第16章

"Mother，howoftenhaveItoldyounottospeaklikethat。"

"Buthedoes。Manytimes，whenyouandIhavebeenheretogether，Ihavebeenonthepointofurgingyoutoleavemeandgobacktotheworldandtakeyourplaceinit。Morethanonce，youremember，dear，Ihavehintedatsuchathing，butyouhavealwayschosennottounderstandthehints，andIhavebeensoweakandselfishthatI

havenotpressedthem。Iamgladyouhavedonethis，ifitseemsrighttoyou。Butdoesit？Areyousure？"

"Ithinkso，Mother。IconfessIamnotsure。"

"Thiscountrybankisaprettysmallplace，isn’tit？Notbigenoughformyboytoprovehisworthin。"

"Itisquitebigenoughforthat。Thatdoesn’trequireaRothschild’sestablishment。"

"Butyourdecisionmusthavebeenaverysuddenone。Youdidnotmentionthatyouthoughtofsuchathing。Noteventome。"

"Itwassudden，"Ianswered。"Itookthepositiononthespurofthemoment。"

"Butwhy？Whatledyoutodoit？"

"Idon’tknow，Mother。"

"Whatinfluencedyou？Hasanyoneurgedyou？"

"GeorgeTaylorofferedmetheplacesometimeago。Heurgedme。"

"Nooneelse？"

Iavoidedtheissue。"Youdon’tmind，then，Mother，"Isaid。"YouarewillingthatIshouldtrytheexperiment？"

"Iamglad，ifitpleasesyou。Andyoumustletmesaythisnow，Roscoe，becauseitistrueandImeanit。Ifanotherandbetteropportunitycomestoyou，onethatmighttakeyouawayfromDenboro——andfromme——foratime，ofcourse，Iwantyoutopromisemethatyouwillnotrefuseitonmyaccount。Willyoupromise？"

"No。OfcourseIshan’tpromiseanysuchthing。IsitlikelythatIwouldleaveyou，Mother？"

"IknowthatyouwouldnotleavemeunlessIwerewillingforyoutogo。Iknowthat，Roscoe。ButIammuchbetterandstrongerthanIwas。Ishallneverbewell——"

"Don’tsaythat，"Iinterrupted，hastily。

"ButImustsayit，becauseitistrue。Ishallneverbewell，butIamstrongenoughnowtobearthethoughtofyourleavingmeandwhenthetimecomesIshallinsistuponyourdoingso。Iamgladwehavehadthistalk，dear。Iamglad，too，thatyouaregoingtobebusyoncemoreinthewayyoulikeandoughttobe。Youmusttellmeaboutyourworkeveryday。Nowgo，becauseyourdinnerisreadyand，ofcourse，youmustbegettingbacktothebank。Kissme，Boy。"

AndasIbentoverhersheputherarmsaboutmyneck。

"Boy，"shewhispered，"Iknowthereissomereasonforyourdoingthis，areasonwhichyouhavenottoldme。Youwilltellmesomeday，won’tyou？"

Istraightenedhurriedlyandtriedtolaugh。"OfcourseI’lltellyou，Mother，"Ireplied。"Ifthereisanythingtotell。"

Theclampiewasonthetableinthedining—roomandDorindawasseatedmajesticallybeforeit。Lutewasfidgetinginhischair。

"Hereheis，"heexclaimed，asIjoinedthepairatthetable。

"Ros，howdidyouevercometodoit？"

Hiswifesquelchedhim，asusual。"IfRoscoe’sgotanythingtotell，"sheobserved，withdignity，"he’lltellitwithoutyourhelporanybodyelse’s。Ifheain’t，hewon’t。Thispie’scolderthanitoughttobe，butthatisn’tmyfault。"

AsIateItoldthemofmysuddendeterminationtobecomealaboringman。IgavethereasonsthatIhadgivenMother。

"Um—hm，"saidDorinda。

"ButIcan’tunderstand，"pleadedLute。"Youdon’tneedtowork，andI’vesortoftookaprideinyournotdoin’it。IfIwaswell—

off，sameasyoube，IbetGeorgeTaylor’dhavetowhistleaforeI

woreoutMYbrainsinhisoldbank。"

