Spots of perspiration stood on Solon Talbot's brow. Should he allow fifty thousand dollars to slip from his grasp?
"You audacious boy!" he exclaimed. "How dare you make such an assertion?"
"Because I happen to know that the four hundred shares stood in the name of my grandfather, Elisha Doane."
"That is a lie. May I ask where you got this information?"
"From the purchaser of the stock, Luther Rockwell."
"What do you know of Luther Rockwell?" demanded Solon Talbot, incredulous.
"He is one of my best friends. Before buying the shares of the Golden Hope mine he asked my advice."
"Do you expect me to believe such ridiculous stuff? What could you know about the mine?"
"I have recently returned from California. On the way I stopped in Nevada, and I have in my pocket a statement signed by the secretary of the company, that four hundred shares of the stock stood in the name of my grandfather."
It was a series of surprises. Solon Talbot walked up and down the library in a state of nervous agitation.