Dawn Eleanor Porter (free novels to read txt) 📖

I went to Mr. Sanborn, andhe's perfectly willing to let us give it a trial. He's pleased andinterested, and says he will furnish everything for the experiment,including a first-class engineer to superintend; only he can't spendany time over it himself, and we'll have to get somebody else to takecharge and make arrangements, about the place, and the starting of it,and all that. And, Susan, now comes my second idea. Could we—do yousuppose we could get Mr. Daniel Burton to take charge of it?"

"Oh, Miss Dorothy, if we only could!"

"It would be so fine for Mr. Keith, and for all the others. I've beenhearing everywhere how wonderfully he got hold of John McGuire."

"He did, he did," cried Susan, "an' he was like a different man allthe time he was doin' it. He hain't had no use for his paintin'lately, an' he's been so uneasy. I'm sure he'll do it, if you askhim."

"Good! Then I will. Is—is he at home to-day?"

"Yes, he's upstairs. I'll call him." Susan sprang to her feet withalacrity.

"But, Susan, just a minute!" Miss Dorothy had put out a detaininghand. "Is—is Mr. Keith here, too?"

"Yes, both of 'em. Keith is in the settin'-room an' I'll call hisfather down. 'T won't take but jest a minute." Susan was plainlychafing at the detaining hand.

"No, no, Susan!" Miss Dorothy, too, had sprung to her feet. "If—if

Mr. Keith is here I'll wait. I want to see Mr. Daniel Burton first—

er—alone: to—to tell him about it, you know," she added hastily, as

Susan began to frown her disappointment.

"But I don't see why," argued Susan, her disapproving eyes on thegirl's flushed cheeks. "I should think you'd want to talk it up withboth of 'em."

"Yes, yes, of course; but not—not at first," stammered Miss Dorothy,plainly growing more and more embarrassed as she tried to appear lessso. "I would rather—er—that is, I think it would be better to askMr. Daniel Burton first, and then after we get it well started let himtell his son. So I'll come to-morrow in the morning—at ten. Mr. Keithis with Mr. John McGuire, then, isn't he? And over at his house? Iheard he was."

"Yes, he is, most generally."

"Then I'll come then. If—if you'll tell Mr. Daniel Burton, please,"hurried on Miss Dorothy, "and ask him to see me. And please, PLEASEkeep it from Mr. Keith, Susan. Truly, I don't want him to know a thingabout it till his father and I have—have got it all fixed up," shefinished.

"But, Miss Dorothy, I know that Keith would want—-"

"Susan!" With an imperiousness quite foreign to her usual manner, Miss

Dorothy cut in sharply. "If you don't promise to speak only to Mr.

Daniel Burton about this matter I shall not come at all."

"Oh, lan' sakes! Well, well, have it your own way," snapped Susan.

"You promise?"

"Yes, I promise." Susan's lips obeyed, but her eyes were stillmutinous.

"Good! Thank you, Susan. Then I'll come to-morrow at ten," nodded MissDorothy, once again her smiling, gracious self, as she turned to leavethe room.

CHAPTER XXX

DANIEL BURTON'S "JOB"

Dorothy came at ten, or, to be strictly accurate, at five minutes pastten. The additional five minutes had been consumed by her going out ofher way around the block so that she might see if Keith were visiblein one of the McGuires' windows. He was visible—and when she went upthe Burton walk at five minutes past ten, her step was confident andher face eager; and there was about her manner none of the furtive,nervous questioning that had marked her coming the day before.

"Good-morning, Susan," she began cheerily, as Susan answered her ring.

"Did Mr. Burton say he would see me?"

"He did. And Mr. Keith is over to the McGuires' all safe, so you don'thave to worry about him." Susan's eyes were still mutinous, her voicestill coldly disapproving.

"Yes, I know he is," nodded Miss Dorothy with a bright smile.

"Oh, you do!"

"Yes. Well, that is—er—I—" Under Susan's uncompromising frigidity

Miss Dorothy's stammering tongue came to a painful pause.

"Humph!" vouchsafed Susan. "Well, come in, an' I'll tell Mr. DANIEL

Burton you're here."

That the emphasis on "Daniel" was not lost was shown by the suddenbroad smile that chased away the confusion on Miss Dorothy's face, asSusan led the way to the living-room. Two minutes later Daniel Burton,thinner, paler, and more worn-looking than Dorothy had ever seen himbefore, entered the room and held out a cordial hand.

"Good-morning, Miss Dorothy. I'm glad to see you," he said. "What isit,—Red Cross, Y.M.C.A., Smileage Books?" The whimsical smile on hislips only served to emphasize the somber pain in his eyes.

"Not any of them. Then Susan didn't tell you?"

"Not a word. Sit down, please."

"Thank you. Then I shall have to begin at the beginning," sighed the

girl a little constrainedly as she took the chair he offered her. "I—

I have a certain project that I want to carry out, Mr. Burton, and I—

I want your help."

"Why, of course—certainly. I shall be glad to, I know." DanielBurton's hand had already reached for his check-book. "Any project ofyours, Miss Dorothy—! How much do you want?"

But Miss Dorothy lifted her hand, palm outward.

"Thank you, Mr. Burton; but not any—in money, just yet. Oh, it'lltake money, probably, to get it started, before it's on a self-supporting basis, I suppose. But it isn't money I want to-day, Mr.Burton. It—it's yourself."

The man gave a short, dry laugh, not untinged with bitterness.

"I'm afraid I can't endorse either your taste or your judgment there,Miss Dorothy. You've come for a poor stick. I can't imagine myself asbeing much benefit to any sort of project. However, I shall be glad tohear about it, of course. What is it?"

And Miss Dorothy told him. With her eyes shining, and her voicequivering with eagerness, she told the story as she had told it toSusan the afternoon before, but with even greater elaboration ofdetail.

"And so now, Mr. Burton, you—you will help, won't you?" she begged,in closing.

"Help! But my dear girl, how?"

"Take charge. Be the head and shoulders, the backbone of the wholething. Oh, yes,