“What’s his object? Why doesn’t he come and see me himself?”
“I think I may go so far as to say that he wishes to know whether or not it is worth his while to meet you. You see, Mr. Cammerford, you are a stranger to him. He was good enough to hint that if I reported favourably on your scheme, he would wait over a day or two and go into the matter with you. As I have said, he is exceedingly busy. I left him immersed in letters and cablegrams, and all day yesterday we were over head and ears in matters of rather large importance. If you had been his Chicago acquaintance who formed the other combine, I imagine he would have seen you; as it is, he has sent me.”
“Well, now, look here, Tremorne,” cried Cammerford, with a fine assumption of honest bluffness, “let us talk as man to man. We’re not school-boys or sentimental girls. You know as well as I do that there is not one chance in ten million for my seeing old Hemster if the choice in the matter lies with you. You are exceedingly polite, and speak as sweetly as molasses, but I wasn’t born yesterday, and am not such a darned fool as to suppose you are going to put in a good word for me.”
“You are quite right, Mr. Cammerford; I shall put in no good word for you that I can possibly keep out. Nevertheless I shall report fairly to Mr. Hemster exactly what you place before me.”
“Oh, that’s all guff. You’ll knife me because you’ve got the chance to do it. I quite admit it will be done with smooth talk, but it will be effective nevertheless.”
“If you believe that, Mr. Cammerford, I shall make no endeavour to convince you of the contrary. You will act, of course, as best serves your own interest. Personally I do not care a halfpenny whether the great beef combine is formed in the interest of the dear public, or goes to smash through the non-agreement of its promoters. I fancy you cannot float such a trust and leave Mr. Hemster out, but you know more about that than I. Now it’s your next move. What are you going to do?”
Cammerford leaned across the table, showing me his crafty eyes narrowing as he seemed trying to find out what my game really was. I knew exactly where his error lay in dealing with me. He could not believe that I was honestly trying to serve my employer, and so he was bound to go wrong in any assumption formed by taking such false premises for granted.
“See here, Tremorne, I’m going to talk straight business to you. Whatever may be our pretences, we are none of us engaged in this for our health; we want to make money. I want to make money; Hemster wants to make money; don’t you want to make money?”
“Certainly,” I replied, “that’s what I’m here for.”
“Now you’re shouting,” exclaimed Cammerford, an expression of great relief coming into his face. He thought that at last he had reached firm ground. “I confess, then,” he went on, “that it is supremely important I should meet Hemster, and he should be favourably disposed toward me. It is not likely I should have taken a journey clear from New York to Nagasaki if there wasn’t a good deal at stake. You see, I’m perfectly frank with you. You’ve got the drop on me. Just now my hands are right up toward the ceiling, and I’m willing to do the square thing. Did you know whom you were going to meet when you left the yacht?”