"Hewouldn’thavetimetowhistlemore’nonce，"wasDorinda’scomment。

"Now，Dorinda，whatkindoftalkisthat？Wouldn’thavetimetowhistle？Youdosaymorethingswithoutanysenseto’em！Justtalktohearyourself，Ical’late。Whatareyougrinnin’at，Roscoe？"

"Ican’timagine，Lute。Thisclampieisatriumph。MayIhaveanotherhelping，Dorinda？"

Dorindadidnotanswer，butthesecondhelpingwasaliberalone。

ShewassoquietandtheglancesshegavemefromtimetotimeweresooddthatIbegantofeeluneasy。Iwasfairlysurethatsheapprovedofmynewventure，butwhydidshelookatmelikethat？

"Well，"saidI，lookingatmywatchandrising，"whatdoyouthinkofit？AmIdoingright？"

Luteleanedbackinhischair。"There’sconsider’bletobesaidonthatsubject，"heannounced。"Work，asageneralthing，Iconsiderallright；I’vetoldyouthatafore。Butwhenitcomesto——"

"Whatdoyouthink，Dorinda？"Iinterrupted。

Dorindastirredhertea。

"Think？"sherepeated。"Ithink……When’sthatColtongirlcomin’tocallonComfortagain？"

Ihadtakenmyhatfromthehook。Now，withitinmyhand，I

turnedandfacedher。

"HowshouldIknowthat？"Idemanded。"That’satrifleoffthesubject，isn’tit？"

"Um—hm，"saidDorinda。"Maybe’tis。"

Iwentouthurriedly。

WithintheweekIwasathomeinmynewposition。Thestrangenessofregularhoursandregularemploymentworeawaywithsurprisingrapidity。Therewere，ofcourse，morningswhenseaandskyandthefreshnessofoutdoorstemptedmeandIwonderedwhetherornotI

hadbeenfoolishtogiveupmyfineandeasylife。ButtheseperiodsoftemptationwereshorterandlessfrequentasIbecamemoreandmorefamiliarwithmydutiesandwiththeroutineofthebank。Ifoundmyselftakingagreaterinterestintheinstitutionand，tomyastonishment，IwasactuallysorrywhenSaturdaycame。

ItseemedoddenoughtooncemorehavemoneyinmypocketwhichI

hadearned。Itwasnotagreatamount，ofcourse，butIfeltittobemine。Yes，therewasnodoubtaboutit，Ihaddonetherightthing，andwasglad。IwasgratefultoTaylorforhavinggivenmetheopportunity。PerhapsIshouldhavebeengratefultothepersonwhosebrutalandimpertinentfranknesshadpiquedmeintograspingthatopportunity，butIwasnot。

ShemadehersecondcalluponMothertwodaysafterourimpromptupicnicatSeabury’sPond。IheardallaboutitwhenIcamehomethatafternoon。Itappearedthatshehadbroughtmoreflowersandafreshsupplyofbooks。ShehadremainedevenlongerthanonherfirstvisitandsheandMotherhadtalkedaboutalmosteverythingunderthesun。Onetopic，however，hadnotbeendiscussed，afactwhichmyguardedquestionsmadecertain。She，likemyself，hadsaidnothingconcerningthedayinthewoods。

"ItoldherofyourconsentingtohelpMr。Taylorinhisdilemma，"

saidMother。

"Didyou？"saidI。"Itwaskindofyoutoputitinthatway。"

"Thatwasthetruthfulwayofputtingit，wasn’tit？Sheseemedverymuchinterested。"

"Indeed。Andsurprised，Ipresume。"

"Why，yes，Ithinkso。Sheseemedsurprisedatfirst；thenshelaughed；Icouldnotunderstandwhy。Shehasaverypleasantlaugh，hasn’tshe？"

"Ihavenevernoticed。"Thiswasuntrue。

"Shehas。Sheisacharminggirl。Iamsorryyouwerenotherewhenshecalled。Itoldheryouwouldbehomesoonandaskedhertowait，butshewouldnot。"

