"Well, for instance, when you leave here, what will become of Miss Munn? You can't marry her till you draw at least one thousand dollars a year. Very soon now head office will be moving you; you'll gradually forget Hilda; you'll have to."
The big junior blushed, licked his lips, and sighed, but made no reply. For the rest of the walk he seemed sunk in reverie.
Inspection over, Penton walked up and down town where all might see. When he appeared in the main office his manner was overbearing. He placed heavier emphasis than ever on his "my's," and flattered the mayor to the point of idiocy, and cursed his current account with a vim foreign to his old self.
Then gradually he settled into his chair again. There came a lull in office work, and in general business, for the farmers were seeding. Penton began to drag at his upper lip. The film over his eyes thickened, and his brooding deepened.
A silent messenger came from Toronto:
"Instruct Mr. E. Nelson to report at our King Street office, Toronto, at once.
"(Signed) I. CASTLE."
The teller was engrossed in work when Penton handed him the letter. He read it dazedly, a moment, then his face glowed with excitement.
"I won't be able to swipe any more silver," he said, facetiously.
The manager did not reply to the levity; he stared out of the window and Evan could see his cold hands shiver.