下载辰思小说免费APP
AftertheconversationwithAsaph，hesimplycouldnotremainathome。IfPhoebeDawescalled，heknewthathemustseeher，andifhesawher，whatshouldhesaytoher？HecouldnottellherthatshemustnotvisittheCyWhittakerplaceagain。Ifhedid，shewouldinsistuponthereason。Ifhetoldherofthe“towntalk，“
hefeltsure，knowingher，thatshewouldindignantlyrefusetoheedthemaliciousgossip。Andhewasfirmlyresolvednottopermithertocompromiseherlifeandherfuturebyfriendshipwithasocialoutcastlikehimself。Asforanythingdeeperandmoresacredthanfriendship，thatwasridiculous。If，foramoment，aremarkofhershadledhimtodreamofsuchathing，itwasbecausehewas，ashehadsooftendeclared，an“oldfool。“
SoCaptainCyhadresolveduponflight，andhefledtoWashingtonbecausethebusinessofthe“committeeofone“offeredalegitimateexcuseforgoingthere。ThebluntmessagehehadintrustedtoGeorgiannawould，hebelieved，arousePhoebe\'sindignation。Shewouldnotcallagain。AndwhenhereturnedtoBos\'n，itwouldbetotakeupthechild\'sfightalone。Ifhelostthatfight，orWHEN
helostit，hewouldclosetheCyWhittakerplace，andleaveBayportforgood。
HehadbeeninWashingtononcebefore，yearsago，whenhewasfirstmateofashipandhadafewweeks\'shoreleave。Thenhewentthereonapleasuretripwithsomeseagoingfriends，andhadajollytime。Buttherewaspreciouslittlejollityinthepresentvisit。Hehadneverfeltsothoroughlymiserable。Inordertoforget，hemadeuphismindtoworkhishardesttodiscoverwhytheharborappropriationwasnottobegiventoBayport。
Thecityhadchangedgreatly。Hewouldscarcelyhaveknownit。
Hewenttothehotelwherehehadstayedbefore，andfoundabig，modernbuildinginitsplace。Theclerkwasinclinedtoberathercurtandperfunctoryatfirst，butwhenhelearnedthatthecaptainwasnotanxiousconcerningthepriceofaccommodations，butmerelywanteda“comf\'tableberthsomewheresonthesaloondeck，“andappearedtohaveplentyofmoney，hegrewpolite。CaptainCywasshowntohisroom，wherehelefthisvalise。Thenhewentdowntodinner。
Afterthemealwasover，heseatedhimselfinoneofthebigleatherchairsinthehotellobby，smokedandthought。Inthesummer，beforeBos\'ncame，andbeforeherfatherhadarisentoupseteverycalculationandwreckallhisplans，thecaptainhadgivenseriousthoughttowhatheshoulddoifCongressmanAtkinsfailed，aseventhenheseemedlikelytodo，insecuringthatappropriation。Theobviousthing，ofcourse，wouldhavebeentohuntupMr。Atkinsandquestionhim。Butthiswasaltogethertooobvious。Inthefirstplace，thestrainedrelationsbetweenthemwouldmaketheinterviewuncomfortable；and，inthesecond，iftherewasanythingunderhandinHeman\'sbackslidingontheappropriation，Atkinswastoowaryabirdtobesnaredwithquestions。
ButCaptainCyhadanotheracquaintanceinthecity，thesonofastillolderacquaintance，whohadbeenawealthyshippingmerchantandmineownerinCalifornia。Thesonwasalsoacongressman，fromacoastState，andthecaptainhadreadofhiminthepapers。A
sketchofhislifehadbeenprinted，andthismadehisidentityabsolutelycertain。CaptainCy\'soriginalideahadbeentowritetothiscongressman。Nowhedeterminedtofindandinterviewhim。
Heinquiredconcerninghimofthehotelclerk，who，likeallWashingtonclerks，wasawalkingeditionof“Who\'sWhoattheCapital。“
“CongressmanEverdean？”repeatedtheall-knowingyounggentleman。
“Yes。He\'sintown。HasroomsattheGloria；secondhotelontherightasyougouptheavenue。Onlyashortwalk。WhatcanIdoforyou，sir？”
TheGloriawasanevenbiggerhotelthantheonewherethecaptainhadhis“berth。“Aninquiryatthedesk，ofanotherimportantclerk，wasansweredwithabrisk：
“Mr。Everdean？Yes，heroomshere。Don\'tknowwhetherhe\'sinornot。Evening，judge。NiceWinterweatherwe\'rehaving。“
Thejudge，whowasaponderouspersonvaguelysuggestingthegreatHeman，admittedthattheweatherwasfine，patronizingitashedidso。Theclerkcontinuedtheconversation。CaptainCywaited。Atlengthhespoke。
“Excuseme，commodore，“hesaid；“Idon\'tliketobreakinuntilyou\'vesettledwhetheryouhaveitsnowornot，butI\'mheretoseeCongressmanEverdean。Hadn\'tyoubetterorderoneofyourfo\'masthandstohunthimup？”
Thejudgecondescendedtosmile，asdidseveralothermenwhostoodnear。Theclerkreddened。
“DoyouwanttoseeMr。Everdean？”hesnapped。
“Why，yes，Idid。ButIcan\'tseehimfromherewithoutstrainin\'
myeyesight。“
Theclerksharplydemandedoneofthecaptain\'svisitingcards。Hedidn\'tgetone，fortheverygoodreasonthattherewasnoneinexistence。
“Tellhimanoldfriendofhisdad\'sishereonthemaindeckwaitin\'forhim，“saidCaptainCy。“That\'lldofirstrate。Thankyou，admiral。“
Wordcamethatthecongressmanwouldbedowninafewmoments。Thecaptainbeguiledtheintervalbyleaningontherailandregardingtheclerkwithanawedcuriositythatannoyeditsobjectexceedingly。
Theinspectionwasstillonwhenatallman，ofanagesomewhereintheearlythirties，walkedbrisklyuptothedesk。
“Whoisitthatwantstoseeme？”heasked。
TheclerkwavedadeprecatoryhandinCaptainCy\'sdirection。Thenewcomerturned。
“MynameisEverdean，“hesaid。“Areyou——hey？——GreatScott！IsitpossiblethisisCaptainWhittaker？”
Thecaptainwasimmenselypleased。
“Well，Ideclare，Ed！”heexclaimed。“Ididn\'tbelieveyou\'dremembermeafteralltheseyears。Youwasnothin\'butaboywhenIsawyououtin\'Frisco。Well！well！Nowonderyou\'reinCongress。AmanthatcanrememberfaceslikethatoughttobePresident。“
Everdeanlaughedastheyshookhands。
“Don\'tsupposeI\'dforgetthechapwhousedtodinewithusandtellmethoseseastories，doyou？”hesaid。“I\'mmightygladtoseeyou。Whatareyoudoinghere？ThelastfatherandIheardofyou，youwereinSouthAmerica。Givenupthesea，theysaid，andgettingrichfast。“
CaptainCychuckled。
“It\'sagoodthingIlearnedlongagonottobelieveallIhear，“
heanswered，“elseI\'dhavebeensosureIwasrichthatI\'dhavespentallIhad，andbeenpermanentboarderatthepoorhousebynow。No，thanks；I\'vehaddinner。Why，yes，I\'llsmoke，ifyou\'llhelpalong。How\'syourfather？Smart，ishe？”
Thecongressmaninsistedthattheyshouldadjourntohisrooms。Anunmarriedman，hekeptbachelor\'shallatthehotelduringhisstayinWashington。There，incomfortablechairs，theyspokeofoldtimes，whenthecaptainwasseafaringandtheEverdeanhomehadbeenhiswhilehisshipwasinportat\'Frisco。HetoldofhisreturntoBayport，andtherenovationoftheoldhouse。OfBos\'nhesaidnothing。AtlastEverdeanaskedwhathadbroughthimtoWashington。
“Well，“saidCaptainCy，“I\'lltellyou。I\'mlikethefellerincourtwithoutalawyer；hesaidhecouldn\'ttellwhetherhewasguiltyornot\'countofhavin\'noprofessionaladvice。That\'swhatI\'vecometoyoufor，Ed——professionaladvice。“
Hetoldtheharborappropriationstory。Attheincidentofthe“committeeofone“hisfriendlaughedheartily。
