THEODORA.
 
 E, S H E, K 
 
 THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 BY 
 
 GERTRUDE POTTER DANIELS 
 
 ILLUSTRATIONS BY G. C. WIDNEY 
 
 CHICAGO 
 THE MADISON BOOK CO. 
 
 PUBLISHERS
 
 Eshek The Oppressor. 
 
 Copyright, 1902, by Rand, McNally & Co. 
 
 First edition ; all rights reserved. 
 
 Published by 
 The Madison Book Co.
 
 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 THEODORA, Frontispiece 
 
 HE ADVANCED CAUTIOUSLY TO MEREDITH'S SIDE, ... 48 
 
 " YOU POOR CHILD ! YOU POOR LITTLE CHILD !" ... 96 
 
 " GENTLEMEN," HE SAID, " MY SISTER," 160 
 
 HE FELL FLAT, ALMOST UNCONSCIOUS, IQ2 
 
 THE PAIR TURNED, ADVANCING ARM IN ARM 240 
 
 SHE STOOD AT HIS SIDE, A VISION REALIZED, .... 288 
 
 THERE WAS A CHANGE, AN EVIDENCE OF LIFE, . . . 336 
 
 2228446
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 It was Wednesday. Promptly at six o'clock, accord- 
 ing to his usual custom, Jarvis Kennedy presented 
 himself at the cheap restaurant where he dined nightly 
 for fifteen cents. The food was badly cooked, but 
 steaming hot and sufficient in quantity to satisfy the 
 boy's hunger. Usually it was the one hour out of the 
 twenty-four he looked forward to. 
 
 To-night, however, he had little thought for what 
 he ate or for the comfort the meal brought him. 
 The truth was, he had had a hard day of it. In fact, 
 ever since the Saturday before, when his period of 
 service at the factory ended, things had been hard. 
 
 He found no work; he suffered bitterly from the 
 cold. From early morning until late at night he wan- 
 dered aimlessly about the streets looking for a place, 
 trying to keep warm, lamentably conscious that two 
 dollars and a half was all that stood between him 
 and absolute want.
 
 8 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 Then the sudden change in the weather was a bad 
 thing for him. It had come on raw and wet, with 
 every indication of a protracted period of gloom. 
 Another week would see him literally turned out in 
 the street with winter at hand. Never before had 
 his prospects been so dubious. 
 
 Perched on a high stool before the counter, Jarvis 
 glanced out through the window every little while, 
 frowning at the weather. It was very comfortable 
 in there. Jarvis could almost fancy it was summer 
 again. For the first time all day, a pleasant warmth 
 pervaded the boy's body. He swallowed his food 
 slowly that he might remain inside as long as pos- 
 sible. The heat from a stove crammed full of coal, 
 maintaining the restaurant at a stifling temperature, 
 made him drowsy, and, by degrees, the only sensation 
 that remained to him was dread of the cold. 
 
 Never had he so hated to leave a place. He could 
 hear the wind outside whistling and roaring, rising 
 into a regular tempest. A fine, cold drizzle, almost 
 a sleet, had set in, beating sharply against the window- 
 panes. The night was dreary, cheerless, desolate be- 
 yond words. 
 
 At last when Jarvis could no longer make the least 
 pretense of eating, he arose with an effort, paid his 
 fifteen cents, buttoned up his coat and left the restau- 
 rant. It required all the boy's strength to walk 
 against the storm. He slanted his head to meet the 
 sudden, sharp gusts of wind, and before he had gone a 
 block he was wet through.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 9 
 
 On and on he walked with no destination in view, 
 nothing to look forward to better than a night at the 
 lodging-house and a scant breakfast picked up any- 
 where. He was cold, miserably cold, and wretchedly 
 unhappy. His feet were swollen and sore from the 
 miles of tramping he had already done, and all at once 
 a kind of wrath possessed the boy. There was some- 
 thing unjust about life. He had never been lazy, 
 never spent his earnings in tobacco or liquor. Was 
 it fair that, doing the best he could, he was still left 
 like this, with the collar of misery strapped about his 
 neck? 
 
 " I'll just have to hurry over to the lodging-house 
 and turn in," he told himself finally, his teeth chatter- 
 ing with the cold. But suddenly, on raising his eyes, 
 Jarvis found himself before the offices of the X. & Y. 
 Railroad. 
 
 The entire front was one huge window of plate- 
 glass and in the center hung a giant poster, flaming 
 with vivid greens and yellows, the picture of an 
 orange grove. It was a fine thing to see on such a 
 night. Jarvis edged his way nearer, forgetting the 
 cold in his desire to read what this advertisement re- 
 counted. 
 
 It announced an excursion to the West. A trip 
 from the Atlantic to the Pacific Coast in good cars, 
 in good running time, and personally conducted, for 
 the nominal price of $35 one way, $50 the round trip. 
 The route was traced on the white map with heavy
 
 10 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 blue lines. Jarvis could follow the journey from the 
 moment of leaving until the train landed its passengers 
 at either San Francisco or Los Angeles. The adver- 
 tisement gave all the details, ending with the words: 
 " The great West with its chances in every branch of 
 industry lies waiting for YOU. From the ideal work 
 of raising luscious fruits to the heavier labor of min- 
 ing, no department of labor is denied either man or 
 woman. Fortunes are won daily; a competence is 
 assured to all. Take this chance the one chance of 
 your life, perhaps of getting into that Paradise, 
 California." 
 
 Jarvis read and re-read. The very sound of the 
 words almost reconciled him to the freezing wind. 
 Although he was shivering all over, his nose blue, his 
 hands stiff, still he stood gazing at that one little orange 
 grove, picturing the land of eternal sunshine, in a 
 very ecstasy at the mere thought of such a climate. 
 
 It was very quiet. The streets seemed to be dead. 
 The storm had drawn a pall of silence over the en- 
 tire city. But Jarvis held to the place before the 
 window in a veritable dream. It was like being trans- 
 planted suddenly from the middle of the city that he so 
 feared and hated, away to a distant corner of the earth 
 where the sun was always shining and the flowers 
 always in bloom. His momentary revolt was gone. 
 A certain courage came to the boy. It was like a 
 picture of heaven. He could have watched forever. 
 
 All at once he gave a groan. His legs had become
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 11 
 
 so numbed that when he moved, sharp pains shot up 
 and down from his toes to his waist. 
 
 " I'll have to be getting back or I'll freeze here in 
 very sight of California," he said, trying to smile, but 
 his laugh fell to a sigh. His head whirled and a great 
 grief lay heavy on his heart. 
 
 Morning and night, for years past, Jarvis had 
 dreamed of an existence other than the one he led; 
 something beyond drudgery, constant toil, and a con- 
 tinual fight to stave off immediate starvation. But it 
 seemed as though the harder he worked, the deeper he 
 sank into the life that was crushing hope out of him. 
 Now, almost penniless, with no prospect of a position, 
 friendless, and alone, he was worse off than ever be- 
 fore, literally at the very end of the end. Was he 
 after all to die on the pavement, to drop down dead 
 of starvation in the streets? 
 
 He hurried on his way panting with exhaustion, 
 the wind lashing his face. The desolation that sur- 
 rounded him was complete. No one could have 
 recognized the street in the guise of such utter deser- 
 tion. There was something ghostly in the silence and 
 emptiness and the gray walls and flickering white gas- 
 lights that came and went under the shroud of rain 
 like grotesque shadows. 
 
 He walked faster. By the time he reached the 
 lodging-house he was stiff and sore and almost stupe- 
 fied with the cold. Before he could mount the long 
 flight of stairs to his room, he was obliged to warm
 
 12 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 himself at the office stove. Then he went up stiffly, 
 step by step, to the box of a place where he slept, 
 grateful for any shelter. 
 
 Outside the rain was pouring down, sweeping 
 against the windows in sheets of water. Jarvis crept 
 under the blanket with half his clothes on, drawing 
 his feet under him to get them warm. Then, huddled 
 up, his eyes wide open, he began to turn certain ideas 
 over in his mind. Something had to be done. There 
 were no two ways about it. He could no longer con- 
 tinue to live as he was living. He was almost worn 
 down by privation and the nerve-racking conscious- 
 ness of an ever-present struggle against odds too great 
 to be conquered. There remained to him nothing be- 
 yond a change of clothing, an old telescope, an over- 
 coat worn thin, and the two dollars and a half. 
 When that money was gone, how should he eat? He 
 might do without one suit, but that was all he had to 
 dispose of. Already, during many hours of each day, 
 hunger gripped him. Even if he managed without 
 a bed, sleeping out of doors in any shelter that was 
 available, he must find a way to food. It was a fight 
 against an arch enemy. 
 
 Terribly uneasy, all sleep forsook the boy. All the 
 dreams of what he meant to make out of his life 
 rose to mock him. Never had he believed that 
 the pursuit of poverty, begun when he was scarcely 
 more than a child, could last so long. It was as if 
 some fate had set a tireless watch over him, preventing
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 13 
 
 his escape from the hounding, haunting terror. More 
 than once it seemed as though luck had come, but at 
 the very instant when assured that now he could 
 throw off the fetters encircling him and his heart 
 warmed with hope, suddenly something happened. 
 All in a breath poverty closed in on him again, fero- 
 cious, implacable, triumphant. 
 
 So far Jarvis Kennedy had accepted what came to 
 him with the stoicism of a will that would not be con- 
 quered. Even to himself he acknowledged no de- 
 feat. Moreover, Jarvis had obtained for himself a 
 fairly good education, in his attempts to improve him- 
 self, even keeping in touch with current events, study- 
 ing the broader interests of life. By degrees he began 
 to have a hobby. On every hand he saw and heard of 
 the great warring factions, capital and labor. He 
 read eagerly everything on the subject that came to 
 his notice. He began to be almost morbidly inter- 
 ested, hearing in that one theme the voice of the entire 
 nation. In a vague way he caught notes resounding 
 from each side in a vast undertone of discord that must 
 some day unite in a glorious paean of harmony. 
 
 This question, gigantic as it was, became his per- 
 sistent thought. Occasionally, shutting from view the 
 conditions that surrounded him, he would picture to 
 himself an idealistic existence where a man was 
 judged for his worth, not his wealth. He liked to 
 believe, in a vast way which he lacked words to ex- 
 press, in a world governed by justness and brotherly
 
 14 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 love; where the inhabitants worked together in a 
 single great purpose; where no man lost his individu- 
 ality, nor yet forgot his obligation to the whole ; where 
 any resort to violence was unheard of and personal 
 enmity unknown. 
 
 Slowly Jarvis' ambition widened. He saw himself 
 at the head of such a colony. He went over and over 
 the scheme, in his imagination, working it out in de- 
 tail and at great length. It was not in any sense 
 a sentimentality. Instead, it was a complex but logi- 
 cal result of his cruel struggle with life. Young as 
 he was, Jarvis had battled for years to obtain the barest 
 necessities. There were no self-denials he had not 
 practiced, no privations he had not known. But 
 strangely enough, the boy's sensitive temperament 
 and delicate refinement, intuitive, natural, descended 
 upon him direct from his mother, had not been crushed 
 out by the sordidness of poverty. Instead, both charac- 
 teristics thrived, nurtured by those very dreams that 
 came to him. 
 
 For years the West had opened out before him as 
 the land for such an experiment. He told himself 
 that there all the conditions were right for a begin- 
 ning a founding of an empire where broad theories 
 and advanced methods should prevail. It was essen- 
 tially a country of great beauty, a land where large 
 possibilities opened up before hardy, honest toil. 
 
 All this unrolled itself in his thoughts, and in a 
 vague, nameless way he saw himself going hand in
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 15 
 
 hand with this era of promise; a sort of host on a 
 colossal estate. By degrees the dividing line between 
 romance and reality became finely drawn. 
 
 But, however much he lived in romance, realism 
 stalked persistently by his side, haunting every foot- 
 step. The exaltation of conquest, the vision of a new 
 movement, collapsed in face of the grim, unlovely bat- 
 tle of life. For all his vast ambitions, he was at the 
 very lowest ebb of existence ; gratifying the brute de- 
 mands of warmth, clothing, food. Between him and 
 his dreams these actualities crowded themselves, dis- 
 figuring by their very presence the roseate outlines of 
 the future he had given himself the task of bringing 
 into light and life. 
 
 As he lay in his bed staring wide-eyed into the 
 heavy darkness, the wording on that poster in the 
 railroad office came to him. Every sentence twitted 
 him with his hopeless ambitions. An abrupt chance 
 for going West had come to him; an excursion rate 
 cheap beyond anything he had ever thought of had 
 presented itself. But, for all that, never had the trip 
 been farther beyond his reach. The sum of $35 might 
 by care be saved in a year's time. Unless Jarvis met 
 with an unexpected piece of luck he despaired of pos- 
 sessing it sooner. It seemed as though one great op- 
 portunity of his life, of his emancipation, had leaped 
 within easy distance only to vanish again before his 
 very eyes while he stood by powerless. 
 
 Morning came, and with it a grim courage born of
 
 16 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 despair. He was up and dressed before daylight. 
 The rain had stopped, but everything was cold and 
 gray with gloom. The streets glistened with mois- 
 ture. The air, keen and penetrating, reeked with 
 dampness. Jarvis decided, after an early breakfast, 
 that he would go again direct to the X. & Y. office to 
 make sure that he had read the announcement correctly. 
 
 Once before that window the boy uttered an excla- 
 mation. He had not only read the advertisement cor- 
 rectly, but actually knew it by heart, word for word. 
 
 " I swallowed it whole, that's about the size of it," 
 he exclaimed, surprised at himself. 
 
 One thing only had he skipped, the date of the 
 departure. With a sudden sinking of his heart, the 
 boy discovered the train was scheduled to leave Satur- 
 day, the twentieth, at nine o'clock P. M. That meant 
 the following Saturday. This was Thursday. 
 There were three days, including the day already be- 
 gun and the Saturday of the start, a short time to 
 earn the price of the fare. 
 
 He left the window, his mind flaming with a thou- 
 sand impossible schemes, an undercurrent of despera- 
 tion working at his heart. 
 
 The streets were no longer empty, as on the night 
 before, but filled with passers-by, striding along rap- 
 idly, wrapped to the chin in heavy coats. Workmen 
 shuffled along in worn-out shoes, swinging dinner-pails, 
 looking very purple with the cold. Two masons with 
 no overcoats, their caps pulled well over their ears,
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 17 
 
 passed, talking in loud voices, gesticulating with large 
 gestures. A white-faced girl followed close after, her 
 hands tucked under her arms for warmth. Clerks, 
 cash boys, day laborers, a regular army tramped along. 
 Cabs, omnibuses, heavy drays covered the pavement. 
 At every moment the clamor increased. The march 
 of the workers continued. There was no merrymak- 
 ing in the air. The women and girls trotted by, half 
 running to make up lost time; the men silent, sullen, 
 jostled others out of their way, striding along with 
 their tools strapped across their shoulders, some carry- 
 ing their clothes folded under their arms. Most of 
 them were desperately poor, but all of them had work. 
 
 Jarvis was terribly oppressed. If only he had 
 work! Suddenly there was a diversion. Two girls 
 crossing the street had been almost knocked down by 
 the horses of an omnibus. Instantly there was a com- 
 motion. Voices shouted, there was the confusion of 
 calls and oaths. One of the girls fainted and was 
 helped into a drug store; the other very white, trem- 
 bling all over, straightened her skirts, put on her hat 
 and resumed her way speechless with fright, but de- 
 termined not to be late. After the trouble was well 
 over, two policemen appeared, assuming a command- 
 ing position and scowling heavily. 
 
 The groups of workers were thinning out. In their 
 places came the merry crowds of shoppers; well fed, 
 well dressed, very busy, making their way in and out 
 of the stores. And all day long the procession would 
 keep up; the streets mad with a swarming multitude.
 
 18 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 Jarvis went on and on, stopping now and then at 
 some congested corner, waiting a chance to resume his 
 walk. He was stooped with fatigue, pinched with 
 hunger, and his head swam. It was the longest, 
 dreariest, hardest day he ever passed. At dark he 
 crawled into his miserable bed, dog-tired, hopelessly 
 discouraged, feeling that he was facing utter annihila- 
 tion. 
 
 Friday dawned clear; the wind was milder. Jar- 
 vis resumed the old tramp, trying to formulate some 
 definite idea of what he would do. He dared not 
 look a day into the future. In spite of his plans, 
 there was little to be done, little to hope for. He 
 might get on a week if he used his two dollars care- 
 fully, but after that, what? The fighting, the starv- 
 ing, the grim battle of life taken up again at the same 
 point where it had left off. 
 
 " I've the rest of to-day and to-morrow until nine 
 o'clock before the excursion leaves. I'll take that up 
 first. I'll try hard for it. It seems as though luck 
 ought to come my way once, just once. But if I 
 can't get away, why, Monday I must look for an- 
 other job, that's all," he told himself, finally. Only 
 thus far would he look ahead. Beyond a few hours at 
 a time the prospect was overpowering.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 19 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Jarvis crossed the city, leaving behind him the fac- 
 tories and wholesale section and returning to the more 
 familiar quarters of the retail district. In appear- 
 ance Jarvis presented a sharp contrast to the ordinary 
 street boy. He was tall, well set up, with a firm car- 
 riage and an attractive face. His eyes were dark 
 brown, his forehead wide and high, his nose and chin 
 delicate, showing an unmistakable sensitiveness. One 
 looking at him guessed at his refinement, just as one ex- 
 pected him to be mentally quick and given to sudden 
 moods. The strong morning light showed lines in 
 his face that had no right to be there. His brows 
 were drawn closely together, his lips compressed. As 
 had been the case all night, he was alternately formu- 
 lating and dismissing plan after plan from his mind, 
 hunting for some solution to his troubles. 
 
 At a little before twelve o'clock he stopped on a 
 corner at the converging of four streets, fairly lost in 
 the confusion of the city's life. Penniless, he was 
 in the very center of riches; all alone, he was in the 
 heart of a multitude; in spite of that, there was no one 
 to help him. People seemed infinitely removed from 
 him.
 
 20 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 Taking advantage of a sudden lull in the traffic, 
 Jarvis moved across to an opposite corner, still aimless, 
 passing the wretched hours known so well to the home- 
 less, going forward or backward for no reason at all 
 except to move. But at this last stopping place the 
 boy's eyes caught sight of a wonderful exhibit. Be- 
 fore him was a jewelry store. A window filled with 
 a great display. Gems such as the boy had never 
 dreamed of confronted his gaze. Rubies in white 
 velvet cases, diamonds like miniature suns, sapphires 
 made up in exquisite designs, a collection of opals that 
 occupied two-thirds of the space. 
 
 The sight, so unexpected, stimulated Jarvis' imagi- 
 nation. Vividly he saw himself the owner of these 
 gems; removed from poverty; selling the jewels for 
 the benefit of that new era he would inaugurate. The 
 vision expanded before the eye of his mind. The de- 
 tails of possession were swept away. He saw only 
 the West; his completed achievement; his ideas an 
 assured success. More than that, to this new world, his 
 colony, flocked others, anxious to learn the system of 
 this magnificent undertaking. How gladly these 
 visitors were welcomed! He could hear himself de- 
 livering addresses, always friendly, always express- 
 ing brotherly love. On the instant, all the repressed 
 hope of months leaped up within the boy. He felt 
 elated. Great thoughts galloped through his imagi- 
 nation. Nothing should prevent his work! He 
 would find his place at last.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 21 
 
 As he reached this point, abruptly the boy was con- 
 scious of voices close to him. He looked up and saw 
 two ladies by his side. Like himself, they had with- 
 drawn from the crowd and stood almost touching the 
 window, very interested in the jewels. 
 
 Jarvis realized they were real ladies; graceful, ele- 
 gantly dressed, veiled and gloved, the scent of violet 
 strong about them. He could catch ends of their con- 
 versation about certain gems they had seen and com- 
 parisons made between those in the window and stones 
 in their own possession. Jarvis listened. The sound 
 of their voices, soft, low, refined, was still distinctly 
 audible above the roar about them. But in spite of 
 himself, their easy talk of wealth brought him back 
 with a wrench from his exaltation of the previous 
 moment. The new epoch suddenly flattened ridicu- 
 lously; his own part in the achievement became the 
 flimsiest absurdity. 
 
 He might dream and dream, but after all he was lit- 
 
 tie less than a beggar, winding along the mazes set for 
 
 the destitute; traversing mile after mile of pavement 
 
 with aching limbs and throbbing nerves, only to fall 
 
 finally by the wayside. 
 
 Sick and tired of everything, his mind swung like 
 a huge pendulum oscillating between high spirits and 
 intense gloom. A certain morbidness swept aside his 
 theories. He was seized with an overwhelming de- 
 sire to break the bounds of trying to do right. Why 
 not take up the other means of life ? Who was there to
 
 22 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 care what he did ! Did anything really matter so long 
 as a man was never found out? Suppose now he 
 should steal one of those rubies, for instance? 
 Would it be a sin for one who needed money as cruelly 
 as he? Already he was an outcast thrust aside by 
 everyone. He had nothing to lose, everything to gain. 
 How about crime when one was practically suffering 
 for necessities? 
 
 Jarvis' heart was bounding, his breath came short. 
 He began to argue this theory, becoming all the time 
 more and more muddled as to what was right and 
 wrong. It is difficult to proceed along a narrow path 
 when you are starving and one step aside means food. 
 
 The boy's body gave an involuntary shiver. He 
 looked about him with a narrow glance, half fearful 
 that his thoughts had spoken themselves aloud. The 
 roar of the city, the shuffling of thousands and thou- 
 sands of feet rose on the air. But for all the notice 
 that was taken of them, the universe might have con- 
 tained but three people, himself and these two grand 
 ladies who fitted -in so well with the show and riches of 
 this window. 
 
 The boy stood motionless. He wondered what he 
 was doing, what he intended to do. He seemed to be 
 living in some horrible dream. His temptation had 
 become an uncontrollable desire for evil. His whole 
 purpose concentrated itself on the one wish to get 
 money at any cost. The stones in that window were 
 out of the question, but with a curious, dumb conscious-
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 23 
 
 ness he had long since become aware of something 
 hanging to the belt of the lady next him. It fixed his 
 whole attention. Unwittingly he had found the means 
 he sought. 
 
 From under his lowered lids his eyes shot a glance 
 up and down the street. On the broad walk a veri- 
 table procession hurried by, each person apparently in- 
 tent on making his way through the throng more rap- 
 idly than his neighbor. No one was paying the least 
 heed to him or to the group near him. Rooted to the 
 spot, Jarvis looked down again at that swinging bag. 
 Toward what fate was it engulfing him? He hated 
 himself for the very thoughts that surged through his 
 mind. Everything grew red before his vision. 
 Again he began to argue, this time against himself. 
 His mind was working with lightning rapidity. But 
 there was no escape from this temptation. He lost his 
 strength of individuality, becoming in a sense dual. 
 At every turn the fact faced him that here was his 
 chance, the chance of getting away; the chance of a 
 future, the chance he had fought for, struggled for. 
 It was here, now, not to be missed. He was stuck 
 unless something happened soon. 
 
 The thought clanged through his head, every nerve 
 jangled in his body like grating bells. Suddenly ar- 
 gument ceased, the temptation had conquered. 
 
 He looked furtively and quickly from side to' side. 
 Then his hand went out steadily, stealthily. Not a 
 finger quivered. Horror and terror danced madly be-
 
 24 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 fore the boy's dazed senses, yet that hand, firm, un- 
 erring, went on its way. 
 
 It was over in a minute. Jarvis turned away easily, 
 almost jauntily, with both hands shoved into his trou- 
 sers pockets. He even paused, looking up and down 
 the street as if undecided which way to go. An ap- 
 proaching car settled the matter. He waited quietly 
 and when it came up swung on the platform. 
 
 He saw vaguely that there were two persons inside, 
 also in a dim way he was conscious that a man fol- 
 lowed him onto the car, and that the new-comer stood 
 outside. But neither observation made much impres- 
 sion. Trembling and weak, his strength gone from 
 him with a bound, Jarvis sat down hurriedly near an 
 open window, leaning his head on one hand. A great 
 sickness swept through him. He was no longer pos- 
 sessed of a duality. His mind was no longer slug- 
 gish. He was a thief, a common thief, a man who 
 had stolen from a woman! He who thus far in all 
 his battle with hardships had prided himself on his 
 honesty. Abruptly the years to come presented them- 
 selves to his mind. All the bigness of what he aimed 
 at; all the inspiration of his dream country where he 
 himself, by his own example, was to inaugurate a new 
 era of things; all his pride in being able to refer to 
 his hard past and how he had come through dis- 
 couragements and difficulties without a smirch on his 
 honor, all this had collapsed like a gigantic soap-bub- 
 ble. His complete unworthiness was proven. He had
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 25 
 
 been defeated in everything. His weakness and cow- 
 ardness were paramount. 
 
 The car went on and on. When the conductor 
 finally called " end of road," Jarvis started up, staring 
 stupidly. They were at the limits of the city. Before 
 him was a grove of trees apparently isolated. No- 
 where, as far as he could see, was there any sign of 
 a dwelling. A grateful hush brooded everywhere and 
 the boy's eyes fell hungrily on the little glimpse of coun- 
 try. It was very still. Two woodpeckers at work in a 
 hollow tree were all that disturbed the silence of the 
 wood. The dull roar of the city was shut out from his 
 ears at last, and in spite of himself the calmness 
 quieted the boy. 
 
 It was a relief to be alone. He liked the solitude; 
 he liked the fresh wind blowing across his face. He 
 liked the feel of the long, springy grass that spread 
 out under all the trees like a thick brown carpet. He 
 followed along the ragged edge of a path that led 
 through the grove, crossing it from end to end. But 
 in the center of the woods he stopped, sitting down, 
 leaning his back against a tree, for a long time mo- 
 tionless. A strange desire held his thoughts. He 
 found himself wishing that he could remain here for- 
 ever, all by himself, leading the life of a hermit. He 
 began to feel somehow that once away from this soli- 
 tude, he would be bitten with immediate suspicion, 
 ridden to punishment no matter how cautious he was. 
 What he had done could not be undone ; he understood
 
 26 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 that. Either hiding or flight from the consequences 
 was the only rational thing. But was he ever going 
 to feel free again in the midst of people? If there was 
 money enough in the bag, he would take the excursion 
 train. Once West he might be safe safer, anyway, 
 than here. But would safety, even in years to come, 
 obliterate his shame? 
 
 Jarvis pulled sharply at his pocket. With some dif- 
 ficulty the long, thick bag came out and the boy, turn- 
 ing it over between both hands, looked at it admir- 
 ingly. It was a curious and evidently very expensive 
 purse. It was made of green and gold cloth, heavily 
 embroidered, fastened by chains to a disk of carved 
 ivory. This disk was flat and polished to a high 
 smoothness, but it was this very piece of ivory that had 
 held the bag in place at the owner's belt. It had been 
 an easy matter for Jarvis to draw it out. The boy 
 wondered how a woman could be so careless of money. 
 Almost before he realized what he was doing, the purse 
 unclasped, opening wide, and his glance fell on the 
 contents. 
 
 He stared steadily, his eyes widening in astonish- 
 ment. It was filled with money; the bills fairly stuck 
 in place as though they had been crammed there in 
 a great hurry. There were one hundred dollars. 
 Bright, crisp, new bills just from the bank, six tens, 
 eight fives. Jarvis counted them over and over again, 
 holding the money in his left hand, passing it bill by 
 bill from right to left between the thumb and first fin-
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 27 
 
 ger of his right hand. He could not credit his senses. 
 Who would have thought of such a thing, such a find ! 
 It was unaccountable. The enormity of the theft was 
 lost under the weight of his surprise. His mind 
 whirled. 
 
 As Jarvis went over the bills the seventh time, he 
 stopped abruptly half-way through the performance. 
 His eyes lifted, and at the same moment his body be- 
 came rigid. Something had stirred on the turf di- 
 rectly behind him. Breathless, motionless, he listened, 
 trying to persuade himself that the sound came from 
 the trees or perhaps had been just his fancy. He had 
 had a trying morning. Naturally he was nervous. 
 There was nothing there. Just the grass and the 
 woods. 
 
 A minute later he turned sharply and looked up. 
 One fearful tremor shot up his spine, settling itself 
 somewhere in the base of his brain. He grew cold 
 as death. 
 
 A man stepped calmly from behind the trunk of a 
 huge tree. On the instant Jarvis realized that he had 
 been tracked, followed, caught. 
 
 Foster Meredith was a man past fifty, very tall, very 
 thin, his length accentuated by the ulster he wore. It 
 was a long, dark, funereal garment covering him from 
 his throat to his feet. His face was smooth shaven, 
 his eyes unsteady, his mouth thin and straight and pos- 
 sessed of certain lines and curves that could not be 
 mistaken. It was a mouth that said " Beware." But
 
 28 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 just now it smiled down at Jarvis with a faint expres- 
 sion of amusement. Without removing his cigar 
 from the corner of his lips, he remarked : 
 
 " M'boy, I'm onto you." 
 
 Jarvis' ringers closed convulsively over the money. 
 His lips were colorless and certain nerves in his body, 
 seemed to have become unmanageable; relaxing, then 
 promptly tightening again in an unaccountable manner. 
 
 " You've kept me waitin' for some time. I was be- 
 ginning to believe you hadn't much curiosity." Mr. 
 Meredith flicked the ashes from his cigar, then con- 
 tinued easily : " But I must say you done well. For 
 a kid you done very well. I couldn't a' got it much 
 slicker myself. But, m'boy, it won't do. I've got to 
 have it and I'm losin' considerable valuable time in 
 makin' this long 'daytour,' as the Frenchies have it. I 
 must make good, quick. So fork over. Hand it right 
 up. It's too much for a little feller to be out with. 
 Some wicked man might bat you over the head to 
 get it." 
 
 For the first few seconds of the man's speech Jarvis 
 looked at him stupidly, having no definite thought of 
 anything except that danger overshadowed him. At 
 the demand to hand over the money, however, the 
 boy's senses regathered themselves. On the moment 
 he lost all care of the right and wrong of his theft. A 
 man had seen him steal and the enemy had shown him- 
 self. Jarvis argued that unless things went in his 
 own favor, miraculously in his favor, not only was his
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 29 
 
 chance of the future gone, but he himself was lost ; his 
 liberty jeopardized. 
 
 Jarvis raised his eyes to Meredith's face. " I'm 
 glad you approve the way I took the money," he re- 
 marked courteously. " I should say that you might 
 be a good judge of such a performance. But don't 
 you worry about me. No wicked man shall take what 
 I have risked so much to get." 
 
 Meredith laughed indulgently . At the same time a 
 gleam came into his eyes. 
 
 " You make your 'daytour back again," Jarvis went 
 on, his voice hardening. " I shall not fork over any- 
 thing not one bill out of the whole roll." With a 
 sudden move he shut the bag. With equal alertness 
 he replaced it in his trousers pocket and jumped to his 
 feet. All this time his eyes rested on Foster Mere- 
 dith. 
 
 That gentleman had lost his mirthfulness and a 
 savage look crept into his eyes. " I can send you up 
 for this," he growled in a low tone. 
 
 " I doubt whether you would really care to run such 
 hazards with your own liberty." Jarvis thrust his 
 chin in the air. His manner tinged on the bravado. 
 Apparently he was very sure of himself. 
 
 Foster stepped nearer. " I advise you to stop this 
 monkey business and get a move on you damned sud- 
 den," he vociferated. 
 
 Jarvis' quick eyes saw the move that accompanied 
 the speech and he understood. If Meredith's hand
 
 30 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 reached his hip pocket, the possession of the weapon 
 that reposed there, loaded, cocked, ready for immediate 
 use, would bring matters to an easy finish. Before an 
 armed man what hope would there be! It would re- 
 solve itself into a situation of "stand and deliver." 
 Intuitively the boy's hand doubled. He had no fear, 
 no anger, and he acted purely from the promptings of 
 instinct. The sixth sense stirred in him at impending 
 danger and awakened to proclaim its warning. 
 
 Before Meredith's hand had gone half-way to the 
 danger point, Jarvis was on him, gripping the man's 
 arms, striking at his head, kicking at his legs. 
 
 On the instant Meredith was back at the boy, fight- 
 ing wildly to free himself, to get his hands loose for a 
 fraction of a second, long enough to reach his pistol. 
 
 The long coat flew about him. He turned and 
 twisted, scrambled and squirmed. His face flamed, 
 his hair, damp with sweat, matted on his forehead. 
 Once he slipped, falling half-way to the ground, re- 
 gaining his footing only by a tremendous effort. But 
 work as he would, nothing he could do, no power that 
 he could exert loosened the grip of Jarvis' hold. 
 
 Wheeling round and round one another, each still 
 hung on madly. Jarvis labored and struggled to over- 
 come his antagonist, vaguely wondering at such te- 
 nacity and quickness in so old a man. Staggering 
 under the blows that rained down on him, bruised, 
 battered, his ringers aching, his nails broken, Jarvis 
 grappled with his foe. He knew that once the man
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 31 
 
 was freed, once allowed to gain possession of that pis- 
 tol in his hip pocket, death, swift, certain, would follow. 
 
 First one man would be down, then the other. 
 No advantage had been gained yet on either side. 
 The sound of their fighting broke the stillness. There 
 were no words, no cries, only the irregular sound of 
 labored breathing, increasing into gasping inhalations 
 as the men grew tired. At intervals there would come 
 a short grunt, a little cry; once an exclamation from 
 Jarvis, again an oath from Meredith, but for the most 
 part nothing articulate came from the men's open 
 mouths. 
 
 A score of times there was a pause, a short ces- 
 sation of hostilities, when it seemed that the end had 
 come. But after drawing a second's breath they were 
 at it again harder than before, rushing at each other, 
 their heads down, two terrible figures of unconquer- 
 able ferocity. 
 
 The finish came suddenly. Meredith had raised 
 himself to his full height, catching Jarvis with one 
 arm about the neck. In a frantic endeavor to unfetter 
 his body from the boy's encircling arms, the man 
 wheeled sharply to the left. The long ulster twisted, 
 winding itself securely about Meredith's legs. With 
 a tremendous shock he came to the ground, bound 
 tight, with no chance to move, absolutely helpless. 
 Jarvis crashed down upon him unhurt. Almost in the 
 act of falling, he writhed loose of Meredith's clasp. 
 In the instant that ensued, the boy found his opportu-
 
 32 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 nity. A gleam of frantic joy lighted his face. He 
 had reached the point of utter collapse and he knew it. 
 Not thirty seconds longer could he have stood up. If 
 the struggle was not settled now against Meredith, he 
 himself would be crushed, annihilated, an easy victim 
 to this thin man. 
 
 Jarvis braced himself on one knee, his only idea to 
 stun his enemy. His hand closed, doubled hard and 
 white with the last grip his nerves could muster. 
 Straight, swift, unerring, his arm shot out. The fist 
 caught Meredith under the chin with the force of a 
 hammer. There was a crack, a quaver of the whole 
 body, a queer trembling sigh, and Meredith rolled over 
 on the brown wiry grass. 
 
 It was a blow delivered at the expense of all of Jar- 
 vis' remaining strength. Weak, panting, his clothes 
 torn, his face bloody, he sank back in a half faint. 
 He did not know whether he had won or lost. He 
 did not care. If Meredith had risen then and there 
 and pointed the revolver at Jarvis' head, the boy would 
 have made no move to save himself. 
 
 But Meredith did not rise. He did not even speak. 
 The time dragged on. The pleasant hush that brooded 
 by right over the grove had possession again. 
 After a little the woodpeckers, taking courage at the 
 prolonged quiet, went back to their endless tapping on 
 the hollow tree. 
 
 Jarvis' long, quivering breaths, that choked off short 
 in his throat almost before they were drawn, began to
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 33 
 
 give place to a more regular respiration. By degrees 
 his faintness passed. He looked about him stupidly, 
 for a long time unconscious that a steady stream of 
 blood trickled down his face from a cut on his head. 
 When he took out his handkerchief, mopping himself, 
 he was bewildered at the sight of a bright red stain. 
 The cloth was half soaked. It seemed as though the 
 cut would bleed forever. Every part of his body 
 ached. His mind was dazed, his thoughts chaotic. 
 If he had followed his inclination he would have sat 
 there forever. His arms hung loosely by his side, his 
 eyes searched helplessly on the ground, vaguely look- 
 ing for something. 
 
 Presently he sat up involuntarily, his exhaustion 
 overcome by sudden uneasiness. Something very 
 near him was making a strange sound. Was that 
 dreadful fight about to be renewed? Was Meredith 
 getting ready to begin another attack? 
 
 " I can't fight again. I can't hold my own another 
 minute. I'll just have to get away, to move before 
 he can begin the row. I'm done up." Jarvis whis- 
 pered to himself, his glance wandering furtively to- 
 ward the prostrate figure. 
 
 But what he saw reassured him. Meredith showed 
 no evidences of renewing hostilities. He lay as he had 
 fallen, half on his side, stiff, motionless. In fact, the 
 longer the boy looked at that figure, the more he stared. 
 The strange sound that had startled him was issuing 
 from the man's throat ; terrible, rasping, raucous, the
 
 34 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 breathing of a dying creature. It was an abominable 
 noise. 
 
 " He must be very tired, done up worse than I am to 
 breathe like that," muttered the boy. "Still I ought to 
 go. There's no telling, he may be playing for me. 
 I've got to go," he reiterated. 
 
 Mechanically he thrust his hand into his pocket. 
 IT was there. The thing for which he had stolen and 
 fought; the hundred dollars that stood between him 
 and his conscience. 
 
 He arose stiffly. The bloody handkerchief slipped to 
 the ground, falling close to Meredith, but Jarvis had 
 forgotten the handkerchief. Every step he took was 
 accompanied by sharp physical pain. Besides this, as 
 he advanced cautiously to Meredith's side, he saw 
 with a shock that the man's eyes were closed and that 
 his face was ashen. But worse than his appearance 
 was that loud, terrible sound coming from the open 
 mouth ; labored, agonizing, making itself heard sharp- 
 ly above the hushed noises in the grove. Occasionally 
 the body twitched, but that was the only evidence of 
 life the man exhibited. 
 
 Jarvis turned away sick with horror, trembling vio- 
 lently. " Pray God someone comes this way soon, 
 very soon! Someone who will give him help," mut- 
 tered the boy. 
 
 Jarvis started on his way. His legs were unsteady 
 and he made a complete circle of the grove before he 
 left for the open streets. All at once a change had
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 35 
 
 come over him. He was suspicious of every shadow, 
 his eyes seeing everything. " I'll bet something is 
 going to happen," he muttered ; " I don't feel just right 
 no, I don't feel right at all," he whispered. 
 
 He was sure that he was being tracked. He was 
 afraid to take a car, afraid to be seen by people, and 
 he walked miles out of his way to approach the city 
 by a circuitous route. The new suspicion of someone 
 hanging on his heels annoyed him incessantly. He 
 went on with great swiftness, determined to distance 
 his pursuers, and once within the city's limits, he con- 
 tinually doubled on his tracks, looking sharply over 
 his shoulders at the sound of any step behind him. On 
 all sides he listened panic-stricken for talk of a rob- 
 bery. But everything was quiet enough. He con- 
 tinued his way unmolested, apparently unnoticed, but 
 tremendously anxious for all that. 
 
 It was dark before he had the courage to enter 
 the lodging-house. With unnatural cunning he had 
 prowled around the entrance, waiting a chance to go in 
 unobserved. Once inside his own room, he turned 
 the key, crouching close to the door, listening for un- 
 familiar footsteps. But no enemy showed himself. 
 And presently the boy, harassed with a thousand fears, 
 threw himself on his bed. 
 
 He was alone. The day was ended. His purse was 
 safe. But what the next twenty-four hours would 
 bring to him he dared not think. He had sacrificed 
 the right to his freedom. Had he cunning enough 
 to evade the law?
 
 36 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Jarvis was up and down half the night. He could 
 not sleep. He started at the very sounds that were 
 most familiar. The noise of his own breathing terri- 
 fied him. His only comfort was in the thought that 
 morning would see him getting out of town. He 
 would go away, anywhere ! He had killed all chance 
 of staying in the neighborhood of his robbery by that 
 fight with Meredith. 
 
 " He'll tell all he knows. He won't rest till I'm 
 nabbed. I'm sure of that," he said. " I've got to 
 clear out and not waste much time about it, either." 
 
 But where to go, that was the question. Where to 
 go and what to do. It had been bad enough to starve, 
 but to be chased, always chased, was terrible. Hour 
 after hour he turned these things over in his mind, be- 
 wildered, uneasy. Just as the dawn began to lighten 
 the eastern sky, the boy got out of his bed, going care- 
 fully about the room, satisfying himself that every- 
 thing was all right. Then he sat down by the win- 
 dow, wrapping a blanket about him to keep warm. 
 
 Never had daylight been so welcome. He drew a 
 great sigh of relief as little by little the first pale rays 
 of the sun pierced their way through the black pall in
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 37 
 
 the sky. Strangely enough, up to this time, Jarvis 
 had forgotten the excursion to California ; the trip that 
 was to settle his life; the trip that had cost him all of 
 these difficulties; the trip that until the episode of his 
 fight in the grove had occupied his mind to the exclu- 
 sion of everything else. 
 
 Suddenly it all flashed back on him. He started up 
 with an exclamation. That was it, of course. Where 
 had his wits been, anyway ! The train left that night. 
 It furnished the means for leaving town. During the 
 day he could manage to keep out of sight. Once he 
 was West, his enemy could talk himself sleepless, for 
 all the harm that would come. 
 
 He threw off his blanket and began to dress. The 
 impulse rose in him so strong to act at once on his 
 decision that he wasted no time. As he drew on his 
 clothes his plans took definite shape. 
 
 " I'll pack now," he told himself, " give up my room 
 and take my grip to the station. I can check it at the 
 waiting-room, then I'll go to the ticket office and buy 
 the ticket. That's the idea. On the street I can keep 
 my eyes open. If that fellow I fought can spy, I can 
 dodge. Sure. If he's smart, I'll go him one better. 
 The streets to-day and this time to-morrow I'll be 
 safe." 
 
 Every minute his spirits lifted. When partly 
 dressed, he took down his battered telescope and began 
 laying his things on the bed. He worked fast, empty- 
 ing drawer after drawer, shaking, smoothing, folding
 
 38 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 every garment. Fitting his two spare coats to the 
 space allotted them in the telescope took time and at- 
 tention. His best coat was placed carefully on a chair, 
 ready to be put on at the last minute. It was astonish- 
 ing how much stuff he had. Jarvis stood still in the 
 middle of the room, his glance shifting from the half- 
 filled receptacle to the pile of things still to go in. 
 
 He was without coat or vest, his suspenders swing- 
 ing over his hips. His hair ruffled and unbrushed 
 stood up roughly all over his head. His face was 
 badly bruised, and high up on his forehead was that 
 cut, red, swollen to the size of a small hen's egg. But 
 the sense of danger that had so beset him all night had 
 worn off. He felt comparatively easy. 
 
 "If anyone had told me I had as much as this ! 
 Where did it all come from ? It'll take a pressing ma- 
 chine to stamp it in there." 
 
 He began over again, taking out everything that was 
 already in, beginning this time with the pile left on 
 the bed. In the midst of this proceeding, the city be- 
 gan to waken to its work. Everywhere the smell of 
 coffee permeated the atmosphere, and just as the 
 whistles were blowing for seven o'clock, a newsboy 
 took up his stand directly under Jarvis' window, filling 
 the air with his shrill voice. 
 
 At the first cry Jarvis wheeled sharply and stopped 
 his packing, straightening up rigidly. He listened. 
 Every word of the shouted sentences smote his brain. 
 But the very distinctness with which he heard stunned
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 39 
 
 him. He waited for the repeated cry, his head 
 cocked, his ears pricked, standing in the attitude of 
 strained attention. He was white about the lips. His 
 face grew paler and paler. At close intervals the 
 newsboy below shouted : 
 
 " All about the mysterious murder ! Get your 
 paper. Here you are : all about the mysterious mur- 
 der. A man found dying in North Grove. Can't 
 describe his assailant. Here you are. Get a paper. 
 All about the murder at North Grove ! " 
 
 Jarvis grew very cold. He did not doubt the truth 
 for one moment. His throat was rent by a suppressed 
 cry, his hands were raised before his face as if to 
 ward off some terrible blow. "What was that? 
 What is he saying? What is it?" he repeated mechan- 
 ically over and over again. 
 
 With his knees bending under him and without 
 knowing what he was doing, the boy crossed to the 
 window. He opened it quietly and leaned far out over 
 the casement. He was like a ghost. His mind 
 seemed leaving him. He trembled until his body 
 danced. 
 
 Yes, no doubt about it, a murder had been com- 
 mitted. Farther down the street he could hear the 
 prolonged cries of other newsboys, all shouting out 
 the same information. To his mind he was sur- 
 rounded by yelling accusers. He saw them every- 
 where, listened to them everywhere. 
 
 There had been a murder up there in that grove. It
 
 40 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 was no mere coincidence. Small wonder these streets 
 resounded with cries that were aimed at him. His 
 last hope had crumbled. Before his vision every inch 
 of the place stood out with sudden vividness. The 
 tall trees, stripped of their leaves ; the solitude and iso- 
 lation; the long, wiry grass, browned by the frosts; 
 the noise of those woodpeckers at their incessant 
 rapping. And in the clear space, prostrate, stretched 
 very deathlike and cold, was that long, thin man 
 breathing with the terrible sound. 
 
 Jarvis shuddered. " My God ! " he whispered, 
 " My God ! " Falling on his knees he was shaken 
 with such misery as he had never before known. 
 
 An hour passed. His mind was going ahead in 
 leaps and bounds. He no longer saw himself trying 
 to escape the penalty attached to theft, but pictured 
 out a dreadful future, the end of a criminal, a mur- 
 derer! All his plans were abandoned. His packing 
 was forgotten. He was afraid to leave his room, 
 afraid to be seen. He decided on a dozen different 
 things in a dozen different minutes. 
 
 Towards noon he believed the best course was to 
 stay quietly indoors until dark. If he could pay his 
 bill and leave the lodging-house in safety, the chances 
 were excellent for his getting away. Once on the 
 train, he had little to worry over. But hope of escape 
 brought no freedom from the horror that had fastened 
 itself upon the boy. His face took on a haunted look. 
 Vaguely he saw danger closing in on him from all 
 sides.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 41 
 
 In the early afternoon the sky darkened. It began 
 to rain. A fine, cold drizzle at first, covering the win- 
 dow, dripping incessantly from the eaves. Jarvis 
 watched the storm, his imhappiness increasing with the 
 titter cheerlessness. He was faint from hunger. His 
 courage was gone. Hope was lost. He had stolen 
 and murdered, yet never for a moment meaning to do 
 either. He had nowhere to go, no one to help him. 
 He stood facing the world with a double crime hung to 
 his shoulders, a dead weight that he would never be 
 permitted to lay aside. He, who had never willingly 
 hurt a living thing, was a murderer. He, whose one 
 ambition was to bring about some Utopian plan of 
 life, was a thief a stealer of women's money. 
 
 Completely unnerved, he gave way to his grief. 
 Tears filled his eyes, dropping slowly down over his 
 cheeks. After a long time he raised his head, choking 
 back his sobs. It was dark and nearly time for him to 
 be making a move, to be going on his way and taking 
 his chance of getting out of the city. 
 
 The boy resumed his delayed packing. When at 
 last he stood ready to go, his hat and coat on, the tele- 
 scope closed, strapped and in his hand, he gave a final 
 look about. Nothing was left behind. He unlocked 
 the door, turned off the gas, and, peering into the corri- 
 dor to see that it was empty, Jarvis started. In his 
 heart he had little hope of getting out of the house. 
 He believed already he was stamped as a criminal. 
 His trip down the hall and through the streets was like
 
 42 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 the fleeing of a terror-stricken animal. He turned 
 every corner wide, his head in the air. The suspense 
 of the thing was terrible, but to his utter amazement 
 not a suspicious glance was cast his way. 
 
 In spite of this, once outside, a desire to run hounded 
 him so insistently that he fought himself to keep at a 
 walk. The distance was interminable. It seemed as if 
 he would never arrive at the station. He wanted to get 
 on, get rid of crowds, get away from the haunts of 
 men where the very stones in the streets proclaimed 
 him a murderer. 
 
 He settled himself on the train, breathless, ex- 
 hausted, his nerves on edge. Immediately he wished 
 he had not come so soon. He should have waited until 
 the last second ; after all possibility was gone of any- 
 one's following him. It would be a simple matter to 
 trap him, boxed up in a car like this. If he had had 
 any brains, any forethought, he would have hung 
 around like a sightseer, then swung on the train when 
 it was in actual motion. The deception would have 
 been masterly. 
 
 The boy fretted and fumed. He saw in every ar- 
 rival a probable spy. Every face turned in his direc- 
 tion alarmed him. He was certain his own foolish- 
 ness was bound to be his undoing. 
 
 But the train finally got under way with him still a 
 free man. Then Jarvis took courage. He settled 
 back in the section ; later he bought a paper of the news 
 agent. He had wanted that paper all day long, but
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 43 
 
 had been afraid to buy it. He could hardly wait to 
 find out what really had happened up there in that 
 grove after he left. But after the purchase, Jarvis 
 could not bring himself to read. He pretended to look 
 over the headlines, then he tucked the sheet into his 
 pocket and sauntered up ahead into the smoking-car. 
 "When his berth was made and he was shielded by the 
 heavy curtains from the gaze of the passengers, he 
 opened the paper wide. 
 
 It was all there. With a gasp he realized that. He 
 read the details of the grove, the description of the man 
 with the ulster. The paper gave his name as Foster 
 Meredith. He had been discovered alive and con- 
 scious, but helpless. Once at the hospital he had asked 
 for paper, pencil, and envelope. With great effort 
 he had written a few lines, then with much secrecy in- 
 closed in the envelope something that he folded care- 
 fully. He offered the information that he was sending 
 a keepsake to his brother and insisted that the letter 
 go undisturbed, protesting that it had no bearing on 
 the case; that it was purely personal and as such 
 should be respected. But the authorities had kept the 
 address on the envelope. The editor had secured the 
 same. It read, " Gilson Meredith," and the destina- 
 tion was a little town in California. The article con- 
 tinued : " Shortly after writing, the man lapsed into 
 a stupor. He died late the same afternoon without 
 furnishing any working clue as to his murderer. All 
 he said on the subject was that he had been hurt in a
 
 44 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 fight begun by an unwarranted attack upon him from 
 an unknown* man. Detectives have been put upon the 
 case, but they acknowledge there is little to go upon, 
 although they are hopeful something may develop 
 shortly." 
 
 That was all, but it was enough. There was no 
 possibility of doubts now. Jarvis put the paper down. 
 He had learned a good deal, but what had that en- 
 velope contained ? The envelope directed to a place in 
 California, the state he himself was headed for. After 
 all his precaution, it seemed that he was literally walk- 
 ing from the frying-pan into the fire. Was it not more 
 than probable that this Meredith would give to his 
 brother information he withheld from the police? 
 
 Jarvis argued that the circumstances leading to the 
 fight could hardly be told by the dying man without 
 seriously involving his reputation. Reason enough 
 for him to keep still before the authorities. But with 
 his own brother it was a different matter. Probably 
 he had written the details in the letter. Details that 
 later could be used to run the boy to earth. Yet here 
 he was with his eyes open, heading straight into the 
 trap. 
 
 The boy shook his head. His eyes narrowed. 
 " Not much ! " he whispered, between his set teeth. 
 " I never meant to kill him, but as long as I've done 
 it, I'll see the thing through. And win yes, win. 
 I'll make a stand against whatever it is that's playing 
 me so hard. I'll fight for my freedom till hope is
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 45 
 
 gone, all gone." Life had suddenly become sweet to 
 him, sweeter, more to be desired than ever before. 
 
 For four days the excursion train rolled on toward 
 the southwest, plunging through the country, herald- 
 ing its approach with warning shrieks of danger. On 
 the afternoon of the fourth day the aspect of the coun- 
 try changed. From the flat, level surface of prairie 
 land, mountains suddenly appeared on the horizon, 
 group after group, bounding the entire section with a 
 seemingly impassable barrier. Still the train pushed on 
 its way, twisting, turning, rounding sharp curves, its 
 progress unimpeded. 
 
 Hourly the landscape became more desolate. By 
 degrees even the crude civilization of the prairies was 
 lost. Solitude and desolation marked everything. 
 Then all at once the desert lay spread before them. 
 Miles upon miles of barren sand and dust, broken 
 here and there by deep canons or an occasional crest 
 of rocky formation, a vast sink of white alkali, a ter- 
 rible valley of death. As far as the eye could reach 
 there were no living things, no semblance of human 
 habitation. 
 
 The air that had grown continually warmer now 
 became motionless. Jarvis, sitting close to the win- 
 dow, mopped his face. It seemed to him that he 
 could scarcely breathe. His throat was gritty, his 
 mouth parched, but for all the discomforts, that desert 
 exerted a strange fascination over him. Its loneli- 
 ness, its measureless leagues of dazzling white surface,
 
 4G ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 expanding and widening into the distance for miles 
 and miles, brought a sensation of security. Even 
 water had been left behind here, every drop of mois- 
 ture dried up by the broiling sun. 
 
 Close to the track, following it with barely a swerve 
 to right or left, was the long trail through the region. 
 It went on and on receding towards the horizon, in- 
 hospitable, sun-cracked, openly vengeful against in- 
 truders. As if in proof of this, all along the edge of 
 the road lay skeletons of animals, and bones whitening 
 under the incessant sun, taking on the semblance of 
 the alkali. Once they whirled by the wreck of a 
 prairie schooner. Jarvis shuddered. " I wonder what 
 happened, whether the people died, or went back, 
 or were picked up by someone," he muttered. 
 
 The fine white sand swept in blinding clouds through 
 the cars. The heat was all but unendurable. By de- 
 grees even the endless trail grew fainter as if dis- 
 couraged at the prospect that lay before it. But the 
 train raced westward, undaunted, unmastered, and 
 Jarvis stared out of his window. 
 
 " I should think it might be possible to work back 
 without crossing this place. Go around by those hills. 
 There ought to be water up there," he told himself, 
 his eyes wandering to the peaks barely outlined against 
 the darkening sky. Vast naked hills, unlovely and un- 
 inviting, but carrying with them the possibilities of 
 moisture and shade. 
 
 " This country is safe. The very look of it would
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 47 
 
 stave off detectives. They wouldn't dare follow me 
 here," he thought, his mind flying back to the city and 
 to the men who were " to look up his case." 
 
 Then and there the boy resolved on a plan of action, 
 which had not occurred to him before. It involved a 
 tedious, trying, and perhaps serious journey, but a 
 trip that, once accomplished, meant absolute safety. 
 He would throw his pursuers off the scent by leaving 
 the train before it reached its destination. He could 
 go without saying a word to passengers or trainmen. 
 Free of this excursion, he would work his way back 
 out of California into Arizona or even Texas if he had 
 luck. Avoiding railroads, except as they served for 
 a guide, he would cross the desert. Hardships would 
 be a positive relief, knowing that the farther he went 
 on his way through that basin of sand and dust, the 
 surer he would be of getting beyond all reach. 
 
 The prospect pleased the boy immensely. Once set- 
 tled, he would adapt himself to new conditions. The 
 old ambition would reassert itself ; the idea of the fu- 
 ture with its Utopian schemes would yet be brought 
 forward. Yes, it was a great idea. Those Mere- 
 diths should not be his undoing. 
 
 Volcano Springs was passed, then Frink and Dur- 
 mid. It had grown dark. The sun hung low in the 
 horizon, the distant rocks lay against the sky like a 
 line of black clouds. But the air had become delicious- 
 ly cool, almost exhilarating. 
 
 " The next place I'll get off. The very next sta-
 
 48 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 tion," Jarvis told himself, poring over his folder. 
 " Salton five minutes' stop," he read, nodding his 
 head. The place presented no definite idea to his 
 mind, but it would do. " Yes, I'll get off there at 
 Salton." 
 
 He collected his things, carefully repacking his tele- 
 scope. He brushed his hat and clothes and shook out 
 his overcoat. Then he went into the men's wash- 
 room, cleaning the cinders and dust from his face, 
 hands, and neck with a great splashing of water. 
 
 The engine had whistled for the stop before Jarvis 
 was all ready. When the passengers had filed out of 
 the car, marching up and down the platform for a 
 breath of fresh air, Jarvis picked up his belongings. 
 He walked through the train to the last car. There 
 he waited. 
 
 As the conductor cried, " All aboard ! " the boy 
 stepped off unnoticed in the scramble and rush. The 
 porters began taking up the steps. The signal to go 
 ahead was given to the engineer. Jarvis felt the vi- 
 bration of the rails as the train started up. The great 
 cars swung along, gaining momentum with every turn 
 of the wheels, sliding along the final stretch of desert. 
 
 To the boy who watched, it seemed a veritable thing 
 of life, a long, coiling serpent of heat and smoke and 
 motion, shaking its head in deadly anger, belching 
 forth steam and fire, ready to strike its venom into 
 anything that sought its hindrance. 
 
 Long after the roar had diminished to a faint mur-
 
 
 Ill-: ADVAXCKI) CAUTIOUSLY TO MEREDITH'S SIDE. Pu.nv 34.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 49 
 
 mur, Jarvis could still catch the gleam of the two sig- 
 nal lanterns on the last car. But finally he turned. 
 There was no longer anything to be seen save the 
 illimitable waste as far as the gaze could travel. 
 
 A sense of melancholy fell over him. It was as if 
 with the disappearing of that excursion train he had 
 cut himself adrift from everything, people, home, 
 country, even his own individuality.
 
 50 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Salton might well have stood for the terminus of the 
 world. It was a one-street town, very lonely, very 
 desolate, with a hotel, post-office, drug store, livery 
 stable and two bar-rooms for its principal buildings. 
 
 On Jarvis' arrival at the hotel, where for some un- 
 accountable reason he registered as J. Jarvis, Texas, 
 he went directly to bed. Not for a week had he slept. 
 His mind ached with thinking and trying to plan his 
 way through the coming months. He settled himself 
 in his blankets with a big sigh of comfort. He was 
 not afraid to-night. But it was the first night since 
 the crime that he had not suffered miserably. Now 
 he was literally out of the world, in a strange place, 
 surrounded by strange people. North, south, east, 
 and west lay the stretch of land everyone avoided. 
 There was nothing, absolutely nothing to fear. 
 
 Through the whole night he scarcely stirred, but at 
 daylight the intense silence wakened the boy. He sat 
 on the edge of his bed dressing slowly, wondering how 
 he would spend the day. From his window he could 
 see a group of saddle-horses fastened to trees and 
 posts. Homely, hardy creatures, each one carrying a 
 heavy Mexican saddle, clumsy, complicated, very
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 51 
 
 elaborate, with a long lariat coiled over the high front 
 pommel. 
 
 As soon as he was dressed he went down to break- 
 fast. The dining-room was small and bare. One 
 long table ran crossways the width of the room. 
 Very hungry, Jarvis took his seat, interested beyond 
 words in what he saw. Miners, cow-punchers, cattle- 
 rangers, sat all around him. Relics of a famous epoch, 
 the last remnant of a picturesque, romantic West. It 
 took no imagination to behold in each man the hero 
 of some hair-raising adventure. Their very clothing 
 smacked of melodrama. The bright-colored shirt, 
 low in the neck, a handkerchief knotted about the 
 throat; the heavy cartridge-belt strapped around the 
 waist; a pistol-holster on the thigh holding a six- 
 shooter loaded, cocked, ready for instant use; hairy 
 trousers falling low over big boots heeled with spurs 
 of solid silver, long, sharp, cruel, clanking at every 
 step. 
 
 Every man of them breathed the chivalry of the 
 plains. It was romance that surrounded Jarvis. Ro- 
 mance hobnobbing with him over the plates and cups. 
 
 These chevaliers took breakfast by assault, talking 
 little, eating noisily, disdaining napkins and forks. 
 When anything was said, it concerned round-ups, 
 wonderful strikes back in the hills, stray cattle, or some 
 fine steer recently killed on the tracks. 
 
 Jarvis watched his neighbors covertly, listening 
 curiously to hear the exchange of phrases. Not until
 
 52 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 these men had drawn away from the table did the boy 
 notice the little group on his left. For fully ten sec- 
 onds his eyes rested on them, and at the sight he felt 
 a sudden shock. There was nothing theatrical there. 
 One glance, and the air of romance that had tingled 
 through the boy's nostrils gave place to a sobering 
 breath of reality. 
 
 There was trouble here, trouble for which there 
 was no relief. One had no need to ask what; nor 
 was there a person in all Salton who did not know the 
 story of this father, mother, and little child. Although 
 the three had been in the place less than a week, the 
 circumstances of their coming had been enough to 
 make the Crossleys subject for current talk 
 
 They had driven into town one night from out of the 
 desert long after dark. In the middle of the street 
 one horse collapsed, the blood pouring from his eyes, 
 unable to stand. In the wagon John Crossley lay bleed- 
 ing his life away from a prolonged hemorrhage that 
 the wife had not been able to check. A poor, little, 
 white-faced woman, trembling on the verge of a swoon 
 from terror and the violence of her grief. 
 
