or a day or two, and you can
send across to my hotel if you wish to discuss it again."

He rose and reached out for his hat, and Hutton, who watched him cross
the room, was once or twice on the point of calling him back. Hutton
did not speak, however, since he fancied that Nasmyth would presently
return of his own accord--which was an expectation that proved
unwarranted.

The office was on the second floor of a big stone building, and, as he
descended the stairway, Nasmyth fancied he caught sight of Martial in
the entrance-hall. Before he could be quite sure, the man turned down
a corridor, and Nasmyth, who did not trouble himself about the matter,
went out into the street. He was not altogether satisfied that he had
done wisely, but he meant, at least, to wait until events should prove
him wrong.

A few minutes later, Martial strolled into the office where Hutton
sat, and smiled at him suggestively. He was also, as Acton had once
told Nasmyth, interested in the land exploitation business, and it was
evident that Hutton had expected him.

"Nasmyth has been here," Martial observed; "I saw him on the stairway.
I suppose you got hold of him?"

Hutton's gesture was forcibly expressive of annoyance. "As a matter of
fact, I didn't," he confessed. "The man's either considerably smarter
than I gave him credit for being, or a thick-headed, obstinate fool.
The one's as hard to handle as the other. I don't know which he is,
and it doesn't greatly matter. The result's the same."

"I guess it's the latter;" and Martial laughed. "Well, since you can't
come to terms, have you any notion what his programme is?"

"It's not a sure thing that he has one. Anyway, he didn't mention it.
We'll let him wait a day or two. It's quite likely he'll try the
Charters people."

Both of them smiled, for it was then not an unusual thing for the men
interested in such affairs to put their heads together and take a
joint hand in any deal that seemed to warrant it, and when they did
so, the results were not, as a rule, encouraging to the outsider.

Martial looked at his comrade suggestively.

"I had a talk with Charters yesterday," he said. "He told me that if
there was anything in it, he didn't expect us to let the thing go."

Hutton thought for a moment. "One could sell quite a few ranches in
the valley; but it's going to cost considerable to run the water out,
and I can't quite put my hand on anybody I'd feel like trusting with
the work i