Brandon of the Engineers

It was dark outside the feeble lamplight, and very hot, when Dick sat on

his veranda after a day of keen activity in the burning sun. He felt

slack and jaded, for he had had difficult work to do and his dusky

laborers had flagged under the unusual heat. There was now no touch of

coolness in the stagnant air, and although the camp down the valley was

very quiet a confused hum of insects came out of the jungle. It rose and

fell with a monotonous regularity that jarred upon Dick's nerves as he

forced himself to think.

He was in danger of falling in love with Clare Kenwardine; indeed, he

suspected that it would be better to face the truth and admit that he had

already done so. The prudent course would be to fight against and

overcome his infatuation; but suppose he found this impossible, as he

feared? It seemed certain that she had stolen his papers; but after all

he did not hold her accountable. Some day he would learn more about the

matter and find that she was blameless. He had been a fool to think

harshly of her, but he knew now that his first judgment was right. Clare,

who could not have done anything base and treacherous, was much too good

for him. This, however, was not the subject with which he meant to occupy

himself, because if he admitted that he hoped to marry Clare, there were

serious obstacles in his way.

To begin with, he had made it difficult, if not impossible, for the girl

to treat him with the friendliness she had previously shown; besides

which, Kenwardine would, no doubt, try to prevent his meeting her, and

his opposition would be troublesome. Then it was plainly desirable that

she should be separated from her father, who might involve her in his

intrigues, because there was ground for believing that he was a dangerous

man. In the next place, Dick was far from being able to support a wife

accustomed to the extravagance that Kenwardine practised. It might be

long before he could offer her the lowest standard of comfort necessary

for an Englishwoman in a hot, foreign country.

He felt daunted, but not altogether hopeless, and while he pondered the

matter Bethune came in. On the whole, Dick found his visit a relief.

"I expect you'll be glad to hear we can keep the machinery running,"

Bethune said as he sat down.

Dick nodded. Their fuel was nearly exhausted, for owing to strikes and

shortage of shipping Fuller had been unable to keep them supplied.

"Then you have got some coal? As there's none at Santa Brigida just now,

where's it coming from?"

"Adexe. Four big lighter loads. Stuyvesant has given orders to have them

towed round."

"I understood the Adexe people didn't keep a big stock. The wharf is

small."