“Ratherputyourfootinitthattime，Captain，didn\'tyou？”hesaid。
“Yup。ThenIgott\'otheronestucktryin\'togetthefirstclear。
How\'sitlooktoyou？Allstraight，doyouthink？oristhereaniggerinthewoodpile？”
Mr。Everdeanseemedtoreflect。
“Well，Captain，“hesaid，“Ican\'ttell。You\'reaskingdelicatequestions。Politiciansarelikedoctors，theyusuallybackupeachother\'sopinions。Still，you\'reatleastasgoodafriendofmineasAtkinsis。QueerHEshouldbobupinthismatter！Why，he——butnevermindthatnow。Itellyou，CaptainWhittaker，youcomearoundandhavedinnerwithmeto-morrownight。InthemeantimeI\'llseethechairmanofthecommitteeonthatbill——oneoftheso-
called\'pork\'billsitis。PossiblyfromhimandsomeotheracquaintancesofmineImaylearnsomething。Atanyrate，youcometodinner。“
Sotheinvitationwasaccepted，andCaptainCywentbacktohisownhotelandhisroom。Hesleptbutlittle，althoughitwasnotworryovertheappropriationquestionwhichkepthimawake。NextmorninghewroteanotetoGeorgianna，givinghisWashingtonaddress。WithitheenclosedalonglettertoBos\'n，tellingherheshouldbehomeprettysoon，andthatshemustbeagoodgirland“bosstheship“duringhisabsence。HesenthisregardstoAsaphandBailey，butPhoebe\'snamehedidnotmention。Thenheputinamiserabledaywanderingaboutthecity。AteightthateveningheandhisWesternfriendsatdownatacornertableinthebigdiningroomoftheGloria。
Thecaptainbegantoaskquestionsassoonasthesoupwasserved，butEverdeanrefusedtoanswer。
“No，no，“hesaid，“pleasurefirstandbusinessafterwards；that\'sacongressionalmotto。Ican\'ttalkAtkinswithmydinnerandenjoyit。“
“Can\'t，hey？Youwouldn\'tbepopularatourperfectboardinghousebackhome。TheretheyserveHemanhotforbreakfastanddinner，andwarmhimoverforsupper。Allright，Icanwait。“
TheconversationwanderedfromBuenosAyresto\'Friscoandbackagainuntilthecigarsandcoffeewerereached。Thenthecongressmanblewafragrantringintotheairand，frombehindit，lookedquizzicallyathiscompanion。
“Well，“heobserved，“sofarasthatappropriationofyoursisconcerned——“
Hepausedandblewasecondring。CaptainCystrokedhisbeard。
“Um——yes，“hedrawled，“nowthatyoumentionit，seemstometherewassometalkofanappropriation。“
Mr。Everdeanlaughed。
“I\'vebeenmakinginquiries，“hesaid。“Isawthechairmanofthecommitteeontheporkbill。Iknowhimwell。He\'sagoodfellow，but——“
“Yes，Iknow。I\'veseenlotsofpoliticianslikethat；they\'reallgoodfellers，but——IfIwasinpoliticsI\'dmakealawtocut\'But\'outofthedictionary。“
“Well，thischapreallyisagoodfellow。Iaskedaboutthethirtythousanddollarsforyourtown。HeaskedmewhyIdidn\'tgotothecongressmanfromthatdistrict，andnotbotherhimaboutit。I
saidperhapsIwouldgotothecongressmanlater，butIcametohimfirst。“
“Sartin。Sameasthefellerwithasickmother-in-lawstoppedinattheundertaker\'sonhiswaytocallthedoctor。Allright；
heaveahead。“
“Well，wehadaratherlongconversation。IdiscoveredthattheBayportitemwasoriginallyincludedinthebill，butrecentlyhadbeenstrickenout。“
“Yes，Isee。UncleSamhadtoeconomize，hey？Savesomethin\'forarainyday。“
“Well，possibly。Stillthebillisjustasheavy。Now，CaptainWhittaker，Idon\'tKNOWanythingaboutthisaffair，andit\'snotmybusiness。ButI\'vebeenaboutto-day，andIaskedquestions，and——
I\'mgoingtotellyouafairytale。Itisn\'tasinterestingasyourseayarns，but——Doyoulikefairystories？”
“Land，yes！Tellafewmyselfwhenit\'snecessary。SometimesI
almostbelieve\'em。Well？”
“Ofcourse，youmustrememberthisISafairystory。Let\'ssupposethatonceonatime——that\'sthewaytheyalwaysbegin——onceonatimetherewasagreatman，greatinhisowncountry，whowassentabroadbyhispeopletorepresentthemamongtherulersoftheland。So，inordertotypicallyrepresentthem，hedressedingladandexpensiveraiment，wentaboutindignity，and——“
“Andwhiskers。Don\'tleaveoutthewhiskers！”
“Allright——andwhiskers。Anditcametopassthatthepeoplewhomherepresentedwishedto——to——er——bringaboutacertainneededimprovementintheir——theirbeautifulandenterprisingcommunity。“
“Sho！sho！hownaturalthatsounds！Youmustbeamindreader。“
“No。ButIhavetomakespeechesinmyowncommunityoccasionally。
Well，thepeopleaskedtheirgreatmantogetthemoneyneededforthisimprovementfromtherulersofthelandaforementioned。Andhewasatfirstallenthusiasmanduponthe——theparchmentscrollwheresuchmattersareinscribedwaswrittenthenameofthebeautifulandenterprisingcommunity，andthesumofmoneyitaskedfor。Andthedealwasasgoodasmade。Excusethemodernphraseology；myfairylingogotmixedthere。“
“Nevermind。Icangetthedriftjustaswell——maybebetter。“
“Andthedealwasasgoodasmade。Butbeforethevotewastakenanotherchapcametothegreatmanandsaid：\'Lookhere！Iwanttogetanappropriationof，say，fiftythousanddollars，todeepenandimproveariverdowninmyState\'——aSouthernStatewe\'llsay。
\'I\'vebeentothechairmanoftheporkbillcommittee，andhesaysit\'simpossible。Thebillsimplycan\'tbeloadedanyfurther。ButIfindthatyouhaveanitemintherefordeepeningandimprovingaharborbackinyourowndistrict。Whydon\'tyoucutthatitemout——
shoveitoveruntilnextyear？Youcaneasilyfindasatisfactoryexplanationforyourconstituents。ANDyouwanttorememberthis：
theimprovementofthisrivermeansthatthe——the——well，acertainsugar-growingcompany——cangettheirstufftomarketatafigurewhichwillsenditsstockupandup。Andyouaresaidtoownaconsiderableamountofthatstock。Sowhynotdroptheharboritemandsubstitutemyriverslice？Then——\'Well，Iguessthat\'stheendofthetale。“
Hepausedandrelithiscigar。CaptainCythoughtfullymarkedwithhisforkonthetablecloth。
“Hum！”hegrunted。“That\'saveryinterestin\'yarn。Yes，yes！
don\'tknow\'sIeverheardamoreinterestin\'one。Ipresumelikelythereain\'tamiteofproofthatit\'strue？”
“Notanatom。Itoldyouitwasafairytale。AndImustn\'tbequotedinthematter。Honestly，themostofitisguesswork，atthat。Butperhapsa\'committeeofone，\'droppingahintathome，mightatleastarousesomeuncomfortablequestioningofacertaingreatman。That\'saboutall，though。Proofisquiteanotherthing。“
Thecaptainpondered。Hewasfullyawarethattheunpopularityofthe“committee“wouldnullifywhatevergooditshintingmightdo。
“Humph！”hegruntedagain。“It\'sonethingtosmellaratandanothertonailitstailtothefloor。ButI\'mmightyobligedtoyou，allthesame。AndI\'llthinkitoverhard。Say！Icanseeonething——youdon\'ttakeaverybigshinetoHemanyourself。“
“Nottoobig——no。Doyou？”
“Well，Idon\'twakeupnightsandcryforhim。“
Everdeanlaughed。
