Burnham he had only
silent contempt. Her honest desire to have right done had been too
apparent from the start. The only fault he had to find with her was
that she did not come to his rescue when the tide was turning against
him. But against Ralph the old man's wrath and indignation were
intense.
Had he not saved the child from death? Had he not fed and clothed and
cared for him during five years? Had he not rescued him from oblivion,
and made every effort to endow him with wealth and position and an
honored name? And then, to think that in the very moment when these
efforts were about to meet with just success, this boy had turned
against him, and brought ruin and disgrace upon him. Oh, it was too
much, too much!
If he could only have the lad in his possession for a week, he
thought, for a day, for an hour even, he would teach him the cost of
turning traitor to his friends. Oh, he would teach him!
Then it occurred to him that perhaps he might get possession of the
boy, and permanent possession at that. Had not Ralph sworn that he was
Simon Craft's grandson? Had not the jury accepted Ralph's testimony
as true? And had not the court ordered judgment to be entered on the
jury's verdict? Well, if the court had declared the boy to be his
grandson, he was entitled to him, was he not? If the boy was able to
earn anything, he was entitled to his earnings, was he not? If he was
the child's grandfather, then he had authority to take him, to govern
him, to punish him for disobedience--was not that true?
Old Simon rose from his chair and began to walk up and down the room,
hammering his cane upon the floor at every step.
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