. "

"What is it, Jonas?" asked Diana. 

"Well, up ahead a spell in these woods, there's a round open space andin the middle of it under a big rock an Injun and his sweetheart isburied. Something like a million years ago he stole her from overyonder from the--" he hesitated, and Na-che said softly:

"Hopis. "

"Yes, the Hopis. And her tribe come lickety-cut after her, andovertook 'em at that spot yonder, and her father give her the choice ofcoming back or both of 'em dying right there. They chose to die, andthere they are. Wee-tah and Na-che and all the Injuns believe--"

Na-che pulled at his sleeve. 

"Oh, I forgot! We ain't going to tell you what they believe, becausewhites don't never have the right kind of faith. Let me alone, Na-che. How come you think I can't tell this story? But what we ask of you is, will you and Miss Allen, boss, go up to that stone yonder, and lay thiseagle's feather beside it, then sit on the stone until a star falls. "

Enoch and Diana looked at each other, half smiling. 

"Don't say no, " urged Na-che. "You want to take a walk, anyhow. "

"And what happens, if the star falls?" asked Diana. 

"Something mighty good, " replied Jonas. 

"It's pretty cold for sitting still so long, isn't Jonas?" asked Enoch. 

"You can take a blanket to wrap round yourselves. Do it, boss! Youknow you and Miss Diana don't care where you are as long as you get alittle time alone together. "

Enoch laughed. "Come along, Diana! Who knows what Indian magic mightdo for us!"

"That's right, " Na-che nodded approval. "There's an old trail to it, see!" she led Diana beyond the camp pine, and pointed to the faintblack line, that was traceable in the sand under the trees. The pineforest was absolutely clear of undergrowth. 

"Come on, Enoch, " laughed Diana, and Enoch, chuckling, joined her, while the two magicians stood by the fire, interest and satisfactionshowing in every line of their faces. 

Diana had little difficulty following the trail. To Enoch'sunaccustomed eyes and feet, the ease with which she led the way wasastonishing. She walked swiftly under the trees for ten minutes, thenpaused on the edge of a wide amphitheater, rich in starlight. In thecenter lay a huge flat stone. They made their way through the sand tothis. Dimly they could discern that the sides of the rock were coveredwith hieroglyphics. Diana laid the eagle's feather in a crevice at theend of the rock. 

"See!" exclaimed Enoch. "Other lovers have been here before!" Hepointed to feathers at different points in the rock. "It must indeedbe strong magic!"

He folded one blanket for a seat, another he pulled over theirshoulders, for in spite of the brisk walk, they both were shiveringwith the cold. 

"What do you suppose the world at large would say, " chuckled Diana, "ifit would see the Secretary of the Interior, at this moment. "

"I think it would say that as a human being, it was beginning to havehope of him, " replied Enoch. 

Then they fell silent. The great trees that widely encircled them weremotionless. The heavens seemed made of stars. Enoch drew Diana closeagainst him, and leaned his cheek upon her hair. Slowly a jack rabbitloped toward the ancient grave, stopped to gaze with burning eyes atthe two motionless figures, twitched his ears and slowly hopped away. Shortly a cottontail deliberately crossed the circle, then another andanother. Suddenly Diana touched Enoch's hand softly. 

"In the trees, opposite!" she breathed. 

Two pairs of fiery eyes moved slowly out until the starlight revealedtwo tiny antelope, gray, graceful shadows of the desert night. Thepair stared motionless at the ancient grave, then gently trotted away. Now came a long interval in which neither sound nor motion wasperceptible in the silvery dusk. Then like little gray ghosts withglowing eyes half a dozen antelope moved tranquilly across theamphitheater. Enoch and Diana watched breathlessly but for manymoments more there was no sign of living creature. And suddenly agreat star flashed across the radiant heavens. 

"The magic!" whispered Diana, "the desert magic!"

"Diana, " murmured Enoch in reply, "this is as near heaven as mortalsmay hope to reach. "

"Desert magic!" repeated Diana softly. "Come, dear, we must go back tocamp. "

Enoch rose reluctantly and put his hands on Diana's shoulders. "Thoselovers, long ago, " he said, his deep voice tender and wistful, "thoselovers long ago were not far wrong in their decision. I'm sure, in theyears to come, when I think of this evening, and this journey, I shallfeel so. "

Diana touched his cheek softly with her hand. "I love you, Enoch, " wasall she said, and they returned in silence to the camp. 

"We saw the star fall!" exclaimed Jonas, waiting by the fire withNa-che. 

Enoch nodded and, after a glance at his face, Jonas said nothing more. 

All the next day they penetrated deeper and deeper into the mightyforest. All day long the trail lifted gradually, the air growing rarerand colder as they went. 

It was biting cold when they made their night camp deep in the woods. But a glorious fire before a giant tree trunk made the last evening onthe trail one of comfort. Na-che and Jonas had run out of excuses forleaving the lovers alone, but nothing daunted, after supper was clearedoff they made their own camp fire at a distance and sat before it, singing and laughing even after Diana had withdrawn to her tent. 

"Enoch, " said Diana, "I have something that I want to say to you, butI'll admit that it takes more courage than I've been able to gathertogether until now. But this is our last evening and I must relieve mymind. "

Enoch, surprised by the earnestness of Diana's voice, laid down hispipe and put his hand over hers. "I don't see why you need courage tosay anything under heaven to me!"

"But I do on this subject, " returned Diana, raising wide, troubled eyesto his. "Enoch, you have made me love you and then have told me thatyou cannot marry me. I think that I have the right to tell you thatyou are abnormal toward marriage. You are spoiling our two lives and Iam entering a most solemn protest against your doing so. "

"But, Diana--" began Enoch. 

"No!" interrupted Diana. "You must hear me through in silence, Enoch. I remember my father telling me that Seaton believed that you had beenmade the victim of almost hypnotic suggestion by that beast, Luigi. Not that Luigi knew anything about auto-suggestion or anything of thesort! He simply wanted to enslave a boy who was a clever gambler. Andso he planted the vicious suggestion in your mind that you werenecessarily bad because your mother was. And all these years, thatsuggestion has held, not to make you bad but to make you fear that yourchildren would be or that disease, mental or physical, is latent in youwhich marriage would uncover. Enoch, have you never talked your caseover with a psychologist?"

"No!" replied Enoch. "I've always felt that I was perfectly normal andI still feel so. Moreover, I've wanted to bury my mother's history athousand fathoms deep. Consider too, that I've never wanted to marryany woman till I met you. "

"And having met me, " said Diana bitterly, "you allow a preconceivedidea to wreck us both. You astonish me almost as much as you make mesuffer. Enoch, did you ever try to trace your father?"

"Diana, what chance would I have of finding my father when you considerwhat my mother was? Nevertheless, I have tried. " And Enoch told indetail both Seaton's and the Police Commissioner's efforts in hisbehalf. 

Diana rose and paced restlessly up and down before the fire. Enochrose with her and stood leaning against the tree trunk, watching herwith tragic eyes. Finally Diana said:

"I'm not clever at argument, but every woman has a right to fight forher mate. I insist that your reasons for not marrying are chimeras. And if I'm willing to risk marrying the man who may or may not be theson of Luigi's mistress, he should be willing to risk marrying me. "

"But, you see, you do admit it's a risk!" exclaimed Enoch. 

"No more a risk than marriage always is, " declared Diana, with a smilethat had no humor in it. "Enoch, let's not be cowardly. Let's 'setthe slug horn dauntless to our lips. '"

Enoch covered his eyes with his hands. Cold sweat stood on his brow. All the ugly, menacing suggestions of thirty years crowded his answerto his lips. 

"Diana, we must not!" he groaned. 

Diana drew a quick breath, then said, "Enoch, I cannot submit tamely tosuch a decision. I have a friend in Boston who is one of the greatpsycho-analysts of the country. When I return to Washington in thespring I shall go to see him. "

"God! Shall I never be able to bury Minetta Lane?" cried Enoch. 

"Not until you dig the grave yourself, my dear! Yours has been a casefor a mind specialist, all these years, not a detective. I, for one, refuse to let Minetta Lane hag ride me if it is possible to escape it. "Suddenly she smiled again. "I'll admit I'm not at all Victorian in myattitude. "

"You couldn't be anything that was not fine, " returned Enoch sadly. "But I cannot bear to have you buoy yourself with false hopes. "

"A drowning woman grasps at straws, I suppose, " said Diana, a littlebrokenly. "Good night, my dearest, " and Diana went into the tent, leaving Enoch to ponder heavily over the fire until the cold drove himto his blankets. 

Breaking camp the next morning was dreary and arduous enough. Snow wasstill falling, the mules were recalcitrant and a bitter wind had pileddrifts in every direction. The four travelers were in a subdued mood, although Enoch heartened himself considerably by urging Diana toremember that they had still to look forward to the trip down BrightAngel. 

They floundered through the snow for two heavy hours before Dianalooked back at Enoch to say, "We're only a mile from the cabin now, Enoch!"

"Only a mile!" exclaimed Enoch. "Diana, I wonder what your father willsay when he sees me!"

"He thinks you are two thousand miles from here!" laughed Diana. "We'll see what he will say. "

"And so, " murmured Enoch to himself, "any perfect journey is ended. "

BOOK IV

THE PHANTASM DESTROYED

CHAPTER XV

THE FIRING LINE AGAIN

"When I shall have given you up, Diana, I shall love my own solitude asnever before. For you will dwell there and he who has lovely thoughtsis never lonely. "--_Enoch's Diary_. 

The cabin was built of cedar logs. Frank had added to it as necessityarose or his means permitted, and it sprawled pleasantly under thepines, as if it belonged there and enjoyed being there. Na-che gaveher peculiar, far-carrying call, some moments before the cabin cameinto view, and when the little cavalcade jingled up to the door, it waswide open, a ruddy faced, white-haired man standing before it. 

"Hello, Diana!" he shouted. "Where in seven thunders have you been!You're a week late!"

Then his eyes fastened wonderingly on Enoch's face. He came slowlyacross the porch and down the steps. Enoch did not speak, and for along moment the two men stared at each other while time turned back itshands for a quarter of a century. Suddenly Frank's hand shot out. 

"My God! It's Enoch Huntingdon!"

"Yes, Frank, it's he, " replied Enoch. 

"Where on earth did you come from? Come in, Mr. Secretary! Come in!Or do you want to go up to the hotel?"

"Hotel! Frank, don't try to put on dog with me or snub me either!"exclaimed Enoch, dismounting. "And I am Enoch to you, just as thatcowardly kid was, twenty-two years ago!"

"Cowardly!" roared Frank. "Well, come in! Come in before I getstarted on that. "

"This is Jonas, " said Na-che gravely. 

"I know who Jonas is, " said Frank, shaking hands. "Come in! Come in!Before I burst with curiosity! Diana girl, I've been worried sickabout you. I swear once more this is the last trip you shall takewithout me. "

The living-room was huge and beautiful. A fire roared in the greatfireplace. Indian blankets and rugs covered the floor. There weresome fine paintings on the walls and books and photographs everywhere. After Enoch and Diana had removed their snowy coats, Frank impatientlyforced them into the arm-chairs before the fire, while he stood on thebearskin before them. 

"For the love of heaven, Diana, where did you folks meet?"

"You begin, Enoch, " said Diana quietly. 

At the use of the Secretary's name, Frank glanced at Diana quickly, then turned back to Enoch. 

"Well, Frank, I was on a speaking trip, and the pressure of things gotso bad that I decided to slip away from everybody and give myself atrip to the Canyon. That was about a month ago. I outfitted at alittle village on the railroad, and shortly after that I joined someminers who were going up to the Canyon to placer prospect. We had beenat the Canyon several days when Jonas and Diana and Na-che found us. Diana stayed a day or so, then Jonas and I went with a GeologicalSurvey crew for a boating trip down the river. We had sundryadventures, finally landing at Grant's Ferry, our leader, Milton, witha broken leg. Here we found Diana and Na-che. Jonas and I left theothers and came on here because I want to go down the trail with you. That, in brief, is my story. "

"Devilish brief!" snorted Frank. "Thank you for nothing! Diana, suppose you pad the skeleton a little. "

"Yes, I will, Dad, if you'll let Enoch go to his room and get into somedry clothes. I told Na-che to help herself for him from your supply. "

"Surely! Surely! What a rough bronco, I am! Let me show you to theguest room, Mr. Secretary--Enoch, I should say, " and Frank led the wayto a comfortable room whose windows gave a distant view of the Canyonrim. 

When Enoch returned to the living-room after a bath and some strenuousgrooming at Jonas' hands, Diana had disappeared and Frank was standingbefore the fire, smoking a cigarette. He tossed it into the flames atEnoch's approach. 

"Enoch, my boy!" he said, then his voice broke, and the two men stoodsilently grasping each other's hands. 

Enoch was the first to find his voice. "Except for the white hair, Frank, the years have forgotten you. "

"Not quite, Enoch! Not quite! I don't take those trails as easily asI did once. You, yourself are changed, but one would expect that!Fourteen to thirty-six, isn't it?"

Enoch nodded. "Will the snow make Bright Angel too difficult for you, Frank?"