"Iamgladshedidn’t。"

"Roscoe！"

"Iam，Mother。Thatyoungladycomesheretoseeyoumerelybecauseshehasnothingelsetodojustnow。Ishouldn’taccepttoomanyfavorsfromher。"

MothersaidIwasunreasonableandprejudicedandIdidnotarguethepoint。LuteandDorindadiscussedthecalleratthesuppertableuntilIwasconstrainedtoleavetheroom。MabelColtonmightamuseherselfwithMotherandthetwomembersofourhouseholdwhomshehaddescribedas"characters，"shemightdeludethemintobelievingherthoughtfulandsympatheticandwithoutfalsepride，butIknewbetter。Shehadinsultedme。Shehad，insomanywords，toldmethatIwaslazyandworthless，justasshemighthavetoldherchauffeuroroneoftheservants。Thatitwastruemadenodifference。Wouldshehavespokeninthatwayto——toVictorCarver，forinstance？Hardly。ShewasjustwhatIhadthoughtheratfirst，afeminineeditionofVictor，withmorebrainsthanhepossessed。

CaptainJedDeancameintothebankthethirddayaftermyinstallationasbookkeeperandteller。Iwasaloneinthedirector’sroom，goingoversomepapers，andheenteredandshookhandswithme。Theoldfellowprofesseddelightatmypresencethere。

"Georgetellsmeyou’retakin’holdfust—rate，"hesaid。"That’sgood。I’mgladtohearit。"

"Why？"Iasked。Therewasatraceofhisoldpomposityinthespeech——orIimaginedtherewas——andIchosetoresentit。ThesewerethedayswhenIwasinthemoodtoresentalmostanything。

"Why？"herepeated，insurprise。"Whatdoyoumean？"

"Whyareyouglad？"Isaid。"Ican’tseewhatdifferenceitmakestoyouwhetherIsucceedornot。"

Heregardedmewithapuzzledexpression，but，insteadoftakingoffense，helaughed。

"You’vegotachiponyourshoulder，ain’tyou，Ros？"heobserved。

"Workin’youtoohardatthestart，arewe？"

"No，"Ianswered，curtly。

"Thenwhatisthematter？"

"Why，nothing，unlessitisthateveryoneImeetseemstotakesuchagreatinterestinmybeinghere。IbelieveallofDenborotalksofnothingelse。"

"Notmuchelse，Ishouldn’twonder。Butthat’stobeexpected，ain’tit？Everybody’sgladyou’remakin’good。"

"Humph！Theyallseemtoregardthatastheeighthwonderoftheworld。Thepositiondoesn’trequireamarvelofintelligence；

almostanyonewithateaspoonfulofbrainscouldfillit。"

"Whyno，theycouldn’t。Butthat’snothin’todowithit。Iseewhat’sthematterwithyou，Ros。Youthinkallhandsareknockedontheirbeamendsbecauseyou’vegonetowork。Someof’emare，that’safact，andyoucan’tblame’emmuch，considerin’howlongyou’velivedherewithoutdoin’anything。Butallof’emthatamounttoathree—centpieceareglad，andtherestdon’tcountanyway。You’vemadeagoodmanyfriendsinthistownlately，son。"

Ismiledbitterly。"Friends，"Isaid。

"Why，yes，friends。Andfriendsareworthhavin’，especiallyifyoumake’emwithoutbeggin’fortheirfriendship。Igiveinthatyou’vesurprisedsomeofus。Wedidn’tknowthatyouhaditinyou。Butyourstandin’uptooldColtonwasafinething，andweappreciatedit。"

"ThatisbecauseyouwereagainsthisgrabbingtheLane。"

"Whatofit？And’twan’tthataltogether。I，forone，ain’tcomplainin’becauseyoustooduptomeandwouldn’tselltothetown。Bytheway，TimHallet’sganghaven’tbotheredyoulately，havethey？"

"No。AndIadvisethemnotto。"

