"They'll have to stand it," repeated Mallinsbee doggedly. "An' I'll tell you how. Maybe Slosson's crazy. Maybe he's crazy to beat us, an' I allow he's not without reason for doin' it—now. But it would cost the railroad a big pile to shift that depot here. It would have been better for them in the end. You see, they'd have got their holdings in the township here for pretty well nix, and so they wouldn't have felt the cost of the depot. The city would have paid that, as well as other old profits. Anyway, the capital would have had to be laid out. In Snake's they are laying out capital in their holdings only. They'll get it back all right, all right—and profits. Slosson's relying on making up their leeway for them in the boom. He's takin' that chance, because he's crazy to beat—us."
"And he's done it," said Gordon sharply.
"Yep. He's done it," muttered McSwain regretfully.
"He surely has," agreed Mallinsbee, without emotion.
Gordon was the only one of the trio who appeared to be depressed. McSwain had the consolation of getting his profit in Snake's Fall. The only sense in which he was a loser was that his holdings in Buffalo Point were larger than in the other place. Therefore he was able to regard the matter more calmly, in the light of the fortunes of war. Mallinsbee, who had staked all his hopes on Buffalo Point, seemed utterly unaffected.
A few minutes later McSwain hurried away for the purpose of watching further developments, promising to return in the evening and report. Neither he nor Gordon felt that there was the least hope whatever. Mallinsbee offered no opinion.
When Peter had ridden off, and the two men were left alone, Gordon, weighed down with his failure, began to give expression to his feelings.
He looked over at the strong face of his benefactor, and took his courage in both hands.
"Mr. Mallinsbee," he said diffidently, "I want to tell you something of what I feel at the way things have gone through—my failure. I——"
Mallinsbee had thrust his fingers into his waistcoat pocket, and now drew forth a cigar.