“That\'scharacteristic，“hesaid。“Youhaveyourownwayofputtingthings，Captain，andit\'shardtobeimprovedon。Atkinshasneverdoneanythingtome。Ijust——Ijustdon\'tlikehim，that\'sall。Fatherneverlikedhim，either，intheolddays；andyet——andit\'sodd，too——hewasthemeansoftheoldgentleman\'smakingthemostofhismoney。“
“He？Who？NotHeman？”
“Yes，HemanAtkins。But，sofarasthatgoes，fatherstartedhimtowardwealth，Isuppose。Atleast，hewaspoorenoughbeforetheminewassold。“
“Whatareyoutalkin\'about？Hemangothisstarttradin\'overintheSouthSeas。Sellin\'theKanakasglassbeadsandcalicoforpearlsandcopra——twocupfulsofpearlsforeverybead。Anyhow，that\'sthewaytheyarngoes。“
“Ican\'thelpthat。HewasjustacommonsailorwhohadrunawayfromhisshipandwasgoldmininginCalifornia。Andwhenheandhispartnerstruckitrichfatherborrowedmoney，headedacompany，andboughtthemout。ThatminewastheExcelsior，andit\'sjustasproductiveto-dayasiteverwas。IratherthinkAtkinsmustbeverysorryhesold。Isuppose，byright，Ishouldbeverygratefultoyourdistinguishedrepresentative。“
“Well，Idodeclare！Sho，sho！Ain\'tthatfunnynow？He\'sneversaidawordaboutitathome。Idon\'tbelievethere\'sasoulinBayportknowsthat。Weallthought\'twasSouthSeatradin\'thatboostedHeman。Andyourowndad！Ideclare，thisisasmallworld！”
“It\'soddfathernevertoldyouaboutit。It\'soneoftheoldgentleman\'spetstories。HecameWestin1850，andwasrunningalittleshippingstorein\'Frisco。HemetAtkinsandtheotheryoungsailor，hispartner，beforetheylefttheirship。Theywereinthestore，buyingvariousthings，andfathergottoknowthemprettywell。Thentheyranawaytothediggings——yousimplycouldn\'tkeepacrewinthosetimes——andhedidn\'tseethemagainforagoodwhile。Thentheycameinonedayandshowedhimspecimensfromaclaimtheyhadbackinthemountains。Theyweremightygoodspecimens，andwhattheysaidabouttheclaimconvincedfatherthattheyhadavaluableproperty。Sohewenttoseeafewwell-to-dofriendsofhis，andtheoutcomewasthatapartywasmadeuptogoandinspect。Theyoungfellowswerewillingtosellout，foritwasaquartzworkingandtheyhadn\'tthemoneytocarryiton。
“Theinspectionshowedthattheclaimwaslikelytobeevenbetterthantheythought，so，aftersomebargaining，thedealwascompleted。Theysoldoutforseventy-fivethousanddollars，anditwasthebesttradefatherevermade。He\'ssoproudofhisjudgmentandforesightinmakingitthatIwonderhenevertoldyouthestory。“
“Heneverdid。Whenwasthis？”
“In\'54。What？”
“Ididn\'tspeak。Thedateseemedkindoffamiliartome，that\'sall。Seem\'sasifIhearditrecent，butIcan\'trememberwhen。
Seventy-fivethousand，hey？Well，thatwan\'tsobad，wasit？Withthatforanestegg，nowonderHeman\'smanagedtohatchaprettyrespectablebroodofdollars。“
“Oh，thewholeseventy-fivewasn\'this，ofcourse。Halfbelongedtohispartner。Butthepoordevildidn\'tlivetoenjoyit。Afterthearticlesweresignedandbeforethemoneywaspaidover，hewastakensickwithafeveranddied。“
“Hey？Hedied？WithaFEVER？”
“Yes。Butheleftaprettygoodlegacytohisheirs，didn\'the。
Foracommonsailor——orsecondmate；Ibelievethat\'swhathewas——
thirty-seventhousandfivehundredisdoingwell。Itmusthavecomeasabigsurprisetothem。ThewholesumwaspaidtoAtkins，who——What\'sthematterwithyou？”
CaptainCywasleaningbackinhischair。Hewasaswhiteasthetablecloth。
“Areyouill？”askedthecongressmananxiously。“Takesomewater。
ShallIcall——“
Thecaptainwavedhishand。
“No，no！”hestammered。“No！I\'mallright。Doyou——fortheLord\'ssaketellmethis！Whatwasthenameofthispartnerthatdied？”
Mr。Everdeanlookedcuriouslyathisfriendbeforeheanswered。
“Sureyou\'renotsick？”heasked。“Well，allright。Thepartner\'sname？Why，I\'vehearditoftenenough。It\'sonthedeedofsalethatfatherhasframedinhisroomathome。Theoldgentlemanisasproudofthatasanythinginthehouse。Thenamewas——was——“
“ForGodsakes，“criedCaptainCy，“don\'tsay\'twasJohnThayer！
\'CauseifyoudoIshan\'tbelieveit。“
“That\'swhatitwas——JohnThayer。Howdidyouguess？Didyouknowhim？IremembernowthathewasanotherDownEaster，likeAtkins。“
Thecaptaindidnotanswer。Heclaspedhisforeheadwithbothhandsandleanedhiselbowsonthetable。Everdeanwasplainlyalarmed。
“I\'mgoingtocalladoctor，“hebegan，rising。ButCaptainCywavedhimbackagain。
“Setstill！”heordered。“Setstill，Itellyou！Yousaythewholeseventy-fivethousandwaspaidtoHeman，butthatJohnThayersignedthebillofsaleaforehedied，ashalfpartner？Andyourdad\'sgottheoriginaldeedand——and——heremembersthewholebusiness？”
“Yes，he\'sgotthedeed——framed。It\'sonrecord，too，ofcourse。
Remembers？Ishouldsayhedid！He\'lltalkforaweekonthatsubject，ifyougivehimachance。“
Thecaptainsprangtohisfeet。Hischairtippedbackwardandfelltothefloor。Anobsequiouswaiterrantorightit，butCaptainCypaidnoattentiontohim。
“Where\'smycoat？”hedemanded。“Where\'smycoatandhat？”
“Whatailsyou？”askedEverdean。“Areyougoingcrazy？”
“Goin\'CRAZY？No，no！I\'mgoin\'toCalifornia。When\'sthenexttrain？”
CHAPTERXIX
THETOPPLINGOFAMONUMENT
TheHonorableHemanAtkinssatinthelibraryofhisWashingtonhome，beforeasnappinglogfire，readingaletter。Mr。Atkinshad，ashewouldhaveexpressedit，“servedhispeople“inCongressforsomanyyearsthathehadlongsincepassedthehotelstageoflivingattheCapital。Herentedafurnishedhouseonaneminentlyrespectablestreet，andthepolisheddoorplateborehisnameinuncompromisingcharacters。
Thelibraryfurniturewassolidanddignified。ItsbusinesslikeappearanceimpressedthestrayexcursionistfromtheAtkinsdistrict，whenheorshevisitedthegreatmaninwhoseaffairswefeltsuchapersonalinterest。Particularlyimpressiveandsignificantwasamapofthedistricthangingoverthecongressman\'sdesk，andanoilpaintingoftheAtkinsmansionatBayport，which，withtheirondogsandurnsconspicuousinitsforeground，occupiedthemiddleofthelargestwallspace。
Thecheeryfirewasverycomfortingonanightlikethis，forthesleetwasdrivingagainstthewindowpanes，thesidewalkswereankledeepinslush，andthewet，coldwindfromthePotomacwaswhistlingdownthestreet。Somewhereaboutthehouseanunfastenedshutterslammedinthegusts。Mr。Atkinsshouldhavebeenextremelycomfortableashesattherebythefire。Hehadspentmanycomfortablewintersinthatroom。Butnowtherewasafrownonhisfaceashereadtheletterinhishand。ItwasfromSimpson，andstated，amongotherthings，thatCyrusWhittakerhadbeenabsentfromBayportforovertwoweeks，andthatnooneseemedtoknowwherehehadgone。“TheideaseemstobethathestartedforWashington，“wroteTad；“butifthatisso，itisqueeryouhaven\'tseenhim。Iamsuspiciousthatheisuptosomethingaboutthatharborbusiness。IshouldkeepmyeyepeeledifIwasyou。“
Alicia，theAtkinshopeful，rustledintotheroom。
“Papa，“shesaid，“I\'vecometokissyougoodnight。“
Herfatherperformedtheceremonyinaperfunctoryway。
