instead of for three or four? It seems to me that plan
would be much more profitable to you."

"It would, it would!" exclaimed Stener, his round eyes fixed on
Cowperwood in a rather helpless, appealing way. He liked Cowperwood and
had always been hoping that mentally as well as financially he could
get close to him. "I've thought of that. But these fellows have had more
experience in these matters than I have had, Frank. They've been longer
at the game. I don't know as much about these things as they do."

Cowperwood smiled in his soul, though his face remained passive.

"Don't worry about them, George," he continued genially and
confidentially. "You and I together can know and do as much as they ever
could and more. I'm telling you. Take this railroad deal you're in on
now, George; you and I could manipulate that just as well and better
than it can be done with Wycroft, Strobik, and Harmon in on it. They're
not adding anything to the wisdom of the situation. They're not putting
up any money. You're doing that. All they're doing is agreeing to see it
through the legislature and the council, and as far as the legislature
is concerned, they can't do any more with that than any one else
could--than I could, for instance. It's all a question of arranging
things with Relihan, anyhow, putting up a certain amount of money for
him to work with. Here in town there are other people who can reach the
council just as well as Strobik." He was thinking (once he controlled
a road of his own) of conferring with Butler and getting him to use his
influence. It would serve to quiet Strobik and his friends. "I'm not
asking you to change your plans on this North Pennsylvania deal. You
couldn't do that very well. But there are other things. In the future
why not let's see if you and I can't work some one thing together?
You'll be much better off, and so will I. We've done pretty well on the
city-loan proposition so far, haven't we?"

The truth was, they had done exceedingly well. Aside from what the
higher powers had made, Stener's new house, his lots, his bank-account,
his good clothes, and his changed and comfortable sense of life were
largely due to Cowperwood's successful manipulation of these city-loan
certificates. Already there had been four issues of two hundred thousand
dollars each. Cowperwood had bought and sold nearly three million
dollars' worth of these certificates, acting one time as a "bull" and
another as a "bear." Stene