CHAPTER X
THE SPIRIT OF MANTI
The Benham private car had clacked eastward over the rails three weeksbefore, bearing with it as a passenger only the negro autocrat. At thelast moment, discovering that she could not dissuade Rosalind from her maddecision to stay at Blakeley's ranch, Agatha had accompanied her. Theprivate car was now returning, bearing the man who had poetically declaredto his fawning Board of Directors: "Our railroad is the magic wand thatwill make the desert bloom like the rose. We are embarked upon a project,gentlemen, so big, so vast, that it makes even your president feel a pulseof pride. This project is nothing more nor less than the opening of aregion of waste country which an all-wise Creator has permitted to slumberfor ages, for no less purpose than to reserve it to the horny-handed sonof toil of our glorious country. It will awaken to the clarion call of ourwealth, our brains, and our genius." He then mentioned Corrigan and theMidland grant--another reservation of Providence, which a credulous andasinine Congress had bestowed, in fee-simple, upon a certain suavegentleman, named Marchmont--and disseminated such other details as aservile board of directors need know; and then he concluded with a floweryperoration that left his hearers smirking fatuously.
And today J. Chalfant Benham was come to look upon the first fruits of hisefforts.
As he stepped down from the private car he was greeted by vociferouscheers from a jostling and enthusiastic populace--for J. C. had verycarefully wired the time of his arrival and Corrigan had actedaccordingly, knowing J. C. well. J. C. was charmed--he said so, later,in a speech from a flimsy, temporary stand erected in the middle of thestreet in front of the _Plaza_--and in saying so he merely told thetruth. For, next to money-making, adulation pleased him most. He wouldhave been an able man had he ignored the latter passion. It seared hisintellect as a pernicious habit blasts the character. It sat on hisshoulders--extravagantly squared; it shone in his eyes--invitinginspection; his lips, curved with smug complacence, betrayed it as,sitting in Corrigan's office after the conclusion of the festivities,he smiled at the big man.
"Manti is a wonderful town--a _wonderful_ town!" he declared. "It may besaid that success is lurking just ahead. And much of the credit is due toyour efforts," he added, generously.
Corrigan murmured a polite disclaimer, and plunged into dry details. J. C.had a passion for dry details. For many hours they sat in the office,their heads close together. Braman was occasionally called in. JudgeLindman was summoned after a time. J. C. shook the Judge's hand warmly andthen resumed his chair, folding his chubby hands over his corpulentstomach.
"Judge Lindman," he said; "you thoroughly understand our position in thisMidland affair."
The Judge glanced at Corrigan. "Thoroughly."
"No doubt there will be some contests. But the present claimants have nolegal status. Mr. -- (here J. C. mentioned a name that made the Judge'seyes brighten) tells me there will be no hitch. There could not be, ofcourse. In the absence of any court record of possible transfers, thetitle to the land, of course, reverts to the Midland Company. As Mr.Corrigan has explained to me, he is entirely within his rights, havingsecured the title to the land from Mr. Marchmont, representing theMidland. You have no record of any transfers from the Midland to thepresent claimants or their predecessors, have you? There is no suchrecord?"
The Judge saw Corrigan's amused grin, and surmised that J. C. was merelyplaying with him.
"No," he said, with some bitterness.
"Then of course you are going to stand with Mr. Corrigan against thepresent claimants?"
"I presume so."
"H'm," said J. C. "If there is any doubt about it, perhaps I had betterremind you--"
The Judge groaned in agony of spirit. "It won't be necessary to remindme."
"So I thought. Well, gentlemen--" J. C. arose "--that will be all for thisevening."
Thus he dismissed the Judge, who went to his cot behind a partition in thecourthouse, while Corrigan and J. C. stepped outside and walked slowlytoward the private car. They lingered at the steps, and presently J. C.called and a negro came out with two chairs. J. C. and Corrigan drapedthemselves in the chairs and smoked. Dusk was settling over Manti; lightsappeared in the windows of the buildings; a medley of noises reached theears of the two men. By day Manti was lively enough, by night it was amaelstrom of frenzied action. A hundred cow-ponies were hitched to railsthat skirted the street in front of store and saloon; cowboys fromranches, distant and near, rollicked from building to building, touchingelbows with men less picturesquely garbed; the strains of crude musicsmote the flat, dead desert air; yells, shouts, laughter filtered throughthe bedlam; an engine, attached to a train of cars on the main track nearthe private car, wheezed steam in preparation for its eastward trip, soonto begin.
Benham had solemn thoughts, sitting there, watching.
"That crowd wouldn't have much respect for law. They're living at such apitch that they'd lose their senses entirely if any sudden crisis shouldarise. I'd feel my way carefully, Corrigan--if I were you."
Corrigan laughed deeply. "Don't lose any sleep over it. There are fiftydeputy marshals in that crowd--and they're heeled. The rear room in thebank building is a young arsenal."
Benham started. "How on earth--" he began.
"Law and order," smiled Corrigan. "A telegram did it. The territory wantsa reputation for safety."
"By the way," said Benham, after a silence; "I _had_ to take that Trevisonaffair out of your hands. We don't want to antagonize the man. He will bevaluable to us--later."
"How?"
"Carrington, the engineer I sent out here to look over the country beforewe started work, did considerable nosing around Trevison's land while inthe vicinity. He told me there were unmistakable signs of coal of a goodquality and enormous quantity. We ought to be able to drive a good bargainwith Trevison one of these days--if we handle him carefully."