"Me? My Lord, no! Do I look a tenderfoot? We'll start to-morrowmorning and take two days to it. Sit down, do! I've a thousandquestions to ask you. "

"Before I begin to answer them, Frank, tell me if there is any way inwhich I can send a telegram. I must let my office know where I am, much as I regret the necessity. "

"You can telephone a message to the hotel, " replied Frank. "They'lltake care of it. But you realize that your traveling incog. Will beall out if you do that?"

"Not necessarily!" Enoch chuckled. 

Frank called the hotel on the telephone and handed the instrument toEnoch, who smiled as he gave the message. 

"Mr. Charles Abbott, 8946 Blank Street, Washington, D. C. The boss canbe reached now at El Tovar, Jonas. "

"But won't Abbott wire you?" asked Frank. 

"No, he'll wire Jonas. See if he doesn't, " replied Enoch. "And nowfor the questions. Oh, Diana!" rising as Diana, in a brown silk housefrock, came into the room. "How lovely you look! Doesn't she, Frank?"

"She looks like her mother, " said Frank. "Only she'll never be quiteas beautiful as Helen was. "

"'Whose beauty launched a thousand ships'!" Enoch exclaimed, smiling atDiana. "My boyish memoir of Mrs. Allen is that she was dark. "

"She was darker than Diana, and not so tall. Just as high as mybreast; a fine mind in a lovely body!" Frank sighed deeply and staredat the fire. 

Enoch, lying back in the great arm-chair, watched Diana withthoughtful, wistful eyes, until Frank roused himself, saying abruptly, "And now once more for the questions. Enoch, what started you inpolitics?"

"Well, " replied Enoch, "that's a large order, but I'll try to tell thestory. " He began the tale, but was so constantly interrupted byFrank's questions that luncheon was announced by Na-che, just as hefinished. 

After luncheon they returned again to the fire, and Frank, urged on byEnoch, told the story of his early days at the Canyon. Perhaps Frankguessed that Enoch and Diana were in no mood for speech themselves, forhe talked on and on, interrupted only by Enoch's laughter, or quickword of sympathy. Diana, her hands clasped loosely in her lap, watchedthe fire or stared at the snow drifts that the wind was piling againstthe window. It seemed to Enoch that the shadows about her great eyeswere deepening as the hours went on. 

Suddenly Frank looked at his watch. "Four o'clock! I must go out tothe corral. Want to come along, Enoch?"

"I think not, Frank. I'll sit here with Diana, if you don't mind. "

"I can stand it, if Diana can, " chuckled Frank, and a moment later adoor slammed after him. 

Enoch turned at once to Diana. "Are you happy, dear?"

"Happy and unhappy; unbearably so!" replied Diana. 

"Don't forget for a moment, " said Enoch quickly, "that we have twowhole days after to-day. "

"I don't, " Diana smiled a little uncertainly. "Enoch, I wonder if youknow how well you look! You are so tanned and so clear-eyed! I'mgoing to be jealous of the women at every dinner party I imagine youattending!"

Enoch laughed. "Diana, my reputation as a woman hater is going to beincreased every year. See if it's not!"

The telephone rang and Diana answered the call. 

"Yes! Yes, Jonas is here, Fred Jonas--I'll take the message. " Therewas a pause, then Diana said steadily, "See if I repeat correctly. Tell the Boss the President wishes him to take first train East, makingall possible speed. Wire at once date of arrival. Signed Abbott. "

Diana hung up the receiver and turned to Enoch, who had risen and wasstanding beside her. 

"Orders, eh, Enoch?" she said, trying to smile with white lips. 

Enoch did not answer. He stood staring at the girl's quivering mouth, while his own lips stiffened. Then he said quietly: "Will you tell mewhere I can find Jonas, Diana?"

"He's in the kitchen with Na-che. I'll go bring him in. "

"No, stay here, Diana, sweetheart. Your face tells too much. I'll beback in a moment. "

Jonas looked up from the potatoes he was peeling, as Enoch came intothe kitchen. "Jonas, I've just had a reply from the wire I sent Abbottthis morning. The President wants me at once. Will you go up to thehotel and arrange for transportation out of here tonight? Remember, Idon't want it known who I am. "

"Yes, Mr. Secretary!" exclaimed Jonas. Hastily wiping his hands, hemurmured to Na-che, as Enoch turned away: "No trip down Bright Angel, Na-che. Ain't it a shame to think that love ring--" But Enoch heardno more. 

Diana stood before the fire in the gathering twilight. "Is thereanything Dad or I can do to facilitate your start, Enoch?"

"Nothing, Diana. Jonas is a past master in this sort of thing, and heprefers to do it all himself. You and I have only to think of eachother until I have to leave. "

He took Diana's face between his hands and gazed at it hungrily. "Howbeautiful, how beautiful you are!" he said, his rich voice dying in asigh. 

"Don't sigh, Enoch!" exclaimed Diana. "We must not make this lastmoment sad. You are going back into the arena, fit for the fight. That makes me very, very glad. And while you have told me nothing asto your intentions concerning Brown, I know that your decision, when itcomes, will be right. "

"I don't know what that decision will be, Diana. I have given my wholemind to you for many days. But I shall do nothing rash, nor withoutlong thought. My dearest, I wish I could make you understand what youmean to me. I had thought when we were in the Canyon to-morrow I couldtell you something of my boyhood, so that you would understand me, andwhat you mean to me. But all that must remain unsaid. Perhaps it'sjust as well. "

Enoch sighed again and, turning to the table, picked up the flatpackage he had laid there on entering the room. 

"This is my diary, Diana, " placing it in her hands. "Be as gentle asyou can in judging me, as you read it. If we were to be married, Ithink I would not have let you see it, but as it is, I am giving to youthe most intimate thing in my possession, and I feel somehow as if inso doing I am tying myself to you forever. "

Diana clasped the book to her heart, and laid her burning cheek againstEnoch's. But she did not speak. Enoch held her slender body againsthis and the firelight flickered on the two motionless forms. 

"Diana, " said Enoch huskily, "you are going on with your work, asearnestly as ever, are you not?"

"Not quite so earnestly because, after I reach the East again, MinettaLane will be my job. "

"Oh, Diana, I beg of you, don't soil your hands with that!" groanedEnoch. 

"I must! I must, Enoch!" Then Diana's voice broke and again the roomwas silent. They stood clinging to each other until Frank's voice washeard in the rear of the house. 

"It's an infernal shame, I say. President or no President!"

"I'm going to my room for a little while, " whispered Diana. And whenFrank stamped into the room, Enoch was standing alone, his great headbowed in the firelight. 

"Can't you stall 'em off a little while?" demanded Frank. 

Enoch shook his head with a smile. "I've played truant too long todictate now. Jonas and I must pull out to-night. Perhaps it's best, after all, Frank, and yet, it seemed for a moment as if it werephysically impossible for me to give up that trip down Bright Angel. I've dreamed of it for twenty-two years. And to go down with Diana andyou--"

"It's life!" said Frank briefly. He sank into an armchair and neitherman spoke until Na-che announced supper. 

Diana appeared then, her cheeks and eyes bright and her voice steady. Enoch never had seen her in a more whimsical mood and the meal, whichhe had dreaded, passed off quickly and pleasantly. 

Not long after dinner, Frank announced the buck-board ready for thedrive to the station. He slammed the door after this announcement, andEnoch took Diana in his arms and kissed her passionately. 

"Good-by, Diana. "

"Good-by, Enoch!" and the last golden moment was gone. 

Enoch had no very clear recollection of his farewells to Na-che andFrank. Outwardly calm and collected, within he was a tempest. Heobeyed Jonas automatically, went to his berth at once, and toward dawnfell asleep to the rumble of the train. The trip across the continentwas accomplished without untoward incident. Enoch was, of course, recognized by the trainmen, but he kept to the stateroom that Jonas hadprocured and refused to see the reporters who boarded the train atKansas City and again at Chicago. After the first twenty-four hours ofgrief over the parting with Diana, Enoch began to recover his mentalpoise. He was able to crowd back some of his sorrow and to begin tocontemplate his whole adventure. Nor could he contemplate it withoutbeginning to exult, and little by little his spirits lifted and eventhe tragedy of giving up Diana became a sacred and a beautiful thing. His grief became a righteous part of his life, a thing he would notgive up any more than he would have given up a joy. 

Undoubtedly Jonas enjoyed this trip more than any railway journey ofhis experience. Certainly he was a marked man. He wore the broadestbrimmed hat in Frank Allen's collection, and John Red Sun's high lacedboots. Strapped to his suitcase were the Ida's broken paddle and thebattered board with "a-che" on it. These stood conspicuously in hisseat in the Pullman, where he held a daily reception to all the porterson the train. True to his orders, he never mentioned Enoch's name inconnection with his tale of the Canyon, but his own adventures lostnothing by that. 

Enoch did not wire the exact time of his arrival in Washington, as hewished no one to meet the train. It was not quite three o'clock of acold December day when Charley Abbott, arranging the papers in Enoch'sprivate office, looked up as the inner door opened. Enoch, tanned andvigorous, came in, followed by Jonas, in all his western glory. 

Charley sprang forward to meet Enoch's extended hand. "Mr. Huntingdon!Thank the Lord!"

"All set, Abbott!" exclaimed Enoch, "and ready to steam ahead. Let meintroduce old Canyon Bill, formerly known as Jonas!"

Charley clasped Jonas' hand, burst out laughing, and slapped him on theback. "Some story goes with that outfit, eh, Jonas, old boy! Say! ifyou let the rest of the doormen and messengers see you, there won't bea stroke of work done for the rest of the day. "

"I'm going to look Harry up, right now, if you don't need me, boss!"exclaimed Jonas. 

"Take the rest of the day, Jonas!"

"No, I'll be back prompt at six, boss!" and Jonas, with his luggage, disappeared. 

Enoch pulled off his overcoat and seated himself at the desk, thenlooked up at Charley with a smile. 

"I had a great trip, Abbott. I went with a mining outfit up to theCanyon country. With Miss Allen's help, Jonas located me at the placermine, and after several adventures, we came back with her to El Tovar, where I wired you. "

Abbott looked at Enoch keenly. "You're a new man, Mr. Secretary. "

Enoch nodded. "I'm in good trim. What happens first, Abbott?"

"I didn't know what time you'd be in to-day, so your appointments don'tbegin until to-morrow. But the President wants you to call him at yourearliest convenience. Shall I get in touch with the White House?"

"If you please. In the meantime, I may as well begin to go throughthese letters. "

"I kept them down pretty well, I think, " said Abbott, with justifiablepride, as he picked up the telephone. After several moments hereported that the President would see Enoch at five o'clock. 

"Very well, " Enoch nodded. "Then you'd better tell me the things Ineed to know. "

Abbott went into the outer office for his note book and, returning withit, for an hour he reported to Enoch on the business of the Department. Enoch, puffing on a cigar, asked questions and made notes himself. When Charley had finished, he said:

"Thank you, Abbott! I don't see but what I could have remained awayindefinitely. Matters seem in excellent shape. "

"Not everything, Mr. Secretary. Your oil bill has been unaccountablyblocked in the Senate. The intervention in Mexico talk has begunagain. The Geological Survey is in a mix-up and it looks as if ascandal were about to burst on poor old Cheney's head. I'm afraid he'soutlived his usefulness anyhow. The newspapers in California arestarting a new states-rights campaign for water power control and, every day since I've returned, Secretary Fowler's office has called andasked for the date of your return. "

"Interested in me, aren't they!" smiled Enoch. "Why is the Presidentin such a hurry to see me, Abbott?"

"I don't know, sir. I promised his secretary that the moment I heardfrom you I'd send such a message as I did send you. "

"All right, Abbott, I'll start along. Don't wait or let Jonas waitafter six. I'll go directly home if I'm detained after that. "

The President looked at Enoch intently as he crossed the long room. 

"Wherever you've been, Huntingdon, it has done you good. "

"I took a trip through the Canyon country, Mr. President. I've alwayswanted it. "

The President waited as if he expected Enoch to say more, but theyounger man stood silently contemplating the open fire. 

"How about this tale of Brown's?" the Chief Executive asked finally. "I dislike mentioning it to you, Huntingdon, but you are the mosttrusted member of my Cabinet, and you have issued no denial to a verynasty scandal about yourself. "

Enoch turned grave eyes toward the President. "I shall issue nodenial, Mr. President. But there is one man in the world I wish toknow the whole truth. If you have the time, sir, will you permit me togo over the whole miserable story?"

The President studied the Secretary's face. "It will be a painfulthing for both of us, Huntingdon, " he said after a moment, "but for thesake of our future confidential relationship, I think I shall have toask you to go over it with me. Sit down, won't you?"

Enoch shook his head and, standing with his back to the fire, hisburning eyes never leaving the President's face, he told the story ofMinetta Lane. He ceased only at the moment when he dropped off thetrain into the desert. He did not spare himself. And yet when thequiet, eloquent voice stopped, there were tears in the President'seyes. He made no comment until Enoch turned to the fire, then he said, with a curious smile:

"A public man cannot afford private vices. "

"I know that now, " replied Enoch. "You may have my resignationwhenever you wish it. I think it probable that I'll never touch a cardagain. But I dare not promise. "

"I'm told, " said the Chief Executive drily, "that you were not withoutgood company in Blank Street; that a certain famous person from theBritish Legation, a certain Admiral of our own navy and an Italianprince contributed their share to the entertainment. "

Enoch flushed slightly, but did not speak. 

