“No,” said Blair smoothly. “I have quite recently made a very large investment in Midland shares, re-buying a block that I was fortunate enough to sell at its highest point, and have therefore no desire to acquire further securities at the present moment.”
“You’re just in the same fix as all the rest of my acquaintances, Mr. Blair, so your refusal does not disappoint me.”
“You lost also the thirty thousand you had in the Bank at Detroit?”
This was said very quietly, and for a moment amazed the listener by the accurate knowledge the elder man possessed of his affairs. The next instant John Steele gave utterance to a shriek of laughter, smiting his thigh with his open palm as if he had just heard the best joke in the world. The young man strode up and down the room giving way to shout after shout of hilarity, while the elder, all trace of humbug vanishing from his face, rose to his feet in alarm, believing that misfortune had turned the other’s brain, and fearing a transformation into a sudden savagery that might make his isolated position one of danger. His eyes rested longingly on the door, while his hand nervously sought the electric button. John, seeing these premonitions of interruption, controlled himself with an effort, and stammered: “Sit down, Blair; it’s all right. Don’t get frightened. I’ll explain in a minute. You see, it was this way,” said John, coming up in front of the table again, and resolutely crushing down his bubbling tendency to merriment; “that thirty thousand was deposited in the Detroit bank by my late uncle. I possess my own little bank account here, which I have been adding to week by week. Consequently, I never needed to draw a check upon Detroit. Now, the funny thing is that I have been searching this town from cellar to garret that I might borrow twenty-one thousand dollars, and all the while I could have drawn my own check for the amount, and had nine thousand odd left over.”
“Do you mean to say, then,” said Blair, visibly disappointed, “that you didn’t put in the thirty thousand as margin?”
“I did not. Do you feel you ought to have a check for that thirty thousand? You remind me of the hotel keeper at a summer resort down East, whose customer said: ‘You have made a mistake in my bill,’ and when the proprietor denied that there could be any error, the guest explained: ‘Oh, there must be, for I have still ten dollars left.’ The beautiful part of it is, Blair, that if I had thought of my thirty thousand I would have put it in; so I am mighty glad I didn’t think of it, for it would not have saved me. I was looking over the figures of the decline on the tape at the club, and found that the stuff reached its lowest point at about half-past eleven, and that point would have not only wiped out my thirty thousand, but another thirty thousand as well. The brokers told me they had hung on till ten minutes to twelve, but they evidently knew their customer, and got out on the rise. I am afraid, Blair, that even brokers are not truthful men. It’s a wonder that staunch, true hearts like you and me can make a living in this deceitful world. Well, Mr. Blair, I have come to bid you good-bye, and I venture to predict that I’ll have more fun out of that thirty thousand dollars than I had out of the three hundred thousand. Wealth isn’t everything here below. Meanwhile keep on living a virtuous life, and you will reap your reward by and by. Never become discouraged in well-doing. Ta-ta.”
With that John Steele took his departure from the Grand Union Station, packed up his traps, and took train for Detroit, where he lifted his money from the bank, and left on the night express for New York.
Here he rented Drawer 907 in the Broadway Safe Deposit Vaults, and in this drawer he placed his Northern Pacific stock and locked it up. He next turned his money, all but a thousand dollars, into a letter of credit on Europe; then bought a first-class ticket to France on the biggest boat sailing that week. He determined to burn his bridges behind him before he called on his old friend Philip Manson, for he knew instinctively that Manson would strongly disapprove of the course he had laid out for himself, and, remembering his great esteem and affection for Manson, he was not sure enough of himself to venture within the circle of his influence without some extraneous aid to hold him to his purpose.
It was nearing twelve o’clock when he went up in one of the half-dozen elevators of the huge Rockervelt building, and was ushered into Philip Manson’s room.
“Hello, Mr. Manson, how are you?” he cried cheerily, as his former chief rose to greet him. Although he called the much more important general manager plain “Blair,” he never was able to drop the prefix “Mr.” from Man-son’s name. His respect for his solemn friend was as deep as his affection, and the strong regard manifested itself unconsciously in this manner. Manson’s appearance gave no indication that he had passed through a crisis which had ruined him. He was the same quiet, reserved man he had always been, and a touch of grey at the temples was all the change John noticed as having taken place since he saw him last. The stern face relaxed into a bright expression of welcome as he shook hands with the young man from the West.