\"Yes。Fathernevergivesup，youknowthat。ButhewasveryanxiousthattheConsolidatedPacificpeopleshouldthinkhehad。
Andnow——now，whenheissoill——comesthis！Mr。Davistelephonedthat——Yes，whatisit？\"
Therehadbeenaknockatthedoor。Itopenedandthebutlerappeared。
\"AtelegramforMr。Colton，MissMabel，\"hesaid。
\"Giveittome。Tellthemantowait，Johnson。ItisfromMr。
Davis，\"sheexclaimed，turningtome。\"Iamsureitis。Yes。
See！\"
Shehandedmetheyellowtelegram。Ireadthefollowingaloud：
\"JamesW。Colton，\"Denboro，Mass。
\"Galileopotatosoapcurrencytomatodeedscommandarmyalcoholthiefweatherfamily——\"
\"Whatonearth——！\"Iexclaimed。
\"Thatisinthecode，Father’sprivatecode。Don’tyousee？Thecodebookisheresomewhere。Imustfindit。\"
Shewasrummaginginthedrawerofthedesk。Withasighofreliefsheproducedalittleblueleather—coveredbook。
\"Hereitis，\"shesaid。\"NowreadmethetelegramandIwillwritethetranslation。Hurry！\"
Ireadagain：
\"’Galileo’——\"
\"Thatmeans’ConsolidatedPacific’。Goon。\"
Ittookusfiveminutestotranslatethetelegram。Whenwehadfinishedtheresultwas：
\"ConsolidatedPacificcrowdwisesituation。Strongbuyingclosemarketto—day。Expectworseto—morrow。Wearebadshape。Candeliveronlypart。Surebigadvanceopeningandmorefollow。WhatshallIdo？Whydonotyouanswerprivatetelegraphline？
Telephoneoutorder。Wireinstructionsimmediately。Betterstillcomeyourself。Davis。\"
\"Isthatall？\"askedMissColton。\"Whatanswershallwemake？\"
\"Wait。Wait，please，untilIdigsomesortofsenseoutofallthis。’Wisesituation’——\"
\"WiseTOsituation，Ipresumethatmeans。TheConsolidatedPacificiswisetothesituation。’Wise’isslang，isn’tit？Itusedtobeatcollege。\"
\"Itisyet，eveninDenboro。Humph！letmethink。’Surebigadvanceopening。’IsupposethatmeansthemarketwillopenwithLouisvilleandTranscontinentalatahigherfigureandthatthepriceissuretoadvanceduringtheday。\"
\"Yes。Yes，itmustmeanthat。ButwhyshouldMr。Davisbesoexcitedaboutit？Hesaidsomethingabout’ruin’overthe’phone。
Whatdoes’Wearebadshape’mean？And’Candeliveronlypart’？\"
\"Idon’tknow……unless……Humph！Ifwehadsomeparticulars。
Whydon’tyouanswerontheprivatetelegraph，ashesays？\"
\"BecauseIcan’t。Don’tyousee？Ican’t。Thereisnotelegraphoperatorinthehouse。WhenwefirstcameFatherhadasecretary，whocouldusethetelegraph；buthesenthimbacktoNewYork。
Saidhewassickofthesightofhim。Theydidnotgetonwelltogether。\"
\"Butyourfathermusthaveusedthetelegraphsince。\"
\"Yes。Fatherusedithimself。Hewasatelegraphoperatorwhenhewasayoungman。Oh，youdon’tknowwhatawonderfulmanmyfatheris！Hisstoryislikesomethinginabook。He——Butnevermindthat。Hark！thereistheinstrumentgoingagain。Itmustbedreadfullyimportant。Mr。Davisissoworried。\"
\"Heseemstobe，certainly。\"
\"Butwhatshallwedo？\"
\"IwishIknew，butIdon’t。Youknownothingoftheparticulars？\"
\"No。NothingmorethanIhavetoldyou。Oh，CAN’Tyouhelpme？I
feelsomehowasifFatherhadleftmeinchargeofhisaffairsandasifImustnotfail。Now，whenheishelpless！whenheis……
Oh，can’tYOUdosomething，Mr。Paine？Ithoughtyoumight。Youareabanker。\"
\"Apoorimitationonly，Iamafraid。Letmethink。DidyoutellthismanDavisofyourfather’sillness？\"
\"No。IthoughtperhapsFatherwouldnotwishit。AndIhadnoopportunity……Oh，dear！thereissomeoneatthedooragain！
Whoisit？\"
Johnson’svoicereplied。\"Itisme，MissMabel，\"hesaid。\"Thetelegraphpersonsayshecan’twaitanylonger。He’asn’t’adhissupper。Andthereisatwenty—five—centchargeforbringingthemessage，Miss。\"