"I don't want your resignation, Huntingdon. It's a most unfortunateaffair, but we cannot afford to lose you. Brown is a whelp, also he'sa power that must be reckoned with. That article turned Washingtonover for a while. The talk has quieted now. It was the gambling thatthe populace rolled under its tongue. Only he and the scandal mongerslike Brown gave any but a pitying glance at the other story. The fearsthat I have about the affair are first as to its reaction on you andsecond as to the sort of capital the opposite party will make of it. Ithink you let it hit you too hard, Huntingdon. "

Enoch lifted sad eyes to the chief executive. His lips were painfullycompressed and the President said, huskily:

"I know, my boy! I sensed long ago that you were a man who had drunkof a bitter cup. I wish I could have helped you bear it!" There wassilence for a moment, then the President went on:

"What are you going to do to Brown, Huntingdon?"

"I haven't decided yet, " replied Enoch slowly. "But I shall not lethim go unpunished. "

The President shook his head and sighed. "You must feel that way, ofcourse, but before we talk about that let's review the politicalsituation. I'm ending my second term. For years, as you know, a largeportion of the party has had its eye on you to succeed me. In fact, asthe head of the party, I may modestly claim to have been your firstendorser! Long ago I recognized the fact that unless youth andvirility and sane idealism were injected into the old machine, it wouldfall apart and radicalism would take its place. "

"Or Tammanyism!" interjected Enoch. 

"They are equally menacing in my mind, " said the older man. "As youknow, too, Huntingdon, there has been a quiet but very active minorityvery much against you. They have spent years trying to get somethingon you, and they've never succeeded. But--well, you understand mobpsychology better than I do--if Brown evolves a slogan, a cleverphrase, built about your gambling propensities, it will damn you farmore effectively than if he had proved that you played crooked politicsor did something really harmful to the country. "

Enoch nodded. "Whom do you think Brown is for, Mr. President?"

"Has it ever occurred to you that Brown often picks up Fowler'spolicies and quietly pushes them?"

Again Enoch nodded and the President went on, "Brown never activelyplays Fowler's game. There's an old story that an ancient quarrelseparates them. But word has been carefully passed about that there isto be a dinner at the Willard to-morrow night, of the nature of a lovefeast, at which Fowler and Brown are to fall on each other's necks withtears. "

Enoch got up from his chair and prowled about the great roomrestlessly, then he stood before the chief executive. 

"Mr. President, why shouldn't Fowler go to the White House? He's abrilliant man. He's done notable service as Secretary of State. Idon't think the cabinet has contained his equal for twenty-five years. He has given our diplomatic service a distinction in Europe that itnever had before. He has a good following in the party. Perhaps thebest of the old conservatives are for him. I don't like his attitudeon the Mexican trouble and sometimes I have felt uneasy as to hisentire loyalty to you. Yet, I am not convinced that he would not makea far more able chief executive than I?"

"Suppose that he openly ties to Brown, Huntingdon?"

"In that case, " replied Enoch slowly, "I would feel in duty bound tointerfere. "

"And if you do interfere, " persisted the President, "you realize fullythat it will be a nasty fight?"

"Perhaps it would be!" Enoch's lips tightened as he shrugged hisshoulders. 

The President's eyes glowed as he watched the grim lines deepen inEnoch's face. Then he said, "Huntingdon, I'm giving a dinner to-morrownight too! The British Ambassador and the French Ambassador want tomeet Seńor Juan Cadiz. Did you know that your friend Cadiz is thegreatest living authority on Aztec worship and a hectic fan forbullfighting as a national sport? My little party is entirelyinformal, one of the things the newspapers ordinarily don't comment on. You know I insist on my right to cease to be President on occasionswhen I can arrange for three or four real people to meet each other. This is one of those occasions. You are to come to the dinner too, Huntingdon. And if the conversation drifts from bullfighting and Aztecgods to Mexico and England's and France's ideas about your recentspeeches, I shall not complain. "

"Thank you, Mr. President, " said Enoch. 

"I would do as much for you personally, of course, " the older mannodded, as he rose, "but in this instance, I'm playing politics evenmore than I'm putting my hand on your shoulder. It's good to have youback, Huntingdon! Good night!" and a few minutes later Enoch was outon the snowy street. 

It was after six and he went directly home. He spent the evening goingover accumulated reports. At ten o'clock Jonas came to the librarydoor. 

"Boss, how would you feel about going to bed? You know we got intoearly hours in the Canyon. "

"I feel that I'm going immediately!" Enoch laughed. "Jonas, what haveyour friends to say about your trip?" as he went slowly up the stairs. 

"Boss, I'm the foremost colored man in Washington to-night. I'minvited to give a lecture on my trip in the Baptist Church. Theyoffered me five bones for it and I laughed at 'em. How come you tothink, I asked 'em, that money could make me talk about my life blood'sescape. No, sir, I give my services for patriotism. I can't have thepaddle nor the name board framed till I've showed 'em at the lecture. I'm requested to wear my costume. "

"Good work, Jonas! Remember one thing, though! Leave me and MissDiana absolutely out of the story. "

Jonas nodded. "I understand, Mr. Secretary. "

When Enoch reached his office the next morning he said to CharleyAbbott: "When or if Secretary Fowler's office calls with the usualinquiry, make no reply but connect whomever calls directly with me. "

Charley grinned. "Very well, Mr. Secretary. Shall we go after thoseletters?"

"Whenever you say so. You'd better make an appointment as soon aspossible with Cheney. He--" The telephone interrupted and Abbott tookthe call, then silently passed the instrument to Enoch. 

"Yes, this is the Secretary's office, " said Enoch. "Who iswanted? . . . This is Mr. Huntingdon speaking. Please connect me withMr. Fowler. . . . Good morning, Mr. Fowler! I'm sorry to have madeyour office so much trouble. I understand you've been calling medaily. . . . Oh, yes, I thought it was a mistake. . . . Late thisafternoon, at the French Ambassador's? Yes, I'll look you up there. Good-by. "

Enoch hung up the receiver. "Was I to go to tea at Madame Foret's thisafternoon, Abbott?"

"Yes, Mr. Secretary. Madame Foret called me up a few days ago and wasso kind and so explicit--"

"It's quite all right, Abbott. Mr. Fowler wondered, he said, if I wasto be invited!"

The two men looked at each other, then without further comment Enochbegan to dictate his long-delayed letters. The day was hectic butEnoch turned off his work with zest. 

Shortly after lunch the Director of the Geological Survey appeared. Enoch greeted him cordially, and after a few generalities said, "Mr. Cheney, what bomb are they preparing to explode now?"

Cheney ran his fingers through his white hair and sighed. "I guess I'mgetting too old for modern politics, Mr. Secretary. You'd better sendme back into the field. Neither you nor I knew it, but it seems thatI've been using those fellows out in the field for my own personalends. I have a group mining for me in the Grand Canyon and anothergroup locating oil fields for me in Texas. "

Enoch laughed, then said seriously: "What's the idea, Mr. Cheney? Haveyou a theory?"

Cheney shook his head. "Just innate deviltry, I suppose, on the partof Congress. "

"You've been chief of the Survey fifteen years, haven't you, Mr. Cheney?"

"Yes, too long for my own good. Times have changed. People realizedonce that men who go high in the technical world very seldom arecrooked. But your modern politician would believe evil of theAlmighty. "

"What sort of timber are you developing among your field men, Cheney?"

"Only so-so! Young men aren't what they were in my day. "

Enoch eyed the tired face under the white hair sympathetically. "Mr. Cheney, you're letting these people get under your skin. And that isexactly what they are aiming to do. You aren't the man you were a fewmonths ago. My advice to you is, take a vacation. When you come backturn over the field work to a younger man and devote yourself tofinding who is after you and why. I have an idea that the gang is notinterested in you, personally. "

Cheney suddenly sat up very straight. "You think that you--" then hehesitated. "No, Mr. Secretary, this is a young man's fight. I'dbetter resign. "

"Perhaps, later on, but not now. After years of such honorable serviceas yours, go because you have reached the fullness of years and haveearned your rest. Don't let these fellows smirch your name and thename of the Service. Clear both before you go. "

"What do I care for what they say of me!" cried Cheney with suddenfire. "I know what I've given to the government since I first ransurveys in Utah! You're an eastern man and a city man, Mr. Secretary. If you had any idea of what a field man, in Utah, for example, or NewMexico, or Arizona endures, of the love he has for his work, you'd seewhy my pride won't let me justify my existence to a CongressionalCommittee. "

"And yet, " insisted Enoch, "I am going to ask you to do that verything, Mr. Cheney. I am asking you to do it not for me or foryourself, but for the good of the Survey. Find out who, what and why. And tell me. Will you do it, Mr. Cheney?"

There was something winning as well as compelling in Enoch's voice. The director of the Survey rose slowly, and with a half smile held outhis hand to the Secretary. 

"I'll do it, Mr. Secretary, but for just one reason, because of myadmiration and friendship for you. "

Enoch smiled. "Not the best of reasons, I'm afraid, but I'm gratefulanyhow. Will you let me know facts as you turn them up?"

Cheney nodded. "Good day, Mr. Secretary!" and Enoch turned to meet hisnext visitor. 

Shortly before six o'clock Enoch shook hands with Madame Foret in hercrowded drawing-room. He seemed to be quite unconscious of the morethan usually interested and inquiring glances that were directed towardhim. 

"You had a charming vacation, so your smile says, Mr. Huntingdon!"exclaimed Madame Foret. "I am so glad! Where did you go?"

"Into the desert, Madame Foret. "

"Oh, into the desert of that beautiful Miss Allen! She and herpictures together made me feel that that was one part of America I mustnot miss. She promised me that she would show me what she called thePainted Desert, and I shall hold her to the promise!"

"No one could show you quite so wonderfully as Miss Allen, I'm sure, "said Enoch. 

"Now, just what did you do to kill time in the desert, Huntingdon?"asked Mr. Johns-Eaton, the British Ambassador. "Why didn't you gowhere there was some real sport?"

"Oh, I found sport of a sort!" returned Enoch solemnly. 

Johns-Eaton gave Enoch a keen look. "I'll wager you did!" heexclaimed. "Any hunting?"

"Some small game and a great deal of boating!"

"Boating! Now you are spoofing me! Listen, Mr. Fowler, here's a manwho says he was boating in the desert!"

Fowler and Enoch bowed and, after a moment's more general conversation, they drew aside. 

"About this Mexican trouble, Huntingdon, " said Fowler slowly. "I saidnothing as to your speaking trip, until your return, for variousreasons. But I want to tell you now, that I considered it an intrusionupon my prerogatives. "

"Have you told the President so?" asked Enoch. 

"The President did not make the tour, " replied Fowler. 

"Just why, " Enoch sipped his cup of tea calmly, "did you choose thisoccasion to tell me of your resentment?"

"Because, " replied Fowler, in a voice tense with repressed anger, "itis my express purpose never to set foot in your office again, nor topermit you to appear in mine. When we are forced to meet, we will meeton neutral ground. "

"Well, " said Enoch mildly, "that's perfectly agreeable to me. But, excepting on cabinet days, why meet at all?"

"You are agreed that it shall be war between us, then?" demanded Fowlereagerly. 

"Oh, quite so! Only not exactly the kind of war you think it will be, Mr. Secretary!" said Enoch, and he walked calmly back to the tea tablefor his second cup. 

He stayed for some time longer, chatting with different people, takinghis leave after the Secretary of State had driven away. Then he wenthome, thoughtfully, to prepare for the President's dinner. 

The chief executive was a remarkable host, tactful, resourceful, andwitty. The dinner was devoted entirely at first to Juan Cadiz and hiswonderful stories of Aztec gods and of bullfighting. Gradually, however, Cadiz turned to modern conditions in Mexico, and Mr. Johns-Eaton, with sudden fire, spoke of England's feeling about thechaos that reigned beyond the Texan border lines. Monsieur Foret didnot fully agree with the Englishman's general attitude, but when Cadizquoted from one of Enoch's speeches, the ambassadors united in praiseof the sanity of Enoch's arguments. The President did not commithimself in any way. But when he said good night to Enoch, he added inthe hearing of the others:

"Thank you, old man! I wish I had a hundred like you!"

Enoch walked home through a light snow that was falling. And althoughhis mind grappled during the entire walk with the new problem at hand, he was conscious every moment of the fact that a week before he hadtramped through falling snow with Diana always within hand touch. 

Jonas, brushing the snow from Enoch's broad shoulders, said casually:"I had a telegram from Na-che this evening, boss. She and Miss Dianastart for Havasu canyon to-morrow. "

Enoch started. "Why, how'd she happen to wire you, Jonas?"

"I done told her to, " replied Jonas coolly, "and moreover, I left themoney for her to do it with. "

Enoch said nothing until he was standing in his dressing-gown beforehis bedroom fire. Then he turned to Jonas and said:

"Old man, it won't do. I can't stand it. I must not be able to followher movements or I shall not be able to keep my mind on matters here. I shall never marry, Jonas. All the charms and all the affectionatedesires of you and Na-che cannot change that. "

Jonas gave Enoch a long, reproachful look that was at the same timewell-tinctured with obstinacy. Without a word he left the room. 

CHAPTER XVI

CURLY'S REPORT

"And now my house-mate is Grief. But she is wise and beautiful as theCanyon is wise and beautiful and I claim both as my own. "--_Enoch'sDiary_. 

