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- Фрэнк Норрис
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- Спрут: Калифорнийская история
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- Стр. 181/416
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They
descended
to
the
lower
floor
and
involved
themselves
for
a
moment
in
the
throng
of
fashionables
that
blocked
the
hallway
and
the
entrance
to
the
main
room
,
where
the
numbers
of
the
raffle
were
being
drawn
.
Near
the
head
of
the
stairs
they
encountered
Presley
and
Cedarquist
,
who
had
just
come
out
of
the
wine
room
.
Magnus
,
still
on
fire
with
the
new
idea
,
pressed
a
few
questions
upon
the
manufacturer
before
bidding
him
good
-
bye
.
He
wished
to
talk
further
upon
the
great
subject
,
interested
as
to
details
,
but
Cedarquist
was
vague
in
his
replies
.
He
was
no
farmer
,
he
hardly
knew
wheat
when
he
saw
it
,
only
he
knew
the
trend
of
the
world
’
s
affairs
;
he
felt
them
to
be
setting
inevitably
eastward
.
However
,
his
very
vagueness
was
a
further
inspiration
to
the
Governor
.
He
swept
details
aside
.
He
saw
only
the
grand
coup
,
the
huge
results
,
the
East
conquered
,
the
march
of
empire
rolling
westward
,
finally
arriving
at
its
starting
point
,
the
vague
,
mysterious
Orient
.
He
saw
his
wheat
,
like
the
crest
of
an
advancing
billow
,
crossing
the
Pacific
,
bursting
upon
Asia
,
flooding
the
Orient
in
a
golden
torrent
.
It
was
the
new
era
.
He
had
lived
to
see
the
death
of
the
old
and
the
birth
of
the
new
;
first
the
mine
,
now
the
ranch
;
first
gold
,
now
wheat
.
Once
again
he
became
the
pioneer
,
hardy
,
brilliant
,
taking
colossal
chances
,
blazing
the
way
,
grasping
a
fortune
—
a
million
in
a
single
day
.
All
the
bigness
of
his
nature
leaped
up
again
within
him
.
At
the
magnitude
of
the
inspiration
he
felt
young
again
,
indomitable
,
the
leader
at
last
,
king
of
his
fellows
,
wresting
from
fortune
at
this
eleventh
hour
,
before
his
old
age
,
the
place
of
high
command
which
so
long
had
been
denied
him
.
At
last
he
could
achieve
.
Abruptly
Magnus
was
aware
that
some
one
had
spoken
his
name
.
He
looked
about
and
saw
behind
him
,
at
a
little
distance
,
two
gentlemen
,
strangers
to
him
.
They
had
withdrawn
from
the
crowd
into
a
little
recess
.
Evidently
having
no
women
to
look
after
,
they
had
lost
interest
in
the
afternoon
’
s
affair
.
Magnus
realised
that
they
had
not
seen
him
.
One
of
them
was
reading
aloud
to
his
companion
from
an
evening
edition
of
that
day
’
s
newspaper
.
It
was
in
the
course
of
this
reading
that
Magnus
caught
the
sound
of
his
name
.
He
paused
,
listening
,
and
Presley
,
Harran
and
Cedarquist
followed
his
example
.
Soon
they
all
understood
.
They
were
listening
to
the
report
of
the
judge
’
s
decision
,
for
which
Magnus
was
waiting
—
the
decision
in
the
case
of
the
League
vs
.
the
Railroad
.
For
the
moment
,
the
polite
clamour
of
the
raffle
hushed
itself
—
the
winning
number
was
being
drawn
.
The
guests
held
their
breath
,
and
in
the
ensuing
silence
Magnus
and
the
others
heard
these
words
distinctly
:
“
.
.
.
.
It
follows
that
the
title
to
the
lands
in
question
is
in
the
plaintiff
—
the
Pacific
and
Southwestern
Railroad
,
and
the
defendants
have
no
title
,
and
their
possession
is
wrongful
.
There
must
be
findings
and
judgment
for
the
plaintiff
,
and
it
is
so
ordered
.
”
In
spite
of
himself
,
Magnus
paled
.
Harran
shut
his
teeth
with
an
oath
.
Their
exaltation
of
the
previous
moment
collapsed
like
a
pyramid
of
cards
.
The
vision
of
the
new
movement
of
the
wheat
,
the
conquest
of
the
East
,
the
invasion
of
the
Orient
,
seemed
only
the
flimsiest
mockery
.
With
a
brusque
wrench
,
they
were
snatched
back
to
reality
Between
them
and
the
vision
,
between
the
fecund
San
Joaquin
,
reeking
with
fruitfulness
,
and
the
millions
of
Asia
crowding
toward
the
verge
of
starvation
,
lay
the
iron
-
hearted
monster
of
steel
and
steam
,
implacable
,
insatiable
,
huge
—
its
entrails
gorged
with
the
life
blood
that
it
sucked
from
an
entire
commonwealth
,
its
ever
hungry
maw
glutted
with
the
harvests
that
should
have
fed
the
famished
bellies
of
the
whole
world
of
the
Orient
.
