"Boy!" exclaimed Mr. Payne, "what would you say if somebody gave you two thousand pounds?"
"Er—what, sir?" gasped Gummy. "Two thousand pounds of what?
Must be an elephant! That's a ton."
How Mr. Payne did laugh at that! But neither Gummy nor Janice saw anything funny in his speech. Mrs. Carringford was watching the lawyer's face, and she said nothing.
"I mean two thousand pounds in money. That is something like ten thousand dollars. How about it?" asked Mr. Payne again.
"Me?" exploded Gummy.
"Yes. Because your name is 'Gumswith Carringford.' Isn't it worth it?" chuckled the lawyer.
Gummy looked all around, paling and flushing by turn. Then he grinned widely and looked at Janice.
"Jicksy!" he murmured, "the old name is worth something, after all, isn't it?"
CHAPTER XXIX. "BUT WE LOSE"
It was such a happy surprise for Mrs. Carringford— and for Gummy as well—that they were well prepared for the piece of bad news which Mr. Payne had first told to Mr. Broxton Day. A five hundred dollar loss on the Mullen Lane property did not look so big when it was understood that, through Gummy, the Carringfords were going to get almost ten thousand dollars.