The Washington papers, the next morning, contained the accounts of twovery interesting dinner parties. One was a detailed story of thePresident's dinner. The other told of the public meeting andreconciliation of Secretary Fowler and Hancock Brown. The eveningpapers contained, as did the morning editions the day following, widelyvaried comment on the two episodes. 

Enoch did not see the President for nearly a week after the dinnerparty, excepting at the cabinet meeting. Then, in response to atelephone call one evening, he went to the White House and told thePresident of his break with Fowler. 

"That was a curious thing for him to do, " commented the chiefexecutive. "It looks to me like a plain case of losing his temper. "

"It struck me so, " agreed Enoch. 

"Do you think that he had anything to do with the publishing of thatcanard about you, Huntingdon?"

"I would not be surprised if he had. If I find that he was mixed up init, Mr. President, I shall have to punish him as well as Brown. "

"Horsewhipping is what Brown deserves, " growled the President. "Huntingdon, why are they after Cheney?"

"I've told him to find out, " replied Enoch. "I want him to put himselfin the position of being able to give them the lie direct, and thenresign. "

"Who is after him?"

"I believe, if we can probe far enough, we'll find this same Mexicancontroversy at the bottom of it. Cheney has been immensely interestedin the fuel problem. He's given signal help to the Bureau of Mines. "

The telephone rang, and the President answered it. He returned to hisarm-chair shortly, with a curious smile on his face. 

"Secretary Fowler wants to see me. I did not tell him that you arecalling. As far as he has informed me, you and he are still on afriendly basis. He will be along shortly, and I shall be keenlyinterested in observing the meeting. "

Enoch smoked his cigar in silence for some moments before he said, witha chuckle:

"I like a fight, if only it's in the open. "

"So do I!" exclaimed the President. 

The conversation was desultory until the door opened, admitting theSecretary of State. He gave Enoch a glance and greeted the chiefexecutive, then bowed formally to Enoch, and stood waiting. 

"Sit down, Fowler! Try one of those cigars! They haven't killedHuntingdon yet. "

"I beg your pardon, Mr. President, " stiffly, "it is quite impossiblefor me to make any pretense of friendship for the present Secretary ofthe Interior. "

The President raised his eyebrows. "What's the trouble, Fowler?"

"You may have heard, " Fowler's voice was sardonic, "that your Secretaryof the Interior swung around the circle on a speech-making trip thisfall!"

"I heard of it, " replied the chief executive, "probably before you did, because I asked Mr. Huntingdon to make the trip. "

"And may I ask, Mr. President, why you asked this gentleman tointerfere with my prerogatives?"

"Come! Come, Fowler! You are too clever a man to attempt thehoity-toity manner with me! You undoubtedly read all of Huntingdon'sspeeches with care, and you observed that his entire plea was for thestates to allow the Federal Government to proceed in its normalfunction of developing the water power and oil resources of thiscountry; that a few American business men should not be permitted tohog the water power of the state for private gain, nor to embroil us inwar with Mexico because of private oil holdings there. You will recallthat whatever information he used, he procured himself and, beforeusing, laid it in your hands. You laughed at it. You will recall thatI asked you, a month before Huntingdon went out, if you would not swinground the circle, and you begged to be excused. "

Still standing, the Secretary of State bowed and said, "Mr. Huntingdonhas too distinguished an advocate to permit me to argue the matterhere. "

Enoch spoke suddenly. "Although I'm grateful to the President, Mr. Fowler, I need no advocate. What in thunder are you angry about? Ifyou and I are to quarrel, why not let me know the _casus belli_!"

"I've stated my grievance, " said Fowler flatly. 

"Your new attitude toward me has nothing to do, I suppose, " suggestedEnoch, lighting a fresh cigar, "with the fact that you dined withHancock Brown the other evening?"

Fowler tapped his foot softly on the rug, but did not reply. Enochwent on. "I don't want to quarrel with you, Fowler. I'm a sincereadmirer of yours. But I'm going to tell you frankly, that I don't likeBrown and that Brown must keep his tongue off of me. And I'm deeplydisappointed in you. You did not need Brown to add to your prestige inAmerica. "

"I don't know what the idea is, Fowler, " said the President suddenly, "but I do know that the aplomb and finesse with which you conduct yourofficial business are entirely lacking in this affair. It looks to meas if you had a personal grievance here. Come, Fowler, old man, youare too brilliant, too valuable--"

The Secretary of State interrupted by bowing once more. "I very muchappreciate my scolding, Mr. President. With your permission, I'llwithdraw until you feel more kindly toward me. "

The President and Enoch did not speak for several minutes after Fowlerhad left. Then the President said, "Enoch, how are you going to handleBrown?"

"I haven't fully made up my mind, " replied Enoch. 

"The bitterest pill you could make him swallow would be to put yourselfin the White House at the next election. "

"I'm afraid Brown would look on that as less a punishment than amisfortune. " Enoch smiled, as he rose and said-good night. 

Nearly a month passed before Enoch heard from Cheney. During that timeneither from Fowler nor from the Brown papers was there any intimationof consciousness of Enoch's existence. He believed that as long as hechose to remain silent on the Mexican situation that they wouldcontinue to ignore him. There could be little doubt that both Brownand the public looked on Enoch's sudden silence following the Luigistatement as complete rout. Enoch knew this and writhed under theknowledge as he bided his time. 

On a morning early in January, Charley Abbott answered a telephone callwhich interrupted him while was taking the Secretary's dictation. 

"It's Mr. Cheney!" he said, "He's very anxious to see you for tenminutes, Mr. Secretary. "

"Crowd him in, Abbott, " replied Enoch. 

Abbott nodded, and in less than half an hour the director of the Surveycame in. 

"Mr. Secretary, " he began without preliminaries, "I took your adviceand began investigating the trouble spots. Among other steps I took, Idetached two men temporarily from a Colorado River expedition and sentthem into Texas to discover if possible what the ordinary oilprospectors felt toward the Survey. "

Enoch's face brightened. "That was an interesting move!" he exclaimed. "Were these experienced oil men?"

"One of them, Harden, knew something of drilling. Well, they struck upsome sort of a pseudo partnership with a man, a miner, name Field, andthe three of them undertook to locate some wells in southern Texas. They were near the Mexican border and were heckled constantly by bandsof Mexicans. Finally, as the man Field, Curly, Harden calls him in hisreport, was standing guard over the horses one night, he was shotthrough the abdomen. Three days later, he died. "

"Died!" exclaimed Enoch. "Are you sure of that?"

"So Harden reports. Field knew that his wound was fatal. He wasperfectly cool and conscious to the last, and he spent the greater partof the period before his death, dictating to Harden a long story aboutHancock Brown's early activities in Mexico. He swore Harden toabsolute secrecy as to details and made him promise to send the storyto some lawyer here in Washington, who seems to have taken a smallportion of the Canyon trip with the expedition and who had prospectedwith Field. "

"And Curly Field is dead!" repeated Enoch. 

"Yes, poor fellow! Now then, here's the point, both Harden andForrester, the other Survey man, are morally certain that there is awell-organized gang whose business is to make oil prospecting on theborder unhealthy. They have several lists of names they wantinvestigated, and they suggest that Secret Service men be put on thejob, at once. There was a small item in Texas papers about the killingand a New York paper was after me this morning for the story. That'swhy I hurried to you. "

"Did you gather that Field's story had anything to do with the presenttrouble with Mexico?" asked Enoch. 

The Director shook his head. "No, Mr. Secretary. I merely broughtthat detail in because Brown is known to be your enemy and--"

He hesitated as he saw the grim lines deepening around Enoch's mouth. The Secretary tapped the desk thoughtfully with his pencil, then said:

"Keep it all out of the papers, Mr. Cheney, if you please. Or, ratherif you are willing, let the publicity end be handled from this office. Send the newspaper men to Mr. Abbott. "

"That will be a relief!" exclaimed Cheney. "Shall I go ahead on thelines indicated?"

"Yes, and bring me your next budget of news!"

As Cheney went out, Enoch rang for Jonas. "Jonas, I wish you'd go homeand see if there is any mail there for Judge Smith. If there is, lockit in the desk in my room, " tossing Jonas the key. 

"Yes, Mr. Secretary, " exclaimed Jonas, disappearing out the door. Hereturned shortly to report that mail had arrived for Judge Smith, andthat it was safely locked away. 

Enoch had no engagement that evening. When he had finished hissolitary dinner he went to his room and took out of the desk drawer alarge document envelope and a letter. The letter he opened. 

"My dear Judge: Forrester and I have just completed a sad bit of work, the taking of poor Curly's body back to Arizona for burial. Soon afteryou left, we took Milton over to Wilson's ranch and left Ag to look outfor him. He's coming along fine, by the way. We wired our dilemma toour Chief in Washington and he told us to go into southern Texas andinvestigate some conditions there for him. To our surprise, Curlywanted to go along, as soon as he found we were later going into Mexicoto an old stamping ground of his. Well, we had a great time on theBorder. It wasn't so bad until the hombres began to get nasty, and asyou may recall, neither Curly nor my now good pal Forr stand well undersniping. It got so finally that we had to stand watch over our outfitat night, and Curly got a bullet in his bladder. He bled so wecouldn't move him and Forr went out, thirty miles, after a doctor. While we waited, Curly got me to set down the stuff I am sending youunder separate cover. He also made his will and left you his miningclaims, all merely prospects so far. He says you know how he came tofeel as he does about Brown and Fowler. However that may be, itcertainly is the dirtiest story I ever heard one man tell on othersand, dying though he was, I begged Curly to let me tear the paper upand let the story go into the grave with him. But he held me to mypromise, so I'm sending it to you, with this apology for contaminatingeither of us with the dope. Poor old Curly! He was a man who'd been alittle embittered by some early trouble, but he was a good scout, forall that. 

"We all missed you and Jonas, --don't forget Jonas!--very much, afteryou left. Milton said half a dozen times that when he gets in shape togo on with the work in the spring, he was going to try to persuade youto finish the trip with us. So say we all! With best wishes, sincerely yours, C. L. Harden. "

After Enoch had finished Harden's letter he replaced it in its envelopeslowly and dropped it into the desk drawer. Next, as slowly, he pickedup the bulkier envelope and placed it on edge on the mantel under theMoran painting. Then he began to walk the floor. 

He knew that, in that dingy envelope, lay the whip by which he coulddrive Brown to public apology. As far as fearing any publicity withwhich Brown could retaliate, Enoch felt immune. He believed that hehad sounded the uttermost depths of humiliation. And at first hegloated over the thought that now Brown could be made to suffer as hehad suffered. He would give the story to the newspapers, exactly as ithad come to him. And what a setting! Curly shot from ambush, bycreatures, it was highly probable, who were ignorantly actuated byBrown's own crooked Mexican policy. Curly flinging, with his dyinghands, the boomerang that was to strike Brown down. That incidentallyit would pull Fowler down, moved Enoch little. Fowler too would behoist by his own petard. 

For a long hour Enoch paced the floor. Then he came to a sudden pausebefore the mantel and turned on the light above the painting of BrightAngel trail. Outside the room sounded the clatter of Washington'sstreets. Enoch did not hear it. Once more a passionate, sullen boy, he was clinging to his mule on the twisting trail. Once more sweptover him the horror of the Canyon and of human beings that had torturedthe soul of the boy, Enoch, on that first visit into the Canyon'sdepths. The sweat started to his forehead and, as he stared, hegrasped the mantel with both hands. Then he picked up the envelope. His hand shook as he inserted a finger under the flap, lifting his eyesas he did so, once more to the painting. 

He paused. Unearthly calm, drifting mists, colors too ephemeral, toosubtle for words--drawn in the Canyon!

The lift of the Ida under his knees, the eager welter of the whirlpool, the sting of the icy Colorado dragging him under, the flash of Diana'sface and his winning fight with death. 

The chaos of the river and two tiny figures staggering hour after hourover the hopeless, impossible chasms and buttes; Harden going to therescue of Forrester. 

Starlight on the desert. Diana's touch on his forehead, her tender, gentle fingers smoothing his hair as they gazed together at themysterious shadowy depth beyond which flowed the Colorado; that tendertouch on his hair and forehead and the desert stars thrilling near, infinitely remote. 

Suddenly Enoch, resting his arm on the mantel, dropped his foreheadupon it and stood so, the wonderful glowing colors of the paintingseeming to shimmer on his bronze hair. At last, at the sound ofJonas's footstep in the hall, he lifted his head, turned off the lightabove the painting, crossed to his desk and, dropping the stillunopened envelope into a secret drawer, locked it and put the key inhis pocket. 

The following morning Senator Havisham came to see Enoch. He was oneof the leading members of Enoch's party, a virile, progressive man, very little older than the Secretary himself. After shaking hands withEnoch and taking one of his cigars, he sat staring at him as if hescarcely knew how to begin. 

Enoch smiled half sadly. "Go ahead, Senator, " he said. "You and Ihave known each other a long time. "

The Senator smiled in return. "Yes, we have, Huntingdon, and I'm proudof the fact. That is why I was asked to undertake this errand whichhas an unpleasant as well as a pleasant side. We want you to run asour presidential nominee. But before we pass the word around, we wantyou to issue a denial of the Brown canard that will settle that kind ofmud slinging at you for good and all. "

Enoch's face was a cold mask. "I can't deny it, Havisham. The factsstated are true. The inferences drawn as to my character are false. The bringing of Miss Allen into the story was a blasphemy. All thingsconsidered, as far as publicity goes, utter silence is my onlyrecourse. As for my private retaliation on Brown, that's another and apersonal matter. "

Senator Havisham looked at Enoch through half-shut eyes. 

