Part 8 (1/2)
”And I've been here ten one to sleep Hadn't we better get across soht borrow it and scull ourselves across, that is, if you think----”
”Good idea!” exclai to the wharf, are you?” he asked
”Yes--for the first time in my life”
”Is your name Garstin?”
”That's it Perhaps you can tell me----”
”I'm Trevannion,” briefly ”I didn't expect you quite so soon Er--I'lad to meet you”
His eyes went to the heavy coat in which the lad--he was little more--was encased, to the fashi+onable bowler that contrasted with his oeed cap, to the u rain--ay, even to the comforter It was as he had feared
Garstin was an office-desk weakling, and a ain
The Works Committee had added insult to the injury they did him
”Oh, you're Mr Trevannion,” said the ”insult,” shyly holding out a gloved right hand Trevannion took it limply and quickly let it drop
”Coet across first and talk afterwards”
The gruffness of his tone did not tend to encourage expansiveness on the other's part, and little more was said whilst they unood opportunity for taking stock of his coed from the clumsy way in which Garstin handled his oar and his apparent powerlessness to iour to the stroke that muscular development had not formed part of his education Trevannion stood six-foot-one in his stockings, and his frame ell knit with ; naturally, he believed that physical fitness was essential to a good engineer, especially to an engineer in charge of a rather rough creorkmen He resolved by-and-by to recomet out,” he said, when the boat buainst the slireasy, and those togs of yours are hardly suited to this job”
Garstin flushed but made no remark, and Trevannion flattered himself that the hint would not be wasted He had already decided that the new engineer would have to be taught s This was Lesson No 1
Hardly had they scraer ca, sir Can I speak to you a moment? There has been trouble between O'Donnell and Peters O'Donnell was drunk--leastways so Peters says Any'ow they got fighting and mauled each other pretty severe; in fact Peters is in hospital Thought you'd better hear of it, sir”
”Quite right,” said Trevannion judicially It was a coh story on the wharf, and he had heard it before without paying ure beside hiiven--and decided that here lay the opportunity for giving Lesson No 2 ”Pay O'Donnell and sack hier,away
”That's the e have to treat our fellows here,” said Trevannion
”Suh lot Now come and see the office and the plans”
Whatever Garstin , but followed sub the peculiar authority which had at the contractor's desire been vested in Trevannion, he wondered that any engineer should wield such powers
However, he had notexcept the task of keeping pace with his ni over little heaps of granite and sand, over rails, along which the travelling cranes moved ponderously, over bits of tarpaulin and old iron instruments, over every object, in fact, that Trevannion avoided with such apparent ease
Garstin was rather a distressful youth by the time the shanty was reached, for the pace had been hot, and he had been i himself of these he stood still and breathed hard in front of a cheerful coke fire, while Trevannion unrolled the plans and pinned the one side of the rooan to explain the plans in detail, elaborating the explanation with sih the sections one by one with slow precision, repeating his elucidation of black lines, red lines, and green lines, of the length, breadth, and numbers of the piles, of the soil, subsoil, and sub-subsoil, that received the a child in the rudi science, for he had
Garstin seeun to enjoy hier on a certain spot and asked a question connected ater-pressure and the strength of resisting force Trevannion was surprised into returning what he thought was the correct answer He was still ures that that ansas incontestably incorrect
This was the beginning Garstin quickly found more questions to put on other points, more criticisms of Trevannion's replies The latter at firstthe calic it was useless to be calm It orse than useless to try to be superior The intruder stuck to his guns with respectful pertinacity Perhaps the fire had warmed his brain into unwonted activity; Trevannion found hi whether this was so, or whether it was a norht was horrible!