“Allright，allright，“hesaid。“Nowrunalongtobedanddon\'tbotherme，there\'sagoodgirl。Iwish，“headdedtestilytothehousekeeperwhohadfollowedAliciaintotheroom，“Iwishyou\'dseetothatlooseblind。Itmakesmenervous。Suchthingsasthatshouldbeattendedtowithoutspecificordersfromme。“
Thehousekeeperpromisedtoattendtotheblind。Sheandthegirlleftthelibrary。HemanrereadtheSimpsonletter。Thenhedroppeditinhislapandsatthinkingandtwirlinghiseyeglassesattheendoftheirblackcord。Histhoughtsseemedtobenotofthepleasantest。Thelinesabouthismouthhaddeepenedduringthelastfewmonths。Helookedolder。
Thetelephonebellrangsharply。Mr。Atkinscameoutofhisreveriewithastart，aroseandwalkedacrosstheroomtothewallwheretheinstrumenthung。Itwasbeforethedaysoftheconvenientdesk\'phone。Hetookthereceiverfromitshookandspokeintothetransmitter。
“Hello！”hesaid。“Hello！Yes，yes！stopringing。Whatisit？”
Thewirebuzzedandpurredinthestorm。“Hello！”saidavoice。
“Hello，there！IsthisMr。Atkins\'shouse？”
“Yes；itis。Whatdoyouwant？”
“Hey？IsthiswheretheHonorableHemanAtkinslives？”
“Yes，yes，Itellyou！ThisisMr。Atkinsspeaking。Whatdoyouwant？”
“Oh！isthatyou，Heman？ThisisWhittaker——CyWhittaker。
Understand？”
Mr。Atkinsunderstood。Yetforaninstanthedidnotreply。Hehadbeenthinking，ashesatbythefire，ofcertainpersonsandcertainugly，thoughremote，possibilities。Now，fromamysterioussomewhere，oneofthosepersonswasspeakingtohim。Thehandholdingthereceivershookmomentarily。
“Hello！Isay，Heman，doyouunderstand？ThisisWhittakertalkin\'。“
“I——er——understand，“saidthecongressman，slowly。“Well，sir？”
“I\'mhereinWashin\'ton。“
“Ihavebeeninformedthatyouwereinthecity。Well，sir？”
“Oh！knewIwashere，didyou？Isthatso？Whotoldyou？Tadwrote，Isuppose，hey？”
Thecongressmandidnotreplyimmediately。Thisman，whomhedislikedmorethananyoneelseintheworld，hadanirritatingfacultyofputtinghisfingeronthetruth。Andtheflippancyinthetonewasmaddening。Mr。Atkinswasnotusedtoflippancy。
“IbelieveIamnotcalledupontodisclosemysourceofinformation，“hesaidwithchillingdignity。“Itappearstohavebeentrustworthy。Ipresumeyouhave\'phonedmeconcerningtheappropriationmatter。Idonotrecognizeyourrighttointrudeinthataffair，andIshalldeclinetodiscussit。Yes，sir。Tomypeople，tothosewhohavearighttoquestion，Iamandshallalwaysbewillingtoexplainmyposition。Goodnight。“
“Wait！Hello！Holdonaminute。Don\'tgetmad，Heman。Ionlywantedtosayjustaword。You\'llletmesayaword，won\'tyou？”
Thiswasmorelikeit。ThiswasmorenearlythetoneinwhichMr。
Atkinswaswonttobeaddressed。Itwaspossiblethattheman，recognizingtheuselessnessoffurtheropposition，desiredtosurrender。
“Icannot，“declaredtheHonorable，“understandwhyyoushouldwishtospeakwithme。Wehaveverylittleincommon，verylittle，I\'mthankfultosay。However，Iwillhearyoubriefly。Goon。“
“Muchobliged。Well，Heman，IonlywantedtosaythatIthoughtmaybeyou\'dbetterhavealittletalkwithme。I\'mhereatthehotel，theRegent。Youknowwhere\'tis，Ipresumelikely。Iguessyou\'dbettercomerightdownandseeme。“
Hemangasped，actuallygasped，withastonishment。
“_I_hadbettercomeandseeYOU？I——！Well，sir！WELL！Iamnotaccustomed——“
“Iknow，butIthinkyou\'dbetter。It\'sdirtyweather，andI\'vegotcoldsomehoworother。Iain\'tfeelin\'quiteuptothemark，soIcal\'lateI\'llstayinportmuchasIcan。Youcomerightdown。I\'llbeinmyroom，andthehotelfolks\'lltellyouwhere\'tis。I\'llbewaitin\'foryou。“
Mr。Atkinsbreathedhard。Inhispresentframeofmindhewouldhavelikedtodeliverablastintothattransmitterwhichwouldcausethepersonattheotherendofthelinetoshrivelunderitsheat。Buthewasapoliticianoflongtraining，andheknewthatsuchblastsweresometimesexpensivetreats。Itmightbewelltohearwhathisenemyhadtosay。Butastogoingtoseehim——thatwasoutofthequestion。
“Idonot，“hethundered，“Idonotcaretocontinuethisconversation。If——ifyouwishtoseeme，afterwhathastakenplacebetweenus，Iamwilling，inspiteofpersonalrepugnance，tograntyouabriefinterview。Myservantswilladmityouhereatnineo\'clockto-morrowmorning。ButItellyounow，thatyourinterferencewiththisappropriationmatterisasuselessasitisridiculousandimpudent。Itisofapiecewiththerestofyourconduct。“
“Allright，Heman，allright，“wasthecalmanswer。“Idon\'tsayyou\'vegottocome。IonlysayIguessyou\'dbetter。I\'mgoin\'
backtoBayporttomorrer，early。AndifIwasyouI\'dcomeandseemeto-night。“
“Ihavenowishtoseeyou。NordoIcaretotalkwithyoufurther。
Thatappropriation——“
“Maybeitain\'tallappropriation。“
“ThenIcannotunderstand——“
“Iknow，but_I_understand。I\'vecometounderstandconsider\'blemanythingsinthelastfortni\'t。There！Ican\'thollerintothismachineanylonger。I\'vebeenclearoutto\'Friscoandbackinelevendays，andIgotcoldinthoseblessedsleepin\'cars。I——“
Thereceiverfellfromthecongressman\'shand。Itwasadifficultobjecttopickupagain。Hemangropedforitinablind，strangelyinadequateway。Yethewishedtorecoveritverymuch。
“Wait！wait！”heshoutedanxiously。“I——I——Idroppedthe——Areyouthere，Whittaker？Areyou——Oh！yes！Ididn\'t——Didyousay——
er——\'Frisco？”
“Yes，SanFrancisco，California。I\'vebeenWestonalittlecruise。Hadaninterestin\'time。It\'saninterestin\'place；don\'tyouthinkso？Well，I\'msorryyoucan\'tcome。Goodnight。“
“Wait！”falteredthegreatman。“I——I——letmethink，Cyrus。Idonotwishtoseem——er——arrogantinthismatter。Itisnotusualformetovisitmyconstituents，but——but——Ihavenoengagementthisevening，andyouarenotwell，and——Hello！areyouthere？Hello！
Why，underthecircumstances，Ithink——Yes，Iwillcome。I\'llcome——er——atonce。“
Thetelephoneenablesonetoprocureacabinashorttime。Yet，toHemanAtkins，thatcabwasyearsincoming。Hepacedthelibraryfloor，hishandtohisforeheadandhisbrainwhirling。Itcouldn\'tbe！Itmustbeacoincidence！Hehadbeenanidiottodisplayhisagitationandsurrendersoweakly。Andyet——andyet——
TheridethroughthestormtotheRegentHotelgavehimopportunityformorethought。Buthegainedlittlecomfortfromthinking。Ifitwasacoincidence，wellandgood。Ifnot——
AbellboyconductedhimtotheWhittakerroom“onthesaloondeck。“Itwasasmallroom，verydifferentfromtheAtkinslibrary，andCaptainCy，inacane-seatedchair，washuddledclosetothesteamradiator。Helookedfarfromwell。
“Evenin\'，Heman，“hesaidasthecongressmanentered。“Prettydirtynight，ain\'tit？Whatwe\'dcallagrayno\'theasterbackhome。Sitdown。Don\'tmindmynotgettin\'up。Thisheatin\'
arrangementfeelsmightycomf\'tablejustnow。IfIgettoofarawayfromitIshivermydeckplanksloose。Takeoffyourthings。“