\"Tellhimhemustwaitaminutelonger，\"Ianswered，forher。
\"MissColton，itseemstomethat，whetherwecandoanythingornot，weshouldknowtheparticulars。Tellthatman——PhineasCahoon，thedepotmaster，Isupposeitis——thatthereisananswerandhemustwaitforit。Nowlet’sconsultthatcode。\"
ShetookthecodebookandIpickedupasheetofpaperandapencilfromthetable。
\"Wemustaskhimtosendalltheparticulars，\"Ideclared。\"Lookup’send’inthecode，MissColton。\"
Shewasturningthepagesofthelittlebookwhenthebutlerknockedoncemore。
\"Hesayshecan’tsendanymessageuntilmorning，MissMabel。Thetelegraphofficeclosesateighto’clock。\"
Thecodebookfelltothetable。MissColtonstaredhelplesslyatme。
\"WhatSHALLwedo？\"shebreathed。
Irosetomyfeet。\"Wait，Johnson，\"Icalled。\"Makethatmanwaitamomentlonger。MissColton，Ihaveanidea。Wouldyourfatherbewillingto——but，thatissilly！Ofcoursehewould！I’llseeCahoonmyself。\"
IfoundPhineas，long—leggedandgaunt，sittingonthefrontstepofthecolonialportico。Hehadbeeninvitedintothehall，buthadrefusedtheinvitation。\"Ihadonmyworkin’duds，\"heexplainedlater。\"Afellerthat’sbeenhandlin’freightalltheafternoonain’tfittosetongold—platedfurniture。\"HelookedupinsurpriseasIcameout。
\"Well，forthundersakes！\"heexclaimed，inastonishment。\"It’sRosPaine！Whatinthenationareyoudoin’inhere，Ros？Ain’tmarriedintothefamily，haveye？Haw，haw！\"
Icouldhavekickedhimforthatpleasantry——ifhehadnotbeenjustthentooimportantapersonagetokick。Asitwas，hischanceremarkknockedmyerrandoutofmyhead，momentarily。
\"How’stheoldman，Ros？\"hewhispered。\"Theytellmeit’sbroughtonbyhighlivin’，champagnewineandsuch。Isit？\"
\"Phin，\"saidI，ignoringthequestion，\"wouldyoustayupallnightfortwentydollars？\"
Hestaredatme。
\"Whatkindofconundrum’sthat？\"hedemanded。\"’WouldIsetupallnightfortwentydollars？’Thatmaybeajoke，but——\"
\"Wouldyou？Imeanit。Mr。Coltonissickandhisdaughterneedssomeonetosendandreceivemessagesovertheirprivatetelegraphwire。Shewillpayyoutwentydollars——orIwill，ifshedoesn’t——
ifyouwillstayhereanddothatforher。Willyou？\"
Foraminutehesattherestaringatme。
\"Youmeanit，Ros？\"heasked，slowly。\"Youdo，hey！Ithoughtp’raps——butno，it’slongpastAprilFoolday。WILLIdoit？Showmethetelegraphplacequick，aforeIwakeupandcomeoutoftheether。Twentydollars！Consarnit，Isendmessagesalltheweekfortwelve，andhustlefreightandsellticketsintothebargain。
Iain’thadnosupper，butnevermind。Makeittwenty—fiveandI’llstayalldayto—morrer。\"
IledhimintothelibraryandexplainedhispresencetoMissColton。Shewasdelighted。
\"ItisSOgoodofyou，Mr。Cahoon，\"sheexclaimed。\"Andyoushan’tstarve，either。Iwillhavesomesuppersentintoyouatonce。
Youcaneatitwhileyouareatwork，can’tyou？\"
Shehurriedouttoorderthesupper。Phineas，inaccordancewithmyrequest，seatedhimselfinthelittleroomadjoiningthelibrary，beforethetelegraphinstrument。
\"Thunder！\"heobserved，lookingabouthim。\"IneverexpectedtosendmessagesforKingSolomoninallhisglory，butIcal’lateI
canstanditifSolcan。S’posethere’dbeanyobjectiontomytakin’offmycoat？Comesmorenat’raltoworkinmyshirtsleeves。\"
Ibadehimtakeitoffandhedidso。
\"Thisfeller’sinsomehurry，\"hesaid，noddingtowardtheclickinginstrument。\"ShallItellhimwe’reondeckandreadyforbusiness？\"
