"Well, of course," returned Mrs. Thurston, who was not sure of her ground and had no desire to talk against the rich and powerful, "they say that some one ought to pay something. But, of course, Joe Calvin always wins his suits and the Judge, of course, was the Company's attorney before he was the Judge--" "And so the claim agents are signing 'em up for what the Company will give," cut in the questioner. "That's about it, Mrs. Herdicker," responded Mrs. Thurston. "Times are hard, and they take what they can get now, rather than fight for it. And the most the Company will pay is $400 for a life, and not all are getting that." "Tom Van Dorn--he's a smooth one, Lizzie--he's a smooth one." Mrs. Herdicker, Prop., looked quickly at Mrs. Thurston and got a smile in reply. That was enough. She continued: "You'd think he'd know better--wouldn't you?" "Well, I don't know--it's hard to teach an old dog new tricks," was the non-committal answer of Mrs. Thurston, still cautious about offending the powers. Mrs. Herdicker, Prop., brushed aside formalities. "Yes--stenographers and hired girls, and biscuit shooters at the Palace and maybe now and then an excursion across the track; but this is different; this is in his own class. They were both here this afternoon, and you should have seen the way she cooed and billed over Laura Van Dorn. Honest, Lizzie, if I'd never heard a word, I'd know something was wrong. And you should have seen old lady Nesbit give her the come-uppins." Mrs. Herdicker, Prop., dropped her voice to a confidential tone. "Lizzie?" a pause; "They say you've seen 'em together." The thought of the quarter page advertisement overcame whatever scruples Mrs. Thurston may have had, and so long as she had the center of the stage she said her lines: "Why I don't know a single thing--only this: that for--maybe a month or so every few days along about five or six o'clock when the roads are good I've seen him coming one way on his wheel, and go down in the country on the Adams road, and about ten minutes later from another way she'd come riding along on her wheel and go down the Adams road into the country following him. Then in an hour or so, they come back, sometimes one of them first--sometimes the other, but I've really never seen them together. She might be going to the Adamses; she boarded there once years ago." "Yes,--and she hates 'em!" snapped Mrs. Herdicker derisively, and then added, "Well, it's none of my business so long as they pay for their hats."