Hechuckled。"Iheardyouadvised’emtothateffect，"hesaid。

"Iain’tcomplainin’atthat，either，eventhoughIknewwhattheywasuptoandthought’twasmoreorlessofajoke。ButIlikedthewayyoufired’emoutofthere，notcarin’atinker’sdarnwhowasbehind’em。Solongasamanstandssquareinhisbootsanddon’tknuckletoanybodyhewon’tloseanythingwithJedDean。

That’sme！"

"YououghttolikeColton，then，"Isaid。"Hehasn’tknuckled，much。"

CaptainJedgrinned。"Well，"hesaid，slowly，"Idon’tobjecttothatinhim。Heseemstobeafighterandthat’sallright。MaybeifIwasoneofhistribeinNewYorkIshouldlikehim。ButI

ain’t。Andyouain’t，Ros。We’rebothofuscountryfolks，livin’

here，andhe’sacitysharkbuttin’intothefeedin’grounds。HewantstohogthewholeplaceandyouandIsayheshan’t。I’mthankfultohimforonething：hiscomin’herehaswakedyouup，andit’sgoin’tomakeamanofyou，orImissmyguess。"

Ididnotanswer。

"Youmustn’tgetmadbecauseItalkthisway，"hewenton。"I’moldenoughtobeyourdad，RosPaine，andIknowwhatI’mtalkin’

about。Inevertookmuchofashinetoyouintheolddays。Youwastoomuchofwhatthestorybookscalla’gentleman’tosuitme。

I’vehadtoscratchallmylifeforwhatI’vegot，butI’vegotit。

Whenayoung，ablefellerlikeyouwascontentedtoloafaroundasyoudidandtakenointerestinnothin’，I，naturally，figgeredhewasno—account。IseenowIwaswrong。Allyouneededwassomethin’tostiryouupandsetyougoin’。KEEPgoin’，that’smyadvicetoyou。Andsolongasyoudo，anddon’tbendwhenthepressuregetshard，you’llbesomebodyaforeyoudie。Andthefriendsyou’vemade’llstandbackofyou。"

"HowabouttheenemiesIhavemade？"

"Enemies？Isupposelikelyyouhavemadesomeenemies，butwhatofit？I’vemadeenemiesallmylife。Itain’tbecauseI’mpopularhereinDenborothatI’mwhatIam。Nowisit？"

Thetruthfulanswerwouldhavebeenno。CaptainDeanwasnotpopular，buthewasrespectedevenbythemanywhodislikedanddisagreedwithhim。Ihesitated，tryingtothinkwhattosay。

"Youknow’tain’tthat，"hesaid。"PopularityIneverhad，thoughit’sapleasantenoughthingandsometimesIwish——Butthere，thisain’texperiencemeetin’。I’mgladyou’rehereinthisbank。

You’resmart，andGeorgesaysyouareworthmorethanHenrySmalleverwas，evensoearly。IfyoureallyarewhatitbeginstolookasifyouareI’mgladforDenboro。Maybethere’llbesomebodybesidesGeorgefittorunthistownafterI’mgone。"

Ismiled。Thelastremarkwassocharacteristicthatitwasfunny。

Hewasturningaway，buthenoticedthesmileandturnedback。

"That’sajoke，hey？"heasked。

"Captain，"Isaid，"youarenotconsistent。WhenyouandIfirsttalkedabouttheLaneyousaidthatyouwouldnotblamemeifI

closedit。Ifitwasyoursyouwouldn’thaveTom，Dick，andHarrydrivingfishcartsthroughit。"

"DidIsaythat？"

"Yes。Andyousaid，onanotheroccasion，thatanyonewouldsellanythingiftheywereofferedmoneyenough。"

"Humph！Well，sometimesIsay’mostanythingbutmyprayers。

MatildysaysIforgetthemprettyoften，butItellherherFridaynightspeechesarelongenoughtomakeup。MaybeImeantwhatI

saidtoyouatthosetimes，Ros。Ishouldn’twonderifIdid。But’twasaliejustthesame。TherearethingsIwouldn’tsell，ofcourse。Nellie，mydaughter’soneof’em。She’sgoin’togetagoodhusbandinGeorgehere，butherhappinessmeansmoretomethanmoney。She’soneofthethingsIwouldn’tsell。AndmySelectman’sjobisanother。Ifoughtforthat，notsomuchforthehonor，orwhateveryoucallit，butbecause——well，becauseIwantedtoshow’emthatIcouldgetitifIsetoutto。Idon’tpresumelikelyyoucanunderstandthatfeelin’。"

