ort talk with Mr. Eby, the
resident manager, convinced him otherwise.

"Can't quite see your quotations, Gregory," that gentleman had crisply
maintained. "We have been offered a similar line of goods at fully ten
per cent. less."

Gregory was greatly surprised. McCoy, he knew, had figured a bed-rock,
cash price and the extreme lowness of the quotation offered the Western
was influenced solely by the possibility of a quick sale in straight
car lots. And still the man claimed he could beat it.

"Do you mind telling me who is offering you stuff at a lower figure?" he
asked.

Mr. Eby hesitated. It was to his interest to stimulate price cutting.
The fact that the figure quoted was below cost was nothing to him. A
cutthroat war between two rival canneries might result in still lower
quotations which would give him a greater profit.

"Certainly not," he answered. "The figure quoted me was from the Golden
Rule Cannery."

Gregory felt his face growing hot under the influence of Mr. Eby's
exasperating smile.

"That figure is below cost and you know it," he said bluntly.

The manager continued to smile. "Possibly," he affirmed. "From your
view-point. Your cost and theirs may be two different things. Your wage
scale is much higher than theirs for one thing, and your system, in my
mind, does not make in any way for low costs."

Gregory's anger mounted at the man's tone.

"What do you know about my business?" he asked quickly.

Mr. Eby shrugged.

"It is our business to keep in close touch with our customers," he
evaded. "I'm just giving you a friendly tip to do away with some of your
more or less impractical ideas, and put your business on a plane with
others. You can take it for what it's worth."

Gregory curbed his anger and started for the door.

"My idea is working out all right, Mr. Eby," he said in parting. "And
you are going to live to see you've overlooked a good bet."

Eby laughed. "Go to it, young man," he said. "You'll just have to live
and learn like the rest of us. When you get down to earth again, come in
and see us."

Somewhat taken back by his interview, Gregory sought the other jobbers.
But at every place of business he was met by evasions and superficial
excuses. Brown & Brown had heard he had gone out of business on account
of ill-health. Possibly they would send a man down when they got
straightened out. The Eureka people were overstocked and, on account of
shortage of cars, were not buying an