Show he r YIN G MERCURY by eleanor M ingram author of the game and the candle illustrations by RIY WALTERS by br C cot w continued from last issue CHAPTER V i there was a change la in the ffrench affairs a lightening of 0 the atmosphere a vague quickening and stir of healthful cheer in the days that followed the somber mister master of tho house bouse met it in balleys baileys undisguised elation and pride when they disguised the successful business now taxing the fac torys resources met it yet again in emiles pretty galety gaiety and content but most strikingly was he confronted with an alteration in dick it was only a week after his first morning ride with lestrange Les tranee that dick electrified the company at dinner by turning down the glass at his plate ive cut out claret and that sort of thing he announced its bad tor for the nerves his three companions looked up in complete astonishment it was saturday night and by ancient custom bat bal jey was dining at the house what has happened to you have you yoa been attending a revival meeting the young mans uncle inquired with sarcasm its bad tor for tile the nerves repeated dick there any reason reason why I 1 like to do anything other follows fellows do les that Is none of the men who drive cars ever touch that stuff and look at their nerve mr ffrench contemplated him with ith the irritation usually produced by the display ot of ostentatious virtue but found ho comment emily gazed at the table her red mouth curving in spite of all effort at seriousness youre right I 1 mr dick said ba bailey dryly stick to it and dick stuck without as much as a single lapse Ffrench wood saw comparatively little of him as time went on the i tillage and factory much lie ile lost some weight and acquired a coat of reddish tan emily watched and admired in silence she had not seen Le lestrange Lest ranga again but it seemed to her that his influence overlay all the life of both house and factory sometimes this showed so plainly that she believed sir air ffrench must see must led feel the silent force at work but either he did not see or chose to ignore and dick was incautious im going to buy one of our roadsters myself he stated one day can I 1 have it at cost air felt for his pinc enez you why do you not use the limousine De because cause I 1 dont want to go around in a box driven by a chauffeur I 1 want a classy car to run myself ive been driving some of the stripped cars lately and I 1 like it 1 I will give you a car it if you want one answered his uncle quite kind ly go select any you prefer thank you dick sat up beaming but ill have to wait my turn weve orders ahead now lestrange says met it yet again in emiles pretty gaiety and content ive no right to come la in and make rome other fellow wait mr ffrench ferench slowly stiffened we do not require lessons in ethics fr from oni this lestrange Lea was the cold rebuke 1 I shall telephone dailey to tend end t up your car at once rupert brought the six sixty ty horae borse pow or roadster to the door three h hours ours later and emily appreciated that le strange was discreet as well as compelling when she found the tha black eyed young was detailed to accompany dicks maiden trips which duty was fulfilled inel incidentally dentally with tile the one fine tact of a richelieu in may alay here chere was a still greater accession of work at the factory in addition the first of anne was nas to open with a twenty tour four hour race at beach track and lestrange was entered for it excitement was in the air dick came in the house only to eat and sleep le the day before the race mr rench walked into the room where his niece was reading 1 I want to see dailey bailey lie he said briefly do you wish to drive me donn don to the factory or shall I 1 have anderson Ana ereon bring around the gilmou sine alno please let us drive she exclaimed albing with alacrity 1 I have hava not fiot been to the factory tor for months very good you are looking well emily of late surprised a soft color swept the face she turned to him 1 I am well dear I 1 think wo we are all better this spring perhaps said ethan Ft his bitter gray eyes passed deliberately over the large room with all its traces of a family life extending back to Colon lal times but he said no more it was an exquisite morning too virginal for juno too richly warm for may when the two exchanged the sunny road for the f factory atory office a north room none too light it was a moment before their dazzled eyes perceived no one was present this wag baileys private office and its owner had passed into the room beyond 1 I will wait conceded mr ffrench dismissing the boy who had ushered them in sit down emily dailey bailey will return directly no doubt but emily had already sat down for she know the voice speaking beyond the half open door and that the long prevented meeting was now imminent irwill it will not do lestrange was stating definitely it should bo be reinforced its always been strong enough balleys baileys slower tones objected fo for years its not a thing likely to break not likely to break look at last years record mr bailey and teu tell me that A broken steering knuckle killed brook in indiana another sent little to the hospital in massachusetts the same thing wrecked the leader at the last deach beach race and dashed him through the fence do you know what it means to the driver of a machine hurling itself along the narrow verge of destruction when the steering wheel suddenly turns useless in tits his grasp can you feel the sick helplessness ness the confronting of death the compressed second before the crash Is it worth while to risk it fora bit of costless steel the clear realism of the picture forced a pause filled by the dull roar and throb through the machinery crowded building they nacre were not our cars that eliat broke any of them bailey insisted not our cars no but the steering knuckle of in my own machine broke un der my hands last 1 march larch on the rodd road and in if had been on a curne cune instead of a straight stretch there would have been a wreck As it was I 1 brought her to a stop in the ditch there is no other thing that may not leave a fighting chance after it breaks but bat this leaves absolutely none I 1 know you both know that the steer ing wheel is the only weapon in the drivers grasp it if it falls him be goes out and his with him ll 11 emily paled shrinking she remembered the road under the maples and Le laughing face as he leaned breathless across his bis useless wheel that was what it had meant then the