"IthinkIcan，"Ianswered。"Mr。ColtongaveaboutthesamereasonforhisdeterminationtoclosetheLane。Youandheseemtobeagooddealalike，afterall。"

Helookedatmefrombeneathhisbushybrows。Hismouthtwistedinagrimsmile。

"Say，son，"hesaid，"ifIhadn’tbeensofreewithmyproclamationsaboutbein’yourfriendyouandmewouldhaveasettlementforthatlittlebitoftalk。TheEmperorandmealike！Ugh！"

Thenextafternoonhecameinagainandaskedmetostepoutsidetherailing。Hehadsomethingtosaytome，hedeclared。

Wesatdowntogetheronthesetteebythewall。

"Ros，"hesaid，inalowtone，"haveyouhadanynewofferforyourproperty？NotfromColtonorthetown，butfromanybodyelse？"

"No，"Ianswered。"Whatdoyoumean？"

"Youain’theardanythingfromaBostonfirmclaimin’torepresenttheBayShoreDevelopmentCompany，orsomesuch？"

"No。Whatsortofacompanyisthat？"

"Idon’tknow；thatis，Idon’tknowmuchaboutit。Butthere’stalkdriftin’’roundthataBostonsyndicateiscal’latin’tobuyupalltheshorefrontlandfromSouthOstabletotheBayportlineandopenitupforsummerhouselots。ThenameistheBayShoreDevelopmentCompany，orsomethin’likethat。Youain’theardfrom’em，then？"

"Notaword。Wheredidyourinformationcomefrom？"

"Fromnobodyinparticular。Itjustseemstobeintheair。AlvinBakerhearditovertoOstable。Thefellerthattoldhimgotitfromsomebodyelse，whogotitfromanothersomebody，andsoon。

There’stalkaboutgoodpricesbein’offeredand，accordin’toAlvin，Ostablefolksareprettyexcited。ElnathanMullet，whoownsthatstripbelowyourhouse，knowssomethin’aboutit，Ithink。I

shouldn’twonderifhe’dhadanoffer，orahint，orsomethin’。

ButElnathan’smouthshutstighterthanamuskrattrapandI

couldn’tgetnothin’outofhim。Hejustlookedknowin’andthatwasall。But，ifit’sso，itmaymeanaheaptoDenboro。"

Iwasconsideringthenewswhenhespokeagain。

"Itmightmeanalottoyou，Ros，"hewhispered。

"Howso？"

"Why，thisway：Ifthisconcernofferedyouenoughmoneyyoumightsellouttothem，mightn’tyou？Sellallyourplace，Imean；youcouldgetanotheroneeasyenough。Youain’tparticularaboutlivin’bytheshore。"

"But——youurgemetoSELL！"Iexclaimed。"SelltheShoreLanewiththerest？"

"Whynot？Youwouldn’tbesellin’toColton。And，ifthisdevelopmentschemeiswhattheysayitis，there’llberoadscutthroughallalongshore。Thetowncoulduseanyof’em；atleastthatarrangementmightbemade。Thinkitover，Ros。Iftheydoofferandofferenough，I’dsell，ifIwasyou。Say！thatwouldbeareefunderHisMajesty’sbows，hey？Jolthimsome，Ical’late。"

Ididnotanswer。Thiswasanewpossibility。Ofcoursehisreasonforadvisingmysellingwasplainenough，but，leavingtheColtonsentirelyaside，theideawasnotwithoutallurement。Thetown’sconvenienceinthematterofaroadmightbeconsidered，justashesaid。Andmyscruplesagainstsellingataprofitwere，afterall，baseduponthatfeature。

"Youthinkitover，"hecounseled。"Don’tsaynothin’tonobody，butjustthink——andwait。I’llkeepmyeyetowind’ardandseewhatIcanfindout。Itellyouhonest，Ros，I’llfeelsaferwhenIknowoldImperial’sgame’sblockedforgoodandall。"

