business." Elmendorf found he didn't know what had brought about
Forrest's relief, and so proceeded to ask him if he'd ever heard this
and that,--which the man had not, but was glad to hear now. Later,
Elmendorf made him acquainted, one cold evening, at a comfortable
groggery not too far from the Allison house, with a young fellow who
could and did tell how he had followed a girl whom he suspected and saw
her go to Forrest's lodgings. That he made no mention of certain
concomitant facts, such as his being kicked into the gutter by the
lieutenant and the girl's being a total stranger to that officer at that
time, was due perhaps to native modesty and possibly to Elmendorf's
editorial skill. What Elmendorf wanted to create at head-quarters was
the belief that it was for some such indiscretion that Forrest was
exiled, well reasoning that then the entire establishment would suddenly
bethink itself of all manner of suspicious circumstances that it had
thought nothing of before.

He planned equally well at home. Miss Allison knew only that Forrest was
ordered away on duty for an indefinite time, and speedily went away
herself on the jaunt to the Pacific. Mrs. Lawrence, who longed to say
something to her niece upon the subject, was cautioned by Elmendorf to
say nothing at all until he could place her in possession of all the
facts, which he promised shortly to do. He felt somehow that if Allison
ever consulted Forrest as to the propriety of further employing him, the
days of tutorship and ease were ended; but Forrest was gone, with a stab
in the back, and gone probably not to return. Allison's stay promised to
be prolonged until mid-April, possibly May. Miss Wallen, bending over
her task at the Lambert Library, mutely avoided, and Wells openly
scowled at, Elmendorf whenever he sauntered into the rooms where once he
was welcome. So again he took an interest in Mart and his meanderings.
Mart had steadied a bit, had a job over among the lumber-yards on the
north branch, and had been keeping away from the meetings on the west
side; but it wasn't a fortnight before Mart was staying out late at
night again and coming home without his wits or wages Sunday mornings
and denouncing his employers as scoundrels and some new men as scabs.
The next thing poor Jenny knew, Mart's unpaid bills were coming to her
again, and the brother had lost his situation a third time. There was no
extra work now to add to her earnings, no strong, manly, cour