Mr。Atkinsdidnotremovehisovercoat。Hishathetossedonthebed。Heglancedfearfullyathiscompanion。Thelatter\'sgreetinghadbeensocasualandeverydaythathetookcourage。Andthecaptainlookedanythingbutformidableashehuggedtheradiator。
Perhapsthingswerenotsobadashehadfeared。Heresolvednottoseemalarmed，atallevents。
“Haveacigar，Heman？”saidCaptainCy。“No？Well，allright；I
will，ifyoudon\'tmind。“
Helitthecigar。Thecongressmanclearedhisthroat。
“Cyrus，“hesaid，“Iamnotaccustomedtorunatthebeckandcallofmy——er——acquaintances，but，eventhoughwehavedisagreedoflate，eventhoughtomeyourconductseemsquiteunjustifiable，still，forthesakeofourboyhoodfriendship，and，becauseyouarenotwell，I——er——came。“
CaptainCycoughedspasmodically，acoughthatseemedtobetearinghimtopieces。Helookedathiscigarregretfully，andlaiditonthetopoftheradiator。
“Toobad，“heobserved。“Tobaccogen\'rallyilesupmytalkin\'
machinery，butjustnowitseemstomakemebarklikeaship\'sdogshutupinthehold。Why，yes，Heman，Iseeyou\'vecome。Muchobligedtoyou。“
Thispolitenesswasstillmoreencouraging。Atkinsleanedbackinhischairandcrossedhislegs。
“Ipresume，“hesaid，“thatyouwishtoaskconcerningtheappropriation。Iregret——“
“Youneedn\'t。Iguesswe\'llgettheappropriation。“
Heman\'scondescensionvanished。Heleanedforwardanduncrossedhislegs。
“Indeed？”hesaidslowly，hiseyesfixedonthecaptain\'splacidface。
“Yes——indeed。“
“Whittaker，whatareyoutalkingabout？DoyousupposethatIhavebeentherepresentativeofmypeopleinCongressalltheseyearswithoutknowingwhereofIspeak？Theyleftthematterinmyhands，andyourinterference——“
“Iain\'tgoin\'tointerfere。I\'Mgoin\'toleaveitinyourhands，too。AndIcal\'lateyou\'llbeabletofindawaytogetit。
Um——hum，Iguesslikelyyouwill。“
Thevisitorrosetohisfeet。ThetimehadcomeforanotherblastfromOlympus。Heraisedthemightyrightarm。ButCaptainCyspokefirst。
“Sitdown，Heman，“saidthecaptainquietly。“Sitdown。Thisain\'ttownmeetin\'。Nevermindtheappropriationnow。There\'sothermatterstobetalkedaboutfirst。Sitdown，Itellyou。“
Mr。Atkinswaspurpleintheface，buthesatdown。Thecaptaincoughedagain。
“Heman，“hebeganwhenthespasmwasover，“Iaskedyoutocomehereto-nightfor——well，blessedifIknowexactly。Itdidn\'tmakemuchdifferencetomewhetheryoucameornot。“
“Then，sir，Imustsaythat，ofalltheimpudent——“
“S-s-h-h！forthelandsakes！Speechmakin\'mustbeasbadastherumhabit，whenafeller\'sgotitchronicasyouhave。No，itdidn\'tmakemuchdifferencetomewhetheryoucameornot。But，honest，you\'vegottobeakindofBunkerHillmonumenttothefolksbackhome。Theykneeldownatyourfoundationsandlookupatyou，andtelleachotherhowmanyfoothighyouare，andwhatitcosttobuildyou，andhowyoustandforpatriotismandpurity，till——well，_I_couldn\'tseeyoutumbledownwithoutgivin\'youachance。Icouldn\'t；\'twouldbelikeblowin\'upachurch。“
ThepurplehadlefttheAtkinsface，butthespeechmakinghabitisnotlikelytobebroken。
“CyrusWhittaker，“hestammered，“haveyoubeendrinking？Yourlanguagetomeisabominable。WhyIpermitmyselftoremainhereandlistentosuch——“
“Ifyou\'llkeepstillI\'lltellyouwhy。And，ifIwasyou，I
wouldn\'tbetooanxioustofindout。Thiseverlastin\'colddon\'tmakemeover\'n\'abovegood-tempered，andwhenIthinkofwhatyou\'vedonetothatlittlegirl，orwhatyoutriedtodo，Ihavetoholdmyselfdowntight，TIGHT，anddon\'tyouforgetit！Now，youkeepquietandlisten。It\'llbebestforyou，Heman。Yourcardsain\'tunderthetableanylonger。I\'veseenyourhand，andIknowwhyyou\'vebeenplayin\'it。Iknowthewholegame。I\'vebeenWest，andEverdeanandIhavehadatalk。“
Mr。Atkinshadagainrisenfromthechair。Nowhefellheavilybackintoit。Hislipsmovedasifhemeanttospeak，buthedidnot。AtthementionoftheEverdeannamehemadeaqueer，chokingsoundinhisthroat。
“Iknowthewholebusiness，Heman，“wentonthecaptain。“IknowwhyyouwassoknockedoverwhenyoulearnedwhoBos\'nwas，thenightoftheparty。Iknowwhyyoutookupwiththatblackguard，Thomas，andwhyyou\'vespentyourgoodmoneyhirin\'lawyersforhim。Iknowaboutthemine。Iknowthewholethingfromfirsttolast。ShallItellyou？Doyouwanttohearit？”
Thegreatmandidnotanswer。Adropofperspirationshoneonhishighforehead，andtheveinsofhisbig，whitehandsstoodoutasheclutchedthearmsofhischair。Themonumentwastotteringonitsbase。
“It\'sadirtymess，thewholeofit，“continuedCaptainCy。“Andyet，Icansee——IsupposeIcanseesomeexcuseforyouatthebeginnin\'。WhenoldmanEverdeanandhiscrowdboughtyouandJohnThayerout，\'waybacktherein\'54，afterJohndied，andallthemoneywasputintoyourhands，Ical\'lateyouwashonestthen。I
wouldn\'twonderifyouMEANTtohandoverthethirty-seventhousandfivehundreddollarstoyourpartner\'swidow。But\'twasharderandmoreriskytosendmoneyEastinthemdaysthan\'tisnow，andsoyouwaited，thinkin\'maybethatyou\'dfetchittoEmilywhenyoucomeyourself。Butyoudidn\'tcomehomeforsomeyears；youwenttradin\'downalongtheFeejeesandaroundthatway。That\'showI
reasoneditouttheselastfewdaysonthetrain。Igiveyoucreditforbein\'honestfirstalong。
“Butnevermindwhetheryouwasornot，youhaven\'tbeensince。
Youneverpaidoveracentofthatpoorfeller\'smoney——honestmoney，thatbelongedtohisheirs，andbelongsto\'emnow。You\'vehungontoit，stoleit，useditforyours。AndEmilyworkedandscratchedforalivin\'anddiedpoor。AndMary，shedied，afterbein\'abusedanddesertedbythatcussedhusbandofhers。Andyouthoughtyouwassafe，Ical\'late。AndthenBos\'nturnsuprightinyourowntown，rightacrosttheroadfromyou！Bythebigdipper！
it\'senoughtomakeafellerbelievethattheAlmightydoestakeahandinstraightenin\'outsuchthings，whenushumansbungle\'em——
itisso！
“CourseIain\'tsure，Heman，whatyoumeanttodowhenyoufoundthatthechildyou\'dstolethatmoneyfromwasgoin\'tobeunderyourfaceandeyestillyouorshedied。Ical\'lateyouwasafraidI\'dfindsomethin\'out，wan\'tyou？IpresumelikelyyouthoughtthatI，nothavin\'quitethereverenceforyouthattherestoftheBayportershave，mightbesharpenoughorluckyenoughtosmellarat。PerhapsyoususpicionedthatIknewtheEverdeans。Anyhow，youwantedtogetthechildasfuroutofyoursightandoutofmyhandsasyoucould——ain\'tthatso？Andwhenherdadturnedup，youthoughtyousawyourchance。Heman，youanswermethis：Ain\'titpartofyourbargainwithThomasthatwhenhegetshislittlegirl，heshalltakeherandclearout，awayoffsomewheres，forgood？
Ain\'tit，now——what？”
Themonumentwasswaying，wasswingingfromsidetoside，butitdidnotquitefall——notthen。Thecongressman\'scheekshungflabby，hisforeheadwaswet，andheshookfromheadtofoot；butheclenchedhisjawsandmadeonelastattemptatdefiance。
