y's good
opinion of himself. Nothing could have appealed to him more subtly
than this man's bluff, curt flattery. He was being met man to man by a
man of the world. No boy is proof against the compliment that he is a
man, to be dealt with as a man and equal of older, more experienced
men. Jeffrey was ready to listen.

"Do you know what an option is?" the man began again.

"Of course I do."

"I thought so," said Rogers, in a manner that seemed to confirm his
previous judgment of Jeffrey's brains. "Now then, the railroad has
got to have all these farms from Beaver River right up to the head of
Little Tupper Lake. I say these people won't know what eminent domain
means. You're going to tell them. It means that they can sell at the
railroad's price or they can hold off and a referee will be appointed
to name a price. The railroad will have a big say in appointing those
referees. Do you understand me?"

"Yes. I see," said Jeffrey. "But--"

"No buts at all about it, young man," said Rogers, waving his hand.
"The people have got to sell. If they give options at once--within
thirty days--they'll get more than a fair price for their land. If
they don't--if they hold off--their farms will be condemned as forest
land. And you know how much that brings.

"You people will be the first. You can ask almost anything for your
land. You'll get it. And, what is more, I am able to offer you,
Whiting, a very liberal commission on every option you can get me
within the time I have said. This is the thing that I can't do. It's
the thing that I want you to do.

"You'll do it. I know you will, when you get time to think it over.
Here are the options," said the big man, pulling a packet of folded
papers out of his pocket. "They cover every farm in the section. All
you have to do is to get the people to write their names once. Then
your work is done. We'll do the rest and your commissions will be
waiting for you. Some better than law school, eh?"

"But say," Jeffrey stammered, "say, that means, why, that means my
mother and the folks here, why, they'd have to get out; they'd have to
leave their home!"

"Of course," said Rogers easily. "A man like you isn't going to keep
his family up on top of this rock very long. Why, young fellow, you'll
have the best home in Lowville for them, where they can live in style,
in less than six months. Do you think your mother wants to stay here
after you're gone. You were going away. Did you think," he