Ranching For Sylvia Volume-554 by Harold Bindloss (chrome ebook reader .TXT) 📕

Losses Had Its Effect On Him.

On The Evening Of Her Return, Herbert Was Strolling Along The Platform

At A Busy Junction, In The Gathering Dusk, When He Noticed Bland

Speaking To A Porter.  Soon Afterward.  Bland Came Toward Him, And

Herbert Asked Him If He Were Staying In The Neighborhood.

"No," Said Bland; "I'm Passing Through; Only Been Here Half An Hour.

We're Probably On The Same Errand."

"I Came To Meet Mrs. Marston," Herbert Told Him.  "And I Broke My

Journey To Town With The Idea Of Being Of Some Assistance When She

Changed."

"They Don't Give One Much Time Here, And It's An Awkward Station,"

Herbert Said, With A Careless Air.

It Struck Him That Sylvia's Acquaintance With The Man Must Have Ripened

Rapidly, For He Was Well Informed Of Her Movements; But This Was No

Concern Of His.  He Had Thought For Some Time That A Match Between Her

And George Would Be Unsuitable.  For A While He And Bland Talked About

Indifferent Matters, And Then The Latter Turned To Him With A Smile.

"I Was Very Lucky At A Small Steeplechase," He Said.  "Backed A Rank

Outsider That Only A Few Friends Of Mine Believed In.  Do You Know Of

Anything That's Bound To Go Up On The Stock Exchange?  It's In Your

Line, I Think."

"I Don't.  Such Stocks Are Remarkably Scarce.  If There's Any Strong

Reason For A Rise In Value, Buyers Anticipate It."

"Then Perhaps You Know Of Something That Has A Better Chance Than The

Rest?  I Expect Your Tip's Worth Having."

"You Might Try--Rubber!"

"Rubber?  Hasn't That Been A Little Overdone?"

Herbert Considered, For This Remark Confirmed His Private Opinion.

Rubber Shares Had Been In Strong Demand, But He Thought They Would Not

Continue In General Favor.  The Suggestion Made By An Outsider Might Be

Supposed To Express The View Held By Small Speculators, Which Had Its

Effect On The Market.

"I Gave You My Idea, But I Can't Guarantee Success," He Said.  "You

Must Use Your Judgment, And Don't Blame Me If Things Go Wrong."

"Of Course Not; The Risk's Mine," Returned Bland; And Herbert Thought

He Meant To Follow His Advice.

A Few Minutes Later, The Train Which They Were Waiting For Came In, And

Herbert Tactfully Stood Aside When Bland Helped Sylvia To Alight.

Watching Her Face, He Concluded By The Absence Of Any Sign Of Surprise

That The Meeting Had Been Arranged.  Bland, However, Had Little

Opportunity For Conversation Amid The Bustle; And The Train Was On The

Point Of Starting Before Sylvia Saw Herbert.  He Got In As It Was

Moving, And She Looked At Him Sharply.

"I Didn't Expect You Would Meet Me."

"So I Supposed," He Told Her.

"Oh, Well," She Said, Smiling, "You Might Have Been Useful."

Herbert Thought She Might Have Thanked Him For Coming, Considering That

He Had, By His Wife's Orders, Made An Inconvenient Journey; But

Gratitude Was Not One Of Sylvia's Virtues.

"Did You Enjoy Yourself?" He Asked.

"Yes, On The Whole, But I've Been Dreadfully Unlucky.  In Fact, I'm

Threatened By A Financial Crisis."

Herbert Made A Rueful Grimace.

"I Know What That Means; I'm Getting Used To It.  But We'll Talk The

Matter Over Another Time.  I Suppose I'm Neglecting My Duties; I Ought

To Lecture You."

"Isn't Muriel Capable Of Doing All That's Necessary In That Line?"

"She's Hampered By Not Knowing As Much As I Do," Herbert Retorted With

A Meaning Smile.

Nothing Of Moment Passed Between Them During The Rest Of The Journey,

But Some Time After They Reached Home Herbert Turned To Sylvia, Who Was

Sitting Near Him, In The Absence Of His Wife.

"You're Short Of Funds Again?" He Asked.

Sylvia Explained Her Embarrassments, And Herbert Looked Thoughtful.

"So," He Said, "You Have Spent What George Sent, As Well As What I

Advanced You In Anticipation Of His Next Remittance.  This Can't Go On,

You Know."

"I'll Be Very Economical For The Next Few Months," Sylvia Promised

Penitently.

"If You're Not, You'll Find Very Stern Economy Imperative During Those

That Follow; But I'll Let You Have A Small Check Before I Leave."

Sylvia Thanked Him And They Talked About Other Matters For A While.

Then He Said Carelessly:

"There's A Favor You Could Do Me.  It Won't Cost You Any Trouble.  A

Young Man Is Coming Down Here Next Week, And I Want You To Be As

Pleasant As You Can And Make Him Enjoy His Visit.  I'm Inclined To

Think He'll Appreciate Any Little Attention You Can Show Him."

"The Last's A Cheap Compliment," Sylvia Rejoined.  "Aren't You Asking

Me To Undertake Your Wife's Duty?"

Herbert Smiled.