“I——Idon\'tknowwhatyoumean，“hedeclared。“You——youseemtobeaccusingmeofsomething。Ofstealing，Ibelieve。DoyouunderstandwhoIam？Ihavesomeinfluenceandreputation，anditisdangerousto——totrytofrightenme。Proofsarerequiredinlaw，and——“
“S-s-h-h！YouknowI\'vegottheproofs。Theywereeasyenoughtoget，onceIhappenedonthetrackof\'em。Lordsakes，Heman，I
ain\'tafool！What\'stheuseofyourpretendin\'tobeone？
There\'sthedeedoutin\'Frisco，withyoursandJohn\'snameonit。
There\'stherecordstoprovethesale。There\'sthereceiptfortheseventy-fivethousandsignedbyyou，onbehalfofyourselfandyourpartner\'swidow。There\'soldmanEverdeanaliveandcompetenttotestify。There\'sJohnThayer\'swillonfileovertoOrham。
Proofs！Why，youTHIEF！ifit\'sproofsyouwant，I\'vegotenoughtosendyoutostate\'sprisonfortherestofyourlife。Don\'tyoudaresay\'proofs\'tomeagain！HemanAtkins，youoweme，asBos\'n\'sguardian，thirty-seventhousandfivehundreddollars，withinterestsince1854。Whatyougoin\'todoaboutit？”
Herewasoneray，afeebleray，oflight。
“You\'renotherguardian，“criedAtkins。“Thecourtshavethrownyouout。Andyourappealwon\'tstand，either。Ifanymoneyisdue，itbelongstoherfather。Sheisn\'tofage！No，sir！herfather——“
CaptainCy\'spatiencehadbeengivingway。Nowhelostitaltogether。Hestrodeacrosstheroomandshookhisforefingerinhisvictim\'sface。
“So！”hecried。“That\'syourtack，isit？Bythebigdipper！YouGOtoherfather——justyougotohimandtellhim！Justhinttohimthatyouowehisdaughterthirty-oddthousanddollars，andseewhathe\'lldo。Goodheavensabove！hewasreadytosellherouttomeforfiftydollars\'wuthofsandbankinOrham。Almostready，hewas，tillyouofferedahigherpricetohimtofight。Why，he\'llhaveyourhidenaileduponthebarndoor！Ifyoudon\'tpayhimeveryredcopper，downonthenail，he\'llwringyoudry。Andthenhe\'llblackmailyouforeverandever，amen！Unless，ofcourse，_I_
gohomeandstoptheblackmailbyprintingmystoryintheBreeze。
I\'veapreciousgoodmindtodoit。BytheAlmighty，IWILLdoit！
unlessyoucomeoffthathighhorseofyoursandtalklikeaman。“
Andthenthemonumentfell，fellprostrate，withasickly，pitifulcrash。IfweofBayportcouldhaveseenourcongressmanthen！Thegreatman，greatnolonger，brokedowncompletely。Hecriedlikeababy。Itwasalltrue——alltrue。Hehadnotmeanttosteal，atfirst。Hehadbeenledintousingthemoneyinhisbusiness。Thenhehadmeanttosendittotheheirs，buthedidn\'tknowtheirwhereabouts。CaptainCysmiledatthisexcuse。Andnowhecouldn\'tpay——heCOULDN\'T。Hehadhardlythatsumintheworld。
Hehadlostmoneyinstocks，hispropertyintheSouthhadgonetothebad！Hewouldberuined。Hewouldhavetogotoprison。Hewasgettingtobeanoldman。AndtherewasAlicia，hisdaughter！
Thinkofher！Thinkofthedisgrace！Andsoon，overandover，withtheonerecurringburden——whatwasthecaptaingoingtodo？
whatwashegoingtodo？Itwasamiserable，dreadfulexhibition，andCaptainCycouldfeelnoprideinhistriumph。
“There！there！”hesaidatlast。“Stopit，man；stopit，forgoodnesssakes！Pullyourselftogether。Iguesswecanfixitupsomehow。Iain\'tgoin\'tobetoohardonyou。Ifitwan\'tforyourmeannessinbein\'willin\'toletBos\'nsufferherlifelongwiththatdrunkenbeastofadadofhers，I\'dfeelalmostliketellin\'youtogetupandforgetit。ButTHAT\'Sgottobestopped。
Now，youlistentome。“
Hemanlistened。Hewasonhiskneesbesidethebed，hisfaceburiedinhisarms，andhisgrayhair，theleonineAtkinshair，whichhewaswonttotossbackwardintheheatedperiodsofhiseloquence，tumbledanddraggled。CaptainCylookeddownathim。
“ThiswholebusinessaboutBos\'nmustbestopped，“hesaid，“andstoppedrightoff。Youtellyourlawyerstodropthecase。Herdadisonlyhangin\'aroundbecauseyoupayhimto。Hedon\'twanther；hedon\'tcarewhatbecomesofher。Ifyoupayhimenough，he\'llgo，won\'the？andnotcomeback？”
Thecongressmanraisedhishead。
“Why，yes，“hefaltered；“Ithinkhewill。Yes，IthinkIcouldarrangethat。But，Cyrus——“
Thecaptainhelduphishand。
“IintendtolookoutforBos\'n，“hesaid。“Shecaresformemore\'nanyoneelseintheworld。She\'sasmuchtomeasmyownchildevercouldbe，andI\'llseethatsheishappyandprovidedfor。I\'mreligiousenoughtobelieveshewassenttome，andI
intendtosticktomytrust。Asforthemoney——“
“Yes，yes！Themoney？”
“Well，Iwon\'tbetoohardonyouthatway，either。We\'lltalkthatoverlateron。Maybewecanarrangeforyoutopayitalittleatatime。Youcansignapapershowin\'thatyouoweit，andwe\'llfixthepayin\'tosuitallhands。\'Tain\'tasifthechildwasinwant。I\'vegotsomemoneyofmyown，andwhat\'smine\'shers。Ithinkweneedn\'tworryaboutthemoneypart。“
“Godblessyou，Cyrus！I——“
“Yes，allright。I\'msureyouraskin\'fortheblessin\'\'llbeagreathelp。Now，youdoyourpart，andI\'lldomine。Nooneknowsofthisbusinessbutme。Ididn\'ttellEverdeanaword。Hedon\'tknowwhyIhustledoutthereandback，norwhyIaskedsomanyquestions。Andheain\'tthekindtopryintowhatdon\'tconcernhim。Soyou\'reprettysafe，Ical\'late。Now，ifyoudon\'tmind，I
wishyou\'drunalonghome。I\'m——I\'musedup，sortof。“
Mr。Atkinsarosefromhisknees。Eventhen，brokenashewas——helookedtenyearsolderthanwhenheenteredtheroom——hecouldhardlybelievewhathehadjustheard。
“Youmean，“hefaltered，“Cyrus，doyoumeanthat——thatyou\'renotgoingtorevealthis——this——“
“ThatI\'mnotgoin\'totellonyou？Yup；that\'swhatImean。YougetridofThomasandsquelchthatlawcase，andI\'llkeepmum。
Youcantrustmeforthat。“
“But——but，Cyrus，thepeopleathome？YourstoryintheBreeze？
You\'renot——“
“No，theyneedn\'tknow，either。It\'llbebetweenyouandme。“
“Godblessyou！I\'llneverforget——“
“That\'sright。Youmustn\'t。Forgettin\'istheonethingyoumustn\'tdo。And，seehere，you\'rebossofthepoliticalfleetinBayport；yousteertheschoolcommitteenow。PhoebeDawesain\'ttoopopularwiththatcommittee；I\'dseethatshewaspopularized。“
“Yes，yes；sheshallbe。Sheshallnotbedisturbed。IsthereanythingelseIcando？”
“Why，yes，Iguessthereis。Speakin\'ofpopularitymademethinkofit。Thatharborappropriationhadbettergothrough。“
Averyfainttingeofcolorcameintothecongressman\'schalkyface。Hehesitatedinhisreply。
“I——Idon\'tknowaboutthat，Cyrus，“hesaid。“Thebillwillprobablybevotedoninafewdays。Itismadeupand——“
“ThenI\'dstrainap\'intandmakeitover。I\'dworkrealhardonit。I\'msorryaboutthatsugarriver，butIcal\'lateBayport\'llhavetocomefirst。Yes，it\'llhaveto，Heman；itsartinwill。“
Thereferencetothe“sugarriver“wasthefinalstraw。Evidentlythismankneweverything。
“I——I\'lltrymybest，“affirmedHeman。“Thankyou，Cyrus。YouhavebeenmoremercifulthanIhadarighttoexpect。“
