Nasmyth told him, and the man looked thoughtful.
“You don’t hold all the valley,” the man said. “I wonder if you know that folks are taking an interest in the land that’s still unrecorded?”
“I don’t,” said Nasmyth. “It’s mostly heavy timber that would cost a deal to clear. Any way, as we couldn’t take up any more than we hold, it doesn’t appear to affect me at all.”
“Well,” returned his companion, “that’s a point I’m not quite sure about. You only hold a provisional charter to lower the river. There’s only one unworked holding near the valley, and, as you couldn’t injure anybody’s property, we permitted you to go ahead. Still, if any parties supplied us with a sufficient reason for withdrawing that permission, we might have to listen to them.” He broke off for a moment and waved his hand. “Of course, I’m not speaking officially. I’m merely giving you a hint that may be useful. Some persons might take up that land with the object of putting the screw on you. You see, it would be possible to get over any difficulty they might raise by buying them out.”
Nasmyth’s lips closed firmly. He was quite aware that, in view of the state of his finances, the course suggested was not one that he could adopt.
“What kind of people are they?” he inquired.
His companion laughed in an ominous fashion. “Small 259 ranchers, though it’s just possible that there may be some of the big men connected with the land business behind them. The big promoters occasionally prefer to act through a dummy. Our object is, of course, to get men who will cultivate the land, and keep it out of the hands of anyone who merely wants to hold it. Now, while I’m far from sure my superiors would be pleased to hear I’d said so much to you, there’s one piece of advice I can offer.” He leaned forward and looked at Nasmyth confidentially. “Get that work through as soon as you can. Once you lower the level of the river, nobody could compel you to put it back again. Any man who wanted land would have to buy it as it was.”
“A man who wished to start a ranch would naturally prefer it with the water run out of it.”
“Precisely!” argued Nasmyth’s informant. “That is why you got the charter. Still, I wasn’t contemplating the man who merely wished to ranch.”
His smile suggested that he intended to say no more upon that subject, and when he turned and glanced through the doorway into the lighted room, Nasmyth saw that he was looking at Violet Hamilton. Nasmyth also noticed that Carshalton was once more seated beside the girl.