“All that any man is legitimately entitled to from the labor of others is a fair profit. This is not a gamble—”
“All business is a gamble,” interrupted the colonel, shortly.
“Perhaps it wouldn't be if altruism were mixed with it oftener than it is,” said Tommy, trying not to speak heatedly. He was Door Opener to the men in the shop—his men. And they were entitled to more than the wages that he thought Colonel Willetts would like to fix for them.
“Are you a socialist?” frowned Colonel Willetts.
“I'm not a regular socialist, but I can see that business in the future must be conducted in a different way. Mr. Thompson is looking ahead farther than most men.”
“He thinks he is.”
“He really is. You see, Colonel, I know him and you don't,” smiled Tommy. Then he said, very impressively, “I consider him the greatest man in this country to-day.”
“I have no doubt that you do,” observed the colonel, dryly. “But granting he is all that you are so sure he is, he proposes innovations the success of which he cannot possibly guarantee. In special cases for special reasons they might work.”
“Well, sir, his record guarantees that. He began in a small way and he has built up a large and very profitable business. The company would have paid much bigger dividends if he hadn't insisted upon putting most of the profits back into the business in order to build permanently. That was good business, wasn't it? And now he is going to carry into effect plans on which he has been working for years. Here is the company's dollar-history, Colonel.” And Tommy gave the sheets of figures to the colonel.
The colonel looked at Tommy as if he never before had seen his son's chum. Then he studied the figures. When he finished he turned to Tommy, who instantly anticipated the skeptical questions he thought Colonel Willetts would ask.