“Hum! it looks like more.”
“That’s true, an’ the people about think it’s worth two or three hundred, for you see I have a lot o’ cheap jewellery, and some of the inquisitive ones have been trying to pump me of late. They all think I’m thriving,” said Boone, shaking his head sorrowfully.
“So you are, so you are, man,” said Gorman jocosely, “and you’re going to make your fortune soon, and so am I, though at present I’m poor enough. However, that don’t matter. Here’s your course for the future, which you’re to steer by. You’ll go an’ begin chatting with your neighbours at odd times, and your conversation, curiously enough, will always be about the times bein’ better than usual, an’ about the approach of Christmas, an’ the stock you mean to lay in against that festive season. After that you’ll lay in the stock—fifty pounds’ worth; and it won’t be sham; it’ll be real—”
“But where is the money to come from?” asked Boone.
“Oh, don’t you trouble about the money; I’ll provide that. I’ve a curious power of raisin’ the wind on easy terms. Fifty pounds’ worth of real goods will be bought by you, my thriving shopman, and you’ll let some of the neighbours, partiklerly these same inquisitive ’uns, see the goods and some of the invoices, and you’ll tell them that you’ve laid in 150 pounds worth of stock, and that you think of layin’ in more. On the strength of the press o’ business you’ll get another shop-lad, and you’ll keep ’em employed a good deal goin’ messages, so that they won’t get to know much about the state o’ things, and I’ll take care to send you a rare lot o’ customers, who’ll come pretty often for small purchases, and give the shop an uncommon thrivin’ look. Oh, we’ll make a splendid appearance of doin’ business, and we’ll have lots of witnesses ready to bother these sharp lawyers if need be—won’t we, Boone?”
Poor Boone, whose colour had not yet improved much, smiled in a ghastly way, but said nothing.
“Well, then,” resumed Gorman, after a few minutes’ meditation, “when this thriving trade is in full swing we’ll get it insured. You know it would never do to risk the loss of such valuable stock by fire—eh, Boone? common prudence pints that out! You say what you have is worth fifty, and what you’ll lay in is fifty more, makin’ a hundred, so we’ll insure for five hundred; there’s a clear gain of four hundred per cent, only think of that! Well, the house I have already insured for five hundred, that makes nine hundred, and we’ll insure the furniture and fixings for fifty; that’ll look business-like, you know. Then the goods laid in will be carefully removed in the night at various times before the fire, so you had better see that they are small and portable objects; that’ll make another fifty pounds, if not more. So I see my way to a thousand pounds. That’s a neat sum, ain’t it, Boone?”
Still Boone made no reply, but favoured his visitor with another ghastly smile.
“Well, then,” pursued Gorman, “all you’ve got to do is, on a certain night that I will fix, to set the shop alight, and the thing’s done quite easy. But that’s not all. You’ve got an old mother, I believe; well, it would be very unnatural in you to run the risk of being burned to death, an’ leaving her penniless; so you’ll insure your life for five hundred pounds, and I’ll pay the first premium on it, and then you’ll die—”
“Die!” exclaimed Boone, with a start.