OldImperialhimselfmadehisappearancebeforeclosinghours。I

lookedupfrommyworktoseehimstandingbythewindow。Hehadnotexpectedtoseemethere——evidentlyhisdaughterhadnotconsideredMother’snewsofsufficientimportancetorepeat——and，atfirst，hedidnotrecognizeme。

"Goodafternoon，Mr。Colton，"saidI。

Henodded。"Cashthisforme，willyou，"hesaid，pushingacheckthroughtheopening。"What？Hello！Whatinblazesareyoudoinginthere？"

"Iamemployedherenow，"Ianswered。

"Humph！howlongsince？"

"Tendays，orsuchmatter。"

"Whatareyoudoinginabank？"

"Bankingwasmybusiness，atonetime。"

"Thoughtyouhadn’tanybusiness。"

"Ihaven’thadany，forsomeyears。NowIhave。Howdoyouwishthismoney？Intensandfives？"

"Yes。Nothingbigger。Downhereitrestrictsthecirculationifyouspringatwentydollarbillonthem。Soyou’vetakentobanking？Iwasthinkingofcorralingyouforagunningtriponeofthesedays。Nowit’salloff，Isuppose。"

"Itlooksthatway。SorryIamtobedeprivedofthepleasure。"

"Humph！"Then，withoneofhissuddenchanges，"Howbigabusinessdoesthisconcerndo？Whatdoyourdepositsamountto？"

Igavehimthefigures，asprintedintheyearlystatement。Hemadenocomment。Insteadheobserved，"Youhaven’tbeenaroundtoacceptthatofferofmineyet，Paine。"

"Notyet，"Ianswered。

"SupposeIoughttoraiseit，nowthatyou’reafinancieryourself。

However，Ishan’t。"

"Ihaven’taskedyouto。"

Hesmiled。"No，youhaven’t，"hesaid。"Well，itisopen——forawhile。IfIwereyouI’dacceptitprettysoon。"

"Possibly。"

"MeaningthatIamnotyou，hey？I’mnot。Ihaven’tyourhighprinciples，Paine。Can’tafford’em。You’rewhattheycalla’Progressive’inpolitics，too，aren’tyou？"

"Hereisyourmoney，"Isaid，ignoringthequestion。

"I’llbetyouare！"hedeclared，takingthebills。"Ineversawoneofyouhigh—principledchapsyetthatwasn’t——untilhegotrichenoughtobesomethingelse。Progressisallright，maybe，butI

noticethatyoufellowspayforitandtherestofusgetit。JustasIamgoingtogetthatlandofyours。"

"Youhaven’tgotityet，"Isaid，serenely。Ihadmadeupmymindthatthistimeheshouldnotprovokemeintolosingmytemper。

Heseemedtodivinemydetermination。Hiseyetwinkled。"You’reimproving，Paine，"heobserved。"I’llgiveyouapieceofadvice；

ithascostmeagooddealtolearn，butI’llgiveittoyou：

Don’teverlettheotherfellowmakeyoumad。"

IrememberedourfirstinterviewandIcouldnotresistthetemptationtoretort。

"Ifmyrecollectioniscorrect，"Isaid，"youforgotthatthefirsttimewemet。"

Helaughedaloud。"SoIdid，"headmitted。"MaybeifIhadn’titwouldnotcostmesomuchtogetmyownwayinyourcase。"

Hewalkedoutofthebuilding。Iheardoneexclamationfrombehindand，turning，sawSamWheeler，myyouthfulassistant，staringatme。

"My——gosh！"exclaimedSam，histoneamixtureofwonderandadmiration，"Idon’tseehowyoudasttotalkbacktohimlikethat，Ros。He’llsicthe——the’System’ontoyou，won’the？"

ItwasevidentthatSamhadbeenreadingthemagazines。

IheardnomorefromCaptainJedandnothingfromthemysterious"DevelopmentCompany"fortheremainderofthatweek。ButonSunday，asIsatintheboathouse，smokingmyafterdinnerpipeandreading，Luteexcitedlyentered，followedbyawell—dressed，smooth—shavenmanofmiddleage，whomheintroducedasMr。KeeneofBoston，"who’sdrivenallthewayfromOstablea—purposetoseeyou，Ros。"