“Yes，IguessIhave。WhydoIdoit？”Hesmiledandshookhishead。“Well，Idon\'tknow。Fortworeasons，maybe。First，I\'dhatetoberesponsiblefortippin\'oversuchasky-towerin\'idolasyou\'vebeentomakeruinsforAngiePhinneyandtheotherblackbirdstopeckatandcawover。Andsecond——well，itdoessoundpresumin\'，don\'tit，butIkindofpityyou。Say，Heman，“headdedwithachuckle，“that\'sakindofdistinction，inaway，ain\'tit？Agoodmanyfolkshavehurrahedoveryouandworshippedyou——someof\'em，I
guesslikely，haveenviedyou；but，bythebigdipper！IdobelieveI\'mtheonlyoneinthisroundworldthateverPITIEDyou。Good-by。
Theelevator\'srightdownthehall。“
ItrequiredsomeresolutionfortheHonorableAtkinstowalkdownthatcorridorandpresstheelevatorbutton。Buthedidit，somehow。Aguestcameoutofoneoftheroomsandapproachedhimashestoodthere。Itwasamanheknew。Hemansquaredhisshouldersandseteverynerveandmuscle。
“Goodevening，Mr。Atkins，“saidtheman。“Amiserablenight，isn\'tit？”
“Miserable，indeed，“repliedthecongressman。Thestrengthinhisvoicesurprisedhim。Themanpassedon。Hemandescendedintheelevator，walkedsteadilythroughthecrowdedlobbyandouttothecurbwherehiscabwaswaiting。Thedrivernoticednothingstrangeinhisfare\'sappearance。HenoticednothingstrangewhentheAtkinsresidencewasreachedanditstenantmountedthestonestepsandopenedthedoorwithhislatchkey。But，ifhehadseenthedignifiedformcollapseinalibrarychairandmoanandrockbackandforthuntilthemorninghours，hewouldhavewonderedverymuchindeed。
MeanwhileCaptainCy，coughingandshiveringbytheradiator，hadbeensummonedfromthatwarmhavenbyaknockathisdoor。Abellboystoodatthethreshold，holdingabrownenvelopeinhishand。
“Theclerksentthisuptoyou，sir，“hesaid。“Itcameaweekago。Whenyouwentaway，youdidn\'tleaveanyaddress，andwhateverletterscameforyouweresentbacktoBayport，Massachusetts。Theclerksaysyouregisteredfromthere，sir。
Buthekeptthistelegram。Itwasinyourbox，andthedayclerkforgottogiveittoyouthisafternoon。“
Thecaptaintoreopentheenvelope。Thetelegramwasfromhislawyer，Mr。Peabody。Itwasdatedaweekbefore，andreadasfollows：
“Comehomeatonce。Important。“
CHAPTERXX
DIVIDEDHONORS
Theblizzardbeganthatnight。Bayporthasagenerousallowanceofstormsandgalesduringawinter，although，asausualthing，thereismorerainthansnowandmorewindthaneither。ButwecancountwithcertaintyonatleastoneblizzardbetweenNovemberandApril，andaboutthetimewhenCaptainCy，feverishandill，thedelayedtelegraminhispocketandagreatfearinhisheart，boardedthesleeperoftheEast-boundtrainatWashington，snowwasbeginningtofallinourvillage。
Nextmorning，whenGeorgiannacamedownstairstoprepareBos\'n\'sbreakfast——thehousekeeperhadceasedto“gohomenights“sincethecaptain\'sabsence——theworldoutsidewasatumbled，drivingwhirlofwhite。Thewoodshedandbarn，dimlyseenthroughthesmother，werebutgrayshapes，emergingnowandthenonlytobewipedfromthevisionasbyagreatflappingclothwieldedbythemightyhandofthewind。Theoldhouseshookintheblasts，thewindowpanesrattledasifhandfulsofsmallshotwerebeingthrownagainstthem，andthecarpetonthefloorofthediningroompuffedupinminiaturebillows。
Schoolwasoutofthequestion，andBos\'n，herbreakfasteaten，preparedtoputinacozydaywithherdollsandChristmasplaythings。
“WhenDOyous\'poseUncleCyruswillgethome？”sheaskedofthehousekeeper。Shehadaskedthesamethingatleastthreetimesadayduringthefortnight，andGeorgianna\'sanswerwasalwaysjustasunsatisfactory：
“Idon\'tknow，dearie，I\'msure。He\'llbehereprettysoon，though，don\'tyoufret。“
“Oh，Iain\'tgoingtofret。Iknowhe\'llcome。Hesaidhewould，andUncleCyalwaysdoeswhathesayshewill。“
AbouttwelveAsaphmadehisappearance，awhitestatue。
“Godfreyscissors！”hepanted，shakinghissnow-plasteredcapoverthecoalhod。“Say，thisisoneof\'em，ain\'tit？Don\'tknow\'sI
everseemoreofaone。Driftoutbythefrontfenceprettynighuptomywaist。This\'llbeanastynightalongtheOrhambeach。
Thelifesavers\'llhavetheirhandsfull。Whew！I\'mabouttuckeredout。“
“Beentothepostoffice？”askedGeorgiannainalowtone。
“Yup。Ibeenthere。Mornin\'mailjustthisminutesorted。
Train\'stwohourslate。Gabesaysmore\'nlikelytheevenin\'trainwon\'tbeabletogetthroughatall，ifthiskeepsup。“
“Wasthereanythingfrom——“
Mr。TiddittglancedatBos\'nandshookhishead。
“Notaword，“hesaid。“Funny，ain\'tit？Itdon\'tseemabitlikehim。Andhecan\'tbetoWashin\'ton，becauseallthemletterscameback。I——Iswantoman，I\'mbeginnin\'togetworried。“
“Worried？I\'mprettynighcrazy！WhatdoesPhoebeDawessay？”
“Shedon\'tsaymuch。It\'sprettytough，wheneverythingelseisworkin\'outsofine，thankstoher，tohavethishappen。No，shedon\'tsaymuch，butsheactsprettysolemn。“
“Say，Mr。Tidditt？”
“Yes，whatisit？”
“Youdon\'ts\'poseanythingthathappenedbetwixtherandCap\'nWhittakerthatafternoonisresponsiblefor——forhisstayin\'awayso，doyou？Youknowwhathetoldmetotellher——abouthernotcomin\'here？”
Asaphfidgetedwiththewetcap。
“Aw，thatain\'tnothin\'，“hestammered。“Thatis，Ihopeitain\'t。
Ididsaysomethin\'tohimthat——butPhoebeunderstands。She\'sasmartwoman。“
“Youhaven\'ttoldthemboardin\'housetattletalesaboutthe——Emmie，yougofetchmeacardofmatchesfromthekitchen，won\'tyou——ofwhat\'sbeenfoundoutaboutthatThomasthing？”
“CourseIain\'t。Didn\'tPeabodysaynottotellasoultillwewassure？S\'poseI\'dtellKeturahandAngie？Might\'swellpaintitonasignandbedonewithit。No，no！I\'vekeptmumandyoudothesame。Well，Imustbegoin\'。HopetogoodnesswehearsomegoodnewsfromWhitbyto-morrer。“
Butwhento-morrowcamenewsofanykindwasunobtainable。Notrainscouldgetthrough，andthetelephoneandtelegraphwireswereoutofcommission，owingtothegreatstorm。Bayportwasburiedunderawhitecoverlet，threefeetthickonalevel，whichshoneinthewintersunasifpowderedwithdiamonddust。Thestreet-shovelingbrigade，meaningmostoftheactivemalecitizens，wasbusywithplowsandshovels。Simmons\'swasdesertedintheevenings，formostoftheregularhabitueswenttobedaftersupper，tiredout。
Twodaysofthis。ThenGabeLumley，hisdepotwagonreplacedbyasleigh，drovethepantingDanielintotheyardoftheCyWhittakerplace。Gabewasmuchexcited。Hehadnewsofimportancetocommunicateandwaspuffedupinconsequence。
“Thewire\'sallrightagain，Georgianna，“hesaidtothehousekeeper，whohadhurriedtothedoortomeethim。“Fustmessagejustcomethrough。Guesswhoit\'sfor？”
“Stopyourfoolishness，GabeLumley！”orderedMissTaylor。“Handoverthattelegramthisminute。Don\'tyoustoptotalk！Handitover！”
Gabedidn\'tintendtobe“corked“thusperemptorily。
“It\'sprettyimportantnews，Georgianna，“hedeclared。“Kindofbadnews，too。IthinkI\'doughttoprepareyouforit，sortof。
WhenCap\'nObedPepperdied，I——“
“DIED！Forthelandsakes！WHATareyousayin\'？Givemethat，youfoolhead！Giveittome！”
