Part 10 (1/2)

CHAPTER VI

LAUNCHING HIS VESSEL

Roderick had been but two days in the office of Edward Brians, barrister, and already he had learned a great deal. Two important facts, not directly connected with the legal profession, had been impressing themselves upon him. The first was that if he were going to reach the goal of success that shone so alluringly ahead of him, he must give every effort and every minute of time to his work; and the second was that he was going to have a hard time concentrating upon it in the various interests of the little town that seemed to demand his attention.

And there was his chief setting him a bad example. The young man had spent part of his first morning wandering through the ma.s.s of doc.u.ments and sc.r.a.ps of paper which Lawyer Ed called his book-keeping. Between items of a professional nature were memoranda or reports of session meetings, Highland Club meetings, political meetings, country tea-meetings, everything and anything except law. What there was of the latter was connected only with such clients as were of ample means.

All the poor folk for miles around came to Lawyer Ed with their troubles and were advised, scolded, pulled or paid out of them, and never so much as a stroke of a pen to record the good deed. If they paid him, well and good; if they did not, so much the better. And the price of a ticket to the Holy Land and back--that trip which had not yet materialised--might have been many times written down, had Lawyer Ed known anything about book-keeping. But Lawyer Ed's policy in all his career, had been something the same as that of his friend Doctor Blair across the way--to keep his people of his practice well, rather than to cure them when they were ill. So if he could manage it none of his clients ever went into a law-court. It was good for the clients, but bad for such things as trips abroad. Roderick did not see that side of his chief's book-keeping. He did not know that the man could put through more work in an hour than most men could in a day, and saw only the meetings recorded which took so much of his time. And he said to himself that that was not the way to become great. Some day he intended to be one of the leading advocates of Canada. He was not conceited. His was only the boundless hopefulness of youth coupled with the a.s.surance which experience had already given him, that whenever he set his mind to anything, he accomplished it, no matter how many difficulties stood in the way. So he was determined to concentrate all his efforts on his work, and as for serving humanity, he could do it best, he a.s.sured himself, by being a success in his profession.

He was just entering upon his second day when his advice was sought from an unexpected source and in connection with an entirely new subject. Lawyer Ed had gone out and Roderick was seated at his desk when some one entered the hall and tapped hesitatingly on the inner door. Roderick called an invitation to come in, and Mr. Alfred Wilbur, in perfect white ducks and white canvas shoes, stepped inside.

”So you've come to be Mr. Brians' partner, haven't you, Mr. McRae?” he enquired. Mr. Wilbur was a well-mannered young man and had never adopted the easy familiar way of naming people which was current in the town.

”Say rather his office-boy, for a while,” said Roderick.

Mr. Wilbur protested. ”Oh, now, Mr. McRae, you're just quite too modest. Every one's saying how well you did at college and school; and that you're going to make your mark--you know you are.”

Roderick wondered why the young man should take such pains to be polite to him.

”Did you want to see Lawyer Ed?” he asked.

”No, no, thank you,” he cried in alarm. ”He's not in, is he? No, I just wanted to see you, Mr. McRae--not professionally you understand but--that is--personally,--on a very sacred matter.”

His voice dropped to a whisper, he crossed his feet in front of him, then drew them under his chair, twirled his hat, smoothed down the back of his head vigorously, and looked in dismay at the floor.

”I hope I can do something for you,” said Rod encouragingly, feeling sorry for his evident distress.

”Thank you so much!” cried the young man gratefully. ”It's about--that is--I think, an old acquaintance of yours--Miss Murray, the new teacher in the East Ward. She _is_ an old acquaintance, isn't she?”

It was Roderick's turn to feel hot and look embarra.s.sed. He answered his first client very shortly.

”No, she isn't.”

”Oh! I thought--you went and spoke to her on the boat!”

”So I did.”

”But you met her before surely?” asked the young man, aghast at the notion of Roderick's boldness.

”Yes.”

”In Toronto?”

”Yes.”

”Long ago?”

”Last autumn.”

”Is her home there?”