 Afterwards she was never quite clear just what had 
 happened. She only remembered vaguely John's sud- 
 den prostration, miles away from help. The sight of 
 that red blood trickling from between his white lips 
 would live forever in her vision. She recalled her 
 frantic endeavors to check it, the fearful drive through 
 the sand and heat when it seemed that John could not
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 53 
 
 live, nor the horses survive the strain of such a gait. 
 Still she raced them on, defying every obstacle, even 
 death itself, in her determination to get help for her 
 husband. 
 
 From the doctor the people heard the story; not 
 only of that drive, but of the trip from California to 
 Arizona, across that burning desert, with its one faint 
 trail marked in the merciless alkali. The family had 
 only a wagon for shelter because they had no money 
 for railroad fare. It was a desperate journey, under- 
 taken as a last chance for saving the man's life 
 
 The first intimation of her husband's serious condi- 
 tion came to Janet Crossley with the shock of a great 
 calamity. She looked up at the doctor, her eyes big 
 with anxiety, and when he had told her all he had to 
 say, she sat speechless; the great silence that invari- 
 ably follows doom, widening about her. 
 
 There was one chance only one, but worth trying. 
 Arizona air might heal if once he could be gotten to 
 that state. For a long time she remained motionless 
 by the open window, staring across the country with 
 unseeing eyes. But when at last she came to herself, 
 seeming to waken from out the dream years of past 
 happiness into the present of anxiety, a fierce courage 
 possessed her. She showed a superb conviction that 
 John would improve directly the start was made. 
 Nursing, good care, no worry, combined with change 
 of air, would make a new man of him. She was obsti- 
 nate on the point of saving him ; bound that his lungs 
 would mend in the proper climate.
 
 54 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 i 
 
 The news of the Crossleys' trouble made a commo- 
 tion in the neighborhood. The women came in to 
 nurse him hours of every day, while Janet packed. 
 Fortunately just at this time had come a chance to dis- 
 pose of the little ranch. The price offered was absurdly 
 low, but Janet did not hesitate. 
 
 The thought of leaving her home was one long 
 agony. Everything in the house and outside, for that 
 matter, was a personal friend. Her heart nearly broke 
 at the idea of separation. All her past Happiness rose 
 like a ghost to emphasize her present wretchedness. 
 
 How well she remembered when first they had come 
 to this home together!- They had been so contented, 
 working all day long to set things right, seeing a great 
 future in their ranch. She had loved every piece of 
 furniture, every kitchen utensil, every vine and tree 
 and shrub. They were part of her own family, but 
 now she was to leave them all. Someone else was 
 to have them, someone who would never care for 
 them, or look after them, or love them as she had done. 
 
 Night after night when she was sure John slept, 
 Janet, fairly sick with unhappiness, sobbed out her 
 grief. But she guarded her tears jealously. In his 
 presence her cheeriness was infectious. She was con- 
 tinually finding circumstances that demanded expres- 
 sions of gratitude. It was providential, for instance, 
 that she and John owned two strong horses; that the 
 wagon was big enough to hold the three of them with 
 the things necessary to make them comfortable.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 55 
 
 During all the weeks of the trip, if there were any 
 doubts in her mind whether the change to Arizona 
 would benefit her husband, at least John never saw 
 them. Once, on a day when he seemed a little better 
 and stronger than for weeks past, a reaction came over 
 her. She went away hurriedly by herself, " for a 
 walk," she said. But in the freedom of complete soli- 
 tude she gave way, her face bathed in tears, her 
 body worn out with excessive fatigue. But greater 
 than her anxiety was her revolt against what she knew 
 was inevitable. Flinging out her hands in a great 
 pathetic appeal, she cried aloud to God to spare John 
 though all else was taken. 
 
 She came back calm, smiling, no evidences of her 
 grief visible. She climbed into the wagon, picked up 
 the reins and drove on, singing, talking, planning great 
 things for their future when he was quite well again. 
 Nor did the man dream that her vitality was being 
 sapped to the source for him. 
 
 She did not tell Salton's doctor this part of the story, 
 but the man, looking at her gray-white face, under- 
 stood and shook his head. 
 
 " Have you ever had any trouble with your heart ? " 
 he asked, suddenly. 
 
 " I think it's broken," she whispered, yielding to an 
 impulse of confidence. 
 
 " Poor little woman," he said. " Poor little 
 woman ! " 
 
 But she smiled at him through the haze of tears: 
 " It will mend again when John improves."
 
 56 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 Less than an hour later the doctor, surrounded by a 
 group of men, recounted the whole affair. " It is a 
 question in my mind which of the two goes first. At 
 any rate neither one will be left behind long." 
 
 The pathos of the story moved every man who heard 
 it. Instantly the compassion of brotherly love was 
 stirred to the quick. Everyone had offers of help to 
 send. The liveryman took the two fagged horses to 
 his stable, doctoring, feeding, and caring for them free 
 of charge. The druggist asked the privilege of fur- 
 nishing all medicine necessary to the Crossleys; the 
 hotel proprietor offered them the freedom of his 
 house, lodging and board as long as they cared to 
 stay. All Salton stood ready, anxious to do what it 
 could to tide the Crossleys over their misfortunes. 
 
 " Oh, it is good in them. After all, sympathy and 
 kindness count most in the world," Janet told her hus- 
 band. He acquiesced feebly, nodding his head. 
 
 The Crossleys accepted the landlord's offer, eating 
 their meals at his table. When they came in to dinner, 
 Jarvis turned to them and spoke. Almost at once a 
 conversation ensued. Before the dinner was ended, 
 the boy and Theo had become great friends. The lit- 
 tle girl began a game. She would reach over unex- 
 pectedly, trying to get her hand on Jarvis' salt-cellar 
 without his knowing it. Just at the moment when 
 the stratagem seemed to be working, Jarvis would 
 turn, pretending to make a grab for her. Invariably 
 the little girl gave a nervous shriek of delight, jerking
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 57 
 
 back with her whole body, hiding her hands under the 
 table. Her laugh was so infectious, everyone shouted 
 with her. Immediately Jarvis turned sideways to the 
 table, his back to her, and the entire proceeding re- 
 commenced, repeated in detail. 
 
 The same night Theodora fell fast asleep during 
 supper, her head nodding over the arm of the chair. 
 When finally her mother picked her up, Jarvis whis- 
 pered, " Let me carry her to the wagon." 
 
 The mother smiled, handed over the baby and 
 turned to help her husband. The walk was not far 
 and it was taken in silence, but it was on the way back 
 that a new idea began to frame itself in the boy's 
 mind. He wandered about Salton, his thoughts still 
 persistent on the subject. He began to discuss it with 
 himself, and the longer he viewed the situation, the 
 surer he became that the scheme was an excellent one. 
 
 It concerned his joining company with the Cross- 
 leys, riding on in their wagon instead of walking back 
 as he intended. He could well afford to pay something 
 for this trip. More than this, he would be a help to 
 Mrs. Crossley in caring for the animals and looking 
 after her husband. He was even sure he could relieve 
 her at times of Theo. If they would have him and 
 could make room for him, he would do it. He would 
 run no risks. He would save himself a walk that, if 
 not wholly impossible, was yet heavy with dangers and 
 inexpressibly lonely. 
 
 Early the next morning Jarvis went to the proprie-
 
 58 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 tor, broaching the subject to him with an assumed in- 
 difference. He wanted to be certain this landlord 
 had no suspicions. But on the instant the man saw 
 in Jarvis' suggestion a furthering of the Salton good- 
 will. He clapped the boy heavily between his shoul- 
 ders, asserting his readiness to take the matter up per- 
 sonally and to arrange the thing with the Crossleys 
 at the first opportunity. 
 
 In the midst of their talk, Janet came to the door. 
 She stopped to say that her husband was asleep now 
 but had had a bad night. She had decided to continue 
 the journey that very day. She had been to see the 
 liveryman and found the horses were able to be driven, 
 provided they were not pushed too fast. John must 
 get through. She was afraid of these delays. She 
 told this to the two men, her voice tremulous with 
 emotion. 
 
 The landlord turned his gaze from the woman and 
 let it rest steadily on the boy beside him. Jarvis 
 flushed. He shifted his feet awkwardly. 
 
 "Mrs. Crossley," began the proprietor, oratorically, 
 " if we must lose you we must ; but it would make us 
 all, I speak now for every citizen in this town, it would 
 make us easier in our minds to know that someone 
 was with you, someone who could be a help in time of 
 need, a kind of strength for you to lean upon." 
 
 He was talking suavely. Mrs. Crossley looked up 
 surprised, very interested. " Your goodness to me, 
 to us, is something I shall never forget," she murmured.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 59 
 
 " Then let me ask a favor of you. This young man 
 here at my left has offered in fact, wants to go with 
 you in the wagon. I can vouch for his goodness and 
 honesty." Jarvis started nervously. " It might be, 
 Mrs. Crossley, you'd need someone, need help bad 
 at some stage of your trip. Could you take him 
 along?" The question was put. 
 
 But before Mrs. Crossley could speak, Jarvis said 
 quietly and with a certain delicacy, " I do not want to 
 be a burden, Mrs. Crossley. It is like this : I am going 
 in your direction. I intended to walk. If you have 
 room and will let me pay my way for the right to ride 
 with you, I shall be grateful. I should want also to 
 do my share of the work, to take the man's part in 
 everything that comes up. But I do not want the 
 mere fact of doing me a favor to influence you. 
 Please be quite frank in the matter." 
 
 Mrs. Crossley's lips quivered. She agreed at once. 
 What that offer meant to her no one would ever know. 
 There was not a single argument against it in her 
 mind. Already the dread of continuing alone on this 
 disastrous journey had eaten into her heart hour after 
 hour. She began to have a presentiment that her ex- 
 istence would drag out to eternity on the desert that 
 stretched out before her like a gloomy abyss, yawning 
 wide open, waiting to receive her in its depths. The 
 mere thought of companionship took away half the hor- 
 ror. Janet seized the boy's hand. A lump rose in her 
 throat, choking her so that she spoke hesitatingly.
 
 60 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 " I can't say much. The words won't come. You 
 don't know how I thank you for what you are doing. 
 Some time, later, I can tell you better what it means." 
 
 The quick color swept into Jarvis' face. Her grati- 
 tude stung him. If he had been alone, he would have 
 explained from shame that he was making use of her 
 misfortune to cover his tracks. Seeking protection 
 under the cloak of kindliness. He was inexpressibly 
 thankful when Mrs. Crossley turned away abruptly, 
 going into the dining-room. Nor did he see her again 
 during the morning. 
 
 The truth was, the boy kept closely to his own room, 
 for the sense of pursuit that had left him on his arrival 
 was harassing him again. " It's a good thing I don't 
 have to take trains," he muttered to himself. ' They'd 
 watch trains if they watched anything, but they will 
 never think of following a wagon wheeling across this 
 place." 
 
 It was nearly twelve o'clock when word came from 
 Mrs. Crossley that they would leave that very after- 
 noon, about four, if the hour suited him. At once 
 Jarvis explained to the proprietor. He paid his bill 
 and took his departure. A crowd had collected to see 
 the Crossleys off. When the party finally started, half 
 the population of Salton turned out to wish them good 
 luck, calling after the wagon, shouting messages, wav- 
 ing farewells. 
 
 The wagon worked its way slowly eastward, follow- 
 ing close beside the line of railroad track that stretched
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 61 
 
 away into the distance, on and on as far as the eye 
 could reach. Before many minutes Salton was left 
 behind, a faint dot on the horizon, losing itself by 
 degrees in the immensity of the great solitude. 
 
 The afternoon was magnificent. Not a cloud lay in 
 the sky. The sun, midway between the zenith and the 
 horizon, beat down on the baked earth, the atmosphere 
 laden with the heat from its rays. Occasionally the 
 party passed a few cattle; wild-eyed, timid creatures, 
 pitifully thin, grazing on the few hard tufts of sage- 
 brush. To Jarvis they seemed to be waiting slow 
 death from starvation. Once or twice a cowboy gal- 
 loped past, picturesque, gay, waving a salute as he 
 flew by, presenting a vast contrast to the desolate sur- 
 roundings. 
 
 But for all the primal loneliness, the evening was 
 beautiful. As the sun fell, the whole desert shim- 
 mered in a glow of wonderful color. The deep purple 
 shadows ran back until they met with the very sky it- 
 self, mingling into the pale blue of the heavens and 
 the rose pink of the setting sun. The great silence was 
 unbroken. This place, shunned by men, was shunned 
 alike by sound. There was not a breath of air, not a 
 rustle, not a movement. To Jarvis there was some- 
 thing splendid in this huge heat-scourged region, un- 
 touched by progress, untamed by civilization. He be- 
 gan to wonder if the earth here could vibrate to the 
 touch of man, if deep in its bosom there slept a re- 
 sponsive chord that might awaken to the caress of one 
 who understood its need,
 
 62 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 They made no stop until long after dark. Finally, 
 at nine the horses were unhitched, watered and fed; 
 then Jarvis, taking a blanket, spread it on the sand and 
 stretched himself full length on his back. Never had 
 he seen so many stars. They studded every inch of 
 the blue-black heavens. He stared and stared until 
 his eyes blinked with sleep, then he sat up to take off 
 his shoes and his coat. He resettled himself comfort- 
 ably, using the coat for a pillow, and almost immedi- 
 ately the boy fell into a heavy slumber. 
 
 By six o'clock breakfast was eaten and the wagon 
 under way again. The day was an exact repetition of 
 the preceding one. Not a cloud to be seen, the heat 
 increasing as the sun rose. Before long the horses 
 dripped with sweat, their flanks heaving with every 
 breath. 
 
 Jarvis held the reins. Beside him was Mrs. Cross- 
 ley with Theo in her lap, shading the child's face from 
 the glare of the alkali. In the wagon John Crossley 
 lay gasping for breath, helpless, motionless, his eyes 
 moving continually in shifting restlessness. 
 
 There was little talking. Sometimes Theo sat up 
 explaining at great length why she should drive, see- 
 ing exciting things in that monotonous waste, laugh- 
 ing with glee when the wagon lurched in the cracked 
 earth. But the tremendous quiet was awe-inspiring. 
 It took away all desire to speak. By noon the heat was 
 so intense a halt was made. Their lunch was eaten 
 and the horses cared for. But the animals were so
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 63 
 
 worn out that the rest was prolonged. It was nearly 
 four o'clock before it seemed safe to make a fresh 
 start. When night came, Janet said to Jarvis : 
 
 " We can't crawl along like this. We have gone 
 only twenty miles to-day. For John's sake we must 
 hurry. We must." Her eyes had a hunted look. All 
 the boy could think of was some animal at bay, run be- 
 yond its strength, waiting to receive its death-blow. 
 
 " We'll do better to-morrow, it will probably be 
 cooler," he said, easily. 
 
 But instead of growing cooler, every twenty-four 
 hours was more unendurable than the preceding twenty- 
 four. At every step they went deeper and deeper 
 into the heart of the desert. The water-holes grew 
 scarcer. The stations were miles farther apart. At 
 times the trail became invisible, buried under the 
 weight of shifting sand. But one thing was certain. 
 After the second day John Crossley improved. He 
 thrived on the heat that sucked the very life from the 
 others. He even took his turn at driving and re- 
 gained his cheerfulness to such an extent that Jarvis 
 told himself John Crossley would certainly live. At 
 the same time something in Janet's face caused him 
 great anxiety. Once he asked if she were well. Her 
 reply came with a smile. 
 
 She was very well, only a little overcome with the 
 unusual heat; she would be quite herself once she 
 could cool off. But Jarvis was not satisfied. Dimly 
 he was aware that something ailed her more than she
 
 64 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 was willing to acknowledge, something besides the 
 terrific heat. It was very evident that she was keep- 
 ing up by her will, forcing every move with an effort. 
 Though she made no complaint, more than once she 
 had been seized with excessive faintness. At such 
 times her lips turned a queer purple and Jarvis noticed 
 her finger-nails blue-black against her white skin. 
 
 He was wretchedly unhappy. Daily he found him- 
 self trying to steel his nerves to meet some unexpected 
 calamity. Some warning seemed to be stirring in 
 him ; a sickening, uncanny foreboding of disaster. He 
 kept it to himself, but over and over again he would 
 start and turn to look, first at Janet, then at John, half 
 afraid of what he would see. 
 
 Sitting side by side hours at a time, the boy and this 
 woman became great friends. He had never come in 
 intimate contact with a woman before. His mother 
 he had barely known, and the reverence that until now 
 he had bestowed on her memory was transferred to 
 the living woman by his side. She was what he had 
 always pictured his own mother to be, beautiful, 
 grave, dignified, gentle, and tender, with the supreme 
 element of maternal love so great in her nature that 
 it went out to him as it might have to a son. Almost 
 from the first hour of their meeting he felt this. She 
 took him to her heart and gave him the first affection 
 he had ever known. 
 
 Touched to the quick, he was consumed by a vast 
 humbleness. There was nothing he would not have
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 65 
 
 done for her and hers. No sacrifice he would not have 
 made to show his gratitude. He realized all at once 
 how much he had missed, how empty his life had been. 
 
 In thinking of it, he told himself that never, never 
 would he have so forgotten his manhood, SO' assaulted 
 his honor, as to commit a theft, if some influence like 
 this had been near him. 
 
 A dozen times a day he trembled on the verge of con- 
 fiding the whole abominable business to her. Only his 
 dread of her contempt held the words from tumbling 
 out with their confession. Again he would see her 
 eyes seek Theo and the look made him turn away, a 
 sob in his throat. The dumb agony in the mother's 
 silent glances was like a protest against some inevi- 
 table sentence. 
 
 " She's trouble enough already without listening to 
 mine," Jarvis decided. 
 
 In truth, thoughts of the little girl's future did 
 weigh heavily upon Janet's mind. At night she could 
 not rest, but lay awake torturing herself with doubts 
 and questions. Once after a prolonged silence, during 
 which Theo had fallen asleep on her mother's lap, 
 Janet said to Jarvis : " I wouldn't mind if I were only 
 sure about Theo. Sure that she would be safe and 
 happy. It's thinking what she will do, what will be- 
 come of her, and who will care for her that drives me 
 frantic." 
 
 " Mind what? " he asked, referring to the first part 
 of her speech. 
 
 5
 
 66 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 " John's sickness, for Jarvis, I am going to die, 
 very soon, perhaps even before John. I want to stay 
 here until afterward because he needs me. But the 
 separation will be short no matter which way it comes." 
 
 " You mustn't talk like that. It's because you are 
 discouraged and tired. When we get away from this 
 heat you will both be better. You will live to laugh 
 over this, perhaps even to tell Theo's children about 
 the trip over the desert." 
 
 He tried to speak lightly, but he knew that the anx- 
 iety he felt crept into his voice. Something in him 
 made him understand she was speaking the truth. 
 
 Mrs. Crossley shook her head. " I know," she said, 
 quietly. " For years I have had a weak heart. It's 
 liable to stop any second. It's a trouble there is no 
 cure for, but it doesn't frighten me. I am only afraid 
 for my little girl, my baby. I have no one to leave her 
 with." 
 
 " No one? " repeated Jarvis. 
 
 " No one. John and I are all alone in the world ex- 
 cept for some cousins back in Pennsylvania. All we 
 have to give her is the money we got from the ranch, 
 little enough to stand between her and the world." 
 She turned to him, " Jarvis, if anything should happen 
 out here, unexpectedly, you will remember what I am 
 going to tell you ? Promise me that. I feel you ought 
 to know for Theo's sake. John carries his money in 
 a belt around his waist. It is to go to our baby, if she's 
 left without us." She raised her eyes steadily to his. 
 " I'm not afraid to trust you, Jarvis."
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 67 
 
 He took the hand she extended, holding it in his, re- 
 turning her gaze. " You don't know much of me, 
 and I'm not very good, I have made lots of mistakes 
 in my life, but I am going to try and live clean and 
 straight from now on. I want your trust. I'm proud 
 of it. If I haven't deserved it in the past, I'm going 
 to in the future. You have been so good to me and 
 you are the only one who ever has been. I've knocked 
 around alone ever since I was a little chap, with no one 
 ever to say a good morning or to wish me luck. Out 
 here with you I've been happy. Even if I hadn't 
 wanted to live honest, I couldn't help it now since 
 you've seemed to care for me." The quick tears were 
 brimming Janet's eyes. " I want to tell you that if 
 anything anything unforeseen should happen out here, 
 you needn't have any fears about Theo," he continued, 
 unsteadily. " I am poor, too, but I'd never let the lit- 
 tle girl suffer. I would see her through, do the very 
 best there was in me." 
 
 " Oh, it was Providence sent you ! " she cried. " I 
 suppose I am superstitious, but on the night before we 
 left home I had a presentiment, a dreadful presenti- 
 ment, which has never left me. It has kept everything 
 else out of my mind. I have seen it over and over 
 again; Theo wandering along a barren road, miles 
 from anywhere, shelterless, abandoned, suffering. Oh, 
 Jarvis ! " her face twitched, " it has been anguish be- 
 yond anything I ever endured. Now I am easier. 
 You don't know how you have helped me. For my
 
 68 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 own sake, I care nothing what happens, but these two 
 are my whole life. Danger to them is the only suffer- 
 ing I know." 
 
 Her voice trailed off to a whisper. Silence fell be- 
 tween them. The wagon rumbled on in the vast still- 
 ness. For miles and miles about them no living thing 
 stirred. In the midst of the solitude the boy and the 
 woman were surrounded by the quiet of an abandoned 
 tomb. It was a sink of desolation condemned even by 
 the Creator Himself.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 69 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 After that talk Janet Crossley kept Theo and Jarvis 
 much together. It was not difficult, for the child had 
 already taken a great fancy to him. She regarded 
 Jarvis as a queen might look upon a subject; hers by 
 right, a being to be ruled, dominated over, experi- 
 mented upon, admired. She took her naps clutching 
 one of his ringers in her tiny hand. She sat on his 
 lap and drove, she mussed his hair and explored -his 
 pockets and bought stories with her kisses. Jarvis, 
 hungry for companionship and affection, took her to 
 his heart, confessing to himself she was the brightest 
 little thing he had ever seen. 
 
 On the fifth day out from Salton, the day Yuma 
 was passed, the party decided to travel by night. Un- 
 der cover of the darkness the horses ran less risk. Be- 
 sides this, they themselves were almost exhausted. 
 Their eyes were swollen and blinded by the glare and 
 the dust. Thirst tortured them even while they drank. 
 From the moment of the sun's rising until like a great 
 disk of molten brass it fell below the western horizon, 
 the heat scourged their bodies. Nothing could escape 
 it. It beat down on the great level surface until the
 
 70 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 alkali burned a white heat. There was no shade, no 
 wind, no shelter. The air shimmered and vibrated. 
 Every inhalation scorched their lungs. 
 
 " Is it cool anywhere in all the world ? " gasped 
 Janet. 
 
 " Wait wait until we get the other side of Tempe. 
 Then we'll forget all this." Jarvis jumped from the 
 wagon as he spoke, but his words were cut short by a 
 half cry. The sand had burned through the soles of his 
 shoes. The ground was stinging hot, a veritable open 
 oven. 
 
 They brushed away the top layer of sand under the 
 wagon, and, protected by this shelter, they lay all day, 
 panting, perspiring, wondering how much longer this 
 thing could be endured. Between waking and sleeping 
 Jarvis reviewed the events of the past three weeks. 
 They marched through his mind, one after another, 
 like a procession of evil specters. Was it possible these 
 things had happened? Rather was he not recalling 
 strange dreams that haunted his memory? If the 
 drama of that one never-to-be-forgotten day could only 
 be effaced, it would be easy enough to overcome the 
 other memories. But in all its detail that period of 
 time hovered continually before his eyes. 
 
 He saw himself listening by the open window to 
 those shouts from the newsboys. The horror that had 
 seized him at that time weighed on him now. He went 
 over and over the last interminable day, the one he 
 spent in the lodging-house, and his walk to the station
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 71 
 
 that night, when every step was like a plunge toward 
 an unknown abyss. 
 
 Thoroughly awake, the boy lay looking off across 
 the leagues of sand, terrible visions dancing through 
 his imagination, grizzly fancies hand in hand with 
 images all too real. Even if in years to come he made 
 a place for himself, even if everything from now on 
 belonging to his daily life were above reproach, would 
 he ever live IT down? Could he ever rid himself of 
 the memory and the suffering, the suspicion and the 
 fear? Would he ever cease to be at the mercy of those 
 two deeds, roving through life, restless, harried, har- 
 assed ? 
 
 Suddenly he arose to his feet. Beside himself with 
 unhappiness, he could not lie still. His face was set, 
 his eyes distended. " I will live it down. It shall 
 not crush me. I never meant it; God knows I never 
 meant it. Somewhere, somehow, I'll make a place for 
 myself that I will keep. Yes, keep, no matter what 
 happens.'' 
 
 The sun had set at last. The whole west flamed 
 with a ruddy glow. But, as if in surprise at what it 
 found, one shaft of light lingered, falling full on the 
 solitary figure of the boy. A single black dot erect, 
 alone, the only human creature to be seen in that huge 
 region of desert waste. 
 
 Abruptly from out of the intense quiet Jarvis heard 
 a groan. It was close beside him. With a bound the 
 sound brought him out from the gulf of remembrance
 
 72 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 into which he had been plunged. Turning swiftly his 
 heart gave a leap. In an instant he had seen and un- 
 derstood. 
 
 John Crossley lay staring up into the boy's face with 
 eyes sunk deep in their sockets and devoid of all ex- 
 pression. His face and lips were bloodless, the gaunt 
 body straight and rigid. From between the white lips 
 oozed a bright red stream, the blood running down onto 
 his shirt-front that was already stained crimson. 
 
 The same groan that startled Jarvis brought Janet 
 to her feet out of a half doze. Without a cry, without 
 a word, she looked down into her husband's face. The 
 sudden awakening to the sight that confronted her 
 dazed the woman for the moment, but only for the mo- 
 ment. Then, with a mighty effort, she aroused her- 
 self. She joined Jarvis, who was propping up John's 
 head and shoulders, doing everything he could to stop 
 the hemorrhage. They worked fast, but there was lit- 
 tle enough to do. 
 
 By degrees that thin red stream increased. The 
 sweat broke out over the man's face ; his hands and feet 
 were cold. All at once his eyes opened wide with a 
 jerk and Janet, crouching close to him, watching every 
 expression of his face, saw that he knew her. A faint 
 smile parted his lips. She tried to give an answering 
 smile, while the great tears filled her eyes, rolled down 
 her cheeks, and dropped onto that coat already soaked 
 with his blood. 
 
 " John, John," she whispered, " I will come soon. 
 I can't live without you. Oh, my dear, my dear ! "
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 73 
 
 His fingers closed over hers, then almost instantly 
 weakness overcame him. The little light of intelli- 
 gence that had flickered in his eyes faded away. His 
 breathing became irregular and faint. 
 
 Jarvis, sick at sight of Janet's face, turned away. 
 There was nothing to be done, nothing to be said. 
 Death was at hand, a specter peering at the little group, 
 ready to seize one of them. The seconds passed. By 
 degrees the sound of John's breathing grew fainter and 
 fainter. Jarvis, listening with straining ears, could 
 barely hear it, even in the cathedral-like silence. All 
 at once it ceased. 
 
 The boy waited, then looked around, uttering a moan 
 of compassion. But there was no horror here. The 
 man had died quietly, sinking so gradually that it was 
 like falling into a slumber. His head was on Janet's 
 lap. She sat soothing him, talking to him gently as 
 though she followed his spirit out on its journey into 
 the unknown. There was a strange light on her face, 
 but hardly a quiver of grief. 
 
 Jarvis could not endure the thing any longer. He 
 picked up the sleeping child and rushed away from the 
 wagon, beside himself with anguish and pity. He 
 walked on and on over the sand, motion a physical 
 need. Farther and farther he went as if in a trance, 
 not thinking where he was, completely overcome by 
 the tremendous mystery of life and death. For the first 
 time he had witnessed the death of a man, the passing 
 of a human soul. The sight had brought home to him
 
 74 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 with renewed force the enormity of his crime. He, a 
 mere nothing, had interfered with the progress of a 
 human being working out its period of earthly proba- 
 tion. He had stayed the march of a soul's salvation. 
 Nothing he could do would ever atone for his deed. 
 
 Ridden with remorse, a fierce, unreasoning desire 
 possessed him to take upon himself some heavy 
 penance; a punishment amounting almost to mar- 
 tyrdom. All at once the man, whose life he had 
 ended by a blow, seemed to confront him. The accus- 
 ing figure, mute, still, wrapped in its long outer gar- 
 ment, rose before him like a vision, calling out its accu- 
 sation, demanding retribution. Like a wraith it lifted 
 itself from the barren sands until, clear and distinct, 
 Meredith himself stood before Jarvis, a terrible 
 dream come true, a ghastly image vivified. 
 
 The boy's eyes dilated with horror. He stopped 
 short, a scream choked at his lips. He could not 
 move, he could not speak. Every drop of blood froze 
 in his veins. Spellbound he watched, waiting as he 
 had waited in the grove, for an attack. 
 
 Suddenly Theo stirred in his arms. It startled 
 the boy. He drew a deep breath, his eyes closed, 
 opened. There was nothing there. Nothing any- 
 where. IT was gone. He stood alone, the little girl 
 asleep in his arms, and he awakened from his spell of 
 guilt, the conscious knowledge of an evil deed. 
 
 But was it truly gone? Gone for good? The old 
 suspicion was rampant. Instantly there leaped upon
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 75 
 
 him the renewed sense of pursuit. Immediate danger 
 surrounded him. If he could cross the desert, why 
 could not others, those others, those agents of the 
 law who sought him ? What was this he had just seen 
 but a warning, a signal that vengeance was at hand? 
 All his struggles and schemes to throw detectives off 
 the scent had been boyish, futile, senseless. He saw 
 that now, saw plainly. At any minute the law could 
 grip him whenever it chose, wherever he might be. 
 
 Theo turned restlessly, her breath coming heavily 
 from a disturbed slumber. He soothed her until she 
 was quieted again, then he retraced his steps toward the 
 wagon, peering occasionally over his shoulder, not sat- 
 isfied that he was alone. He settled down within easy 
 reach, if Janet should call him. But he had lost con- 
 trol of himself; his body was trembling, his head 
 bowed in his hands. Try as he would, he could not 
 overcome his fears. 
 
 The hours passed. The cool of the evening deep- 
 ened into the refreshing darkness of the night. 
 Myriads upon myriads of stars sprinkled the heavens. 
 No sign of life came from the wagon. The utter still- 
 ness that encompassed him was compatible with a 
 world unpeopled, undiscovered. Oppressed with lone- 
 liness, Jarvis fancied himself flung off into vacancy, 
 spinning around in a vortex of heat and sand, alone 
 with the sleeping child, both of them awaiting restora- 
 tion through some awe-inspiring immolation. 
 
 Though the vision came to him no more, he was
 
 76 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 racked by some supernatural understanding, elusive, 
 indefinite, undefinable but none the less sure. It was 
 a certainty of some calamity hovering near, of grief 
 and trouble yet to come. 
 
 The child slept on and on in entire unconsciousness 
 of what her mother suffered, of what she herself had 
 lost. A dainty, fragile, pretty little thing, knowing 
 nothing of sorrows or fears, innocent of the mysteries 
 of creation, happy as long as the sun shone and the 
 birds sang and all her wants were gratified. 
 
 About midnight Jarvis yielded to his utter weari- 
 ness, and, without meaning to, fell into a light sleep. 
 No summons had come from Janet. A certain deli- 
 cacy of feeling prevented his intrusion on her sacred 
 vigil over her dead. But even his sleep was troubled 
 with strange visions. Intangible shapes, vague dan- 
 gers, galloped wildly through his brain, gone almost 
 before they had come, leaving their imprint on his 
 memory. Just before the dawn whitened the sky, he 
 awoke with a start, shivering with a chill, staring about 
 him, fearfully oppressed. 
 
 Something had happened. Something had passed 
 over him, recalling him from sleep, leaving an imprint 
 of trouble. It was the culmination of what had hov- 
 ered over him for hours. Brusquely he rose, looking 
 ahead, half expecting" to see some form, some face. 
 But nothing showed, nothing stirred, nothing breathed. 
 Leaving Theo on the sands he strode towards the 
 wagon, puzzled to know from where that call had come.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 77 
 
 He peered into the wagon. All was quiet, too quiet. 
 As his eyes became used to the dim half-light of early 
 morning he could see Janet and John. They sat as he 
 had left them, she leaning back against the wagon seat 
 with his head resting on her lap. But there was an 
 immense change in her. Instantly he knew that. Her 
 eyes were wide open, her face blue-white, and some- 
 thing in her attitude made Jarvis take a step nearer 
 to the wagon, steadying himself against the wheel, un- 
 able as yet to look. The answer to all his uneasiness, 
 to all his hallucinations, was given. It had been death 
 following their trail, hovering over the wagon, unap- 
 peased by one victim, its ever hungry maw demanding 
 a second, waiting perhaps for a third. 
 
 For a moment he was stunned. He struggled 
 against what had happened. He revolted against ac- 
 cepting the inevitable and in a sudden paroxysm of 
 grief, he railed against himself, driven almost beyond 
 the bounds of reason. Was he not to blame for this ? 
 Was not his mere presence a curse? He had done 
 nothing to be so beset by tragedies, yet misfortunes 
 closed about him on all sides. 
 
 His very presence was the signal for doom. His 
 retribution was begun. A curse was upon him. He 
 could not move that he did not bring disaster and sor- 
 row into the life of his friends. His road was one 
 long progress of horrors. The boy closed his eyes, 
 burying his face in his hands, the most wretched of 
 beings.
 
 78 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 Evidently Janet had died without a struggle. 
 Tired, tired out, her heart had refused to go on with 
 its burden of life. How long she had been dead Jar- 
 vis could not guess, but her body was barely chilled. 
 
 With a final mastering of his strength, he resolved 
 on one last attempt to discover some evidence of life 
 in Janet's still body. He bent over, hoping against 
 hope for one little breath, one little flutter of her heart. 
 His own face was scarcely less pale than the faces of 
 those two lying there mute in death. 
 
 "What shall I do? What shall I do?" he whis- 
 pered, lifting his head, looking about him with un- 
 seeing eyes. 
 
 Why had this come? He had never expected it. 
 He knew Janet was sick and tired, but never never 
 had he dreamed of such an outcome of that illness, 
 in spite of her assurances that she could not live long. 
 Persistently the boy leaned over the woman, dropping 
 on his knees beside her, determined not to give up. 
 The whole thing was so terrible so impossible. Life 
 could not have been struck from her like this. 
 
 He called aloud on God to show His divinity and give 
 her back to him. His face was wild, his voice strident. 
 He was on the verge of a complete nervous collapse 
 from fatigue and suffering and long brooding over the 
 subject that never left his mind. 
 
 The day was coming on. The huge basin of alkali 
 glowed dazzlingly white, the air shimmered, the silence 
 of the grave stretched around him. He was alone 
 with the dead in the region of death.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 79 
 
 Suddenly his face quivered, his body stiffened con- 
 vulsively. Something was creeping up behind him ; 
 he could feel it coming closer. He thought of Mere- 
 dith. What! was the ghost back at him again ? Like 
 a frozen thing he waited, while out of the silence and 
 loneliness something stole towards him. A thousand 
 monstrous specters galloped through his imagination. 
 All at once a hand touched his arm. 
 
 It was the last straw. At the feel of those ringers, 
 the boy's endurance, goaded to the limit, broke. He 
 screamed, struggled to his feet, his breath gagging 
 his throat. He had believed himself alone with the 
 two dead bodies. Now someone was here. All but 
 insane with fear, he turned to face the horror at his 
 back. When his eyes could see and his wits steadied 
 themselves, Jar vis gave a pitiful attempt at a laugh. 
 
 "Theo!" he cried. "Oh, Theo, how you fright- 
 ened me ! What a miserable coward I am. I had for- 
 gotten you. You poor child! You poor little child! 
 I'm all you have left, and I am such a coward. Theo, 
 oh, Theo!" 
 
 He broke down now altogether, crying and sobbing 
 in the throes of hysteria, pouring out his thanks that 
 Meredith had not come back to haunt him, raging at 
 his own lack of courage.
 
 80 ESIIEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 The years passed. The seasons came and went. 
 All this time Theodora, safely housed and cared for 
 in a convent school, was growing from a child to< a 
 woman, and Jarvis busied himself with anything that 
 came his way. The great desire of his life had not 
 been realized, but he was no longer desperately poor. 
 
 As if true to his convictions, the West had given 
 him his opportunity. It came abruptly, unexpectedly, 
 but big with possibilities. The discovery of oil in 
 Texas was one of those startling, unlooked for occur- 
 rences that have marked each era of this Western 
 country's progress. 
 
 The news leaped unheralded to every corner of the 
 United States, carried on by the four winds of Heaven, 
 instantly throwing wide open to the community new 
 fields for investment and employment. There was 
 every chance to make a fortune, and Jarvis, alive to 
 the situation, was quick to seize it. 
 
 With fifty dollars of the stolen money that he had 
 clung to through every reverse and every need, to- 
 gether with the money belonging to Theo that the boy 
 had found in the belt on John Crossley's dead body,
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 81 
 
 he had been able to take up oil lands at Flaremont. 
 His claim proved to be the pick of the county, though 
 at the time it was a hazard, a gambler's risk. He was 
 not an expert and the land he chose lay in a region as 
 yet untried. 
 
 Luck had been with him. What he found ex- 
 ceeded his wildest hopes. It seemed that no sooner 
 had the first well been drilled than it was seen the entire 
 ground flowed with oil. There was practically no 
 end to the yield. One had but to sink a shaft to be- 
 come a producer. Then suddenly the earth around 
 Flaremont could not wait for drills and shafts. Time 
 and again great geysers of oil broke through the sur- 
 face, thrusting themselves into notice, spouting high 
 in the air. It was wonderful. It attracted attention 
 from every part of the world, and the citizens of Flare- 
 mont rose to the emergency. 
 
 Companies were organized of all grades of good and 
 evil, for the benefit of those outside the state. Hun- 
 dreds of men flocked to the town, endeavoring to get 
 a foothold in the new industry without the expenditure 
 of capital. Stock was sold broadcast. Circulars ex- 
 plaining the condition of affairs and inviting inspec- 
 tion were widely distributed. 
 
 Every day excitement increased. There were wild 
 stories of suddenly acquired wealth, beside which the 
 fabulous amounts won during the California gold 
 craze dimmed by comparison. 
 
 It brought a new aspect to Flaremont. From a 
 
 6
 
 82 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 sleepy, eternally quiet little town of two or three hun- 
 dred inhabitants, it became a center of great activity. 
 Drays and carts clattered through the streets. The 
 sound of incessant hurrying of hundreds of feet rose 
 in the air. The stores were crammed. New build- 
 ings were going up everywhere, with rents booming. 
 A big hotel was being rushed to completion. The old 
 one, crowded to its limits, placed cot-beds in the hall- 
 ways and in the billiard-room, night after night. A 
 near-by restaurant did an enormous business, serving 
 meals at all hours of the day. 
 
 The railroad company had put up a new office build- 
 ing and doubled its corps of assistants. Already the 
 regular train service had been trebled, but for all that, 
 specials were run with increasing frequency to accom- 
 modate incoming crowds. 
 
 Families camped on the ground in tents or wagons, 
 unable to find shelter anywhere. The streets were 
 thronged with idle men and girls, passing up and down, 
 jostling one another, going in and out of the post- 
 office, staring at the store windows, laughing, chatting, 
 keeping up a continuous movement. 
 
 Cowboys raced by, attracting attention to them- 
 selves, riding to create an impression, shooting their 
 revolvers in the air and laughing at the women's 
 screams. Indian women, highly painted, stood stolidly 
 watching the throngs, chewing tobacco, smoking, ex- 
 changing stories. 
 
 Men in their shirt-sleeves sat in front of saloons,
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 83 
 
 watching the scene, ignoring the open comments of the 
 new-comers. 
 
 A street-car line, the open admiration of every man 
 and woman of Flaremont, was in process of construc- 
 tion ; a vaudeville show had been set going in a board 
 shackle; there were a dozen games in action where 
 one could bet as much as he liked, unmolested by the 
 law. 
 
 Megaphones, slot machines, living pictures, occupied 
 stand after stand along the back streets, and Flare- 
 mont had jumped into a town of life and enterprise, 
 throbbing with all the elements of an embryo city. 
 
 In every direction oil derricks were in evidence, 
 rising like somber guardians of the prairie lands. In- 
 variably, little homes lay resting under their very 
 shadows. New adobe structures, muddy white, with 
 vine-covered porches, very shady and cool under the 
 wilting glare of endless sunshine, w r ere set about like 
 so many dots on the landscape. Occasionally a frame 
 house, more pretentious in character than its neighbors, 
 reared itself in the midst of a grove of live-oaks, a 
 wide porch on the first floor. On the second floor, hid 
 under the shelter of a projecting roof, was a loggia 
 for the noonday siesta, furnished with cool, easy 
 chairs of wicker, a hammock swung across one corner, 
 a table in the center with bottles and glasses, and off 
 at one end a writing-desk covered with pens, pencils, 
 paper, envelopes, stamp-boxes, and ink-well. 
 
 It was in such a house as this that a half dozen men
 
 84 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 gathered one morning in response to a request from 
 Jarvis. Every one of them pioneers in the Texas oil 
 trade and strikers of paying wells. 
 
 But for some time things in that trade had not 
 been going right. Month by month certain facts 
 were making themselves apparent, presenting difficul- 
 ties that threatened the future of the entire industry. 
 It was the history of the individual oil trade in the 
 East repeating itself. It was the continued rumor of 
 monopoly standing by to annihilate the small owner. 
 There had been on different occasions informal meet- 
 ings of the drillers, desultory talks and arguments in 
 favor of organization as a possible protection against 
 any such action. But the matter dragged on with 
 nothing definite done. 
 
 Finally six of the largest owners had come together 
 and made a start by electing Jarvis president of the 
 Company to be formed by them. Then ensued a long 
 period of inactivity, the men handicapped by lack of 
 ready money until, after months of waiting, matters 
 were suddenly brought to a climax. 
 
 Information was circulated that Eastern capital had 
 actually united, carried out its threat of one gigantic 
 company and had set out to control the oil industry, 
 not only of the West, but of the entire United States. 
 Almost simultaneously it was discovered that this giant 
 corporation had made its first move. The railroads 
 were pledged to its dictates, and it controlled the broad 
 sweep of every waterway. At one blow, means of 
 transportation were cut off to the outside shipper.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 85 
 
 Besides this, the very price of petroleum outputs rose 
 and fell to meet that concern's own purpose; flying 
 upward one week, only to be slashed so viciously the 
 next that competition became impossible. Ruin stared 
 the Texas oilmen in the face unless some concerted 
 action was decided on and carried out. 
 
 The rational course seemed in the formation of an 
 opposing company. A force to meet a force. But 
 each man hesitated to assume the initiative. To buck 
 against such an enormous foe, to throw the gauntlet of 
 war in the face of so formidable an antagonist, was al- 
 most suicidal. 
 
 But the drillers' hands were forced by a final aggress- 
 ive issue. Abruptly one morning the railroad ac- 
 knowledged its connivance with the Eastern Petroleum 
 Company by the announcement of an unexpected in- 
 crease in freight rates. It caught the shippers cruelly. 
 Every man in the district was affected. This was fol- 
 lowed in less than ten days by a second announcement 
 of still another advance in rates. 
 
 There was a scarcity of tank-cars. The roads had 
 more business now than they could handle. Until their 
 lines were more thoroughly equipped for carrying the 
 unlocked for output from the Texan and California!! 
 oil-fields, the tariff for hauling must of necessity re- 
 main high. These were the reasons vouchsafed the 
 shipper, nor could any other explanation be forced 
 from the agents of the road. 
 
 Twenty-four hours after this outrage the men as- 
 sembled on Jarvis' porch, very serious, very much in
 
 86 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 earnest, no longer hesitating in the performance of 
 what now was their only salvation. 
 
 There was not a rich man in the group, not one 
 strong enough to branch out by himself, with a large 
 capital to fall back upon. Without an exception each 
 one had acquired his property for a small sum, long 
 before the presence of oil sent values to boom prices. 
 
 They had gone into debt for their first machinery, 
 very sure of returns sufficient to meet payments. 
 They calculated ahead, seeing in a few years, by the 
 exercise of some degree of care, all indebtedness paid 
 off and something left as a nest-egg for a growing for- 
 tune. Visions of prosperity rose higher, clearer in 
 their minds. 
 
 Then the outlook darkened suddenly. One thing 
 followed on another quickly. Their attention was 
 taken from future successes and riveted on the pres- 
 ence of some force unfavorable to them. Daily the 
 aspect of affairs became more intolerable. Even to the 
 slowest thinkers, the realization presented itself that 
 they had waited too long. If they would save them- 
 selves at all, they must act. 
 
 By ten o'clock all the men who had been asked to 
 come were at hand. Callister, pale, quiet, with the 
 face of a dreamer rather than a business man, ready to 
 back Jarvis in any scheme he offered, seconding every 
 motion his friend presented without a moment's hesi- 
 tation. 
 
 Morton, tall, thin to emaciation, terribly nervous, his
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 87 
 
 eyes shifting continually as though he waited an eter- 
 nal attack from the man nearest him. 
 
 Hale and Lawler, old chums, one time cattle-punch- 
 ers, Texans to the backbone. They affected the West- 
 ern dress; the great sombrero, spurred boots, pistol 
 holster, shirts low in the neck. They were fighters 
 to the finish, seeking rather than avoiding trouble. 
 
 Randolph Mason, representing his mother. A 
 young fellow scarcely out of his teens, very gentle- 
 manly, very quiet, respecting every man's opinion, be- 
 lieving in every gentleman's integrity. He was wait- 
 ing for the time when he could assume all the burdens 
 his mother had carried during the years of his educa- 
 tion. Strong, young, upright, he liked to think ahead 
 when, as master of his house, he could surround his 
 mother and sister with luxuries such as they had never 
 dreamed of. 
 
 As a matter of course, Jarvis put the situation be- 
 fore the group. Though in number of years he was 
 second to Randolph Mason, the youngest man there, 
 he seemed by right to dominate the meeting. Already 
 J. Jarvis had gained a reputation for himself in Flare- 
 mont. He had proven himself far-seeing and clear- 
 headed. In fact, the very discovery of oil in this place 
 was practically due to him, the discovery that had put 
 Flaremont to the front before the eyes of the world. 
 Then, too, Jarvis with his keen, aggressive business 
 sense had predicted long ago the very stumbling-block 
 that was now thrust in the path of the industry. If 
 the drillers had formed a Company when he had first
 
 88 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 suggested it, affairs might now have been very dif- 
 ferent. 
 
 He seated himself at the head of the table strewn 
 with papers. " Gentlemen," he began, " before we 
 discuss the matter of combination, I want to show you 
 the latest freight rate on the transportation for oil 
 from the Pacific to the Atlantic Coast. After yes- 
 terday's rumor was set in circulation, I could not bring 
 myself to believe what I heard. I called upon Mr. 
 Eberlie, the local freight agent of the X. & Y. Railroad. 
 He had not much to say, and the truth is, I obtained 
 very little satisfaction. He handed me a printed 
 schedule of rates, affirming that his orders came direct 
 from headquarters, and as an agent he followed the 
 course marked out for him by his superiors. Per- 
 sonally he had nothing to do with orders except to see 
 that others obeyed them. I studied the schedule care- 
 fully. The increase is outrageous, beyond all reason. 
 If we ship in their tank-cars, as we must, to send our 
 oil out of the state, I for one cannot but meet with a 
 loss at the present price of crude petroleum ; a big loss 
 on every barrel." 
 
 " The fix we're all in," muttered Hale. 
 
 Lawler nodded. He was chewing viciously on a 
 cigar end. 
 
 " More than this," proceeded Jarvis, " since the X. & 
 Y. refused six months ago to carry oil in barrels, forc- 
 ing on all producers in Texas and California shipment 
 by tank-cars, it has been evident to me that there is a
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 89 
 
 concerted action among the Eastern producers against 
 the Western producers." 
 
 " You can go farther than that ; a concerted action 
 between Eastern producers together with certain rail- 
 road corporations to put us out of the business," ejacu- 
 lated Callister, picking up the schedule of rates from 
 where it lay on the table. 
 
 " There's dirty work here somewhere," said Lawler, 
 gloomily. 
 
 " But, gentlemen," broke in Randolph Mason, look- 
 ing earnestly around at the group of uneasy faces, 
 " of course I am young in the business, but it seems to 
 me what you suggest can hardly be true. If the rail- 
 road is in league with Eastern producers to put us 
 Westerners out, why does it advance rates to a killing 
 price for both parties? Won't the Eastern concern 
 be hurt as we are hurt? " 
 
 " That's where a combination of interests wins. A 
 dozen men combined can do what two dozen individ- 
 uals cannot," replied Jarvis. 
 
 " Then a combination of our own men is what we 
 need," observed Mason. 
 
 " It's the only thing that wins nowadays," said 
 Lawler, decisively. 
 
 " And that means money enough to buy up every- 
 thing necessary to your monopoly, from the control of 
 the industry you intend to boss, to the judges of the 
 courts and the men who represent your state at Con- 
 gress. It's a big game," exclaimed Hale. 
 
 " But the only game," reiterated Lawler.
 
 90 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 " That isn't honest business/' protested young 
 Mason. 
 
 " It's modern business," interrupted Jarvis, " and we 
 should have acted on that principle long ago. We 
 haven't millions to spend, but even as we are, I believe 
 by pooling our products and building a refinery, with 
 all the modern improvements and money-saving de- 
 vices, there's a chance. I believe that with the price 
 of oil even lower than at present, and freight rates as 
 high, we can still come out a little ahead of the game. 
 At least we can keep up the fight. I have been making 
 some figures, a conservative estimate of what could 
 be done. You see handling refined goods and the 
 crude oil are two different matters. Would you care 
 to go over my papers? " 
 
 The men crowded closer. Jarvis sorted out from the 
 heap on the table a long paper well covered with pen- 
 cil marks. To the group about him he explained each 
 item, refiguring, adding, subtracting, reworking the 
 entire problem. He went over and over the income 
 and the outgo, the profits, losses, and daily expense ac- 
 count, setting every point clear before each man. 
 
 They listened eagerly, throwing out an occasional 
 question or suggestion, but for the most part silent. 
 
 " The first expense would be considerable," Jarvis 
 said, finally. " The refinery will cost good money. 
 But once finished, it will pay for itself within five years. 
 As I said before, we need no longer handle crude oil, 
 only the refined products ; refined, too, at the minimum 
 sum. It will be our own business from the start.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 91 
 
 Moreover, I am convinced that once we are firmly 
 established as a Company, standing fearlessly on our 
 rights, we will be let alone. It is one thing to force 
 an individual to sell out, shutting him completely from 
 the field, quite another to force a Company. I'm will- 
 ing to stake all I've got on it." 
 
 " And I," added Callister. 
 
 " We're in a hole as we are. To swing this deal is 
 the only way out, so far as I can see. Jarvis has cov- 
 ered the situation," Lawler remarked, looking at Hale. 
 
 Hale nodded, his eyes still intent on the paper. 
 
 " But supposin' just supposin' of course I ain't 
 sayin' it would happen, but what if after such a Com- 
 pany got goin', after we'd all chucked in everything we 
 had, spent our last dollar fixin' things in shape, 
 then supposin' instead of being the end, it was just the 
 beginning; that the rich fellows back East don't give 
 up, but gobble us," hazarded Morton, speaking into his 
 lap, always fearful, always watching for an imaginary 
 attack, never allowing his shifting eyes to look into the 
 faces of the men he addressed. 
 
 There was a long pause. No one seemed quite 
 ready to meet the unwelcome suggestion. 
 
 " I'm of the opinion we would stick in their craws 
 until, failing to get their second wind, they might 
 strangle," remarked Hale. 
 
 Lawler chuckled. " That hits the case." Then he 
 continued, " As I make out the proposed scheme, it is 
 our chance of getting even with the machine that wants 
 to knock us out. I don't see the word ' fail ' written
 
 92 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 anywhere about it; and if we win, why, we'll be 
 putting away profits instead of curtailing all expenses 
 and seeing our wells shut off. It won't cost us any 
 more, certainly, than sitting like dunderheads watch- 
 ing the other fellows take our business." 
 
 " Mr. Morton, I discovered long ago that a man 
 who isn't willing to risk all he has, or fight continually 
 to keep what he's got, doesn't progress very fast," re- 
 marked Jarvis, twisting a paper nervously between the 
 thumb and finger of his right hand. 
 
 " You're right," shouted Lawler, " there ain't a busi- 
 ness nowadays that don't follow the methods of a lot- 
 tery. You've got to buy your ticket and trust to 
 drawing the right number. I'm willing to let this 
 Company take all I've got. I even stand ready to 
 mortgage. You can't get a big thing for nothing. 
 I'll chance all on this scheme. I think I'm speaking 
 m' friend Hale's opinions." 
 
 " Right," cried Hale, " and it's now or never in this 
 case, too. We can't shrink from action just because the 
 gamble involves all we've got." 
 
 " I feel sure you may count on my mother's inter- 
 ests following yours in this matter," asserted Randolph, 
 quietly. " She and I have every confidence in you, 
 gentlemen, and in your several opinions." 
 
 " Jarvis and I always pull together," declared Cal- 
 lister. " It's up to you now, Morton. Do you care 
 to join us in the undertaking? Understand, you can 
 stay out if you want to. There's no force in the mat-
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 93 
 
 ter. Only we have got to know where we stand and 
 who stands with us, for in a crisis we must feel that 
 each man is acting always for the benefit of the entire 
 Company, not from purely personal motives." 
 
 As of one accord the eyes of the five men fixed them- 
 selves on Morton's face. There was a pause. Already 
 the feeling was in the air of an estrangement. A 
 backslider had fallen in their camp, a man not to be 
 counted on in an undertaking where perfect harmony 
 must from necessity be assured. 
 
 For a moment Morton moved uneasily in his chair, 
 his eyes on the floor, his thin face with its pronounced 
 features flushed, his fingers drumming ceaselessly on 
 his knees. " I spoke from a desire for knowledge," he 
 murmured, finally, " not because I wanted to stand 
 alone. Why, I can't stand alone, you all know that. 
 I'd lose every dollar I've got; I'd have to go out of 
 business altogether. I want to go into this thing with 
 you. I haven't much. I began with nothing at all. 
 Perhaps I am over-anxious, but it is because I know 
 what poverty, dreadful poverty means." 
 
 " We all know what that means, I guess," said Jar- 
 vis, kindly. 
 
 " Well, I want to go in on this," Morton repeated. 
 "My well is small. It isn't like the gushers you fel- 
 lows own, but I want to get in the Company." He 
 could think of nothing else to say to put himself right. 
 He uttered the same phrases again and again. 
 
 " And we want you. There isn't a man in this re-
 
 94 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 gion who understands the building and working of a 
 refinery as you do. You have expert knowledge ; we 
 haven't. We need you, Morton." 
 
 Jarvis looked around at Callister, sure of his co- 
 operation in conciliating Morton. 
 
 " That's right," Callister said, immediately. " We 
 need each other, every man jack of us. And by the 
 way," he observed, with a smile, " it's a poor time to 
 blow one's own horn, but I've got something in the 
 way of an electrical appliance that I believe would do 
 a good trick for us in a refinery. I'm having it pat- 
 ented, and if it proves all right we will have the sole 
 claim on it the whole right." 
 
 " We need all the good things we can get," remarked 
 Hale, continuing rapidly. " Now that it's arranged 
 we all go together, let's move right along. The situa- 
 tion is getting desperate. We are all in a bad way if 
 we don't act soon. It was decided some time ago 
 who's to be our head, our president, so that won't take 
 time. We don't want any more dilly-dallying. We've 
 had too much already. I move that we give our presi- 
 dent, Mr. James Jarvis, authority to proceed with all 
 necessary plans and details." 
 
 Instantly there was a clapping of hands. 
 
 " That's it, that hits the case," shouted Lawler, 
 vociferously. 
 
 " Of course no more dallying," muttered Morton. 
 
 Young Mason arose and gripped Jarvis' hand enthu- 
 siastically, wanting to speak. But a second later he sat
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 95 
 
 down, flushing with embarrassment, not saying a word. 
 He was continually conscious of his youth and inex- 
 perience. By himself he worked out great ideas, 
 formulated big plans, only to have them shattered at 
 the first hint of discouragement. 
 
 " My time, my energies, and my thoughts will be 
 devoted to carrying out our project," Jarvis hastened 
 to reply. "There need be no delays, no long waits, 
 no uncertainties. The sooner we can act, the sooner 
 we will be fortified to meet the emergencies of compe- 
 tition. It is my wish to see the plans for the refinery 
 started this very afternoon. We have the property, 
 we have the oil ; all we need is the building, and we 
 will push that to completion at once. In a way we are 
 preparing to shoulder a grave responsibility. The 
 eyes of every independent shipper will be directed to- 
 wards our undertaking. Our success will mean such 
 a boom in the building and operating of refineries that 
 the petroleum trade will be revolutionized. We are 
 not alone in our difficulties, as you well know. Our 
 distress is the distress of the entire state, I might al- 
 most say of the entire United States. 
 
 " But I am not afraid to assume the initiative. Let 
 Texas watch. Just now we are sitting one side look- 
 ing at the enemy, but time will alter that position and 
 show us lined up with the great combinations of the 
 day." 
 
 There was a shout. Jarvis had spoken the one word 
 of encouragement necessary for these men's peace of 
 mind. But after that one outburst, silence fell on the
 
 96 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 little group, no one speaking or stirring. Callister's 
 eyes were glancing off across the great stretches of 
 country, his face serious, calm, marked with certain 
 lines of sadness. Morton, distressed, uneasy, forced 
 himself to sit motionless on the chair that all but 
 touched Randolph's. Young Mason, in direct contrast 
 to that shrinking figure so close beside him, strong, 
 young, erect, full of confidence and hope, his eyes 
 looking straight into the face of anyone who addressed 
 him. Lawler and Hale, distinct types of the West- 
 ern man, broad in thought, feeling, and action, absorb- 
 ing from the great sweep of country they represented 
 a certain largeness of ideas and beliefs; quick to re- 
 sent a wrong deed; loyal to the death; impulsive, rash, 
 invariably just. Lastly, Jarvis, a strange mixture of 
 the idealistic dreamer and the practical man of business, 
 seeking to win a place of honor for himself, determined 
 to grip fate by the throat and hold it at bay until his 
 future was assured. 
 
 For that morning at least, the conference was at 
 an end. In the midst of their silence the house door 
 opened and a Chinaman appeared, carrying a tray with 
 bottles and glasses. Behind him walked a young girl, 
 her eyes flashing towards Jarvis, her lips breaking 
 into a smile as she met his glance. 
 
 Quite as abruptly the man's whole countenance 
 lighted up at sight of her. He arose at once. " Gentle- 
 men," he said, " my sister." And the men turned to 
 meet her. 
 
 There was little in the Theodora of eighteen to re-
 
 "YOU POOR CHILD! YOU POOR LITTLE CHILD !" Page 79.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 97 
 
 mind one of the child of six, except perhaps her extreme 
 daintiness and the feminine exquisiteness that had al- 
 ways been so much a part of her. She was of medium 
 height, and, for all her life in this country of endless 
 sunshine, rather pale. Her skin was smooth, deli- 
 cate, almost transparent. Her eyes, long and narrow, 
 were deep brown, so heavily edged with black lashes 
 as to make them look even darker than they were. 
 But in strange contrast to her eyes, Theodora's hair 
 was a mass of golden brown, curling thick and heavy 
 down over her forehead, her ears, her neck. It was 
 wonderful hair; a veritable halo of glory reflecting 
 every light, scintillating and vibrating like a pile of 
 burnished gold. She was very quiet and very self- 
 possessed, and when she talked she had a way of mak- 
 ing quick, unexpected gestures that were charming 
 and graceful beyond words. 
 
 But her greatest fascination lay in a certain quaint 
 demureness of manner; the simplicity of a nun, the 
 flavor of the convent where she had lived for nearly 
 twelve years, emanating from her not to be put aside. 
 
 Callister she knew. To the other men, all strangers, 
 she bowed and smiled, glancing from face to face, 
 finally turning to Jarvis. " I am not going to inter- 
 rupt, Bud, dear. I only came to remind you that you 
 have kept your friends here nearly two hours without 
 offering them even so much as a drink of water." 
 
 " Oh, he'd kill us off either by thirst; or starvation 
 if he could," cried Callister. 
 
 '"' We've been most too busy to feel the need of any-
 
 98 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 thing," said Lawler, a trifle perplexed, never easy in 
 the presence of women. 
 
 " But you'll take time now for a glass of wine, to 
 please me, won't you? " she asked, sweetly. 
 
 " I guess I'd do most anything to please you," ex- 
 claimed Lawler, smiling broadly. 
 
 Meanwhile the Chinaman, clearing an end of the 
 table, had put down the bottles and glasses. Theodora 
 poured out the wine, passing the first glass with a 
 plate of wafers to Lawler. Young Mason was stand- 
 ing stiffly, following Theo with his eyes as she moved 
 back and forth. In his mind he compared her with 
 Gabrielle, his own sister, and observed with satisfac- 
 tion that now for the first time he was looking at a girl 
 who could hold her own in the way of looks with Ga- 
 brielle. He wondered vaguely why he had never seen 
 Jarvis' sister before and if Callister were an old friend. 
 That gentleman's familiarity seemed to proclaim a 
 long acquaintance. 
 
