vered over the polished surface
of that water. Dragon-flies cruised about. Little birds swooped silently
down and fluttered back, intent on their tiny prey. Water-bugs skated
hither and thither in apparently purposeless diagonals. Once in a great
while the black depths were stirred. A bass rolled lazily over, carrying
with him his captured insect, leaving on the surface of the water
concentric rings which widened and died away.

The trail led the crew through many minor labours, all of which consumed
time. At Reed's Mill Orde entered into diplomatic negotiations with Old
Man Reed, whom he found singularly amenable. The skirmish in the spring
seemed to have taken all the fight out of him; or perhaps, more simply,
Orde's attitude toward him at that time had won him over to the young
man's side. At any rate, as soon as he understood that Orde was now in
business for himself, he readily came to an agreement. Thereupon Orde's
crew built a new sluiceway and gate far enough down to assure a good
head in the pond above. Other dam owners farther down the stream also
signed agreements having to do with supplying water over and above what
the law required of them. Above one particularly shallow rapid Orde
built a dam of his own.

All this took time, and the summer months slipped away. Orde had fallen
into the wild life as into a habit. He lived on the river or the
trail. His face took on a ruddier hue than ever; his clothes faded to a
nondescript neutral colour of their own; his hair below his narrow felt
hat bleached three shades. He did his work, and figured on his schemes,
and smoked his pipe, and occasionally took little trips to the nearest
town, where he spent the day at the hotel desks reading and answering
his letters. The weather was generally very warm. Thunder-storms were
not infrequent. Until the latter part of August, mosquitoes and black
flies were bad.

About the middle of September the crew had worked down as far as
Redding, leaving behind them a river tamed, groomed, and harnessed for
their uses. Remained still the forty miles between Redding and the
Lake to be improved. As, however, navigation for light draught vessels
extended as far as that city, Orde here paid off his men. A few days'
work with a pile driver would fence the principal shoals from the
channel.

He stayed over night with his parents, and at once took the train for
Monrovia. There he made his way immediately to the little office the new
firm