himself again on Park
Row. The ten-thousands faded from before his sight, the yapping of
newsies died away, there was no dust and no yawning: he saw a green
valley and heard the birds; he saw Henty in chaps astride of a pony;
and a shanty loomed up. The blood of Grandpa Nelson bubbled in his
veins; he was a proud son of Adam, doing business direct with Nature.
There was no car to catch on the morrow, and no hash-house to
patronize. His horses neighed to him, and he heard the sizzle of
frying ham in a clean frying-pan.

The telegraph instrument continued to click in the young book-keeper's
ears. He looked once more on the throng around him: it was the evening
throng--tired, nervous, hateful. Men climbed in the cars ahead of
pale, helpless girls; an old lady clung to the unwilling arm of a
convict-faced son; and a little newsboy cried brokenheartedly in the
gutter. Tiny girls wrestled with bundles of papers; a bald magnate
cursed his chauffeur for refusing to run down a dog and save time; and
a policeman chased half a dozen naked urchins who were puddling in City
Hall Fountain. When one is tired these things jar on him. The
telegraph still ticked in Evan's ear; the valleys still stretched
before his imagination. He was aware, now, of a discord in the music
of his dreaming: it was the noise around him, the shouting, the brutal
rush. He turned toward Broadway.

Evan had made up his mind. He wired Henty that he would go to British
Columbia. He asked A. P. to reply by day-message to Twenty-third
Street.

About noon next day the answer came: "Meet me in Buffalo in two days,
if possible. I will be staying at my cousin's, -- Forest Avenue. If
necessary I can wait a week for you."

But it was not necessary. Evan had no difficulty in getting away from
his position. The cashier was disappointed, but he did his best to
hide it; Evan heard him remark to the assistant cashier:

"When we do land a good man he gets offered more elsewhere. If I
wasn't afraid of the boss I'd raise Nelson to twenty-five dollars
rather than lose him."

Wondering, for a moment, if he had not done a foolish thing in
resigning, Evan scratched his head, but the friction set his
imagination aglow again--and he bade the office good-bye.

He met Henty in Buffalo the following night.

"What are you going by way of the States for?" he asked.

"So that the Canadian banks won't get you again," said Henty.

After sending his mother a silk