lightly treated episode better fix it like he wants it advised dicks disturbed tones remember member He hes got to dive the car friday and saturday bailey not us its not alone for my racer im speaking but for every car that leaves the shop lestrange caught him up im not flinching ive driven the car before an and d I 1 will again it may hold bold for ever that part but ive tested it and its a weak point take the warn ing for what its worth there was a movement as it h hf rose with the last word emily lal gaii her hand band on the arm of the chair turning her excited dark eyes on her uncle surely it if ever mr ferench wrt wn to meet his manager this was the mo ment when Le ringing argei ment was still in their ears his eplen did force of earnestness still vibrant in the atmosphere suddenly she wanted them to meet passionately wanted ethan liking for or man uncle she aha began uncle but it was not Le light step that halted on tho the threshold why I 1 dijt know exclaimed exclaimed bailey bailer excuse mo me mr ffrench they tell mo you were down lie he glanced over tits his shoulder ae a 9 he pulled shut the door emily fancied she heard an echo as if 1 the two young ruen lett left the next room bitterly disappointed she sank back that was your manager with you mr ffrench frigidly inquired yes ho he went upstairs up stairs to see how the now new drill is acting bailey pulled out a handkerchief and rubbed his brow excuse me its warm yes he wants want 4 mo me to strengthen a knuckle hes spoken considerable about it I 1 guess hes bes right better too much than too little I 1 1 I do not see sec that follows I 1 should imagine that aou ou understood building chassis better than this racing driver you had best consult outside experts in construction before malting making a change uncle emily cried theres a twenty tour four hour race starts tomorrow night bailey suggested uneasily its easy fixed aid we might be wrong we have always made them this way yes but consult experts then atheni I 1 do not like your managers tore tone b he 0 Is too assuming now let me see those papers emiles parasol slipped to the floor with a sharp crash as she stood up quite pale and shaken uncle mr lestrange Le knows she appealed you heard him sa say what would happen please please let it be fixed amazed mr air ffrench looked at her tits his face setting you forget your dignity ho retorted in displeasure this Is mere childishness emily men will be consulted more competent to decide than this lestrange that will do from one to the other she gazed then turned away 1 I will wait out in fit the cart she said 1 I 1 I 1 would rather ite be outdoors dick ffrench was upstairs up stairs stand ing with lestrange in one of the nar row aisles between lines of grimly et ef machines that bit or cut theli their way through the steel and aluminum fed to them when rupert came to him with a folded visiting card miss aliss ffrench sent it was the ex ashes sitting out in her horse motor car and she called me off the track to ask me to demean myself byseit by acting like a messenger boy all right all right said dick running an astonished eye over the card no answers answer 9 no answer then ill hurry back to my embroidery brol dery im several laps behind in my work already see here lestrange estrange I dick began as the departed sitting down on a railing beside a machine I 1 U F ki V Z C 41 1 1 would rather be outdoors steadily engaged in notching steel disks into gear wheels dont do that lestrange exclaimed sharply get up ffrench its sate safe enough its nothing ot of the kind the least slip blip oh well he reluctantly rose it youre going to get fussy read what emily sent up lestrange accepted the card with a faint flicker of expression dick uncle Is making the steering knuckle wait for expert opinion the legend ran in pencil have mr air balley strengthen mr Le car anyhow do not lot let him race so near them two avio men were engaged 1 in bearings bealing passing ladle fills of molten metal carelessly back and forth and splashing hissing drops over the floor at them lestrange in silence after reading the card still in his band well dick at last queried stave air billey balley do nothing at all va ra deliberate dei berate reply there Is an ta tte of subordination I 1 be fall Is iq mr factory ive eoll my part and well think no tr arr 0 abr matter tn atter I 1 may be wrong buti am wore nore than grateful to miss french cli rats bats all youre going to do yes I 1 wieh iou would not sit there im tred tired I 1 wont fall in and I 1 wart to think weve been a lot together get er ti Is arle earing lestrange lc strange I 1 dont this boaire bis fp nebout the steering ger do oil HO go down to the beach tomorrow tonight tomorrow I 1 must put in practicing on the track I 1 would have beer down today it if there had bad not been so much to do here are you coming coni int with me or not until the evening of the start dick stirred lin uncomfortably comfortably 1 I dt dont want t come tit at all think thank you I 1 saw you race once you had better got get used to it lestrange quietly advised the day may come when there Is no one to take lour place this factory will be yours and ion will have to look after your own interests I 1 wish you would come down and represent tho the com pany at this race 1 I the head for it I 1 1 I do not agree with you their eyes met in a long regard here in the brov crowded ded room of workers the ceaseless uproar shut in their conversation with a walled completeness ot of privacy im not sure whether you know it lestrange leslrange but youve got cot me all stirred up since I 1 met you the young er man confessed plaintively youre different from other fellows and youve made me different id rather be around the factory than anywhere else I 1 know now but honestly I 1 like you too well to watch you race 1 I want mant you to come 1 I one of the men with a vessel of white leaving heaving molten metal was trying to pass through the narrow aisle dick broke his sentence to rise in hasty avoidance and his bis foot slipped in a puddle of oil on the floor it was mas so brief in happening that tha t only tile the workman concerned saw the accident As dick fell backward le strange sprang forward and caught him fairly snatching him from the greedy teeth there was aas the rending ot of fabric a gasping sob from dick and reeling from the recoil lestrange was sent staggering against a flying wheel next in line the workman set down his burden with a recklessness endangering further trouble active too late TO BE CONTINUED |