ch a proposition before
him."

"Oh, that's for you to consider," shrugged Harry. "I think I would
though, if I were you. At the worst, it will justify you in refusing to
do business with us. Do you happen to be walking down toward Pall Mall?"
Sloyd's offices were in Mount Street. "Good-day, Sloyd. I'll drop in
to-morrow."

With an idea that some concession might still be forthcoming, not from
any expectation of enjoying his walk, the Major consented to accompany
Harry.

"It was a great surprise to see you appear," he said as they started.
"So odd a coincidence!"

"Not at all," smiled Harry. "You guess why I went into it? No? Well, of
course, I know nothing about such things really. But Sloyd happened to
mention that Iver wanted to buy, so I thought the thing must be worth
buying, and I looked into it." He laughed a little. "That's one of the
penalties of a reputation like Iver's, isn't it?"

"But I didn't know you'd taken to business at all."

"Oh, one must do something. I can't sit down on four hundred a year, you
know. Besides, this is hardly business. By-the-bye, though, I ought to
be as much surprised to see you. We've both lost our situation, is that
it, Major?"

Insensibly the Major began to find him rather pleasanter, not a man he
would ever like really, but all the same more tolerable than he had been
at Blent; so Harry's somewhat audacious reference was received with a
grim smile.

"I knocked you out, you know," Harry pursued. "Left to himself, I don't
believe old Bob Broadley would ever have moved. But I put him up to it."

"What?" Duplay had not expected this.

"Well, you tried to put me out, you see. Besides, Janie Iver liked him,
and she didn't care about you--or me either, for that matter. So just
before I--well, disappeared--I told Bob that he'd win if he went ahead.
And I gather he has won, hasn't he?"

A brief nod from Duplay answered him; he was still revolving the news
about Bob Broadley.

"I'm afraid I haven't made you like me any better," said Harry with a
laugh. "And I don't go out of my way to get myself disliked. Do you see
why I mentioned that little fact about Bob Broadley just now?"

"I confess I don't, unless you wished to annoy me. Or--pardon--perhaps
you thought it fair that I should know?"

"Neither the one nor the other. I didn't do it from the personal point
of view at all. You see, Bob had a strong position--and didn't know it."

Duplay glanced at him. "Well," he sai