“This Mr. Sigsbee is one of the aqueduct board,” Miss Breen said. “He also interested himself in Camp Forty-seven. I was given particular orders to watch the work on this camp. I believe he was suspected of crooked dealing.”
“I know he was,” Nash admitted. “It was being carried on while I was under Hooker. I discovered the payroll padding. When I threatened to disclose matters, Sigsbee asked me to call at his Los Angeles office.”
“What happened there?”
“I was given full charge of the camp.”
“And also the full responsibility,” Miss Breen added suddenly. “If anything went wrong, you would be held to account.”
Nash admitted the truth of her statement.
“Didn’t it appear to you that Mr. Sigsbee’s offer at that time was rather—unusual?”
“Yes. I had expected to be discharged. But Sigsbee seemed to be so anxious for me to accept—so sorry that the crooked work had been unearthed. He declared that from then on Camp Forty-seven was to be the model for all others on the construction right of way. He wanted me to run it on that basis, and promised that he would stand by me to the last.”
Miss Breen listened, her face very grave. Finally she said:
“Did you know that Sigsbee was interested in a steel company?”