"Not Altogether.  Muriel's An Excellent Hostess; She Will Do Her Part,

But I Want You To Assist Her.  You Have Exceptional And Rather

Dangerous Gifts."

"Don't Go Too Far," Sylvia Warned Him.  "But I'd Better Understand The

Situation.  How Long Do You Expect Me To Be Amiable To The Man?"

"Only For A Couple Of Days.  He Might Come Down Again, But That's Not

Certain."

Sylvia Considered, For She Saw What Herbert Required.  She Was To Exert

Her Powers Of Fascination Upon The Visitor, In Order To Make Him More

Pliable In His Host's Hands.  The Task Was Not A Disagreeable One, And

She Had Foreseen All Along That Herbert, In Indulging Her In Various

Ways, Would Look For Some Return.

"After All," She Said, "There's No Reason Why I Should Be Ungracious To

Him, So Long As He's Pleasant."

Herbert Carelessly Nodded Agreement, But Sylvia Knew That He Expected

Her To Carry Out His Wishes; And She Did Not Find It Difficult When The

Guest Arrived.

Paul Singleton Was Young, And Perhaps Unusually Susceptible To The

Influences Brought To Bear Upon Him During His Visit.  Born With Some

Talents, In Very Humble Station, He Had By Means Of Scholarships

Obtained An Excellent Education, And Had Devoted Himself In Particular

To The Study Of Botany.  A Prosperous Man Who Took An Interest In Him

Sent Him Out To A Tropical Plantation, Where He Wrote A Work On The

Vegetable Product Of Equatorial Regions, Which Secured Him Notice.

Indeed, He Was Beginning To Make His Mark As An Authority On The

Subject.  So Far, However, His Life Had Been One Of Economy And

Self-Denial, And Although Lansing's Dwelling Was Not Characterized By

Any Very Marked Signs Of Culture Or Luxury, It Was Different From The

Surroundings To Which Singleton Was Accustomed.  His Hostess Was

Staidly Cordial And At Once Set Him At His Ease; Sylvia Was A

Revelation.  Her Piquant Prettiness And Her Charm Of Manner Dazzled

Him.  She Played Her Part Well, Not Merely Because She Had Agreed To Do

So, But Because It Was One That Strongly Appealed To Her Nature.

On The Second Evening Of Singleton's Visit, He Was Talking To Sylvia

Rather Confidentially In The Drawing-Room, Where Mrs. Lansing Had Left

Them, While Herbert Was Seated At A Table In His Library With A Cigar

In His Hand And A Litter Of Papers In Front Of Him.  He Was Thinking

Hard, And Rubber Occupied The Foremost Place In His Mind.  He Was A

Director Of A Company, Formed To Exploit A Strip Of Rubber-Bearing

Territory In The Tropics, Which Had Hitherto Been Successful; But He

Felt That It Was Time To Retire From The Position And Realize The

Profit On His Shares.  There Was Another Company He And Some Associates

Had Arranged To Launch, But He Was Now Very Doubtful Whether This Would

Be Wise.  Rubber Exploitations Were Overdone; There Were Signs That

Investors Were Losing Their Confidence.  Withdrawal, However, Was

Difficult, For It Must Be Quietly Effected Without Breaking Prices By

Any Unusual Sales.  It Was Therefore Desirable That Other Holders

Should Cling To Their Shares, And Any Fresh Buying By Outsiders Would,

Of Course, Be So Much The Better.  This Was One Reason Why He Had

Suggested A Purchase To Bland.

Opening A Book, He Noted The Amount Of Stock Standing In George's Name.

This Had Been Purchased By Herbert, Who Had Been Given Such Authority

By His Cousin At A Time When The Directors' Position Needed

Strengthening, Though It Had Been Necessary To Dispose Of Sound Shares,

Yielding A Small Return.  The Prompt Sale Of This Stock Would Secure

George A Moderate Profit, But After Some Consideration Herbert Decided

That It Should Remain.  He Had No Wish That George Should Suffer, But

His Own Interests Stood First.  Then He Carefully Studied Several

Sheets Of Figures, Which Confirmed His Opinion That A Drop In The Value

Of The Stock He Owned Might Be Looked For Shortly, Though He Thought

Very Few People Realized This Yet.  It Was Time For Effective But

Cautious Action.  He Must Unload As Soon As Possible.

By And By He Rang A Bell, And Passed Across The Cigar Box When

Singleton Came In And Sat Down Opposite Him.  He Was A Wiry,

Dark-Haired Man With An Intelligent Face Which Had Grown Rather White

And Haggard In The Tropics.  Just Now He Felt Grateful To His Host, Who

Had Made His Stay Very Pleasant And Had Given Him An Opportunity For

Meeting Sylvia.

"I Suppose You Have Read My Report On Your New Tropical Property?" He

Said.

"Yes," Answered Herbert, Picking Up A Lengthy Document.  "I've Given It

Some Thought.  On The Whole, It Isn't Optimistic."

Singleton Pondered This.  He Had Learned A Little About Company

Floating, And Was Willing To Oblige His Host As Far As He Honestly

Could.  Lansing Had Enabled Him To Undertake A Search For Some Rare

Examples Of Tropical Flora By Paying Him A Handsome Fee For