Читать книгу Frank Merriwell's Prosperity; or, Toil Has Its Reward онлайн

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“Mr. Havener, when I made you stage manager of this company I did so with the full intention that you should manage the stage and the people on it. I made no reservations. At rehearsal I am under you, and I thoroughly understand that. It is the only way to run a company as it should be run. A stage manager must have absolute authority in his province, or he is of very little value. I tried to tell this to Hodge, but he was too hot to listen.”

“But Hodge is your friend.”

“Yes.”

“And you always stand by your friends.”

“Always. At the same time I will not uphold a friend to the absolute injury of somebody else. I will stand by him and endeavor to convince him of his error, if he has made one; but I will not aid him in injuring another person.”

Havener brightened and the downcast look left his face.

“I was afraid you would blame me in this matter,” he said. “It’s pretty rough to be upset just like this, after all the troubles you have had and just when there seemed to be plain sailing ahead.”