 Mason could not take his eyes from her. The more 
 he looked and the more he listened, the more attractive 
 the girl became. For the first time in the young fel- 
 low's life, the feminine element suddenly became very 
 important. It was rather pleasant to find that other 
 women could be as beautiful as Gabrielle ; women who 
 lived near him, where all the possibilities were in favor 
 of closer acquaintanceship. 
 
 In the midst of his reverie, Randolph's attention was 
 called to the hour by a faint blowing of the twelve- 
 o'clock whistles from the factories in Flaremont. He
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 99 
 
 put down his glass and straightened up, realizing 
 abruptly that he ought to be leaving. " Mr. Jarvis, I 
 must go. I had no idea it was so late. Whenever 
 you want me, let me know. Mother is anxious to fol- 
 low any plan you suggest. Good-by, Miss Jarvis." 
 
 Jarvis and Theo urged him to have luncheon with 
 them. He declined, protesting that his mother would 
 want to hear the result of the meeting and would ex- 
 pect him home; but some day, very soon, he might 
 drop in if it was quite convenient. 
 
 He hurried away, mounting his bicycle at the gate, 
 pushing rapidly down the road. He wondered if Jar- 
 vis' sister was looking after him, and at the bare 
 thought the blood rushed into his cheeks. 
 
 Directly the men began to take their leave, bowing 
 awkwardly to Theo*, gripping hands with Jarvis, urg- 
 ing him to hurry matters to the best of his ability. 
 In five minutes Callister, Jarvis and Theo were alone, 
 watching Morton's shuffling gait as he disappeared to- 
 wards Flaremont. 
 
 " Cal, I don't like that man," muttered Jarvis. 
 
 " Nor I. If anything went wrong I don't believe 
 you could count on him not as you could on the 
 others." 
 
 " What a good-looking boy Randolph Mason is ! " 
 observed Theo, turning to pick up the glasses. 
 
 " And a fine fellow, too. He's got it in him to do 
 something, be somebody, if he isn't afraid to act. Cal, 
 let's look over these figures again. I want to be dead 
 sure they're right before we go any farther."
 
 100 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 It was nearly dusk when Callister finally separated 
 from Jarvis. Together they had spent the entire after- 
 noon in Flaremont in conference with architects, inter- 
 viewing 1 contractors, transacting business, hurrying 
 matters to an issue. Jarvis' energy was like a monster 
 machine driven by the perpetual motion of an untiring 
 will. 
 
 Once a thing settled itself in his mind as a fact, he 
 knew neither rest nor contentment until it was accom- 
 plished. He was eminently a man of affairs, a person 
 of achievement. There was never a moment when 
 stupendous ideas were not whirling about in his 
 brain, ideas for the future, ideas that should benefit 
 not only himself, but all mankind. In his whole West- 
 ern experience thus far he had taken up one thing at 
 a time, working at it with obstinate fierceness until it 
 took practical shape. 
 
 Now he saw success expanding' before him. Step 
 by step he was climbing the ladder of prosperity. But 
 he would never stop until he had won the goal set long 
 ago as a youth, when, hungry and cold and alone, he 
 dreamed of the colony of people whom he should lead. 
 For his belief in that city of Utopian practices and cus- 
 toms had never flagged.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 101 
 
 His friendship with Callister had extended over a 
 period of six years. The two had met for the first 
 time far out on the prairie at a round-up of cattle. 
 A liking had been established between them at once 
 and gradually it had increased into a sincere affection. 
 
 Callister had gone West on account of his health; 
 he remained long after he was perfectly recovered, on 
 account of Jarvis. He was thirty-eight years old, alone 
 in the world, with ample income to come and go as he 
 chose, and live much better than he cared to. He was 
 finely educated in all the common branches of knowl- 
 edge. At college he had absorbed himself first with 
 chemistry, then with electricity. 
 
 There was nothing about the latter that Callister 
 had not read, no recent discoveries that he had not re- 
 worked in his own laboratory. His enthusiasm over 
 the possibilities of this force was unbounded. He 
 claimed that inventions so far were but child's play; 
 that electricity was a power past all belief, as great as of 
 a new sun, that not alone death but life itself could be 
 controlled by its forces. His own discoveries had not 
 been few, but he put them aside with a gesture of im- 
 patience, asserting that he had not gone outside the 
 puny a, b, c of the electrical alphabet. 
 
 In his own way Callister was quite as ambitious as 
 Jarvis, but he utterly lacked any keen sense of the prac- 
 tical. The two men were entirely opposite in charac- 
 teristics. Callister lived in an unknown world, his 
 imagination overriding his judgment, continually re-
 
 102 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 ceiving impressions rather than reverting to facts. 
 He would look beyond the confines of the earth out into 
 the mysterious realm of forces and counter-forces; of 
 currents and counter-currents, and scheme and dream 
 of a means whereby he might bring the intangible 
 down into his own control. He wanted to dictate to 
 nature and hear her obey his command. 
 
 He was supersensitive, very morbid, and inclined 
 to brood for days over trivial things. He disliked peo- 
 ple. A crowd could upset him for a month. But to 
 the few for whom he cared he yielded up his heart. 
 Nothing could change his affections once they were 
 placed. He forgave everything, excused everything, 
 overlooked everything. If his life were demanded as 
 a sacrifice for a friend, without a second's hesitation 
 the man would have pledged it. 
 
 He was given to long wanderings out of doors, find- 
 ing in hours of complete isolation and lonely commu- 
 nion with the great stretches of prairie land, the inspira- 
 tion for his work and the strength for his body. It 
 was his rest. Perplexed, unhappy, harried by doubts, 
 a day by himself restored all his faculties to a normal 
 state. 
 
 In appearance Callister was a great handsome fellow 
 with a pointed blond beard covering his chin, black hair 
 and eyes of deep hazel. Unlike Jarvis in everything 
 else, there was one mutual resemblance. It lay in the 
 expression of sadness that marked each face, a sadness 
 stamped on every feature, revealed in every line,
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 103 
 
 flashed from every glance, the imprint of some past 
 suffering that could not be lived down. 
 
 His house was five miles from Flaremont, standing 
 quite alone on a prominence that commanded an im- 
 mense stretch of country. The house itself was a 
 tiny affair, empty of all comforts, containing the barest 
 necessities. A huge porch from which all vines were 
 excluded ran across both sides and the front. Ad- 
 joining the house at the rear was his laboratory, a 
 building more than three times the size of the house, 
 with stone foundation and heavy doors of oak, pad- 
 locked and crossed with iron braces. 
 
 The view from Callister's front porch, facing Flare- 
 mont, was superb. The little city lay in the green val- 
 ley, a miniature arrangement of white houses nestling 
 in a setting of brilliant green. To the right, on ground 
 as elevated as his own, was the convent of The Holy 
 Mother, where Theo had gone as a child, knowing it 
 as her only home until Jarvis, three months before, had 
 built the house to which he had taken her. 
 
 This convent was a white building, made in the 
 shape of a cross, and set in the midst of a wonderful 
 garden of flowers. Just back of it rose the church of 
 The Holy Mother, an ancient structure originally used 
 strictly as a chapel for the nuns. The plaster walls 
 were badly crumbled and the high belfry seemed in 
 continual danger of collapse under the weight of the 
 heavy chimes that swung under the dome-shaped roof. 
 Tucked between the church and the convent was the
 
 104 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 house of Father Beauvais, the priest ; a man as vener- 
 able as the church he presided over, grown old in the 
 practice of his religion. 
 
 Detaching themselves from the great sweep of coun- 
 try, mere dots on the landscape, were three or four 
 houses : Jarvis' closest at hand ; two miles nearer 
 Flaremont, the widow Mason's cottage with the tall 
 oil-derrick just behind, seeming at this distance to rear 
 itself from the very roof of the dwelling. Beyond 
 that the new house where Lawler and Hale were to live 
 together, shining very new in its half -completed state. 
 
 But back of Callister's place spread the miles of 
 empty, curving country, dull brown from the summer's 
 sun; still, vast, lengthening far beyond the reach of 
 one's gaze; great ranges for the wonderful herds of 
 cattle; huge grain ranches catering to the world's 
 supply of food-stuffs. Morning, noon, and night this 
 illimitable expanse of prairie lay wrapped in absolute 
 silence, the very immensity of it excluding sound. 
 
 Callister, striding down the road, watching the first 
 quarter of the new moon sink closer and closer to the 
 horizon, felt this stillness and gave himself up to it. 
 It exhilarated him like a draught of new wine. It 
 crept into his veins, it covered his thoughts, it stole 
 away sensation. Literally, he became a part of the 
 solitude, surrendering his own personality to the great 
 somber, silent earth. 
 
 It had grown dark. Callister hurried forward. As 
 he came to the spot where he left the main road for
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 105 
 
 the trail leading up the hill to- his house, there was an 
 interruption. The contented quiet was broken into by 
 the sharp clatter of horses' feet. The unusual sound 
 roused Callister abruptly from his dream and he 
 jumped back to the edge of the road, stopping short, 
 straining his eyes to catch a glimpse of the intruder. 
 
 He had not long to wait. With a thunder of pound- 
 ing hoof beats the horse swept by, but even through the 
 gloom the rider had seen the figure by the roadside. 
 He gave a shout, tugging viciously at the reins. A 
 moment later he had turned the animal and was head- 
 ing for Callister. He sprang out of the saddle, slipped 
 one arm through the bridle and threw back his shoul- 
 ders. 
 
 "Lord! This beast pulls like the devil. I bought 
 it at a ranch about fifty miles from here without know- 
 ing much about him. My arms are loose in their 
 sockets." The fellow touched each shoulder gingerly. 
 
 Callister gazed at him calmly, trying to distinguish 
 his features, wondering if he had stopped solely for the 
 purpose of conversing about the characteristics of a 
 horse. 
 
 " You see," went on the rider, " I decided it would 
 be a fine trip to ride over certain portions of the West. 
 I have read volumes about Texas and Flaremont and 
 the oil geysers. I thought I'd like to see 'em those 
 geysers. That's why I'm headed this way. I've 
 been to the Yellowstone and I liked it. I thought per- 
 haps this would be something the same with the gey- 
 sers of oil instead of water."
 
 106 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 " Ah," observed Callister. 
 
 "I don't know my way, that is, I am not sure of it. 
 There were two turns about ten miles back, and I have 
 been afraid ever since that I had taken the wrong one. 
 I kept to the right, but was it the wrong? " 
 
 Callister's voice was not cordial in his reply : " If 
 you want the road to Flaremont, you are all right. 
 Just keep straight on. The town is five miles from 
 this trail." 
 
 " Well, thank goodness ! My arms would be clean 
 off if I had much more to ride. By the way, is there 
 a good hotel there? " 
 
 " Not very. It is crowded to the limit, anyway." 
 
 " Well, that's pleasant. What the devil am I to do? 
 I have got to sleep somewhere and got to eat, too. I 
 am empty. Perhaps you can tell me of a house some- 
 where near where I could put up for the night. To- 
 morrow I am going on. But I must have shelter till 
 daylight." 
 
 The stranger looked up 'the hill. At the top the 
 lights were going in Callister's house, flickering and 
 winking through the blackness. 
 
 " Can you tell me who lives up there ? I'm mighty 
 tired. I might get a chance to stop there." 
 
 " I live there," Callister admitted, adding slowly and 
 very much against his will, " You can spend the night 
 with me if you care to. It isn't much of a place and 
 you won't find any comforts. It is more of a camp 
 than a house."
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 107 
 
 The stranger drew a long breath of relief. " You 
 can bet I am not waiting for comforts. All I am 
 looking- for is a supper and a bed, a couple of chairs 
 with a pillow and a blanket would do me. I am dead 
 beat." 
 
 He turned the horse's head, still leading the animal 
 by the bridle, waiting for Callister to move on. Not 
 a word more passed between the two men. The si- 
 lence was profound again. The night took back unto 
 itself the great stillness that it loved. Following on 
 after the vaguely outlined figure of Callister, a feeling 
 very much akin to fear seized hold of the stranger. 
 He climbed up and up. Never had he known such 
 quiet. Never had he experienced such darkness. 
 Never had the universe seemed so big. On every side 
 the earth stretched like a sleeping monster, becoming 
 in the night a thing to be dreaded, fraught with un- 
 known dangers, exhaling unspeakable horrors. 
 
 He gave a nervous laugh when finally the house was 
 reached. But soon his sensation of fear redoubled. 
 Under the glare of the lamplight his host was looking 
 at him with an expression that made the new-comer 
 halt, then retreat a couple of steps. If he had obeyed 
 his dominant impulse, he would have turned and fled. 
 
 The truth was that Callister himself was hardly 
 aware of what he was doing. At the first glance he 
 sent towards the stranger, he was seized with bewilder- 
 ment. Certainly there was something familiar about 
 the stranger's face and figure. Where had they met
 
 108 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 before ? Callister s first impression was of some chance 
 acquaintance between them, occurring long ago. Then 
 that impression passed, leaving him with a sense of the 
 truth sharpening his memory. 
 
 Brusquely his attention riveted itself on the man 
 before him. What was it that he could not recall ? At 
 every instant the surety of having not only seen him, 
 but known him intimately, during an hour of greatest 
 distress, became stronger. Singularly interested, he 
 stood, his brows bent with his efforts to remember, his 
 eyes fixed on the other man's face, until he felt ab- 
 ruptly that the pause had grown awkward. 
 
 Immediately he apologized profusely. His guest, 
 evidently immensely relieved, gave a laugh. As he 
 seated himself he shook his long hair away from his 
 forehead with a curious thrust of his head and neck. 
 Callister uttered an exclamation. It was enough. By 
 that one move the recollection he sought rushed upon 
 him. Everything was clear. 
 
 For the moment the peculiarity of the affair was of 
 more concern to Callister than his astonishment at the 
 revelation. What had occurred was so unnatural, so 
 unreal. The impossible had happened. A vision had 
 matured into reality, the phantom figure of a dream 
 was there before him in flesh and blood. He was 
 looking at his guest, endeavoring to bind his forces 
 together in an effort to offer the courtesies of his house, 
 every minute expecting some ghostly manifestation 
 from this being, who could not be more than a crea- 
 ture of the imagination.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 109 
 
 It seemed as though the stranger would never tire, 
 never go to bed. He ate and smoked and talked, 
 telling Callister endless stories of himself and his 
 travels. He had given his name as Archibald Orton, 
 and he made himself very comfortably at home. He 
 asked for tobacco and rolled cigarette after cigarette 
 with a dexterous twist of his thumb and first finger. 
 About ten o'clock, hearing Callister's servant pass 
 through the room, he raised his voice ordering a drink 
 of whisky. And still he talked incessantly of coun- 
 tries he had visited. It seemed he had been every- 
 where. 
 
 The hours dragged interminably. After that first 
 swift understanding had broken on Callister, his 
 imagination had run on and on until a qualm of some- 
 thing very like awe was upon him. He longed to get 
 away, to go out into the still, dark night by himself, 
 and think this thing over. But it was nearly midnight 
 when Orton stood up, stretching himself, yawning, 
 throwing out his arms. 
 
 "Well," he declared, "I've gabbled enough. I'll 
 turn in. It must be getting on towards midnight." 
 
 Callister arose at once, showing Orton into his own 
 bedroom. For that night he himself would sleep in 
 the laboratory. The two shook hands, then Orton 
 closed and locked the door, trying it after it was fas- 
 tened. 
 
 The other man, infinitely relieved, strode out onto 
 the porch, seating himself at a corner farthest from
 
 110 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 the bedroom and staring thoughtfully across the coun- 
 try enshrouded in impenetrable darkness. 
 
 Never had he been so perplexed. His thoughts shot 
 back to his first meeting with this man. It was not 
 a picture easy to forget. He remembered every inci- 
 dent of it, every detail, as distinctly as though months, 
 not years, had elapsed since this Orton had come like a 
 ghost formed out of the very darkness itself and called 
 to him for help. His face that night had not been as 
 it was to-night, serene, smiling, self-satisfied, but bor- 
 dering on the dementia of extreme terror. 
 
 Under the influence of that vision that never had 
 been cleared from his mind, Callister sat motionless, 
 his chin propped on his hands, looking about him 
 vaguely, hardly daring to trust to his thoughts. Many 
 strange and mysterious things had come to him in his 
 life: episodes for which there seemed no logical ex- 
 planation; illusions that had touched on the super- 
 natural, but nothing had ever affected him as had that 
 intangible figure poised over his bed in the dead of 
 night, in an agony of dumb fear, a mute expression of 
 wild appeal written in every line of the terrifying face. 
 
 Now even more mysterious was this sudden reap- 
 pearance in the flesh of that same man. What could 
 he want ? What did it all mean ? Why had they met 
 to-night on the roadside in the dark ? What would his 
 coming bring to Callister? 
 
 The questions recoiled on the man's nervous, brood- 
 ing temperament until he was racked with uneasiness
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 111 
 
 and dread of the future. Something was at work here 
 that boded ill for some one, but why was he con- 
 cerned ? 
 
 All night he sat thinking and thinking, but when 
 the day began to whiten in the east a certain quiet had 
 come to him almost against his will, the quiet, ab- 
 sorbed from the utter stillness of the great, silent, con- 
 tented, peaceful earth.
 
 112 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 On the following morning, directly after breakfast, 
 Callister began making excuses to his guest for being 
 obliged to leave him alone. 
 
 "I am to meet a friend at Flaremont at nine o'clock. 
 I will have to' start at once. But you stay here as long 
 as you like. There is no hurry for you to> gO'." 
 
 However, Orton was as anxious to ride to Flare- 
 mont as Callister. He lighted a cigarette, made a 
 bundle of the things he had used over night, and 
 crossed to the shed that served Callister as a stable, 
 commenting on the fineness of the day. 
 
 " Lord, I'm lame. If that beast pulls to-day as it 
 did yesterday, I see my finish," he observed, swinging 
 himself stiffly into his saddle. Callister rode a thor- 
 oughbred, a beautiful creature, gentle as a pony, swift 
 as a deer. Orton gazed at the horse critically. 
 " Looks like a Kentucky." 
 
 " It is," nodded Callister. 
 
 They set off, going down the steep trail, Callister 
 leading, Orton following closely after him. They 
 were both good riders. Once on the main road they 
 ran along side by side, talking little, absorbed in the 
 perfection of the morning. Half-way to Flaremont 
 they overtook Jarvis, spinning along on a bicycle.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 113 
 
 He shouted his greeting to Callister, adding imme- 
 diately, " I wish you'd stop at the Masons, Cal. The 
 men have all arranged to meet me at the architect's 
 office this morning at ten, to look over the plans. 
 There are some papers, too, to- be signed. I couldn't 
 get at Randolph last night. He ought to know. Will 
 you tell him? " 
 
 " All right," answered Callister. 
 
 ' Then I'll spin ahead. I want to get the estimates 
 from the contractors. They are to be ready this 
 morning before our meeting.'' 
 
 " Don't wait. I'll bring Randolph." 
 
 " What are you building? " asked Orton. 
 
 " A refinery." 
 
 " A lot of you going in on it together? " 
 
 " Six of us." 
 
 " Oh. All of you own oil, I suppose? " 
 
 " Yes." 
 
 At last Mrs. Mason's house, charming, very pretty, 
 set in a veritable garden of vines and flowers, came 
 in sight. The two riders galloped into the yard, pull- 
 ing their horses up at the door. At the sound a 
 young girl appeared at the entrance, shielding her eyes 
 from the sun with one hand, as she looked down at the 
 men. Instantly their hats came off. Orton muttered an 
 exclamation under his breath that Callister heard. A 
 great blaze of color rushed to his usually pale face, his 
 teeth clicked. A second later, he asked the girl where 
 he could find Randolph.
 
 114 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 Callister was not a ladies' man. Invariably in their 
 presence he felt an overwhelming sense of inferiority. 
 Women were little less than angels in his mind ; beings 
 to be worshiped and looked after, as one would care 
 for some rare and fragile work of art. He never knew 
 what to say to them. He had even been known to use 
 atrocious grammar in trying to talk to a girl. He was 
 uncomfortably conscious of his size, and his nervous- 
 ness was so intense as to make him appear either stu- 
 pid or foolish. 
 
 But his embarrassment never was so great as when 
 he came into the presence of Gabrielle Mason. The 
 wonderful beauty of this girl all but overpowered him, 
 actually causing him to suffer, yet he would have given 
 years of his life to have shown to advantage before 
 her. 
 
 The fame of Gabrielle's beauty had spread beyond 
 Flaremont. Although a Southerner, coming from 
 Alabama, she was a blonde of the most pronounced 
 type. Her hair was a flambant mass of gold, her eyes 
 were deep blue, very large and very round. Her skin, 
 delicately pink, dazzlingly pure, had the milky transpar- 
 ency of china. Every feature of her countenance was 
 so absolutely perfect, so absolutely regular, that she 
 resembled the masterpiece of some genius rather than 
 a living, breathing piece of organism. 
 
 In looking at her one forgot to expect character, or 
 evidences of strength. One never felt any disappoint- 
 ment at failing to hear wisdom fall from her lips.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 115 
 
 Everything was overlooked under stress of her mar- 
 velous beauty. 
 
 Orton was not the first man who had exclaimed at 
 what he saw, but her presence apparently stimulated 
 him. Unlike Callister, he was not constrained, but all 
 grace and polish and ease. He acknowledged the in- 
 troduction with extreme courtesy. His eyes met hers 
 with a glance of bold admiration, but his attitude was 
 so self -depreciating, so full of respect towards her, 
 that his open interest could not offend. 
 
 Immediately he opened the conversation, keeping up 
 a flow of small talk with scarcely a break or an inter- 
 ruption. Gabrielle listened, frankly showing her de- 
 light. She had never before met a man who possessed 
 manners like these. It was a vision of another 
 realm, the world of fashion, where everything was 
 well-bred, decorous, very genteel. He found innumer- 
 able chances for compliments, phrases of flagrant flat- 
 tery that never intruded, but rolled off his tongue with 
 a glib volubility. 
 
 Meanwhile Callister had a hunt for Randolph, finally 
 finding him at the oil-well. He delivered his message 
 and hurried back, furious at leaving Orton so long 
 with Gabrielle. He could hear the girl's laugh ring 
 out every few minutes. As he approached the house, 
 he saw the two were talking gaily, with almost aston- 
 ishing intimacy. Gabrielle was standing by Orton's 
 horse, patting the animal's head, putting her own ex- 
 quisite cheek against the creature's neck.
 
 110 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 To Callister's mind it was a strange proceeding. 
 These two had been acquainted barely ten minutes and 
 already were on far better terms than he and she had 
 ever been in the year he had known her. They must 
 have progressed with astonishing rapidity to reach 
 such an understanding. 
 
 His spirits sank to the lowest ebb. He ought to 
 have realized long ago he had no chance with a girl 
 like this. He would only terrify her with his brusque- 
 ness and lack of refinement and huge size. But it 
 was hardly fair for her to take up so easily with an 
 absolute stranger. He mounted his thoroughbred, 
 turning away with barely a glance towards the girl, his 
 bearing showing to marked disadvantage beside the 
 other man's. 
 
 " I can't wait, Orton. Good-morning, Miss Gabri- 
 elle," he called, touching a spur to his horse in pre- 
 tense of great hurry. 
 
 But to his utter amazement, as he rode away no an- 
 swering gallop followed. Was it possible Orton had 
 remained ? Had he no manners, no sense at all ! At 
 the gate, Callister overcame his pride and, turning in 
 the saddle, looked back. 
 
 Orton stood with his back to the road, talking to 
 Mrs. Mason, who had just come out of doors. Hat in 
 hand, very polite, very punctilious, even his attitude 
 was giving the expression of his pleasure at meeting 
 these ladies. He made no signs of leaving. Gabrielle 
 was still close beside him, her eyes on his face, the
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 117 
 
 strong sunlight focused directly upon her, emphasizing 
 every outline and curve of her graceful figure. It 
 brought out the glory of her hair. It revealed her per- 
 fect beauty, as a reflector placed above a painting re- 
 veals its fineness in detail. They made a picture never 
 to be forgotten. 
 
 But the whole episode upset Callister. All the way 
 to Flaremont he raved, telling himself over and over 
 again that although he had always known she was a 
 coquette, it did surprise him to have her take up with a 
 fellow like Orton. He had not believed it of her. A 
 thirty-cent chap at best, coming from no one knew 
 where, having no purpose in life beyond gallivanting 
 over the country on a horse's back. True, she was too 
 good, too perfect, too beautiful for him, Callister con- 
 fessed to himself, but she was too good for Orton as 
 well. 
 
 In spite of these assertions, Callister was very mis- 
 erable. He began to envy Orton as he despised him. 
 He made up his mind that if the fellow did not follow 
 his original intention of departing from Flaremont 
 that same day he would watch him. He would find 
 out something definite about this stranger who had 
 entered on the scene so mysteriously. 
 
 Ordinarily Callister's temper was not easily roused. 
 His gravity and calm were seldom broken. His whole 
 attitude of mind was invariably towards the broader 
 outlook. But for the past six months his thoughts had 
 been more than usually occupied by this girl, whose
 
 118 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 beauty was the talk of the surrounding country. 
 Everywhere he went, he carried with him a clear-cut 
 vision of her perfect face, her rounded figure, her glo- 
 rious hair. Even when he worked, he caught himself 
 stopping short every little while, straightening up, his 
 mind leaping to the vine-covered cottage where she 
 lived. 
 
 This state of affairs roused in him a kind of tumult. 
 He was angry with himself, impatient with his foolish- 
 ness, at the same time sheepishly happy whenever, per- 
 mitting his imagination to run loose, he pictured a fu- 
 ture that brought them together. Abruptly he began to 
 watch furtively for possible rivals. Men whom she 
 might favor out of the group who continually sought 
 the Mason house. So far, he had been unable to pick 
 out one whom she marked with special attention. 
 
 The fact was, Gabrielle encouraged all who came 
 with startling equality. Everywhere she went a crowd 
 of men trailed behind her. She accepted this as her 
 right and expected the homage of her followers. But 
 Callister had looked on unaffected by what he saw. 
 There was safety in numbers. Now, however, a new 
 fellow had come on the scene. Immediately Callister 
 became moody. She had taken up with him very 
 quickly. Perhaps she found something in Orton that 
 won her fancy. There was no telling what caught 
 a girl. But one thing about it, a day had been the 
 limit this Orton had set to remain in the neighbor- 
 hood. Matters couldn't progress very far in one day.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 119 
 
 Immensely relieved, Callister began to breathe more 
 freely. 
 
 The men arrived at the meeting-place promptly at 
 ten. Jarvis was in great spirits. Everything was 
 working well. Papers necessary for the formation of 
 the Company were ready, the plans were drawn and 
 specifications made; in fact, no difficulties had pre- 
 sented themselves. 
 
 " It's a fair beginning of the battle, gentlemen," 
 said Jarvis, after giving his report of what was al- 
 ready accomplished. " We will soon be in a state 
 where we can not only maintain our place in the market 
 against large odds, but rehabilitate ourselves in part 
 for what we are losing during this wait. Of course, a 
 little more money would be a splendid thing. We can 
 get on as we are, but we would be freer if we had more 
 leeway." 
 
 " We ain't going to get stuck, Mr. Jarvis, are we? 
 Put up, and put up, until we've chucked in all we've 
 got, then have proceedings stop for lack of funds ? " 
 Morton's eyes shifted uneasily. He was gazing at the 
 floor, his ringers working spasmodically. 
 
 " Why, no, Morton ; we figured that all out. I be- 
 lieve it was explained carefully to each one," replied 
 Jarvis. 
 
 " That hits the case," muttered Lawler. 
 
 " You ain't going to lose anything," shouted Hale, 
 " and, Morton, see here, it's too late to back out. 
 You're in this Company to stay. Moreover, we ain't
 
 120 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 going to have any complaining nor any rupture. 
 Every move so far has been talked about and argued 
 upon by each man jack of us. We're none of us swin- 
 dlers. I guess if we can put our money in this scheme, 
 you don't stand to lose much by following suit." 
 
 " I ain't complaining. It's only I've known how it 
 feels to be hungry and poor poorer than you can 
 think of, suffering poor. My little pile came hard. I 
 don't want it to slip away." 
 
 " Oh, rot ! " muttered Hale. 
 
 " That hits it! " responded Lawler. 
 
 " We understand how you feel, Morton, but there's 
 no cause for alarm. Gentlemen," Jarvis turned to the 
 group about him, " if it's agreed that everything so 
 far is O. K. we break ground to-morrow for the re- 
 finery. Shall I give the word ? " 
 
 The acquiescence was unanimous. Five minutes 
 later Jarvis, Mason and Callister descended from the 
 office to the street. An air of briskness pervaded all 
 Flaremont. Daily the city grew in size and activity. 
 There remained but a week's work to finish the trolley 
 line. A large group of men and boys centered them- 
 selves where they could watch proceedings, apparently 
 very interested in every detail of the performance. 
 The sidewalks were filled with a changing, mingling 
 mass of people. The stores were doing a rushing busi- 
 ness. The three men elbowed their way along, ex- 
 changing salutations with people they knew, talking 
 between themselves at every chance.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 121 
 
 " I'm going in to see Eberlie. By the way, did you 
 notice that the Eastern oil men have sent a representa- 
 tive here? The paper spoke of his arrival last night," 
 Tarvis asked of Callister. 
 
 " No, I haven't seen a paper. What's he here for? 
 Trying to find out if any of us mean business? " 
 
 " We ought to keep our plans from him, don't you 
 think so ? " suggested Randolph. " What's his name? " 
 
 " Wilmarth. I forget the initials. Oh, I don't be- 
 lieve he's up to anything special. Those big amalga- 
 mations of power make a point of keeping posted, 
 sending their agents around the country to see what's 
 doing. Flaremont is a factor in the oil trade now. 
 They know it and they keep it under surveillance. 
 Hello, there's Theo." 
 
 The men looked up. Jarvis waved his hand. Across 
 the street Theodora was just coming from a store, her 
 arms full of bundles. 
 
 Randolph Mason's face went crimson. Promptly 
 he was seized with uneasiness. A sudden desire swept 
 through him to make his adieus and hurry on. But 
 before he could move through the groups of people 
 she had joined them, very breathless, her hair blowing 
 about her face, her usually pale cheeks flushed. 
 
 " Oh, I am glad I met you. Have you ever seen 
 such crowds? Just think, I've had to stand in line 
 to get to the counters. If this thing goes on much 
 longer, a woman will have to shop with a guard of 
 soldiers. My, I'm tired ! "
 
 122 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 She divided her packages between Callister and Jar- 
 vis. Randolph stood apart waiting to offer his as- 
 sistance, too perturbed to speak, angry at his own 
 sheepishness. Never had Theo looked prettier. She 
 wore a dress of pale pink dimity with a pink satin rib- 
 bon tight about her neck, a pink satin sash about her 
 waist. On her head was a straw hat, trimmed with 
 pink ribbon and flowers. She was inexpressibly dainty. 
 
 " Bud, how did you come down? " she said, as they 
 started to walk on. " I walked and I am so tired." 
 
 " I rode over on my wheel, Theo, but you ought to 
 drive home. I'll tell yon, you wait here while I go 
 back and bring over the buckboard. You mustn't 
 walk back." 
 
 " Nonsense, it would use up all your morning," she 
 protested. 
 
 " Well, what of it ? I sha'n't have you using your- 
 self up like this. It won't do. You'll be down sick 
 from pure lack of care," Jarvis declared. 
 
 " Do I look like some sort of a house-plant ? " she 
 questioned. 
 
 " Yes, you do," announced Callister. " Only pret- 
 tier ; you're like a flower." 
 
 Theo laughed. " Oh, Mr. Callister, that won't do 
 from you. Besides, I was not fishing." 
 
 But Jarvis was insisting on his idea. " Now, dear, 
 I will go get my wheel. Cal and Randolph will keep 
 you company till I come back. It won't take an hour." 
 Jarvis started off.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 123 
 
 Theo caught his arm. " It's perfectly ridiculous," 
 she began. 
 
 All at once an idea occurred to Randolph. He took 
 his resolution firmly in both hands. He raised his eyes 
 to Jarvis' face, apparently ignoring Theo. 
 
 " I drove over, and I would, if you like, that is, 
 if Miss Jarvis will allow me, I will be so glad to take her 
 home." 
 
 " Thanks, Randolph, this is kind of you. Theo, 
 when will you be ready? " 
 
 " You are sure it won't be out of your way, Mr. 
 Mason?" inquired Theo, anxiously. 
 
 " No, indeed ; you don't know how glad I am to do 
 it. I put the horse in the stable. If you will wait at 
 {he corner " 
 
 " Of course, and thank you so much." 
 
 He was off with great speed. 
 
 Nor had they long to wait. Five minutes later, 
 Randolph drove up in an open buggy, pulling alongside 
 the curbing in front of a corner drug store. Theo 
 piled her packages at their feet. She threw a kiss to 
 Jarvis and waved to Callister. Then, as the two drove 
 off, Jarvis and Callister stood looking after them, both 
 busy with certain thoughts. 
 
 There was a pause. Callister, full of his own af- 
 fairs with Gabrielle, suddenly found an unformed pos- 
 sibility in the sight of Theo and Randolph. It did not 
 take much keenness to see what Mason's face ex- 
 pressed. He was a capital fellow. Theo might look
 
 124 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 farther and fare worse. Still, it would leave Jarvis 
 pretty much alone. 
 
 ' That's the way with girls," he announced, vaguely. 
 " Just let them get to a point where they are of use, 
 where you begin to depend on 'em and need 'em, and 
 some fellow up and takes them." 
 
 Jarvis gave a start. " What are you talking about ? " 
 His voice was sharp. 
 
 " I was talking about girls and thinking about 
 Theo. You can't expect to keep that sister of yours to 
 yourself always, Jarvis." 
 
 " Why not ? " he demanded, fiercely. Callister 
 looked at him and gave a short laugh. 
 
 " Why not? Well, just look at those two and get 
 your answer," he remarked, pointing to the buggy dis- 
 appearing down the road, Theo's pink dress plainly 
 visible against the black vehicle. 
 
 Jarvis stared. The light had died out of his face. 
 He looked pale and rather tired, as though all at once 
 the strain of the past two days had set a weight on him 
 that he could not rise above. He turned abruptly to 
 Callister. " I believe I will go home. I won't stop 
 to see Eberlie this morning. My errand there can 
 wait. Come over to-morrow when the men begin 
 work. So long, Cal."
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 125 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 The weeks passed swiftly. Already the winter 
 months were at hand, but the magnificent weather 
 held. As Jarvis had predicted, there had been no de- 
 lays. The Company was legally incorporated. The 
 refinery was being pushed to completion. There was 
 a strenuous gaiety in the attitude of the six men who 
 were taking the first steps towards their independence, 
 making the first stride towards a palpable achievement. 
 All of a sudden the possibilities loomed big before them. 
 They began to look upon themselves as citizens of in- 
 fluence and power. Their Company assumed a vast im- 
 portance. These men, these strikers of oil, all of whom 
 had fought an uphill battle for a bare existence, over- 
 coming tremendous odds, abruptly saw themselves be- 
 coming foremost figures in their state. The cherished 
 dreams of a lifetime were about to materialize beyond 
 their wildest hopes. An easy victory over competition 
 seemed theirs. With the true spirit of the West it was 
 a fortune, not a competence, about to be won. 
 
 Everywhere else in the region, the oil situation was 
 at a standstill. The first skirmish between the two 
 forces was on, with the odds all in favor of the great 
 Eastern combination. Low prices and exorbitant
 
 126 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 freight tariffs had closed the industry to individuals, 
 and except where the men dealt directly with the East- 
 ern Petroleum Company, not a gallon of the fluid was 
 sold. The situation had practically resolved itself into : 
 Cooperation with the trust, or ruin. 
 
 Wilmarth, the Eastern representative in Flaremont, 
 stood ready to buy any well that was offered. The 
 only men who were not approached were the six form- 
 ing the Flaremont Independent Refiners Company. 
 
 Jarvis saw in this fact a subject for grave considera- 
 tion. " He's got something up his sleeve. We, who 
 really are the men most to be feared, are the only ones 
 he has not a word for," he declared, talking the matter 
 over with Callister. " I've kept watch of this thing 
 and I don't like it." 
 
 " Perhaps it is the fact of the Company that holds 
 him back. He knows that not one of us can sell as in- 
 dividuals and the six of us wouldn't part with the prop- 
 erty if we could," replied Callister. 
 
 Jarvis shook his head. " No, he wouldn't sit down 
 without making some sort of a try if he wanted what 
 we have. I wish I knew what he is up to. You can bet 
 there's something. I am not a backslider, nor a cow- 
 ard, either, you know that, but at times I wonder just 
 what current of events we are being caught in when 
 we antagonize a force like that Eastern Petroleum 
 Company." 
 
 But it was too late to weaken. If they had entan- 
 gled themselves hopelessly in an affair that meant ruin,
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 127 
 
 there was nothing to do but go on and on to> the bitter 
 end. If the trust had set a trap to corner them, prob- 
 ably they would never know it until the spring snapped 
 and they were held fast, cut off from all escape. 
 
 However, Jarvis was as yet the only man really 
 alarmed. Where he saw danger the others saw only 
 the cautious postponement of action on the part of the 
 enemy. They all beamed with satisfaction at the near 
 completion of the refinery. 
 
 About this time Callister finished his electrical ap- 
 pliance for the refinery's boilers. He showed it to Jar- 
 vis, explaining, " It's a sure thing against a blow-up. 
 I don't believe a fellow trying to explode a boiler could 
 accomplish it with this regulator of mine." 
 
 " Oh, that's what you've been doing lately, is it? " 
 Jarvis demanded, looking at him, critically. 
 
 "Yes. Why?" 
 
 " I knew you were up to something, overworking, 
 somehow. The truth is, old man, you aren't looking 
 altogether up-to-date. Don't overdo. We can't spare 
 you; I can't spare you. You don't take rest enough." 
 Jarvis put one hand affectionately on Callister's shoul- 
 der. 
 
 Callister shook his head, gazing straight before him. 
 " It isn't my work that bothers me. It's it's some- 
 thing else. I've wanted to tell you for a long time, but 
 somehow I couldn't; the thing wouldn't come out." 
 
 " Let's have it, Cal." 
 
 " It isn't really much. When I come to put it into 
 words, it sounds ridiculous." The man's glance fell.
 
 128 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 " You are never ridiculous, my friend," said Jarvis. 
 As he took careful note of Callister, he saw how really 
 ill the man looked. His face was thin; great hollows 
 had formed in his cheeks, and Jarvis remembered how 
 a dozen times a day Callister would sink into a kind 
 of reverie, an abstraction from which nothing roused 
 him. 
 
 Drawing back in his chair, his eyes still fixed on the 
 distant horizon, Callister asked abruptly, " Jarvis, do 
 yon know this fellow Orton ? " 
 
 " Only by sight. I have seen him riding with Ga- 
 brielle Mason." 
 
 " Well, that's what I want to talk to you about. I 
 know you'll understand. At least," he added, quietly, 
 " you won't laugh. It happened long ago, ten or twelve 
 years, when I was working hard ; experimenting, study- 
 ing, staying up half the night to finish things I had 
 become interested in. One night after I went to bed 
 I couldn't sleep. I can't explain to you just how I 
 felt. " I wasn't nervous, but uneasy, troubled. It was 
 raining hard. The blackness was intense, almost thick. 
 It was quiet, too, as a churchyard. There was not a 
 sound anywhere except the clatter of the storm. Sud- 
 denly, without the least warning, something formed it- 
 self in the darkness at the foot of my bed. I wasn't 
 dreaming, Jarvis. Something took shape there before 
 me, growing clearer every minute, actually poising 
 itself in midair before me." 
 
 Callister paused. His voice was husky. Jarvis sat 
 rigid in his chair, motionless with wonder.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 129 
 
 " For a moment I was frightened," Callister finally 
 went on. " Then I was angry. It seemed absurd. I 
 jumped up from my bed, but, once my feet touched the 
 floor, I stood paralyzed with awe. The vision did not 
 move. Instead, it grew clearer. I was face to face 
 with it, and so close I had but to stretch forth my arm 
 to touch it. Everywhere else in the room it was as 
 black as the night could make it, and only the beat of 
 the rain broke the silence." 
 
 " What was it? What was the vision? " asked Jar- 
 vis, leaning forward, intensely interested. 
 
 " The figure of a man, an appalling figure. He 
 seemed to be trying to escape some danger. His face 
 was marked by the most terrible expression of human 
 anguish and fear that I have ever seen. Never, never 
 can I forget how he looked." Callister hesitated a mo- 
 ment, wiping his forehead, taking a quick breath. 
 " For fully five minutes the thing hung before me, then 
 it began to fade. Bit by bit it melted into the shadows 
 of the surrounding gloom. I sprang for a light. There 
 was nothing there. For months I waited and watched, 
 brooding over the affair. I was fearfully upset ; I 
 couldn't understand it. The face was so distinct and 
 so terrible it haunted me. But the vision never came 
 again, nothing unusual happened. Then I tried to 
 forget, tried to put it all out of my mind." 
 
 Suddenly Callister arose to his feet. A reaction was 
 coming on him. His eyes were shining with a strange 
 brilliancy. " After all these years, just as I was be-
 
 130 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 ginning to get the affair out of my thoughts, the 
 strange part comes," he cried. " Three months ago>, in 
 the early evening, I met a man riding towards me. He 
 stopped, demanding shelter in my house. I could not 
 refuse him, though it was not until he was under my 
 roof that I had a look at his face. Jarvis, the man 
 whom I had taken in was the man I had seen in that 
 vision. I know it. It is no trick of my imagination. 
 1 am not crazy. It was Orton that came to me out of 
 the darkness years ago. Here, again, in my room, 
 under my care, was Orton in flesh and blood." 
 
 " Are you sure, Callister, are you sure? " exclaimed 
 Jarvis, as fully roused as Callister. 
 
 " God knows I am. But to go on. He seemed gen- 
 tlemanly enough. I was so unnerved that I couldn't 
 remember the barest courtesies. All I could do was to 
 stare and listen. He said his intention was to stay 
 only twenty-four hours in Flaremont. He was making 
 a tour across the state on horseback, carrying out some 
 whim of travel. He was here to see the oil regions, 
 the geysers particularly. The next morning he and I 
 rode together towards Flaremont. By accident he met 
 Gabrielle Mason. You remember it was the day you 
 asked me to go there on an errand. He went with me. 
 Well, instead of going in twenty-four hours, he is 
 still here, spending hours of every day with her. Jar- 
 vis, I can't endure it. What is he? What has he 
 done? Where has he come from ? Is he bringing dan- 
 ger to the one woman whom of all the world I would
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 131 
 
 wish to save from harm ? I've argiied the matter from 
 a hundred different standpoints. I am more at sea than 
 ever. But, my God, it's driving me mad ! I can think 
 of nothing else, and I am so powerless. Who would be- 
 lieve such a yarn as this? More than that, what evi- 
 dence does it hold against Orton, even if I should tell 
 the story to people who believed? " 
 
 " Why not tell Randolph ? " suggested Jarvis. 
 
 " Do you think it would do the least good ? " ques- 
 tioned Callister. " Besides, why tell it ? What excuse 
 could I make ? What course of action could I suggest ? 
 I can not give my impressions of a thoroughly unnatu- 
 ral occurrence, and expect rational men to regard me 
 as sane. Personally, I hold the vision as a warning; 
 though I can't decide whether it means I am to save 
 Orton from something, or that I ought to stand in the 
 way of preventing him from harming some one dear 
 to me." 
 
 There was a silence. A mysterious intuition of dan- 
 ger hung over the men. Some small white clouds 
 moved overhead with deliberate slowness. In front 
 of them, the distance lessened by the marvelously clear 
 atmosphere, Flaremont spread out, a dazzling little 
 town set under a vast expanse of sky. The workmen 
 were busy at the refinery. At regular intervals the 
 hammers clashed against the iron boilers. It was the 
 clamor that finally roused Jarvis from the disturbing 
 thoughts which Callister's story had stirred in him. 
 Something of his own past history had leaped to the
 
 132 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 front, demanding its place in his mind, refusing to be 
 relegated to the background, and it was to escape these 
 specters that he passed his arm through Callister's, sug- 
 gesting a visit to the new building. 
 
 The furnaces were being put in. Outside, the stills, 
 three great cylinders, lay on the ground. Huge affairs 
 capable of handling two hundred barrels of crude oil 
 daily, the output of Jarvis' own well, combined with 
 Lawler's, Kale's, Mason's and Callister's. 
 
 " Morton is doing good work," Jarvis explained, try- 
 ing to turn the subject. " He has stuck to this thing 
 splendidly. He has more than won his place in the 
 Company." 
 
 " Have you asked him to put on the electric safety- 
 valves ? " asked Callister. 
 
 " Yes. We will need them by Monday." 
 
 The ground was littered with iron and brick; in 
 every direction were evidences of hurried work. Mor- 
 ton was everywhere. One could see him from morn- 
 ing till night giving orders, raising his voice to be 
 heard above the boiler-makers, directing matters with 
 the knowledge and understanding of a man familiar 
 with his business. 
 
 As Jarvis and Callister came up, the- expert was ar- 
 guing some point with the contractor. He was in his 
 shirt-sleeves, his arms bare to the elbows, red with 
 heat, wet with sweat, his big hat shoved far back on 
 his head, his hair damp and matted on his forehead. 
 
 Jarvis called to him, raising his voice above the fear-
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 133 
 
 fill racket. Immediately Morton went towards him. 
 He greeted Callister, for a brief second lifting his eyes, 
 raising them half-way to the other's face. As he began 
 to speak they dropped, shifting from side to side, eye- 
 ing the ground at his feet. 
 
 " Mr. Jarvis, we will need another storage tank. 
 This contract calls for two. We ought to have three." 
 
 " All right ; just as you say. You know we all rely 
 on you for this part of the program, Morton. We're 
 green hands at the work over here." 
 
 " And, Mr. Callister, they say you've got some sort 
 of a fixin' for the furnaces, a safety-gage. Well, 
 you better let me have it. It won't be long before 
 we'll get the fires to going." 
 
 " I'll bring it to-morrow. When ought you to begin 
 operating? " 
 
 " I put it three weeks from to-day." 
 
 " We are going to have all the business we can han- 
 dle. Our shipments will be a mere bagatelle. I've been 
 making inquiries, and I find that we can dispose of 
 practically all our refined products right here in this 
 state. We will be able to avoid long runs and tariff 
 charges almost entirely. We have made no mistake," 
 declared Jarvis. 
 
 The three men started towards the refinery, turning 
 their attention to matters of construction, forgetting 
 for the moment personal affairs. They stopped before 
 the huge storage tanks, Morton explaining how a short- 
 age of room here would hinder the entire plant.
 
 134 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 " Have you looked over the new tanks down near the 
 freight station? " he asked. " They are being put up 
 by the Eastern Petroleum Company. They're dandies, 
 the largest in the state. We ought to have one like 
 'em." 
 
 " Have they bought wells enough to need such 
 tanks? " asked Callister. 
 
 " They own pretty nearly all the gushers of any ac- 
 count in the region. You gentlemen seem to be about 
 the only ones who haven't sold out," Morton said, 
 quietly. 
 
 " Well, we're not intending to sell, either. If those 
 Eastern fellows are getting on the inside like this, 
 though, we can look for a drop in rates. It won't be 
 worth their while to fight us, especially after we get to 
 operating here and don't have to ship much," observed 
 Callister. 
 
 " No, when they come to sell it all, it's a different 
 matter. The railroads will come to time then." A 
 moment later Jar vis added, " But it's a good thing we 
 are entirely free of any outsiders. We can supply our 
 refinery with crude oil as well as get rid of our fin- 
 ished stock, within a radius of a few miles. If we de- 
 pended wholly on outside wells to give us work, we 
 might be stuck always providing that the Eastern 
 Petroleum Company isn't friendly." 
 
 The five o'clock whistles sounded. Already it was 
 growing dark. The men stopped their work, crossing 
 the stretch of lawn from the refinery to the main road,
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 135 
 
 their lunch boxes in their hands, their tools slung over 
 their shoulders. Now and then one stopped short to 
 light his pipe, another one pressed forward to join a 
 group ahead, or to speak with a comrade, but one and 
 all passed the time of day with Jarvis. 
 
 " I must be getting home. Good-night," said Mor- 
 ton, starting suddenly. Jarvis and Callister strolled 
 towards the house. 
 
 ' Three weeks more to wait, old man. It seems al- 
 most too good to be true, Cal. Only a few years ago 
 I hadn't a cent to my name. Every day I wondered 
 how I could get even a bite to eat. Now how different 
 it is ! Oh, this old Texas has been good to me, mighty 
 good. And I'm grateful, so very, very grateful/' Jar- 
 vis' voice broke. 
 
 " The oil has been a godsend to many of us, Jarvis. 
 I didn't begin desperately poor, but I hadn't anything 
 easy. Always my hopes and thoughts have centered 
 about one thing, to have an income sufficient to keep 
 me while I experimented. I don't want riches. Great 
 wealth disgusts me. But I do want a chance to do 
 something worth while, something that will find a 
 place for the ultimate good O'f mankind." 
 
 A silence ensued. Side by side these two friends 
 walked on, each deep in his own thoughts that carried 
 him back of these hours of promise ; reverting to mem- 
 ories of days gone by when, with trembling bodies and 
 uncertain feet, they stepped onto the great wheel of 
 fortune. How desperately they had clung on as it
 
 136 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 swung up the first quarter circle towards the future! 
 Yet how small a matter if they had lost their grip and 
 fallen off. For who was there to care, who even to no- 
 tice? What of one man more or less, sinking by the 
 wayside in the struggle of life? What of one failure 
 more or less recorded in the eternal, universal fight for 
 success ? 
 
 All men flutter through the moment of their exis- 
 tence ; forgotten instantly, swept aside to make room for 
 the succeeding generations. Success or failure, which- 
 ever their lives may have held, is of little account in 
 the great march of universal events. 
 
 The calm night widened about them. The earth, un- 
 disturbed by tumults or turmoils, folding to itself the 
 mystery of peace, spread at their feet, immortal, un- 
 changed, unchanging, teaching the lesson of peace her 
 children would not learn. 
 
 An hour after his good-night to Jarvis, Morton 
 walked into a saloon in Flaremont. Since the boom 
 this place had become very magnificent. There were 
 stained-glass windows in front, an enormous bar 
 stretching along the entire left side, with rows of 
 glasses and measures, dishes of lemons, wire cases con- 
 taining eggs, phials of bitters and cordials. Higher 
 up on the shelves were row after row of bottles re- 
 flected in the mirror placed behind the counter. Two 
 bartenders in long white aprons and white coats, and 
 hair plastered on their heads to an amazing smooth- 
 ness, stood waiting, ready to serve the customers.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 137 
 
 There were tables, highly polished, artificial palms 
 standing all about the place, two oleanders in huge 
 square boxes close by the door. In a hollow pillar 
 made of glass and filled with water, half a dozen gold- 
 fish swam and turned and dove, moving up and down 
 all day long. An air of great elegance brooded on the 
 Dew Drop Inn. 
 
 At six o'clock in the evening the place was practi- 
 cally deserted. Morton made his way to a table far- 
 thest away from the street door. Nodding a greeting 
 to the proprietor, who sat reading a paper, he sat down, 
 keeping his eyes on the entrance, moving uneasily in 
 his chair, very restless, very perturbed. Every little 
 while he pulled out his watch, anxious about the time, 
 listening to the minutes ticking themselves away. 
 
 The streets had fallen suddenly quiet. The crowds 
 had drifted off to supper. A long wait ensued. When 
 finally Wilmarth came into the wine shop, Morton was 
 on the point of leaving. His hands were contracted, 
 he was breathing heavily from his nostrils, his head 
 wagged from side to side. 
 
 Wilmarth sat down, mopping his face, giving an im- 
 pression of having been hurried. He apologized pro- 
 fusely, but offered no definite cause for his tardiness. 
 
 "What will you take, Mr. Morton?" he asked, 
 catching his breath between gasps. 
 
 " Nothing. Why did you send for me ? I came for 
 that, not to drink," replied Morton. 
 
 " Excellently put. I admire a man who holds his
 
 138 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 head clear for business. I believed you were just such 
 a man. I said to myself, long ago, ' Now, of all the six 
 gentlemen forming the Flaremont Independent Refin- 
 ers Company, Morton is the one I'll do business with.' 
 You're the expert for them, aren't you? " 
 
 The question fell squarely from Wilmarth's lips. 
 His manner was elaborately sincere. Morton shifted 
 in his chair. 
 
 " Yes, I'm the expert." 
 
 " Just so. I guessed it from the first. You are a 
 self-made man, too. I know that. A man who has 
 brought himself to the top of a profession by sheer 
 worth, probably rising from poverty extreme pov- 
 erty." The voice was sympathetic. 
 
 " Yes, that's so ; I've been poor enough," Morton 
 answered. 
 
 " Exactly, and the more honor due to you for what 
 you are now." 
 
 Wilmarth pulled his chair close to the other. He 
 leaned forward, his voice lowered, his eyes fixed on 
 Morton's face. 
 
 " Now, Mr. Morton, as a man of business, as a man 
 of sense and judgment, I want to put some facts before 
 you. You have made your little pile by hard work, 
 laboring from early till late, economizing in every 
 way." 
 
 Morton, all attention, nodded. 
 
 " And it would hurt to loee your little savings." 
 
 " Yes, sir ; it would."
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 139 
 
 " Exactly. Now, my friend, do you know that you 
 are on the brink of ruination, on the very edge of a 
 precipice, standing where one step advance will destroy 
 yon?" 
 
 " I don't understand you," muttered Morton, his 
 face growing ashen. 
 
 "May I offer you something?" suggested Wil- 
 marth. 
 
 " No, I don't want to drink yet," Morton replied, 
 fiercely ; " go on." 
 
 " Well, I will go on. Perhaps you have heard of a 
 concern called the Eastern Petroleum Company. Ex- 
 actly. Now, that's a Company that usually gets what 
 it wants, keeps what it gets, and brooks no interfer- 
 ence. In fact, they are so particular that if an outsider 
 is idiot enough to undertake an independent stand in 
 the line of business this Company controls, the idiot 
 is apt to get hurt. The Eastern Petroleum Company 
 is in this oil deal to stay. Moreover, it is in to domi- 
 nate. Usually one warning is enough. Mr. Morton, 
 you and your Company are making a mistake a big, 
 a dangerous mistake! " 
 
 There was a pause. Finally Morton spoke. 
 
 " I can't see it," he muttered. 
 
 " Then I'll show it to you," answered Wilmarth. 
 " You and your Company are entering a field that the 
 Eastern Petroleum Company has started out to control. 
 You are involving yourselves in a fight where from 
 the beginning you have no chance, no show whatever.
 
 140 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 No matter what move you make, you are bound to be 
 forestalled. Again, with a capital of fifty thousand 
 dollars, which amount represents every penny you all 
 possess, you are undertaking to run a business against 
 a corporation capitalized at millions. You are setting 
 yourselves up against a body of men whose word is law, 
 not alone to the refineries, to the railroads, to the steam- 
 ship lines, but to> the courts. Yet you you expect to 
 succeed. Mr. Morton, I'm honest with you because I 
 hate to see you beggared, because I want to give you a 
 chance to get out whole, before it is too late." 
 
 The speaker tilted back his chair, his eyes fixed on 
 Morton. What he saw on his listener's face brought 
 an expression of satisfaction into his own countenance. 
 
 " It's damnable ! " ejaculated Morton. " Why, look 
 at it. We're not asking to take anybody's business 
 away. We build our refinery, supply it with oil from 
 works that we own, sell it to private customers. We 
 don't interfere with your Eastern concern. There's 
 work for all of us, room for all of us, money for all of 
 us." 
 
 " There is not. There is mighty little money in oil. 
 Look at these figures. The cost of making and the cost 
 of selling prove there's mighty little money. I've writ- 
 ten it all out here. At present the only way to make 
 a living profit is by a gigantic combination, one power 
 that will control the entire output of the world. If the 
 trade is divided among a lot of small fry there's noth- 
 ing for anyone." Wilmarth pulled out a note-book. It
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 141 
 
 was filled with figures, elaborate calculations, minute 
 details, long records. He talked and talked, showing 
 Morton conclusion after conclusion that the profits in 
 oil were eaten up in the manufacture and the selling. 
 He talked easily, glibly, running over prices with light- 
 ning rapidity, bewildering Morton with amounts, stu- 
 pefying him by jumping swiftly from one subject to 
 another. Pie went into arguments that Morton could 
 not understand. His reiterations, assertions, inven- 
 tions, declarations, seemed to prove his side of the 
 case. When Wilmarth finished, folding up his book, 
 leaning back, his legs crossed, his face red from exer- 
 tion, Morton had but one idea, one thought, one under- 
 standing. He stood in imminent peril of absolute ruin, 
 stood ready to lose all his accumulated savings of years, 
 and profits in oil were gross fallacies. 
 
 He got up on his feet. He felt stupid. His throat 
 was choked with words that would not come. He 
 wanted to get away from the wine shop with its fumes 
 of alcohol that stifled him. He wanted to flee from 
 the sound of the smooth, insinuating voice that dinged 
 and harped only of losses. 
 
 In a bewildered way, with a strange singing in his 
 ears and eyes blinded with sparks, he made his way 
 to the door. He did not speak to Wilmarth. He 
 hardly remembered him after he passed around the 
 table where the two had sat. Wilmarth arose, stretch- 
 ing his legs, leisurely following his victim out into 
 the street. 
 
 " Don't take this too hard ; there's a way out, a good
 
 142 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 way, and perfectly safe to you. When you want to 
 know about it send me word. My time is yours," Wil- 
 marth said, easily. 
 
 Morton nodded in reply, still unable to speak. He 
 passed his fingers through his hair, quickening his 
 steps. He must be alone, all alone, the world and 
 people shut outside. 
 
 Once in his home, the storm broke. Clenching his 
 fists, he beat the air, raving, lifting his voice in curses, 
 pouring out a tempest of rage and despair. By degrees 
 his emotion became so intense, he had no idea what he 
 did. A fearful pain shot through his temples, his eyes 
 were bloodshot, he bumped against the walls of the 
 room, then retreated with a scream of terror, shaking 
 his hands and arms at imaginary foes, believing he had 
 been suddenly attacked. They were stealing his money, 
 taking away his savings, depriving him of food and 
 warmth and shelter they who had everything, steal- 
 ing from him, a poor man, an honest, hard-working 
 man, who asked nothing of anyone but the necessities 
 of life. Well, let 'em come on; he'd meet 'em; he'd 
 give 'em a fight for it, anyhow. Just let 'em come on ! 
 
 Bit by bit the fierceness of his tirade wore out. From 
 sheer weakness he was obliged to sit down, shaking 
 his head, panting, breathless, trembling violently in 
 every limb. It was then he remembered dimly Wil- 
 marth's parting instructions, " A way out of the fix, a 
 safe way, too." Well, he'd see Wilmarth; he'd know 
 that way, or something would happen something for 
 which that agent alone would be responsible.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 143 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 The months following Theo's first home-coming 
 were delicious. She and Jarvis had taken possession 
 of their new abode, with all the enthusiasm of children ; 
 furnishing, setting to rights, putting down carpets, 
 hanging curtains. Theo had been taught all kinds of 
 useful things at the convent, how to cook and dust 
 and sweep. Then, she could sew beautifully, making 
 with equal ease an embroidered bed-set, or a dress for 
 herself. She had hated housework at the convent, but 
 here in her own home, with Jarvis, cleaning and put- 
 ting in order was a different matter. She took infinite 
 comfort in seeing Jarvis contented. It became a hobby 
 with her to \vatch his face for signs of great pleasure 
 or great happiness. 
 
 She had never put any questions to him concerning 
 the years of their separation, when he had come per- 
 haps once every fifteen months to the yard of the Con- 
 vent of the Holy Mother, where he would wait for her, 
 only the briefest visit ensuing. She remembered her 
 childish joy over those visits. And once when she 
 was thirteen, she had been allowed to> dine at Father 
 Beauvais' house, with Jarvis at one end of the table, the 
 priest at the other, and she between the two. It had
 
 144 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 been a festive time, very gay, very enjoyable, lingering 
 in her memory for months. In fact, Jarvis' face was 
 never entirely out of her mind afterward. When she 
 went to> bed at night, she would lie staring wide awake 
 thinking of him, invariably picturing him as somewhere 
 out on the prairie, following ceaselessly on the trail of 
 wandering cattle. In her mind's eye he was continu- 
 ally in the saddle, riding some untrained brute of a 
 broncho, always working, always watching, leading a 
 life strenuous far beyond his strength. 
 
 Bit by bit, romance weaved itself about this brother 
 of hers. As she grew older she was glad when she saw 
 that her face was pretty and that her hair was grown 
 a color he liked. She kept herself very dainty, very ex- 
 quisite, all for him. 
 
 When finally the news came that he had struck oil, 
 found wealth on property he had bought at a guess, 
 she was crazy with joy. She listened with glowing 
 face and sparkling eyes to the praises heaped on him; 
 his foresight in investing as he did; the courage he 
 showed in buying apparently barren property with 
 almost his last penny; his spirit of hazard in staking 
 everything on a possibility. All this stirred the girl 
 tremendously. 
 
