The Witness by Grace Livingston Hill Lutz (mobi reader android TXT) 📕

    Of The Palace The Picture Changed. There Stood Armed Guards And At

    The Orders Of The Usurpers,  The Bolsheviki,  They Refused To Let

    The Delegates Pass Into The Tavrichesky Palace. It Appeared That,

    In Order To Enter The Building,  The _Delegates Had First To Pay

    Respects To The Commissaire,  A Satellite Of Lenine And Trotzky,

    And There Receive Special Permission_. The Delegates Would Not

    Submit To That; Elected By The People And Equipped With Formal

    Authorization,  They Had The Right To Freely Enter Any Public

    Building Assigned For Their Meeting. The Delegates Decided To

    Enter The Tavrichesky Palace Without Asking The New Authorities,

    And They Succeeded In Doing So. On The First Day The Guards Did

    Not Dare To Lift Their Arms Against The People's Elected

    Representatives And Allowed Them To Enter The Building Without

    Molestation.

    There Was No Struggle,  No Violence,  No Sacrifices; The Delegates

    Demandedow Her Away!" Said Courtland,  Speaking

Out Of A Troubled Thought,  As He And The Nurse Stood On The Platform

Watching The Train Move Off. "Do You Think She'll Get Through The

Journey All Right?"

"Sure!" Said The Nurse,  Wiping Away A Wistful Tear Furtively. "She's Got

Lots Of Pep. She'll Rally And Get Strong Pretty Soon. She's Had A Pretty

Tough Time The Last Two Years. Lost Her Mother,  Father,  A Sister,  And

This Little Brother. Her Father's Heart Was Broken By Being Asked To

Leave His Church Because He Preached Temperance Too Much. The Martyrs In

This World Didn't All Die In The Dark Ages! They're Having Them Yet!"

"But She Looks So Ethereal!" Pursued Courtland. "I Wish I'd Thought To

Suggest You Going Along. We Could Have Trumped Up Some Reason Why You

Had To Have A Vacation."

"Couldn't Do It!" Said The Nurse,  Smiling And Patting His Arm. "I

Thought Of It,  But It Wouldn't Work. I Have To Be At The Hospital

To-Morrow For A Very Important Operation. There Isn't Anybody Else In

The Hospital Could Very Well Take My Place. Besides,  She's Sharp As A

Tack,  And You Needn't Think She Doesn't See Through A Lot Of The Things

You've Done For Her! Mark My Words,  You'll Hear From Her Some Day! She

Means To Know The Truth About Those Bills And Pay Every Cent Back! But

Don't You Worry About Her. She'll Get Through All Right. She's Got More

Nerve Than Any Dozen Girls I Know,  And She Doesn't Go Alone Through This

World,  Either. She's Had A Vision,  Too,  Or You'd Never See Her Wearing

That Patient Face With All She's Had To Bear!"

"Did It Ever Seem Strange To You That Good People Have So Much Trouble

In This World?" Said Courtland,  Voicing His Same Old Doubting Thought.

"Well,  Now _Why_? What's _Trouble_ Going To Be In The Resurrection? We

Won't Mind Then What We Passed Through,  And This World Isn't Forever,

Thank The Lord! If It's Serving His Plan Any For Me To Get More Than

What Seems My Share Of Trouble,  Why,  I'm Willing. Aren't You? The

Trouble Is We Can't See The Plan,  And So We Go Fretting Because It

Doesn't Fit Our Ideas. If It Was Our Plan Now We'd Patiently Bear

Everything,  I Suppose,  To Make It Come Out Right. We Aren't Up High

Enough To Get The Whole View Of The Finished Plan,  So Of Course Lots Of

Things Look Like Mistakes. But If We Trust Him At All,  We Know They

Aren't. And Some Time,  I Suppose,  We'll See The Whole And Then We'll

Understand Why It Was. But I Never Was One To Do Much Fretting Because I

Didn't Understand. I Always Know What My Job Is,  And That's Enough. I'm

Content To Trust The Rest To God. It's A God-Size Job To Run The

Universe,  And I Know I'm Not Equal To It."

Her Simple Logic Calmed His Restless Thoughts,  But There Was Still A

Strange Wistfulness In His Heart About Bonnie. She Looked So White And

Resigned And Sad! He Wished She Hadn't Gone Quite So Far Out Of His

Life.

Meantime,  Out In The Darkness Of The Night Bonnie's Train Whirled Along,

And Some Time During The Long Hours Between Midnight And Dawning It

Passed In A Rush And A Thunder Of Sound The Express That Was Bearing

Back To Courtland Another Menace To His Peace Of Mind.

Uncle Ramsey Was Large And Imposing,  With An Effulgent Complexion And A

Prosperous Presence. He Wore A Double-Jeweled Ring On His Apoplectic

Finger,  And A Scarab Scarf-Pin. His Eyes Were Keen And Shifty; His Teeth

Had Acquired The Habit Of Clutching His Fat Black Cigar Viciously While

He Snarled His Rather Loose Lips About Them In Conversation. Uncle

Ramsay Never Looked One In The Face When He Was Talking. He Looked Off

Into Space,  Where He Appeared To Have The Topic Under Discussion In

Visible Form Before Him. He Never Took Up With The Conversation His Host

Offered. He Furnished The Topics Himself And Pinned One Down To Them. It

Really Was Of No Use Whatever To Start Any Subject Unless It Had Been

Previously Announced,  Because It Never Got Further Than The Initiative.