"Huntingdon, let me issue that statement, exactly as you have made it. "

"No, " replied Enoch flatly. "The less reference made by us to theBrown canard, the better chance of its being forgotten. "

The Senator puffed silently, then said, "Why does Brown hate you?"

"I have fought his Mexican policy. "

"Yes, I know, but is that the only reason?"

"As far as my knowledge goes, " replied Enoch. "Of course, now thathe's openly committed to Fowler, he has an added grievance. "

"There is nothing personal between you?"

"I never laid eyes on the man in my life. I never did him anintentional injury. I am merely in his way. I always have despisedhis papers and now I despise him. Understand, Senator, that, withoutregard to diplomacy, Brown and I must have it out. "

Havisham shook his head. "You'd better let him alone, Huntingdon. Hehas an awful weapon in his papers and he can smear you in the publicmind no matter how obviously false his stories may be. "

Enoch's lips tightened. "I'm not afraid of Brown. But all thingsconsidered, Havisham, you'd better leave me out of your list ofpresidential possibilities. "

"There is no list! Or, at least, you're the list!" The Senator'slaugh was a little rueful. 

"And, " Enoch went on, "strange as it may seem, I'm not sure that I wantthe Presidency. It seems to me that I might be far more useful in theCapitol than in the White House. "

"Not to the party!" exclaimed Havisham quickly. 

"No, to the country!"

"Perhaps, but it's a debatable matter, which I don't intend to debate. You are our man. If you won't deny the Brown canard, then we must goahead without the denial. "

Enoch looked thoughtfully from the window, then turned back to theSenator. "There is no great hurry, is there? Give me a month to getmatters clear in my own mind. "

"There is no hurry, except that the Brown papers work while otherssleep, and Fowler is Brown's nominee. However, take your month, oldman. I don't doubt that you have troubles of your own!"

Enoch nodded. Havisham shook hands heartily and departed, and theSecretary turned to his loaded desk. The Alaskan situation was causinghim keen anxiety. The old war between private ownership, with all itsgreed and unfairness to the common citizen, and government control, with all its cumbersome and often inefficient methods, had reachedacute proportions in the great northern province. Enoch was faced withthe necessity of deciding between the two. It must be a long distancedecision and any verdict he rendered was predestined to have in itelements of injustice. For days Enoch thrust, as far as possible, hispersonal problem into the background while he struggled with thisgreater one. It was only at night that the thought of Dianaoverwhelmed all else to torture him and yet to fill him with the joy ofperfect memories. 

It was on the morning after he had given his Alaskan decision thatCharley Abbott, eyebrows raised, laid a Brown paper before theSecretary, with the comment:

"Either Cheney or some one in Cheney's office has leaked. "

It was a twisted story of Curly's death. Curly, according to thisversion, had been doing his utmost to keep two Survey men, Harden andForrester, from hogging for obscure government purposes, certain oillands, belonging to Curly. In the ill feeling that had resulted, Curlyhad been shot. Before his death, however, he had been able to write astatement of the affair which had been sent to a well-known lawyer inWashington. He also had left sufficient property to the lawyer toenable him to expose the workings of the Geological Survey to its bones. 

Enoch's face reddened. "I don't know what there is about a piece ofwork like this that gets under my skin so intolerably!" he exclaimed. "Whether it's the cruelty of it, or the dishonesty or the bruteselfishness, I don't know. But we are going to answer this, Abbott. "

"How shall we go about it, sir? We might find out if Cheney knowsthese men personally and have him make a statement. "

"Have him tell of their previous records, " said Enoch. "Let the worldknow the heroism and the self-sacrifice of those men. And at the endlet him give the lie direct to the Brown papers. Tell him I'll sign itfor him. "

"That will give Brown just the opening he's looking for, Mr. Secretary, I'm afraid, " said Abbott, doubtfully. "I mean, your signature. "

"I'm ready for Brown, " replied Enoch shortly. 

Still Charley hesitated. "What is it, Abbott?" asked the Secretary. 

"It's Miss Allen I'm thinking about, " blurted out the younger man. "You've gone through the worst that they can hand to a man, so you'venothing more to fear. But if they bring her into it again, Mr. Secretary, I'll go crazy!"

The veins stood up on Enoch's forehead, and he said, with a coldvehemence that made Abbott recoil, "If Miss Allen's name is brought upwith mine in that manner again, I shall kill Brown. "

Charley moistened his lips. "Well, but after all, Mr. Huntingdon, Harden and Forrester are just a couple of unknown chaps. Is yourchampioning them worth the risk to Miss Allen?"

"Miss Allen would be the last person to desire that kind of shielding. I've reached my limit, Abbott, as far as the Brown papers areconcerned. They've got to keep their foul pens off the Department ofthe Interior. I'd a little rather kill Brown than not. Why shoulddecent citizens live in fear of his dirty newsmongers? Life is not sosweet to me, Abbott, nor the future so full of promise that I greatlymind sacrificing either. "

"It's just--it's just that I care so much about Miss Allen, " reiteratedCharley, miserably and doggedly. 

Enoch drew a quick breath. The two men stared at each other, pain andhopelessness in both faces. Enoch recovered himself quickly. 

"I'm sorry, my boy, " he said gently, "but life, particularly publiclife, is full of bitter situations like this. Brown must be stoppedsomewhere by somebody. Let's not count the cost. Get in touch withCheney and have that statement ready for the morning paper. "

He turned back to his letters and Abbott left the room. Before he wenthome that night, Enoch had signed the very readable account of some ofHarden's and Forrester's exploits in the Survey and had added, beforesigning, a line to the effect that the slurs and insinuations regardingthe two men which had appeared in the morning papers were entirelyuntrue. 

For several days there was no reply from the Brown camp. Enoch'sfriends commented to him freely on his temerity in deliberately drawingBrown on, but Enoch only smiled and shrugged his shoulders, whileCurly's statement lay unopened in his drawer. But underneath his calm, the still raw wound of Brown's earlier attack tingled as it awaited therubbing in of the salt. 

Finally, one morning, Charley laid a Brown paper on Enoch's desk. TheSecretary of the Interior, said the account, had denied the truth ofcertain statements made by the publication. A repetition of the storyfollowed. A careful reinvestigation of the facts, the account went on, showed the case to be as originally stated. The well-known lawyer hadbeen interviewed. He had told the reporter that the contents ofField's letter were surprising beyond words and that as soon as he hadmade full preparations some arrests would follow that would startle thecountry. The lawyer, whose name was withheld for obvious reasons, wasa man whose integrity was beyond question. He had no intention ofusing the funds willed him by Field, for he and Field had grown uptogether in a little New England town. The money would be put in trustfor Field's son, who would be sent to college with the lawyer's ownboy. In the meantime, the Secretary of the Interior would not bebeyond a most respectful and discriminating investigation himself. Itwas known that he had cut short an unsuccessful speaking tour for verygood reasons, and had disappeared into the desert country for a month. Where had he been?

Enoch suddenly laughed as he laid the paper down. "It is so childish, so preposterous, that even a fool wouldn't swallow it!" he exclaimed. 

"It's just the sort of thing that people swallow whole, " returnedAbbott. 

"Even at that, it's absolutely unimportant, " said Enoch. Again Charleydisagreed with him. "Mr. Secretary, it's very important, for it's athreat. It says that if you don't keep still, they will investigateyour desert trip. And you know what they could make of that!"

"Let them keep their tongues off my Department, then, " said Enoch, sternly. Nevertheless when Abbott had left him alone he did not turnimmediately to his work. His cigar grew cold, and the ink dried on hispen, while he sat with the look of grim determination in his eyes andlips, deepening. 

He dined out that night and was tired and depressed when he returnedhome. Jonas was smiling when he let the Secretary in and took his coat. 

"Boss, they's a nice little surprise waiting for you up on your desk. "

"Who'd be surprising me, Jonas? No one on earth but you, I'm afraid. "

Jonas chuckled. "You're a bad guesser, boss! A bad guesser! How comeyou to think I could do anything to surprise you?"

Enoch went into his brightly lighted room and stopped before his deskwith a low exclamation of pleasure. A large photograph stood againstthe book rack. Three little naked Indian children with feathers intheir hair were dancing in the foreground. Behind them lay an ancientcliff dwelling half in ruins. To the left an Indian warrior, armsfolded on his broad chest stood watching the children, his face full ofan inscrutable sadness. The children were extraordinarily beautiful. Diana had worked with a very rapid lens and had caught them atilt, inthe full abandonment of the child to joy in motion. The shadowed, mysterious, pathetic outline of the cliff dwelling, the somber figureof the chief only enhanced the vivid sense of motion and glee in thechildren. The picture was intrinsically lovely even without thathaunting sense of the desert's significance that made Diana's workdoubly intriguing. 

Enoch's depression dropped from him as if it had never been. "Oh, mydearest!" he murmured, "you did not forget, did you! It is your veryself you have sent me, your own whimsical joyousness!"

Jonas tapped softly on the door. 

"Come in, Jonas! Isn't it fine! How do you suppose a photograph cantell so much!"

"It's Miss Diana, it ain't the camera!" exclaimed Jonas, with achuckle. "Na-che says she ain't never seen her when she couldn'tsmile. That buck looks like that fellow Wee-tah. Boss, do youremember the night he took me out to see that desert charm?"

"Tell me about it, Jonas. It will rest me more than sleep. "

Enoch sank back in his chair where he could face the photograph, andJonas established himself on the hearth rug and told his story withgusto. "I got a lot of faith in Injun charms, " he said, when he hadfinished. 

"They didn't get us our trip down Bright Angel, " sighed Enoch, even ashe smiled. 

"We'll get it yet, see if we don't!" protested Jonas stoutly. "Na-cheand I ain't give up for a minute. Don't laugh about it, boss. "

"I'm not laughing, " replied Enoch gravely. "I'm thinking how fortunateI am in my friends, you being among those present, Jonas. "

"As I always aim to be, " agreed Jonas. "Do you think you could maybesleep now, boss?"

"Yes, I think so, Jonas, " and Enoch was as good as his word. 

Nearly two weeks passed before the attack on the Department of theInterior was renewed. This time it was a deliberate assault on Enoch'shonesty. The Alaskan decision served as a text. This was held up as amodel of corruption and an example of the type of decision to beexpected from a gambling lawyer. Followed a list of half a dozen ofEnoch's rulings on water power control, on forest conservation and oncoal mining, each one interpreted in the light of Enoch's mania forgambling. A man, the article said in closing, may, if he wishes, takechances with his own fortune or his own reputation, but what right hashe to risk the public domain?

Several days went by after the appearance of this edifying story, butEnoch made no move. Then the President summoned him to the White House. 

"Enoch, shall you let that screed go unchallenged?" he demanded. 

"What can I say, Mr. President?" asked Enoch. "And really, that sortof thing doesn't bother me much. It is only the usual political mudslinging. They are feeling me out. They want more than anything toget me into a newspaper controversy with them. I am going to bedifficult to get. "

"So I see!" retorted the President. "If you are not careful, old man, people will begin to think Brown is right and you are afraid. "

Enoch laughed. "I am not afraid of him or any other skunk. But also, in spite of my red hair, I have a good deal of patience. I am waitingfor our friends to trot out their whole bag of tricks. "

"What do you hear from Fowler?" asked the President. 

"Nothing. I am desperately sorry that he has got mixed up with Brown. He is a brilliant man and the party needs him. I hope his attitudetoward me has made no break in the pleasant relationship between youand him, Mr. President. "

"It did for a short time. But we got together over the Dutch Guianamatter and he's quite himself again. As you say, the party can illafford to lose him. But a man who works with Brown I consider lost tothe party, no matter if he keeps the name. "

"Fowler used to like me, " said Enoch, thoughtfully. 

"He certainly did. But the reason that Fowler will always be apolitician and not a statesman is that he is still blind to the factthat the biggest thing a man can do for himself politically is toforget himself and work for the party. "

"You mean for the country, do you not?" asked Enoch. 

"It should be the same thing. If Fowler can get beyond himself, he'llbe a statesman. But he's fifty and characters solidify at fifty. He'sbeen a first rate Secretary of State, because he's a first rateinternational lawyer, because his tact is beyond reproach and becausehe is forced by the nature of his work to think nationally and notpersonally. "

"I'm sorry he's taken up with Brown, " repeated Enoch. "There never wassuch a dearth of good men in national politics before. "

"I've known him for many years, " the President said thoughtfully, "andI never knew him to do a dishonest thing. He's full of horse sense. I've heard rumors that in his early days in the Far West he got in witha bad crowd, but he threw them off and any one that knew details hasdecently forgotten them. I've tried several times to speak to himabout this new alliance but although he's never shown temper as he didthat night when you were here, I get nowhere with him. His ideas forthe party are sane and sound and constructive. "

"You mean for the country, do you not, sir?" asked Enoch again with asmile. 

The older man smiled too. "Hanged if I don't mean both!" he exclaimed. 

"What do you think of Havisham as presidential material?" asked Enoch. 