 He was a brother to be proud of. She was glad 
 they were alone, just the two, that she need not share 
 him with anyone. She determined to make his home 
 so happy that he would have no wish to seek out a 
 third party, a wife who could not appreciate him, a
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 145 
 
 woman who would come there like an interloper, taking 
 her own place, usurping her rights. She believed her- 
 self influenced in this only because of her sisterly af- 
 fection. Yet the very thought of another woman in 
 Jarvis' home set her aflame with a feeling she could 
 not define. 
 
 Occasionally she confided this to Jarvis. He always 
 laughed, immensely amused, looking at her in a way 
 that brought a blush to her white face. Then promptly 
 she would change the subject, ashamed at her bold- 
 ness, feeling inexplicably guilty. 
 
 At the house one Chinaman did all their work, going 
 about the place in his immaculate white suit, his long" 
 queue coiled around his head. But Theo was never 
 idle. She was busy all day long, moving to and fro, 
 singing song after song, leading a joyous, secluded life, 
 asking nothing better. In the evening Jarvis read 
 aloud while Theo' sat close to him, sewing or embroi- 
 dering, her beautiful face bent over her work, the gas- 
 light overhead focusing its rays on her glorious hair. 
 
 No home contained more joy than theirs. There 
 were never any arguments, any misunderstandings. It 
 gave her the purest delight to submit to him in every- 
 thing. She laughed outright when he expressed sur- 
 prise at the way in which they agreed on every 
 subject, wondering at the congeniality that existed 
 between them. 
 
 In spite of being quite by herself hours of every day, 
 she was never dull when Jarvis was within call; and 
 10
 
 146 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 when she saw that daily he grew to depend on her 
 more and more, her face softened with exquisite ten- 
 derness. This was so exactly as she wished it to be. 
 Their life was ideal, their devotion to one another 
 absolute. 
 
 Only on one occasion had Jarvis lost his liveliness, 
 sitting through an entire evening without a smile, his 
 eyes heavy, his face pale. It was after Callister had 
 called his attention to Randolph Mason and Theo. 
 The thoughts that swept through his mind then were 
 hardly to be endured. But in the morning he was 
 quite himself again, smiling, talking, the air of anxiety 
 and gloom gone. 
 
 One evening she put aside her work, folding her 
 hands in her lap, wanting to ask a question, yet for 
 some reason hesitating. Jarvis watched her. " What 
 is it, Theo? " he demanded. 
 
 " Bud, clear, I want to talk to you about long ago, 
 about the time when you put me in the convent." 
 
 Jarvis started, but he answered her quietly enough, 
 " Yes, Theo. Can you remember when I took you up 
 there?" 
 
 " Very well. I can remember before that, too. Not 
 very distinctly, only that we started on an endless 
 drive, you and mother and father and I. But when 
 we came here, there were only the two of us left." 
 
 " Yes, dear, only the two of us. She, the dearest 
 woman that ever lived, the one you and I loved best 
 in the world, and he, both died out on the desert."
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 147 
 
 " I remember," she said, her voice very low. " But 
 it has bothered me that I can't place you before that 
 ride. Why didn't you start with us when we left Cali- 
 fornia?" 
 
 Jarvis' eyes left Theo's face. " I met the wagon at 
 Salton, joined you there. I had been traveling for a 
 long time. You were so little, you probably can not 
 remember me before that trip." 
 
 " No, probably not." There was a pause. 
 
 " Was it your idea putting me in the convent? " 
 ' Yes. You see, mother died suddenly. She had 
 no chance to tell me what she wanted done with you. 
 Only she had charged me to take good care of you. 
 After I buried them out there in the alkali, you and I 
 came on by ourselves. That burial was terrible. I 
 have never told you anything about it. Would you 
 care to hear could you bear to hear? " he asked. 
 
 Theodora nodded, looking at him with wide open, 
 serious eyes. A certain pallor had overspread Jarvis' 
 face. All in a moment the entire scene was recalled to 
 his mind with intense vividness; the illimitable waste, 
 the cloudless sky, the shimmering, vibrating earth 
 throwing off heat waves from its oven-parched sur- 
 face; and in the midst of this desolation that one nar- 
 row, shallow grave holding the body of the woman who 
 had been such an influence for good in his life, and 
 the body of the man whom she had loved with such 
 devotion. 
 
 " Sometimes it appals me to remember that she is
 
 148 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 lying out there," he said at last, in a half apology for 
 his long pause. " She was never in tune with the 
 desert. She was half afraid of it, as though some un- 
 named sense had forewarned her of what would hap- 
 pen there. But there was no other way. I had to 
 leave her." Jarvis' voice was husky as he continued. 
 
 " After the first shock of finding her dead, I deter- 
 mined to hurry the horses on, to do all in my power 
 to carry both bodies where the earth was green and the 
 air cool and the flowers she loved could bloom. I 
 lifted them both into the wagon and covered them as 
 best I could, the sight of her closed eyes, and still, white 
 face haunting me with an appeal to take her away 
 from this death-breeding spot. Early in the morning 
 I harnessed the horses and we started. How hideous 
 that desert looked to me, stretching away on every 
 side, league after league of alkali, cooked into a white 
 heat by centuries of baking ! All I could think of was 
 some repulsive, malignant monster gloating over our 
 misery. You were begging and crying for mother. I 
 tried to tell you she had gone away from the desert, up 
 to Heaven to live with God and His angels. But you 
 pointed to those figures outlined under the thin covers 
 and demanded to go to her. 
 
 " By night you were exhausted and so was I. The 
 horses were nearly collapsed; I had driven them too 
 hard, and I had no means of knowing how many days 
 might elapse before we would reach a civilized place 
 I altered my decision. They would have to find a 
 resting-place in that interminable valley of death.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 149 
 
 " I waited until you were asleep. Then with my 
 hands I dug a grave just one, and put them in it side 
 by side. It was shallow enough, Heaven knows, but 
 it took me all the night long to make it. It was dread- 
 ful, dreadful." 
 
 Jarvis stopped short. Theo went to him, standing 
 back of his chair, smoothing his head. 
 
 " For two days we drove and drove in that desert. 
 All the time I wondered where we ought to go, what 
 we ought to do. At the first stop we made I heard of 
 the convent, this convent called The Holy Mother. The 
 name decided me. I brought you here. It was a for- 
 tunate move, a lucky decision all around. You were 
 happy there, dear, weren't you ? " 
 
 " Very." 
 
 " And the property that I bought with the only 
 money we had has proved our making." 
 
 " It's almost like a romance. You don't mind my 
 having asked about it, Bud, do you? " 
 
 " No, Theo. I am always glad to think and talk of 
 your mother." 
 
 " Our mother, dear." 
 
 " Our blessed mother." 
 
 A silence ensued. Presently Jarvis said, " Theo, I 
 am going to ask something now that I don't want you 
 to mind may I ? " 
 
 " You know, Bud." 
 
 Ever since Callister had set the possibility of Theo's 
 attachment for some man within reach as an ever-
 
 150 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 present reality, Jarvis' mind had been face to face with 
 the question. He could think of little else. He was 
 distinctly uneasy. The consideration of having her 
 suddenly announce some such an attachment was not to 
 be borne. While her future happiness must be his 
 greatest desire, his chief thought, he believed he pos- 
 sessed the right to ask her confidence. But it was hard 
 to begin. 
 
 :t You are very dear to me, perhaps you don't know 
 just how dear," he said, finally. " You see, it's more 
 than just a brother's love. You are so much younger 
 than I, that somehow I feel a kind of responsibility 
 for you." 
 
 " Of course, Bud." Theo nodded. 
 
 " Now, I want you to promise me something. You 
 are young, but it would not be unnatural if almost any 
 day you met someone who might appeal to your fancy. 
 It's very likely to happen I understand that. But 
 Theo, when that time comes let me know. Give me 
 the right to judge of your choice before it has gone too 
 far. I shall be fair. No matter what my personal 
 feeling is, I shall be just and fair." 
 
 " Bud Jarvis ! " Theo placed herself in front of 
 the man, fixing him with a look of reproach. " How 
 can you talk like that ? But, of course, you can't know 
 that marriage is something that I have dreaded, some- 
 thing I have wanted to keep in the background for us 
 both. I am so happy here with you. Unless I am a 
 failure and can not make you happy, there is small
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 151 
 
 danger of any change. Why, I would rather have you 
 than any man that walks the earth." 
 
 " Do you mean that, Theo ? " He could think of 
 nothing else to say. His heart beat to suffocation, 
 words trembling on his lips that he dared not let fall. 
 Perhaps all his uneasiness had been uncalled for. 
 
 " With all my soul. But, mercy, what a couple of 
 sentimental things we are! From all I've ever heard, 
 we aren't a bit like brother and sister. Now let's read 
 again." 
 
 She went back to her work. Jarvis picked up the 
 book. 
 
 Meanwhile over in his laboratory Callister was at 
 work. From each battery came an incessant outburst 
 of blue sparks. The blinding light from the thick cyl- 
 inders of carbon sputtered and glowed, a burning, con- 
 suming fire, tempting with its beauty, reeking destruc- 
 tion on the one who yielded. 
 
 In the middle of the room was a huge table covered 
 with apparatus. Extending from one end of the labo- 
 ratory to the other were coils of wire, yards upon yards 
 of cables, carried even across the ceiling in a very net- 
 work of complication, transmitting the power from the 
 batteries to the ovens and apparatus for experiments. A 
 distant corner was set aside for operations in chemistry. 
 It was a place fraught with dangers, one misstep enough 
 to cause serious, perhaps fatal, results. Yet Callister 
 moved about, seeming careless of where he went, what 
 he did. He was at home here, perfectly happy, proud
 
 152 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 of the understanding that existed between his machines 
 and himself. He gloried in the researches, the mar- 
 vels that lay within his grasp. With labor and faith 
 he might yet make himself invincible, rearing to his 
 memory a monument time itself could not efface. 
 
 " You hold life and death here in your grasp," he 
 cried to his furnaces. " The very possibilities of re- 
 creation if I can but wrest the knowledge from you, 
 you glorious thing." 
 
 The night was dark, with black storm-clouds ob- 
 scuring the sky. Not a glimmer of light was to be seen 
 anywhere. The moon had set. The stars were shut 
 out from vision. In the distance Flaremont lay like a 
 city of the tombs, the inhabitants inert with sleep, the 
 image of death. It seemed as though all the world had 
 gone to rest, leaving Callister alone to keep watch. 
 
 The glare of the sputtering lights, flaring like a 
 contagion, fell upon him. It was magnificent to see 
 him work. His dark hair curling from his forehead 
 damp with sweat, his face showing fine, white, the 
 face of a dreamer, his eyes shining with exaltation. 
 A countenance delicate with refinement, a reflector of 
 the thoughts and inspirations of a pure mind. Only 
 in the laboratory, working in the midst of that huge 
 room of terrors, could one judge of his immense 
 strength. His bared arms, with muscles like whip- 
 cord, hard, standing out beneath the skin; his neck 
 round, firm, white, swelling with power, might well 
 have been sculptured for some great statue of a god.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 153 
 
 At every move he was illuminated by the gigantic 
 force that he had set out to conquer. It set a veritable 
 halo about him. He was very deliberate, easy even, 
 never hurried, never flustered. Once in crossing the 
 room with a charged wire in his hand he stooped to 
 stroke his dog. The animal was not beautiful, but 
 possessed what appealed more to Callister, strong in- 
 stincts of guardianship and great devotion. Then the 
 man straightened up. He walked on to the front of 
 the furnace, kneeling to peer in at the white heat, not 
 noticing that the dog had risen to follow him. 
 
 The creature came on deliberately, its head down, 
 sniffing with great interest at the floor. Intent on a 
 crucible and still without turning, Callister laid aside 
 the wire. It was highly charged, twisting and sputter- 
 ing like a thing of life. The dog paused in his walk. 
 His tail rose and stiffened. At every moment his in- 
 dignation increased at the taunts of that snapping en- 
 emy. He watched each movement, his fangs beginning 
 to show. Gradually the animal drew nearer, halted 
 abruptly, irritated to the last degree, his fore feet 
 planted rigidly for the first attack. 
 
 Callister turned at the sound of a thud. He found 
 the dog already rigid in death, with the wire close to 
 its body. In a moment he had taken the creature in 
 his arms, fondling and rubbing it. 
 
 The great silence of the plains hung heavy in the 
 air. The night, empty and dark, was yet full of inspira- 
 tion to the man. Under its influence he speedily for-
 
 154 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 got all else but the one desire that, apparently born 
 of the occasion, had come to him. It steeped his 
 thoughts and gripped his will by its very immensity. 
 Would he dare? Had he the right? Was his faith 
 sufficient to the test? He spoke no word, made no 
 gesture, but the turmoil that had awakened in him was 
 not to be put aside. His eyes flamed. Finally he cried 
 aloud, "Why not? I have always wanted to try it. 
 The first great struggle must be made some time. I 
 have four hours before daylight. If I fail no one will 
 be the wiser. If I succeed God " 
 
 Now for the first time he hurried. There was no 
 mistaking his excitement. Taking the dog over to the 
 corner devoted to chemistry, the man began mixing 
 certain fluids. The truth was, he was preparing to 
 follow a voiceless cry that had sounded in his ears for 
 years. He would put to trial his repeated assertions 
 that life lay in electricity. To kill was child's play, but to 
 revive, to make live, to so combine fluids and forces and 
 wits, that the impossible would be conquered ; that na- 
 ture itself would bend to his will, defying its own laws, 
 ah, that would be the glorification of his labor ! It 
 was as if some spirit had inspired him, opening to him 
 the door that until now had been locked, obscured. 
 
 Like a priest at some ancient rites he worked. His 
 hands flew. He had laid the dog on a table. Into its 
 veins he injected at intervals certain salt solutions. 
 Reducing the number of volts in one of the batteries, 
 he applied electricity to the stilled heart, endeavoring to 
 stimulate its action, determined to make it beat.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 155 
 
 Over and over again he repeated the process. His 
 countenance glowed with intense absorption, taking on 
 a half-inspired expression; his body seemed endowed 
 with the energy of an indomitable will, hesitating at 
 nothing. He forgot time, forgot labor, forgot discour- 
 agements, forgot even the gravity of. the responsibility 
 he assumed, in that which he sought to do. 
 
 The hours passed. Patiently he waited. A faint 
 streak of dawn broke through the eastern windows, 
 dimming the brilliancy of the furnaces that burned and 
 sputtered, like miniature volcanoes. The serene calm 
 of the country, infinite, majestic, was undisturbed. 
 Nothing broke the utter stillness. It was the hour for 
 awakenings. 
 
 Callister, who was standing upright, one hand 
 pressed over the dog's heart, felt an abrupt tremor. Al- 
 though he had waited hours for this very thing to hap- 
 pen, until now no single sign had occurred that could be 
 reduced to a perceptible actuality. But now it had 
 come; something in answer to his call; a motion, 
 scarcely more than a thrill, the very first stir in that 
 inert body. 
 
 An inarticulate sound came from Callister's throat. 
 He stood rigid in his place while the blood ran riot 
 through his veins. He put forward all his strength. 
 The minutes passed. Slowly the motion expanded to 
 a quick twitching of the creature's legs. The powerful 
 stimulants were doing their work. All at once the 
 dog's heart gave a bound, then died away to a flutter,
 
 156 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 faint, elusive, hardly definable, but none the less cer- 
 tain. The answer was growing surer. 
 
 On fire with a torrent of suppressed emotions, his 
 lips parched, his throat dry, Callister could hardly 
 trust his senses. His hands grew unsteady. The temp- 
 tation came to him to stop his work, to go on no fur- 
 ther. But the revivification was not to be stopped. A 
 series of quiverings, undulatings, distinct evidences of 
 life, revealed to Callister that every organ in the crea- 
 ture was fast resuming its normal function. 
 
 The cold sweat poured off Callister's face. He 
 hardly dared breathe. He threw aside the wire, giving 
 a final injection of salt fluid, chafing the dog's body, 
 warming it with his hands that burned like red-hot 
 coals. With a regular mechanical movement, the 
 heart throbbed. Abruptly the eyes opened. At the 
 same moment a faint, pitiful cry issued from the ani- 
 mal's mouth. It was the signal of a battle won the 
 jaws of death unloosed at a man's command. 
 
 Callister, scarcely knowing what he was about, lay 
 the dog down, well wrapped in a blanket. The mystery 
 of beholding face to face this full answer to his efforts 
 was too much for him. Suddenly he collapsed. He 
 flung himself down in a chair, covering his face, fear- 
 fully unnerved. His whole appearance was that of 
 exhaustion. His face was ashen white. He had no 
 control over his limbs that shook and jerked. At times 
 he was seized with unreasoning joy over his achieve- 
 ment; again he trembled. The paean to his faith was
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 157 
 
 sung, but the shock was tremendous. Tears came to 
 his eyes, rolled down his face. He paced the floor, 
 his thoughts clamoring with the wonder of what he 
 had accomplished, yet with strange inconsistency vow- 
 ing that never, never should the experiment be repeated. 
 It was all out of variance with right. It bordered 
 closely on blasphemy. He had been tempted and the 
 temptation had proved too strong; but hereafter when 
 he was tried, Callister assured himself that he should 
 not be found wanting.
 
 358 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 The refinery was finished. Everything was in place. 
 A crowd of men and boys surrounded the building, 
 commenting, praising, peering about everywhere. The 
 men of the Company had arrived the first thing in the 
 morning. Lawler and Hale had arrayed themselves 
 as for a grand occasion. Viewed from the back they 
 could not be told apart. Mistakes were constantly be- 
 ing made by new-comers. Each had bought for himself 
 a frock coat, a white waistcoat, and a pair of checked 
 trousers. On their feet they wore patent leather shoes, 
 very new, very shiny, very hard to walk in. But the 
 old slouch hats were not to be discarded, even at this 
 festivity. 
 
 They were everywhere, these two, welcoming new ar- 
 rivals, greeting people again and again, forgetting 
 whom they had seen, going over and over the same 
 proceeding with the same people. 
 
 A huge barrel of beer had been rolled into the fur- 
 nace-room of the refinery. There the men gathered, 
 drinking everybody's health, wishing the Company 
 good luck. The furnace-room became so crowded that 
 some of the visitors were obliged to wait a quarter of an 
 hour before they had a chance of getting a drink.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 159 
 
 There was a great deal of talking, an air of gaiety be- 
 ginning to make itself felt. It seemed as though Hale's 
 pockets never would empty themselves of cigars. It 
 became a great joke. He was referred to constantly 
 as the necromancer. Whenever a fellow wanted to 
 smoke, a dozen fellows yelled at Hale : 
 
 " Now, then, bring 'em out." 
 
 Instantly he made a great pretense of producing 
 them from his ears, his mouth, the top of his head, 
 winking ponderously at the appearance of each weed. 
 
 Meanwhile, at every moment the crowds increased. 
 The news had gone to Flaremont that there, was a kind 
 of house-warming at the refinery. By afternoon there 
 was a regular invasion. Some of the women began 
 driving out with their husbands, huddling about the 
 doorways, very self-conscious, very embarrassed, half 
 wishing they had not come. 
 
 Theo, very pretty, very sweet in pink and white, 
 went out to them. They were nearly all strangers to 
 her, but they had come to see the refinery, to bring good 
 wishes to Jarvis. It was quite enough ; she would see 
 they were made to feel at home. She passed among 
 them, inviting them to come to the house, suggesting 
 a cup of tea. It was pleasanter on the veranda. Be- 
 sides, it was hard work to stand, and up there one 
 could sit down. Half an hour later the women forgot 
 their timidity, very much at their ease under Theo's 
 graciousness. They drank cup after cup of tea, and 
 ate piles of little wafers. A babel of voices rose.
 
 160 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 There was a rustle of starched skirts, almost like the 
 sound of a passing wind, the note of laughter, the sud- 
 den hush of conversation, when some new-comer put 
 in an appearance, whispered comments after Theo had 
 spoken a welcome. 
 
 The Chinaman came and went, balancing his tray, 
 handing cups, passing cakes, seeing that everyone was 
 well served. 
 
 About five in the afternoon there was a commotion. 
 Orton and Gabrielle galloped up to the house. Their 
 arrival made quite a stir. The women stared and ex- 
 changed glances with their neighbors. Orton was 
 known to every one of them, at least by sight. And 
 it was marvelous, the way in which, without the least 
 apparent effort, he had won the women of Flaremont to 
 his side. While the men adored Gabrielle, their wives 
 and sisters never tired of talking of the young man. 
 Every day since his arrival he had made new con- 
 quests. He was irresistible to elderly ladies, showing 
 his gallantry in a thousand different ways, each one 
 equally fascinating. He had not been in town a 
 month before half the young girls were madly jeal- 
 ous of Gabrielle and quite ready to take up the cudgel 
 with any man who ridiculed Orton's manners. 
 
 The way he had won his place at the Masons' was 
 masterly. Before he proclaimed himself as a suitor 
 for Gabrielle's hand, he had become indispensable to 
 her mother. He gave excellent advice on any sub- 
 ject, from the running of an oil-well to the cooking of
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 161 
 
 an omelet. He was always very cheery, ready to 
 talk and laugh, and his stories were inimitable. He 
 sang in a light tenor voice, of exquisite quality, play- 
 ing his own accompaniments exceedingly well. He 
 was as charming with women as he was completely out 
 of his element with men. 
 
 He took life easily, rising at ten o'clock in the morn- 
 ing, eating a light breakfast of rolls, coffee and a soft- 
 boiled egg, then, carefully dressed, he strolled about in 
 the sunshine, his hands in his pockets. 
 
 At first his visits to the Masons' were not too fre- 
 quent, taking place in the evening, amounting to hardly 
 more than a formal call. He always arrived in a full 
 dress suit, his appearance worthy of the son of a duke. 
 Little by little as he felt his presence welcome to both 
 ladies, these visits multiplied. He called every other 
 evening. On the alternate days he rode about the 
 country with Gabrielle, purchasing a saddle-horse bet- 
 ter suited to his fancy than the one he had first ridden 
 into Flaremont. 
 
 When at last an engagement finally resulted between 
 the couple, no one could have been more delighted than 
 the mother. It seemed as though they had known him 
 always ; the two even asked themselves how they had 
 ever gotten on without him. Randolph alone remained 
 gloomy. He did not like Orton, and frankly ques- 
 tioned the sense of taking in a man of whom they knew 
 absolutely nothing. He, with the other men of Flare- 
 mont, had not been attracted by this elegant stranger.
 
 162 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 The truth was, no one could get much out of Orton. 
 He was very talkative and very curious on the subject 
 of other people, but when it was a question of himself, 
 he held his tongue. However, all the signs pointed to 
 his being a gentleman possessed of ample fortune. He 
 never borrowed, never ran into debt, and he occupied 
 the two best rooms in the hotel, furnishing one as a 
 parlor. 
 
 To-day he was in a wonderful riding suit; short 
 jacket, tights, high boots. His dark, rather foreign- 
 looking face, was undeniably handsome. 
 
 He met Theo with his usual gallantry of manner 
 that made an instant impression. Abruptly the general 
 feeling made itself evident that Orton was too good 
 for the girl he was courting. Gabrielle was as little 
 liked by women as Orton was favored by men. Ac- 
 cording to the feminine element of Flaremont, she was 
 being precious badly brought up. While Mrs. Mason 
 slaved and Randolph worked himself thin, Gabrielle 
 was petted and pampered, denied nothing, worshiped 
 for her marvelous beauty. She gave herself great 
 airs. She was tremendously proud of being a South- 
 erner, and talked interminably of the slaves her grand- 
 father had owned, of the vast estates the Masons pos- 
 sessed until the war bereft them of everything. She 
 made a point of declaiming against the North. The 
 Northern people were coarse, common, not to be as- 
 sociated with. She was thankful her lot had not been 
 cast in with the nigger-protectors. She had a mania
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 163 
 
 for talking against the negroes. The first time Orton 
 had listened to her tirade, he drew himself up stiffly 
 and said nothing. His eyes fixed themselves with a 
 terrible expression on the beautiful face before him, 
 perfect as a master's portrait of a Madonna. 
 
 But afterwards he always smiled. Even when she 
 was doing the grand, he accepted her airs and graces, 
 meeting them with so much courtliness of manner that 
 she was satisfied to vanity with the man she had chosen. 
 
 For hours of every day Gabrielle shifted in front of 
 her mirror, rigging herself out; and once her toilet 
 completed, she was adorable; white, dainty, her face 
 haloed under her heavy fleece of golden hair, exhaling 
 the perfume of youth, the freshness of a nosegay. 
 
 When she laughed she threw back her head, show- 
 ing the fleshy part of her neck, snowy white, bewitch- 
 ingly lovely. It was a trick of manner, studied before 
 her glass, one of fifty affectations carefully worked 
 out, but as beautiful to watch as the waving of a flower 
 tossed by the wind. 
 
 Everything she did appealed to men. The women 
 disliked her, seeing beneath the perfect exterior, find- 
 ing nothing to admire. She returned dislike for dis- 
 like, cordially hating all womankind. 
 
 Orton lifted Gabrielle off her horse. It took per- 
 haps a second longer than actual necessity demanded. 
 The girl smiled at Theo, then seeing the crowd on the 
 veranda, she could not be persuaded to go up. 
 
 " We came for only a minute, dear Miss Jarvis.
 
 164 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 Randolph begged it of us. He's so enthusiastic over 
 the refinery. But I'll sit here on the steps just a mo- 
 ment to rest if you don't mind. Mr. Orton, will you 
 find Randolph ? I want to see him. I want to convince 
 him that I am really here." 
 
 Instantly Orton took his leave, lifting his hat so 
 as to include all the ladies present. A buzz of conver- 
 sation broke out. The women were busy with their 
 own affairs. Theo brought some tea down to where 
 Gabrielle had seated herself. 
 
 " Thank you so much. Really, I am sorry to be such 
 a trouble. I am so glad to meet you, Miss Jarvis. 
 Randolph talks of you all the time. He thinks you are 
 the most perfect being in the world." 
 
 Theo listened gravely. Her face did not change 
 color. " It is kind of Mr. Mason. We are always so 
 glad to have him here with us. My brother is fond of 
 him. Friends of his are always friends of mine." 
 
 " Poor Ran," laughed Gabrielle, sipping her tea, 
 " there's no hope for him, is there ? " 
 
 A look of uneasiness crept into Theo's great eyes. 
 " I am afraid I do not understand," she replied, be- 
 wildered. 
 
 " Probably some day he'll explain," Gabrielle re- 
 marked. Her air had suddenly become languid. She 
 was tremendously bored. 
 
 All at once the men came up Jarvis, young Mason, 
 Orton and Callister. Instantly Gabrielle began to talk 
 very fast, her eyes kindling. She moved continuously
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 165 
 
 to show her figure. Her caressing voice fell on Cal- 
 lister's ears, making him infinitely sad. She flirted 
 with him outrageously, but the man could see nothing 
 of coquetry about this exquisite woman. It was sim- 
 ply her way to be kind to everyone. He was so far 
 above the pettinesses of life that they never reached 
 him. It never occurred to him that so perfect a crea- 
 tion of the Almighty could be possessed of unfathom- 
 able duplicity. 
 
 She had been the undercurrent of his thoughts 
 through so many months that it seemed strange now to 
 resign her to another. Yet he could see- plainly how 
 matters stood between Gabrielle and Orton. 
 
 Jarvis had gone directly onto the veranda, speak- 
 ing to Theo's guests, shaking hands with the few he 
 knew. But it was growing late. These greetings were 
 but the preludes to good-bys. The homeward move- 
 ment began. Husbands drove up to the steps for their 
 wives, the rattle of wheels grated sharply as one ve- 
 hicle after another rolled out on the roadway, until all 
 the visitors had taken their departure except the little 
 group on the steps. 
 
 Gabrielle was still keeping up an interminable chat- 
 ter. Finally she arose. She turned to Orton, an ador- 
 able smile on her lips. " I am going to tell our secret, 
 Archie," she murmured. 
 
 With the gallantry that sat so well on him, Orton 
 bent and kissed her hand. He was all affability, effac- 
 ing himself, putting her in the foreground, assuming 
 by his pose a magnificent self-depreciation.
 
 166 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 She looked about her, holding the attention of the 
 little gathering, waiting for the fraction of a second, 
 conscious of a certain dramatic effect. 
 
 " It is my happiness to tell you that I that we 
 Mr. Orton and I are engaged." There was just an 
 evidence of embarrassment in her voice. It was very 
 effective. 
 
 Immediately they all surged forward. Hands were 
 outstretched. There was a perfect tempest of congrat- 
 ulations and good wishes, everyone talking at once. 
 When finally the couple mounted their horses, riding 
 away, sounds of good- will followed them. It was a 
 fitting climax to an exciting day, an astonishing day, 
 when Flaremont had come to give its sanction to a new 
 industry just opened. 
 
 At the doorway, Jarvis urged Callister to remain, 
 but, making an excuse, the electrician hurried away, 
 anxious to be alone. The news had not been a surprise, 
 but in spite of that, the announcement of an actual en- 
 gagement had upset him terribly. 
 
 He strode towards his house, seeing always before 
 him Gabrielle's face as last he had seen it, remembering 
 suddenly all the many things about her that held him 
 fascinated her daintiness, her femininity, her strange 
 little gestures, her marvelous beauty, resplendent as 
 the sun ; above all, the sweet odor emanating from her 
 clothes, charming, delicious, the fragrance of her 
 youth, the perfume of flowers. 
 
 The sun was setting behind the hills, a brilliant, rosy
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 167 
 
 light, which gradually became paler, changing into a 
 delicate lilac. The air had chilled. Callister quickened 
 his. pace. Ahead the laboratory loomed before him, 
 the haven of rest, the place of forgetfulness and of 
 achievement. 
 
 For a week the man had avoided that great room, 
 hardly daring to think of what had taken place in it. 
 When the excitement had worn away and his mind 
 relaxed, and he had viewed the experiment under 
 the light of day, it had assumed proportions too stu- 
 pendous, bordering too closely on a miracle. He was 
 beset with doubts. Had the animal been entirely 
 dead? Was it not rather suspended animation, a 
 species of epilepsy? Had not he himself been deceived, 
 his imagination worked upon, his mind overwrought? 
 
 A kind of fear born of awe seized Callister. He be- 
 gan to wish that he had been mistaken in what he had 
 seemed to accomplish. He put off a second experi- 
 ment of the same kind, dreading the outcome. Of a 
 deeply religious temperament, the more he thought of 
 that revivification, the more blasphemous it became to 
 him. 
 
 What right had he, a creature of God's, to tamper 
 with God's greatest creation, peering into the secret 
 mysteries of life and death, handling with profane 
 hands tasks compatible only with divinity? 
 
 Slowly he ascended the hill, watching the night ap- 
 proach. He was weary, utterly weary. His heart 
 ached. His eyes, heavy for want of sleep, closed of
 
 168 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 themselves. His mind, stupid with reaction, had the 
 sensation of numbness. He was lonely, unhappy, mor- 
 bid. A thousand fancies pictured themselves in the 
 dusk. He saw Gabrielle's face haloed under the 
 golden mass of hair; the refinery starting at last 
 on its mission, the battle that would leave its owners 
 victorious on the field of competition; Jarvis, his 
 countenance marked by lines of some strange sadness, 
 erect, active, dominating by sheer force of will every 
 obstacle that blocked their progress, never swerving 
 from the line of duty and justice; Orton, with his pe- 
 culiar foreign beauty, so easy, so well-mannered, un- 
 touched by responsibilities, dressed in the height of 
 fashion, wearing immaculate linen as fine as silk, mov- 
 ing close beside Gabrielle everywhere she went. 
 
 His lids drooped and drooped. His shoulders fell. 
 His head dropped forward on his breast Callister was 
 asleep.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 169 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 Amid all the jollification over the completion of the 
 refinery, there was one man who spent the day in a 
 state far from happy. During the afternoon Morton 
 had gone about sullen with anger, benumbed with the 
 sense of outrage. What a farce all this exchange of 
 good wishes was, anyhow ! If they but knew what he 
 knew, there would be none of this levity, no looking for- 
 ward to the dawning of the next day, when the very act 
 of setting the machinery in motion would be the signal 
 for the Company's ruin, the slaughter of their hopes, 
 the plunge into poverty. They would be swallowed 
 up at one gulp by the Eastern men, once Wilmarth sent 
 the word that these Texans meant fight. 
 
 He could see himself at the old grind again, going 
 hungry and cold all day long, sleeping anywhere, toil- 
 ing at anything. And that outlook was always accom- 
 panied by another distinct feature. It meant the old 
 temptation getting the better of him again. The very 
 atmosphere of poverty made him run foul of liquor. 
 He could not help it. He had to drink to keep warm, 
 to take away the sting of a gnawing stomach, to give 
 his body the endurance for long hours and nights 
 passed out of doors, to keep up his courage. Ah, there
 
 170 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 were a thousand excuses for drinking when poverty 
 beset one ! He had had his share of ill luck. It was piti- 
 able that it should come to him now, now that he 
 had passed his prime, worked out his young strength, 
 had brought himself through to the point of respecta- 
 bility. 
 
 The longer he brooded, the worse things grew. All 
 day long Morton stood on the defensive. He tried to 
 appear at his ease, to talk and laugh and listen with ab- 
 solute naturalness, but it ended in his going off by 
 himself, muttering an excuse. 
 
 He was needed in the refinery ; some last things had 
 suddenly come up demanding instant care. He couldn't 
 fool and josh all day. 
 
 Every second he was afraid Wilmarth would put in 
 an appearance. That would be the end. Wilmarth 
 once on the grounds, there was no hope left. Then 
 Morton began to wonder if the agent had approached 
 any one of the other men besides himself, if perhaps 
 the Company was not already sold out. The very idea 
 threw him into a cold perspiration. He wagged his 
 head furiously, stupid with apprehension. Poverty 
 stared him in the face. Already he could feel its cold 
 breath smiting him. 
 
 By three o'clock Morton had worked himself into 
 a terrible tempest. He could no longer endure the un- 
 certainty. He would seek out Wilmarth and find out 
 what that agent fellow had meant by his final speech, 
 what the way was out of this impending trouble, the 
 perfectly safe way.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 171 
 
 Morton sneaked around the back of the buildings, 
 avoiding everyone, dodging, gaining the main road 
 only after great difficulties. All the way to Flare- 
 mont he was recalling his forty years of toil. Forty 
 years more of such work would leave him an old man, 
 a wretched, helpless creature, dying slowly by inches, 
 penniless always penniless. Nothing but misfor- 
 tune surrounded this refinery affair. He was cor- 
 nered, caught like a rat in a trap. What could six 
 men with a handful of money do against a gigantic 
 corporation, a trust like the Eastern Petroleum Com- 
 pany? He should never have let himself be per- 
 suaded into such a situation. 
 
 On reaching town, Morton, after a moment's hesi- 
 tation, went into a saloon, stepped up to the bar and 
 ordered whisky, which he drank at a gulp. It was 
 not often the man permitted himself to drink. Ten 
 years before, he had been a frightful drunkard, giving 
 way to his craving until he was scarcely ever sober. 
 More than that, alcohol made a brute of him. He had 
 no control over himself at all when he took a glass 
 above the limit. On such occasions he was liable to do 
 anything, to make a veritable fool of himself. But 
 this business of money was turning his brain. He 
 needed, deserved some stimulant to prepare himself 
 for the interview with the agent. 
 
 Wilmarth was not at the hotel, nor at the Dew Drop 
 Inn, where in a kind of desperation Morton went to 
 look for him. After a great deal of walking and
 
 172 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 hunting and questioning, the agent was located at the 
 office of the X. & Y. Railroad Company. 
 
 He was very complaisant. He welcomed Morton 
 with exasperating good nature, talking at length of 
 the weather and the crops and the growth of Flare- 
 mont. Finally he suggested their having a little visit 
 in his friend Eberlie's office. Eberlie was out. They 
 could talk there undisturbed. 
 
 Morton followed Wilmarth into the private room. 
 It was a little place, very well furnished and very com- 
 fortable. A fire burned in a grate, the reflections 
 causing all sorts of quaint shadows to dance on the 
 ceiling above, but the warmth was very agreeable and 
 the whole effect of the open fire, cozy and homelike. 
 
 Once seated alone in the office, Wilmarth became 
 serious. 
 
 " You have not shown a great deal of curiosity, my 
 friend. Twelve hours more and your visit would 
 have come too late." 
 
 " What can I do ? I'm pledged to them. The 
 Company's got my money. If the thing is a failure 
 I'm out every cent I own. What can I do? " 
 
 There was no pretense between these two men now. 
 
 " I told you there was a way out of it for you." 
 
 " Yes, but how ? How that's the word. I can't 
 see. I've studied myself sick over it." 
 
 " You could have saved yourself any worry by com- 
 ing to me." 
 
 " I know, but somehow I felt what you would offer
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 173 
 
 wouldn't be on the square to them, and I'm pledged to 
 them. They're my friends." 
 
 Morton could think of no arguments. He reiter- 
 ated the same thing over and over again, harping on 
 his pledges, his friendships. 
 
 " I went out with them in good faith ; I've got to 
 stay." 
 
 ' You are not considering that it will be a matter 
 of only a few days with that refinery at the farthest. 
 That Company will either have to sell out at our terms 
 or we will crush them out. Your faith to them can't 
 save 'em. It can't even help 'em, and any way you 
 fix it, you'll lose what you've put in. It's about time 
 you ran to cover, my friend." 
 
 " Good God, haven't you any mercy, any respect 
 for a man's rights ? " Morton's face was ashen. 
 
 " As men as gentlemen I respect every one of 
 you. I am even sorry for you as individuals, but as 
 for the Flaremont Independent Refiners Company, I 
 shall do all in my power to injure or destroy it, and I 
 shall succeed." 
 
 It was the fiat gone forth, the open declaration of 
 war, the sentence of the taskmasters over the people. 
 
 Morton passed one hand restlessly over his face. 
 " You haven't a drink handy, have you, a swallow of 
 whisky ? " he muttered. 
 
 Wilmarth produced a flask. He poured out a drink, 
 handing it silently to the cowering man beside him. 
 Morton was shivering in spite of the brisk fire. An-
 
 174 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 guish, fatigue, complete discouragement had taken 
 the fight out of him. 
 
 " If I leave them just now it will put them in bad 
 shape. They can't run without an expert," said 
 Morton. 
 
 " They will have to pay for their mistake. But I 
 want something more than the mere fact of your quit- 
 ting them. That would only delay their beginning 
 operations until they could import another one. The 
 refinery must be injured, the machinery tampered with. 
 The plant has got to be practically wrecked. They 
 can't rebuild they haven't the money. It's got to be 
 smashed blown up." 
 
 Wilmarth's face was absolutely unemotional, as 
 though he talked of common affairs. His eyes fixed 
 Morton's, coldly, cruelly. 
 
 " I don't propose to make myself criminally liable. 
 By the Lord, I won't do this thing. Oh, I can't; 
 God knows I can't." 
 
 " Then take your medicine with the other five." 
 
 " What will you do what can you do? " 
 
 " Go on as you have begun, and we will commence 
 by entering suits against the Company. Not only that, 
 we will serve an injunction on you and stop your work. 
 The result? When these suits commence, if you are 
 in it, you will be responsible ; if you have a little money 
 left, you will lose it. But come to our side, do as I 
 tell you, and you won't run any risks and will end well 
 financially. There will be placed in your name an ac-
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 175 
 
 count in an Eastern bank. You can go there and live 
 under our protection without any work or any worry. 
 Now, Morton, this is the case in a nutshell. You have 
 got to decide one way or another pretty quick. My 
 time is limited. I have given you more of it than I 
 should have spared. Think it over. Let me know 
 what you'll do when I return to this room." Wil- 
 marth got up from his chair. " By the way," he 
 added, " the account placed to your credit will be ten 
 thousand dollars. You will receive besides this an 
 annuity of one thousand dollars, paid in monthly in- 
 stalments of eighty-four dollars. And I almost for- 
 got. The fireman at the refinery is a good man, a 
 friend of mine." 
 
 Wilmarth sauntered out of the room. Morton, be- 
 ginning to be stupefied by the heat and the whisky, 
 made no effort to detain him. As he stared about, 
 wondering what he was supposed to think over, he 
 suddenly espied the flask. Wilmarth had left it be- 
 hind. It was within easy reach. It was also nearly 
 full. Another drink might help out the situation, 
 steady his brain, instil some life into his shivering 
 frame. 
 
 Morton unscrewed the silver top. The first drink 
 he poured out into a glass. After that he swallowed, 
 simply raising- the bottle to his mouth, licking his lips ; 
 it saved time ; he could drink faster. 
 
 The flask settled it. By the time Wilmarth re- 
 entered Eberlie's private office, Morton was in a state
 
 176 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 of complete intoxication, ready to be molded to any- 
 one's will. His mouth was swollen and twisted. His 
 legs bent when he tried to stand. Tears rolled from 
 his eyes. He let himself be prevailed upon to under- 
 take any job Wilmarth suggested. It was all one to 
 him. Wilmarth was his friend a devil of a fine 
 fellow. 
 
 The agent went over the scheme of destroying the 
 refinery. It must be smashed the next day, ruined at 
 the very start. It would be easy to accomplish, for 
 Morton's word was law at the works. Afterward 
 there would be wealth and idleness for the expert, the 
 danger of poverty passed. 
 
 Wilmarth locked his arms into Morton's, helping the 
 fellow home, only leaving him after he was safe in bed 
 and sleeping off the effects of the liquor. Then the 
 agent departed to his hotel. He was very self-satis- 
 fied, but there was no special air of elation in his man- 
 ner. The truth was, Wilmarth had never doubted 
 the result, never worried over the outcome. From the 
 moment of his first suggestion up to the present time, 
 when his work stood completed, he had remained 
 equally sure of his man,
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 177 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 Morton got up late the next morning. His head 
 ached to splitting. His throat was so parched that 
 he could not eat, only swallow glass after glass of 
 water. He remembered little of his home-coming. 
 He had a dim remembrance of being helped to bed, 
 nothing more. But one thing remained clearly in his 
 mind. He understood perfectly that this day was to 
 witness his commission of a criminal act, a deed to be 
 paid for by a sum of money and a yearly income. 
 
 He threw on his clothes, muttering that it was a 
 confounded nuisance to have to take such a long walk 
 so early in the day. He would be glad when the 
 thing was done and he could crawl into bed again. 
 His head would break at the rate it hurt now. Besides, 
 he was no longer a poor man at everybody's beck and 
 call. He could live as he pleased. On the whole, he 
 had made an admirable arrangement. He was too old 
 to begin a life of hardship over again, and one had to 
 look out. for himself these days. No one else ever con- 
 sidered you. especially if you were hard up. 
 
 It was nine o'clock when he finally reached the re- 
 finery. Jarvis met him outside, looking a little wor- 
 ried, glancing sharply at Morton's face before he 
 spoke. 
 
 1.1
 
 178 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 " I was afraid something had gone wrong. We are 
 waiting for you. The refinery can't run without you, 
 Morton." 
 
 " I was sick all night sick done up. I couldn't 
 eat a mouthful of breakfast." 
 
 At once Jarvis decided it was best to humor the 
 man. Until things were running in good shape, Mor- 
 ton was a big consideration. 
 
 " It's too bad, old man. Perhaps after things get 
 going, you can rest a while up at the house, you 
 know." 
 
 But Morton shook his head. He had come to work. 
 If he had intended to rest he would not have got out 
 of bed at all. He knew he had no business coming out 
 that day, but he never considered himself. All his 
 life had been spent at the beck and call of others. 
 Some day that would be changed. Some day he 
 would stay at home and have what he deserved. He 
 was growing old. Small wonder, therefore, that indo- 
 lence appeared attractive. He was very curt, very 
 cross, wagging his head, behaving like a worried ani- 
 mal, complaining of all sorts of ailments. 
 
 Lawler, Hale, young Mason, Callister, all of them 
 were awaiting Morton's appearance. For over two 
 hours they had wandered about the place, their hands 
 behind their backs, peering into every nook and corner, 
 discussing the future, seeing in the first firing of the 
 still, the completion of their enterprise, the achievement 
 they had all staked on so heavily. In a way, these
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 179 
 
 three stills represented to the men their world. The 
 success of the refinery meant the Company's future; 
 the Company's future was their future. 
 
 When Morton made his entrance the group looked 
 steadily at him for a moment. Abruptly the old feel- 
 ing of distrust, the feeling each one had sought to beat 
 down, leaped into their minds. Was it possible he, 
 their expert, the most needed man in the Company, was 
 to fail them now? Not one of them stirred, not one 
 spoke. The expert's face, never prepossessing, was 
 more disagreeable than ever. His hair was disor- 
 dered, his nose scarlet, his face covered with a heavy 
 sweat that trickled off him. His eyes were bloodshot 
 and only half opened. 
 
 But to the inexpressible relief of all the onlookers, 
 Morton, notwithstanding all their fears, seemed to 
 know what he was about. In a jerky voice he issued 
 commands to the fireman, who stood waiting for or- 
 ders. He disposed of the members of the Company 
 one by one, sending each one on a different errand. 
 
 Jarvis was to see that one still was filled properly 
 with crude oil ; another was sent to the storage tanks ; 
 a third was told to sit outside and watch the chimney 
 sometimes a new chimney played the devil. If there 
 were any signs of flame where there should be only 
 smoke, it must be reported at once. Oil was danger- 
 ous stuff. It couldn't be neglected at any part of the 
 handling. He could not do everything himself. He 
 would if he could, but his place that day was by the 
 furnaces.
 
 180 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 When the place was empty, Morton turned to the 
 fireman. 
 
 " You are to do as you are ordered and keep your 
 mouth shut." 
 
 The fireman nodded. 
 
 " Give me the chance to get out. I was promised 
 that," he muttered. 
 
 " You can get out when I do. I didn't hire out to 
 blow myself to hell." 
 
 With a brusque wrench Morton seized the electric 
 safety-valve, Callister's invention. He weighted it 
 down with heavy iron, packing it solidly with plaster of 
 paris. He worked with lightning rapidity, his shift- 
 ing eyes never above the ground, his ears alert, every 
 sense sharpened against intrusion. 
 
 " Fire this still," he said to his fireman, " as heavy 
 as you possibly can. Get a move on you. This thing 
 has got to be done quick or we are goners. We 
 mustn't be discovered." 
 
 Together the men shoveled in the coal. The only 
 vision before them was the finish of the disaster. Ev- 
 erything was thrown wide open. The fire-box began to 
 grow cherry. The two creatures of Wilmarth worked 
 like demons. And under their labors, bit by bit, the 
 indicator of the steam-gage rose. Every second the 
 risk increased, but Morton with set teeth stood his 
 ground, side by side with the fireman. 
 
 The odor of new iron and hot steam reeked in his 
 face, The furnace roared, a blinding fog of vapor
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 181 
 
 spread around them, the heat poured out, all but un- 
 endurable. The room was like the maw O'f hell. 
 
 There was utter silence. Outside, the men, all on 
 different missions, watched, waited, having no sus- 
 picion of what threatened. 
 
 Inside, the furnace, like a giant monster, gorged to 
 the mouth with fuel, its belly full to repletion, rumbled 
 and roared, working momentarily to a spirit of retalia- 
 tion. 
 
 Slowly, like the rising of the sun, the glow in- 
 creased. A great uneasiness had seized the fireman. 
 In spite of himself, he turned pale. He shut his teeth 
 with an oath. " God ! it won't stand much more. 
 Don't stay too long." 
 
 A tremendous hissing drowned his voice. Morton 
 threw open the furnace door, pouring in more coal. 
 He looked for a moment as if blazing like a torch. It 
 seemed as if his flesh must melt. A boiling sweat was 
 soaking his clothing. He could see the steam-gage 
 up now to the danger point. Death, swift, terrible, 
 resistless, was speeding towards him; disaster, com- 
 plete, vengeful, towards his friends. All the forces on 
 earth could not stop the blow now. 
 
 Up and up rose the steam, inexorable, persistent. 
 Suddenly the ground trembled. Morton turned quick- 
 ly to the fireman. Deafened with the roar, blind with 
 the heat, he signed to the man to go. A shower of 
 sparks beat upon him. Great clouds of vapor rose 
 and spread. There was the smell of hot oil, a fearful 
 vision of blinding, dizzying heat.
 
 182 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 Half cooked, the two men rushed towards the door. 
 Flames followed them. Jarvis, by this time uneasy 
 with waiting outside, sure something was wrong, was 
 coming towards the refinery. Instinctively young 
 Mason and Callister followed him. All three uttered 
 a cry. 
 
 At that moment the whole building rocked and 
 roared. There was a gigantic report, followed by one 
 explosion after another in quick succession. The air 
 was filled with falling iron and flying debris. Long 
 tongues of fire shot up. \Vithin twenty feet of the 
 refinery stood the storage tanks, immense wooden 
 barrels full to the top with petroleum; hundreds of 
 gallons of crude oil, the fuel that contagion loves, in- 
 flammable as gunpowder. Before the men had gone 
 a dozen steps, as yet hardly conscious of what had 
 happened, there was a flash. The tanks had caught. 
 In less than a second a cataract of blazing oil streamed 
 out, flowing in every direction, a veritable lake of 
 flame. 
 
 There could be no mistake about matters now. Sud- 
 denly Jarvis shouted, " Run for your lives ! " 
 
 And now the men saw that to be held for the fraction 
 of a second was to be roasted alive. The fire was 
 moving on them. Callister, Jarvis, Morton, young 
 Mason and the fireman turned, springing forward, the 
 flames spreading a red whirl of confusion behind them. 
 Waves upon waves of oil, swirling, dashing, pursuing 
 them as they tore across the field. A slip, a fall, and
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 183 
 
 deatn was upon them. The whole ground, crackling 
 and smoking, had become an enormous funeral pyre. 
 
 The sound of their breathing split the air. Agony 
 looked from their eyes. Exhaustion was upon them, 
 yet to pause meant death in its most malevolent form 
 an end too grisly to be thought of. 
 
 Twisting, dodging, turning, on and on they went in 
 a wild, furious struggle to evade that sea of fire. The 
 minutes went by. The oil spread and spread, a surg- 
 ing ocean, cutting off every avenue of escape. The 
 runners were wearing out. 
 
 Upon the porch of the house Theo, wild-eyed, pale 
 as death, stood transfixed with horror. Her throat 
 gripped with frenzy at what she saw. Lawler and 
 Hale free, by the merest accident, followed along the 
 edge of that monstrous sea of death, calling encourage- 
 ment, suggesting escape, cursing the red terror that 
 threatened to engulf the men they loved. They were 
 frantic at their own helplessness ; maddened at the dan- 
 ger they were powerless to avert. 
 
 Suddenly Jarvis' eyes spied an opening between two 
 rivulets of fire. His lips closed hard, resolute. His 
 mind was made up. He would run the risk of cross- 
 ing. It was either that or death. The terrific pace was 
 telling on him. Shouting to the men behind him, he 
 turned. It was a question how long before the open- 
 ing would be closed. But for the moment, at least, 
 safety lay the other side. 
 
 Jarvis raced over. Callister followed. Young
 
 184 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 Mason barely reached the opening when his strength 
 collapsed. He fell flat, almost unconscious. Lawler 
 seized him, lifting him bodily, holding him in his arms 
 like a child. Hale stood ready for the next one. 
 
 The rivulets were closer. The whole mass of oil 
 seemed congesting towards that one avenue of escape. 
 A second more and the passage would be completely 
 closed, impassable, covered by the enemy. 
 
 Morton, crying out oath upon oath, staggered over 
 the line, holding his head between his hands, blood 
 running from his nose and mouth. The fireman was 
 coming slower. Every minute his footsteps fell 
 heavier. He was dazed. He could not keep straight 
 in the main line that marked escape. Once he slipped, 
 fell to his knees, but struggled up again. He had to 
 jump now, from spot to spot. His arms uplifted in 
 large gestures, his mouth moved. Suddenly the man 
 began to laugh. His countenance was stamped with 
 unspeakable horror, his eyes starting from his head. 
 Still he laughed. 
 
 " Hurry, hurry ! Good God, it's only a dozen steps 
 more! You will be safe. Come on! " yelled Lawler. 
 
 But the fireman paid no heed. Swirling, roaring, 
 steaming about him, the flaming oil advanced to meet 
 him. It was upon him ! He stood perfectly still, in- 
 viting death. Reason fled from his brain. Instead 
 of advancing, he retreated. He no longer saw any- 
 thing but fire, heard anything but fire, understood 
 anything but fire. Slowly, deliberately, he kneeled
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 183 
 
 down. Bending forward, he reached for the liquid 
 flame. Catching it in both hands, he threw it up over 
 his head, bathing himself in a baptism of fire. As it 
 touched his body he shrieked. His clothes blazed in 
 a dozen places at once. 
 
 The men turned their heads, sick, faint. Up on the 
 porch Theo had fallen where she stood. The terrible 
 deed that had been conceived had come to pass in all 
 its horror. 
 
 An hour later, Lawler, riding like mad, entered 
 Flaremont. Everywhere he went he carried the news. 
 The refinery had been blown up. The explosion had 
 set fire to the storage tanks. The men had barely 
 escaped with their lives. One, the fireman, lost his 
 head and burned to death. 
 
 Men, women, and children crowded around, uttering 
 exclamations of horror, phrases of doubt. 
 
 " It can't be as bad as that." 
 
 ' Mercy, what a ghastly thing! " 
 
 " A whole sea of burning oil ! Ah, that was the dan- 
 ger, handling petroleum. One never was safe." 
 
 To each new arrival the story was repeated, in- 
 creased and embellished. Five of the men had been 
 fatally burned. Only Lawler had escaped. He was 
 here now for the undertaker. 
 
 By degrees, business was suspended in the town. A 
 sense of dread hung over the multitude. If this had 
 happened at one storage tank, why couldn't it happen 
 at every one? A spark, a little overheat, and a holo-
 
 186 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 caust was let loose. By the Lord, the oil business 
 wasn't such a cinch. 
 
 The moment Lawler appeared he was besieged, but 
 he had no time to add anything to the story. A mur- 
 mur of disappointment followed his refusal. He had 
 sent a doctor and a nurse post-haste to Jarvis' place. 
 The undertaker was harnessing his wagon to go for 
 the fireman's body. 
 
 The populace lined the streets, seeing them all go, 
 Lawler galloping ahead on horseback, the doctor and 
 nurse next, riding in a buggy, last of all, the under- 
 taker, a hush of awe greeting the appearance of the 
 black wagon. 
 
 Before it was barely out of sight, a dozen men, curi- 
 osity getting the better of them, headed down the road. 
 It was the signal for half the town. Instantly a crowd 
 surged after them, every one wanting to see what had 
 really happened, learning details, going over the 
 ground, viewing the wrecked buildings. 
 
 Meanwhile, at the house it had been discovered that 
 Randolph Mason's feet were badly burned. More 
 than that, the nervous shock had laid him on the verge 
 of complete prostration. His mother had been sent 
 for. He required constant care. Theodora had not 
 yet recovered consciousness. She lay in a heavy 
 swoon, looking like one dead, her breath barely percep- 
 tible. Jarvis hovered over her like a man distraught. 
 He had kept his head wonderfully until he came upon 
 her suddenly, lying on the porch, rigid, cold, quiet.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 187 
 
 For the moment he had thought her dead. Then he 
 lost all courage. But Callister and Hale were every- 
 where, fighting the fire, tending Mason, looking after 
 Morton, carrying the charred remains of the fireman 
 with infinite precaution back to a place of safety. 
 
 "With the arrival of the nurse and doctor, these two 
 men gave their attention especially to the expert. 
 Morton had been untouched by the flames, but some- 
 thing was the matter with him. He wandered about, 
 apparently looking for something which he never 
 found, uttering disconnected phrases, making huge 
 gestures, unable to answer any question rationally. 
 He could not explain anything. His wits were un- 
 settled. He seemed to have grown thinner in an hour. 
 His face was livid and shockingly haggard, his eyes so 
 bloodshot that no whites were to be seen at all. Cal- 
 lister begged him to go home. For a long time Mor- 
 ton listened without seeming to comprehend. Finally 
 he nodded his head. 
 
 " Give me a drink. I got to have a drink. I can't 
 see anything but those flames. My God, those red-hot 
 flames spitting death at us ! Give me a drink." 
 
 Callister got the brandy for him. Morton drank it, 
 tipping the glass faster than he could swallow, spilling 
 the liquor over his chin and down his coat. 
 
 At last, under Lawler's guidance, Morton was as- 
 sisted into a carryall. After a series of prolonged de- 
 lays, he allowed himself to be started for home. But 
 half-way to Flaremont, the carryall passed the under-
 
 188 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 taker's wagon. The coffin was in plain view. At 
 sight of it the expert's reason fled. He jumped to the 
 road with a scream, rushing madly towards the woods. 
 Nothing could induce him to return. He ran like a 
 deer if anyone sought to approach him. Sitting on a 
 fallen log under the shade of the trees, he wagged his 
 head, muttering ceaselessly, alert for any signs of dan- 
 ger, his shifting eyes staring into vacancy. Every lit- 
 tle while he would twist his mouth out of shape with 
 fiendish grimaces. It was the beginning of the end. 
 
 All day long the crowds stood around the place. 
 The sense of catastrophe hung in the air. There 
 were no raised voices, no shouting, no loud talking. 
 But as yet the full horror had not seized upon the peo- 
 ple. Curiosity was the dominant impulse. 
 
 The works were a complete ruin, wrecked beyond 
 hope of repair. The brickwork about the stills was 
 cracked apart with heat. Of the furnaces there re- 
 mained nothing but a few fragments of iron. A gi- 
 gantic pit marked the spot where the refinery had 
 stood. Five acres of adjoining land lay smoking and 
 hot, charred deep into the ground. Around it circled 
 a solid flank of wondering people. The mystery to 
 them was not that so much had been burned, but that 
 the house and the well had escaped devastation. 
 
 It was not much like the gathering of only the day 
 before. Twenty-four short hours ago the air was 
 buoyant with hope and good wishes, and everyone 
 smiled. Now at one blow the work of weeks was
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 189 
 
 wiped out. Not only that, but the six men who had 
 staked their money on the refinery were ruined. They 
 could not begin all over again. Not one had a dollar of 
 spare cash to begin with. The future lowered with 
 gloom. Every citizen, every oil holder in Flaremont, 
 knowing why the refinery had been erected, felt this 
 disaster as a personal loss. There were dozens of men 
 waiting to see how the Flaremont Independent Refiners 
 Company succeeded, to follow the experiment. The 
 undertaking was big with promise to the whole 
 country. The oil business without something of the 
 kind was a dead letter. No one could compete with 
 the cut prices and the exorbitant freight rates against 
 them. 
 
 Well, it was a shame. The future didn't look very 
 bright. The. oil business would be at a standstill be- 
 fore long. Right now it seemed to be a question either 
 of shutting off the wells or selling the crude oil to the 
 Eastern fellows. 
 
 Little by little there began to rise a murmur of pro- 
 test, a sound of indignation from the onlookers. It 
 wasn't fair. Something was wrong somewhere. The 
 instinct of injustice was awakening into a spirit of in- 
 surrection. But before it could vent itself in open ex- 
 pressions of wrath, the night descended. In twos and 
 threes the people set out towards home, sullen, silent, 
 roused as they had never been before, only waiting for 
 some flagrant act of wrong to set them, rampant and 
 brutal, a terrible army of furies, against the horde of 
 their oppressors,
 
 190 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 The days passed. Spring was at hand. Before 
 very long it became apparent that the six men of the 
 Flaremont Independent Refiners Company were not the 
 only ones with whom things were going wrong. It 
 seemed as if the destruction of that refinery was a 
 signal for ruin everywhere about Flaremont. One by 
 one, all through the immediate district, drills and pumps 
 ceased operations. Men stood aghast at the outlook. 
 Except in certain cases where drillers sold their output 
 direct to agents for the Eastern Petroleum Company, 
 the shut-down was complete. The only oil hauled by 
 the railroad was for this gigantic Eastern concern, 
 which, like some monster devil-fish, reached its arms in 
 all directions, gradually fastening a hold on every pe- 
 troleum region East and West. 
 
 More than this, invariably where some man, more 
 persistent than his neighbors, insisted on putting his 
 product on the market, the consequences were serious. 
 Disaster overtook him. His machinery gave out 
 mysteriously. His derrick, apparently sound one day, 
 would be cheapened into junk the next. In two cases 
 nitroglycerin had been used to force a shut-down, 
 but each time the destroyer had managed so cleverly 
 that it was impossible to discover the criminal.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 191 
 
 Then conviction seized upon the people. It became 
 clear in men's minds that there was dirty work some- 
 where. Some power, intelligent, resourceful, deter- 
 mined, was at them, bound to win at any cost. They 
 dared not think ahead a minute. Panic seized upon 
 them. Men who, up to this time, had been fear- 
 less, suddenly grew bewildered. The calamity that 
 had fallen upon them was depriving them of their in- 
 come, taking the bread from their mouths. It was not 
 accidental. The uneasiness became overwhelming. 
 Gravity reigned where once gaiety had been en- 
 throned. 
 