Uncle Ramsey Always Went On With Whatever He Had In Mind. Tennelly Knew

This Tendency,  Realized That In Writing The Letter He Had Taken The Only

Possible Way Of Bringing Courtland To His Uncle's Notice.

After An Exceedingly Good Dinner At The Frat. House,  Where Tennelly Did

Not Usually Dine,  And Being Further Reinforced By One Of The Aforesaid

Fat Black Cigars,  Uncle Ramsey Leaned Back In Tennelly's Leather Chair,

And Began:

"Now,  Thomas!"

Tennelly Stirred Uneasily. He Despised That "Thomas." His Full Name Was

Llewellyn Thomas Tennelly. At Home They Called Him "Lew." Nobody But

Uncle Ramsey Ever Dared The Hateful Thomas. He Liked To Air The Fact

That His Nephew Was Named After Himself,  The Great Ramsey Thomas.

"Suppose You Tell Me About This Man You Have For Me? What Kind Of A

Looking Man Is He?"

Uncle Ramsey Screwed Up His Eyes,  Looked To The Middle Distance Where

The Subject Ought To Be,  And Examined Him Critically.

"Has--Ah--He--Ah--_Personality_? Personality Is A Great Factor In

Success You Know."

Tennelly,  In The Brief Space Allowed Him,  Declared That His Friend Would

Pass This Test.

"Well--Ah! And Can He--Ah!--Can He _Lead Men_? Because That Is A Very

Important Point. The Man I Want Must Be A Leader."

"I Think He Is."

"Um--Ah! And Does He--?" On Down Through A Long List Of Questions.

At Last,  After Once More Relighting His Cigar,  Which Had Gone Out

Frequently During The Conversation,  He Turned To His Nephew And Fixed

Him Sharply With A Fat Pale-Blue Eye.

"Tell Me The Worst You Know About Him,  Thomas! What Are His Faults?" He

Snapped,  And Settled Back To Squint At His Imaginary Stage Again.

"Why--I--Why,  I Don't Think He Has Any," Declared Tennelly,  Shifting

Uneasily In His Chair. He Had A Feeling That Uncle Ramsey Would Get It

Out Of Him Yet. And He Did.

"Yes,  I Perceive That He Has! Out With It!" Snapped The Keen Old Bird,

Flinging His Loose Lips About Restively.

"It's Only That He's Got A Religious Twist Lately,  Uncle. I Don't Think

It'll Last. I Really Think He Is Getting Over It!"

"Religion! Um! Ah! Well,  Now That Might Not Be So Bad--Not For My

Purpose,  You Know. Religion Really Gives A Confidence Sometimes.

Religion! Um! Ah! Not A Bad Trait. Let Me See Him,  Thomas! Let Me See

Him _At Once_!"

Tennelly Had Said Nothing To Courtland About The Approaching Uncle,  And

Therefore It Was Wholly A Surprise To Courtland When Tennelly Knocked On

His Door And Dragged Him From His Books To Meet A Chicago Uncle.

"He's Come East Looking For The Right Man To Fill A Very Important

Position. It Is Something Along Your Line,  I Guess,  So I Spoke To Him

About You," Whispered Tennelly,  Hastily,  As They Crossed The Hall

Together.

Face To Face They Stood,  The Financier And The Young Senior,  And Studied

Each Other Keenly For The Fraction Of A Second,  Courtland No Less Cool

And Impressive In His Way Than The Older Man. For Courtland Was Not

Afraid Of Any Man,  And His Natural Attitude Toward All Men Was Challenge

Till He Knew Them. He Stood Straight And Tall And Looked Uncle Ramsey In

The Eye Critically,  Questioningly,  Courteously,  But With No Attempt To

Propitiate; And Not The Slightest Apparent Conception Of The Awesomeness

Of The Occasion Or The Condescension Of The August Personage Whom He Was

Thus Permitted To Meet.

And Uncle Ramsey Liked It!

True,  He Tried To Fix The Young Man Much As A Cook Fixes A Roast With A

Skewer,  To Be Put Over The Fire; But Courtland Didn't Skew. He Just Sat

Down Indifferently And Looked The Man Over; Smiled Pleasantly Now And

Then,  And Listened; But He Didn't Give An Inch. Even When The Marvelous

Proposition Was Made To Him Which Might Change The Whole Course Of His

Future Life And Cover His Name With Glory (?) Courtland Never Flickered

An Eyelash.

"He Took It As Calmly As If I'd Been Offering Him Toast With His Tea

When He Already Had Bread And Jam,  The Young Whelp!" Marveled Uncle

Ramsey,  Delightedly,  After Courtland Had Thanked Him,  Promised To Think

It Over,  And Gone Back To His Room. "He's Got The Personality,  All

Right! He'll Do! But What's His Idea In Being So Reluctant? Didn't The

Offer Strike Him As Bigticular Group--A Peasants' Soviet,  For Example. Another Type,  More

Important,  Roughly Corresponds To The Central Labor Union In An American

City,  In That It Is Composed Of Representatives Of Workers Of All Kinds.

These Delegates Are,  In The Main,  Chosen By The Workers In The Shops And

Factories And In The Meetings Of The Unions. The Anti-Bolshevist

Socialists,  Such As The Mensheviki And The Socialist-Revolutionists,  Were

Not Opposed To Soviets As Working-Class Organizations. On The Contrary,

They Approved Of Them,  Supported Them,  And,  Generally,  Belonged To Them.

They Were Opposed Only