"Too good-natured! A splendid fellow but not quite enough chin! Bythe way, I understand you refused to commit yourself to him the otherday. "

Enoch rose with a sigh. "Life to some people seems to be a simple aye!aye! nay! nay! proposition. It never has been to me. Each problem ofmy life presents many facets, and the older I grow the more I realizethat most of my decisions concerning myself have been made for onefacet and not for all. This time I'm trying to make a multipledecision, as it were. "

"I think I understand, " said the Chief executive. "Good night, Enoch. "

And Enoch went home to the waiting Jonas. 

CHAPTER XVII

REVENGE IS SWEET

"And then, after that day on the Colorado was ended, after the agony oftoil, the wrestling with death while our little boats withstood theshock of destiny itself, oh, then, the wonder and the peace of thenight's camp. Rest! Rest at last!"--_Enoch's Diary_. 

January slipped swiftly by and February, with its alternate rain andsnow came on. The splendid mental and physical poise that Enoch hadbrought back with him from the Canyon stood him in good stead under thepressure of office business which never had been so heavy. Onemorning, late in February, Cheney came to see the Secretary. 

"Well, Mr. Cheney, have you made your discovery?" asked Enoch. 

Cheney nodded slowly. "But I didn't make it until last night, Mr. Huntingdon. I've followed up all sorts of leads that landed menowhere. Last night, a newspaper reporter came to my house. He's withthe News now, but he used to be with Brown. He came round to learnsomething about our men finding gold in the Grand Canyon. He wantedthe usual fool thing, an expression of opinion from me as Director. Assoon as he let slip that he'd been on the Brown papers, I began toquestion him and I found that he'd been fired because he'd refused togo out to Arizona and follow up your vacation trip. But, he said, twoweeks ago they started another fellow on the job. "

Enoch did not stir by so much as an eye wink. 

"I thought you ought to know this, although, personally, it may be amatter of indifference to you. "

Enoch nodded. "And what are your conclusions, Mr. Cheney?"

"That Brown is determined to discredit the Department of the Interiorand you, until you are ousted and a man in sympathy with his Mexicanpolicy is put in. "

"I agree with you, entirely. And what are your plans?"

"I shall stick by my Bureau until we lick him. I haven't the slightestdesire to desert my Chief. When I thought it was I they were after, Ifelt differently. "

"Thanks, Mr. Cheney! Will you give me the name of the reporter of whomyou were speaking. "

"James C. Capp. He's not a bad chap, I think. "

Enoch nodded and Cheney took his departure. There were severalimportant conferences after this which Enoch cleared off rapidly andwith his usual efficiency. When, however, Jonas announced luncheon, Abbott asked for a little delay. 

"Here is an interesting item from this morning's Brown, " he said. Enoch read the clipping carefully. 

"The visitor to El Tovar, the rim hotel of the Grand Canyon receivessome curious impressions of our governmental prerogatives. Recently agovernment expedition down the Colorado was too well equipped withspirits and had some severe smash-ups. Two of the men became disgustedand quit, but nothing daunted, Milton, the leader took on two fugitivesfrom justice in Utah and proceeded on his way. A week later, however, there was a complete smash-up both moral and material. The boats werelost and the expedition disbanded. The expensive equipment lies in thebottom of the Colorado. So much for the efficiency and morale of theU. S. Geological Survey. "

Enoch laughed, but there was an unpleasant twist to his mouth as he didit. 

"Abbott, " he said, "will you please find out if Brown is in New York. Wherever he is, I am going to see him, immediately and I want you to gowith me. No, don't be alarmed! There will be no personal violence, yet. "

The locating of the newspaper publisher was a simple task. An hourafter lunch, Charley reported Brown as in his New York office. 

"Very well, " said Enoch, "telegraph him that we will meet him at hisoffice at nine to-night. We will take the three o'clock train andreturn at midnight. "

It was not quite nine o'clock when Enoch and Charley entered HancockBrown's office. The building was buzzing with newspaper activities, but the publisher's office was quiet. A sleepy office attendant wasawaiting them. With considerable ceremony he ushered the two acrossthe elaborate reception room and throwing open a door, said:

"The Secretary of the Interior, sir. "

A small man, with a Van Dyke beard and gentle brown eyes crossed theroom with his hand outstretched. 

"Mr. Huntingdon! this is a pleasure and an honor!"

"It is neither, sir, " said Enoch, giving no heed to the outstretchedhand. 

Brown raised his eyebrow. "Will you be seated, Mr. Huntingdon?"

"Not in your office, sir. Mr. Brown, I have endured from your handsthat which no _man_ would think to make another endure. " Enoch'sbeautiful voice was low but its resonance filled the office. His eyeswere like blue ice. "I have remained silent, for reasons of my own, under your personal attacks on me, but now I have come to tell you thatthe attacks on the Department of the Interior and on my personal lifemust cease. "

Hancock Brown looked at Enoch with gentle reproach in his eyes. "Surely you don't want to muzzle the press, Mr. Huntingdon?"

"We're not speaking of the press, " returned Enoch, "I have sincereadmiration for the press of this country. "

Brown flushed a little at this. "I shall continue on exactly the lineI have laid down, " he said quietly. 

"If, " said Enoch, clearly, "Miss Allen is brought into your publicationagain either directly or by implication, I shall come to your office, Mr. Brown, and shoot you. Abbott, you are the witness to what I sayand to the conversation that has led to it. "

"I am, Mr. Secretary, " said Charley. "And if for any reason you shouldbe unable to attend to the matter, I would do the shooting for you. "

"This will make interesting copy, " said Brown. 

"I have within my control, " Enoch went on, steadily, "the means toforce you to cease to put out lies concerning the Department of theInterior and me. I seriously consider not waiting for your next move, but of making use of this in retaliation for what you have done to me. As to that, I have reached no conclusion. This is all I have to say. "

Enoch turned on his heel and closely followed by Charley left theoffice. As they entered the taxicab, Abbott said, "Gee, that did memore good than getting my salary doubled! I thought you were going touse this morning's item as a text!"

"You'd better have Cheney prepare a reply to that, for me to sign, "said Enoch and he lapsed into silence. They went directly to theirtrain and to bed and the next morning office routine began promptly atnine as usual. 

February slipped into March. One cold, rainy morning Abbott, with abroad smile on his face, came in to take dictation. 

"What's happened, Abbott?" asked Enoch. "Some one left you some money?"

"Better than that!" exclaimed Charley. "I dined at the IndianCommissioner's last night and whom do you think I took out? MissAllen!"

A slow red suffused Enoch's forehead and died out. "When did shereturn to Washington?" he asked, quietly. 

"A day or so ago. She is studying at the Smithsonian. She says she'llbe here two months. "

"She is well, I hope, " said Enoch. 

"She looks simply glorious!"

Enoch nodded. "Instead of dictating letters, this morning, Abbott, suppose you start the visitors this way. Somehow, the thought ofwading through that pile, right now, sickens me. "

Charley's face showed surprise, but he rose at once. "Mr. Cheney'sbeen waiting for an hour out there with an interesting chap from thewestern field. Perhaps you'd better see them before I let thecommittee from California in. "

Cheney came first. "Mr. Secretary, one of my men is in from Arizona. He is very much worked up over Brown's last effort and he's got so muchto say that I thought you'd better meet him. Incidentally, he's a veryfine geologist. "

"Bring him in, " said Enoch. 

The Director swung open the door and moving slowly on a cane, Miltoncame into the room. 

"Mr. Secretary, Mr. Milton, " said Cheney. "He--" then he stopped withhis mouth open for Milton had turned white and the Secretary waslaughing. 

"Judge!" gasped Milton. 

Enoch left his desk and crossing the room seized both Milton's hands, cane and all. 

"Milton, old boy, there's no man in the world I'd rather see than you. "

"Why, are you two old friends?" asked Cheney. 

"Intimate friends!" exclaimed Enoch. "Cheney, I'll remember the favorall my life, if you'll leave me alone with Milton for a little while. "

"Why certainly! Certainly! I didn't know Milton was trying to springa surprise on you. I'll be just outside when I'm needed. "

"Sit down, Milton, " said Enoch, soberly, when they were alone. "Don'thold my deception against me. I was not spying. It was the blindestfate in the world that brought me to the Canyon and to your expedition. "

Milton's freckled face was still pale. "Hold it against you! Ofcourse not! But you've rattled me, Judge, --Mr. Secretary. "

"No one but Abbott knows of my trip and he in baldest outline. Keep mysecret for me, old man, as long as you possibly can. I suppose it willleak out eventually. "

Milton was staring at Enoch. "Think of all we said and did!" he gasped. 

"Especially what we did! Oh, it was glorious! Glorious!" cried Enoch. "It did all for me that you thought it might, Milton. Do you remember?"

"Yes, I remember. And I remember telling you my personal ambitions!I'd rather have cut out my tongue!"

"And once you all told what you thought of Enoch Huntingdon!" TheSecretary burst out laughing, and Milton joined him with a great "Ha!ha!"

"So you were the fugitive from justice, that joined my drunken crew, "chuckled Milton, wiping the tears from his eyes. "And I came over totry to put myself straight as to that with the Big Boss!"

"The best part of it all is that excepting Abbott and Jonas and nowyou, not a living soul knew it was the Secretary of the Interior whotook the trip. "

"Of course, there was Miss Allen!" added Milton. "Don't forget her!But she's as safe as the Canyon itself at keeping a secret. "

"How about the reporter who's said to be on my trail?" asked Enoch. 

"He's prowling round on the river, running up an expense accounttwenty-three hours and making up lies on the twenty-fourth. Capp toldMr. Cheney that this reporter, whose name is Ames, I believe, was towrite nothing until his return to New York. Mr. Secretary, can'tsomething be done to shut him off?"

"Yes, " replied Enoch, sternly. The two men were silent for a moment, then Enoch said with a sudden lighting of his blue eyes. "Where areyou stopping, old man. "

"I haven't located the cheapest hotel in Washington yet. When I do, that'll be where I'll stop. You remember we used to speak our minds onthe salaries the Department paid. "

"I remember, " chuckled Enoch. "Well, Milton, the cheapest stoppingplace in Washington is over at Judge Smith's place. I believe you havethe address. By the way, have you seen Jonas?"

"No, but I want to, " replied Milton. 

Enoch pressed the button, and Jonas' black head popped in at the door. As his eyes fell on Milton, they began to bulge. 

"The Lord have mercy! How come you didn't tell me, boss--" he began. Then he rushed across the room and shook hands. "Mr. Milton, I'drather see you than my own brother. Did you find any pieces of theNa-che?"

"No, Jonas, but I've got some fine pictures in my trunk of you shootingrapids in the old boat. "

"No! My Lordy! Where's your trunk, Mr. Milton?"

"Jonas, " said Enoch, "you get Mr. Milton's trunk check and--but he sayshe's going to a hotel. "

Jonas looked at Milton, indignantly. "Going to a hotel! How come youto try to insult the boss' and my house, Mr. Milton? Huh! Hotel!Huh!"

He took the check and left the room, still snorting. Milton rose. "Imustn't intrude any longer, Mr. Secretary. "

"Luckily I'm free, to-night, " said Enoch. "We'll have a great talk. Ask Cheney to come in, please. "

"Mr. Cheney, " asked Enoch, when Milton had gone, "do you think youcould find out whether or not that fellow Ames has returned fromArizona?"

"Yes, we can do that without much trouble. Was Milton able tostraighten matters up with you, Mr. Secretary?"

"He didn't have to. I'm an ardent admirer of Milton's. He's going tostop at my house, while he's in Washington. Why don't you take him outof the field and begin to groom him for your job, Mr. Cheney? Heshould be ready for it in a few years. "

Cheney nodded. "He's a good man. I'll think it over. And I willtelephone Abbott about Ames. "

It was fortunate for Enoch that Milton was with him that evening, forthe knowledge that Diana was in Washington and that he could not seeher was quite as agonizing as he had suspected it would be. Yet it wasimpossible not to enjoy Milton's continual surprise and pleasure at thechange in the Judge's identity and it was a real delight to make oncemore the voyage to the Ferry not only for its own sake but because withthe landing at the Ferry came much conversation on the part of Jonasand Milton about Diana. But Enoch did not sleep well that night andreached his office in the morning, heavy-eyed and grim. 

Abbott, standing beside the Secretary's desk was even more grim. "Mr. Cheney was too slow getting us the information about Ames, " he said, pointing to the newspaper that lay on the desk. 

Enoch lighted a cigar very deliberately, then began to read. It was adetailed account of the vacation trip of the Secretary of the Interior. It was written with devilish ingenuity, purporting to show that Enochin his hours of relaxation was a thorough-going good fellow. Theaccount said that Enoch had picked up a mining outfit made up of twonotorious gamblers. That the three had then annexed two Indian bucksand a squaw and had slowly made their way into the Grand Canyon, ostensibly to placer mine, actually to play cards and hunt. The storywas witty, and contained some good word pictures of the Canyon country. It was subtle in its wording, but it was from first to last anunforgettable smirching of Enoch's character. 

