The last spike, and other railroad stories

NEW YORK CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS 1906
Copyright, 1906 , By Charles Scribner's Sons Published February, 1906 THE UNIVERSITY PRESS, CAMBRIDGE, U.S.A.

Then there is nothing against him but his poverty?
And general appearance.
He's the handsomest man in America.
Yes, that is against him, and the fact that he is always in America. He appears to be afraid to get out.
He's the bravest boy in the world, she replied, her face still to the window. He risked his life to drag me from under the ice, she added, with a girl's loyalty to her hero and a woman's pride in the man she loves.
Well, I must own he has nerve, her father added, or he never would have accepted my conditions.
And what where these conditions, pray? the young woman asked, turning and facing her father, who sat watching her every move and gesture.
First of all, he must do something; and do it off his own bat. His old father spent his last dollar to educate this young rascal, to equip him for the battle of life, and his sole achievement is a curve that nobody can find. Now I insist he shall do something, and I have given him five years for the work.
Five years! she gasped, as she lost herself in a big chair.