Mr。Keeneshookhandswithmecordiallyandapologizedforintrudinguponmydayofrest。Heintendedreturningtothecityinthemorning，hesaid，and，ashehadalittlemattertodiscusswithme，hadtakenthelibertyofcalling。"Ishan’ttakemorethanhalfanhourofyourtime，Mr。Paine，"heexplained。"AtleastIfeelcertainthatyouandIcanreachanagreementinthatperiod。IfImightbealonewithyou——"

Thishint，evidentlyintendedforLute’sbenefit，wasquitelostuponthelastnamedindividual，whohadseatedhimselfontheedgeoftheworkbenchandwaslisteningwithbothears。Iwasobligedtotellhimthathispresencewassuperfluousandrequesthisreturningtothehouse，whichhereluctantlydid，movingslowlyandlookingbackwithanexpressionofgrieveddisappointment。AfterhehadgoneIaskedMr。Keenewhathis"littlematter"mightbe。

Hisreplywaspromptandtothepoint。Hegavemehiscard。Hewas，itseemed，juniorpartnerinthefirmofBarclayandKeene，realestatebrokersandpromoters，MilkStreet，Boston。And，justnow，hewasactingasrepresentativeoftheBayShoreDevelopmentCompany。"Aconcernofwhich，inspiteofallourprecautionsandattemptsatsecrecy，youmay，perhaps，haveheard，Mr。Paine，"headded，smiling。

IadmittedthatIhadheardrumorsconcerningthecompany’sexistence。But，exceptfortheseveryvaguerumors，Iknewnothingaboutit。

Heexpectedthat，hesaid，andwasgladtogivemefurtherandcompleteinformation。Infact，thatwashisreasonforcomingsomanymilestoseeme。IfIwouldbegoodenoughtolistenhewouldtellmejustwhattheBayShoreCompanywasandwhatitcontemplateddoing。

Ilistenedandhetalked。AccordingtohimtheBayShoresyndicate——thatiswhatitwas，asyndicateofcapitalists——

representedoneofthebiggestrealestatepropositionseverconceived。ThosebehinditwereawaketothepossibilitiesoftheCapeasasummerresort。Shoreland，waterfrontpropertyinthevicinity，wasdestinedtoincreaseinvalue，provideditwasproperlyexploitedanddeveloped。Thecompany’sideawastodojustthat——exploitanddevelop。

"We’vebeenquietlylookingabout，"hecontinued，"andareallreadyforthepreliminaries。Andnaturally，thefirstpreliminaryistosecurethelandtodevelop。Youhavesomeofthatland，Mr。

Paine。Weknowjusthowmuch，aswedotheholdingsofeveryotherpartywehaveapproachedorintendtoapproach。Iamheretogetyourfiguresand，ifpossible，concludethepurchaseofyourpropertythisafternoon。ItisSunday，ofcourse，"headded，withagood—humoredlaugh，"andcontractssignedto—dayarenotlegal；

butwecanmakeaverbalcontractandthepapersmaybesignedlater。Iwilldefermydepartureuntiltheafternoontrainto—morrowforthatpurpose。Nownameyourfigure，Mr。Paine。"

OfcourseIhadguessedwhatwascoming。IfIintendedtosellatallherewasmyopportunitytodoso——to，asCaptainJedexpressedit，"blockColton’sgame"withoutsacrificingtheprincipleforwhichIhadfought，andmakeagoodbitofmoneyformyself。

Anotherhomenearbycouldbesecured，Ihadnodoubt，andtoitMothermightbesafelyandeasilymoved。YetIhesitatedtoexpressevenaqualifiedwillingness。

"YouappeartobecertainthatIwillsell，"Iobserved。"Isn’tthattakingagooddealforgranted，Mr。Keene？"

Hesmiled——infacthesmiledalmosttoooftentopleaseme。Thereissuchathingasbeingtoocordialandgood—natured；andhewassoveryfriendlyonshortacquaintance。