Enoch laid the paper down. "Abbott, " he said slowly, "the time hascome to act. I want Mr. Fowler, Mr. Brown, this fellow Ames, orwhatever reporter wrote the first article about me to come to my officetomorrow afternoon at five o'clock. If it is necessary to ask thePresident for authority to bring them here, I shall ask for it. "

Abbott's eyes glowed. "Thank God, at last!" he exclaimed. "Shall Iprepare a denial of this stuff. "

"No! At least they have left Miss Allen out. We may be thankful andlet it stand at that. Now, start the procession in, Abbott. I'm in nomood to dictate letters. "

Enoch threw himself into the day's work with burning intensity. Aboutthree o'clock, he told Abbott to deny all visitors that he might devotehimself to an Alaskan report. 

"Mr. Milton just rushed in. Will you let him have a moment?" askedCharley. 

"Yes, but--" here Milton came in unceremoniously. 

"Mr. Huntingdon, " he said, "I've just finished lunching with MissAllen. We are both nearly frantic over this morning's paper. You mustlet us publish the truth. "

"No, " thundered Enoch. "You know the Brown papers. If they discoveredwhat Miss Allen did for us all at the Ferry, how she led me back to ElTovar, what would they do with it?"

Abbott looked from Enoch to Milton in astonishment. Milton started tospeak, but Enoch interrupted, "You are, of course, thinking that Ishould have thought of that long before, when I asked her to let me goback to El Tovar with her. But I didn't! I had been in the Canyonlong enough to have forgotten what could be made of my adventure by badminds. I was a cursed fool, moving in a fool's paradise and I musttake my punishment. If ever--"

Jonas opened the door from the outer office. "The President, Mr. Secretary, " he said. 

Enoch started toward the telephone, but Jonas spoke impatiently--"No!No! not that. "

"The President of what, Jonas!" asked Abbott. 

Jonas lifted his chest and flung the door wide. "The President of theUnited States of America, " he announced, and the President came in. 

Enoch rose. "Don't let me disturb you, Mr. Secretary. I can wait, "said the chief executive. 

"We were quite finished, Mr. President. May I, I wonder, introduce Mr. Milton to you, the geologist whom Brown said headed the drunkenexpedition down the Colorado. "

The President looked keenly at Milton as they shook hands. "Mr. Huntingdon took great pains to deny that story, publicly, " he said. "Can't you persuade him, Mr. Milton, to do as much for himself, to-day. "

"That's exactly why I'm here, Mr. President!" exclaimed Milton. "Buthe's absolutely obdurate!"

Jonas came into the room and spoke to Enoch softly. "Mr. Fowler'soffice is on the outside wire, Mr. Secretary. I wouldn't connect inhere while the President was here. Mr. Fowler wants to speak to you, hisself, before he catches a train. "

"I'll go into your office to get it, Abbott, " said Enoch. "May Idetain you, a moment, Mr. President? Mr. Fowler wants to speak to me. "

The President raised his eyebrows with a little smile. "Yes, if youtell me what's happened to Fowler. "

Enoch's smile was twisted as he went out. Milton immediately began tospeak. 

"Mr. President, can't you make Mr. Huntingdon tell about his vacation?"

The chief executive shook his head. "Perhaps it's not best. Perhapshe did have a lapse into his boyhood habits. Not that it makes anydifference to me. "

"No! No! Mr. President. I know--" began Charley. 

But Milton interrupted, "Mr. President, he was with me and part of thetime Miss Diana Allen, a wonderful woman, was with us. And Mr. Huntingdon is afraid they'll turn their dirty tongues on her. "

The President's face lighted as if he had received good news. "Really!With you!"

"Yes, with me for a week and more. And I want to tell you, sir, thatfor nerve and endurance and skill in a boat and as a pal and friendunder life and death conditions I've never seen any one to surpass him. He scorned cards while he was with us. We had no liquor. We admiredhim beyond words and had no idea who he was. "

"No!" cried the President, delightedly. "Why, there must be a realstory in this! Go on with it, Milton! Enoch, " as the Secretary camein, "I'm winning the truth out of your old cruising pal, here!"

"I can't help it, Mr. Huntingdon!" cried Milton as Enoch turned towardhim indignantly. "Miss Diana said this noon that if you didn't tellthe story, she would. "

"There you are!" exclaimed the President. "Wouldn't you know she'dtake it that way? And on second thoughts I think I'd rather hear thestory from her than any one else. "

"But she can't tell you about the voyage, sir, " protested Milton. 

"That's true, " agreed the President. "I shall have to arrange one ofmy choice little dinners and have you and Miss Diana Allen there to padout the Secretary's account. " Then, with a sudden change of voice, hewalked over to Enoch and put his hand on the younger man's shoulder. Abbott nodded to Milton and the two slipped out. 

"You are a bit twisted about women, dear old man! Come, you must letMilton put out the right kind of a denial of Brown's story. "

"Brown will put the denial out for himself, " said Enoch sternly. "I'vereached my limit. Mr. President, I have asked Mr. Fowler, Brown, andthe reporter who's been maligning me to come to my office to-morrowafternoon. I think I shall be able to settle this matter. I wouldperhaps have done it before but I could not settle in my own mind justhow I wanted to go about it. Fowler refused to come until I told himthe purpose of the meeting. "

"And you know now how to end this miserable affair?" asked thePresident, wonderingly. 

"Yes, " replied Enoch. "And now, Mr. President, what can I do for you?"

"Exactly what you are doing, Enoch. Clear up this disgusting matter. "

"You came to see me for that, sir?"

The President smiled. "You do not seem to realize that a great manypeople, people who never saw you, are deeply troubled about you. Youdo not belong to yourself but to us, Mr. Secretary. "

"Perhaps you are right, sir, " said Enoch humbly. "I thank you mostsincerely for coming. "

"Will you come to me as soon as you have finished, to-morrow, Enoch?"

"Yes, Mr. President! Abbott, will you show the President out?" Thenwhen Charley had returned, he said, "Abbott, the Secretary of Statewill be here. How about Brown?"

"He will be here, " replied Charley. "I used the President's namepretty freely, but I think I finally got him curious enough and worriedenough. "

Enoch nodded. "Abbott, for the first time since I've been in thisoffice, I'm going to quit early and go for a ride. "

"It's what you ought to do every day, " said Abbott. 

"Look here, Abbott, if I get this beastly matter settled to-morrow, Iwant you to go away for two months' vacation. "

"Well, " said Charley, doubtfully, "if you get it settled!"

"Don't let that worry you, " said Enoch grimly as he pulled on hisovercoat and left the office. "I'll settle it. "

Promptly at three o'clock, the next day, Abbott ushered three men intothe Secretary's office. Enoch rose and bowed to Secretary Fowler, toHancock Brown, and to Ames, the reporter. The last was a clear cutyoung fellow with a nose a little too sharp and eyes set a trifle tooclose together. 

"If you will be seated, gentlemen, I'll tell you the object of thiscall upon your time. Mr. Abbott, please remain in the room. 

"On the third of November, Mr. Brown, you published in one of yourevening papers an article about me written under your direction byAmes. The facts in that article were in the main true. The deductionsyou drew from them were vilely false. It is not, Mr. Brown, a pleasantknowledge for a man to carry through life that his mother was what mymother was. I have suffered from that knowledge as it is obviouslyquite beyond your power to comprehend. I say obviously, because no menwith decency or the most ordinary imagination would have dared toharrow a man's secret soul as you harrowed mine. Even in my manybattles with Tammany, my unfortunate birth has been respected. Itremained for you to write the unwriteable. 

"As for my gambling, that too is true, to a certain extent. I haveplayed cards perhaps half a dozen times in as many years. I was taughtto play by the Luigi whom you interviewed. I have a gambler'sinstinct, but since I was fourteen I have fought as men can fight andlatterly I have been winning the battle. 

"Your insinuations as to my adult relationship to the underworld and towomen are lies. And your dragging Miss Allen into the dirty tale was agratuitous insult which it is fortunate for both of you, her father hasnot yet seen. It happened that while I was on the vacation recently inwhich you have taken so impertinent an interest, that I joined the campof two miners. One of them, Curly Field, told me an interesting story. He probably would not have told me had I not been calling myself Smithand had he not discovered that I am a lawyer. "

The smile suddenly disappeared from Brown's face. 

"That fellow Curly always was a liar, " he said. 

Enoch shrugged his shoulders. "You should be a good judge of liars, Brown. Curly told me that Mr. Fowler was his brother-in-law's partner. "

Fowler spoke, his face drawn. "Spare me that story, Mr. Huntingdon, Ibeg of you. "

"Did you beg Brown to spare me?" demanded Enoch, sternly. 

"Pshaw!" exclaimed Brown, "that is old stuff. It couldn't be provedthat we had anything to do with it. "

"No?" queried Enoch. "What would you say to my taking the fund leftJudge Smith by Curly and employing a first-class lawyer and a detectiveto go on the trail of those mis-appropriated funds?" Brown did notanswer and Enoch went on: "Curly's idea was to get even with Fowler. It was, in fact, a type of mania with him. He told me that for yearshe had been in possession of facts concerning certain doings of Brownand Fowler in Mexico, which if they were properly blazed across thecountry would utterly ruin both of them. He wanted to put me inpossession of those facts. "

Suddenly Fowler rose and went to stand at a window, his back to thegroup around the Secretary's desk. Enoch continued, clearly and firmly:

"I could scarcely believe my good fortune. Here was my chance to payBrown in kind. "

"Did Curly give you the facts?" asked Brown, who had grown a littlewhite around the mouth. 

Enoch did not heed him. "I asked Curly if the story was a reflectionon these two men morally or financially. He said, morally; that it wasbad beyond words. At this point I weakened and told him that I had nodesire to display any man's weakness in the market place. And Curlylaughed at me and asked me what mercy Fowler had shown his brother?But still I could not make up my mind to take those facts from Curly. "

Mr. Brown eased back in his chair with a sneering smile. Young Amessat sickly pale, his mouth open. 

"But when I left him, " the calm, rich voice went on, "I told him thathe could write down the story and send it to my house in Washington. Now the chances are that having drifted so many years without tellingit, he would have drifted on indefinitely. But fate intervened. Curlywent to the Mexican border. Certain gentlemen have seen to it that theMexican border is not safe. Curly was shot and he made it hisdeath-bed duty to dictate this delectable tale to a friend. In duecourse of time, the document reached my house in Washington, and hereit is!" He tapped the upper drawer of his desk. 

There was utter silence in the room while Enoch lighted a cigarette. 

"Have you told any one the er--tale?" demanded Brown, hoarsely. "I canprove that not a word of it is true!"

"Can you?" Enoch squared round on him. "Are you willing to risk havingthe story told with the idea of disproving it, afterward? Isn't yoursystem of scandal mongering built on the idea that mud once slungalways leaves a stain in the public mind? And Curly was an eyewitness. He is dead, but I do not believe all the other eye witnessesare dead. At any rate--"

Brown suddenly leaned forward in his chair. "Mr. Huntingdon, I'll giveyou my check for $100, 000, if you will give me that document and swearto keep your mouth shut. "

"Your bribe is not large enough, " Enoch answered tersely. 

"Five hundred thousand! I'll agree to make a public retraction ofeverything I said about you and to work for you with all the power ofmy newspapers. "

"Not enough!" repeated Enoch, watching Brown's white face, keenly. 

"What do you want?" demanded the newspaper publisher. 

"First, " Enoch threw his cigarette away, "I want Secretary Fowler tobreak with you, absolutely and completely. "

"Curly can't implicate me, in that Mexican affair!" cried Fowler. "Why, my whole attitude was one of disapproval and disgust. I toldBrown over and over, that he was a fool and after the shooting I brokewith him, absolutely, for years. I am--"

Enoch interrupted. "Brown, was Fowler in on the trouble?"

"No!" replied Brown, sullenly. 

"I'm very glad to hear it, " Enoch exclaimed. "Mr. Fowler, as far as Iam concerned all that I learned from Field regarding you is a closedbook and forgotten if you will break with Brown. "

"I'd break with him, gladly, if he'd cease to blackmail me about theField matter, " said Fowler. "Good God! How many of us are therewho've not committed sins that we never forgive ourselves?"

"None of us!" said Enoch. "Mr. Fowler, why did you break with me?"

"Didn't you do your best to undermine me with the President? Didn'tyou go to Ambassador Johns-Eaton and tell him--" Here, catching acurious flickering of young Ames' eyelids, Fowler interrupted himselfto demand, "Or was that more of your dirty work, Ames?"

"Answer, Ames!" Enoch's voice was not to be ignored. 

"Brown paid me for it, " muttered Ames. 

Fowler groaned and looked at Enoch, who was lighting a fresh cigarette. 

"Will you agree, Brown, to an absolute break with Fowler and no comebacks?" asked Enoch. 

"Yes, " said Brown eagerly. "What else?"

"You are to go out of the newspaper business. "

There was another silence. Then Brown said, "I'll not do it!"

"Very well, " returned Enoch, "then the Mexican affair will be publishedas Curly has written it with all the attendant circumstances. "

Again there was silence, with all the eyes in the room focused on thepale, gentle face, opposite Enoch. The noise of street traffic beatagainst the windows. Telephones sounded remotely in the outer office. For ten minutes this was all. Then Brown in a husky voice said, "Very well! Give me the document!"

"Not at all, " returned Enoch, coolly. "This document goes into mysafety deposit box. In case of my death, it will be left toresponsible parties. When you die, it will be destroyed. I am not arich man, Mr. Brown, but I shall devote a part of my income to havingyou watched; watched lest indirectly and by the underhand methods youknow so well you again attempt to influence public opinion. Afterto-morrow, you are through. "

"To-morrow! Impossible!" gasped Brown. 