\"Yes，tellhim。\"
Hislongfingersbusiedthemselveswiththesender。Asharpseriesofclicksansweredthecall。Phineasglancedapprehensivelyoutintothelibrary。
\"Say，heain’tnoparson，ishe？\"hechuckled。\"Wantstoknowwhatinhellhasbeenthetroubleallthistime。What’llItellhim？\"
\"TellhimtosendparticularsconcerningL。andT。atonce。Alltheparticulars。\"
Themessagewassent。Thereceiverrattledahastyreply。
\"Hesaysyouknowalltheparticularsalready。Youmustknow’em。
WantstoknowifthisisMr。Colton。\"
\"TellhimMr。Coltonishere，inthehouse。Thatwillbetrueenough。Andsaywewishallparticulars，figuresandall。Wewanttoknowjustwherewestand。\"
Thedemandforparticularswasforwarded。Therewasmoreclicking。
\"Givemeapieceofpaperandapencil，quick，\"urgedPhineas。
\"Thisisalongfeller。\"
Whilehewaswritingthe\"longfeller，\"asthetelegraphtickeditoff，MissColtonandthebutlerappeared，thelatterbearingaloadedtray。Hedrewalittletableupbesidetheoperatorandplacedthetrayuponit。Thenhewentaway。ThetelegraphclickedandclickedandCahoonwrote。MissColtonandIwatchedhimanxiously。
\"Say，\"observedPhineas，betweenintervalsofclicks，\"thisfeller’sinsomeloonyasylum，ain’the。ThisisprettynighascrazyasthatmessageIfetcheddown……Here’tis。Maybeyoufolksknowwhatitmeans，Idon’t。It’sfortyfathomslong，ain’tit。\"
Itwaslongenough，surely。Itwasnotallinthecodejargon——
DavistrustedtheprivacyofthewiresufficientlytosendaportionofitinplainEnglish——buthedidnottrusteventhataltogether。MissColtonandIworkeditoutaswehadthefirsttelegram。AsthetranslationprogressedIcouldfeelmyhairtinglingattheroots。
WasittohelpinsuchacomplicationasthisthatIhadbeensummoned？I，ofallpeople！Thesewatersweretoodeepforme。
Boileddown，the\"particulars\"forwhichDavishadbeenasked，andwhichhehadsent，amountedtothis：Colton，itseemed，hadsoldL。andT。\"short\"foraconsiderableperiodoftimeinorder，asI
hadsurmised，toforcedownthepriceandbuyinatareasonablefigure。Hehadsold，inthisway，aboutthree—eighthsofthecommonstock。Ofthisamounthehadinhispossession——inhisbroker’spossession，thatis——buttwooftheeighths。The\"othercrowd\"——theConsolidatedPacific，presumably——had，asDavisnowdiscovered，three—eighthsactualcertificates，initspocket，hadbeenacquiringthem，onthequiet，whilepretendingtohavelostinterest。Thepublic，unsuspectingpowersinthis，asinmostofWallStreetlittlegames，hadstillthree—eighths。The\"othercrowd，\"knowing\"BigJim’s\"position，hadbuttoforceimmediatedeliveryofthemissingone—eighth——theamountofColton’sover—
selling——andhemightbeobligedtopayHeavenknewwhatfortheshares。HeMUSTacquirethem；hemustbuythem。Andthepricewhichhewouldbeforcedtopaymightmean——perhapsnotbankruptcyforhim，themillionaire——butcertainlythelossofatremendoussumandallchanceofacquiringcontroloftheroad。\"Thishasbeensprungonusallatonce，\"wiredDavis。\"Theyhavegotuscold。WhatshallIdo？Youmustbehereyourselfbeforethemarketopens。\"
Andthemanwho\"mustbetherehimself\"wascriticallyillandunconscious！
Thelongtelegram，severalhundredwordsofit，wasbeforeus。I
readitthroughagain，andMissColtonsatandlookedatme。
\"Doyouunderstandit——now？\"shewhispered，anxiously。
\"Yes，IthinkIdo……Whatisit，Phin？\"
\"Iwasjustwonderin’，\"drawledCahoon’svoicefromtheadjoiningroom，\"ifIcouldn’teatalittlemiteofthissupper。I’vegottodoitorhavemynoseandeyestiedup。Havin’allthemgoodthingssettin’rightwhereIcanseeandsmell’emisgivin’methefidgets。\"