 In the little world of tradespeople and contractors 
 it became a vital question whether, in face of the 
 diminution of receipts, all shops must close. Already 
 the change in Flaremont was appalling. It no longer 
 bristled with importance. For hours of every day the 
 streets were silent. Drays and carts no longer clat- 
 tered over the pavement. Building had stopped short. 
 Dozens of newly completed structures stood vacant, 
 staring placards posted at every window, " To Let 
 cheap." Workingmen were thrown out of employ- 
 ment. New stores were closed, the old ones did busi- 
 ness largely on a credit basis, hundreds of families 
 counted the days before they would subsist on charity. 
 
 As idleness and poverty increased, dirtiness, drunk- 
 enness and crime naturally increased also. One never 
 would have recognized certain houses that once had 
 been Flaremont's pride. It became unsafe for a worn-
 
 192 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 an to walk on the streets alone after dark. Stagna- 
 tion, anger, hopelessness, insurrection, prevailed every- 
 where. 
 
 Finally, under the influence of Jarvis, a committee 
 was formed among the well owners and well drillers 
 of the district. He alone seemed unbroken by the in- 
 justice and ruin that menaced their oil trade. He had 
 seen himself worse off and still pull through. If there 
 was any legitimate hope that had been overlooked or 
 untried, it must be hunted up. As every man in the 
 district was affected by the same oppression, it was for 
 every man to come in a general meeting to discuss the 
 outlook. 
 
 The largest hall in Flaremont was hired. The oil- 
 men for miles around were asked to come. On the 
 night set for the assembly, the room was packed to the 
 doors, and on every face was stamped the same expres- 
 sion of rage and despair. 
 
 Jarvis opened the meeting. He was very careful 
 what he said. The man realized that only a word was 
 needed to set loose the spirit of insurrection. He had 
 no wish to turn the occasion from the legitimate pur- 
 pose of discussing means into an outbreak of revolt. 
 
 He stated his reasons for calling the men together, 
 speaking clearly, concisely, touching on the circum- 
 stances that seemed to combine against a successful con- 
 tinuance of their business. He claimed faith in the 
 law, belief in the brotherhood of men, asserting that 
 in his judgment a serious talk with representatives of
 
 UK FKLL FLAT, ALMOST UNCONSCIOUS. Page 184.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 193 
 
 the railroad and the Eastern oilmen would result in 
 setting matters straight and settling the present diffi- 
 culties. But he was sure organization would be bet- 
 ter, would assure more definite accomplishments, than 
 the haphazard method of each man's trying to work 
 out the problem by himself. He asked that this ques- 
 tion be considered first: the organizing of the Flare- 
 mont County oilmen. He hoped and believed that 
 the assembled citizens were at heart too loyal to allow 
 their grievances or their anger to get the better of their 
 judgment. He asked for opinions, begging for mod- 
 eration in the speeches that were made. He concluded 
 by saying: 
 
 " I feel that I have the right to ask for moderation. 
 If you have suffered, I have doubly so. Not only does 
 the oil from my well seep away, but all the savings of 
 years of hard work evaporated in the flames that de- 
 stroyed the refinery. I am penniless, destitute except 
 what my well will make for me. Yet I am not dis- 
 couraged. I still have faith. I know we can win if 
 we keep our heads and go about this thing calmly, de- 
 liberately, like men and not school-boys." 
 
 He was listened to with great attention and ap- 
 plauded when he finally sat down, but instantly Jarvis 
 knew that he had not won their sympathy. He had 
 been heard out because it was he who had spoken, be- 
 cause he had the respect of every man there. It took 
 little more than one glance at those set faces to scent 
 danger. He knew then his purpose for the meeting 
 
 13
 
 194 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 had failed. He had brought together a crowd of in- 
 furiated men who would have their say regardless of 
 the cost, and that say would be anarchy. But at least 
 Jarvis had expected to be upheld by his friends. To 
 his utter amazement, Lawler arose to his feet with an 
 abrupt announcement, that conservatism was well 
 enough, but the way to meet violence was by violence ; 
 the way to fight destruction was to destroy; the way 
 to handle criminals was by crime. 
 
 In a second the audience was in an uproar, stamp- 
 ing, cheering, waving hats. He continued : 
 
 " I have not my friend's patience. Perhaps I am 
 a coward, but patience has, to my mind, ceased to be a 
 virtue. Until now, if I could not meet competition one 
 way, I was ready and willing to meet it another. Ev- 
 erything that was legitimate warfare I acknowledged 
 as such and sought to find an open way on to the high 
 road of prosperity. But now we are like a pack of wild 
 animals at bay. We are harried and chased by a mon- 
 ster of no heart, no feeling, recognizing no man's 
 rights ; a thing feeding on our blood, on the life's blood 
 of our wives and children. The way to deal with that 
 terror is by violence. We can't be chased forever. 
 We can't run our lives out, never stopping or turning 
 once for defense. 
 
 " It is time the lines are drawn between competi- 
 tion and conspiracy, between business and brigandage. 
 I am a law-abiding citizen. I believe in our laws. I 
 am proud of my city, my state, my country, but the
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 195 
 
 creature which has come to us is not a thing to awaken 
 patriotism. It buys our laws to hide under them. Be 
 it said to our everlasting shame, the nation sells its 
 protection ; sells it to this octopus which feeds on hu- 
 man lives, the lives of our best citizens, even while 
 it seeks to demand our sacred duties of citizenship ! 
 
 " Well, we will do our duty. We will prove our 
 loyalty. Exterminate this hydra-headed monster called 
 ' The Trust.' Rid our nation of the greatest curse, 
 the greatest evil, the greatest danger that threatens 
 it to-day." 
 
 Lawler sat down. He was trembling violently. 
 He scarcely heard the thunders of applause, or saw the 
 fire that his words had kindled. 
 
 He was followed by an old man, a new-comer to 
 Texas, a man who, like the others, had put his little 
 savings of years into an oil-well, only to see greater 
 poverty than ever stalking by his side. 
 
 " The gentleman is right. It's all well enough to 
 preach moderation when you've got a house that isn't 
 mortgaged, and a carriage to ride in when you're tired, 
 and food to eat in plenty when you're hungry but 
 wait. Just wait till you see your children crying be- 
 cause their stomachs gnaw with pain for something to 
 put into them. When, after watching your wife slave 
 herself to a shadow to keep a roof over her head, the 
 sheriff turns her and the little ones out on the street. 
 Wait till you see the machinery you have just finished 
 paying for suddenly give out, not in one place, but in
 
 196 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 fifty gone so completely that to repair it brings you 
 into a debt you can't pay for years. Wait till you 
 know that, with all your care, and your trouble, and 
 your hard work, and your honesty, and your toleration, 
 nothing counts with those fellows that are bound to 
 shut you up, bound to squeeze the life out of you for no 
 reason except to fill their pockets fuller of the gold that 
 is already spilling from 'em. I tell you I ain't afraid 
 to die. I'm most through with life, anyhow. But I'd 
 rather go off this earth swinging on the gallows for the 
 murder of one of those beasts who grind us to the 
 ground, than to pass away peacefully in my bed know- 
 ing they were all free to go on their damnable road of 
 ruination." 
 
 As the old man finished, hands were outstretched to 
 shake his. Voices rose in sympathetic acquiescence. 
 Every heart there had been touched. Men could un- 
 derstand his feeling. Once begun, the revolutionary 
 tempest grew. Men sprang to their feet, their faces 
 inflamed, their bodies quivering with excitement, giv- 
 ing vent to threats, advising extreme measures, ready 
 to maim or kill anything to batter out the life of the 
 enemy who pursued them. The promptings of impulse 
 unleashed the spirit of insurrection. The sudden op- 
 portunity to give voice to a long-continued accumula- 
 tion of grievances, inspired men to speak who never be- 
 fore had found the courage to utter a sound in public. 
 It was as if these oppressed people abruptly realized 
 their own strength and were savage with the knowl- 
 edge.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 197 
 
 The uproar increased. Nothing was too violent to 
 be applauded. Jarvis, unwilling to stay longer and 
 listen impassively to what was being preached, left the 
 hall. It would do no good to rise in his place and 
 endeavor to check that torrent of feeling. He under- 
 stood that. One might as well attempt to still the 
 surging of the ocean. But he would not remain and 
 sanction by his presence that with which he had no sym- 
 pathy. Never could he pledge himself to some ruth- 
 less scheme of open anarchy. The idea of following 
 in blind, senseless rage after a course of action out- 
 lined by men made irresponsible from oppression, was 
 repulsive to him. He was willing to strike at the 
 enemy, but the retaliation must be honorable. He 
 would be true to the drillers' interests, but he would 
 not be swayed by such violent emotions as his col- 
 leagues betrayed. 
 
 Callister had been strangely affected by this scene 
 of hate and passion. It was like a drama unfolding 
 before his eyes in which his friends played the princi- 
 pal roles. He stood apart, looking upon that uprising 
 of the brute instinct of the people, seeing in it the logi- 
 cal consequence of a serious situation. It was the 
 open note of alarm sounded against a condition that 
 threatened the freedom of a country. It was a demand 
 for a protection that the laws did not give; a demand 
 from the people that energy, industry, honesty, fore- 
 sight, should stand for their worth, escaping oblitera- 
 tion by the single power, CAPITAL. It was the
 
 198 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 masses running athwart a force, : a struggle far-reach- 
 ing, many-sided, begun in righteous anger, with every 
 prospect of being wrought out to a finish in ferocity 
 and human agony. 
 
 Callister could see that these men stood perilously 
 near a crisis, but was it the real crisis? Would this 
 little group of men win their cause, rallying the people 
 about their standard? Or was it all a delusion of 
 vague hopes, useless struggles, uncertain results? 
 Would they be pushed aside, paying the penalty, in the 
 end, of opposing themselves to one of those enormous 
 consolidations that from sheer force of weight cannot 
 be resisted? 
 
 He followed Jarvis out into the night, his mind 
 troubled with a hundred dissensions. For a long time 
 he had felt the need of unburdening himself to some- 
 one, telling what was on his mind. Jarvis would un- 
 derstand, although the communication had to deal with 
 matters scarcely more than fancies. For Callister, 
 living solitary, alone, and close to Nature, was gifted 
 with something akin to second sight. Under the in- 
 fluence of his surroundings, his imagination had become 
 exalted. Over and over he had illusions that pos- 
 sessed all the elements of reality, strange impressions 
 that, intangible, far off, not to be seen by another, yet 
 stirred in his mind like some sixth sense. 
 
 Supernatural as it all seemed, the man had learned 
 to follow these impressions. Never had they led him 
 astray. Repeatedly he had put them to the test, only
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 199 
 
 to find that again and again certain portions of the 
 future were unveiled to his vision, bringing him close 
 to the realm of mysticism. 
 
 It had been in one of these hallucinations that Orton 
 had first stood before him. In fact, every important 
 event in Callister's life had been distinctly foretold. 
 Only once had it failed to warn him. The night fol- 
 lowing the explosion he suddenly remembered that 
 he had received no presentiment of this calamity. 
 Thinking and thinking of that terrible scene, he was 
 beset with the belief that the disastei had been no 
 accident, but deliberately planned. 
 
 He sat on the porch, looking with musing eyes off 
 towards the vast prairie, wide as the open sea, and bit 
 by bit the thing grew clear to him. From out the 
 voiceless silence something spoke to him; from the 
 empty night something rose before him, until Callister 
 knew the truth knew it for himself beyond all ques- 
 tion of doubt, yet dared not speak. Until he had 
 proofs, tangible proofs to show, who would believe so 
 dreadful a story? 
 
 For it was dreadful hideous even, the knowledge 
 that step by step men could trace out a course of 
 devastation to their fellowmen that had but one 
 goal ruin. It was worse than actual murder. For 
 hounded, driven, pursued inexorably to the end, still 
 all through the chase the victim would go on dodging, 
 twisting, hoping to the last to discover a side path un- 
 traversed by the enemy.
 
 200 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 For a long time Callister sat, his head bowed on his 
 breast, his arms folded, his belief in omniscient good- 
 ness disordered by his discovery. He was shaken to 
 the heart's core by this new complication. 
 
 To-night he felt it time to speak, time to tell Jarvis 
 what he felt and what he knew. 
 
 " Jarvis," he began, " there's something all wrong 
 here somewhere, something working against us and 
 we are all in the dark." 
 
 " I know it, Cal. Really, those men to-night have 
 plenty of excuse for the way they talk. We have been 
 going from bad to worse continually. We are play- 
 ing the losing game at every point. It's as if there 
 were some concentrated action against us, some gigan- 
 tic power checkmating us at every turn. It's getting 
 pretty nearly desperate." 
 
 " That's just what there is, Jarvis concentrated ac- 
 tion a giant working against the pigmy; a thing pos- 
 sessed of colossal intellect, millions of money, arms 
 that reach around the world with muscles of such 
 power that to crush anyone who fights for freedom is 
 child's play. The arm that encircles Flaremont is Wil- 
 marth. The creature that we're up against is the 
 trust." 
 
 Jarvis nodded. " Of course, I've suspected that's 
 what we are bucking against, but I can't believe that 
 men could condescend to blow up buildings and destroy 
 machinery, endangering life and property for the sake 
 of winning a fight."
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 201 
 
 ; ' You haven't seen Morton lately, I suppose?" 
 asked Callister, abruptly. 
 
 Jarvis shook his head. 
 
 " You remember probably his first great anxiety 
 about trusting his cash in the refinery. But have you 
 noticed that now he is not the least upset or undone by 
 the loss of his money? True, he keeps out of our way, 
 but he is living on the fat of the land, apparently better 
 off since that affair than before." 
 
 Jarvis stared. " To tell the truth, I haven't thought 
 much about him," said he. 
 
 " Well, I would like to show you something. Some- 
 thing that has become a nightly occurrence at the 
 * Inn.' It may open your eyes." 
 
 A dozen times before these two had hunted out Mor- 
 ton, anxious to get from him the details of what had 
 occurred in the furnace-room on that terrible morning. 
 But Morton's passion for liquor, once gratified, pos- 
 sessed him, riding him day and night. He was never 
 sober. When anyone approached him with questions 
 of the accident, he yelled out drunken arguments, using 
 disgusting language. 
 
 His face was besotted with drink, his breath reeked 
 with the smell of brandy, his eyes paled with excesses. 
 But in spite of his continual dissipations, his pockets 
 never seemed empty. He ran up no bills ; everywhere 
 his credit was good. People began to wonder where 
 the fellow got his money. 
 
 But for all their suspicions, no one dared ask him
 
 202 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 anything. He was an object to be feared; his temper 
 was something terrible. Without the least reason he 
 would give way to it, roaring out oaths, his eyes shin- 
 ing with fury, his hands doubled, ready to pound any- 
 one who approached. At such times he said nothing 
 one could understand, but strange, guttural sounds 
 issued from his throat like the suppressed growls of 
 an enraged animal. Men gave him a wide berth. 
 Women ran from him, seized with fear, all of a tremble. 
 
 At the Inn, Morton was very drunk. He crouched 
 on a chair, swaying his head, his shifting eyes staring 
 into vacancy. The room was spinning around him. 
 The reeking air made it hard for him to breathe. The 
 sweat dripped from him in great, greasy drops, but 
 again and again, with an automatic gesture, he 
 stretched forth an arm, drawing his glass towards 
 him, tossing the contents down his throat with a single 
 motion. 
 
 As was the case every day, he had drunk him- 
 self into a rage. On hearing steps near his chair, he 
 swung his head, his pale eyes fixing on Callister and 
 Jarvis. For an instant he stared at them, bewildered, 
 his muddled brain slow to act. This was the last 
 straw. The sight of these two men whom he had 
 wronged, set him into a passion that threatened dan- 
 ger. His face gleamed with murderous hate, his skin 
 turned purple under his scraggy beard. He gave vent 
 to an explosion of oaths. Immediately the attention 
 of every man in the saloon was fastened on Morton,
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 203 
 
 but no one dared venture near him. Business was 
 practically suspended. The proprietor made his ap- 
 pearance from some corner, evidently dreading what 
 was to come. As if fearing an attack, Morton clutched 
 fast to a chair, drawing his body erect, his teeth 
 clenched, standing on the defensive. When he found 
 neither Callister nor Jarvis advanced towards him, his 
 fury increased. 
 
 " You spies, you spies, you damned spies ! " he 
 choked the words out. " I'm never free of you. I'll 
 teach you you can't follow me in this way. Get out! 
 Get out, or I'll kill you." 
 
 He lurched forward, knocking down the table, bruis- 
 ing himself, all but falling. The hurt maddened 
 him more than ever. A bottle stood within reach. 
 He seized it in one hand, hurling it at Jarvis' head. A 
 heavy glass followed, but, blinded by his rage, Morton 
 could not see his aim. The missiles fell on either side 
 of Jarvis, smashing on the floor in a thousand pieces. 
 
 The Inn was in a turmoil. Shouts and cries for help 
 rang out. Men dodged, shielding themselves behind 
 tables, running across to the bar for protection, unable 
 to 1 get to the door. Morton paid no heed to the pro- 
 prietor's orders to stop and get out. Again and again 
 he returned to the attack. Chairs, other bottles, a half 
 dozen glasses followed in quick succession, accompa- 
 nied with oaths screamed from his foaming lips 
 stretched wide open. It would have been a delight to 
 Morton to kill someone. There was nothing human
 
 204 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 about him. He was the personification of brutal ugli- 
 ness unleashed. He muttered threat after threat. He 
 pounded the air with fierce gestures; his body grew 
 rigid ; great red blotches streaked his face. 
 
 The uproar was fearful, the clamor of breaking 
 glass and flying furniture drowning completely the 
 rumbling noises in the streets outside. 
 
 People began collecting about the door, hastening 
 to the saloon, believing a riot was imminent. Peering 
 in the windows, they caught sight of the infuriated 
 man holding the inmates of the room at bay. It was 
 a scene to make one's blood run cold. How would 
 the exhibition end? Something terrible would happen 
 yet. 
 
 In the very midst of the affray, while those outside 
 were wondering what to do, Wilmarth sauntered down 
 the street. He was taking the night air, comfortably 
 smoking a fine cigar, gazing up at the stars, his counte- 
 nance bland, smiling. It was his custom to patronize 
 the Inn. He arrived every evening promptly at ten 
 o'clock, taking one drink of whisky. After he had 
 looked over a paper or two, he took his departure with 
 an affable " Good-night " all around. 
 
 Now he stopped still, listening a moment to the 
 hideous sounds issuing from the saloon. Instantly he 
 recognized Morton's guttural voice. He turned to- 
 wards the entrance. The men outside pressed closer 
 to the partly open door. A murmur passed through 
 the group. Callister was the first one who saw the 
 agent come in. He whispered to Jarvis :
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 205 
 
 " Watch. This is what I wanted you to see. Look 
 at Morton." 
 
 Jarvis had not long to wait. Before the words were 
 fairly spoken, a curious thing occurred. Morton stood 
 with his back to the door, his doubled hand raised 
 threateningly. About him was strewn broken glass, 
 splintered furniture. The atmosphere was heavy with 
 the whisky he had spilled. Suddenly a chill ran 
 through him. His shoulders stiffened. He paused, 
 his whole attitude cringing, fear stirring in his face. 
 No one spoke. There was no sound. A hush fell 
 over the place. Wilmarth closed the door behind him 
 and glanced about the room. From every corner, 
 from behind any place that offered protection, men's 
 bodies appeared. The proprietor, emboldened by the 
 sudden quiet, was about to speak, but Wilmarth shook 
 his head warningly. He smiled depreciatingly, having 
 the air of a man who, discouraged with his attempts 
 to do good, still continues his efforts as a humanita- 
 rian. 
 
 He came around from the door towards Morton, but 
 already something had been sent across the room to the 
 drunkard some danger signal, elusive, intangible, but 
 sounding its warning. The fellow quivered. He 
 turned, cowering before the agent, watching him with 
 terror-stricken eyes, drawing one long, sharp breath 
 after another. He was like a conquered brute in the 
 presence of his master. He no longer yelled; the 
 atrocious threats died on his lips. Not a word as yet
 
 206 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 had come from Wilmarth; no words were necessary. 
 Transfixed, stupefied, acting as though he had awak- 
 ened from a dream, Morton presently advanced, step 
 by step, towards his subduer. His whole being shrank 
 from contact with the agent, yet on he went, nearer and 
 nearer, treading with the caution of a nervous animal. 
 
 The eyes of every man in the place were on these two 
 figures in breathless suspense. They forgot them- 
 selves, crawling out of their hiding places, utter amaze- 
 ment sitting on every face. Was Wilmarth's power 
 resistless ? 
 
 The minutes went by. Every man waited. The 
 silence was profound. Finally, Morton paused. Wil- 
 marth pointed to the proprietor. He was as calm and 
 bland as ever. 
 
 " Apologize for this disturbance and pay for the 
 damage you've done," he commanded. 
 
 The onlookers could hardly believe their eyes. Mor- 
 ton, his face purple, his hair matted with sweat, his 
 eyes bloodshot, muttered his apology. He spoke like 
 an automatic machine. He put his hand in his pocket, 
 and when he had counted out a sum of money, he 
 handed it over to the proprietor. Then, with a long 
 breath, hardly able to walk, he obeyed the agent's ges- 
 ture, following Wilmarth out into the night, perplexed, 
 bewildered, but conquered. 
 
 To the watchers of this scene there were no words 
 for what had transpired. Something had taken place 
 under their very gaze that bordered closely on hypno-
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 207 
 
 tism. It was an exhibition that not one of them would 
 have believed on hearsay. It created a tremendous 
 sensation, although for some reason no one cared to 
 speak of it. 
 
 Jarvis and Callister passed out of the Inn, walking a 
 long way over the road towards home before either one 
 spoke. In spite of his intense disgust, a qualm of 
 something very like pity had hold of Jarvis. 
 
 " Cal, what does that mean? Poor devil! What 
 does it mean ? " he demanded, finally. 
 
 Callister replied at length : " It works out logi- 
 cally in only one way. I have studied over it since the 
 first time I saw this thing happen. Morton hates us. 
 He shows that plainly. But why? No reason at all, 
 unless, perhaps, he has wronged us. The knowledge 
 of wrong done to another often causes hatred. Then, 
 again, why has he gone back to drinking? Not be- 
 cause he is poor, for he isn't. He has plenty of money. 
 To drown memories that haunt perhaps. Why does 
 he fear Wilmarth so intensely that it is the dominant 
 sensation in his mind, almost an hypnotic influence? 
 Because Wilmarth knows something against Morton 
 that could harm him perhaps. How does Morton get 
 his sudden overabundance of money? Paid paid 
 well for something perhaps. Piece it out, Jar, all 
 out. Go back to that last morning and the circum- 
 stances of Morton's arrival at the refinery. It all fits 
 wonderfully with what follows, and it's all damnable." 
 
 With the abruptness of a blow, understanding, swift,
 
 208 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 terrible, burst upon Jarvis. It was inconceivable. How 
 were such business methods as these to be met, how 
 dealt with? It was crime, nothing short of crime, 
 with no law to punish the criminals. 
 
 " My God! " he murmured. And Jarvis walked the 
 rest of the way home with bent head, his hands clasped 
 behind his back, wondering, thinking. 
 
 But for every plan or suggestion, honest and above- 
 board, that formulated itself in his thoughts, there was 
 the checkmate of dishonesty. The Flaremont oilmen 
 were face to face with dealers who, without a second's 
 hesitation, would stoop to crime, determined to win at 
 any cost. Was it possible an honest man could no 
 longer earn a living? 
 
 " I won't believe it, I can't believe it," Jarvis cried 
 aloud. Callister, startled out of his own reverie, 
 stared at him, but said nothing.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 209 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 The wedding of Gabrielle Mason and Archibald 
 Orton was set for the third of June. It was to be a 
 great affair. In spite of the fact that the Masons had 
 lost their money and that the well lay idle, hundreds of 
 dollars' worth of oil going to waste every day, the girl 
 planned to have a big gathering of people, with a cere- 
 mony at the church and a reception afterward at the 
 house. 
 
 After a long discussion with Orton, Gabrielle had de- 
 cided the wedding journey should extend to Alabama. 
 Although she had left the state as a little child, she 
 clung to certain memories, insisting she remembered 
 the house where they had lived, the beautiful drives, 
 the huge plantations, even some of her playmates. 
 Orton left all arrangements to her, as was his habit. 
 He never once intruded with suggestions, deferring 
 always to her, effacing himself as much as possible. In 
 all the intimacies of his courtship he preserved the same 
 attitude of obedience to his betrothed's wishes, invaria- 
 bly smiling, unfailingly affable, making himself almost 
 indispensable to Mrs. Mason, anxious to win every- 
 one's esteem. 
 
 He had rather avoided Callister, hardly seeing him 
 
 14
 
 210 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 from one month's end to another. In fact, Orton never 
 quite recovered from the impression that for some 
 reason Callister was suspicious of him. A few weeks 
 before his marriage he had fallen in with the electrician 
 on the highway. Although neither man desired it, a 
 long walk in the direction of Flaremont ensued. 
 
 As a matter of fact, Callister was distinctly not cor- 
 dial, but Orton rose to the occasion, talking volubly. 
 He told amusing stories, related experiences, gave cer- 
 tain large opinions on the situation of the oil trade in 
 Texas, presenting his side effectively, never at a loss 
 for a topic, never offending with what he said. It was 
 evident that he tried to produce a good effect on the 
 silent, grave, dreamy man by his side. 
 
 But while Orton gave every evidence of being thor- 
 oughly composed, Callister, watching him furtively, 
 began to believe Orton was nervous. Brusquely the 
 impression asserted itself that this stranger was playing 
 some game, acting a part which he never for a second 
 put one side; a trickery resorted to for protection and 
 self-advancement. 
 
 As the walk continued, there rose before Callister's 
 eyes a vague repetition of that vision. In a brief lapse 
 of time this city-bred man, faultlessly attired, exqui- 
 sitely mannered, speaking so fluently on every subject, 
 was transfigured into another figure. The same man, 
 yet not the same, his fine ways lost, a torrent of words 
 issuing from his throat, turning furiously on his tracks, 
 his face distorted with fear, a poor creature in fine
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 211 
 
 clothes, torn, bleeding, disheveled, distraught, hunted 
 down, fleeing from some terrible calamity that pur- 
 sued him at every turn, begging protection from 
 Callister, the only man who would help. The mys- 
 tery concerning this stranger had not yet revealed 
 itself, but it would, it would after Gabrielle had given 
 herself to him, his Gabrielle, with her wonderful 
 beauty, her face like a saint. 
 
 All at once it seemed to Callister that by a supreme 
 effort of his will he could penetrate Orton's secret, 
 summoning it through that unnamed, inexplicable fac- 
 ulty of his mind. But something held him from the 
 attempt. There was an element of dread in the mere 
 thought. He was afraid of what he would discover. 
 
 At the first turning in the road, Callister left Orton, 
 bidding him good-day with cold politeness, passing on 
 his way tremendously relieved to be by himself. 
 
 Nor was Callister alone in his distrust of this new- 
 comer. Orton had never succeeded in winning a place 
 for himself with the men of Flaremont. Not until the 
 wedding invitations were sent broadcast, did any of the 
 masculine element have a good word to say. Then he 
 was accepted as a citizen because Gabrielle was so im- 
 mensely admired. Flaremont relegated to itself a cer- 
 tain pride in possessing a girl whose fame for beauty 
 spread over all the state. Every man in the town held 
 himself her defender, as he would have defended his 
 country or his flag. She had become hedged around 
 with a kind of civic loyalty. She belonged to Flare- 
 mont, therefore to Flaremont citizens.
 
 212 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 At every state festival for years Gabrielle had been 
 given a prominent part. A celebration of any kind 
 was incomplete unless something was planned to in- 
 clude her. She had been the queen of beauty, the sym- 
 bol of freedom, many times a goddess of liberty. She 
 had stood for the state of Texas, she had presented 
 flowers to two governors, she rode in a chariot at every 
 parade, not as anything in particular, but because she 
 was indissolubly connected with Flaremont's glory. 
 
 There had been intense interest in her affair with 
 Orton, and even if he was not liked, the men were at 
 least just. The engagement once settled, they contin- 
 ually assured one another that although he did lord 
 it over people, perhaps, everything considered, he was 
 a good match for Miss Mason. He was distinctly 
 good-looking, his dark, foreign face making a perfect 
 contrast to her delicate coloring. Then, too, he was 
 so unimpeachably correct and apparently well-fixed 
 financially. 
 
 Gabrielle deserved a gentleman, and here was one. 
 By the time the third of June arrived, Flaremont 
 thought better of Orton than it ever had before. Its 
 people had talked themselves into standing sponsor for 
 him, and, as the husband-elect of Gabrielle, acceded 
 to him a position of honor. 
 
 As June approached, the air was thick with rumors. 
 The occasion was talked of all over town. It was said 
 that a thousand invitations had been given for the re- 
 ception and that hundreds of dollars would be required 
 to pay the bills.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 213 
 
 Meanwhile all the arrangements were completed. 
 The ceremony was to take place at the Church of the 
 Holy Mother at two o'clock in the presence of about 
 three hundred people, as many as the church would 
 seat. A reception would follow, lasting from three 
 until six. Carpenters had been busy making an im- 
 mense flooring that occupied half the Mason lot. This, 
 with an awning stretched overhead, would catch the 
 overflow from the house. The bride and groom would 
 receive the guests in the parlor, near a side door. Out 
 of this the company could pass after greeting the hos- 
 tess, going directly into the temporary pavilion. This 
 would save crowding and give ample room for dancing. 
 An orchestra of six pieces had been engaged. At 
 seven o'clock the bride and groom were to take the 
 Overland, going East. 
 
 Theodora was to be the maid of honor. There were 
 two little girls who would serve as flower maids, car- 
 rying baskets of roses with which to strew the church 
 aisle when the ceremony was over. Randolph Mason 
 had been chosen for best man. The mother would give 
 the bride away. 
 
 Jarvis, Lawler, Hale and Callister would seat peo- 
 ple at the church, acting as ushers. As a last touch to 
 an elegant affair, a caterer had been engaged from out 
 of town, and Orton had politely asked permission to 
 present the champagne. 
 
 Two weeks before the great day, Gabrielle kept her- 
 self very secluded, believing it altogether the thing to
 
 214 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 assume a bearing of extreme modesty. When anyone 
 referred to the nearness of the time she lowered her 
 eyelids affectedly, wishing a blush might be managed 
 as easily as a smile. She had worked day and night 
 on her trousseau, but left her mother to attend to every- 
 thing else. 
 
 At last the third of June arrived. Gabrielle had 
 packed all her trunks. Mrs. Mason had completed the 
 final details. Both women were thoroughly tired out. 
 The pavilion was very artistic. The posts supporting 
 the awning were wound with vines and wild flowers; 
 great jars of green stood in the corners; around the 
 floor were rows of chairs rented from different halls, 
 so arranged as to leave a large space clear for the 
 dancers. The house was a bower of flowers. Young 
 Mason had worked himself half sick to make the place 
 beautiful. He had gone into- it with the frenzy of 
 doing something to take up his mind. Ever since the 
 explosion he had been wretchedly unhappy. The boy 
 had brooded over the affair during the long hours 
 when, helpless from the burns on his feet, he had been 
 left alone and idle. At first the calamity had numbed 
 him. After all those months of preparation and plan- 
 ning and waiting, to have annihilation swoop over them 
 all in a minute's time had dazed him. It was incom- 
 prehensible. They had been crushed by the one thing 
 they had looked to for reimbursement, salvation. He 
 was beside himself with grief. 
 
 But after a time, when familiarity with the fact had
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 215 
 
 made that first numbness pass off, a sense of rage took 
 its place. There was some mystery connected with that 
 destruction, something that needed explaining. Was 
 it possible the thing had been cooked up ? Deliberately 
 planned by the same one who had cut prices and in- 
 creased rates ? Instantly, without the faintest proof or 
 the least reason, Randolph set the trouble at Eberlie's 
 door. He was the railroad's man; the railroad was 
 the tool of those Eastern oilmen, those controllers of 
 the trust that had been trying in every possible way to 
 crowd out the individual drillers and refiners. He re- 
 called every accident that had occurred in the district. 
 He remembered the change in the men ; he saw the al- 
 tered state of Flaremont; everything pointed to one 
 fact. 
 
 The boy's decision was made, his mind set. The 
 whole thing was a scheme, a plan. No one outside the 
 trust was to be allowed a chance. There was no pres- 
 ent, no future. Wrath seized him. He cried from 
 sheer anger. The helplessness of them all was mad- 
 dening. How the trust fellows must have laughed 
 in their sleeves at the ambitions of those six poor men, 
 the six forming the Flaremont Independent Refiners 
 Company! How they gibed at anyone who sought 
 an independent business! 
 
 The more Randolph reflected, the more malevolent he 
 grew. He no longer wept; he clenched his teeth and 
 cursed. They had won now, but wait. He, for one, 
 wouldn't sit silent and be the butt for those devils'
 
 216 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 amusement. He would square accounts some time 
 square 'em any way he could. 
 
 Bit by bit, the boy lost all his cheeriness and gentle- 
 ness. He became moody, silent, full of the anger of 
 defeat and the desire for retaliation. But he kept the 
 trouble to himself, working desperately at anything that 
 came to hand, trying to evade his mother's questions. 
 He wouldn't drag her into what he was planning. 
 
 Ordinarily, it would have taken a dozen men to have 
 decorated the house as he did it. Every wall on the 
 first floor was hung with vines and flowers. He re- 
 fused all help, and the night before the wedding he did 
 not stop at all. At daybreak, his mother, very uneasy, 
 begged him to go to bed. He declared angrily, " It 
 wasn't work, but ridicule, that hurt him." Mrs. Mason 
 looked at him curiously, wise enough not to insist on 
 her request, but worried, wondering what had changed 
 him so, a vague fear seizing hold of her heart. 
 
 For the wedding day, at least, Flaremont awoke 
 again. Before breakfast a group of children had 
 gathered outside the house, staring in at the open doors 
 and windows, laughing, talking, pointing, waiting to 
 see the bride. As early as nine o'clock the caterers 
 were at work. A large truck backed up at the side 
 door. Gallon cans of ice-cream, immense boxes of 
 cakes, great jars filled with salad, barrels of dishes, 
 were lifted out, carried into the kitchen, or set in the 
 back yard. The children gathered closer, blinking 
 their eyes, sniffing the air, licking their lips. All at 
 once their stomachs ached for food.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 217 
 
 Horses and carriages were dashing about the 
 streets. The one liveryman in Flaremont had taken 
 a hundred more orders than he could possibly fill. He 
 arranged a schedule, printing hours for certain de- 
 partures, allowing only time enough for his carriages 
 to be rushed madly to and fro from the houses to the 
 church. He began calling for his customers at eleven 
 o'clock. By twelve he was in a terrible state, standing 
 at the barn-door, watching his teams pass and repass, 
 referring continually to the schedule he held in his hand, 
 shouting directions to his drivers, who leaned forward 
 on their seats to catch his words. He was coatless, 
 collarless and hatless. At every moment he grew 
 warmer. 
 
 An hour before the time set for the ceremony, the 
 church on the hill was packed. Lawler and Hale, 
 wearing their Prince Albert suits purchased in honor 
 of the refinery, with huge boutonnieres consisting of 
 a white rose surrounded by green ferns in the left 
 buttonhole, and white kid gloves, were very gallant. 
 Before escorting a lady down the aisle, each man 
 bowed profoundly, at the same moment offering his 
 arm. Their faces were serious, even funereal. They 
 trod softly. 
 
 The guests were all in their Sunday clothes. They 
 sat up very stiff, looking stately and uncomfortable. 
 Not a word was spoken. It was deeply impressive. 
 Presently the organist took his seat, and two altar 
 boys began lighting the candles. A ripple of excite-
 
 218 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 ment passed over the waiting crowd when Mrs. Mason 
 on Jarvis' arm came clown the aisle, seating herself in 
 the first pew. After what seemed an interminable 
 wait the organist swung into a wedding-march. A 
 whisper of "Here they come!" passed from mouth 
 to mouth. There was a craning of necks. Some of 
 the ladies peered at Mrs. Mason, wondering whether 
 she would weep. Up in front Father Beauvais, very 
 gentle, looking like a patient little saint in his white 
 surplice, waited for Gabrielle. By his side was the 
 groom. 
 
 Never had Orton looked so well. It had been ru- 
 mored that his wedding-suit came from New York, 
 and, after seeing it, the gossip could be believed. The 
 light trousers, Prince Albert coat, smart cravat, im- 
 maculate linen, patent leather shoes, white bouton- 
 niere, were the acme of style, taste and perfection. 
 Never had such clothes been seen in the town. His 
 face was very pale, but he smiled continually and 
 every move was a marvel of city-bred grace. 
 
 His appearance caused a murmur of satisfaction 
 that deepened into an exclamation of delight as the 
 wedding-party approached. 
 
 Theodora, strikingly pretty, came first. She was 
 all in white, carrying white roses, wearing a big white 
 hat. Freshness and peace seemed somehow always to 
 be attached to her. They emanated from her very 
 garments like a subtle perfume. 
 
 Following, walked two little girls in white frocks 
 with pink sashes and pink hats.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 219 
 
 Then came the bride on Randolph's arm. The 
 flimsy veil covered her entire figure, but it emphasized 
 rather than hid her brilliancy. She walked slowly, 
 carrying herself with a rigid hauteur, conscious of her 
 beauty that was not to be denied. Her loveliness al- 
 most took one's breath away. 
 
 The congregation arose, standing mutely staring 
 while the two went through the ceremony with per- 
 fect ease. There was no trace of embarrassment, no 
 sign of uncertainty. When Mrs. Mason advanced to 
 give her daughter away, Gabrielle leaned forward and 
 kissed her mother with a studied effort at creating a 
 pretty scene. It made a big impression. Half a 
 dozen women pulled out their handkerchiefs. Glances 
 of approbation were exchanged everywhere. 
 
 The ceremony ended before people half expected it. 
 They were bewildered at seeing the pair turn, advanc- 
 ing arm in arm, the flower maidens walking back- 
 wards, strewing roses in the path of the newly-mar- 
 ried couple. Gabrielle's veil was thrust away from 
 her face now. She exchanged bright glances with 
 some of her best-known friends. 
 
 The church was slow in emptying. When the guests 
 emerged from the door, the lack of carriages became 
 painfully evident. It was one thing to get there when 
 the whole morning was before them ; another thing to 
 get to a reception when no one wanted to lose a second. 
 
 There were twenty persons for each place in each 
 vehicle. For a few minutes a veritable riot seemed
 
 220 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 imminent. Finally, the men all decided to walk, leav- 
 ing the ladies to follow as best they could. Every- 
 where were to be heard expressions of wrath against 
 the liveryman. Half the afternoon nothing else was 
 talked of. 
 
 Jarvis, Callister and Theodora rode to the house 
 together. Tears were in the girl's eyes. " I always 
 am sad at a wedding. Somehow, I can't help crying, 
 almost as if it were a funeral," she said. " How 
 beautiful Gabrielle looks as a bride ! " she added, sud- 
 denly. 
 
 Callister's face was haggard. Every moment of the 
 day had been agony to him. One phrase dinged cease- 
 lessly through his brain, " She's lost to you now ; lost 
 to you now." 
 
 But Jarvis' eyes were bright with happiness. He 
 could not take his glance from Theo. It was one of 
 those times when she held complete hold of him. His 
 thoughts went back to the first day he had come up 
 this hill, bringing her, then a little girl of six, to a 
 shelter until he could make a home for them both. 
 He went over the years that followed. He had known 
 her so intimately from the time of her childhood, 
 until now when she had come to him in the full glory 
 of a perfect young womanhood. Gradual as the trans- 
 formation had been, it startled him. He saw her per- 
 fections, her wonderful charm, and was exasperated by 
 his own crudeness, his lack of that refinement that was 
 so strong a characteristic in Theodora. From the
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 221 
 
 moment of her passing the door into' the home he had 
 made for her, his life was like a dream, delicious be- 
 yond words, in spite of the fact that his peace of mind 
 was gone. This man, who had had so little love in 
 his life, fought a daily battle against the element that 
 clamored and shouted for recognition. Every hour 
 it g'rew harder to keep quiet. Again and again he re- 
 solved never to speak of the falseness of their position, 
 only to realize the more plainly his constant danger 
 of letting out the secret before he was aware what he 
 did. He had only to close his eyes to call up a picture 
 that held him entranced, a veritable idyl that showed 
 her as belonging to him. 
 
 Over and over he forced back the words that choked 
 him, arguing his right to speak so soon. It would 
 be cruel to wreck the beginning of her freedom with 
 such a violent explanation. She might fill his life, oc- 
 cupying every corner of his heart and his mind, but 
 with her it was different. She had been brought up 
 believing herself simply his sister ; the idea of anything 
 closer might be distasteful to her. It was much bet- 
 ter to keep his secret to himself, intoxicated with his 
 great love, having her always about him where he 
 could see her and watch her, than to run any risks. 
 
 But in his innermost self, his joy amounted almost 
 to anguish. He was tempted continually to shout 
 aloud of this new-found happiness. At times he could 
 hardly resist. Now the sight of this wedding had 
 stirred him profoundly, setting his imagination to
 
 222 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 work. All during that ride to the Masons' home he 
 looked at Theo with an expression in his eyes she had 
 never seen before. He was wildly happy to have her 
 so near him, believing the time was nearly ripe when 
 he could tell her the truth, put away all barriers, see- 
 ing invisible signs that she, too, cared, that willingly 
 she would become a part of his life. 
 
 He lived through all the afternoon in a half dream, 
 seeing that sweetness of existence, all the happiness 
 the earth held for him, coming within his g r asp. His 
 heart strained with an immense tenderness. He loved 
 Theodora ; loved her so passionately, so intensely, that 
 the love became part of himself. 
 
 Meanwhile there was a great concourse of people 
 arriving at the recqDtion. The pavilion filled up rap- 
 idly; vehicles dashed up, stopping only long enough 
 to unload, then off again for another party. The 
 front yard was a surging mass, the house overflowed. 
 
 But the greatest gaiety was in the pavilion. Here 
 the musicians had taken their places, playing dance 
 after dance. Groups had settled themselves on the 
 rows of chairs, the women's dresses making a great 
 mixture of colors. There were no programs, but 
 some of the young men, making engagements ahead, 
 wrote names on their cuffs. One chap, a regular 
 josher, printed the names of his partners in great let- 
 ters on his shirt-front, calling attention to it with ex- 
 aggerated gestures. It had a great success. Bursts 
 of laughter arose whenever he rushed about to secure 
 his next girl.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 223 
 
 Theodora left the house at sound of the music. Her 
 cheeks were flushed, her eyes shone with pleasure. It 
 was her first real party, and a few seconds after her ap- 
 pearance on the floor she was surrounded by a group 
 of men. Lawler claimed three dances. Hale secured 
 two, Jarvis, standing out on the lawn, caught his 
 breath, not able to keep his eyes away from her. The 
 added excitement made her more beautiful than he 
 had ever seen her. The sound of her laughter came 
 to him from time to time, a veritable note of com- 
 plete happiness. She danced every dance through 
 from beginning to end, never seeming to tire, every 
 motion filled with infinite grace. Somehow, she took 
 on something of the childish look of long ago. Jarvis 
 did not have to close his eyes to see again the fragile, 
 dainty, exquisite little creature who had sat high on 
 the wagon seat next to him, thrusting her two hands 
 in his pockets, begging to hold the reins. 
 
 Everybody was having a good time. The babel of 
 noises rose from a hum to a clamor, all sense of timid- 
 ity gone. Two huge bowls of champagne punch had 
 been brought in for the dancers. The couples swarmed 
 up to them, drinking the bride's health, turning gal- 
 lantly as they pledged one another. The gaiety in- 
 creased. A roar of talk and laughter ascended from 
 the house, the lawn, the pavilion. Finally, at an inter- 
 val between two dances, Hale volunteered a song. 
 " What's a wedding without singing? " he vociferated, 
 dramatically.
 
 224 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 Instantly there came the demand for silence. It 
 was to be a comic song, Hale announced, assuming a 
 pose, screwing up his face. Some of the ladies began 
 to laugh at once. A thunder of applause came from 
 the men. 
 
 Hale prided himself on his singing. No matter how 
 loud he trumpeted nor how long he hung on notes, his 
 voice never cracked. His wind was solid, his lungs a 
 regular pair of bellows. Once between verses he 
 thumped himself on the chest to show how powerful 
 it was. 
 
 No one knew the song, but after the fifth stanza half 
 the guests joined in the chorus, the ladies throwing 
 back their heads, raising their eyes heavenward, the 
 men looking straight before them, blinking, frowning 
 fiercely, the whole party carried away by the time and 
 the tune. 
 
 As soon as Hale finished, delighted with his own 
 success, he shoved Lawler forward, urging him to 
 " tune up." Lawler shook his head violently. He 
 didn't intend making a spectacle of himself. But shouts 
 of encouragement rang out. Finally he gave in, clear- 
 ing his throat nervously, his face very red. 
 
 In a deep voice he began " The Two Grenadiers." 
 As he worked into the spirit of the thing, the words 
 poured out like a tempest. It was a very martial per- 
 formance. He was highly complimented at the end. 
 Then, after much urging, he gave a ballad with great 
 effect, dwelling on certain notes, his voice trembling
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 225 
 
 on affecting words until the song became as lamentable 
 as a dirge. Some of the ladies were reduced to tears. 
 But one old man, who in his youth had been a bari- 
 tone in a church choir, sniffed the air, making some 
 very cutting remarks audibly. 
 
 The accusation fell on Hale like a blow, and 
 promptly he swelled with resentment; his friend had 
 been insulted. That could not pass with impunity in 
 his presence. An angry disturbance threatened. 
 
 It was Lawler himself who pacified his enraged 
 friend, while mutual acquaintances led the old bari- 
 tone aside, dumb and sulky. But the singing was 
 broken up, and it took several minutes before quiet 
 was restored and gaiety asserted itself. 
 
 Just as the leader of the musicians proclaimed, 
 " Take partners for the Lancers," a procession of 
 waiters appeared, loaded clown with plates and nap- 
 kins. There were cries of 
 
 " Refreshments." 
 
 " Supper, by Jove! " 
 
 " Where's my partner ? " 
 
 " Oh, dear, our chairs are taken. " Where shall we 
 go?" 
 
 " Come on, come on ; let's all get together." 
 
 "The lawn's the place; if you slop there it won't 
 matter. Hurry up. Come on, come on! " 
 
 There was a wild scramble for seats. All thought 
 of the dance was forgotten. Peals of laughter rang 
 out. Conversation was carried on at the top of the 
 
 15
 
 226 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 lungs. There was a veritable sensation when two 
 mammoth cakes, frosted in white, very ornate, very 
 magnificent, towering in the air like miniature tem- 
 ples, were brought in on a board carried by two men, 
 and placed in the center of the pavilion. Presently Ga- 
 brielle, amid shouts and cheers, made her appearance, 
 taking up her place before the giant " bride's cake." 
 Orton gave her a knife. He was greeting people right 
 and left, the smile of affability still on his face, his 
 ease of manner never deserting him. 
 
 By a curious coincidence Callister found himself 
 beside Gabrielle as she lifted up the first slice she had 
 cut. With a slow grace she held the cake out to him. 
 All color fled from his face. For the moment he saw 
 nothing distinctly except the girl he had lost, the one 
 woman he had loved. He bowed to her, speechless, 
 his heart giving a bound to his throat, his hands 
 trembling. Orton, with a punctilious elegance, gave 
 his piece to Theodora. Promptly she broke it in two, 
 dividing it with Jarvis, whom she beckoned to her 
 from across the room. 
 
 By this time everyone was eating, very much at 
 home, keeping up a continual clatter, all the guests 
 showing a good appetite. There was an almost deaf- 
 ening roar at the temporary pavilion. This place had 
 been the liveliest from the very beginning. Lawler 
 and Hale were having great sport with half a dozen 
 ladies, playing a regular game, which was very amus- 
 ing. The ladies would close their eyes. Silently
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 227 
 
 the two men would change places, standing with their 
 backs to the little group. On a signal the ladies would 
 look up, saying immediately which was Lawler, which 
 Hale. Their similarity of appearance in the Prince 
 Albert suits was wonderfully confusing. This per- 
 formance was repeated again and again. Shouts of 
 laughter followed each experiment. 
 
 Callister, after the cake episode, had withdrawn, 
 going slowly into the house to make his adieus to Mrs. 
 Mason. He could not stand any more. All day long 
 he had struggled against his unhappiness until now 
 his endurance had reached the limit. He shook hands 
 with his hostess, pleading some necessary work that 
 demanded his presence at the laboratory. 
 
 He passed out, escaping observation, walking home 
 slowly, glad to get away from the boisterous hilarity. 
 The country spread out about him in a gray im- 
 mensity, assuming a bluish tinge near the horizon. 
 The sun was sinking beneath a great copper-colored 
 cloud, fringed on all the edges with gold and crimson. 
 Overhead the brilliant blue sky, cloudless, perfect, 
 housed in the world with its transparent dome. As 
 was always the case with Callister, the silence and the 
 solitude soothed him. A hush was over the land, the 
 spirit of benediction fell from the advancing night. 
 
 He sat down near the edge of the porch, looking off 
 westward, watching the bright red of the afterglow 
 melt into the grays of advancing darkness. Before 
 the majestic scene of earth and sky, the worries and
 
 228 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 turmoils of mankind dwindled into a petty insignifi- 
 cance. He forgot his own discontents, his unrests, his 
 heartaches. In the presence of nature's colossal forces 
 and the serene beauty of the world, Callister touched 
 the pinnacle of mystical revelation. For an instant 
 he caught at the explanation of certain enigmas, all 
 but grasping the true significance of creation itself. 
 The sun sank. The day ended. Across the hills 
 and valleys came the harsh shriek of a whistle. It 
 was the seven o'clock train on its way East; the train 
 that was bearing her away from him, carrying her 
 out into the world with that other, the one who had 
 become her husband, by her side. Through the still- 
 ness it rushed on its way, breaking the harmony of the 
 night with its discordant clamor, making the earth 
 quiver with the shock of its frantic progress. But 
 scarcely had the noise of the engine lapsed into a mur- 
 mur when Callister's attention was caught by the sharp 
 sound of approaching footsteps. He arose immedi- 
 ately, uttering an exclamation of surprise. It was 
 Randolph Mason, standing before him, leaning on his 
 bicycle, breathless, covered from head to foot with 
 dust, the sweat pouring off him,
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 229 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 Something was the matter. Callister knew at a 
 glance that the boy had come in hot haste from the 
 train to the house, stopping for nothing. He was in 
 his wedding-clothes, the white boutonniere in his but- 
 tonhole, his patent leather shoes gray with dust. 
 
 Callister, looking closely at the boy, saw that he had 
 aged suddenly. Physically and mentally, all in a short 
 time, he was changed totally. His expression of ex- 
 treme friendliness, that sometimes bordered closely on 
 sweetness, was gone from his face. There was some- 
 thing hard in his eyes. He was very pale, his shoulders 
 stooped. 
 
 " What is it, my boy? Sit down and tell me what's 
 happened," said Callister, gently, showing Randolph 
 into a chair. 
 
 He told his story in a tremulous voice, swift bursts 
 of anger giving place to sudden periods of intense 
 emotion. 
 
 " It's something I heard. It wasn't intended for 
 my ears, not at all. Oh, no. Those things aren't 
 meant for us to hear, only for the agents of that 
 damned trust company. Such things are probably 
 called inside history. We don't know inside history."
 
 230 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 Callister turned his grave, calm face towards the 
 excited boy, his dark eyes fixed on him attentively. 
 
 " Do you know how those Eastern men can afford to 
 ship with tariffs as high as they are ? Rebates, that's 
 how. Did you know that ? They only pretend to pay 
 the prices that we're socked with. They do pay, but 
 the money comes back to them, comes back so big 
 that their oil goes over the road for less than the ex- 
 pense of hauling the tank-cars. Now, what do you 
 make of that?" 
 
 For an instant Callister's glance left Randolph's 
 face. He paused with perplexity. In a flash a thou- 
 sand half-understood incidents cleared in his mind. 
 
 "My boy, you are sure of what you're saying?" 
 he asked, finally. 
 
 " Sure. Why, Mr. Callister, I heard heard Eber- 
 lie tell Wilmarth. It was while we stood down there 
 at the station, waiting for the train. Something was 
 forgotten. A box my sister wanted checked was left 
 in the baggage-room. I went to fix the matter right. 
 The place where the trunks were was half dark. The 
 baggageman and I were hauling over things, looking 
 for what we wanted. Suddenly, just outside the door, 
 two men stopped and began to talk. I looked up. 
 One was Eberlie ; the other, Wilmarth. They did not 
 see me. They were talking over rates. Wilmarth was 
 saying that some of the Eastern roads were practically 
 paying the trust money for the privilege of hauling 
 their oil. That made me listen. Eberlie was very
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 serious. He said the X. & Y. couldn't do that, their 
 business wouldn't justify it; but they were prepared 
 to increase the rebate. Rebate, Mr. Callister, you 
 hear that? Listen to the rest. Wilmarth demanded 
 64^2 cents a barrel, making the rate 80 cents net. 
 Eberlie agreed at once. ' As long as we keep the 
 tariff at $1.45 the independents can't ship,' he said. 
 ' And you'll not change that,' said Wilmarth, sharply. 
 ' Certainly not,' said Eberlie. Just then the train whis- 
 tled. I had to rush out to give Gabrielle the extra 
 check. But I hardly knew what I was doing. It seemed 
 as though I had gone crazy. Think of the knavery 
 of that. Who would believe it ? " 
 
 The boy arose to his feet. He was trembling vio- 
 lently; his voice was husky. All anger had left him, 
 giving place to discouragement, utter unhappiness. 
 
 " Whom else have you told this to? " asked Cal- 
 lister, after a pause. 
 
 " No one. I couldn't tell mother. We have run 
 into debt for the wedding. It wouldn't do to frighten 
 her with this story. She is always so hopeful that 
 things will be better. This would show her just how 
 we stand, how utterly powerless we are. Mr. Jarvis 
 was out. I rode straight here to you after I had 
 stopped there." 
 
 The drama was continuing. The curtain was being 
 rung up on the second act, an act more serious than 
 the one that had taken place. For when this new situ- 
 ation became known, what would happen ? The f oun-
 
 232 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 dation had loosened under their feet. To sit idle 
 meant the collapse of the Texas oil trade. Indepen- 
 dent careers would be shut out to any man, no matter 
 how honest and upright he might be. The continuance 
 of such oppression, such flagrant injustice as this, 
 would end in striking food from the mouths of the 
 hungry, wrecking whole families, ruining the progress 
 of a state, aiming a blow at the very liberty of the na- 
 tion. What right had any man to preach moderation 
 when issues fraught with such monumental catastro- 
 phe were at stake; when, as Lawler had said, fair 
 means had failed and violence must be met by vio- 
 lence? Moreover, this was no isolated case. Callister 
 knew that all over the country one trust after another 
 was eating up the smaller enterprises, swallowing 
 whole whatever came in the way, plundering when- 
 ever the opportunity permitted, maiming, destroying, 
 killing, if necessary for their own advancement. 
 
 Callister paced up and down the porch, his head 
 bowed, trying in an excess of prudence to think over 
 every phase of the affair before he would commit him- 
 self. Revolution itself might hinge on a hasty de- 
 cision, for they were face to face with a dangerous sit- 
 uation. When he finally stopped in his tramp, he put 
 his hands on Randolph's shoulders, looking him 
 squarely in the face. 
 
 " My boy," he began, gently, with no show of anger 
 or sign of impatience, " there are many things that 
 come up in this world which none of us can under-
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 233 
 
 stand. There are little things that seem unfair, un- 
 kind; larger happenings that in their unfairness and 
 injustice we cannot follow the trend of at all. There 
 are gigantic affairs, like wars, where great forces rend 
 each other, working out their differences with conten- 
 tion and malevolence, crushing one another with no 
 compunction, witnessing the most terrible suffering 
 with unruffled calm, disturbed by nothing so long as 
 the outcome is secured. 
 
 " But in all these vast struggles, dreadful as they 
 seem, there is a purpose a purpose fraught with a 
 mighty good. Nothing succeeds in the end but the 
 good. Everything works together for ultimate good. 
 We cannot follow out those workings sometimes, but 
 our short-sightedness is no proof that God has for- 
 saken us, nor that He has ceased to govern. 
 
 " Just now our little community is invaded by a 
 serious trouble. We, apparently, are at the mercy of 
 an enemy who grips hard, stops at nothing, knows no 
 tolerance. But all we have to do is our best, knowing 
 that the good ultimately prevails. A Creator who can 
 produce a man can take care of him. It is right that 
 we are left to fight our own battles and work out our 
 own salvation, but we must have a care that in a mis- 
 taken zeal we do not go a step too far and defy the 
 hand of the Lord God. 
 
 " Now, my boy, go home. To-morrow morning we 
 will discuss this thing quietly together after the calm- 
 ness of a night's sleep. The five of us will go over it
 
 234 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 first before we spread the news. What you have 
 heard will not be listened to calmly. I know that; 
 you know that. It is hard to say just what will fol- 
 low, but at least we will do what we can to remember 
 that to rush blindly into a thing doesn't help a serious 
 cause ; and, Randolph, remember this : the only victory 
 a man wins in this world is the victory over himself." 
 
 Randolph was moved in spite of himself. A cer- 
 tain new peace took possession of him. He met Callis-^ 
 ter's eyes frankly. 
 
 " I shall not speak of what I know. Good-night, 
 Mr. Callister." 
 
 The two clasped hands without another word. Ran- 
 dolph wheeled his bicycle off the porch and disappeared 
 into the darkness. 
 
 Callister stood a few moments alone, thinking 
 deeply, then he crossed over to the laboratory. He 
 would spend the night in work ; it would fit him for the 
 day to come. But for once his experiments refused to 
 hold his thoughts. Hour after hour he was wonder- 
 ing if he could keep his grip on that boy until the battle 
 was ended, save him from himself. Control him, guide 
 him from the threatening red of anarchy to the white 
 of peace.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 235 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 June was an exquisite month. The sun shone all 
 day long from a sky of cloudless blue. The wind was 
 soft and laden with spring perfume. Theodora, all 
 in tune with it, very smiling, very happy, sang about 
 the house where, since the explosion, she had presided 
 all alone, insisting on dispensing with the Giina- 
 boy, keeping everything in such order that a person 
 could have eaten from the floor of the kitchen. 
 
 When her work indoors was quite finished, she 
 would put on a big shade-hat and go outside. Her 
 special delight was the flowers. Each morning, with 
 her sleeves rolled back, exposing her round, white arms, 
 she raked and watered and trimmed the garden, watch- 
 ing every blossom as it came, loving them all. 
 
 One gigantic rose-bush, covering an entire side of 
 the house, possessed an especial charm to her. It 
 blossomed in wonderful profusion, and, except for a 
 few weeks in midsummer, she could always gather a 
 bunch of flowers from it. The lawn was bordered on 
 both sides with scarlet geraniums. Against the gate 
 great bushes of heliotrope exhaled a perfume almost 
 sugary in sweetness. It seemed as though the girl in 
 her devotion to this home never forgot a blade of grass
 
 236 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 or a shrub. Her pride in every nook and corner was 
 very evident. 
 
 Her life had fallen into a kind of routine, certain 
 affairs occupying certain hours of every morning. She 
 was quite by herself, seeing very few people, having 
 almost no company, but for all that, perfectly con- 
 tented. The girl was never lonely ; she lived a healthy, 
 simple, joyful existence, never at a loss for amuse- 
 ment when she was alone, asking nothing different. 
 
 Ever since the wedding something new had come 
 to Theo, nothing for the eye or ear, but vital, funda- 
 mental, never to be forgotten. What had occurred 
 was little more than a brief exchange of glances be- 
 tween Jarvis and herself, a look into each other's eyes ; 
 but it brought matters to an abrupt crisis. On the 
 instant certain things became clear to the girl. Al- 
 though nothing was said, words were unnecessary. 
 She understood. 
 
 It was the beginning of the greatest happiness life 
 holds, and her mind lapsed into a vague numbness. 
 The world about her suddenly became tinted with 
 roseate hues. By her open window the birds sang a 
 new song. The morning breeze brought her the fra- 
 grance of many flowers, the delicious odors of field and 
 wood. 
 
 It was as if the wonderful spring had crept into her 
 heart with its subtle power, planting a seed of longing 
 that in time would burst into the bloom of exuberant 
 love.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 237 
 
 Theodora heard Callister arrive about nine o'clock, 
 and knew that he and Jarvis were talking together on 
 the front porch. The subdued murmur of their voices 
 came to her as she worked in the kitchen. Presently 
 Lawler, Hale and young Mason arrived. Their greet- 
 ings were very quiet. She wondered at the somber 
 tone of their voices. 
 
 Randolph had telephoned to Lawler and Hale early 
 that morning, asking them to be present at a special 
 meeting of their Company, set for ten o'clock. Both 
 men had been curious for details, surprised at the de- 
 mand, but Randolph evaded their questions. 
 
 At the appointed time the five men were gathered 
 on the porch at Jarvis' house. With the exception of 
 Morton, it was an exact repetition of the morning 
 when, sitting together about the same table, the Flare- 
 mont Independent Refiners Company had found birth 
 and the money pledged for the works. 
 