Corrigan frowned and grunted. "His land is included in that of the Midlandgrant. He shall be treated like the others. If that is your onlyobjection--"
"It isn't," said Benham. "I have discovered that 'Brand' Trevison isreally Trevison Brandon, the disgraced son of Orrin Brandon, themillionaire."
The darkness hid Corrigan's ugly pout. "How did you discover that?" hesaid, coolly, after a little.
"My daughter mentioned it in one of her letters to me. I confirmed, byquizzing Brandon, senior. Brandon is powerful and obstinate. If he shoulddiscover what our game is he would fight us to the last ditch. The wholething would go to smash, perhaps."
"You didn't tell him about his son being out here?"
"Certainly not!"
"Good!"
"What do you mean?"
"That it's my land; that I'm going to take it away from Trevison, fatheror no father. I'm going to break him. That's what I mean!" Corrigan's bighands were clenched on the arms of his chair; his eyes gleamed balefullyin the semi-darkness. J. C. felt a tremor of awed admiration for him. Helaughed, nervously. "Well," he said, "if you think you can handle it--"
They sat there for a long time, smoking in silence. One thought dominatedCorrigan's mind: "Three weeks, and exchanging confidences--damn him!"
* * * * *
A discordant note floated out of the medley of sound in palpitating Manti,sailed over the ridiculous sky line and smote the ears of the two on theplatform. The air rocked an instant later with a cheer, loud, pregnantwith enthusiasm. And then a mass of men, close-packed, undulating, moveddown the street toward the private car.
Benham's face whitened and he rose from his chair. "Good God!" he said;"what's happened?" He felt Corrigan's hand on his shoulder, forcing himback into his chair.
"It can't concern us," said the big man; "wait; we'll know pretty soon.Something's broke loose."
The two men watched--Benham breathless, wide-eyed; Corrigan with close-setlips and out-thrust chin. The mass moved fast. It passed the _Plaza_, farup the street, receiving additions each second as men burst out of
doorsand dove to the fringe; and grew in front as other men skittered into it,hanging to its edge and adding to the confusion. But Corrigan noted thatthe mass had a point, like a wedge, made by three men who seemed to leadit. Something familiar in the stature and carriage of one of the menstruck Corrigan, and he strained his eyes into the darkness the better tosee. He could be sure of the identity of the man, presently, and he sethis jaws tighter and continued to watch, with bitter malignance in hisgaze, for the man was Trevison. There was no mistaking the broadshoulders, the set of the head, the big, bold and confident poise of theman. At the point of the wedge he looked what he was--the leader; hedominated the crowd; it became plain to Corrigan as the mass moved closerthat he was intent on something that had aroused the enthusiasm of hisfollowers, for there were shouts of: "That's the stuff! Give it to them!Run 'em out!"
For an instant as the crowd passed the _Elk_ saloon, its lights revealingfaces in its glare, Corrigan thought its destination was the private car,and his hand went to his hip. It was withdrawn an instant later, though,when the leader swerved and marched toward the train on the main track. Inthe light also, Corrigan saw something that gave him a hint of thesignificance of it all. His laugh broke the tension of the moment.
"It's Denver Ed and Poker Charley," he said to Benham. "It's likelythey've been caught cheating and have been invited to make themselvesscarce." And he laughed again, with slight contempt, at Benham's sigh ofrelief.
The mass surged around the rear coach of the train. There was somelaughter, mingled with jeers, and while this was at its height a man brokefrom the mass and walked rapidly toward Corrigan and Benham. It wasBraman. Corrigan questioned him.
"It's two professional gamblers. They've been fleecing Manti's easy markswith great facility. Tonight they had Clay Levins in the back room of the_Belmont_. He had about a thousand dollars (the banker looked at Corriganand closed an eye), and they took it away from him. It looked square, andLevins didn't kick. Couldn't anyway--he's lying in the back room of the_Belmont_ now, paralyzed. I think that somebody told Levins' wife abouthim shooting Marchmont yesterday, and Mrs. Levins likely sent Trevisonafter hubby--knowing hubby's appetite for booze. Levins isn't giving thewoman a square deal, so far as that is concerned," went on the banker;"she and the kids are in want half the time, and I've heard thatTrevison's helped them out on quite a good many occasions. Anyway,Trevison appeared in town this afternoon, looking for Levins. Before hefound him he heard these two beauties framing up on him. That's theresult--the two beauties go out. The crowd was for stringing them up, butTrevison wouldn't have it."
"Marchmont?" interrupted Benham. "It isn't possible--"
"Why not?" grinned Corrigan. "Yes, sir, the former president of theMidland Company was shot to death yesterday for pocket-picking."
"Lord!" said Benham.
"So Levins' wife sent Trevison for hubby," said Corrigan, quietly. "She's_that_ thick with Trevison, is she?"
"Get that out of your mind, Jeff," returned the banker, noting Corrigan'stone. "Everybody that knows of the case will tell you that everything'sstraight there."
"Well," Corrigan laughed, "I'm glad to hear it."
The train steamed away as they talked, and the crowd began to break up andscatter toward the saloons. Before that happened, however, there was agreat jam around Trevison; he was shaking hands right and left. Voicesshouted that he was "all there!" As he started away he was forced to shovehis way through the press around him.
Benham had been watching closely this evidence of Trevison's popularity;he linked it with some words that his daughter had written to himregarding the man, and as a thought formed in his mind he spoke it.
"I'd reconsider about hooking up with that man Trevison, Corrigan. He'sone of those fellows that win popularity easily, and it won't do you anygood to antagonize him."
"That's all right," laughed Corrigan, coldly.