Produced by Charles Keller. HTML version by Al Haines. THE COST By DAVID GRAHAM PHILLIPS CONTENTS CHAPTER I A FATHER INVITES DISASTER II OLIVIA TO THE RESCUE III AND SCARBOROUGH IV A DUMONT TRIUMPH V FOUR FRIENDS VI "LIKE HIS FATHER" VII PAULINE AWAKENS VIII THE DECISION IX A THOROUGHBRED RUNS AWAY X MRS. JOHN DUMONT XI YOUNG AMERICA XII AFTER EIGHT YEARS XIII "MY SISTER IN LAW, GLADYS" XIV STRAINING AT THE ANCHORS XV GRADUATED PEARLS XVI CHOICE AMONG EVILS XVII TWO AND THE BARRIER XVIII ON THE FARM XIX PAULINE GOES INTO POLITICS XX A MAN IN HIS MIGHT XXI A COYOTE AT BAY XXII STORMS IN THE WEST XXIII A SEA SURPRISE XXIV DUMONT BETRAYS DUMONT XXV THE FALLEN KING XXVI A DESPERATE RALLY XXVII THE OTHER MAN'S MIGHT XXVIII AFTER THE LONG WINTER THE COST I. A FATHER INVITES DISASTER Pauline Gardiner joined us on the day that we, the Second Reader class, moved from the basement to the top story of the old Central Public School. Her mother brought her and, leaving, looked round at us, meeting for an instant each pair of curious eyes with friendly appeal. We knew well the enchanted house where she lived--stately, retreated far into large grounds in Jefferson Street; a high brick wall all round, and on top of the wall broken glass set in cement. Behind that impassable barrier which so teased our young audacity were flower-beds and "shrub" bushes, whose blossoms were wonderfully sweet if held a while in the closed hand; grape arbors and shade and fruit trees, haunted by bees; winding walks strewn fresh each spring with tan-bark that has such a clean, strong odor, especially just after a rain, and that is at once firm and soft beneath the feet. And in the midst stood the only apricot tree in Saint X. As few of us had tasted apricots, and as those few pronounced them better far than oranges or even bananas, that tree was the climax of tantalization. The place had belonged to a childless old couple who hated children--or did they bar them out and drive them away because the sight and sound of them quickened the ache of empty old age into a pain too keen to bear? The husband died, the widow went away to her old maid sister at Madison; and the Gardiners, coming from Cincinnati to live in the town where Colonel Gardiner was born and had spent his youth, bought the place. On our way to and from school in the first weeks of that term, pausing as always to gaze in through the iron gates of the drive, we had each day seen Pauline walking alone among the flowers. And she would stop and smile at us; but she was apparently too shy to come to the gates; and we, with the memory of the cross old couple awing us, dared not attempt to make friends with her.