 Then every one of these men had been full of hope, 
 buoyant with expectation, seeing success ahead, feel- 
 ing themselves already persons of position and influ- 
 ence. Now, in a brief lapse of time, all that had been 
 changed. Except for Callister, every man there stood 
 on the verge of bankruptcy. They had lost all the 
 money they had ; their wells were not only idle, but use- 
 less and abandoned. The vivid dreams of a future 
 that enrolled their names on t ,e tablet of prominent 
 citizens of the state of Texas had faded into oblivion. 
 
 After Jarvis had motioned the men to seats, he 
 beeran :
 
 238 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 " Gentlemen, not long since I was instrumental in 
 calling a meeting of the drillers and owners of the oil- 
 wells of this district. My purpose in doing as I did was 
 not to- stir up insurrection, but in the hope that by 
 concerted action we could so present our case to the 
 X. & Y. Railroad, that our freight rates would be 
 amicably settled on a different basis. It is needless to 
 add that so far as that idea was concerned, the meeting 
 was a flat failure. I wish to say now to* you, my 
 friends, that, disappointed as I was at that time, I 
 know better now. The speakers at that meeting were 
 right; I was wrong. There is no hope of dealing 
 amicably, even honestly, with the railroad or the trust, 
 who is the railroad's master. We have been duped by 
 them. Working together, they have caught us in a 
 trap, and they are going to squeeze the life out of us. 
 Mr. Lawler's declarations at that meeting were justi- 
 fiable, far-seeing. I want you to hear what has come 
 to my knowledge. Randolph, will you repeat what 
 you told last night to Mr. Callister? " 
 
 Astonishment sat on the faces of Lawler and Hale. 
 A feeling of perplexity, tainted with dread, invaded 
 their minds. Their eyes rested on the boy, who began 
 to speak with nervous rapidity, telling them, as he had 
 told Callister, of the rebate given by the railroad to the 
 Eastern Petroleum Company. The words came in a 
 torrent. He talked in an unnaturally high key, the 
 anger that rose in his heart continually overridden by 
 a deeper emotion of desperation.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 239 
 
 " We are a set of idiots not to have thought of this 
 before," shouted Hale, his face flaming as the whole 
 story lay bare before them. 
 
 " We might have known those Eastern beasts 
 weren't in this thing for their health. Even they, with 
 all their millions, would lose money at the present 
 scheduled tariff. Oh, we are fools, we are blithering 
 idiots!" 
 
 Lawler, speechless, wagged his head, his lips com- 
 pressed, a sensation akin to faintness sweeping over 
 him. 
 
 " But what can we do? " cried Randolph. " If we 
 accuse them of this thing, what'll come of it? Noth- 
 ing, nothing at all ! They are a law unto themselves, 
 a power we can't buck against. All we can do is to 
 sell our oil to them and get what we can for it." 
 
 " And let them make the profits off our product ? 
 Never, never, never ! By God, I'd starve first ! " Hale 
 shouted, beside himself with fury, tortured with a per- 
 sistent vision of the very thing Randolph had sug- 
 gested. " I tell you there's only one way out of this 
 fight, band together all the fellows that are stuck, and 
 fight. We ain't the only men hit by trusts. Look at 
 every trade in America. It's all the same, controlled 
 by two or three people who have the money to freeze 
 the little chaps out. I tell you we've cause enough 
 here for rebellion. This question of monopoly strikes 
 at the foundation of our government. Wake the peo- 
 ple up. Show 'em what they can do, once they throw
 
 240 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 off indifference and say ' No ! ' Let every man who's 
 been hit by a trust company take a gun in his hand 
 and say * No,' then see what happens." 
 
 Randolph sprang to his feet, carried away by Law- 
 ler's tirade. " I won't wait for that. Give me a knife, 
 a bomb, anything that will kill, and I'll do the work 
 to-morrow any day. I'm not afraid. I will set the 
 example. I'll fight for my life and my liberty. It's 
 instinct to defend our homes, even if we're driven to 
 kill. Oh, Eberlie will find he's bullied the wrong man 
 this time. So help me, I'll end him oh, I'll end 
 him!" 
 
 The spirit of blind revolt that Callister had quieted 
 the night before had broken loose, leaping past all 
 control. The boy's hatred of Eberlie flamed into an 
 open desire for murder. His mother's white face was 
 constantly before his eyes. He saw her worried, har- 
 assed, her shoulders bent with the toil of years, facing 
 now the grim phantom of poverty, all because of 
 Eberlie. 
 
 He had but to look about him to see the utter wreck- 
 ing of a dozen careers, families submerged with debt, 
 facing actual want, because the market was shut to 
 their products, because of orders demanded by a crowd 
 of butchers and issued by Eberlie. He ached to get at 
 the man. He suddenly believed that to acquit himself 
 of some fierce deed like the murder of this tool of the 
 trust would set many difficulties right, readjusting 
 certain oppressions, calling the world's attention to
 
 
 THE PAIR TrRXKI), ADYANCIXG ARM IX ARM.-I'a^e 219.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 241 
 
 the sufferings and injustices of the man on the under 
 side. If he, too, lost his life, it would be in a noble 
 cause. His lips were white. His heart was raging 1 
 with tumult and fury. 
 
 But, excited as Lawler was, the boy's assertion 
 startled him. He was staggered by the savagery of 
 Randolph's spirit, unprepared for such a proposition. 
 Before he could speak, Callister said, quietly: 
 
 " My boy, if you want to end your cause effectually, 
 put a stop to public sympathy with the man on the 
 under side, just begin by that course of action mur- 
 dering and bomb-throwing. You want to keep your 
 wits at serious times, not take leave of them." 
 
 " There's a midway course," put in Jarvis, " some- 
 thing neither inaction nor murder. We have got to 
 begin with that. Good Lord, we must throw off these 
 fellows somehow. We can't go on forever like this. 
 Someone must act. I can understand Randolph's feel- 
 ing. Of course, in a way it's wrong. Each one must do 
 what will benefit the greatest number, setting aside 
 personal wishes for what will bring the most good. 
 Killing wouldn't help us, as Callister says. Instead, it 
 would score for the trusts." 
 
 He spoke directly at young Mason. The boy had 
 resumed his seat, shaking with the reaction, his over- 
 wrought nerves quivering, his head bowed. He did 
 not try to speak again, only listened to the others in a 
 grim, bitter silence. He had brooded so continually 
 over the influence that had worked disaster to his 
 
 16
 
 242 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 mother's oil venture that he was hardly responsible. 
 Irresolute, highly strung, very emotional, his feelings 
 were easily played upon. For weeks he had lain 
 awake nights making innumerable plans for the cor- 
 rection of conditions, only to abandon his decisions at 
 daylight, discouraged at his own weakness, lost in a 
 maze of uncertainties. Lawler's assertions had in- 
 spired him with the swift conviction that ideas he had 
 long since abandoned were true the needed remedy 
 for a social ill. Promptly he had declared himself, 
 speaking with a courage born of the occasion. But 
 with characteristic irresolution, immediately at his 
 listener's criticisms he lapsed into a shamed dumbness. 
 
 " My idea would be this. We will call another 
 meeting of all the men who should hear this news. If 
 they can be persuaded to take matters rationally, we 
 will name a committee, say a half dozen men in whom 
 everyone has confidence. These men will wait upon 
 Eberlie, stating what they have heard about the re- 
 bates, asking explanations, demanding fair treatment. 
 Let it depend on the railroad's answer what the next 
 step will be. If possible, this thing must be arranged 
 in a dignified manner. Are you agreed ? " 
 
 The men acquiesced without a murmur. Jarvis 
 looked at Lawler, his eyes fixing him with a steady, 
 kindly gaze. 
 
 " I shall count on you four men to help me. We 
 must work in harmony about that committee. The 
 meeting is liable to be stormy, wilder even than the 
 last one. I must depend on your assistance."
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 243 
 
 ''' You can have mine," said Hale. 
 
 ' That hits the case," remarked Lawler. 
 
 " And you, Randolph? " asked Jarvis. 
 
 " I will do< whatever you say," whispered young 
 Mason. 
 
 " I am always with you, Jarvis," announced Cal- 
 lister. 
 
 From now on, each man made it his business to send 
 out messages all over the oil region, calling a meeting 
 the following night. But the news sped ahead of the 
 messengers, spreading of itself. The story of the 
 rebate was repeated from group to group. The sig- 
 nificance of this underhand cooperation between the 
 railroad and the Eastern Petroleum Company was 
 understood. People stood aghast at the situation that 
 momentarily became more intolerable. It was like the 
 sounding of their death knell. 
 
 It was enough to turn honest men into rogues. It 
 was beyond the bounds of imagination how men 
 could stand so ready to trample out the lives of other 
 men. Surely it was time for the country to wake up, 
 to rouse itself from its lethargy. Patience, heart- 
 aches and silence had endured too long as it was. 
 
 The uproar swelled and expanded until adjoining 
 districts caught the infection. As early as daybreak 
 the next morning, oilmen began arriving in Flaremont 
 by train, on horseback, in wagons. By noon it was 
 evident no hall would hold the crowd that had come 
 for the special purpose of attending the meeting.
 
 244 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 After a hurried consultation, it was decided to make 
 use of the square fronting the main business street of 
 the town. Overlooking this square was the general 
 office of the X. & Y. Railroad Company. Lawler called 
 attention to this with a satisfied expression. 
 
 The word was passed around. By four o'clock a 
 throng began to collect on the outside of the square. 
 Among the oilmen themselves could be heard no signs 
 of quick excitement, no bursts oi fierce anger. In- 
 stead, they were stolid, sullen, determined. A wrong 
 had been done them that was to be rectified. They 
 were to learn what preliminan r steps to' take. 
 
 Two huge calcium burners had been set up, the 
 reflectors focusing the lights on the speakers' stand. 
 Promptly at seven o'clock Jarvis appeared, making 
 his way to the platform, staring about him with a 
 kind of awe. Hundreds of faces rose before him. 
 Hundreds of men packed into the open space, waiting 
 to hear what he had to say, crowded so closely to- 
 gether that they touched one another, their arms pin- 
 ioned to their sides, scarcely able to breathe for the 
 press of humanity all about them. But no protest was 
 uttered, no word of complaint heard. 
 
 The sight of this vast audience of silent, patient 
 men, every one threatened with disaster if not actual 
 ruin, here to learn some method for the defense of 
 his home and his family, stirred Jarvis to the depths 
 of his being. What had they done to be hounded from 
 prosperity into starvation? Why should he try to
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 245 
 
 stem the tide of a rising insurrection against unjust 
 and unnecessary martyrdom? Rather their redemp- 
 tion should take place at his hands. A wild rabble 
 would have disgusted Jarvis, but this multitude, stand- 
 ing mute and still with their quiet courage, hushed 
 with anxiety, white with suffering, made him forget 
 caution, forget his desire to control. 
 
 Overcome with extreme emotion, he began to speak 
 as the impulse prompted. From the first he swept the 
 audience off their feet. The words leaped to his mind ; 
 his voice rang out with the distinctness of a trumpet, 
 reaching to the far limits of the square. He touched 
 constantly upon the injury already done to Flaremont ; 
 he suggested means and measures for improving the 
 situation. He struck blow after blow against monop- 
 olies, calling them a curse to the country. When he 
 cried out, "Competition is good, necessary to the 
 progress of a great producing nation, but monopoly is 
 the pathway ending in business stagnation and an- 
 archistic doctrines," roarings, gesticulations and 
 shouts of approval rent the air. 
 
 Jarvis spoke very quietly, very simply, with no at- 
 tempt at rhetoric, no strivings towards effect. He was 
 listened to eagerly, every proposition he made ac- 
 ceded to with acclamation. The responsibility he 
 carried that night was enormous. No matter what he 
 had asked, these men would have acted unhesitatingly. 
 Time and again one or another would press forward 
 to seize him by the hand. He had become their leader,
 
 246 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 their hope. He dominated the meeting from the 
 moment he appeared. 
 
 His speech was a masterpiece. At a bound it raised 
 him to a position of trust and confidence. Here was 
 the man to be followed, relied upon. He knew their 
 needs, suffered with them. 
 
 No speeches followed his. He had said all there 
 was to say. These men were willing to trust, willing 
 to let their cause rest as it was with him, willing to 
 allow him full sway. 
 
 Briefly Jarvis explained his ideas of appointing a 
 committee to talk with representatives of the railroad 
 and the trust. He asked for a vote on the men he 
 named, mentioning his special friends, Lawler, Hale, 
 Callister. 
 
 The motion was made, seconded and carried unani- 
 mously that these men, headed by Jarvis, should com- 
 pose such a committee. 
 
 Almost immediately after this the crowd began to 
 break up, separating into grouos, going off quietly, 
 orderly to the last. 
 
 As yet they were tractable, law-abiding citizens, 
 honest men. There was no uproar, no terrible threat- 
 ening, no loud talking, no undue excitement. They, 
 the people, were still tolerant, believing in the laws 
 of their country, seeing victory perched side by side 
 with freedom. Their loyalty and patriotism prevailed 
 snd would continue to prevail, even in the face of uni- 
 versal disaster. They would hold to their country
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 247 
 
 until, their patience abused, their faith ridiculed, their 
 vaunted liberty shamed and mocked, they broke on 
 the last straw of fair means despoiled then let the 
 tyrants beware! 
 
 Jarvis walked through the streets that night 
 saluting meri right and left. Instinctively he under- 
 stood the lengths to which the present situation could 
 be carried. On every side he was brought face to 
 face with threatened poverty, the disasters coming 
 from conflict between individual oil producers and the 
 trust, the cruel selfishness and greed of big com- 
 panies, the enormous power and abuse of money, the 
 accumulation of a long series of wrongs ; men's hearts 
 strong with seemingly legitimate hatred; vice increas- 
 ing through unhappiness. Suddenly there rang in his 
 ears the sound of a prophecy, the terrible catastrophe 
 of the final end, the finish of this accursed misunder- 
 standing between men and men. The red figure of 
 war, bloody, brutal, grisly : a vision of hatred, disaster 
 and death rose before his startled sight; revolution 
 unloosed. 
 
 Jarvis stopped short. Vividly for an instant he was 
 seeing through the veil of obscurity, peering into the 
 forbidden future, terrified at what he beheld. Only 
 for an instant was he held by this horror, then ab- 
 ruptly his old ideal, the desire of his boyhood to head 
 a colony based on Utopian principles, leaped into his 
 mind. Why was not this the very chance he needed? 
 He saw himself controlling the situation, winning re-
 
 248 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 spect, fame, prestige. More than that, the ultimate 
 success of the very scheme he had dreamed of through 
 all these years might be secured at the same time. Ex- 
 altation dispelled his gloom. He would stand the 
 apostle of these helpless men. Energy stirred in him. 
 There was a quick expansion of his whole body. He 
 had been called, he had heard distinctly. 
 
 " Why not? " he cried. " It is my chance to lead, 
 to govern, to make my place, to overcome the past and 
 to do' good. We should be willing to 1 die at our work 
 why not for it? The happiness of humanity de- 
 pends on the adjustment of capital and labor. I 
 should be a coward to shirk my part when the struggle 
 comes. Every man must do his duty, meeting that 
 claim of readjustment as he meets every claim exis- 
 tence demands of him. 
 
 " Labor is invincible; it is sacred, it is life. It must 
 win; it shall win. I will do what I can to keep these 
 men here within the bounds of a peaceful settlement; 
 but if the cries of the people sound the alarm, call us 
 to labor's defense, I shall show my faith. I will do 
 my part with all the strength I possess, hastening the 
 dying agony of a social evil that can no longer live." 
 
 Courage came back to him. The vision died from 
 his sight. He was no longer harried by uncertainties 
 and doubts, with the future outlined glum and for- 
 bidding. The evil day of fearful deeds might be at 
 hand, but he knew his place and what he was to do. 
 His mission was no longer obscured.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 249 
 
 It was nearly midnight when he reached home. As 
 he came onto the steps, he saw Theodora sitting, 
 asleep, in a big chair, a shawl thrown about her, her 
 beautiful neck bent until her head rested on one hand. 
 She had evidently come out there to wait for him. 
 The light from the hallway streamed upon her through 
 the open door. It fell upon her white face, exquisitely 
 pure, infinitely sweet, serenely calm. The sight of her 
 was like a soothing draught of wine after long hours 
 of anguish. As he stood silently looking down upon 
 her, her warm breath rose to him, striking on his 
 forehead, the delicious fragrance that was always 
 about her, emanating from her hair, her hands, the 
 garments she wore, coming to his nostrils, causing a 
 veritable faintness to pass over him. Her very help- 
 lessness increased her power over Jarvis. 
 
 Suddenly she became the only thing in the world 
 that he cared for. His love for her dominated his 
 body and soul, not to be resisted, hardly to be con- 
 trolled. When could he speak? Had he not enough 
 to endure already without adding silence to his bur- 
 dens, the silence that deprived him of every joy in 
 life, the silence that, unbroken, kept marriage at a 
 measureless distance from him? What if one con- 
 fession involved another? What of it if, in asking 
 Theo to' become his wife, honor demanded at the same 
 time a recital of his own past? Surely, if she cared 
 for him she would forgive those two deeds that he had 
 regretted so bitterly, so passionately. He saw that she
 
 250 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 was infinitely above him, as all women are above men, 
 made of a finer fabric; but he would try with all his 
 strength to save her from regret, to make her happy, 
 to be worthy of her. The strength of his love would 
 force her to forget that he had stolen, that he had 
 murdered. 
 
 His life was a long, bitter struggle against the 
 crushing sense of that unconquerable memory and his 
 desire to do' right by this innocent girl under his 
 charge. That he must relinquish all hope of Theodora 
 never entered his mind. Yet how was he to win her 
 with the difference between them so vast a gulf 
 gaping between them, with his life set on one side, 
 black from the beginning with the imprint- of crime, on 
 the other her innocent life, pure, good, the existence of 
 a nun? 
 
 Misery and happiness tore at him. How would this 
 end? What would happen? Suppose he never told 
 her of those crimes ? In his mind, there seemed but a 
 remote probability of either one's coming to light. 
 Moreover, he had honestly tried to* live them down,, 
 had done his best to put them aside and keep them an 
 immense distance from him. The temptation for 
 silence was strong. He passed hours of torment, re- 
 flecting about the matter, wrestling with himself, 
 arguing it from all sides, trying to> see in such a 
 silence only good for Theodora. 
 
 But the fine fiber of which Jarvis was made, the ele- 
 ment of refinement, the spirit of perfect justice de-
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 251 
 
 scended to him from his mother, was still his master. 
 By a supreme effort of will he thrust aside the tempta- 
 tion. He resolved fiercely that his love was a poor 
 thing if it sought protection for itself under cover of 
 dishonesty to the one he loved. It was the final vic- 
 tory of his honesty, the triumph of the higher nature 
 over the lower. At that moment he completed his 
 mental retribution for the deeds of his boyhood.
 
 252 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 Few of the oilmen left Flaremont. It appeared 
 that they were determined to stay here until the matter 
 of tariff rates had been settled one way or another. It 
 was not a crowd of curiosity seekers that thronged the 
 streets, standing in groups of seven and eight, mov- 
 ing forward and backward, a low-pitched hum of 
 voices rising in the air. There was no lawless ele- 
 ment, no excitement, no anger. What was to be done 
 was clear in their minds. They felt that a good man 
 represented their side, and they were here simply to 
 await the outcome. Not one in fifty could be found 
 who doubted the result of that morning's conference 
 between their leader and Eberlie. The matter was as 
 good as settled. 
 
 At ten o'clock Jarvis appeared in Flaremont. As 
 on the night before, many pressed forward to greet 
 him or shake his hand. On all sides he was welcomed 
 with expressions of confidence and loyalty. At one 
 bound he had come into a place of prominence. Every 
 man in Flaremont stood ready to support him in any 
 move, adhering to his opinions, pledging themselves to 
 any organization that he headed. 
 
 And Jarvis, feeling that it was he who must bear
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 253 
 
 the responsibilities of what came, stood ready to 
 bring about these men's vindication at any expense to 
 himself. He had telephoned Eberlie, making an ap- 
 pointment with him at the railroad office for half past 
 ten. Promptly at that hour the other members of the 
 committee, Lawler, Hale and Callister, had joined 
 him. 
 
 When they entered Eberlie's office, his clerk ushered 
 them at once into his chief's private room, the same 
 room where weeks before Morton had yielded to Wil- 
 marth. 
 
 How much of their purpose was known to the 
 freight agent and third vice-president of the X. & Y. 
 Railroad, Jarvis could not guess. Certainly that mass- 
 meeting of the night before had been open enough to 
 make him well acquainted with their business. But 
 Eberlie's face was inscrutable. He greeted each one 
 cordially, motioning the men to chairs, seating him- 
 self last. However, in spite of his serene calmness, 
 there was a look of gravity on his face. He fingered 
 his watch-chain nervously. Finally he turned towards 
 Jarvis, throwing one leg across the other. 
 
 "Well?" he began. 
 
 Jarvis had no intention of beating about the ques- 
 tion. He spoke at once. 
 
 " Mr. Eberlie, Flaremont, as you know, was for a 
 time one of the largest shipping points for petroleum 
 on your road." 
 
 Eberlie bowed his head,
 
 254 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 " Some few months ago the freight rates were 
 raised on us. By degrees the tariffs advanced and 
 advanced until it became impossible for the individual 
 shippers of crude oil to send out their products. In 
 other words, ruin stared us in the face, through your 
 railroad. We felt the injustice of the course, but we 
 made no complaint, believing it was a general situ- 
 ation. Now, however, it has come to our knowledge 
 that while all producers of petroleum seemed to be 
 affected by the rates, really the individual shippers 
 alone were the sufferers. In other words, the raise 
 was a premeditated action on the railroad's part to 
 shut us out secretly from receiving certain benefits 
 that others were to receive. To put it plainly, while 
 everyone paid the $1.45 a barrel in obedience to your 
 road's orders, certain shippers have returned to them 
 a rebate of 69^ on the $1.45 paid. Is our information 
 on this rebate correct? " 
 
 " It is," said Eberlie, shortly. 
 
 " Why is this discrimination made? " demanded 
 Jarvis, taken aback at Eberlie's unqualified assertion. 
 
 " I decline to answer," said Eberlie. 
 
 " Can it be changed ? Can anything be done to 
 cause the same discrimination to extend to us? " 
 
 The eyes of the committee fastened themselves on 
 Eberlie. 
 
 " Nothing can be done either to lower the rates or 
 to give individual shippers a rebate," announced the 
 agent.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 255 
 
 " But suppose for a moment that all the individual 
 shippers in this district combine, guaranteeing your 
 road an amount o>f business equal to that brought you 
 by the Eastern men. Under such circumstances, can 
 we expect a lower rate of freightage?" hazarded 
 Jarvis. 
 
 " No, sir ; you cannot." Eberlie's tone became bel- 
 ligerent. 
 
 By this time Lawler's wrath was rising. The 
 brusque refusals at first only surprised him. The en- 
 tire committee had listened attentively, not one ex- 
 pecting Eberlie to assume the attitude he had taken. 
 At least, they looked for temporizing on his part. 
 
 But slowly it dawned on their understanding that 
 this rebate was not a business matter at all. The 
 advanced tariffs evidently were put on for a purpose; 
 a corrupt transaction to give the trust an inside track. 
 
 Lawler got on his feet. He leaned on the table, fix- 
 ing Eberlie with a steady stare, anxious for a dis- 
 cussion, ready to fight. 
 
 " See here," he began, " let me understand you. By 
 your repeated refusals to Mr. Jarvis' requests you 
 practically admit that we are out of it with this rail- 
 road; that your lines are closed to the individual 
 shippers and refiners in this district; that the only oil 
 producer who can do business with you is the trust, 
 the Eastern man; that, in fact, you are lending your- 
 self and your railroad to that trust for the purpose of 
 shutting us out, leaving us one of two courses: to
 
 256 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 go to the wall or to sell our oil to the trust. Is that 
 the situation? Is that where you and your road 
 stand?" 
 
 Eberlie shoved his chair back. " I decline to listen 
 to such words in my office," he exclaimed, his face 
 paling, his eyes burning with sudden anger. " Why 
 don't you appeal to the Interstate Commerce Commis- 
 sion? They are in existence to answer disputes. 
 Lodge a protest or a complaint or what you please 
 with them. I'm nothing but an agent; I've no power." 
 
 " No, but you are on the inside. You know where 
 we stand, and that's what we are here to learn," cried 
 Hale. 
 
 " You know, Eberlie, that we can't appeal to the 
 Interstate Commerce Commission and get anything," 
 began Jarvis. " It's simply another theater for delay 
 and litigation. I tell you you know we cannot 
 afford longer delays. These delays are killing us. I 
 demand of you as an honorable man to tell us where 
 we stand, what we must expect. You have knocked 
 us down again and again, confronted us with every 
 means of destruction you could devise; but even now, 
 with starvation fronting us, we have still tried to be- 
 lieve it was all honorable warfare. But have you been 
 playing on our credulity? Are you sticking us in the 
 dark? Are you and your company nothing short of 
 highbinders ? " demanded Jarvis. His head was in a 
 whirl. He was almost sick with the vague impression 
 that was fast becoming a reality.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 257 
 
 Eberlie gave a gesture of impatience. " I have told 
 you all I can say. Once before, at the opening of the 
 rate war, I explained to you, Mr. Jarvis, that I was 
 simply an agent of the road, put here to carry out orders 
 that came from headquarters. I don't know what is 
 back of this issue." 
 
 " You lie ! " broke in Lawler. " You know so well 
 that you are afraid to tell us." 
 
 " Mr. Eberlie," broke in Callister's calm, grave 
 voice, " you have acknowledged the existence of cer- 
 tain rebates. You have also practically admitted the 
 fact that your railroad, which is supposed to carry in- 
 discriminately, has violated its charter by selecting its 
 patrons to the exclusion of the public demand." 
 
 " That is covered by a franchise," broke in Eberlie, 
 doggedly. 
 
 The words startled ail the men of the committee. 
 
 " Ah, now we are getting at something," said Law- 
 ler, with a shout. " Let's hear about this franchise. 
 Is it on the same order as the rebate, in favor of the 
 same parties ? " 
 
 Underlying the tone of derision there was an im- 
 plied threat that made Eberlie look up at Lawler 
 uneasily. Then his eyes wavered and his reply was 
 uttered in the same dogged manner that he had as- 
 sumed from the beginning of the interview. 
 
 " It is a franchise giving exclusive possession of 
 this trunk-line and all its connections out of the oil 
 region. We are not the only ones in the agreement. 
 
 17
 
 258 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 Every trunk-line is included. The whole oil country 
 is covered by the same franchise, from ocean to ocean, 
 from gulf to gulf." 
 
 The statement was met with a dead silence. Not a 
 voice was raised in exclamation, in protest, in indig- 
 nation. That they were utterly routed, completely be- 
 trayed, hounded and beset by the enemy, was clear to 
 every one of them. The trust was the master; they 
 puny things. 
 
 It was Lawler who recovered first; recovered from 
 a stunned bewilderment to an impotent rage. He 
 sprang to his feet, advancing threateningly on Eberlie, 
 his face scarlet. 
 
 But Eberlie backed away, crying aggressively, 
 " Keep away from me. I've nothing to do with this 
 agreement. I'll not listen to any of you. I decline to 
 listen to anything you have to say." 
 
 " It makes no difference to me what you decline to 
 listen to. You may cinch us with your orders, but 
 you'll listen to some things I've got to say, if I have 
 to hold you in your chair while I'm saying 'em," 
 shouted Lawler, furious with anger. 
 
 " I'm not the one to talk with," cried Eberlie, 
 doggedly, losing his air of calm. " If you want to fix 
 things up, I'm not the one to come to. You will have 
 to go direct to the men of the trust. I can't have 
 trouble with those people." 
 
 " Well, I'll tell you people you will and can have 
 trouble with," thundered Lawler. " The citizens of
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 259 
 
 this town and every adjoining town that is swept with 
 ruin because of your damnable tricks and lies. We 
 came here we're sent here by the oilers and drillers 
 of this district to enter a protest against the lashings 
 you've given us. The protest has been entered. All 
 methods of peace have been exhausted. You refuse 
 to listen to us. Now you can watch out for something 
 else. If it's war you want, you'll get it. You can't 
 forever betray us, belittle us, wipe the earth with us, 
 playing us for a set of damn fool suckers." 
 
 Eberlie, stung by the lash of Lawler's tongue, 
 sprang to his feet, snapping his ringers, crying out 
 partly in derision and partly in defiance, " That for 
 your threats, you puny thing! Do you suppose you 
 and your kind stand any chance? War? Why, you 
 and your people can war all you like. You'll bunt 
 your heads against a granite wall, and all you'll get 
 will be the hurt done yourselves. You can't dent 
 the granite. Some time you will learn that the day 
 of small traders is past. Conditions have changed. 
 There's only one power now. Power? Yes, a force 
 so big that a revolution can't touch it. Go on and 
 fight and see the big fellows sit one side and laugh at 
 you, you wooden figures. You'll be dancing on the 
 end of the strings they pull, with your guns wiggling 
 on your arms before you finish. Oh, go on and mass 
 your oilers and drillers. Mass 'em and fight ! " He 
 concluded in an excess of passion, his eyes flaming, 
 his body quivering. A second later the side door of
 
 260 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 the office slammed shut, and Eberlie disappeared, leav- 
 ing the four men of the committee staring after him. 
 
 They were blind with astonishment, maddened with 
 rage, ready to spring after the agent and strangle the 
 insults in the throat of the man who had uttered them. 
 
 The interview was over. The committee had done 
 its work and failed, failed utterly. It was like a clap 
 of thunder. The men were stunned. Until now not 
 one of them realized how thoroughly he had relied on 
 the outcome of this meeting. Each had looked for 
 results, favorable results. Instead, Eberlie had denied 
 them justice, ridiculed their demands, driven home 
 with terrific force their absolute helplessness. They 
 sat looking at one another, refusing to adapt them- 
 selves to this new condition. 
 
 " My God, the thing is piling up ! " muttered Hale. 
 " How can we tell those fellows waiting out there? " 
 
 No one spoke or moved. What would happen next ? 
 It was fresh calamity appearing each day. A crisis 
 was at hand, once the sullen patience of the people 
 broke, once they knew just what had happened. 
 
 But somehow no one of the four was anxious to 
 report the humiliation. Outraged as they were, a 
 sense of enormous responsibility gripped them, rilling 
 them with apprehension as to the effect of what they 
 had to tell. They were actually sick with it. 
 
 Jarvis pulled at his collar. It seemed difficult for 
 him to breathe. For the first time doubt had entered
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 261 
 
 Callister's mind. For a brief second he could find no 
 reassurement of good in this phase' of social conditions. 
 He sat staring straight ahead with vague, unseeing 
 eyes, his mind distorted by the fancy of some giant 
 organism glutting its hungry maw with millions upon 
 millions of tiny parasites that struggled and fought 
 for freedom from its loathsome grasp. 
 
 In the midst of the silence, the main door was thrown 
 open, the clerk appeared. " This way out, gentle- 
 men," he said, briskly, his manner lacking totally in 
 respect. 
 
 The men of the comtm'ttee arose. As they filed out 
 of the room a certain feeling of shame touched them. 
 They were beaten men. Not only were they insulted 
 and belittled, but they were shown out of the office 
 where they had come to do business. As they reached 
 the outer door Lawler's wrath reasserted itself, flaming 
 into fever-heat over this final affront. His jaws 
 clicked. He no longer cared what happened. The 
 whole crowd of them had been duped from the be- 
 ginning. According to the trust, there was no place 
 for any of them. Well, before these Easterners were 
 through with this, that idea might be altered. 
 
 Within a dozen feet of the office door a group of 
 men were waiting. Lawler called out the news, at- 
 tracting immediate attention by his shouting. His 
 anger loomed up each instant more bitter, more 
 ominous. Like Randolph, he was ready to kill Eber- 
 lie. He wanted to do something absolutely reckless,
 
 262 'ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 absolutely unreasonable, ready to lead an army in 
 revolt. He was surrounded by a throng, shouting 
 out his phrases, yelling that they had been downed 
 on purpose. From the very first there had been no 
 chance for the man who refused to sell to the trust. 
 It had been a scheme well worked out in the dark 
 to ruin trade for everyone, that the trust might 
 flourish. The trust owned the railroad as it did the 
 courts, as it owned everything it needed. Nothing, no 
 one, was immune from its power. Was it going on 
 this way forever? 
 
 Gesticulating, his voice shading with exasperation, 
 Lawler retold the story of the interview over and over 
 again. It spread down the street in the midst of a 
 sinister silence. The people were stupefied. For a 
 moment their hearts wavered. Then the storm broke. 
 The tempest withheld for so long was unloosed. Men 
 became like animals. Never before had Flaremont 
 been the scene of such furious passions. The commit- 
 teemen were surrounded. Traders, venders, shop- 
 keepers from all the neighborhood, left their places 
 to collect about the four men who came with the tale 
 of ruin; making the affair their own. At times, 
 stunned with a grim realization of what it all meant, 
 there would come moments of sudden stillness, the 
 thoughts revolving in the listeners' brains too stupen- 
 dous for utterance. 
 
 But insurrection was at fever-heat. The crowd be- 
 came a stamping, raging horde of men, rampant with
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 263 
 
 the brute instinct, at grapples with the enemy. 
 Everywhere rose the clamor for battle, the demand to 
 be led against the foe who pursued them. A roar went 
 up for Jarvis, increasing in volume until the air echoed 
 with shouts of "Jarvis, Jarvis!" intermingled with 
 cries of " Speech, speech! " 
 
 He was the one man thought of, the one man looked 
 to in the emergency. Someone rolled a barrel to the 
 edge of the sidewalk. Jarvis mounted amid deafening 
 applause. The crowd surged forward about this man 
 so suddenly become their chosen leader. 
 
 For a second time Jarvis was facing that sea of 
 faces, pledged now, body and soul, to their cause, feel- 
 ing that the moment for action had arrived. 
 
 The excitement inspired him. A crisis rested with 
 him. The right move on his part now might mean 
 the rescue of men in misery, the quietus to certain 
 iniquities. His heart was stirred; at the same time 
 his sympathies were not won at the expense of his head. 
 He understood precisely how much was at stake, and 
 he believed thoroughly that a mission had been given 
 him perhaps the mission that would win him salva- 
 tion from the past. Both sides of this gigantic ques- 
 tion were clear in his understanding. On one hand 
 he saw the system of progress cracking to pieces; 
 destruction descending on the man of small capital. 
 He saw unjust distribution of wealth, the insolent cor- 
 ruption of laws, together with that of the makers of 
 those laws; he saw two or three giant corporations
 
 264 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 expanding to a limitless power, begorged with wealth 
 absorbed from the little circle of toilers who stood alone 
 honest, hard-working men given over to a hopeless 
 future. He saw individual accumulations of money 
 that, rightfully distributed, meant plenty for the 
 masses. 
 
 But, on the other hand, he saw a government waking 
 up; he saw scattered throughout the country an ad- 
 vance guard of men who understood, who, when the 
 time was ripe, would unite in a solid phalanx, raising 
 their mighty strength in terrible protest, installing 
 a new order of things. 
 
 Every citizen would then have his part in labor, his 
 distinct place in the community. Parasites feeding at 
 will on the fruits of others' toil would be brushed 
 aside. The individual would no longer be crushed at 
 a master's pleasure, but instead be met with the broth- 
 erly love of a co-worker. If to free labor a struggle 
 must come, it would be a struggle based on a mighty 
 principle, war for a mighty good, its victory marking 
 a new era, the dawning of the day of perfect under- 
 standing and perfect peace. Oppression, vice, poverty 
 would be vanquished by the same blow. Every ques- 
 tion would stand answered ; every grief would be swept 
 away. It would lay the foundation of a glorious uni- 
 verse of unselfish love, place the corner-stone of the 
 Utopian structure that he had dreamed of in his youth 
 and poverty. It was well worth the waiting for, suf- 
 fering for, fighting for. If he could but sow the seed
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 265 
 
 of this hope, of this belief, in the hearts of these men, 
 they could still endure with patience, ceasing their 
 cries, waiting calmly for the golden harvest. 
 
 Ideas succeeded one another with great rapidity. 
 The fever was on him to speak. He burned to help; 
 to show that truth will prevail ; that the law of principle 
 and equality and good work out, each in its own season. 
 Jarvis gazed about him. A hush had fallen over the 
 men, widening by degrees until the whole city seemed 
 under the spell of silence. 
 
 Jarvis' heart beat fiercely. At that moment he 
 touched the supreme pinnacle of human sympathy. 
 He raised his hand. 
 
 Suddenly, before he uttered a word, a curious thing 
 happened. Poised above this multitude, something 
 caught his eye. It was barely more than a passing 
 light, a form shaped from out of a shadow, but Jarvis 
 stared, startled at the resemblance, forgetting the 
 words he was about to speak, forgetting the very pres- 
 ence of the men who were there to listen. His heart 
 gave a leap into his throat and seemed to hang there 
 immovable. His eyes dilated with terror. He caught 
 at his head wildly, his face ashen, his mouth wide 
 open. 
 
 From out of the sky a specter had stepped to mock 
 him. A nightmare returned to engulf his hopes, to 
 balk his future. Abruptly there appeared to Jarvis' 
 galloping imagination the figure of a man, tall, thin, 
 sinister, covered with a long ulster. From his thin
 
 2GG ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 mouth issued the raucous, rasping breath of a dying 
 man. Beside him quailed a boy, motionless, bewildered, 
 his hands against his face, and back of him was 
 still another figure, a young girl, her white skirts 
 dabbled in blood, her pale face terrorized, her great 
 eyes distended, mute with horror, seared by contact 
 with crime. 
 
 A frenzy of agony shook Jarvis. His senses fled. 
 Overwrought, unstrung, he beheld an hallucination 
 that took on every evidence o>f reality. A relentless 
 past had entered the door of his present. The coming 
 of Meredith's ghost was but the inexorable law of 
 retribution, the sowing of the wind and reaping the 
 whirlwind. Forever his crime must stand between 
 him and the goal of his ambitions, his advancement, 
 his hopes. Forever it would bar the golden gate of 
 happiness with its red figure of shame, separating him 
 from Theodora. 
 
 With a cry he turned, bowing his face in his arm, 
 dizzy, sick unto death. A great faintness swept over 
 him. He could hardly breathe. The sound of inces- 
 sant roaring in his ears deafened him so that he barely 
 heard the cry: 
 
 " Catch him. He's fainted. Help! " 
 
 Everything grew black. He swayed forward 
 heavily. When Callister caught him, consciousness 
 had fled. Jarvis, scarcely less white than the dead, lay 
 limp and motionless in a dead faint.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 267 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 Jarvis' sudden and unaccountable illness put a mo- 
 mentary stop to the impending trouble. For a time 
 there was a wild rumor of foul play. It ran riot 
 among the people. A hundred different stories were 
 started. Jarvis had been hurt during the interview 
 with Eberlie ; no one could say how badly he had been 
 injured. He had been given a drink that contained 
 a drug intended to stupefy him. 
 
 As the hours passed, there were rumors and counter 
 rumors. Men walked the streets in companies, talk- 
 ing, gesticulating. From the vast throng there rose 
 continually a low-pitched growl, the terrible droning 
 note of awakened wrath. 
 
 The afternoon wore on. Callister had left Jarvis in 
 Theo's care, seeing that everything was done for his 
 comfort; then, assured that Jarvis was not seriously 
 ill, he set out towards his home. The man was heartily 
 weary of the strife and the turmoil of the city. He 
 had no wish to return where the sight of sullen faces, 
 bloodshot eyes, set teeth and clenched hands met him 
 at every turn. He cared nothing for the fierce bicker- 
 ings between men and men. Dissensions had no place 
 in his world, except as they served their purpose in the 
 resistless working out of the good.
 
 268 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 To watch men fight, to see them in the unlovely 
 exhibition of brutal passions, wanting to maim or kill, 
 was repulsive to Callister. 
 
 Of late the man's courage had been returning, his 
 nerves tingling to be again at his experiments. He 
 was possessed with a desire of once again seeing, 
 through his efforts, life return to a heart stilled in 
 death. Not for a long time had he felt so strongly his 
 old ambition to control electricity, to do what had 
 never been done, to rise to a pinnacle of greatness 
 through his own labors. His existence was bounded 
 by the four walls of his laboratory. It was his world, 
 the forces of nature an inspiration beside which all 
 else seemed the flimsiest mockery. He was not cut 
 out for petty conflicts, the pommeling and fisticuffing 
 of infuriated men. 
 
 The man struck out towards the short trail skirting 
 the level country. His face was serious, pale, thought- 
 ful, the face of one who suffers and broods, appearing 
 like a man who lives on the borderland of the spiritual, 
 feeling in the silence of the great solitudes where he 
 lives his daily life, the material draw away from him 
 until, like the prophets of old, he dwells near God. 
 
 Once in his laboratory, surrounded by his furnaces, 
 his apparatus, his electrical devices, it was like entering 
 a new atmosphere, stimulating to a degree. For days 
 he had shut himself away from here, tormented with 
 doubt and uncertainty. But now, responsive to the in- 
 spiration of his ambitions, he surrendered himself to
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 269 
 
 the influence of the place, gradually convinced of his 
 right to be here. He took a deep breath, the lines 
 smoothed from his face. Standing at the very gateway 
 of miracles, he knew only his desires and the infinite 
 possibilities lying at his very hand. 
 
 The sunlight filtered in between the partly closed 
 blinds. The invigorating air swept through the length 
 of the room. Remembering every detail of the last 
 night he had passed here, he set his machines in mo- 
 tion. Once again in the quiet of his own domain he 
 would summon life and death, commanding them to 
 answer his call. If he had been obeyed before, he 
 would prove his mastership a second time. If he had 
 discovered the way to revivification, he must do again 
 what he had done, satisfy himself beyond all doubts. 
 No spirit of self-aggrandizement entered into the 
 matter. His tired, lonely heart went out to his work, 
 humbled by the very strength of his inspiration. He 
 gave the best of himself, his capacity for extreme rev- 
 erence, touched by the sacredness of what was before 
 him. 
 
 As he advanced with his work, excitement was no- 
 where visible. A calm seriousness marked Callister's 
 every move. His purpose was to repeat his experi- 
 ment on two animals, a dog and a turtle. Would the 
 repetition be a success? Surely what he had seen be- 
 fore justified hope. 
 
 To be assured of their death, Callister gave three 
 shocks to each of the animals. For a moment, just
 
 270 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 after he had laid them on the operating-table, the old 
 shadow of doubt challenged his heart, the blasphemy 
 of reaching forth a profane hand into God's realm op- 
 pressing him. But the feeling disappeared as he be- 
 came absorbed in his work. Holding the syringe in 
 his right hand, he injected the salt solution into the 
 veins. He reached for his wire, reducing the power, 
 giving shock after shock to the dead creatures. It 
 was the same work of that night long ago, but would 
 it end as that did? Would it actually come to the 
 point of recalling life? And again he grew uneasy, 
 wondering how he had been able to go at this a second 
 time. The element of dread was immense. No mat- 
 ter which way the experiment ended, he was presum- 
 ing, going out of the earthly domain of realities. He 
 had beheld one mystery unfold before his very eyes. 
 He should have stopped there. Was it permitted a 
 human being to deliberately, for a second time, go so 
 far as this standing face to face with creation ? 
 
 The minutes passed. The silence in the room was 
 heavy. Callister worked as in a trance; never before 
 had he felt as he did now. His imagination shot in 
 advance of what he was doing. He saw before him, 
 instead of two dumb brutes, the body of a human being 
 lying in the chill of death, answering Callister's call, 
 the soul, at his word of command, taking refuge again 
 in the form it had left. He saw the body come from 
 out the embrace of the grave, rising into light and 
 life, obeying him, the master of a gigantic, irresistible 
 force.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 271 
 
 Dizzied with the picture that shaped itself in his 
 mind, Callister turned his attention from the animals, 
 burying his head in his arm, hardly daring to watch 
 the results of his own accomplishings. 
 
 But matters reached a quick crisis. The man's face 
 lifted mechanically towards the table where something 
 had stirred. Callister held his breath. One hand lay 
 on the dog's heart. The creature was no longer rigid. 
 The tension of the ensuing wait was tremendous. 
 Was it coming again? Life where death should be? 
 
 A vibration, the feeling of which Callister would 
 never forget so long as memory lasted, rippled under 
 the dog's skin. It was the first response to the man's 
 call, but he sat still, not daring to move. Exaltation 
 fled. The old terror of what he was doing reasserted 
 itself. 
 
 A moment later the muscles in the animal relaxed. 
 The vibration had become a regular defined movement. 
 The eyelids twitched. Steadily, slowly, the grip of 
 dissolution unloosed its hold. Steadily, slowly, life 
 emerged before the man's startled gaze, bursting the 
 bonds of death, rising triumphant, coming at the call 
 sent forth. 
 
 Callister, trembling violently, arose to his feet. He 
 could no longer look at what he had done. He had 
 little idea of what had happened, where he was. His 
 reason seemed unsettled. His. thoughts wandered. 
 All at once, with a great cry, he fell on his knees, pour- 
 ing out words of pardon, uttering inarticulate prayer.
 
 272 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 "Oh, God, the Father, forgive, forgive! Do with 
 me as Thou seest fit. Strike life from me, smite 
 memory from my brain and knowledge from my mind, 
 for I am no longer worthy to be called Thy son."
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 273 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 With a return to consciousness came Jarvis' old 
 fear of pursuit. The feeling that had so long been 
 relegated to the background, lost in the belief that he 
 was doing his best with life. Now once more it had 
 leaped to the front, not to be forced aside. He was 
 stunned, bewildered. Was this some forewarning of 
 approaching danger, some cunning sixth sense sound- 
 ing the alarm? Years had passed since the crime, 
 years filled with work and hardship, successes and 
 failures, but years during which he had done what 
 he could to show himself an honest man. 
 
 Suddenly the crime hounded him. He went about 
 with the old alertness. Every time he moved he felt 
 himself to be tracked. Everywhere he went some 
 enemy seemed to hang at his heels, dogging his foot- 
 steps, waiting to spring at him from a hidden corner 
 and strike the fatal blow. Over and over again there 
 dinged in Jarvis' mind the cry, " A life for a life." 
 
 During the still, black hours of the night the man 
 was miserable. He would rise from his bed, contem- 
 plating flight, or, sitting motionless by the open win- 
 dow, watch and listen for he hardly knew what. 
 He continually expected signs that should proclaim 
 
 18
 
 274 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 the presence of an unseen foe. It was all but im- 
 possible to resist the impulse that goaded him to 
 escape. It became an influence that grew stronger 
 with every hour's time. In vain he argued with him- 
 self. The instinct that had awakened was not to be 
 appeased. 
 
 Theodora watched Jarvis anxiously. The change in 
 him was pitiful. The man found his only contentment 
 with her. He scarcely let the girl from his sight, 
 avoiding everyone else, even young Mason and Cal- 
 lister. When either man presented himself with in- 
 quiries or messages, Jarvis invariably sent word that 
 he was ill and unable to talk over affairs, even with 
 friends. The statement was true enough. The man 
 was ill, mentally, overcome with nervous exhaustion 
 and a spirit of unrest. 
 
 The days were growing very hot. From twelve 
 until three the sun was all but unendurable. But, re- 
 gardless of the heat, Flaremont all day long swarmed 
 with groups of restless men. Discouraged by Jarvis' 
 prolonged absence, they had waited, irresolute, doing 
 nothing, charing with anger and impatience. They 
 wanted a leader, but one word from a determined man, 
 as a signal for attack. It was as if they stood on the 
 edge of a giant precipice, willing to take the fatal leap 
 over the side, provided only they could carry with 
 them those they hated. 
 
 Men spoke in growls. Their eyes flamed with cru- 
 elty. The suspense of the situation was harrowing.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 275 
 
 Many who had never tasted liquor before were drink- 
 ing heavily, slaking a thirst for revenge with whisky 
 that exhaled its poison on the atmosphere. A general 
 feeling of fear had extended to the railroad offices. 
 Processions of masked men paraded the streets, groan- 
 ing and hooting in front of the business places of the 
 oil trust. Walls were placarded. Eberlie had been 
 hanged in effigy. It had become unsafe for this agent 
 and third vice-president of the X. & Y. Railroad to be 
 seen on the streets. 
 
 Wilmarth had left town. No one knew how or 
 where he had gone ; he had simply disappeared. Ques- 
 tions flew about in the air. The impatience increased 
 daily. 
 
 On the eighth of June the report was circulated that 
 a train of tank-cars carrying the trust company's oil 
 from Texas to the Atlantic seaboard would pass 
 through Flaremont. It was the appearance of the 
 needed signal, the sounding of the alarm. 
 
 At ten o'clock fifty men, headed by young Mason, 
 collected at the Inn. Very quietly, very orderly, they 
 formed into line, marching down the tracks half a 
 mile below Flaremont. It was an easy matter to take 
 up the rails. As they worked, no one intruded on 
 them. There was little talking and no malicious dev- 
 astation of property. For a long stretch the track 
 was removed, preventing oil from passing over this 
 line until matters were settled on a different basis. If 
 the railroad wouldn't haul for individual shippers, it
 
 276 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 couldn't haul for the Eastern men. The tracks 
 through that district were for everyone who paid. 
 The fight might as well begin at this point. 
 
 A guard was formed about the broken rails. Word 
 was sent back to all the oilmen what was being done 
 and a demand made for their presence. The next day 
 might see difficulty. They must prepare for anything, 
 even a hand-to-hand fight with the railroad people. 
 In numbers and organization lay their strength and 
 their hopes for success. 
 
 Before the train arrived a crowd collected, sympa- 
 thizers with the oilmen, citizens of Flaremont. There 
 were occasional greetings, but for the most part every- 
 thing was silent, like the inevitable hush presaging a 
 great storm. 
 
 The roar of the oncoming train broke the stillness, 
 the ground rocked and trembled. Every eye turned 
 instinctively in the direction of the advancing freight. 
 But curiously enough, at the first clamor of wheels 
 and steam, sudden confusion broke on the orderly 
 rioters. Mouths hardened, hands gripped at weapons. 
 In face of approaching trouble, a spasm of utter reck- 
 lessness seized the crowd. 
 
 The engineer, head out of the window, one hand 
 on the lever, eyes and ears alert for any emergency, 
 uttered an exclamation. The headlight had revealed 
 the unusual gathering on both sides of the track. 
 Scenting instant danger, he applied the reverse, set- 
 ting the air-brakes, whistling signals. The monster
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 277 
 
 engine shuddered, belching steam and smoke. At 
 every turn of the sliding wheels it was lessening the 
 distance between safety and annihilation. But the 
 engineer dominated. With a wrench and a jerk he 
 stopped the train scarcely two feet from the broken 
 track, and swinging from the cab, he yelled, " What 
 in hell's the matter ? " 
 
 It was young Mason who replied. " We have cut 
 you off, and you can't go on unless you empty every 
 drop of oil out of the tank-cars you're hauling." 
 
 " By whose orders? " demanded the conductor, who 
 had come up. 
 
 " The order of the people," shouted Lawler. 
 
 " Mob law, hey? " commented one of the crew. 
 
 "No justice!" returned a dozen voices. 
 
 There was a brief consultation in the cab of the en- 
 gine. The engineer, fireman and train crew talked 
 vigorously. After many minutes, it was apparent 
 some decision had been reached. The mob could see 
 the men clearly by the lights. Finally, the conductor 
 appeared. 
 
 " I am unarmed," he announced. " Will you let 
 me advance and talk this thing over with you? " 
 
 " We don't want your talk. We have acted for a 
 purpose. We are going to hold this road if we swing 
 for it," called Mason. 
 
 An assenting roar came from the crowd. 
 
 " But you'll wreck the flyer that's coming after us," 
 persisted the trainman.
 
 278 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 " Put up your lights. We're not hindering you." 
 
 The man turned back, climbing into the cab. Pres- 
 ently a brakeman, carrying two lanterns, stepped from 
 the engine and disappeared down the road, swinging 
 the lights as he walked. The fireman threw open the 
 box and stoked vigorously. The engine throbbed and 
 boiled. Just beyond, the crowd, perfectly silent, 
 watched their work with satisfaction. 
 
 The minutes passed. The brakeman had not reap- 
 peared. The conductor walked up and down past the 
 first two cars, back again to the engine, restless, uneasy. 
 After a long time a distant rumbling could be heard 
 through the absolute silence. The engineer, standing 
 outside oiling the locomotive, raised his head. He 
 opened his watch and looked at it. 
 
 " It's the flyer. She's a couple of minutes late," he 
 announced, his voice making itself clear to the mob. 
 
 Then excitement got the better of the watchers. 
 They leaned forward, peering down the track, trying 
 to see the approaching train in the heavy darkness of 
 the night. Evidently, as yet no signals had been seen, 
 for the rumble of wheels proclaimed the flyer tearing 
 over the rails at full speed. The fireman joined the 
 engineer. Both men stood facing down the track. 
 A hint of uneasiness made itself apparent among the 
 oilmen. If anything should be wrong with the lights 
 set by the brakeman, the consequences would be some- 
 thing awful. Desperate as these men were, enraged 
 as they had been, they were not murderers. Bloodshed
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 279 
 
 and unnecessary violence were only to be thought of 
 when everything else had failed. Even then it -was a 
 serious matter. 
 
 Lawler wagged his head; Hale smoked furiously; 
 Mason paced up and down with quick, short steps, 
 never speaking, his lips dry, his fingers trembling. 
 From one end of the group to the other the tension 
 held, every man alert for what was to happen, every 
 head cocked forward to listen. 
 
 The hiss and clamor of the train had increased to a 
 roar. At intervals there came three short, sharp blasts 
 from the engine as the onrushing train crossed roads 
 or met signals. The headlight could be seen, huge, 
 distorted, an eye of vengeance, striking terror into the 
 hearts of its enemies. The men leaned forward, rigid, 
 intent. The shrill shriek of the whistle, followed by the 
 appliance of the emergency brakes, came almost simul- 
 taneously. Instantly the speed of the train decreased. 
 The listeners could hear the wheels grate along the 
 rails as they ceased to revolve, answering the clamped 
 gear underneath, stopping almost within its own length. 
 
 A deep breath went up, like a giant sigh of universal 
 relief. One of the men laughed; another uttered an 
 oath. The strain was broken, but so suddenly that the 
 rioters were slow to recover from the reaction. 
 
 Then silence fell again. At long periods during the 
 night the trainmen would make their appearance, 
 ready to argue the situation, furiously angry at the 
 delay, asking if the wreckers realized that morning
 
 280 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 would bring the law on them. But, obeying Lawler's 
 injunction, not a man in the crowd replied. It was too 
 late to regret or back out, if anyone cared to. Talk- 
 ing could only lead to> differences, perhaps quarreling, 
 and, as Lawler said, right was on their side just so 
 long as they carried themselves like gentlemen, not 
 like cutthroats. This first step towards open rebellion 
 against the railroad's policy had been taken, and they 
 were ready to follow it up by any necessary actions. 
 But they would not discuss the issue, nor fight with the 
 trainmen. 
 
 The endless hours wore on. Just before daylight 
 three men from one of the sleepers walked briskly 
 down the road-bed, close to the stalled oil-train. They 
 paused at the spot where the rails were torn up, gazing 
 at the ground. The tallest of the three explained 
 something to his companions, using large gestures, 
 finally pointing back to the first engine. Immedi- 
 ately the two men went back, calling out the engineer, 
 escorting him to where the third man still stood 
 frowning down the track. He was very tall and cor- 
 respondingly thin, but in the half light of early morn- 
 ing, the silent crowd could distinguish about him the 
 grand air of an important figure. Even at this hour he 
 was dressed as for an occasion, frock coat, light trou- 
 sers, high hat. A freshly lighted cigar was between 
 his lips ; with his cane he pointed out something to the 
 engineer, talking vigorously, growing angry when 
 time and again the engineer shook his head.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 281 
 
 " I should never be balked by a thing like that," he 
 announced finally, in a loud voice. " It takes some- 
 thing more than a displaced rail and a mob of strikers 
 to balk me," he went on. 
 
 " Well, go fight the strikers, keep 'em off, and we'll 
 lay the track," replied the engineer, exasperated at the 
 man's tone. " There ain't a baker's dozen in Flare- 
 mont who'll come out here and help in this business. 
 Everyone except those employed by the railroad are 
 in sympathy with the fellows who have done this, and 
 a handful of us can't go against every man in a town." 
 
 " Do< you mean that we are to stop here forever ? " 
 demanded the tall man. 
 
 " Yes, unless the soldiers are called out. Suppose 
 yon call 'em." The engineer turned on his heel and 
 walked off. 
 
 " When you're governor, Meredith, this won't be 
 allowed," asserted the man on his right. 
 
 Waving aside the compliment with a large gesture, 
 Meredith advanced with a magisterial air. " We will 
 go on and interview these men," he announced. 
 
 When he came up to the crowd he paused a second, 
 looking from one face to another. The first faint 
 streaks of dawn lighted the East, and in the clear air 
 objects were plainly visible, even in the far distances. 
 There was no wind ; the silence was infinite, as though 
 the great, calm earth waited to hear the result of her 
 children's quarrels. 
 
 The new-comer straightened to his full height, bring-
 
 282 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 ing his glance to bear on the three men who 1 stood 
 nearest him, Mason, Hale and Lawler. He made no 
 gesture, he did not change his position. When he 
 spoke, his voice was dignified and respectful. 
 
 " Gentlemen, since I have looked at this gathering 
 I am wondering what has occurred to force you to 
 such an issue as this. I had expected to find a rough, 
 irresponsible gang of lawbreakers ; instead, I see gen- 
 tlemen. Who is your leader? I should like to talk 
 with him. The matter interests me." 
 
 " There is no special leader here. We are all acting 
 in accord, for one cause. A universal purpose involv- 
 ing fixed principles that should be yes, are the foun- 
 dation of our country's government," called Hale. 
 
 " Will you state the cause that has prompted this at- 
 tempt to practically tie up a railroad ? " asked the new- 
 comer. 
 
 In a few words Mason explained. He spoke of their 
 situation, their hopelessness, finally their aims. 
 
 But directly the trust question was raised, the man 
 who listened smiled grimly. 
 
 " You are undertaking a difficult matter," he re- 
 marked, his voice distinctly less respectful. " Has no 
 one advised you of the absurdity of this plan ? No one 
 can force the trusts. You may stop traffic on this road 
 for a few hours, but how does it help you ? You don't 
 harm the railroad, you don't interfere with the Eastern 
 men. The action is child's play. The trains will 
 move, you will be punished, the incident will be
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 283 
 
 laughed over a little, then forgotten, and your cause 
 won't be advanced one peg." 
 
 " Who'll move the trains ? " called Mason. 
 
 " The militia. If that doesn't quiet you chaps down, 
 your village here will be put under martial law. You'll 
 have to put up a governor and a whole government 
 allied to your cause before you'll help yourselves 
 much." 
 
 " Well, we may. We've the man for the place." 
 
 Meredith gave a little laugh. " Is the gentleman 
 present? I'd like to see my opponent in the coming 
 election." The man's companions smiled. 
 
 Mason, furious at the implied ridicule, called out, 
 " No, he's not here ; but if he runs, Jarvis will have the 
 votes of every oilman and every anti-trust man in the 
 state. They are not few. You will be surprised. The 
 numbers will count up big, if you're the trust candi- 
 date." 
 
 Mason's idea was welcomed with a tremendous up- 
 roar. It was a new consideration, carrying with it the 
 solution of many problems. With a governor of their 
 own, what couldn't the independents accomplish? 
 
 Even the new-comer seemed impressed. He looked 
 at Mason curiously. 
 
 "What was the name you mentioned?" he de- 
 manded. 
 
 " Jarvis," said Mason. 
 
 " Jarvis what? " 
 
 " Bud Jarvis he's always called, but I thirik his
 
 284 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 name is James. You'll probably know later. You'll 
 hear enough of him. Perhaps you'll see too much, if 
 you are the candidate who heads the other side." 
 
 There was a roar of laughter, but Meredith turned 
 away. Apparently he had drifted into some reverie, 
 his attention abstracted from the group of men he had 
 come to conciliate. Undoubtedly, something had hap- 
 pened. His companions followed after, wondering at 
 the change in their leader. 
 
 It took considerable to upset this man of politics. 
 But Meredith offered no explanation. Only once he 
 muttered : 
 
 " Strange, very strange. The name is not common. 
 I'll look into it. Who knows, who knows ? " 
 
 The politician, assisted by his two admirers, climbed 
 into the smoking-car. By now all the passengers were 
 up and dressed. Meredith put on the most conse- 
 quential airs, responding to the simplest questions as 
 though he were submitting to an important interview. 
 He talked loudly of the present government in Texas, 
 saying the fact that such a thing as this could be al- 
 lowed was little less than an open disgrace. It needed 
 a man with a firm hand and strong judgment in the 
 governor's chair. These mobs once quelled and the 
 leaders treated with the severity their conduct merited, 
 would put a stop to such outrages on the public 
 at large. He recommended that the Texans be on 
 their guard. Meanwhile, voices all over the car were 
 heard to rise in protest and anger. In the hubbub one
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 285 
 
 could not hear a word uttered in favor of the men who 
 had destroyed the track. This wait was endless. The 
 longer it continued, the more nervous the passengers 
 became. Were they never going to get on ? 
 