\"Yes，yes，eataway，\"Isaid，laughing。AndevenMissColtonsmiled。Butmylaughandhersmilewerebuttransient。
\"Isit——DoesitmeanthatthingsareVERYwrong？\"sheasked，indicatingthetelegram。
\"Theyareveryserious；thereisnodoubtofthat。\"
Theinstrumentclicked。
\"Say，Ros，\"saidPhin，hismouthfull，\"thisfeller’sgettin’asfidgetyasIwasaforeIgotafoulofthisgrub。Hewantstoknowwhathisinstructionsare。What’llhedo？\"
\"Whatshallyoutellhim？\"askedMissColton。
\"Idon’tknow，\"Ianswered。\"Idonotknow。IamafraidIamofnousewhatever。Thisisnocountryman’sjob。Nocountrybanker，evenarealone，shouldattempttohandlethis。Thisishighfinancewithavengeance。Idon’tknow。Ithinkhe……Supposewetellhimtoconsultthepeopleatyourfather’soffice。\"
Sheshookherhead。\"No，\"shesaid。\"Thepeopleattheofficeknownothingofit。ThiswasFather’sownpersonalaffair。NooneknowsofitbutMr。Davis。\"
\"Howabouttheminstructions？\"thisfromCahoon。
\"Tellhim——yes，tellhimMr。Coltoncannotleavehereatpresentandthathemustusehisownjudgment，goaheadonhisownresponsibility。ThatistheonlythingIseetodo，MissColton。
Don’tworry；hemustbeamanofexperienceandjudgmentoryourfatherneverwouldusehim。Hewillpullitthrough，Iamsure。\"
IwasbynomeansasconfidentasIpretendedtobe，however，andthenextmessagefromDavisprovedmyforebodingstobewellfounded。Hisanswerwaspromptandemphatic：
Mattertooimportant。Declinetotakeresponsibility。Musthavedefiniteinstructionsorshallnotact。IsthisMr。Coltonhimself？
\"HewouldnotactwithoutFather’sordersinamatterlikethis。I
wasafraidofit。Andheisgrowingsuspicious。Oh，CAN’Tyouhelpme，Mr。Paine？CAN’Tyou？Ireliedonyou。IfeltsureYOU
wouldknowwhattodo。Iam——IamSOalone；andwithFathersoill——I——I——\"
Sheturnedawayandleanedherheaduponherhandonthetable。I
feltagainthedesperateimpulseIhadfeltwhenwewerealoneonboardthelaunch，theimpulsetotakeherinmyarmsandtrytocomforther，totellherthatIwoulddoanything——anythingforher。AndyetwhatcouldIdo？
\"Can’tyouhelpme？\"shepleaded。\"Youhaveneverfailedmebefore。\"
TherecameaknockatthedoorandJohnson’svoicecalledhername。
\"MissMabel，\"hewhispered，\"MissMabel，willyoucome，please？
Thedoctorwantsyourightaway。\"
Sherosequickly，drawingherhandacrosshereyesasshedidso。
\"Iamcoming，Johnson，\"shesaid。Then，turningtome，\"IwillbebackassoonasIcan。Dotry——trytothink。YouMUST，forFather’ssake，foralloursakes。\"
Shelefttheroom。Iroseand，withmyhandsinmypockets，begantopacethefloor。ThiswasthetightestplaceIhadeverbeenin。
Therehadbeenatime，yearsbefore，whenIpridedmyselfonmyknowledgeofthestockmarketanditsidiosyncrasies。Then，intheconfidenceofyouth，Imighthaverisentoasituationlikethis，mighthavetackleditandhadthenervetopullitthroughorblametheotherfellowifIfailed。NowIwasneitheryouthfulnorconfident。WhateverIdidwouldbe，inallhumanprobability，thewrongthing，andtodothewrongthingnowmeant，perhaps，ruinforthesickmanupstairs。Andshehadtrustedme！Shehadsentformeinhertrouble！Ihad\"neverfailedherbefore\"！
Iwalkedthefloor，tryinghardtothink。Itwashardtothinkcalmly，tobesensible，andyetIrealizedthatcommon—senseandcoolnesswerewhatIneedednow。Itriedtoremembertheoutcomeofsimilarsituationsinfinancialcircles，butthatdidnothelpme。IrememberedaplayIhadseen，\"TheHenrietta\"wasitsname。
