CHAPTER XIV
THE ELEPHANT'S BACK
"All living things have a universal hunger--to live again. The hunger for descendants is the same hunger."
MUSINGS OF THE ELEPHANT.
"Penelope!" Jim called softly.
Pen raised her head as if she were dreaming.
"Pen!" repeated Jim, rising and walking slowly toward her. "Don't sit sonear the edge."
"You can see the eagle's nest from here," said Pen, pointing down thecrater wall. "What brought you up here, Still?"
"The Elephant is an old friend of mine, particularly when I'm broken upas I am tonight," replied Jim, taking Pen's hand and leading her back tohis own place which was sheltered from the wind. "What brought you here?And how about Sara?"
"Sara took some morphine tonight. He will be motionless until morning.Ever since the new moon came, I've been promising myself a trip uphere."
"So Sara adds dope to his other accomplishments!" commented Jim.
"He suffers so from insomnia, I don't blame him," answered Pen. "He haspain practically all of the time. I think he gradually grows worse.Poor Sara! He said tonight he hated the sight of even a dog that can useits own legs. Don't be too hard on him, Jim."
"I can't help being hard on him when I see how he treats you, the cad!"said Jim.
"He can't hurt me," said Pen. "I'm too sorry for him. Though I'll admitthat I never knew what it was to lose control of my temper until after Iwas married. Still, where will they bury Iron Skull?"
"We have a little graveyard high on the mesa-top, yonder. He had not arelative in the world. He was of good old New England stock. He wastrying to tell me something about his feeling for the Dam because ofthat when he was killed."
Jim was speaking a little brokenly and Pen laid her hand on his arm.
"The big dangers on the dam, we try to guard against. We can't evenforesee a thing like Iron Skull's sacrifice. But I know he would haveliked to have gone giving his life for someone he loved the way he didold Suma-theek. Sometimes I think there ought to be listed on a bronzetablet on the wall of each great structure the names of those who diedin giving it birth. The big structures all are consecrated in blood.Skyscrapers, bridges, and dams all demand their human sacrifices. Thirtymen went on the Makon. We've lost eight here so far."
"Sara was frightfully upset," said Pen. "That's why he took themorphine. Any thought of death makes him hysterical. The chant set himto swearing frightfully. Jim, I'd give anything to be able to set Sararight with himself."
"Pen, why did Sara come down here?" asked Jim abruptly.
Penelope hesitated. She did not want to voice Iron Skull's suspicionsuntil she had verified them. "I don't know, Jim," she said finally. "Ithought it was for his health and land, but I feel uneasy since I seehis attitude toward you."
"If he has an idea of speculating in real estate, I'll have to head himoff," said Jim. "Land speculation hurts the projects very seriously."
"What harm does it do?" asked Pen.
"Inflates land values so that farming doesn't pay with the already heavybuilding charges for the dam."
"Oh, I see!" mused Pen. "I'll talk to Sara about it."
"Don't say a word to him. I can fight my own battles with Sara.Penelope, what were you thinking about when you sat over there at thecrater edge with your head on your arms?"
In the moonlight a slow red stained Pen's face. Jim watched her withpuzzled eyes.
"I--I can't tell you all I was thinking," she said. "But some of it wasbecause of Iron Skull. I was thinking how awful it will be for us todie, you and Sara and me, leaving not a human being behind us, just asIron Skull did."
"Most of us New Englanders are going that way," said Jim. "We Americanshave so steadily decreased our birth rate in the past hundred years thatwe are nearly seven million babies below normal. South European childrenwill take their places."
"Well, I don't know that it will hurt America in the long run," saidPen.
"I think it will," insisted Jim. "This country is governed byinstitutions that are inherently Teutonic. The people who will inheritthese institutions are fundamentally different in their conceptions ofgovernment and education. I'm a New Englander, descendant of theAnglo-Saxon founders of the country. I can't see my race and its idealpassing without its breaking my heart."
"Why do you pass?" asked Pen sharply. "Why don't you brace up?"
"We don't know how," said Jim.
"I wonder if that's true," murmured Pen, "and if it is true, why!"
Silence fell between the two. The night wind sighed softly over theElephant's broad back. The eagle, disturbed by the voices above hisnest, soared suddenly from the crater, dipped across the canyon, andcircled the flag that was seldom lowered before the office. The flagfluttered remotely in the moonlight.
"Look, Jim," whispered Pen, "the eagle and the flag so young and theElephant so old and poor Iron Skull lying there dead! I wish I couldmake a legend from it. The material is there.... Oh, Sara said suchhorrible things tonight!"
Penelope shivered. Jim jumped up and held out his hand. "Come, littlePen! I'm going to take you home. How cold your fingers are!"
Jim kept Pen's cold little hand warm within his own whenever the trailpermitted on the way back. But he scarcely spoke again.
The next day Iron Skull's funeral was held in the little adobe chapelwhich was filled to overflowing. A great crowd of workmen, Americans,Mexicans and Indians, gathered outside. At Suma-theek's earnestpetition, Jim allowed the Indians to carry the coffin on their shouldersup the trail behind the lower town to the mesa crest where the littlegraveyard lay. And Jim also gave Suma-theek permission to make afarewell speech when the grave had been filled. The missionary hadprotested but Jim was obdurate.
