the tide in his favor. He rose, gathered up his papers, and reached for
his hat.

"It is very pointedly your own funeral, gentlemen," he said curtly.
"'Nothing venture, nothing have' is an old proverb, but it is as true
now as it was when it was coined. With P. S-W. stock at thirty-eight and
steadily declining; with another dividend about to be passed; and with
the certainty that the July interest on the bonds will have to be
defaulted unless some compromise can be effected with the bondholders--"

"What's that you're saying?" broke in Mackie, whose P. S-W. holdings were
large.

Ford drew a folded paper from his pocket and laid it on the table.

"I was merely quoting from the auditor's semiannual report, of which
that is a summary," he said, indicating the folded paper. "The report
itself will doubtless reach you in a day or two. It would seem to an
unprejudiced observer that the present condition spells something like a
receivership, unless you have the bondholders with you."

"One moment, Mr. Ford," interposed the banker member; but Ford was
working up to his climax and refused to be side-tracked.

"Of course, as an officer of the company, I have felt in duty bound to
bring my grist first to the company's mill. But if you gentlemen don't
wish to grind it, it will be ground, notwithstanding. I could very
easily have found a market for my proposal without coming to New York."

With which parting shot, and a word of apology for having taken the time