Virginia grew more serious. Thoughtfully she continued:
"In the last interview which the newspapers had with you—"
"Probably faked—" he interrupted.
"You neglected to say, 'making my first thousand dollars was the hardest task of all.' All successful men do that; why not you?"
He looked at her for a moment in an amused kind of way. Then carelessly he answered:
"Making the first thousand was about the easiest for me. I got hold of some information about a certain stock, borrowed a hundred from a friend, put it up as margin in a bucket shop, and by pressing my luck, made and got my first thousand without any trouble whatever."
Virginia looked straight at him, admiration as much for his personality as for his achievements showing plainly in the expression of her large, black eyes. Slowly she said:
"And it was that, I suppose, which started you on the way to the City of Big Things. I like that phrase—The City of Big Things.'"
He nodded as he answered: "It's a great city—the only one worth living in."
"And you are one of the most prominent inhabitants."