"Suma-theek owes his life to Iron Skull. I shall let him do hisuttermost to show his gratitude. He is a fine old man, as fine in theeyes of God, no doubt, as you or I, Mr. Smiley."
So as the last of the sand and gravel was being shoveled into the grave,the old Apache stepped forward and raised his lean brown hand.
"My blood brother," he said, "he lies in this grave. If he have squaw orchilds, old Suma-theek, he go give life for them. Iron Skull he no haveanyone left on this earth who carry his blood. He gone! He leave no markbut in my heart. Injun and white they come like pile of sand desert winddrifts up. They go like pile of sand desert wind blows down. GreatSpirit, He say, 'Only one strength for mens; that the strength of manychilds, Injuns, they no have many childs. They die. Mexicans they havemany childs, they live. Niggers, they have many. They live. Whites theyno have many childs. Come some day like Injuns, like Iron Skull, theysee on all of earth, no blood like theirs. They lay them down to diealone. Old Iron Skull, he a real man. He fight much. He work hard. Hekeep word. He die for friend. Maybe when Great Spirit look down at IronSkull, it make Him love Iron Skull to know old Injun carry Iron Skull'smark in his lonely heart. O friends, I know him many, many years! Wesmoke many pipes together. We hunt together. We sabez each other'shearts. Ai! Ai! Ai! Beloved!"
And old Suma-theek broke down and cried like a child.
The crowd dispersed silently. The rising night wind began its task ofsifting sand across Iron Skull's grave. Coyotes howled far on themountain tops. And the night shift began to repair the cofferdam for oldJezebel had dropped suddenly back into her old trail.
A day or so after the funeral Sara said to Penelope, "When are you goingdown to see Mrs. Ames?"
"What makes you so friendly to the Ames family?" Pen asked in surprise.
"Ames may be useful to me," replied Sara. "I want you to cultivate him."
"I'll not do it for any such reason," said Pen quickly. "I like Mrs.Ames and I plan to see a great deal of her. But I'll not play cat's pawfor you. What are you up to, Sara?"
"None of your business," said Sara.
Pen flushed, but fell back on the whimsical manner that was her defenseagainst Sara's ill-nature.
"It'
s your subtlety that fascinates me, Sara. Did you ever try a steamroller?"
Sara scowled: "Of course, I suppose it's too much to ask you to take aninterest in my business affairs. If I were a well man, I might hope tomake an impression on you."
"By the way, Sara," said Pen, "land speculation hurts these Projects. Idon't think you ought to try to make money that way. Of course, if Mr.Ames wants to sell you some land, I suppose I can't keep you frombuying, but Jim says that, coupled with the heavy building charges,inflated land values are doing the Service a lot of harm."
Pen watched Sara closely. Sara when calm was close-mouthed. Sara whenangry was apt to talk! His face flushed quickly.
"Jim! Jim!" he sneered. "I heard it all the time in New York and now I'mgetting it here. Oh, wait and see, the two of you!"
For the first time since the first years of bitter adjustment, Penshowed fire. She crossed the room and stood over Sara's couch, hercheeks scarlet, her hazel eyes deep with some suppressed fire.
"Do you think I fear you, with your vile tongue and your yellow heart,George Saradokis? There is neither fear nor love nor hope nor regretleft in my heart! It long ago learned that marriage is a travesty andour marriage a nightmare. Do you think your impudence or your threats_hurt_ me any more? You waste your breath if you do. You and I have madea hopeless mess of our lives. Jim is doing a big work. If I find you arelaying a straw in his way, I'll--I'll shove you, couch and all, over thecanyon edge."
Sara suddenly laughed. Even as she uttered her threat Pen wasmechanically straightening his pillow!
"Look here, Pen," he said, "I know I'm a devil! The pain and the awfulfailure of my life make me that. But I'll try to be more decent. For theLord's sake, Pen, don't you go back on me or I'll take an overdose ofmorphine. I do want to make some money and any land deal that Ames and Iput through, I'll let Jim pass on. Does that satisfy you?"
It was not often that Sara tried to wheedle Pen. She looked at himsuspiciously but nodded carelessly.
"All right! If Jim sees it I'll consent. If you get any honest enjoymentout of Mr. Ames, I'll get him up here often. Mrs. Ames is a dear."
"You are a good old sort, Pen," returned Sara. "Why can't you go downtomorrow? Mrs. Flynn would look out for me, I guess. They say thatfellow Bill Evans will ride people anywhere in his machine."
"I'll go over and see Mrs. Flynn now," said Pen. She was really eagerfor a visit with Jane Ames. She wondered if Iron Skull might not havebeen over-suspicious regarding Sara's purposes. Sara had an unquenchableitch for money-making. During all his long illness he had never ceased,with his father's help, to trade in real estate. Pen suspected that thesavings of many Greek immigrants were absorbed in Sara's and hisfather's schemes, none too honestly.
"Perhaps," said Pen, as she pinned on her hat, "Jim would take me down.Doesn't it seem natural though to have Jim doing things for me again!"
Some note in Pen's voice brought Sara to his elbow.
"Pen!" he shouted. "I've long suspected it. Are you in love with JimManning?"