 By now five trains were blocked. Eberlie had tele- 
 graphed wildly for help and for instructions, but it 
 was nearly eleven o'clock before a train-load of sol- 
 diers arrived at Flaremont. They hurried to the scene 
 on a double quick. Once there, a square was formed 
 about the railroad men, protecting them at their work 
 until the rails were replaced and the track in good con- 
 dition. 
 
 The signal was sent down the line. With a series 
 of sharp whistles from his engine, the engineer of the 
 oil train started up, pulling onto a siding to give the 
 flyer a free track. The crowd had begun to scatter. 
 But everyone in Flaremont heard the fast mail tear 
 away at breakneck speed, rushing towar3s the East in 
 a mad flight, endeavoring to make up some of its lost 
 time. 
 
 For the first time -since the third of June, Jarvis 
 made his appearance at Flaremont. News of what 
 was being done had been telephoned to him. As he 
 rode in, the entire town seemed to be on the streets. 
 Excitement burned at fever-heat. As Jarvis stood 
 tying his horse to a post in front of the Inn, a reporter 
 who had come down from a neighboring city on the 
 car with the soldiers stepped up to Jarvis. 
 
 " I can't get any of the men to talk of this affair;
 
 286 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 that is, any of the chaps who were up there helping in 
 the job. Can I get their side of the business from 
 you ? " he asked. 
 
 Jarvis hesitated a moment. " Yes, you can get their 
 side. And their side is every man and woman and 
 child's side in this town. Look about here. Were you 
 ever here before? Well, six months ago we had a 
 town here, a business center, a place full of honest, 
 hard-working, law-abiding citizens. We were pros- 
 perous drillers. We asked nothing of anyone but fair 
 treatment and a chance to live. The trust got at us: 
 The railroad under the commands of the trust got at 
 us. They refused to haul our oil at any price. They 
 left nothing open to us but to sell our product, our 
 crude material, to the trust. When we refused, they 
 decided to break us beyond hope of rising. We've 
 made a start now, opened a campaign against the 
 plunderers. You have seen just the beginning, and 
 if you keep your eyes open, you'll see a finish some day 
 a finish that will bring the government to its feet. 
 That's one version of this job." 
 
 The reporter wrote busily. His face expressed 
 neither interest nor surprise. 
 
 " Can you give me the names of the leaders in this 
 campaign against the trust?" he demanded, his eyes 
 still on his note-book. 
 
 " Not without their permission." 
 
 " May I use yours? " 
 
 " Yes if you care to."
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 287 
 
 " I understand the candidate for governor at the 
 next election was one of the passengers on the train 
 that was held, Gilson Meredith. Can you tell me if 
 that is true?" 
 
 Jarvis caught his breath with a sharp hiss. " Gil- 
 son Meredith," he repeated, stupidly, " who is he? " 
 
 " He's come up in politics wonderfully in the last 
 five years. He lived in California until then. He's 
 made great strides. They say at Houston he's the 
 most popular man they've ever had there; something 
 about him that conciliates both elements. Don't know 
 him myself, but it would make a good story if I can 
 work his name in." 
 
 Jarvis moved off. His head was whirling madiy. 
 The strange foreboding wa's at him, insistent, ringing 
 in his brain, spurring his body, possessing him with 
 its mysterious intuition of danger. The name that 
 had fallen on his ears struck him with the force of 
 a blow. Was he to be tracked at last, cornered by 
 the brother of the man whom he had murdered? 
 Would flight save him, even if he yielded to the im- 
 pulse? Was not fate hunting him down, laughing to 
 see him run, ready to seize on him at any moment, 
 regardless of where he went or what he did ? 
 
 He shook the reporter off, hurrying down the street, 
 having no longer a definite notion of what he wanted. 
 Man after man spoke to him, calling out a greeting, 
 ready to stop and talk over the news, but Jarvis kept 
 steadily on, nodding, trying to smile, but speechless.
 
 288 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 Past the railroad office, through the public square, 
 across the business portion of the city, the man pur- 
 sued his way. He listened to the trains that were 
 following one another over the tracks, the straining 
 and creaking of the cars filling the air with their 
 jarring sound. But, oppressed by the sinister, mys- 
 terious warning that beset him, he paid small heed to 
 the din. He was near the scene of the oilmen's work 
 before he knew it. As he approached, Randolph Ma- 
 son swung his hat in the air and ran towards him. 
 His face was pale from fatigue and excitement, but 
 his eyes burned. 
 
 " Say, do you know what we are going to> do 1 with 
 you ? " he shouted, anxious to be the first to tell the 
 news. " We are going to run you for governor, in- 
 stall you at Austin to look after our interests. The 
 other candidate gave us the notion. It'll be a cinch for 
 you. He won't stand any chance. Yes, sir; we are 
 going to run you as the people's choice, the honest 
 man against the trust's candidate, Gilson Meredith, 
 the political bummer."
 
 SI 1 1C STOOD AT HIS SIDE, A VISION REALIZED. Page 301.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 289 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 As was the case with every rumor during the pres- 
 ent state of excitement, the news of putting forward 
 their own political candidate, advancing for governor 
 a man pledged to their side, leaped through the town, 
 repeated from lip to lip. They wanted a leader. They 
 wanted, at headquarters, a man looking after their 
 interests, seeing fair play done. The idea carried the 
 independents off their feet with enthusiasm. The city 
 was filled with wild crowds of men shouting, surging 
 through the streets with no* definite destination in 
 mind, the excitement increasing momentarily. 
 
 It was a foregone conclusion as to who would rep- 
 resent them. Jarvis' name was mentioned as the only 
 one thought of, the one man in all the state best 
 fitted to the place. He was closely allied to the in- 
 dividual oil trade, the shippers' interests were his. 
 Moreover, he was a keen, clear-headed man, quick to 
 make friends, possessed of a practical working knowl- 
 edge of their business, and with full understanding 
 of the great questions he would be called upon to con- 
 front. They could see no obstacles in the way of con- 
 trolling the nominating convention if plenty of money 
 was forthcoming. Naturally, it would be expensive. 
 
 19
 
 290 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 One couldn't go into politics and expect something 
 for nothing. But it would cost no more in the end 
 than sitting still and seeing things go from bad to 
 worse in the oil trade. Besides, once the people of the 
 state realized what Jarvis stood for, men would flock 
 to his side. Flaremont citizens wouldn't have to stand 
 all the expense when matters were understood. 
 
 Terribly in earnest and feeling they could not af- 
 ford to wait, an executive committee was formed out 
 on the street where the men were standing. Lawler 
 was made chairman pro tern. At once he called a 
 business meeting for that night to discuss all details 
 and rush matters. He named the Inn as the assembly 
 place and seven o'clock as the hour. Meanwhile, Jarvis 
 was to be asked formally to accept the responsibility 
 of entering the political field, and ways and means for 
 future work attended to. 
 
 When the committee scattered, the men hurrying 
 away to their each and several duties, an air of brisk- 
 ness, almost of gaiety, pervaded the crowd. Men 
 harassed for weeks past by helplessness and idleness 
 found relief in action, catching in blind hope at some- 
 thing to do. 
 
 All day Jarvis kept close to the house. He had been 
 notified that his presence was demanded at the meeting 
 to be held at the Inn, and he had given his word to be 
 present. 
 
 But it was only a sense of what he owed to the peo- 
 ple, a feeling that as long as he was free his duty was
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 291 
 
 with them, that prevailed with Jarvis. From the mo- 
 ment of hearing Meredith's name from the reporter he 
 told himself that his end was about reached, that fate 
 was spinning the web close about him, enmeshing him 
 in a network from which he could never break loose. 
 
 Once he had believed that in the time of a crisis he 
 would stand as the people's apostle, glad to lead, glad 
 to control, glad to be the state's foremost figure. But 
 in the midst of his inspiration the ghost of the mur- 
 dered Meredith had intruded itself, forewarning by its 
 appearance the coming of the living brother as the 
 avenger of the dead. The chance for his life work, the 
 gratification of his ambitions, the success of all his 
 labors, had come to pass him by like a breath of 
 fragrant air, leaving him worsted, his whole existence a 
 failure to the very end; begun in poverty, continued 
 in crime, ended, in spite of struggles and battles, in 
 tevilement and shame. 
 
 The thought stung him like a lash. If only there 
 were some way to prevent discovery some way that, 
 doing what his friends asked of him, he might still 
 escape the punishment and degradation of that deed 
 done so long ago in self-defense. 
 
 He paced the floor, striding up and down, his eyes 
 staring ahead into vacancy, his fists clenched. 
 
 " There is no way out of it. I can't escape the thing 
 that's pursuing me. I can't do anything but go on and 
 on with a smiling face until I come to a dead stop be- 
 fore the halter -caught, caught ! " he muttered.
 
 292 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 It was the bitterness of that one thing being 
 caught that caused his greatest anguish; the degra- 
 dation of standing at last before Theodora, a con- 
 fessed criminal under sentence of the law. 
 
 He had no sorrow for any lost dignity or prestige, 
 vanished almost before either was secured, or for a, 
 blackened memory replacing the honorable reputation 
 won through years of honest endeavor. He had no 
 remorse over the deed done in a moment of excitement 
 when nothing was left him but self-defense at any 
 cost. Only the unavailing, haunting sorrow and 
 shame of seeing Theo's eyes turned from him in con- 
 tempt or something worse, his personal honor smirched 
 before the woman he loved. 
 
 As the hours passed, his torment increased. Finally, 
 he could no longer endure it. Hurrying out of his 
 room, he fairly ran down the stairs, seeking Theo, 
 determined to keep his happiness until it was wrenched 
 from him. 
 
 It was late in the afternoon. Theo sat on the porch, 
 busy at her mending; by her side was a table covered 
 with sewing utensils thread, needles, scissors, a cush- 
 ion and work-box. Two little piles of clothing, one 
 mended and neatly folded, the other still to be gone 
 over, were close at hand. 
 
 She looked up at the man, her smile of welcome 
 rather conscious, her face flushed. The truth was, 
 Theodora had been thinking again of past years, ask- 
 ing herself a thousand questions concerning Jarvis
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 293 
 
 which were quite beyond her power to answer, but 
 were delicious nevertheless. They floated through 
 her mind like visions of a waking dream, not quite 
 distinct, not clearly to be understood. But lately she 
 had grown into the habit of interpreting them in her 
 own way, allowing her imagination full rein. It was 
 like yielding to a fairy spell of witchery. Her happi- 
 ness increased hourly after she began this practice. 
 
 Jarvis sat down on the rail of the porch. He lighted 
 a cigarette, but after two or three whiffs tossed it 
 away, watching where it fell. A short, green stubble 
 was making its appearance where the earth had been 
 scarred by burning oil. He spoke of the fire and of the 
 events that had followed one after another so swiftly 
 since that terrible disaster. As a matter of course, this 
 led up to the performance of the night before the 
 wrecking of the track, the coming of the militia, the 
 general feeling of uneasiness throughout the state. 
 
 " Theo," he said, suddenly, " you have heard, I sup- 
 pose, what they intend to do now these oilmen ? " 
 
 "No, dear; nothing dreadful, I hope." 
 
 "Dreadful, no; unless it is dreadful for me," he 
 said, grimly. " They are going to try to run me for 
 governor." 
 
 Theo gasped. Her eyes grew bright. She dropped 
 her sewing in her lap. " Bud, you mean it ? You 
 will go to the capital, be governor of this whole 
 state?" 
 
 " That's what they want. You know they are
 
 294 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 bound naturally to try everything, to get a hold some- 
 how. I can't imagine why they happened to settle on 
 me." 
 
 " Well, I can," put in Theo, indignantly. " I can't 
 imagine their putting up anyone else." 
 
 " But suppose I don't want to run? " 
 
 "Not want to?" 
 
 " Suppose that if I allow my name to go on being 
 used, and people all over the state, siding with us as 
 against the trust, rally to me, believing I am an honest 
 man with a good record, and everyone's faith is 
 strong in me suppose just at that time something 
 happens to prove I am not worthy their trust. Sup- 
 pose I should be shown up a a thief, or something 
 worse. All Texas would echo with the deception. I 
 would be a man disgraced, shamed, never again to 
 raise my head." 
 
 Theodora rose abruptly from her chair, her great 
 eyes flashing. 
 
 "What are you saying?" she exclaimed. "How 
 can you talk so? You have no right to revile yourself, 
 even to me yes especially to me. I, who would 
 stake my life on your honesty I will not listen to 
 you." 
 
 " Do you care so very much what I am what I 
 have been ? " he asked. 
 
 The girl's voice trembled a little as she replied, " I 
 don't believe you can know just how I care, how I feel. 
 Why, think, you are all the world to me. I have no
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 295 
 
 one else. I never had anyone else, not since I was a 
 little child. All my life I have looked up to you as a 
 hero, my ideal man. When you used to be away from 
 me I counted the days till you came back. When you 
 brought me here to this little house, I was so happy 
 as happy as a bride might be in the home she goes to 
 with the husband she loves." 
 
 A shadow came over the man's face. 
 
 " All my thoughts have centered in you for years. 
 My greatest desire has been to make you as happy as 
 I am. And I have wanted you to see that in just liv- 
 ing here with you, doing everything I could for you, 
 I was perfectly contented. When those miserable 
 troubles came one after another so fast, I cried myself 
 to sleep many, many nights. It was not so much what 
 was happening as the unfairness of your being ruined 
 after working hard to make a place for us both. 
 Sometimes I couldn't even say my prayers, I was so 
 rebellious at what was manifestly unjust. Then I saw 
 your courage, and I grew ashamed of myself. But the 
 more ashamed I became of my weakness, the prouder 
 I was of you. You did not fail me, even there. You 
 only made my knowledge of you more secure, for you 
 see I would not have blamed you at all if you had 
 clone as the other men did sworn and stormed and 
 stood ready to fight. But when you accepted 
 everything so calmly, raising yourself by your actions 
 so far above every other man that even they them- 
 selves saw your nobleness and strength, then all my
 
 296 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 hard thoughts vanished. It was splendid. I could 
 have shouted with joy over your dignity. So, know- 
 ing you like this, as I have known you always, you 
 ask if I care what you are or have been. Care? Why, 
 it is almost as though my own self-respect was at 
 stake. But you can't frighten me. I know what you 
 are. You are a good man. No one in all the world, 
 no, not even an angel from heaven, could convince me 
 of anything else." 
 
 She finished breathlessly. By now she was stand- 
 ing so close to Jarvis that as he turned, one of his hands 
 fell on one of hers. Instantly his fingers tightened 
 round it in a warm clasp. He paused a second, look- 
 ing into her wide-open eyes, reading there a confession 
 which her lips had refused to make. Yet for the mo- 
 ment her faith in him was the uppermost thing in his 
 mind. He could not disturb it. The strength of his 
 long-pent-up love was clamoring aloud for freedom, 
 but rather than disturb that moment of overpowering 
 happiness, he would have sat speechless forever, con- 
 tented in feeling her close beside him, her hands in his. 
 
 But finally the desire for something definite, some 
 decision that would end the uncertainty he had 
 writhed under for months past, made him break the 
 silence. 
 
 " Theo," he cried, " if if things had been different 
 if your mother had lived and I had come to you, not 
 as a brother, not as a relative at all, but as a man 
 humbled with love for you, begging you to accept his 
 name, his home himself, what would you have said? "
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 297 
 
 His heart seemed strained to bursting. All the 
 strength of his life had gone out in the question he 
 asked. He stood suddenly upright, still clasping both 
 her hands in his, waiting for her reply. 
 
 Her face went suddenly crimson, then quite as ab- 
 ruptly all color fled, leaving her white as marble; but 
 she did not move, nor did her eyes leave his face. 
 
 " I would have said," her voice was raised barely 
 above a whisper, " that I loved you. That always, 
 from the very beginning, I had loved you. That if 
 you had not asked me for my love, my heart would 
 have remained unpledged. But," she cried, her tone 
 changing, " I am ashamed to say the words that are 
 trembling on my lips, waiting to be spoken. They are 
 not modest or maidenly I don't know what has hap- 
 pened I am afraid something is wrong you are 
 only my brother, yet I am caring for you, thinking of 
 you with a feeling that is not like a sister's affection. 
 It is not right. What does it all mean? " 
 
 Tears brimmed her eyes. A tumult was raging in 
 her mind. She feared, she hardly knew what. Her 
 emotions were outraging all her innate sense of right. 
 
 If Jarvis had not held her, she would have turned 
 and fled, hiding herself from his gaze, burying her 
 face from the sight of her own shamed eyes. 
 
 But abruptly, Jarvis, filled with a delight such as 
 he had never before known, forgot everything. Doubt, 
 care, worry disappeared. Argument ceased in his 
 mind. The realization of what had come to him over-
 
 298 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 rode every other consideration. The light of the whole 
 world changed to this man who had known so little 
 of the joys of life. 
 
 She loved him. What mattered anything else ? He 
 bent his head and, with his heart on his lips, kissed 
 her upon her hair, her eyes, her warm, soft cheeks. 
 
 He could not speak. He could think of no words to 
 say that would express what he felt. Nor would any 
 explanation come. Tears were in his eyes. His 
 exuberance bordered on ecstasy. The moment was 
 one of expanding, exulting happiness, never to be for- 
 gotten, never to be relived in its present intensity. 
 
 Nor had Theodora need of explanations. On the 
 instant all those past doubts, those hazy remembrances 
 that lingered in her thoughts only waiting the oppor- 
 tunity to assert themselves, rose now at one bound 
 from fanciful dreams to clear facts. The only wonder 
 was how she had kept them down so long. Everything 
 for a long time past had pointed to but one thing, but 
 one solution. If she had been quite honest with her 
 heart, the confession of the truth would have come 
 weeks before. 
 
 She recalled all the days in their home life together. 
 She had been so happy in that life. Busy at her 
 work, never lonely, going and coming, singing, con- 
 tented, wanting nothing and no one as long as Jarvis 
 was near. She remembered how, as a mere girl at 
 the convent, she had watched and waited for Jarvis' 
 brief visits, crying herself to sleep night after night
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 209 
 
 after these visits were over, and months unrolled them- 
 selves between his departures and the time of his 
 coming again. All along her imagination had pic- 
 tured out the road of her heart's desire. Love for 
 him had been born in her long ago that love of. a 
 woman for a man, pure, self-sacrificing, supreme, 
 transcending in strength and holiness all other earthly 
 emotions. Long ago she had given herself to him 
 mentally now she was ready to yield herself phys- 
 ically. 
 
 She slipped her hands from his gently, slowly, then 
 with a movement of infinite tenderness, infinite self- 
 abandonment, infinite trust, she put both arms about 
 his neck and drew herself close in his embrace. 
 
 The sun was falling towards the western horizon; 
 the shadows lengthened, their color deepening. The 
 soft, filmy white clouds playing in the heavens timidly 
 stopped their game to watch the great orb sink from 
 sight. Then, all subdued by his parting caress, they 
 crept closer to the blue mother sky, shimmering with 
 the reflection of golden rays and rosy with embarrass- 
 ment. There was not a sound anywhere. The whole 
 world seemed wrapped in a great, unbreakable slum- 
 ber. The smell of roses and heliotrope and jessamine 
 rose on the air, the slow passing breath of perfume 
 from Theodora's little garden. 
 
 Still the two waited, not speaking, their arms about 
 one another. They had no consciousness of passing 
 time. They had entered a new world. Earthly things
 
 300 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 had no claim on them. They were living the fairy 
 legend of their own awakening love story. 
 
 By almost imperceptible degrees the night advanced. 
 Darkness descended, drawing its cloak closer and 
 closer. But suddenly, before the earth could be ob- 
 scured, a new light rose to the rescue. The moon 
 abruptly lifted its round face, a golden gleam of 
 beauty, and under its illumination distant objects came 
 into view. The garden shimmered in resplendent 
 coloring. Far away the sweep of rough prairie land 
 unrolled itself, becoming by the mystic light lovely as 
 a land of enchantment. The convent, built in the 
 shape of a cross, glowing and gleaming on the eminence 
 that kept it apart from the abodes of men and shielded 
 it from scenes of strife, turmoil and human passions, 
 was the very essence of peace, the very symbol of re- 
 ligion. The spirit of benediction emanated from its 
 white walls, wafting to the world at its feet. 
 
 The delicious fragrance of the newly awakened 
 flowers was like a caress. Never had evening been 
 lovelier. It was delicious beyond words, peaceful be- 
 yond expression. 
 
 Hardly daring to breathe, Jarvis lifted his head. 
 He had no thought of time, of place, of what was 
 before him. His boundless happiness in the realiza- 
 tion that the love he gave was also returned, held him 
 in the throes of a mighty spell. 
 
 He looked at her, seeing nothing else. There was a 
 prayer on his lips, a vast humbleness in his thoughts.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 301 
 
 She stood at his side like a vision realized, the spirit 
 of the moon come to earth. The hazy light of the 
 golden orb played over her features. Her face was 
 very pale, but never had she seemed so young, never 
 had her beauty been so matchless. It was all but im- 
 mortal. Her eyes were alight with the knowledge of 
 that supreme love just dawning into complete con- 
 sciousness. It hung above her like a halo, radiating its 
 glory over her head, her face, her figure. She was no 
 longer confused, no longer afraid. All sense of mys- 
 tery had fallen away, and in an instant her whole 
 being had readjusted itself. She entered the realm of 
 love as a queen comes into her own, with no shrinking, 
 no hesitating, no false embarrassment, only profound 
 reverence. 
 
 She emerged from the girlish timidity of uncer- 
 tainty into the womanly dignity of complete self- 
 renunciation, with transcendent calm, incomparable 
 gentleness, infinite modesty. 
 
 The air about them vibrated with love, the scent of 
 the flowers exhaled love, the whole night breathed 
 love. 
 
 Suddenly a sound broke from out of the gigantic 
 silence. Not one of the myriad noises of the night, the 
 sigh of the wind, the rustle of the trees, the stirring of a 
 blossom, but something definite, sharp, foreign to the 
 breathing of the earth. Instantly it was repeated, 
 nearer at hand, coming from the direction of the road. 
 
 Jarvis straightened up, watching, listening, quite
 
 302 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 involuntarily placing himself to shield Theodora. By 
 the clear moonlight, all the surrounding country lay 
 exposed to view. Peering across the empty driveway, 
 he caught a glimpse of a black shadow. A moment 
 later he uttered an exclamation. At the same second 
 a figure rose from a crouching position near the hedge 
 bordering the road, hesitated barely long enough to 
 throw one terrified glance over his shoulder, then 
 bounded towards the porch. 
 
 Jarvis called out a warning. 
 
 " Stop where you are. What do you want ?" Then 
 cried, " My God, it's Orton! " 
 
 And it was Orton. No longer the city-bred man 
 of immaculate dress and graceful manner, but a ter- 
 rible figure of living fear, his fingers working spas- 
 modically, his face white as death, covered with sweat, 
 his clothes torn and dirty, his hair disheveled, his 
 eyes burning with fright, his breath coming in crying 
 gasps from terrific running. 
 
 He darted up the steps onto the porch. Sinking into 
 a chair, all but overcome with exhaustion, he panted 
 between breaths, " Water, water ! " 
 
 Theodora hurried into the house. With trembling 
 hands she poured some whisky into a glass, filling it 
 to the brim with water. 
 
 Orton swallowed it with the eagerness of a perish- 
 ing man, then staggered to his feet. His eyes rolled in 
 furtive glances, his teeth were set. 
 
 " Thank you," he gasped, " you don't know what
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 303 
 
 you've done hark ! " An expression of such endless, 
 agonized dread leaped into his ashen face that Theo- 
 dora shrank back instinctively, afraid of she knew not 
 what, and Jarvis cried : 
 
 " For God's sake, man, what is it ? " 
 
 " I'm running for my life. I haven't much start. 
 She she Oh, they are coming! " He broke off 
 with a groan. 
 
 Even Jarvis could hear now. The thunder of gal- 
 loping horses, the clamor of men's voices raised in 
 discussion. Orton darted like a hare down the steps. 
 With incredible swiftness he disappeared behind the 
 house, tearing on and on, not knowing where he would 
 go, having nothing definite in mind beyond the 
 evading that band of determined men, led by a relent- 
 less woman. 
 
 Meanwhile, nearer and nearer came the party of 
 pursuers. Hideous noises and cries split the brooding 
 hush of the night. 
 
 A sense of impending terror weighed in the air 
 where such a little time before there was only sweet- 
 ness and vibrating love. 
 
 As the riders loped into view, to Jarvis' amazement 
 he caught sight of Lawler and Hale. Leading the 
 group, their animals lathered and strained with the 
 heartbreaking pace, was young Mason and a woman. 
 Neither of the two watchers had a glimpse of her face, 
 but as she passed, the same thought seized them both. 
 It was Gabrielle. Gabrielle suddenly come back, Gabri-
 
 304 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 elle heading the trackers of the man that, but a few 
 short days before, she had married at the altar of God. 
 
 Down the road the cavalcade tore, flogging their 
 tired beasts, shouting encouragement to one another, 
 stopping at nothing. And long after they were out of 
 sight the ground trembled with the furious beat of the 
 running horses. 
 
 Theodora turned to Jarvis with a low, shuddering 
 cry. 
 
 " Oh, what do you suppose has happened ? What 
 dreadful thing has that wretched man done that her 
 love could have turned to such vengeful fury all in 
 so short a time? "
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 305 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 By seven o'clock that evening the Inn was packed 
 to suffocation with the oilmen of Flaremont and the 
 surrounding district. The atmosphere was very warm. 
 Every seat at every table was occupied. Tobacco 
 smoke ascended in a blue haze, thickening until it was 
 impossible to see across the room, and everywhere 
 through this cloud were the fumes of alcohol, the 
 clink of glasses, a confused murmur of voices. 
 
 It had been Lawler's intention to call the meeting 
 to order immediately on Jarvis' arrival. He expressed 
 this intention to the men who surrounded him, receiv- 
 ing their unanimous approval. But seven o'clock came 
 and no Jarvis. Five minutes passed, then ten. Young 
 Mason went to the door, stepped out into the night 
 and stared up and down the deserted streets. 
 
 "What can be keeping him?" said Hale, as Ran- 
 dolph returned with the announcement of no one in 
 sight. 
 
 " You are sure he was notified ? " asked Lawler, 
 anxiously. 
 
 " I telephoned to him myself," said young Mason, 
 " and he promised to come at seven." 
 
 A murmur of surprise and uneasiness began spread- 
 so
 
 306 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 ing throughout the room. This was no time to be late. 
 Was Jarvis to fail them now? He on whom had 
 centered all their hopes; he on whose head was to 
 devolve the responsibility of a cause that meant the 
 whole future of their state? In that moment of crisis 
 had he suddenly reconsidered, afraid, perhaps, to head a 
 party that intended to buck against the trusts ? 
 
 Persistently the murmurs spread, growing, enlarg- 
 ing until in a certain corner of the room a voice broke 
 out, " We can wait until we get tired. Probably it's 
 the old story, and he's sold us out to the X. & Y." 
 
 It was the culmination of doubt growing into sus- 
 picion, the first direct accusation against a trusted man. 
 Stunned by the sound of the words, an instant hush 
 followed, a hush pregnant with suspense and uneasi- 
 ness. Then Lawler leaped to his feet. He was beside 
 himself with anger, ready to kill the man who assailed 
 his friend's honor. 
 
 " You will retract those words or I will throw you 
 out of this room bodily," he shouted, shaking his fist 
 in the direction from where the voice had come. Then 
 he turned to the audience. " And what kind of men are 
 you who will sit still and listen to such an insult hurled 
 at the man whom you have chosen to represent you? 
 He has accepted your trust in good faith, but are you 
 doing your part? He yields himself, his time, his 
 future, at your call. What do you give him ? There 
 should be no question in your minds as to this delayed 
 appearance of our friend, Mr. Jarvis. He is no new,
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 307 
 
 untried man. This is not the first responsibility he 
 has shouldered for you. Unless unavoidably detained, 
 detained probably on affairs relating to this very busi- 
 ness of yours, a cause that he is unfailingly devoted to, 
 he would have been here before the hour set for the 
 meeting. I would sooner accuse any man present of 
 selling us out than James Jarvis. Again I ask the 
 man who uttered those words to apologize to the chair 
 and to the gentlemen present at this meeting." 
 
 There was a silence, broken only by the shifting of 
 bodies, the craning of necks, an occasional creak of a 
 chair. 
 
 It was in the midst of this silence surcharged with 
 excitement, into this room crowded with men, flushed, 
 alert, wondering what would happen next, that the 
 front door opened and a woman stepped in. Unhesi- 
 tatingly she advanced through the pall of smoke, but 
 so intent were the men on their own affairs that not 
 until she stood in the very center, within a dozen paces 
 of Lawler, were the crowd made aware of her pres- 
 ence. But one glance at her was enough to> make 
 everything else sink into insignificance. One look into 
 that ghastly countenance, and she became the focus for 
 every eye. Her coming was so abrupt, so startling, 
 it took little imagination to see in her an apparition. 
 Even young Mason, after a frightened gasp of 
 " Gabrielle! " stared speechlessly at the tragic face of 
 his sister. 
 
 For perhaps the first time in all her life Gabrielle
 
 308 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 forgot to pose for effect, yet perhaps never had she 
 called to herself such intense attraction. The men's 
 attention was riveted on her. One and all watched 
 breathless, expectant, conscious that something ter- 
 rible was here, reading the dumb note of undying 
 tragedy that glimmered now would always glimmer 
 in her eyes. 
 
 She told what she had to say brokenly, discon- 
 nectedly and with dull, monotonous voice. But from 
 the very first sentence the crowd listened, raging, awe- 
 struck, hardly crediting their senses, her abnormal 
 quiet heightening their feelings into acute personal 
 resentment. 
 
 Orton was a negro. Orton, the wearer of clothes, 
 the man of magnificent manner, the exponent of city- 
 bred grace! 
 
 The discovery of this fact had come to Gabrielle 
 within a week of their marriage, and in the second of 
 time following the shock of that discovery, the world 
 changed to the girl. She fled panic-stricken from the 
 sight of the man she had called husband, and for Hours 
 stumbled across fields or staggered down deserted 
 country roads, all but fainting, still going on and on, 
 the very threads of her life snapped. 
 
 Terror, rage, grief mad, insensate, endless grief 
 were galloping through her mind, each seeking full 
 possession. How reason remained to her was a thing 
 to be wondered at. She tried to argue, to plan, to set 
 any one thing straight, out of the chaos of her fren-
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 309 
 
 zied thoughts. She beat her head, and dug her fists into 
 her eyes, crying aloud for help, demanding death. 
 
 In the midst of her ravings a terrible idea came 
 to Gabrielle. An idea that swooped down like an evil 
 prowler of the night, ominous, grisly, but driving away 
 all else, filling every channel of her disordered brain. 
 She would creep back to the hotel and kill Orton, then 
 rush away again, anywhere, out into the darkness, 
 moving onward and onward forever if necessary. Her 
 plans did not cover her actions beyond the murder. 
 Even the consequences of such an act seemed immeasur- 
 ably removed from her. All she cared for was the 
 deed. 
 
 She had been sitting on a fallen log near the road- 
 side. Now she sprang to her feet, every nerve quiver- 
 ing with excitement. Her eyes burned with unnatural 
 cunning. She tried to think of methods of killing. 
 She wondered if he would struggle or fight, and in- 
 stantly determined to give him no chance for retali- 
 ation. Her aim would be sure, her hand strong, and 
 the blow would be dealt in the back. 
 
 She walked on. The hotel came in sight. In a 
 brief lapse of time she would see him again. Memories 
 crowded in on her, recollections of the past. Her wed- 
 ding-day, only such a little while ago. How happy she 
 had been ! She thought of the crowds, the music, the 
 supper, the admiration she had received, her own 
 haughtiness, finally the going away with the man in 
 whom she took such pride. She recalled with a shud-
 
 310 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 der of shame her vanity at his clothes, his manners, his 
 personal appearance, his distinct good breeding. 
 
 The memories became unendurable. Gabrielle's 
 chin quivered. An agony of grief swept over her, 
 leaving her faint and sick. What a dreadful mistake 
 it had all been! Do what she might, could she ever 
 blot out the knowledge that for a week she had lived 
 with a negro as his wife? She, a Southern girl of high 
 spirit, untarnished name and famous beauty ; she, who 
 had scorned those of his blood, reviling at them, draw- 
 ing her skirts closer about her at their mere mention. 
 
 Year after year, as long as life endured, she would 
 see before her his face, feel his caresses, hear his low- 
 pitched musical Southern voice uttering her name, 
 calling her his wife. Never, never, never while 
 memory endured, could she kill that. Though she 
 murdered him, her marriage would be an irrevocable 
 fact, haunting her of what had been. Her suffering 
 would go on forever. 
 
 Fresh despair seized upon her, accompanied by a 
 great longing for her mother. She sobbed and sobbed, 
 burying her head in her arms, rocking her body. Why 
 was she made to suffer like this ? What had she done 
 to deserve such revolting punishment? If only she 
 could inflict such suffering on him, make him feel the 
 lash of punishment on his back before he died, she 
 could face the future with a braver countenance. Re- 
 taliation would be sweet very sweet. 
 
 Then the second idea came. What did Southerners
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 311 
 
 do to negroes who attempted the honor of their daugh- 
 ters ? Burn them. Her heart gave a fierce bound, her 
 eyes rolled wildly as though she feared to see Orton 
 before her, reading the thoughts in her aching head. 
 
 If only she could get him back to* Flaremont on 
 some pretext. Get him there without awakening a sus- 
 picion in him of what she knew and what she sought, 
 would not the men of Flaremont help her ? 
 
 As she reached this point in her narrative a dozen 
 men sprang to their feet, the strain of silence carried 
 past endurance. A throng of excited faces surged 
 about her. Offers of assistance rose from all quarters. 
 They would sit and listen no longer. Action was what 
 they wanted, the action of men roused past all control, 
 wanting to be led by some terrible cause to a deed of 
 death. She who, alone and dishonored, had worked 
 her way back to them, to the men of Flaremont, should 
 not be deceived in her faith nor denied help. 
 
 The clamor was deafening. Every man there 
 wanted to start, now, at once, in pursuit of revenge. 
 The brute stirred in them. Let her give them the 
 scent, put them on his track, and the beast who had so 
 cruelly wronged her should pay the penalty. 
 
 A few moments later two dozen men on horseback, 
 led by the girl herself, went tearing through the main 
 street of Flaremont, headed for the X. & Y. station, 
 It was there Gabrielle had left Orton, making some 
 excuse, asking him to await her return. But Orton 
 had not been so unsuspicious as Gabrielle believed.
 
 312 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 Weeks and months at playing a desperate game of 
 deception had sharpened Orton's every sense. As 
 Gabrielle disappeared toward the town, the man hur- 
 ried down the road in an opposite direction. For 
 some unexplained reason his one thought was of Cal- 
 lister. Callister, the man he had always half feared 
 and more than half disliked, was the one he turned to 
 now. If he could reach that little house on the hill, 
 he would be safe. 
 
 The pursuers halted at the station. Orton was no- 
 where to be found. More than that, there was no clue 
 as to which way the man had gone. 
 
 " He'll make for the open country, stopping at some 
 house for shelter till he can get across the prairie into 
 the hills," called one of the men. 
 
 Instinctively eyes were turned towards the line of 
 mountains, vast and shadowy in the distance. 
 
 " Then head down the road leading away from 
 town, and everyone keep a sharp lookout for shadows. 
 The moon may tell the story." 
 
 Once more the horses were whipped into a swift 
 gallop. 
 
 " If only we had the dogs ! " muttered Lawler to 
 young Mason, who was riding beside him. 
 
 Randolph gave a nod. During the entire affair, the 
 boy had not spoken a word. It seemed as though he 
 were frozen with the horror and disgrace that had 
 come to his beautiful sister. It was the final culmina- 
 tion of ill fortune that had hounded the family so
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 313 
 
 unceasingly. One by one his ideals had been shattered. 
 His hopes were dead. His belief in men's integrity 
 had been swept aside, buried deep under doubts and 
 injustices, never to rise again. His spirit was broken, 
 his youth gone. He no longer gripped his hands or 
 clenched his teeth, aflame with anger and fierce resent- 
 ment, crying out the creed of the anarchist, seeking 
 readjustment by dynamite. His mind was limp. On 
 every question rested the verdict, " What's the use? " 
 He no longer cared what happened. 
 
 He was out now to track a criminal. But he did it 
 with the same silent, bitter resentment that animated 
 every other man in the chase. He hardly seemed to 
 take the matter home to himself. It had been a ter- 
 rible catastrophe, a wrong that must be righted. His 
 manhood rebelled at the outrage. But it would have 
 rebelled in the same degree had the victim been a com- 
 plete stranger instead of his own sister. 
 
 He was utterly crushed, utterly changed. Never had 
 he been virile enough to combat with the big matters of 
 life; readjustments; the working out of huge differ- 
 ences; the corruptions that seem for the moment to 
 dominate the good; the great struggles for personal 
 gains that, unchecked, unimpeded, sweep aside in in- 
 sistent selfishness those little groups of human gnats 
 who seek to protest against the untrammeled progress. 
 
 His nature, womanish in many ways, relying on 
 sympathy, demanding affection, could have found a 
 certain strength in quiet energies, peaceful measures,
 
 314 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 the reign of good. Surrounded by those influences, 
 he could have stood forth in manfulness, doing for 
 others, achieving a place for himself, acting unselfishly 
 in all things. He would have won a home, comforts 
 for his mother, a wife, and love for himself, finding 
 in these things complete happiness. But how much 
 chance was there left for all this ? What outlook was 
 there for him ? What remained for him to do ? What 
 even was the use in trying ? It was a hopeless struggle, 
 with no rifts in the clouds. Odds greater than he 
 could cope with met him at every turn. In fact, why 
 try? Why care? What was the use in anything? He 
 had been beggared. If he still persisted, he courted 
 death. 
 
 As the party passed Jarvis' place, the horses were 
 pulled in to a slower pace that the men might maintain 
 a sharp lookout to right and left for traces of Orton. 
 As yet they had no glimpse of the fugitive. There 
 was not a sign to tell whether this chase, begun on 
 sheer speculation, would end successfully or in a flat 
 failure. 
 
 Once one of the number, rising in his stirrups, 
 peering down at the road, announced that he thought 
 he " saw something." 
 
 Instantly half of the riders were out of their saddles, 
 plunging through the undergrowth, beating the bushes 
 with their whips, listening for some sound. But the 
 search was bootless. There was nothing. After ten 
 minutes wasted in the effort, the party was off again,
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 3l5 
 
 their sense of enmity increasing as doubts and uncer- 
 tainties multiplied. 
 
 The minutes went by. Callister's house, showing 
 white in the strong moonlight, stood out in plain view 
 on the hill. By degrees the feeling took possession of 
 the men that unless he was mounted, Orton could not 
 have worked his way much beyond this point. Spirits 
 drooped. Lawler uttered a violent exclamation of 
 disappointment. He argued that, if their man had fol- 
 lowed this road, they should have overtaken him a 
 mile back of where they were. 
 
 " If we don't see any signs of him up the road, we 
 might stop at Mr. Callister's and ask if he's seen any- 
 one," suggested a voice. 
 
 " Well, we may miss him to-night, but he can't 
 escape us in the end. We'll watch the trains, then in 
 daylight we can track him. It's only a question of 
 watching and starving him out," announced another. 
 
 " Dogs would do the trick. Lord, I wish we had 
 'em!" 
 
 On all sides suggestions began to circulate. 
 
 Gabrielle made no comment. She sat rigid, her face 
 white and set, her eyes burning with an unnatural 
 light. 
 
 As they approached the trail leading to Callister's, 
 for the second time the party halted and young Mason 
 was delegated to ride up the hill, making certain in- 
 quiries of Callister. 
 
 The boy, for he was scarcely more, turned his horse
 
 316 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 into the trail making up the steep incline, picking the 
 way carefully, the posse waiting below, sitting silently 
 on their saddles, their horses steaming and panting, 
 the men keeping their eyes on Randolph. 
 
 Suddenly half-way up the hill they saw him rein 
 in his horse sharply. A shadow outlined itself dis- 
 tinctly on the road in front of him. Then a figure 
 emerged from the bushes, darted out into the open and 
 plunged towards the house. It was all the matter of a 
 second's time. Mason, startled out of his lethargy for 
 the moment, yelled excitedly, " It's Orton. We've got 
 him. Come on, come on ! " 
 
 The cry was like giving a new scent to bloodhounds. 
 At full gallop, bending forward in their saddles, utterly 
 reckless of the consequences, regardless of life or limb, 
 the horsemen dashed up the steep, narrow trail in a 
 furious scramble to reach the top. But quick as they 
 were, the fugitive was quicker. His worst fears were 
 realized. Enemies were after him. He was chased by 
 a crowd of men who were closing in on him and would 
 stop at nothing. It was a question of his escape or his 
 life; he knew that very well, but he had no* mind to be 
 killed. Fear lent him speed. Before young Mason 
 reached the door, Orton had burst in on Callister, a 
 terrible figure, with the agony of death and the frenzy 
 of fear upon him. 
 
 It was the figure of his dream. Instantly Callister 
 recognized that. The livid countenance, staring eyes, 
 dropped chin, trembling body. Orton, the immaculate,
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 317 
 
 stood before him a staggering creature, his fine clothes 
 torn, his face blood-streaked, his collar gone, his shirt- 
 front ripped. All the breath seemed gone from his 
 body. He could not speak, only stood steadying him- 
 self against the closed door, looking at Callister, try- 
 ing in vain to ask for the only protection that would 
 save him. 
 
 By now the noise outside had increased. The track- 
 ers were thundering up to the porch. There was the 
 sullen growl of voices, the tramping of many feet, 
 short, sharp questions, exulting replies. 
 
 Suddenly Lawler's voice rang out, " We've got him 
 now, sure! Miss Gabrielle, your work's about fin- 
 ished." 
 
 Involuntarily Callister shrank back, his face blanch- 
 ing. The move and look steadied Orton's wits. 
 
 " For God's sake," he began, speaking with horrid 
 rapidity, "don't let them take me! They'll kill me. 
 I've done nothing to deserve death. I wasn't just 
 honest, perhaps, but I should not be killed for that. It 
 isn't fair not to give me a show. You won't let them 
 in? Fifty to one isn't a man's fight. Mr. Callister, 
 you'll protect me? My God, you won't give me up to 
 them, will you? " 
 
 The clamor at the door was becoming menacing. 
 The men were impatient. Knocks, pounds, a dozen 
 voices demanded entrance. As Callister advanced, 
 Orton fell on his knees, shrieking in terror, " You 
 are not going to let 'em in ? You are not going to give 
 me up? "
 
 318 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 Reason was fleeing before an insane fear. 
 
 " No, I am not going to give you up. Be a man, 
 Orton. Let me get to this door before they break it 
 down. I will see fair play; be assured of that." 
 
 Orton retreated to a far corner, crouching down be- 
 hind a table, his eyes rolling ceaselessly from right to 
 left. Surely there must be some way of escape. He 
 was not going to be led out from this room to die. 
 Men could not be such brutes. If he could only slip 
 out unobserved, before the others came in! But how 
 was he going to get away ? How ? How ? He tried 
 to reason, to collect his thoughts. But, added to all 
 his mental agony, he was choked with thirst and so 
 near the point of exhaustion that if a way of safety 
 had been thrust before his gaze, his legs would have 
 refused to carry his body across the room. 
 
 Meanwhile Callister had thrown open the door, and 
 with a rush the pursuers were in the room, carrying 
 Callister almost off his feet, forcing him against the 
 wall before he had time to step one side. 
 
 " Where is he ? Where is the nigger ? " shouted 
 Hale. 
 
 " Bring him out ! " 
 
 "Where's the coward?" 
 
 " You don't want to shield a nigger, Mr. Callister." 
 
 " We'll get him, no matter where he's hid." 
 
 Cries, shouts, oaths rang out in quick succession. 
 
 But already Lawler had spied Orton. 
 
 " There he is, hiding behind that table. Come out
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 319 
 
 of there, you cur! Step out before I help you, you 
 poor attempt at a man," he vociferated. 
 
 As if the words were some prearranged signal, the 
 oilmen advanced in a group on the cowering 1 creature. 
 He arose from his crouching position, keeping the table 
 between him and his enemies, bracing himself with a 
 last fleeting show of courage. 
 
 " Stop where you are! The first one of you that 
 comes near will get hit." And at the words the muzzle 
 of a revolver confronted the crowd who were swarm- 
 ing in on him. It was the aggressiveness of a 
 wounded animal at bay. 
 
 For a second the instinct of self-preservation caught 
 at the men, checking their advance, dominating them 
 against their wills. 
 
 During that second Callister made himself heard. 
 " What does this mean ? " he cried. " What has this 
 man done that you pursue him into my house, like 
 mad dogs in an unequal battle against one of their 
 kind? This isn't the work of men, it's the action of 
 cowards. I have promised Orton my protection, and 
 I'll see that he gets it unless you convince me that you 
 are doing right." 
 
 The sight of twenty men, alert, fresh, strong, turn- 
 ing against this one poor being, trembling on the verge 
 of total collapse, had roused Callister as no appeal 
 from Orton could have done. The scorn in his voice 
 communicated itself to everyone in the room. There 
 was a pause. Some of the party looked up sheepishly, 
 others conferred together in a barely audible mutter.
 
 320 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 Callister felt his advantage and followed it up. As 
 he spoke, he was listened to in sullen silence. 
 
 " Can't any of you answer? " he demanded. " You, 
 Lawler, I have always known you as a just man, even 
 though you are a fire-eater. What's the meaning of 
 this performance ? " 
 
 But instead of Lawler's voice, it was Orton's that 
 rose in reply. Some sense of the actor's instinct that 
 feels its audience awoke in the wretched man, making 
 him see in the present situation a chance for producing 
 an effect, even winning sympathy to himself. He low- 
 ered his revolver and, straightening up, faced the men. 
 
 " Let me answer you, Mr. Callister. None of 
 these men can- know the truth of this performance, or 
 the beginning of a story that could have such a sequel 
 as this. I have negro blood in my veins. I am the son 
 of a mulatto woman and a white man. My father is a 
 gentleman more than that, rich, highly respected, re- 
 fined and possessed of those instincts and feelings that 
 come from a long line of fine ancestors. Every one of 
 those instincts fell to me. I inherited everything from 
 my father, nothing from my mother. I was not a 
 negro in anything except in the knowing that black 
 blood was in my body. It was a fact never concealed 
 from me. 
 
 " You who are white can't know, can't understand 
 what such a knowledge means. I was a boy whom no 
 one would have dreamed of as colored. I felt as white 
 people feel, looked as white people looked, enjoyed
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 321 
 
 what white people enjoyed. Every thought and feel- 
 ing of an innate refinement and cultivation belonged 
 to me, yet I was damned from birth by the fact that I 
 was black not white. At every turn I was con- 
 fronted with it. No one apparently cared that I suf- 
 fered. And I did suffer. God, how I suffered ! " 
 
 As he talked, fear fell from him, even the impulse 
 that had prompted the recital of his life's history. For, 
 as the details of his miserable boyhood passed in re- 
 view before him, all else paled into insignificance be- 
 side those thoughts and recollections. He was telling 
 of his real sorrow, his real tragedy. His voice grew 
 clearer. All evidences of his cowardly flight disap- 
 peared from his countenance. He dominated the 
 crowd that had come seeking his life. 
 
 " It was nothing to me that this father whom I 
 never saw supplied me with every comfort, even with 
 luxuries. What could anything amount to in place of 
 that ever-present fact that I was in all law a negro? " 
 he continued. 
 
 " The older I grew, the more I was goaded and 
 hounded. There were enough who knew of my birth 
 to prevent my ever being able to conceal it. No chil- 
 dren could play with me except those jet-black crea- 
 tures whom I loathed. I could not endure the way I 
 lived. I was dumb and blind to every issue of life ex- 
 cept that hateful fact of my birth. I could not go on 
 much longer as I was. 
 
 " Finally I sought out my father. I put the case to
 
 322 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 him, begging him" to look at me, to put himself in my 
 place. I was flesh of his flesh, blood of his blood, bone 
 of his bone, yet I was a colored boy with no place in 
 the world outside the confines of my mother's class 
 and race. I told him I had come to hear my sentence, 
 not to threaten, not even to rebel, but that my deter- 
 mination was made. If he turned me away with noth- 
 ing to hope for but a return to that other life, I would 
 kill myself. I had reached the limit of my endurance. 
 My mind was irrevocably fixed. 
 
 " His answer gave me freedom. Perhaps it was 
 my terrible grief that touched him, perhaps it was my 
 close resemblance in face and feature to himself. He 
 settled a fixed income on me and told me to go where 
 I chose, do what I liked and live like a white man, 
 away from those who knew the secret." 
 
 There was a moment's hush. The turmoil of that 
 old deathless grief, reawakened, tugging at his heart, 
 had fastened on the man again, scourging him with 
 the lash of shame and unhappiness. His dream of liv- 
 ing away from those old shadows was gone. His 
 hopes and ambitions for a place in life had perished. 
 He forgot where he was, forgot by whom he was sur- 
 rounded. His appeal, begun in a vain hope for safety, 
 a story to soften those men, had ended in oblivion to 
 all his surroundings. The great ache was in his heart, 
 tears of torture rolled down his pallid cheeks. 
 
 The crowd shifted uneasily. That this new phase, 
 this true insight into the matter, had struck a respon-
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 323 
 
 sive chord, it could not be denied. Perhaps the poor 
 devil wasn't so bad after all. The force of all the 
 men's enmity, their anxiety for revenge, softened. 
 They waited for Orton to continue, every eye fixed 
 on him, impressed and interested in spite of them- 
 selves. 
 
 " I traveled and traveled. I began to live. At 
 every breath I drew, I said to myself, ' I'm free, I'm 
 white. Life is sweet.' I began to love things. I 
 watched the moon and the stars and marveled. I sat 
 by the sea and watched the sun set into its depths. I 
 loved the mountains and the valleys, the trees and 
 flowers and the creatures of earth, and believed at last 
 in the goodness of the Creator. Once or twice I came 
 across people who knew my history. I fled from their 
 sight like a man possessed. I could not have that old 
 life recalled, the old sensations revived. I could not 
 endure to be reminded of that which I was struggling 
 day and night to forget. 
 
 " I came here by accident. I remained because of a 
 woman. There was the first huge mistake, the first 
 inexcusable act of my life my crime. I loved as a 
 man loves but once. A love that when it comes, he 
 braves all, dares all, to win and possess. I told noth- 
 ing why should I? I believed I was safe. I had 
 plenty of money to support my wife in ease. I had 
 education. By virtue of instinct, thought, feeling 
 and inheritance I was a gentleman. I could not see 
 that I wronged her, although I understood that in her 
 ignorance lay my safety and her happiness.
 
 324 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 " How she discovered the truth I thought so care- 
 fully hidden, I don't know. But from the moment of 
 that abrupt start for Flaremont, I guessed what had 
 occurred. 
 
 " I have played my game. I have lost. Why I fled 
 for my life I don't know. I have no desire to live. I 
 see now the futility of trying to keep hidden the posi- 
 tive things of existence. My birth, atom though I am, 
 cannot be suppressed. It will rise to confront me at 
 every turn, at every crisis. It is a hopeless, hopeless 
 struggle." 
 
 The man stepped from behind the table. He ad- 
 vanced towards the silent group circled about him. 
 " I am ready to go with you. I do not care what you 
 do with me. My life is spent. Only make the end 
 quick." 
 
 But not one from the crowd made a move. Their 
 hearts had been stirred, their minds filled with new 
 thoughts, new ideas. They held their peace, looking 
 at one another embarrassed, confused, feeling suddenly 
 very much out of place. Orton could have passed 
 on and out of the house, if he had so chosen, without 
 so much as a detaining hand stretched out in his 
 direction. The terrible part of his drama had been 
 lived to completion. What came now would be but 
 the reeling in of the last skeins of his tangled life's 
 threads. 
 
 With great deliberation, Orton crossed to where 
 Callister stood. " I thank you for the protection you
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 325 
 
 gave me during a time when I had little idea of what I 
 did. I shall presume on your hospitality no longer." 
 
 Before any one of the twenty men in the room 
 guessed what he was about, his hand carried that 
 revolver, loaded for so different a purpose, to his own 
 temple. There was a flash, a sharp report, an excla- 
 mation of horror. As the man fell, a scream rang out, 
 and Callister shrank at the sound. 
 
 Gabrielle stood at the open door, her eyes widened 
 in terror, speechless, bewildered at the outcome. Ani- 
 mated only by a single thought that still clung to her 
 with its tenacity of purpose, she pointed towards the 
 prostrate figure. 
 
 " Bring him out; carry him if he won't walk. He's 
 only pretending. I've been getting the stake ready. 
 Bring him out. I'll tie him, yes, and light the match, 
 too; and by the flare of his burning body we will all 
 dance and dance and dance. He cannot escape me 
 oh, no; oh, no! " 
 
 The words rose to a vast shriek, then the jangling 
 nerves snapped. Her voice trailed off unintelligibly 
 to silence, and in the numbness that crept slowly over 
 her, Gabrielle forgot for the first time in three tortur- 
 ous days the suffering, the shame, the anguish she had 
 endured.
 
 326 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 The campaign of the Independent oil producers 
 promised to be both lively and interesting. All in a 
 short time Lawler, Hale, young Mason and Jarvis 
 were inextricably involved in the new work of politics, 
 and the committee, organized on the street to put 
 Jarvis forward as candidate for governor, over- 
 whelmed with business. Contrary to all expectations, 
 and in the face of discouragement, amusement and 
 ridicule, Jarvis' boom grew rapidly all over the state. 
 Earnest supporters of the cause he represented arose 
 on all sides. Men who for years had taken no interest 
 in the state campaigns that were invariably arranged 
 and run according to the dictates of the X. & Y. Rail- 
 road, suddenly roused themselves to an active interest. 
 
 Perhaps the time had come at last for a redress of 
 their wrongs by the ballot. Perhaps those kings who 
 controlled men, courts, politics, laws, were to be come 
 up with at last by the people. Perhaps a halt was 
 about to be called to their unchecked advance over 
 the state, their reign put an end to, the usurping 
 tyrants banished and the rule of the people begun. It 
 was a fight worth watching, worth taking an interest 
 in. The people were tired and their patience abused
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR T>27 
 
 by the reckless and compelling influence of this X. & 
 Y. road that operated under the giant eye of a cyclo- 
 pean trust. 
 
 Hated, dreaded, railed at, as it had been for years, 
 the road had gone on its way, carrying out its plans, 
 relegating to itself whatever it needed, commanding 
 the entire territory like some vast army organized and 
 directed by an able and far-seeing general. It owned 
 the state. So far, for any man to utter a protest 
 against the outrage of such an ownership had about 
 the effect of a flea that seeks to annoy an elephant. 
 
 But everything now pointed to a change. One 
 of the surprises of the Independents' campaign had 
 been the lack of any effort put forth by the adherents of 
 the corporation to counteract Jarvis' ever-increasing 
 popularity. Even the trust papers that were the con- 
 fessed organs of the X. & Y., working solely in the 
 road's interest, either said nothing of this new man in 
 politics, or in a conservative and respectful way com- 
 mented on the candidate from Flaremont. This was 
 so contrary to the usual method of the press that the 
 effect on the public was instantaneous. Everywhere 
 the matter was openly discussed, and Jarvis' adherents 
 beamed. Never had they dreamed of obtaining so 
 easy a start. 
 
 The political managers of the road met in conven- 
 tion and nominated their man, Gilson Meredith. It 
 was a tame affair and excited small comment. The 
 man himself had suddenly lost his pompous manners,
 
 328 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 his anxiety to keep before the public. He was no 
 longer voluble, his tongue glib with ready assertions. 
 He declined interviews, declaring he had nothing to 
 say. He was unfailingly courteous, smiling, affable, 
 bland, but he would not talk, yet neither did he con- 
 vey the idea of any uneasiness as to the outcome of 
 the final election. 
 
 All these circumstances increased the exaltation in 
 the camp of the Flaremont oilmen. They had pre- 
 pared to put up a great fight, but things were all com- 
 ing their way. Hale shouted and sang. On every 
 occasion he would mount a curb somewhere and ad- 
 dress himself to anyone who would listen. He pos- 
 sessed a sudden mania for speech-making. Even 
 Randolph's heavy face brightened, as a wandering 
 gleam of hope was called up from somewhere out of 
 his forlorn heart. 
 
 Only Jarvis understood; understood, yet could not 
 explain. He had wished and watched and prayed 
 for opposition one word of denunciation, one growl 
 of defiance from that colossal force he had been sent 
 out to invite to mortal combat. If for one brief mo- 
 ment the managers of the X. & Y. had shown fear of 
 his campaign, Jarvis would have shouted for joy. But 
 this silence, vast, unbroken, inscrutable to the out- 
 siders but very clear to him, was pregnant with his 
 doom a doom that would descend upon him, carry- 
 ing with it the weight of death. 
 
 Perhaps of all the opponents in the state who might
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 329 
 
 have run for the Independents, not one could have 
 been so to the trust's liking as himself. For they had 
 him cinched; he never forgot that. 
 
 Occasionally, in a kind of curious desperation, 
 Jarvis wondered what proof would be offered against 
 him when the time was ripe for accusation, and if the 
 charge would be actual murder. But by whatever 
 means they would overthrow him, this corporation 
 had no fear of defeat. It progressed as calmly on its 
 way now as always, its cohorts just as well disciplined, 
 its methods just as irresistible, its results just as indis- 
 putable. It was not necessary for the general public 
 to understand. Sure of its power, conscious that its 
 wishes were law, knowing that it could well afford to 
 be quiet, unruffled, even dignified, this force advanced 
 .on its foes. Yet if honesty did not win, they were 
 ready to spread pitfalls. They were equally prepared 
 to bribe, corrupt, resort to any knavery and trickery, 
 any meanness to overcome their enemies. Nothing 
 daunted them. Not the least of their faultfinders 
 should escape. They showed neither mercy nor 
 humanity to opposers. 
 
 Daily the absurdity, the utter futility of what he was 
 being put forward to do, took stronger hold of Jarvis. 
 At the same time dread and shame grew in his heart, 
 weighing him down with a leaden uneasiness. How 
 could these oilmen dream they were going to get the 
 better of the railroad? Instead of rejoicing, seeing 
 victory perched on the shoulder of silence, why didn't
 
 330 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 their common sense tell them that the X. & Y. was 
 simply waiting the favorable moment when to speak 
 was to condemn? These Independents should have 
 known better. They who had crossed lances with a 
 trust should have realized by now the resources, the 
 impregnability, the impossibility of balking a gigantic 
 organism in any matter of grave moment. Anyone 
 could see with half an eye that absolute control of the 
 state's politics was essential to the X. & Y. If the 
 Independents would only wake up to this ostentatious 
 silence of the road, would only once suggest to him that 
 perhaps the enemy was playing a deeper game than ap- 
 peared on the surface, it would give him a chance to 
 speak before it was too late. 
 
 But nothing of the sort happened. Jarvis was 
 caught in the current of events, swept along with a 
 dizzying rapidity he hardly knew where and with 
 never a chance to break loose. 
 
 The executive committee evinced a wonderful apti- 
 tude for politics. Lawler especially was making a 
 name for himself. He was working for the realization 
 of a dream, and he went about its accomplishment with 
 the readiness of an old-time campaigner. He began 
 by making himself everyone's friend. At all times his 
 affability was unfailing. By a supreme effort he even 
 succeeded in curbing his temper and overcame his in- 
 tolerance of others' opinions to such an extent that he 
 could listen calmly to their expressions. He was 
 going to seize every opportunity that advanced his
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 331 
 
 candidate, but at the same time he took care that his 
 own popularity extended. He had come into the field 
 of politics unknown, untried, standing sponsor for a 
 new party. But instead of failing, he was conducting 
 a campaign that called immediate attention to himself 
 and would live memorable in the history of Texas. 
 
 Other leaders began to look up to him. He was con- 
 sulted, advised with, in every sense a central figure. 
 He showed a veritable genius for detail, nothing being 
 too trivial for his attention. He was full of plans and 
 devices. Every man who could vote was to be looked 
 after and won. And while not a doubt existed in Law- 
 ler's mind as to the outcome, and all the time he was 
 seeing the Independents' purpose an assured success, 
 he never for a moment relaxed his vigilance, nor 
 loosened his unshakable tenacity. 
 
 The convention that nominated Jarvis was a notable 
 one. But it remained for the candidate's own speech 
 to sweep the delegates off their feet with excitement 
 and enthusiasm and turn the tide all in his favor. In 
 the face of certain calamity, with his eyes wide open 
 to the result, with his whole mentality revolting against 
 the acceptance of this nomination, with his imagina- 
 tion on fire, and utterly beside himself with a species of 
 self-pity and horror, he stepped forward to the speak- 
 ers' stand, turned towards the audience, and made the 
 effort of his life to secure the very thing that would 
 bring upon himself crowning disaster; incurring the 
 fearful vengeance of the trust and its servant.
 
 332 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 There was no inspiration of the moment to make 
 him forget what was so indelibly printed on his mind. 
 No stress of emotions, not even the knowledge that he 
 was holding that vast audience under the spell of his 
 words, to help him through. There was nothing tend- 
 ing to lessen the strain and the understanding that 
 with every sentence he uttered, every vote that he won, 
 he brought that overshadowing doom perceptibly 
 nearer. 
 
