"Another man fired at me out at the Jackpot. I was unarmed then."
"Were you accused of holding up a stage, robbing it, and killing the driver?"
"No. I was twenty miles away at the time of the hold-up and had evidence to prove it."
"Then you were mentioned in connection with the robbery?"
"If so, only by my enemies. One of the robbers was captured and made a full confession. He showed where the stolen gold was cached and it was recovered."
The great man looked with chilly eyes at the young fellow standing in front of him. He had a sense of having been tricked and imposed upon.
"I have decided not to accept your proposition to cooperate with you in financing the Jackpot Company, Mr. Sanders." Horace Graham pressed an electric button and a clerk appeared. "Show this gentleman out, Hervey."
But Sanders stood his ground. Nobody could have guessed from his stolid imperturbability how much he was depressed at this unexpected failure.
"Do I understand that you are declining this loan because I am connected with it, Mr. Graham?"
"I do not give a reason, sir. The loan does not appeal to me," the railroad builder said with chill finality.