Shesnatchedthetelegramfromhimandtoreitopen。Itwasnotasbadasmighthavebeen，butitwasbadenough。LawyerPeabodywiredthatCaptainCyrusWhittakerwasathishomeinOstable，sickinbed，andthreatenedwithpneumonia。
CaptainCy，hurryinghomewardinresponsetotheattorney\'sformertelegram，hadreachedBostonthedayoftheblizzard。HehadtakenthetrainforBayportthatafternoon。ThetrainhadreachedOstableafternineo\'clockthatnight，butcouldgetnofarther。
Thecaptain，burningwithfeverandtornbychills，hadwallowedthroughthedriftstohislawyer\'shomeandcollapsedonhisdoorstep。Nowhewasveryilland，attimes，delirious。
Fortwoweekshelay，fightingoffthethreatenedattackofpneumonia。Buthewonthefight，and，atlast，wordcametotheanxiousonesatBayportthathewaspastthedangerpointandwouldpullthrough。TherewasrejoicingattheCyWhittakerplace。TheBoardofStrategycameandperformedanimpromptuwardancearoundthedining-roomtable。
“Whe-e-e！”shoutedBaileyBangs，tossingBos\'nabovehishead。
“YourUncleCy\'sweatheredtheHornandisboundforclearwaternow。Threecheersforourside！Won\'twegivehimareceptionwhenwegethimbackhere！”
“Won\'twe？”crowedAsaph。“Well，Ijustguesswewill！YououghttohearAngieandtherestof\'emchanthymnsofgloryabouthim。
Abody\'dthinktheyalwaysknewhewasthesaltoftheearth。
MaybeIdon\'trubitinalittle，hey？Oh，no，maybenot！”
“AndHeman！”chimedinMr。Bangs。“AndHeman！WouldyoueverbelieveHE\'Dchangesoallofasudden？BullyoldWhit！IcanmentionhisnamenowwithoutKetury\'slandin\'ontomelikeasnowslide。Whee！Isay，wh-e-e-e！”
Hecontinuedtosayit；andGeorgiannaandAsaphsaidwhatamountedtothesamething。AchangehadcomeoverourBayportsocialatmosphere，amarvelouschange。AndatSimmons\'sand——morewonderfulstill——atTadSimpson\'sbarber\'shop，planswerebeingmadeandperfectedforproceedingsinwhichCyrusWhittakerwastoplaythemostprominentpart。
Meanwhiletheconvalescencewentonatarapidrate。Assoonashewaspermittedtotalk，CaptainCybegantoquestionhislawyer。
Howabouttheappeal？HadAtkinsdoneanythingfurther？Theanswersweresatisfactory。Thecasehadbeendropped：theHonorableHemanhadannounceditswithdrawal。HehadsaidthathehadchangedhismindandshouldnotcontinuetoespousetheThomascause。Infact，heseemedtohavewhirledcompletelyaboutonhispedestaland，likeacompass，nowpointedonlyinonedirection——
towardhis“boyhoodfriend“andpresentneighbor，CyrusWhittaker。
“It\'sperfectlyastounding，“commentedPeabody。“Whatintheworld，captain，didyoudotohimwhileyouwereinWashington？”
“Oh！nothin\'much，“wastheratherdisinterestedanswer。“Himandmehadatalk，andhesawtheerrorofhisways，Ical\'late。How\'sBos\'nto-day？Didyougivehermylovewhenyou\'phoned？”
“Sofarasthecaseisconcerned，“wentonthelawyer，“Ithinkweshouldhavewonthat，anyway。It\'sacuriousthing。Thomashasdisappeared。Howhegotword，orwhohegotitfrom，_I_don\'tknow；buthemusthave，andhe\'sgonesomewhere，nooneknowswhere。AndyetI\'mnotcertainthatwewereontherighttrail。
Itseemedcertainaweekago，butnow——“
Thecaptainhadnotbeenlistening。Hewasthinking。Thomashadgone，hadhe！Good！Hemanwaslivinguptohispromises。AndBos\'n，Godblessher，wasfreefromthatdanger。
“HaveyouheardfromEmmie，Iaskedyou？”herepeated。
HewouldnotlistentoanythingfurtherconcerningThomas，eitherthenorlater。Hewassickofthewholebusiness，hedeclared，andnowthateverythingwasallright，didn\'twishtotalkaboutitagain。Heaskednothingabouttheappropriation，andthelawyer，actingunderstrictorders，didnotmentionit。
OnlyoncedidCaptainCyinquireconcerningapersoninhishometownwhowasnotamemberofhishousehold。
“Howis——er——how\'stheteacher？”heinquiredonemorning。
“How\'swho？”
“Why——PhoebeDawes，theschool-teacher。Smart，isshe？”
“Yes，indeed！Why，shehasbeenthemost——“
Thedoctorcameinjustthenandtheinterviewterminated。Itwasnotresumed，becausethatafternoonMr。PeabodystartedforBostononabusinesstrip，tobegonesometime。
Andatlastcamethegreatday，thedaywhenCaptainCywastobetakenhome。Hewasupandabout，hadbeenoutforseveralshortwalks，andwasverynearlyhisownselfagain。Hewasingoodspirits，too，attimes，buthadfitsofseemingdepressionwhich，underthecircumstances，wereunexplainable。Thedoctorthoughttheywereduetohisrecentillnessandforbadequestioning。
TheoriginalplanhadbeenforthecaptaintogotoBayportinthetrain，butthemorningsetforhisdeparturewassuchabeautifulonethatMr。Peabody，whohadthedaybeforereturnedfromthecity，suggesteddrivingover。Sotheopencarriage，drawnbythePeabody“span，“wasbroughtaroundtothefrontsteps，andthecaptain，bundledupuntil，ashesaid，hefeltlikeawharfratinsideacottonbale，emergedfromthehousewhichhadshelteredhimforawearymonthandclimbedtothebackseat。Theattorneygotinbesidehim。
“Allashorethat\'sgoin\'ashore，“observedCaptainCy。Thentothedriver，whostoodbythehorses\'heads，headded：“Standbytogetshipunderway，commodore。I\'mhomewardbound，andthere\'salittlemessmateofminewaitin\'onthedockalready，Iwouldn\'twonder。Sodon\'thangaroundthesewatersnolonger\'nyoucanhelp。“
ButMr。Peabodysmiledandlaidahandonhisshoulder。
“Justaminute，captain，“hesaid。“We\'vegotanotherpassenger。
Shecametothehouselastevening，butDr。Colethoughtthiswouldbeanexcitingdayforyou，andyoumustsleepinpreparationforit。Sowekeptherinthebackground。Itwassomethingofajobbut——Hurrah！heresheis！”
Mrs。Peabody，thelawyer\'swife，openedthefrontdoor。Shewaslaughing。Thenextmomentasmallfigureshotpasther，downthesteps，andintothecarriagelikeared-hoodedbombshell。
“UncleCyrus！”shescreamedjoyously。“UncleCyrus，it\'sme！HereIam！”
AndCaptainCy，springingupandsheddingwrapsandrobes，receivedthebombshellwithopenarmsandhuggedittight。
“Bos\'n！”heshouted。“Bythebigdipper！BOS\'N！Why，youlittle——
you——you——“
Thatwasawonderfulride。Emilysatinthecaptain\'slap——hepositivelyrefusedtolethersitbesidehimontheseat，althoughPeabodyurgedit，fearingthechildmighttirehim——andhertonguerattledlikeasewingmachine。Shehadathousandthingstotell，aboutherschool，aboutGeorgianna，aboutherdolls，aboutLonesome，thecat，andhowmanymicehehadcaught，aboutthebigsnowstorm。
“Georgiannawantedmetostayathomeandwaitforyou，UncleCy，“
shesaid，“butIteasedandteasedandfinallytheysaidIcouldcomeover。Icameyesterdayonthetrain。Mr。Tiddittwentwithmetothedepot。Mrs。PeabodyletmepeekintoyourroomlastnightandIsawyoueatingsupper。Youdidn\'tknowIwasthere，didyou？”
“YoubetIdidn\'t！There\'dhavebeenamutinyrightthenifI\'dcaughtsightofyou。Youlittlesculpin！Playin\'itonyourUncleCy，wasyou？Ididn\'tknowyoucouldkeepasecretsowell。“
“Oh，yesIcan！Why，Iknowaneversomuchbiggersecret，too。