Inthatplay，ayoungmanwithmoremoneythanbrainshadsavedthedayforhisfather，aWallStreetmagnate，bybuyingacertainstockinlargequantitiesatacriticaltime。Hearrivedathisdecisiontobuy，ratherthansell，bytossingacoin。Thefatherhaddeclaredthathissonhadhitupontherealsecretofsuccessinstockspeculation。Possiblytheoldgentlemanwasright，butI
couldnotmakemydecisioninthatway。No，whateverIdidmusthavesomereasontobackit。Wastherenosituation，outsideofWallStreet，whichofferedaparallel？Afterall，whatwasthesituation？Someonewishedtobuyacertainthing，andsomeoneelsewishedtobuyitalso。Neitherpartywantedtheothertogetit。Therehadbeenageneralgameofbluffandthen……Humph！
Why，inaway，itwasliketheoriginalbiddingfortheShoreLaneland。
Itwaslikeit，andyetitwasnot。IownedthelandandColtonwantedtobuyit；soalsodidJedDean。Eachsidehadmadebidsandhadbeenrefused。Thenthebiddershad，professedly，stoodpat，but，inreality，theyhadnot。Jedhadtoldme，inhislatestinterview，thathewouldhavepaidalmostanythingforthatland，ifhehadhadto。AndColton——ColtonhadinventedtheBayShoreDevelopmentCompany。ThatcompanyhadfooledElnathanMulletandotherpropertyholders。IthadfooledCaptainJed。Ithadcomeveryneartofoolingme。IfMabelColtonhadnotgivenmethehintImighthavebeentrickedintoselling。ThenColtonwouldhavewon，havewonona\"bluff。\"Agoodbluffdidsometimeswin。I
wondered……
IwasstillpacingthefloorwhenMissColtonreturnedtothelibrary。Shewastryinghardtoappearcalm，butIcouldseethatshewasgreatlyagitated。
\"Whatisit？\"Iasked。\"Ishe——\"
\"Heisnotaswelljustnow。I——Imustnotleavehim——orMother。
ButIcamebackforamoment，asItoldyouIwould。Isthereanythingnew？\"
\"No。Davishasrepeatedhisdeclarationtodonothingwithoutordersfromyourfather。\"
Shenodded。\"Verywell，\"shesaid，\"thenitisover。Wearebeaten——Fatherisbeatenforthefirsttime。Itmakeslittledifference，Isuppose。Ifhe——ifheistakenfromus，nothingelsematters。ButIhopedyou……nevermind。Ithankyou，Mr。
Paine。Youwouldhavehelpedhimifyoucould，Iknow。\"
Somehowthissurrender，andthetoneinwhichitwasmade，stirredmemorethanallelse。ShehadtrustedmeandIhadfailed。I
wouldnothaveitso。
\"MissColton，\"Isaid，earnestly，\"suppose——supposeIshouldgoaheadandmakethisfight，onmyownhook。SupposeIshouldgiveDavisthe’instructions’heisbeggingfor。HaveIpermissiontodoit？\"
Shelookedatmeinsurprise。\"Ofcourse，\"shesaid，simply。
\"Doyoumeanit？Itmaymeancompletesmash。Iamnorailroadman，nostockmanipulator。IhaveanideaandifthistroubleweremineIshouldactuponit。Butitisnotmine。Itisyourfather’s——andyours。Imaybecrazytorisksuchathing——\"
Shesteppedforward。\"Doit，\"shecommanded。\"Itellyoutodoit。IfitfailsIwilltaketheresponsibility。\"
\"Thatyoushallnotdo。ButIwilltakethechance。Phin！\"
\"Yup；hereIbe。\"
\"Sendthismessageatonce：’Tryyourhardesttogetholdofanysharesyoucan，atalmostanyfigureinreason，beforethemarketopens。Whenitopensbeginbuyingeverythingoffered。’Gotthat？\"
\"Yup。I’vegotit。\"
\"Signit’Colton’andsenditalong。Iamusingyourfather’sname，\"Iadded，turningtoher。\"Itseemstometheonlywaytoavoidsuspicionandgetaction。Noonemustknowthat’BigJim’iscriticallyill；youunderstandthat。\"
\"Yes，Iunderstand。But，\"hesitatingly，\"tobuymaymeanpayingtremendousprices，mayitnot？Canwe——\"
\"Wemust。HereisDavis’sreplycoming。Whatisit，Phin？\"
Cahoonreadoffthemessageasthereceiverclicked。
