They both
died, and a sweeter, fresher little thing than the daughter! Adamant,
though--bed-rock, so far as we are concerned."
"What do you want that belongs to her?" I asked. "Her island, perhaps?"
"Only right of way across it. But 'that's a detail.' She is the owner of
something else we do want--this piece of ground,"--he looked about him and
waved his hand,--"and all this above us, where our power-plant must stand.
And our business is to persuade her to sign the lease, or, if she won't
lease, to sell it when we are ready to buy. We have to make sure of that
piece of ground. This place is so confoundedly cut up with scenery and
nonsense, there's not a spot available for our plant but this. We'll bridge
the lagoon and make a landing on that point of birches over there."
"You will! And do you suppose she will sign a lease to empower you to wipe
her off the face of the earth--abolish her and her pretty island at one
fell swoop?"
"She knows nothing yet about our designs upon her toy island. We haven't
approached her on that. We could manage without it at a pinch."
"So good of you!" I murmured.
"But we can't manage without a place to put our power-house.
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