"Nothing is impossible except decency to a man of your capacity, " saidEnoch. "To-morrow you publish a complete denial of your lies about meand this Department and then you are no longer a newspaper publisher. That is all I have to say to you, Mr. Brown. " He pressed a button, "Jonas, please show Mr. Brown out. "

Jonas' black eyes snapped. "How come you think I'd soil my shadowletting that viper trail it, boss? I never disobeyed you before, Mr. Secretary, but that trash can show hisself out!" and Jonas withdrew tohis own office, while Brown, shrugging his shoulders, opened and closedthe door for himself. 

Ames would have followed him, but Enoch said, "One moment, Ames! Whatassurance are you going to give me that you will keep your mouth shutas to what you've heard this afternoon?"

"I give you my word, " began Ames, eagerly. 

Enoch raised his hand. "Don't be silly, Ames. Do you know that I canmake serious legal trouble for you for your part in libelling me andthe Department?"

"But Brown said his lawyers--"

"Brown's lawyers? Do you think Brown's lawyers will fight for you now?"

"No, Mr. Secretary, " muttered the reporter. 

"Very well! Keep your mouth shut and you'll have no trouble from this, but let me trace one syllable to you and I shall have no bowels ofcompassion. One word more, Ames. You are clever or Brown would nothave used you as he did. Get a job on a clean paper. There is nofiner profession in the world than that of being a good newspaper man. Newspaper men wield a more potent influence in our American life thanany other single factor. Use your talent nobly, not ignobly, Ames. And above all things never tell a vile tale about any man's mother. Don't do it, Ames!" and here Enoch's voice for the first time broke. 

Ames, his hands trembling, picked up his hat. His face had turned anagonized red. Biting his lips, he made his way blindly from the room. 

"And now, " said Enoch, "if you'll leave Mr. Fowler and me alone for afew minutes, Abbott, I'll appreciate it. " As the door closed afterCharley he said, "Sit down, Fowler. I'm sorry to have put you throughsuch an ordeal, but I knew no other way. "

"I deserve it, I guess. " Fowler sat down wearily. "I was an unlickedwhelp in my youth, Huntingdon, but though I got into rotten company, Inever did anything actually crooked. "

"I believe you, " Enoch nodded. "Let the guiltless throw the firststone. We both have paid in our heart's blood, I guess, for all thatwe wrought in boyhood. "

"A thousand-fold, " agreed Fowler. "Huntingdon, let me try to expressmy regret for--"

"Don't!" interrupted Enoch. "If you are half as eager as I am toforget it all you'll never mention it even to yourself. But I do wantto talk candidly to you about our political aspirations. Mr. Fowler, Idon't want to go to the White House! I have a number of reasons that Idon't think would interest you particularly. But I want to go back tothe Senate when I finish here. Fowler, if you were not so jealous andso personal in your ambitions I would be glad to see you get the partynomination. "

Fowler's fine, tired face expressed incredulity mingled withbewilderment. 

Enoch went on, "You and I are talking frankly as men rarely talk and aswe probably never shall again. So perhaps you will forgive me if Imake some personal comments. It seems to me that the only permanentsatisfaction a man gets out of public life is the feeling that he hasadded in greater or less degree to the sum total of his country'sprogress and stability. I think your weakness is that you placeyourself first and your country second. "

"No!" said Fowler, eagerly. "You don't understand me, Huntingdon! Myown aim in life is to make my service to my country compensate for theselfishness and foolishness of my youth. My methods may, as you say, have been open to misinterpretation. But God knows my impulses havebeen disinterested. And you must realize now, Huntingdon, that it hasbeen the business of certain people to see that you and I misunderstandeach other. "

"That's true, " said Enoch, thoughtfully. "Well, I doubt if that ispossible again. "

"It is absolutely impossible!" exclaimed Fowler. "I am yours tocommand!"

"No, you're not!" laughed Enoch. "Brown is finished and you're yourown man. I look for great things from you, Fowler. I wanted to tellyou that and to tell you that in me you have no rival. "

"No, " Fowler spoke slowly, "no, because no one can win, no one deservesto win the place in the hearts of America that you have. Huntingdon, your kindness and courtesy is the most exquisite punishment you couldvisit upon me. "

Enoch looked quickly from the Secretary of State to the opposite wall. But he did not see the wall. He saw a crude camp in the bottom of theCanyon. He heard the epic rush of waters and the sigh of eternal windsand he saw again the picture of Harden fighting his way up the menacingwalls to rescue Forrester. It seemed to Fowler that the silence hadlasted five minutes before Enoch turned to him with his flashing smile. 

"We are friends, Fowler, are we not?"

The older man rose and held out his hand. "Yes, Huntingdon, as long aswe live, " and he slowly left the room. 

Enoch sank back on his chair, wearily, and opening the top drawer ofhis desk, took out the familiar envelope. _The seal was stillunbroken_! He placed it in a heavy document envelope, sealed this andwrote a memorandum on it, and dropped it on the desk. Then for a longtime he sat staring into the dusk. At last, as if the full realizationof the loneliness of his life had swept over him he dropped his head onhis desk with a groan. 

"O Diana! Diana!"

He did not hear the door open softly. Abbott with Ames just behindhim, stood on the threshold. The two young men looked at each other, abashed, and Abbott would have withdrawn, but Ames went doggedly intothe room. 

"Mr. Secretary!" he said, hesitatingly. 

Enoch sat erect. Abbott flashed on the light. "Mr. Ames insists onseeing you again, Mr. Huntingdon, " Charley spoke hesitatingly. 

"Come in, Ames, " said Enoch, coldly. "Abbott, see that this envelopeis put in a safe place. "

Abbott left them alone. Ames advanced to the desk, where he stood, hisface eager. 

"Mr. Secretary, you've been so decent. You, --you--well, you're such aman! I--I want to tell you something but I don't know how you'll takeit. The truth is, I believe that I could prove that Luigi's mistresswas not your mother!"

Enoch clutched his desk and his face turned to stone. "Don't you thinkyou went far enough with that matter before?" he asked sternly. 

Ames stumbled on, doggedly. "This last trip out West I just thoughtI'd go down to Brown's early stamping grounds and see what kind of areputation he had there. I was getting a little fed up on him and Ithought it couldn't hurt me to have a little something on him against arainy day, as it were. You see I never did know what this Curly Fieldstuff was, but it didn't take me long to run that story down, even ifit was a generation old. Of course, I don't know what Curly told you, but certainly the official reports of the Field scandal never provedanything on either Brown or Fowler. "

Enoch moved impatiently. But young Ames, standing rigidly before hisdesk exclaimed, "Just a moment longer, please, Mr. Secretary! Some ofthese facts you know unless Field was so obsessed with the thought ofhis brother's alleged wrongs that he did not mention them, but I'llstate them anyhow. The mining and smelting property that caused thewhole row was originally owned by an old timer named Post who struck itrich late in life, married and died soon after, leaving everything tohis son, a little chap named Arthur. This is the child Field wassupposed to have robbed. Little Arthur died a couple of years afterField's suicide but by that time there was nothing left of the propertyand no one paid any attention to the child's death. But in reading oldPost's will, something piqued my curiosity. In the event of Arthur'sdeath, the property was to go to old Post's baby nephew, HuntingdonPost. "

Enoch knit his brows quickly but he did not speak and Ames went on, "Being, of course, in a suspicious state of mind, it struck me as anunusual coincidence that this child should have died, too. So I madesome inquiries. It was difficult to trace the facts because there wereno relatives. Old Post seemed to have been just a solitary prowler, coming from nowhere, like so many of the old timers. But finally, Ifound an old fellow in the back country who had known old Post. Hetold me that little Hunt Post, as he called him, had been killed withhis father and mother in a railway accident. I asked where they gotthe child's name and he said the mother's name was Huntingdon. He knewher when she was a girl living alone with her father in the Kanabcountry, north of the Grand Canyon. He said her father died when shewas ten or eleven and a family named Smith sort of brought her up andshe was known as Mary Smith. But when she married, she named the boyafter her father who was a raw boned, red headed man named EnochHuntingdon. "

Enoch gave Ames a long steady look and the younger man relaxed a little. 

"Now, " Ames went on, "knowing Brown as I do, I wonder if little HuntPost, who, like his mother was red headed and blue eyed, was burned upin a railroad accident. Did Field speak of the child?"

Enoch pressed the desk button and Abbott came. "Give me the Fieldenvelope, please, Abbott. "

When the envelope was in his hands, Enoch tore the flap up and began toread the close written pages. When he had finished, he put themanuscript back with steady hands. "Most of the letter, " he saidquietly, "is taken up by the recital of Brown's shady moral career inMexico. At the end he speaks of a Mexican woman with red hair andviolet eyes who lived with Brown for some months. She left to act asnurse to little Hunt Post. Some time after the railroad accident, Curly was the unsuspected witness to a secret meeting between thisAnita and Brown. The woman demanded money and Brown demanded proofthat little Hunt was dead. The conference ended only when Anitaproduced a box containing the child's body. Curly did not know howmuch Brown paid her or where she went. "

Ames gave an ugly laugh. "Hoist with his own petard! Think of himstarting me after the Luigi scandal!"

"Tell Abbott what you've just told me, " said Enoch. 

He did not stir while Ames repeated the story. Charley's eyes blazed. When Ames finished, Charley started to speak but the young reporterinterrupted. 

"Mr. Secretary, I want you to let me tie up the loose ends for you. We've got to put the screws on Luigi and I'll take another trip West. "

"Wait a bit!" exclaimed Charley. "Mr. Secretary, I'm going to claimthat long deferred vacation. Let me spend it with Ames clearing thismatter up for you. "

Enoch drew a quick breath. "When could you begin, you two?"

"Now!" the two young men said together. 

Enoch smiled. "Wait until to-morrow. I've more important workto-night, and I want to go over every detail with you before you startout. In the meantime, Abbott, guard this envelope as you would yourlife. "

"What won't we do to Brown!" exclaimed Charley. 

"I've punished Brown, " said Enoch. "He'll never hurt me again. Assoon as this thing is cleared, we'll forget him. "

Again Ames laughed. "Believe me, he's going to be good the rest of hislife. Think of your reading that stuff about little Hunt, Mr. Secretary, and never realizing its import!"

"God knows, I didn't want to read the story of another man's ignominy!"said Enoch, earnestly, "and I never would have, had not--" he paused, then said as if to himself, "God moves in a mysterious way, His wondersto perform!"

The two younger men stood in silence. Then Enoch said, "Thank you, Ames, I'll see you at nine o'clock to-morrow morning. Abbott, get theWhite House for me and then go home to dinner. "

A few minutes later Enoch was speaking to the President. "I have toreport victory, Mr. President, all along the line. . . . Yes, sir, it's a long story and I want to tell it to you to-morrow, not to-night. Mr. President, I'm going to find Miss Allen and dine with her, to-night, if I have to take her from a state function. . . . Yes, youmay chuckle if you wish. I thought you'd understand. . . . Thank you!Good night, Mr. President. "

Enoch hung up the receiver and sat looking at the floor, his face aswhite as marble. For five minutes he did not stir, then he heaved agreat sigh and the tense muscles of his face relaxed. He tossed backthe hair from his forehead, sprang to his feet and began to pace thefloor. After a short time of this, he rang for Jonas. 

"Jonas, do you know where Miss Diana is stopping?"

Jonas did not seem to hear the question. He stood staring at Enochwith eyes that seemed to start from their sockets. 

"My Lordy, boss, what's happened? You look like I never hoped to seeyou look!" Then he paused for he could not express what he saw in theSecretary's shining eyes. 

"Jonas, old man, I've had the greatest news of my life, but I can'ttell even you, first. "

"Miss Diana!" ejaculated Jonas. "Boss, she's at the Larson; one ofthese boarding houses that calls themselves a name. Didn't I tell youInjun charms was strong? Tell me! Huh!"

"All right, Jonas! I won't be home to dinner. Better sit up for methough, for I'll want to talk to you. "

"Did I ever not sit up for you?" demanded Jonas as he gave Enoch hiscoat. 

Enoch paced the floor of the Larson while a slatternly maid went insearch of Diana. When, a little pale and breathless, Diana appeared inthe doorway, Enoch did not stir for a moment from under the chandelier. Nor did he speak. Diana gazed at him as if she never had seen himbefore. His eyes were blazing. His lips quivered. He was very pale. 

Suddenly, tossing his hat and cane to a chair, he crossed the room. Hetried to smile. 

"Diana, have you seen your friend, the psychologist yet?"

"No, Enoch, but I have an appointment with him for next week. "

Enoch seized her hands and held them both against his heart. "You neednever see him, Diana, I have been made whole. I--" his voice brokehoarsely--"I have something to tell you. Diana, you are going to dinewith me. "

"Yes, Enoch!"

"Diana! Oh, how lovely you are! Diana, it's a wonderful night, with afull moon. I want you to walk with me to the Eastern Club. I havesomething to tell you. And while I'm telling you, no four walls musthem us in. "

Diana, her great eyes shining in response to Enoch's, turned without aword and went back upstairs. She returned at once, clad for the walk. Enoch opened the street door and paused to look down into her face witha trembling smile. Then they descended the steps into the moonlighttogether.