\"Youareinsane。Buyingatsuchpriceswillbesuicide。\"
\"Tellhimno。TellhimtoletitleakoutthatColtonisseizingtheopportunitytoclinchhiscontroloftheroad。Theothercrowdwillthink，ifheiswillingtobuyatanyprice，thathecannotbesoshortastheysupposed。Sendallthat，Phin。Itisabluff，MissColton，nothingbutabluff，butitmaywin。GodknowsIhopeitwill。\"
Shedidnotanswer。Togetherwewaitedforthereply。Itcameasfollows：
Allrightifyousayso，ofcourse，butstillthinkitsuicide。I
amoffonthestillhuntforthosesharesbutdon’tbelieveonetobehad，Consolidatedbunchtoosharpforthat。Staybythewire。
WillreportwhenIcan。Goodluckandgood—by。
\"He’sgone，Ical’late，\"observedPhineas。\"Needmeanymore，doyouthink？\"
\"Yes。Youmuststayhereallnight，justasItoldyou。\"
\"Rightyoube。Sendwordtotheoldwoman，that’sall，ifyoucan。
Cal’lateshe’swaitin’atthekitchendoorwitharollin’pin，bythistime。\"
\"Iwillsendtheword，Mr。Cahoon，\"repliedMissColton。\"And——
don’tyouthinkyoucouldgohomenow，Mr。Paine？Iknowhowexhaustedyoumustbe，afterlastnight。\"
\"Nohomeforme，\"Ianswered，withassumedcheerfulness。\"AdmiralsofFinanceareexpectedtostickbytheship。IwillliedownhereonthecouchandPhineascancallmeifIamneeded。Don’tworry，MissColton。Gotoyourfatherandforgetusaltogether，ifyoucan。If——ifIshouldbeneededfor——foranyothercause，pleasespeak。\"
Shelookedatmeinsilenceforamoment。Thenshecametowardmeandheldoutherhand。\"Ishallnotforget，whateverelseImaydo，\"shesaid，brokenly。\"AndIwillspeakifIneedyou，myfriend。\"
Sheturnedhastilyandwenttothedoor。
\"IwillsendwordtoyourpeopleaswellasMr。Cahoon’s，\"sheadded。\"Tryandsleep，ifyoucan。Goodnight。\"
Thedoorclosedbehindher。Sleep！Iwasnotlikelytosleep。A
manwhohaslightedthefuseofthepowdermagazinebeneathhimdoesnotsleepmuch。
CHAPTERXXII
AndyetsleepIdid，foralittlewhile，justbeforemorningbroke。
IhadspentthenightpacingthefloorandtalkingtoPhineas，whowaswideawakeandfullofstoriesandjokes，towhichIpaidlittleattention。MissColtondidnotcometothelibraryagain。
FromtheroomsaboveIheardoccasionalsobsandexclamationsinMrs。Colton’svoice。OnceDoctorQuimbypeepedin。Helookedanxiousandweary。
\"Hello，Ros！\"hehailed，\"Iheardyouwerehere。Thisisahigholdnight，isn’tit！\"
\"Howishe？\"Iasked。
\"Aboutthesame。Noworse；infact，he’sbetterthanhewasawhileago。Buthe’snotoutofthewoodsyet，thoughI’mprettyhopeful，fortheoldboyhasahuskyconstitution——consideringthechanceshe’stakenwithitallhislife。It’shiswifethatbothersme。She’sworsethanoneoftheplaguesofEgypt。I’vegivenhersomesleepingpowdersnow；they’llkeepherquietforaspell，Ihope。\"
\"AndMissColton——howisshe？\"
\"She！She’sascalmandsensibleandhelpfulasatrainednurse。
BytheAlmighty，sheisawonder，thatgirl！Well，Imustgetbackonmyjob。Don’thaveamillionairepatienteverydayintheweek。\"
Atthreeo’clockcameamessagefromDavis。Hehadnotbeenabletosecureasingleshare。Didhisinstructionstobuystillhold？
Iansweredthattheydidandherepliedthathewasgoingtogetanapforanhourorso。\"Ishallneedtherest，ifIamanyprophet，\"heconcluded。
ItwasshortlyafterthisthatIlaydownonthecouch。Ihaddeterminednottoclosemyeyes，butIwasutterlywornout，I
suppose，andexhaustiongotthebetterofme。ThenextthingI
knewthegraylightofdawnwasstreaminginatthelibrarywindowsandJohnsonwasspreadingatempting—lookingbreakfastonthetable。
Isprangup。