 He did what was expected of him, accomplished 
 what Lawler hoped for and counted on. Calmly, 
 coldly, deliberately, swayed by no impulse of excite- 
 ment, he condemned himself to the scaffold for the 
 murder of Foster Meredith, that Gilson Meredith, the 
 railroad's candidate, might become governor of the 
 state. 
 
 When the final phrases were finished and Jarvis 
 ceased speaking, he turned away from the stage, hardly 
 conscious of the pandemonium that had broken loose. 
 The convention was in confusion, the continued roar 
 of applause drowned into an undertone by the calls 
 and yells of enthusiasm. Every man in the hall stood 
 on his feet, shouting, gesticulating. In the madness 
 of the moment all restraint fled. All at once a band 
 stationed at the extreme end of the building broke 
 into a quick, stirring tune. It was what was needed. 
 On the instant, delegates all through the building 
 seized their standards and fell into line, as at some 
 given and prearranged signal.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 333 
 
 The roar increased. A veritable tornado of sounds 
 leaped from every side. Songs, the trampling of feet, 
 the shrill blasts of music, howls of enthusiasm, surged 
 to the very rafters of the hall, piercing the roof and 
 vibrating out into the open air beyond. 
 
 Jarvis was the man, the cause he represented the 
 cause. It was not the result of a calm, cool, deliberate 
 consideration of facts, nor of what the candidate rep- 
 resented. Instead, emotions had been worked upon, 
 excitement aroused, sympathies touched, imagination 
 inflamed by such a torrent of words and such a flow of 
 eloquence that the most conservative listeners forgot 
 themselves, their feelings swayed irresistibly by Jarvis' 
 mighty oratory. He stampeded the convention. 
 
 After twenty minutes of such furious commotion 
 and inarticulate clamoring as had never before been 
 witnessed in a convention hall, Jarvis' nomination was 
 made unanimous, and a voice in the crowd cried out 
 his name. The call was repeated. A hundred voices 
 echoed the first cry, demanding his appearance, insist- 
 ing on another speech. But Jarvis was not to be seen. 
 He had disappeared, no one knew where. Lawler, 
 distressed, uneasy, hunted in vain. 
 
 In the midst of that march, surrounded as he was 
 by men gone too wild with the moment's excitement to 
 notice his departure, Jarvis had turned his back on 
 the throng. He crowded his way, pushing on through 
 the length of the room, finally reaching a small door 
 that led out to the back of the building. His face 
 was very pale, his shoulders bent, his lips pressed
 
 334 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 tightly together, his body listless with a semi-collapse. 
 He could not stay a moment longer and uphold the 
 miserable sham of his wretched position. He could 
 not face that crowd. His strength was gone, his cour- 
 age fled. He had betrayed his friends, ruined himself, 
 abandoned Theodora. A few weeks and it would 
 all be known. A few weeks and everything he held 
 dearest on earth would be swept from him, gone in 
 this last struggle to gain the upper hand of the enemy. 
 
 What a fool he was! What a fool he had been all 
 along! How much better if long ago, when the re^ 
 finery had burned and the enemy had shown itself in 
 its true colors, he had simply given up then, taken 
 Theodora and started away to begin over again some- 
 where else. It would have meant only a new trial, 
 taking up the threads of toil where they had been 
 broken short. He would have been safe, Theodora 
 would have been his, and happiness would have smiled 
 on them both. 
 
 But now his well was worthless, his money lost, his 
 hope of reinstating himself sacrificed. Now Theo- 
 dora, all unknown to herself, stood on the brink of 
 loneliness, staring the world in the face, penniless, 
 homeless, almost friendless, and he condemned. 
 
 " It isn't fair my God, it isn't fair ! There should 
 be some way out of this, some corner for escape ! " he 
 cried, his eyes staring straight before him, distended, 
 horrified as though he saw outlined on the landscape 
 the picture that was written so clearly in his own 
 mind.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 335 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 The days passed. Jarvis was on a tour of the state, 
 making speeches at every town he came to, holding 
 impromptu receptions, winning respect, commanding 
 confidence, securing votes. Sometimes he was absent 
 from Flaremont weeks at a time, making trips to the 
 extreme ends of Texas, overwhelmed with business 
 engagements. 
 
 At the beginning of the absences, Jarvis, distressed 
 at leaving her alone, had urged and begged Theo to 
 have someone stay with her, but the girl protested 
 against the idea. Her mind was occupied with con- 
 tentment and happiness to the exclusion of everything 
 else. She had no time to brood, to be lonely. She 
 followed the news of Jarvis' progress through the ter- 
 ritory, seeing in it the triumphal advance of a conquer- 
 ing monarch. His speeches were copied in every 
 paper. The country-side blazed with the wonderful 
 campaign of this rising political leader. Daily his 
 fame spread. 
 
 Theo's pride in him exceeded all bounds. Her child- 
 ish notion of Jarvis as a hero, a knight of old, lived 
 anew in her imagination. She saw him, single- 
 handed, entering the combat against a hydra-headed
 
 336 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 monster, with courage for his only weapon, honor as 
 his shield, honesty his coat of mail. He was the pro- 
 tector of abused and helpless men, the apostle of labor, 
 the champion of right. What a victory he would 
 achieve! Armed thus he was invincible, as all good 
 is invincible before wrongs. 
 
 The subject of love had never been spoken between 
 them again since that night of Orton's tragic death. 
 At first she had wondered at this. Then seeing in 
 Jarvis' face certain lines of trouble and knowing the 
 demands made so continually upon him since the be- 
 ginning of this campaign, she ceased to think much 
 about it. Until the strenuous activity of political life 
 was over, he belonged to his party. Afterward 
 Her hands trembled and her body quivered at the 
 vague thoughts of that "afterward." 
 
 Meanwhile Callister was living in a state of mental 
 uncertainty and irresoluteness very new to him. The 
 coming of Gabrielle in her half-crazed state of rage 
 and despair; the pitiful and dramatic sequel to her 
 courtship and marriage; the fact that all in so short 
 a time she was near him again, free, bound by no ties 
 except those of remembrance, affected him more 
 deeply than he cared to acknowledge, even to himself. 
 He had been rather ashamed of the first impulse that 
 had seized him after Orton's death. But its duration 
 had been brief. Barely had it come, before he crushed 
 it aside, kneeling by the stricken man, the flush of 
 guilt still burning his face.
 
 THERE WAS A CHAXdE, AN 'EVIDENCE OF LIFE. Page 376.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 337 
 
 In the excitement that followed Orton's suicide, 
 Callister had assumed all charge of affairs, he alone 
 keeping his wits about him. Gabrielle was carried 
 from his house, raving with delirium. For a week her 
 life hung by a slender thread, ready to snap short at 
 the slightest touch. Then her youth and strength, 
 combined with her mother's wonderful nursing and 
 matchless care, conquered. But during all that time 
 of mingled suspense and uncertainty, Callister haunted 
 the Mason house like a ghost, wracked between hope 
 and fear. He took his place there as if by right, and 
 Mrs. Mason accepted his coming without a word, glad 
 of his assistance, numb to any question other than the 
 life of her daughter. He practically filled the place of 
 a son to her, for Randolph seemed utterly lost to any 
 demands of the moment. 
 
 For hours the boy would sit motionless, sometimes 
 talking aimlessly to himself, oftener silent, lost to his 
 surroundings, incapable of thought. Boy that he was, 
 he no longer looked young. The shock of future op- 
 portunities betrayed, past hopes destroyed, the present 
 become a blank, was more than his gentle, almost 
 effeminate, nature could withstand. Calamity; irrep- 
 arable calamity forced on him from a source he neither 
 could nor would have hurt, had driven him into a 
 state of semi-imbecility. 
 
 Quietly, unostentatiously, Callister came and went, 
 happy in doing, even indirectly, for the woman he 
 had loved so long and so devotedly, until at last the
 
 338 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 day came when she was able to go out into the sun- 
 shine. Callister picked her up in his arms, quivering 
 as he felt her so close against him, not trusting his 
 eyes to rest on her face that was upraised to his own. 
 When she was completely settled and they were alone, 
 he seated himself beside her, wondering at the change 
 he saw. Before him was not the Gabrielle of old, not 
 the finished coquette, the girl of magnificent beauty, 
 who posed to attract attention, relegating to herself 
 the homage of every man who crossed her path. 
 Beautiful she was still and always would be, but in 
 the presence of such a sorrow as she had known, a 
 sorrow that had all but killed her, the insincerity, the 
 duplicity, the selfishness, hardness and triviality of her 
 nature had disappeared. 
 
 She had met experience, come in sharp contact with 
 the world, and had suffered suffered cruelly. But 
 she had also learned. And the knowledge she had ac- 
 quired had brought with it womanliness, truth, no- 
 bility. 
 
 Accustomed as he was to read human nature, Cal- 
 lister saw the immense change even before she had 
 uttered a word. When she did speak, she but con- 
 firmed his impression. 
 
 " I want to talk with you, Mr. Callister," she began, 
 her voice vibrating with a note of feeling very new to 
 her. " I could not say what I am going to, to any- 
 one else but you. Somehow I don't think anyone else 
 would understand. Neither should I feel that I de-
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 339 
 
 served your friendship unless I tried to explain/' She 
 stopped suddenly. 
 
 " Miss Gabrielle, I do not want any explanation of 
 anything. My friendship for you does not rest on 
 anything you may do or say," he returned. 
 
 " I know that. You are very, very kind to me. You 
 have always been kinder than I deserved. But I want 
 to say what's in my mind. I have been thinking and 
 thinking about it. Mr. Callister, why did you just 
 call me Miss Gabrielle? " 
 
 He looked up, startled, hardly crediting his ears. 
 " Why, I thought I supposed " he stopped, stam- 
 mering, unable to continue, not knowing what to say. 
 
 " That I wanted to forget," she put in. " Well, I 
 don't. I do not want to forget one thing. I want to 
 remember him all that I have been through, all 
 that I have learned. Oh," she cried, " if you could 
 know what my heart was, what my life was up to the 
 very minute of his death. I was a living monument 
 of deceit, egotism, selfishness. Think, think what 
 my cry was to those men, even when he lay dying. 
 Think how, to satisfy my own outraged pride, I tracked 
 him. How I led a group of men, inspired by me with 
 desperation, on a man hunt a hunt for my own hus- 
 band, and I the wildest one among them, the one most 
 eager to oh, oh, to burn him." 
 
 " Stop ! " cried Callister, his own face as white as 
 hers. " Don't recall scenes that can only harm you. 
 Gabrielle, Gabrielle, any woman would have done as
 
 340 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 you did. You have nothing to reproach yourself with. 
 You were tried beyond a woman's endurance." 
 
 " No woman, no real woman, would have done as I 
 did. I was in fault from the first. I was living a sham 
 and a lie when I married him. For I only pretended to 
 love him. It was never real love that I gave. It was 
 satisfied pride, vanity appealed to by his attention, his 
 appearance, his manners. I ought never to have mar- 
 ried him, but I did. I took him ' for better, for 
 worse.' I took him for my husband. I promised him 
 at God's altar obedience and devotion. If I had been 
 true to> myself or to him, if I had possessed any spark 
 of firmness or truth or womanliness, all remembrances 
 of those promises could not have been swept from my 
 mind by a suspicion of his birth. For it was a sus- 
 picion to begin with. Afterward I discovered it for a 
 fact. Even then I should never have sought such a 
 revenge, a revenge compatible with the Middle Ages. 
 Perhaps I could not have lived with him after after 
 I knew " she gave an involuntary shudder " but I 
 should have remembered that he was as much God's 
 child as I. Color does not alter that. We are all chil- 
 dren of the same Creator, whether our faces are red, 
 white, yellow or black. A real woman would have kept 
 her sorrow sacred; kept secure her loyalty to the man 
 she called her husband, at least before the world. Oh, 
 Mr. Callister, I want you to believe me sincere in this. 
 I have gone over and over the dreadful thing, relived 
 it and relived it, and I am so ashamed not of him,
 
 ESIIEK THE OPPRESSOR 341 
 
 but of myself. I have seen myself in my true char- 
 acter, and it sickens me. I cannot bear to have you 
 remember me as I was or as you saw me up there 
 that night at your house. The world and the whole 
 sense of things has changed to me really and truly 
 changed. I believe I can be a true woman now, and 
 as a woman who may be worthy of it, I want your 
 friendship. I ask you for a friendship that will begin 
 now, fresh and new, not be carried over from the time 
 that is past when I was beneath a good man's notice." 
 
 Callister had risen to his feet. His face glowed. 
 All the lines of care and sadness that had marked his 
 countenance for years were obliterated in the joy that 
 radiated from his eyes. What he had just heard from 
 her lips even more than the sight of her, more beauti- 
 ful than ever before, crowned with the dignity of this 
 newly-awakened womanhood, brought matters to an 
 abrupt climax. Her gentleness, her strength, her 
 wonderful victory over every base element in her char- 
 acter, but above all, the knowledge almost uncon- 
 sciously conveyed to him of her infinite capacity for a 
 love that had as yet never been roused, brought him 
 to his feet with a cry. 
 
 " You ask my friendship. Gabrielle, I love you. 
 For years you have had my love, my worship, my 
 adoration," the words came in a torrent. " For years 
 I could have found all the happiness I asked in kneel- 
 ing at your feet and praying to you as I would pray to 
 a saint. I have loved you until that love became part
 
 342 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 of myself. With every beat of my heart I have cried 
 your name ; every thought of my mind has been of you ; 
 every emotion of my soul has had its existence in you. 
 You have been before my eyes in everything I have 
 seen; you have radiated about me, the very essence of 
 love, influencing everything I have done. You have 
 been life itself to me for longer than I can tell. I think 
 God put love for you in me when I was born. I think 
 for this love I came into the world. 
 
 " Oh, Gabrielle, Gabrielle, it is my turn now to ask 
 forgiveness. I had no right to speak. It is not the 
 time to say things like these. I should think o>f you, 
 not of myself. But for so long you have been as one 
 lost to me. Just now, when a breath of hope conies, it 
 is small wonder I act like one beset with madness. In 
 all the violence of my love and longing, I never looked 
 forward to a chance when I might speak like this, con- 
 fessing my love. I am not meaning to wrong you or 
 hurt you. It was the abruptness of knowing that 
 really, really you had never loved. It roused a vague 
 hope. Something came to me; I can't explain. It 
 made me let go of what I have kept locked in my soul 
 so long. Can't you see that I have loved you in the 
 secret silences of my being until I am hardly respon- 
 sible ? The very best of me yes, and the worst of me, 
 too has gone into my love. It is all of me. I think 
 it is such love as mine that makes a man good or bad, 
 for I could commit crime to win you, yet having won 
 you, no power could make me do evil. Earth would be
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 343 
 
 Paradise with your love, as Heaven would be empty 
 without your presence. I love you, Gabrielle. My 
 God, how I love you ! " 
 
 The man turned away. He threw an arm across 
 his face to hide the tears that he could not control. 
 The reaction from this outburst had left him no longer 
 master of himself. He was quivering from head to 
 foot, shaken with a passion so intense that it had be- 
 come physical pain. 
 
 For so long Callister's abnormal power for love had 
 centered on this one object that it was tearing at his 
 heart, not to be kept within the confines of his soul. 
 Something of what he had suffered and endured for 
 her revealed itself to the woman who listened, half 
 frightened at the force and unrestrained violence of 
 this usually grave, silent man. 
 
 The adversity that had softened her had also given 
 her the ability to feel and to sympathize. Brusquely 
 her tired heart went out to him with a longing she 
 had never before known. She understood that great 
 happiness, great love, great peace lay for her in 
 a future shared with this man. The strength and 
 purity of his love echoed in her own breast. With 
 him she could forget the memories of that old, selfish 
 existence. Through him she could live down the 
 wretched years of the half wasted past. Because of 
 him and with his help she could reshape her purposeless 
 life, rewarding him with the tenderness and sweetness 
 that belonged to him by right of long-enduring love.
 
 344 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 On the other hand, she owed something to Orton 
 a certain respect, a retribution of some sort. 
 
 She turned to Callister. Her wonderful eyes sought 
 his. Her fragrant hair bathed in the sunlight was a 
 sheen of burnished gold. A faint trace of exquisite 
 pink, the coloring of a delicate rose, crept into her 
 pale, wan face that was almost pathetic in its new 
 beauty. 
 
 " Wait a little," she said, faintly. " I owe him some- 
 thing. Even though it was never love, even though 
 the Gabrielle who married him and the Gabrielle of 
 to-day are two different beings, still I owe him 
 something. You have been patient, very patient. 
 Wait just a little longer. Then perhaps. Oh, I have 
 never deserved such love," she exclaimed suddenly, as 
 Callister, with an inarticulate cry, threw himself at her 
 feet, raising her hands that lay unresisting in her lap, 
 kissing them with a reverence as of something holy. 
 " But I will try to be worthy try to requite you for 
 all you have done, all you have given." She finished 
 softly, then leaned back in her chair, faint from an 
 excess of conflicting emotions.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 345 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 It was the day before the election. Jarvis had re- 
 turned home. Lawler was expected in Flaremont that 
 night. Hale had been left in Austin to look after 
 Jarvis' interest, keep Lawler posted, and watch the 
 voting. Lawler had stationed his adherents the length 
 and breadth of the state to keep the voters in line. 
 
 As yet there had been no sign from the X. & Y. 
 not a move to show what their game was, and Jarvis 
 at the eleventh hour could still preserve a bold front, 
 his head high, maintaining the attitude of a leader. 
 The battle had not begun. 
 
 To have looked at him, a casual observer would 
 never have imagined Jarvis a man harassed and 
 goaded to his last stand. He was intensely quiet, per- 
 fectly natural. His face may have been too white 
 and marked with certain lines that made him seem 
 older than his years. But the truth was, he was mak- 
 ing the effort of his life, the one thought uppermost 
 in his mind being to preserve his dignity at whatever 
 cost. Not by one sign, one act, one quiver would he 
 suggest his real feelings. He had been given ample 
 time for preparation to meet what was coming. He 
 was ready for the test. He would face his accusation 
 and his downfall without a trace of weakness.
 
 346 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 A telegraph instrument had been put in his house. 
 The operator was already there. Theo's eyes sparkled 
 as she watched these evidences of Jarvis' connection 
 with public life. 
 
 " Oh, isn't it splendid ? " she cried, dancing around 
 him. " I know I shall sing and shout all day to- 
 morrow. How can you be so quiet ? Oh, isn't it all 
 fine, Bud, dear?" 
 
 " Why yes but you know, Theo, I'd rather never 
 have gone into this business. I like just an ordinary, 
 quiet, every-day sort of life just a cozy home with 
 you not a wide-open place that anyone and everyone 
 is at liberty to walk into," he observed, trying to speak 
 carelessly. 
 
 " I suppose you are right. It's my ambition for you 
 that makes me so glad. I like to have other people 
 value you as I do. As far as contentment goes, yes 
 I'm sure I would be happier to live just quietly by our- 
 selves, as we always have. But there have to be public 
 men, and " she drew herself up proudly " it is time 
 the people began to select their office-holders from the 
 ranks of honest, honorable men." 
 
 The click of the instrument in the front room re- 
 sounded through the house. Messages of more or less 
 importance followed one another over the wire at close 
 intervals. Jarvis leaned against the wall, smoking 
 cigarettes, reading the slips of yellow paper the oper- 
 ator held out to him from time to time. 
 
 About four o'clock word came from Hale. He was
 
 ESIIEK THE OPPRESSOR 347 
 
 detecting traces of uneasiness somewhere. Something 
 new was in the wind. He wanted Lawler at the wire 
 as soon as he arrived in Flaremont. 
 
 Not the slightest change crossed Jarvis' counte- 
 nance. He took out his watch. " The train is due at 
 5:10," he remarked. "I'll telephone the station and 
 leave word with the agent to have Lawler drive out 
 here directly he gets in." 
 
 After this matter was arranged, Jarvis called up 
 Callister, asking him to come over and spend the even- 
 ing. Callister acquiesced at once, his voice so joy- 
 fully exuberant that Jarvis, who knew nothing of the 
 affair with Gabrielle, wondered. 
 
 Less than fifteen minutes after Hale's message, a 
 communication flashed over the wire from, one of 
 Lawler's lieutenants in Austin. The enemy was up 
 to something to turn the tide in favor of Meredith. A 
 distinct uneasiness had been followed by vague rumors 
 traceable directly to the headquarters of the X. & Y. 
 cohorts. There were insinuations that something was 
 wrong with Jarvis a dishonorable past. The mess- 
 age went on, advising Jarvis to be ready to meet and 
 refute any libel manufactured by his opponents. 
 These opponents, being in a corner and knowing it, 
 would descend to anything rather than let the new 
 party win. Jarvis must stand firm, not lose his grit. 
 
 It took a moment longer than was necessary for 
 Jarvis to read this message. His mind was running 
 ahead of the present. What would the next word be?
 
 348 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 Step by step Meredith and his men were advancing. 
 It was just a wave of uneasiness now. Gradually that 
 uneasiness would expand into vague suspicion. At 
 the right moment suspicion would give way to open 
 accusation. Then would follow proo>f, the possible 
 challenge to his party to investigate the charges. 
 
 Investigate ! Jarvis groaned. The story Meredith 
 could tell would not bear investigation. Fresh calam- 
 ity hung in every tick of that wire. The click of the 
 instrument would yet sound his doom. With the 
 morbid curiosity that prompts a condemned man to 
 watch the erection of the scaffold on which his life 
 will end, Jarvis' gaze fastened itself on the telegraph 
 machine there under his eyes. For a moment, and in 
 spite of his iron rigidity, his self-control collapsed. 
 How Meredith would exult! How his friends, Law- 
 ler, Hale, the Masons, Callister, would stand aghast at 
 his betrayal of their confidence! How Theodora 
 But there he stopped, burying his face in his clasped 
 hands. He would not think of Theodora. He could 
 not bear it. 
 
 Suddenly from all over the state messages poured 
 in. It was a cause of wonder to Jarvis, even in his 
 misery, how completely the men of the X. & Y. had 
 covered the ground. The scheme that would assure 
 them success was worked out with masterly detail. 
 He was seeing another phase of the trust's controlling 
 poiver; the vast army of organized subordinates car- 
 rying out the plan of action concocted and agreed upon
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 349 
 
 in the head offices of the X. '& Y. that plan of action 
 involving not only their political supremacy, but the 
 exposure and absolute ruin of the man who had dared 
 enter the lists against them. 
 
 Callister and Lawler arrived almost together. Al- 
 ready the intimation of something wrong had been 
 conveyed to Lawler. Tie was uneasy, a little excited, 
 but still unshaken in his belief of ultimate success. 
 
 " I wish I could divide myself into a dozen men at 
 once," he exclaimed. " Those fellows will do the best 
 they can, but I ought to be all over the state from the 
 moment the polls open till they close. I knew Mere- 
 dith's backers would fight. I'm not alarmed at that. 
 It's the uncertainty of what they'll do that makes us 
 helpless." 
 
 He was running rapidly over the pile of messages 
 already stacked in a heap on the table. 
 
 In the midst of this performance, the instrument be- 
 gan again. 
 
 " Where from? " asked Lawler, turning to the oper- 
 ator abruptly. 
 
 " Austin," said the operator. 
 
 " From Hale," muttered Lawler, staring at the 
 clicking instrument as though his eyes could pierce 
 through the mysterious sounds. 
 
 Callister and Jarvis drew nearer. The silence was 
 unbroken. No one stirred or spoke. Jarvis remem- 
 bered the scene afterward. Lawler perturbed, uneasy, 
 his face set, leaning forward to watch the writing of
 
 350 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 the message; Callister tall, erect, untouched by any 
 excitement or foreboding, interested in the events 
 transpiring only because they had to do 1 with the friend 
 whom he admired; the operator stolid, intent on his 
 work, his countenance exhibiting neither concern nor 
 interest. 
 
 " Lord, it's a long one! " broke in Lawler, shifting 
 uneasily. 
 
 Still the seconds passed, lengthening into minutes. 
 A clock in the next room struck six times. Theodora 
 appeared in the doorway, smiling, about to announce 
 " Supper." But something in the men's strained at- 
 titudes kept her silent. The smile died on her lips. 
 She looked from Lawler to Callister, finally to Jarvis. 
 He did not meet her eyes. His mouth was drawn, 
 his whole attitude listless and desperately weary. 
 Somehow his face looked pinched. With the keen 
 observation of a woman who loves, she could detect 
 certain evidences of some deep-seated trouble, some- 
 thing more than the excitement or worry contingent 
 upon this strenuous campaign. 
 
 The operator laid aside one sheet of paper, continu- 
 ing the same message on a second piece. With an 
 exclamation of impatience, Lawler seized upon the first 
 and read aloud: 
 
 " The enemy has shown its hand. The Evening 
 Telegram, the recognized organ of the X. & Y., prints 
 on its first page of the evening edition a story, connect- 
 ing Jarvis with two crimes, committed years ago>.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 351 
 
 They make the assertion of having certain proofs in 
 their possession showing the James Jarvis who aspires 
 to the governor's chair in Texas, is one Jarvis Ken- 
 nedy, a street waif of New York, later a thief, later 
 still a murderer the murderer of " 
 
 The first sheet was finished. Lawler dropped it. 
 " Hurry, give me the next. Hell, you're slow ! " Be- 
 side himself, the man leaned towards the operator, 
 who still wrote, and began reading the words over the 
 other man's shoulder: 
 
 " murderer of Foster Meredith, Gilson Meredith's 
 brother. The article is well written. After its accusa- 
 tion it goes on with an appeal to the citizens, advising 
 them to think seriously before they vote to put a thief 
 and a murderer into the highest position that it lies in 
 their power to give. The writer refers to Jarvis as 
 an unknown adventurer who, failing to make an hon- 
 est living and having a gift of a certain kind of ora- 
 tory, tours the state, calling upon the class of beings 
 who are always in a turmoil of discontent, to right 
 their wrongs by the ballot, overthrow a power that 
 is, according to his definition, an octopus feeding on 
 the lives of all who fall into its clutches. Then follows 
 a eulogy of the X. & Y., a presentation of their side 
 of the oil fight and a glowing tribute to Meredith. 
 The city is in a white heat of excitement. The paper 
 is being circulated from house to house not sold, but 
 given away. Everyone is reading it. Advise me 
 fully. Get a denial from Jarvis in every morning 
 paper that will print it. There's no time to lose. Al- 
 though the story is not altogether believed, the article 
 is having its effect."
 
 352 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 " Hell ! " broke in Lawler. 
 
 "It's worse than blackmail; it's libel," exclaimed 
 Callister. 
 
 A gasp came from the open doorway where Theo 
 stood. 
 
 Before a question could be put to Jar vis, the wire 
 was busy again ; messages following one another from 
 every town where Lawler's men were stationed, all to 
 the same effect, only less detailed than Hale's tele- 
 gram. Suddenly the telephone rang. Callister has- 
 tened out to answer the call. He came back a mo- 
 ment later, his face serious, his eyes angry. 
 
 " They are carrying this thing too far. It's out- 
 rageous. Young Mason telephones that great bundles 
 of an early issue of the same Evening Telegram that 
 Hale refers to came out on the express-car of the 
 5:10 train the one you came on, Lawler. From 
 what he says, the paper contains a duplicate account of 
 this political affair, this accusation against Jarvis. 
 Boys evidently hired long ago for the purpose are dis- 
 tributing copies from house to house in Flaremont. It 
 shows what they are doing all over the state. By 
 George, the affair looks dirty." 
 
 " Liars, slanderers ! " shouted Lawler. " But wait. 
 We ain't downed yet. We'll get busy now ourselves, 
 show what we can do. They made a bad break when 
 they offered proof. That will defeat their purpose. 
 Now instead of listening to messages, we will send 
 a few. The fun is going to begin right now. Jar-
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 353 
 
 vis, you write down a denial of the charges. It's 
 silly, of course, but it's necessary. I'll do the rest. 
 Before those paid liars of the X. & Y. are an hour 
 older, we'll send 'em the challenge for proof. We've 
 plenty of time. It's only seven o'clock. I'll get off 
 a wire to Hale before eight. Now then, Jarvis, get 
 busy. By the Lord Harry, we'll make 'em wish they 
 had never mentioned the word * proof.' ' 
 
 " I cannot understand political methods like these," 
 cried Callister. 
 
 Theodora moved closer to Jarvis. The man was 
 standing a little too erect, a little too rigid; and again 
 with the understanding that was born of love, she saw 
 what these other two did not. Her eyes widened, half 
 in terror, half in distrust. She was afraid of she 
 hardly knew what a something she would not give 
 voice to. Callister had begun to write at Lawler's dic- 
 tation, both men busy at their work. Noticing this, 
 the girl bent her head. 
 
 " What is it? What is it? " she whispered. " You 
 must not care for their lies. Lies cannot hurt you, 
 dear." 
 
 The man grasped her arm. 
 
 " Suppose," he whispered in turn " suppose they 
 were not lies." 
 
 She backed away, staring at him, paling in sudden 
 terror. 
 
 " Don't torture me like this ! " she cried, still keep- 
 ing her voice lowered. " Oh, oh, what is going to
 
 354 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 happen? Can't you speak to me? Can't you explain 
 what you mean? Don't you see the suspense of such 
 a doubt is more than I can endure? " 
 
 As the confession trembled on his lips, the operator 
 held out another message. 
 
 " Read it," called Lawler. " It's probably a dupli- 
 cate of the others. I can't stop to take it." 
 
 The operator read monotonously: 
 
 " Mr. James Jarvis, 
 
 " Flaremont. 
 
 " Before I yield to the demands of my party and 
 relinquish the proofs in my possession connecting you 
 with the murder of my brother, Foster Meredith, is 
 there any statement you would care to have made? I 
 shall accept your silence as a negative. 
 
 "(Signed) GILSON MEREDITH/' 
 
 " The impudence ! " cried Callister, indignantly. 
 
 But Lawler wheeled upon Jarvis. This message 
 was more than he bargained for. A brusque sensation 
 of fear was wrenching his mind open to doubts, mak- 
 ing him half afraid to put the question that Jarvis 
 must answer. 
 
 " You will make a statement, of course ! " he de- 
 manded. 
 
 Jarvis caught Theo's hand, holding it tight in his, 
 seeming to derive strength from close contact with the 
 woman he loved. Then he faced Lawler. 
 
 " No, I do not intend to make a statement." 
 
 Lawler gazed at him, amazed.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 355 
 
 " But you must. Your party will go to pieces, 
 utterly annihilated, if you don't speak. You must 
 stand by the cause you lead. It's in danger. You see 
 that?" 
 
 Jarvis nodded. " Yes," said he. 
 
 " You know what your silence will be taken for? " 
 
 Again Jarvis bowed his head. 
 
 " Surely you are not afraid of the charges? " 
 
 " Not afraid of them. I have been expecting them 
 too long." 
 
 " For God's sake, what do you mean ? Why should 
 you, an innocent man, expect such calumny as this? 
 How can you sit still and never give the lie to your 
 vilifiers?" 
 
 " I cannot give the lie. The charges are true." 
 
 " True! " Lawler gasped. " Hell ! " 
 
 "Jarvis, my friend, what do you mean?" 
 
 A low cry came from the girl's white lips. She 
 looked at him a moment, half bewildered, then pressed 
 closer to him. After all, no matter what he accused 
 himself of, he was still the man she loved. 
 
 There was a pause, a profound silence. Lawler 
 sank limply into a chair. Callister and Theo stood 
 beside Jarvis, uncertain just what had happened, just 
 what to expect, but determined to make him see their 
 devotion. 
 
 Jarvis pulled at the collar about his throat as though 
 he found it difficult to breathe. " There there has 
 not been a day since I went into this political business
 
 356 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 that I have not expected this charge to be hurled at 
 my head," he began. " Couldn't you guess from the 
 railroad's silence, from Meredith's silence, that they 
 held something back? Did you dream you could 
 nominate me so easily unless the railroad wished the 
 thing to go through as it did ? Why, you walked right 
 down the path they laid open marched up to the 
 altar of sacrifice they had prepared and gave me into 
 their hands, the living victim to their political cere- 
 mony. I couldn't have won at any stage of the game 
 if they had not wanted me to win. I had no more 
 chance of being elected to-morrow than I have now of 
 escaping the penitentiary or the gallows. The next 
 thing that will happen will be my arrest. Meredith 
 doesn't intend that I shall escape paying in full the 
 price of my opposition. By to-morrow night I will be 
 jailed. I have watched it come step by step for weeks. 
 Why, I have counted every advance, have seen my 
 own hands literally pulling the ropes of the halter 
 about my neck." 
 
 " In Heaven's name, why did you ever go into the 
 thing? " cried Lawler. 
 
 " I said all I could to have another man run in my 
 stead. You wouldn't listen to it. The others wouldn't 
 listen. I was involved in the campaign before I had a 
 chance to say no." 
 
 " But if you had once hinted " began Lawler. 
 
 "That I was a thief and a murderer? Convict 
 myself before I knew positively that the truth must
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 357 
 
 come out ? Tell the secret that I had struggled to live 
 down? No; I was too great a coward. I went on, 
 hoping against hope until I saw that every move we 
 made met with the ominous silence of the other party. 
 Then I knew it was all up. There wasn't even a chance. 
 I had met that same silence from that same enemy 
 before in the organizing of our company and building 
 the refinery. There was the same quiet acceptance of 
 our doings then by the same enemy. I knew it to be 
 the stillness of doom. Lawler, you should have 
 recognized it, too. 
 
 " No; we are cinched in our campaign as we were 
 in our legitimate business. You can't buck against 
 a gigantic wall and not get hurt. Eberlie is perfectly 
 right. We small fry dance on the strings pulled by 
 the big corporations. Meredith doesn't care for me 
 as the murderer of his brother, but it was a convenient 
 episode. I was after what he wanted, and it gave him 
 the power to put me out of the running. I don't know 
 what proof he has, but it's safe proof; you can rest 
 assured of that. It was an easy method to get rid of 
 an opponent. They didn't even have to resort to cor- 
 rupt politics to down me. This probably is as near 
 an honest campaign as they ever conducted. I feel I 
 have not lived in vain." 
 
 The bitterness in his voice silenced even Lawler. 
 Callister paced the floor. Theodora, immovable as 
 a statue, still clung to Jarvis' hand. Only the operator 
 went calmly on with his work at the instrument that
 
 358 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 clicked ceaselessly as message followed message over 
 the wires. 
 
 Finally Lawler arose. The thoughts that crowded 
 in on him seemed to be sticking dry his reason. The 
 crushing blow delivered to all his hopes and ambitions 
 staggered and confused him. All in a brief instant 
 ruin was upon him. He took his hat, and muttering 
 something about the closeness of the room, moved 
 away, closing the door after him. 
 
 Then Callister turned to Jarvis. He led him from 
 the room, across the hall, out onto the broad, cool 
 porch, where the noise of the telegraph could not pene- 
 trate with its continuous, oppressive click of denuncia- 
 tion. 
 
 The three were alone together, these three bound 
 by the closest ties of love and friendship ties that 
 no calumny, no lies, no slander could break. Darkness 
 enshrouded them. The infinite repose of the earth, 
 as it lay cradled in the embrace of night, communi- 
 cated itself by degrees to the wretched man's troubled 
 heart. All the bitterness of regret, the unavailing 
 anguish, the physical and mental grief that had torn 
 at him for months past, shaking him and rending 
 him with its violence, melted away before the peace 
 and quiet of this undisturbed night. 
 
 A vast stillness brooded everywhere. The infinite 
 calm of a stupendous creation assured of the omni- 
 presence of its Creator. 
 
 How little all else mattered in the face of knowl-
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 359 
 
 edge like that ! What a tremendous lesson old Mother 
 Earth could teach to the children she housed if they 
 would but listen. The omnipresence of the Creator. 
 The omniscience of God. The omnipotence of the Al- 
 mighty. The futility of struggles, strifes, hard feeling, 
 avarice, greed. The necessity of faith, brotherly love, 
 absolute trust. Doing one's best in all seasons, 
 leaving the rest to the care of the Supreme Under- 
 standing that never for the briefest instant forgets or 
 overlooks the merest atom fluttering through space. 
 
 Through all eternity the earth, making no struggle, 
 sees the seasons come and go, bringing alternate storm 
 and sunshine, each in its turn giving of its kind, the 
 whole working in harmony for the accomplishing of 
 good. The stars, the moon, the sun, swinging to the 
 same great cadence of universal perfection, altering 
 not a jot in their action because of the disturbance of 
 man, held in their course by the Immortal God. 
 
 Man alone seemed rebelling against the stupendous 
 mystery of creation, righting blindly through his ex- 
 istence, stumbling on his way, denying help. Man 
 alone resisting the force that gives him life man, 
 who of all things is the only one made in the image 
 and likeness of his Creator. Man, who in his steady 
 march from the Adam to the Christ awakens to his 
 at-one-ment with the Supreme Being only on his self- 
 made cross of crucifixion. 
 
 In the increasing darkness of advancing night, 
 Jarvis told his story to Callister and Theodora. Told
 
 360 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 it simply, easily, with none of the hopelessness that 
 had characterized him for so long. After the recital 
 was finished, the three talked together till long past 
 midnight. A wonderful new peace came to Jarvis. 
 He saw that the story of his youthful crimes had not 
 estranged his friend. He saw that all his horror and 
 dread had been suffered for no purpose. Theodora's 
 love had strengthened rather than failed. What were 
 opportunities lost, money sacrificed, a future dark with 
 disaster, so long as love remained? 
 
 All at once, in the midst of a long pause, the opera- 
 tor appeared at the doorway. 
 
 " I think you should have this message, sir," he 
 said to Jarvis. " Shall I read it? " 
 
 " If you will be so kind," replied Jarvis. 
 
 " It is from Mr. Hale in Austin to you : 
 
 " Evidently considerable truth in rumors. I have 
 it direct from headquarters that a warrant is out for 
 your arrest and will be served some time to-morrow. 
 Unless you are sure of yourself, be on your guard." 
 
 " Thank you." Jarvis' voice was quiet, very calm, 
 very courteous. 
 
 But Theodora sprang to her feet. "Jarvis, what 
 will happen?" she cried. 
 
 " My arrest, imprisonment, later my trial." 
 
 " And then," she moaned. 
 
 " The end," came from Jarvis, barely above a whis- 
 per.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 361 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 And that was to be the end; the end of a romance, 
 finished almost before it was begun; the compensation 
 for years of trial and endeavor; the recompense for 
 sufferings, endurings, strivings; the third act of the 
 drama, bringing it to a close. It was as if already 
 the breath of death had passed through the room. 
 
 " No, no, no ! " cried Theodora, beside herself with 
 grief, rocking her body to and fro. 
 
 " There must be some way out of it," Callister re- 
 peated again and again, with fierce insistence. " Why 
 not go away from here until the excitement is over 
 then" 
 
 " Then what ? Cal, do you think Meredith would 
 ever give up? If I should escape now, it would be all 
 to no effect. I would be nothing less than a hiding 
 criminal, a hunted man driven from place to place, 
 pursuit always at hand, harried like some wild animal, 
 dodging corners, redoubling on my tracks, recoiling 
 from my own shadow. That's what my life would 
 be. Meredith is determined to put me out of the way, 
 and he will persist until he succeeds." 
 
 Callister was silent, looking off into the darkness 
 with unseeing eyes.
 
 362 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 " How still it is ! " murmured Jarvis. " Who could 
 think that this wonderful peace must be disturbed all 
 in a short time, broken into by the echoes of clattering 
 hoofs and the shouts of men armed with the law's 
 authority? I have counted the days for months past, 
 seeing this very thing at hand; but now it has come, 
 I am still unready to meet it." 
 
 Theodora leaned forward, laying her head on his 
 shoulder. All her strength seemed deserting her. 
 " Oh, I can't bear it," she sobbed. " I can't bear it ! " 
 Her body shook from head to foot. 
 
 Callister's face hardened. " But you aren't sure of 
 Meredith's proofs. This may not be the end. Good 
 Lord, because a man wants another convicted of mur- 
 der is no sign he can have it done. There are courts, 
 laws, judges, juries." 
 
 " Yes, but you forget we are up against the trust. 
 The trust that controls those very courts and laws and 
 judges and juries. Meredith is simply the mouthpiece 
 of the X. & Y. The road is but the cat's-paw of the 
 Eastern Petroleum Company. It isn't the murder of 
 Foster Meredith that any of them care about. That 
 is simply a side issue, a means to an end. I am to 
 suffer primarily for daring to arouse public feeling 
 against the rule of a certain power in this state; be- 
 cause I succeeded so well I must be put out of the 
 way, put beyond the reach of repeating the offense. 
 There will be no danger of an acquittal, rest assured 
 of that. They are sure of their evidence. It will
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 363 
 
 condemn. They wouldn't dare run the risk of any- 
 thing else. I might indeed be a foe if public sympathy 
 were added to my popularity. No, Cal, I will either 
 swing or suffer electrocution." 
 
 At that word Callister uttered a cry. The very 
 sound rang with encouragement. Why had he not 
 thought of it before? It was a desperate means, but 
 the situation was desperate. If there was absolutely 
 no hope, if Jarvis must suffer the extreme penalty of 
 the law for a murder done in self-defense, to satisfy 
 by his death a colossal enemy of no heart, no compunc- 
 tion, no forgiveness, why not resort to the only means 
 of escape offered? 
 
 A force that could revive life in animals might 
 safely be counted on to compel the same restoration in 
 a human organism. The principle was identical. 
 Life was life. 
 
 There was no time for deliberation. His mind con- 
 centrated on the one object. Callister turned to Jarvis. 
 Briefly he explained to him those past experiments, 
 those incomprehensible revivifications, those stupen- 
 dous tests of a power still in its infancy, still so little 
 understood. 
 
 " At first I thought I was deceived. A hundred 
 doubts came into my mind. Was the dog really dead ? 
 I could not trust my own senses. I went at the second 
 experiment afraid, afraid of what would not happen, 
 more afraid of what would. But the second brought 
 conviction. I succeeded beyond my wildest expecta-
 
 364 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 tions. Jarvis, I was not deceived. I can restore dead 
 creatures to life. I can go farther than that. I believe 
 I dare attempt the life of a human being. Will you 
 trust yourself to me? I would never ask such a dis- 
 play of supreme confidence did I not realize that noth- 
 ing is left but a desperate chance. Let me electrocute 
 you, report your death, bring you secretly to life and 
 to to freedom." 
 
 Callister's eyes were glowing- He stood with one 
 hand on Jarvis' shoulder. He was the experimenter 
 now, the enthusiast, making the final effort towards 
 a tremendous accomplishing, arrogating to himself 
 mysterious powers. 
 
 Jarvis had listened with intense absorption. He 
 asked a few questions. Callister's answers seemed 
 to reassure him. 
 
 The night was passing. In the East the first faint 
 glory of approaching day was shining just above the 
 horizon. The earth stretched, murmuring to the call 
 of the morning. The air became warm. The day 
 of his undoing had dawned. Jarvis held out his hand 
 to his friend. 
 
 " Do with me as you think best. I am ready to trust 
 my life in your hands," he said, and at his cry a daz- 
 zling ray of sunlight burst over the edge of the world 
 and fell full upon his erect figure. 
 
 An hour later Theodora rapped at Father Beauvais' 
 door. Her face was ghastly to her lips. She stretched 
 out a cold hand and put it in the priest's.
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 365 
 
 " Come with me," she said. " Come with me." 
 
 The priest looked at her, startled at her coming, be- 
 wildered by her appearance. " What is it, my child ? 
 Tell me where I am to go, what I am to do." 
 
 " You are coming to Callister's house to marry me," 
 she whispered, her voice quivering. " We must not 
 lose a minute. Every second counts. Mr. Callister 
 says every second counts." 
 
 The gentle little man shook his head, troubled. 
 " This is a strange summons to a marriage, Theodora. 
 You are sure, quite sure, it is to your marriage, 
 that everything is right ? " 
 
 "Yes, yes; only come." 
 
 Gradually she had drawn him out to the phaeton 
 that had brought her here. He could get no explana- 
 tion, no further words. Not understanding what had 
 happened, deeply disturbed, the priest took his seat 
 beside her, wondering at the immense change in this 
 girl who had all in an instant grown from a happy, 
 care-free child into a dignified woman, bearing the 
 evidences of a heavy sorrow. 
 
 Silently they drove past the convent, descending the 
 hill, hurried across the level country to the trail, climb- 
 ing slowly to the eminence where Callister's house 
 perched, forlorn and bare. Once inside, Callister met 
 Father Beauvais, explaining hastily that Jarvis was 
 obliged to go away on a long journey. Briefly he out- 
 lined Theodora's position. She was in no way related 
 to Jarvis, As a safeguard to her, this marriage was a
 
 366 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 necessity. More than this, the two loved one another. 
 There was no reason why they should be denied mar- 
 riage. On the contrary, every reason that they should 
 become husband and wife. 
 
 His judgment overruled by his fondness for this 
 girl whom he had watched over since her child- 
 hood, feeling something was being withheld, but too 
 trustful of Jarvis and too sensitive to put further 
 questions, Father Beauvais performed the marriage 
 ceremony between Jarvis and Theodora. Directly 
 it was over, the little man, looking like a miniature 
 saint in his white surplice, took Theodora in his arms. 
 The girl was sobbing convulsively. He soothed her 
 tenderly, murmuring words of comfort, glancing in- 
 terrogatingly at the two men who stood near. 
 
 " I hope I have done well," he faltered. " I could 
 not bear to think I had brought sorrow to her. She 
 is a good girl, a dear child." 
 
 But Theodora interrupted, her voice husky, barely 
 audible. " He is all my world, father. I could not 
 live without him. He is my happiness, all all I want. 
 If separation should come I must die." She tried 
 bravely to assume some control of herself, but the 
 terrible ordeal yet to come had taken all courage away. 
 
 She kissed the priest good-by, clinging to him half 
 in terror, knowing that his disappearance would be 
 the signal for those other preparations to begin. Jar- 
 vis finally led her away, all but fainting, into an ad- 
 joining room, where she sat dumb with fear, staring
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 367 
 
 at him with eyes that had little understanding in 
 their expression. 
 
 Meanwhile Callister had gone to the laboratory. 
 Everything possible had been done. Word was left 
 at Jarvis' house that on the arrival of the officer with 
 the warrant, the man should be directed to Callister's 
 as the place to find the one he sought. Immediately 
 after the officer's departure, word was to be telephoned 
 ahead of him, thus giving Callister a few minutes' 
 warning. 
 
 After considerable deliberation, the electrician had 
 decided to have that officer see Jarvis' dead body. 
 Such an announcement made to Meredith by a man 
 in his pay would carry conviction. Also it had been 
 Callister's wish to send Theodora to the Masons' 
 during the time of the fearful ordeal. But wild as she 
 was with anxiety and grief, two things this girl had 
 insisted upon : her marriage, and her presence near 
 the laboratory while the experiment took place. She 
 would not be denied. She promised to be very quiet, 
 very obedient. She would not intrude herself where 
 she would be in the way. But stay she would. 
 
 Neither she nor Jarvis heard the telephone ring. 
 They paid no heed to Callister's voice answering the 
 call. Close together in what he believed and she feared 
 was their last earthly embrace, they were unconscious 
 of everything that went on about them. It was not 
 until Callister put his hand out, touching Jarvis, that 
 the man looked up.
 
 368 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 " Come," said Callister, softly. 
 
 Theodora, with a cry that rang through the house, 
 started up, a protest of grief on her lips. But at Cal- 
 lister's glance of warning, she pressed the back of her 
 hand to her mouth, forcing back the words, and stood, 
 her eyes distended, drawing one long breath after 
 another. 
 
 " My darling, you must be brave. For my sake, 
 dear. Remember it is only ' adieu,' not good-by. I 
 am coming back to you again." 
 
 She made a great effort. " I know," she gasped. 
 " I am brave. Go oh, go now quick, or I can't 
 let you leave at all." 
 
 Her face was like stone. Never in all the years that 
 followed was the expression of that moment's supreme 
 anguish quite obliterated from Theodora. It set its 
 stamp in her eyes, on her voice, in each line of her 
 countenance, in every move, every curve of her whole 
 being. It was the transfiguration from lighthearted- 
 ness to great seriousness, from youth to age. 
 
 Jarvis laid himself down on the table, folded his 
 arms, looked up into Callister's face with the faintest 
 trace of a smile, and said calmly, " I am quite ready." 
 
 Callister could not answer. By a great effort he 
 was hardening every emotion, crushing down every 
 impulse, knowing he could not give way now. He 
 kept his station by the window, his eyes fixed on the 
 road below. 
 
 " We must wait their appearance," he said, finally,
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 369 
 
 in a muffled tone. " I cannot let you lie any longer 
 after that first shock than I can possibly help. When 
 I see the officer coming up the hill I'll give it. 11 
 doesn't take long to " 
 
 Callister stopped short and gasped at the word he 
 was about to speak. 
 
 " To kill? " finished Jarvis. 
 
 Callister nodded. 
 
 Silence fell. The minutes passed. An interminable 
 wait ensued that was terrible. The tension of both 
 men was drawn to the point of snapping. Every 
 second Callister could feel his courage oozing, his 
 grip deserting him. What was he doing? What had 
 he proposed? 
 
 Suddenly down the road rose a cloud of dust. Not 
 one rider, but three were coming on rapidly. Who 
 were they ? 
 
 In absolute quiet, standing motionless by the window, 
 Callister watched the approach of the men. As they 
 drew near the foot of the trail, he uttered an exclama- 
 tion of satisfaction. The strange man, evidently the 
 officer for whom they waited, was accompanied by 
 Lawler and young Mason. There was no mistaking 
 the men. The time had come. 
 
 Callister turned. He trembled violently. His heart 
 gave a lunge, then seemed to hang poised in his throat. 
 There must be quick work now. Had he the courage 
 to proceed? Already the sound of galloping horses 
 could be heard on the hill.
 
 370 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 " Jarvis my friend is it all right?" he asked, 
 in a voice all beyond his control. 
 
 " Steady steady, Cal this won't do*. You are 
 saving me from the hangman, don't forget that, old 
 fellow. If I'm worth such a salvation, go ahead," 
 Jarvis replied. 
 
 " God forgive me if I am doing wrong," muttered 
 Callister, the words catching in his throat. 
 
 Jarvis closed his eyes. Callister leaned down. He 
 grasped the wire. The electric machine was throwing 
 off showers of blue sparks. A second's hesitation, 
 then silence. 
 
 A knock on the door of the laboratory, followed by 
 the sound of a strange voice calling on him to open, 
 roused Callister. He straightened up, casting a last 
 look at the table. Before he could cross the room, 
 Lawler shouted out: 
 
 " It's no use. I've done all I could. Mr. Jarvis, 
 Mr. Callister, he's got the warrant all right. You will 
 have to give in. I've done all I could." 
 
 Callister slid back the bolt. The heavy door, crossed 
 with iron braces, swung open. Lawler was in front. 
 Close beside him, the officer. Just back of these two, 
 Randolph and Theodora. 
 
 Whether it was the look on Callister's face or the 
 ominous silence which greeted their arrival, some in- 
 stinct of disaster born of the moment communicated 
 itself to the men. They stopped short in their advance, 
 the officer shifting awkwardly from one foot to the
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 371 
 
 other. Lawler stared ahead into the big room ; young 
 Mason retreated a couple of steps. 
 
 " Well," exclaimed the man with the warrant, " this 
 \\aitin' ain't gcin' to help matters along. Mr. Jarvis 
 Kennedy, you might as well come out. I have an order 
 here for your arrest, and I mean to serve it." 
 
 " You have come too late," said Callister, in a low 
 voice. 
 
 " What skipped? " vociferated the man, furiously, 
 giving a start towards the open door. 
 
 " No dead." 
 
 The words were followed by a brief lapse of horri- 
 fied stillness. Then an inarticulate cry, a fearful 
 sound was heard, and Theodora burst into the labora- 
 tory. Whether she had hoped until now that some- 
 thing might alter the necessity of taking that desperate 
 chance, or that something would occur at the last 
 moment to make his death an unneeded prelude to his 
 escape, she could not herself have told. But somehow 
 she had never expected this. Even the agony of 
 knowing that he was to die by Callister's hand had not 
 prepared her for the sight she saw. 
 
 He lay on his back, rigid, his eyes partly open and 
 rolled far back in his head, his mouth drawn, his heart 
 motionless, and his face so white that the skin seemed 
 made of paper. There was no pretense here no sub- 
 terfuge. Jarvis was dead. 
 
 Dazed, numbed, she sank on her knees beside him, 
 paying no heed to the cries and exclamations of the
 
 372 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 three men who had crowded close around the table. 
 That dreadful sight had driven every consideration 
 from her mind. 
 
 Lawler pressed forward. The sweat broke out on 
 his forehead. One great oath passed his lips, then he 
 stood in silent contemplation of the man whose life 
 had been given that the battle of the people against 
 a corporation might be decided. Young Mason caught 
 his breath in a sharp cry, not ashamed of the tears 
 that filled his eyes and coursed down over his cheeks. 
 
 But the officer, after a moment of stunned surprise, 
 advanced and bent over the rigid body. He put his 
 hand out to feel of the heart, to assure himself of no 
 trick. It was just then that Theodora, looking up, 
 caught sight of him. It was enough. All her latent 
 faculties rose in a mighty protest. 
 
 " Stop ! " she cried, in a voice that startled the officer 
 and called the other men to their feet. Catching at 
 the outstretched hand, she hurled the man aside. 
 Then she rose to her full height, a terrible figure. 
 
 " How dare you enter this place to profane the spot 
 hallowed by his presence? How dare you put out a 
 hand to touch a body sacrificed to an heroic martyr- 
 dom? You and your masters have killed him; that 
 should satisfy you. You have hounded him to his 
 death. You have taken his life to save your own 
 future. Is not that wretched knowledge enough, that 
 you come here to intrude on our sorrow? Uncom- 
 plainingly he has met the end of your vengeance, keep-
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 373 
 
 ing silent yes, even dying to protect you from the 
 people's wrath. Does not even that fact daunt you or 
 check you? Oh, I have not his patience. You will 
 not listen to the cries we utter for mercy. You drive 
 us, ride upon us, kill us, but for once you shall hear 
 me. I will not keep this silence any longer. You have 
 killed him. You have had your say. Now listen to 
 me, and my cry is the cry of the people. 
 
 " I shall curse you and the men whose paid agent 
 you are, with every breath I draw. Morning, noon 
 and night I shall curse you. In pain, in suffering, in 
 sorrow I shall curse you. May such anguish as you 
 have brought on others recoil on yourselves! May 
 such injustice as you inflict on the innocent return to 
 you a hundredfold! May no undertaking prosper 
 with you! May those whom you love and cherish 
 die in agony before your eyes! May your homes be 
 desolated and your children go in want! May God 
 Himself turn a deaf ear to your supplications and deny 
 you the comfort of His all-abiding love! Now, go 
 go ! Carry my word back to those who sent you. Go 
 quickly as you love your life, or I shall do more than 
 curse I shall kill ! " 
 
 Her eyes flamed with semi-insanity, her hair was dis- 
 heveled, her body trembling, her arms upraised. Like 
 an avenging fury she had uttered her call, and the man 
 whose coming had made this tragedy of Jarvis' death 
 possible, quailed before its menace. He took his de- 
 parture hurriedly. Lawler and Mason followed after
 
 374 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 him, horror weighing on them intolerably, the memory 
 of Theodora's wild face haunting them, a specter not 
 to be forgotten. 
 
 But immediately they were gone, the girl collapsed. 
 The reaction was as violent as the outburst itself. 
 Weeping with an uncontrollable violence, over- 
 wrought, alternately pacing the floor and crouching 
 by the door that she would have guarded with her 
 life, she seemed to have lost all power of restraint. 
 
 Once Callister started to go to her. She motioned 
 him back. 
 
 " He needs you. He, not I. Go to him. Do what 
 you said 3^ou could. My reason, my life, hangs on the 
 result there." 
 
 The time dragged on. The work that Callister had 
 so dreaded early that morning, now became the pivot 
 of all his interests, all his desires, all his hopes. He 
 felt no despair. He exerted himself to the limit of 
 his understanding, sure of results, certain of him- 
 self. The inexplicable influence of the forces he was 
 dealing with, forces that controlled life, staying a very 
 soul in its new flight, kept his thought steadied. It 
 was a miracle that transpired under his gaze; no one 
 could deny that. The realm of God was intruded 
 upon by an outsider. A being of the Almighty was 
 called back from the embrace of death, his spirit 
 banished for the moment from the glories of Heaven, 
 redemanded by the earth. 
 
 It was an intrusion permissible only through the
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 375 
 
 purest motives. A profanation beyond the confines of 
 human rights, that a wrong might be righted. The 
 laws of limitation, ordained by God, overstepped 
 that a life started on its way handicapped through 
 no fault of its own, perishing before its time, could 
 enter again on a fresh start. 
 
 Higher and higher mounted the sun. The world 
 smiled and basked in its caresses. The long sweep 
 of rolling country, ending at last only when the foot 
 of those distant mountains was reached, lay green 
 and silent in a midday slumber, unconscious of the 
 strifes that had taken place so near. The drowsy 
 hum of animal life filtered into the grim laboratory 
 where death struggled for a final victory over a man. 
 Once the faintest echo of the bells at the convent came 
 stealing into the silent room, and at the sound some 
 remembrance of a long-practiced custom brought 
 Theodora to her knees, crossing herself, her face up- 
 raised. 
 
 Suddenly, in the midst of her devotions, the girl 
 opened her eyes, brought back to the present with an 
 abruptness she could not understand. Quickly she 
 looked up. Callister had moved. He was no longer 
 erect, but bending close to that rigid figure, his head 
 resting against the other's breast. 
 
 For the moment Theodora stood transfixed, her 
 wits galloping with alternate dread, hope, breathless 
 expectancy, unendurable suspense. 
 
 \Yhat had come what had happened ? Surely some
 
 376 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 change to make Callister look as he did. Gradually 
 she drew nearer the table, hardly daring to breathe, 
 listening intently, dizzy with awe. 
 
 Stooping over, she stared for a second, then seized 
 Callister's arm, started to speak, paused, afraid of her 
 own voice. 
 
 There was a change, a change for which there 
 were no words, an evidence of life, returning against 
 its will from a freedom it desired. 
 
 For the third time Callister stood on the brink of a 
 manifestation that deprived him of all self-mastery. 
 A sense of shame at this practice of blasphemy over- 
 came all feeling of relief at the results. He cried 
 aloud for forgiveness, grief rising in his heart, irre- 
 sistible, overflowing. 
 
 He had demanded Jarvis' life. All unaided had 
 killed his friend. Then relegating to himself the 
 powers of Divinity, had resurrected this man, re- 
 called his soul, violating the performance of a sublime 
 mystery. 
 
 As he watched the first elusive response to his 
 work, never had Callister felt so keenly the enormity 
 of his sin. He had mutinied against the Lord God; 
 doubted the Father's love, tenderness, mercy; pre- 
 sumed to put himself in the place of the Almighty, 
 in judgment of what had occurred. How could he 
 expect to be forgiven? He who had taken upon him- 
 self to interfere with the march of events, seeking 
 to readjust affairs of good, evil, justice, injustice,
 
 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 377 
 
 oppression, vice, greed, selfishness, from his narrow 
 standpoint of mortal understanding. He, an atom 
 in a stupendous creation watched over by an all-power- 
 ful God! 
 
 As Callister remembered these things he flung 
 himself on his knees, uttering a cry of contrition and 
 mental pain. 
 
 " Never again, O Merciful Father, shall I doubt 
 Thy wisdom. Never again shall I set myself up be- 
 fore Thee to say what is right and what is wrong. 
 In thunderings and earthquakes, in days of gloom, 
 tribulation, anguish and affliction, You still behold 
 us your children, and this your world. And as Thy 
 seal of harmony is set on all things, so are all things 
 good. If we struggle blindly, seeing only darkness 
 where the light is, then scatter the darkness in our 
 sight. Oh, Father, teach us to find our place and 
 keep it, to know our duty and do it. May our hopes, 
 not our fears, predominate. Make us conscious of 
 what Thou art, Thou, the symbol of strength, power, 
 love and good. Always the good." 
 
 A flood of thoughts rushed through his mind. He 
 felt that not at God's cry did nations battle and evils 
 befall men. At the same time there came to him the 
 true significance of human suffering, human turmoils, 
 human strifes. He saw the explanation for men's 
 salvation wrought out in unspeakable anguish; the 
 necessity for discouragements in the perishable things 
 of this life, that the truth of immortality might be
 
 378 ESHEK THE OPPRESSOR 
 
 attained. He saw all fancied griefs fall before the 
 deathless joy of a new awakening, the birth of the 
 spirit. 
 
 Truth, belief, faith! On that trinity lay the foun- 
 dation for a future, secured to happiness. Though 
 the world fall, man in his higher nature will live, 
 live to learn, to overcome, to know that as in Heaven 
 so is it on earth. Though selfishness, deceit and evil 
 rage about him, he shall stand unhurt, untouched, 
 unshaken, supreme in his consciousness that all things 
 work together for the good, dwelling as the seers of 
 old, with God. 
 
 THE END.
 
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