cover working
expenses."

Hawtrey laughed. He was quite aware that his visitor's profession was
not one that was regarded with any great favor by the prairie farmers,
but he was never particularly cautious, and he rather liked the man.

"As a matter of fact, it didn't, Edmonds," he confessed. "You see, I
practically paid you out of what I get for running this place. The red
wheat Wyllard raises generally commands a cent or two a bushel more from
the big milling people than anything put on the market round here."

Edmonds made a sign of agreement. He had without directly requesting him
to do so led Hawtrey into showing him around the Range that afternoon,
and having of necessity a practical knowledge of farming he had been
impressed by all that he had noticed. The farm, which was a big one, had
evidently been ably managed until a recent date, and he felt the
strongest desire to get his hands on it. This, as he knew, would have
been out of the question had Wyllard been at home, but with Hawtrey,
upon whom he had a certain hold, in charge, the thing appeared by no
means impossible.

"Oh, yes," he replied. "I suppose he was reasonably liberal over your
salary."

"I don't get one. I take a share of the margin after everything is
paid."

Edmonds carefully noted this. He was not sure that such an arrangement
would warrant one in regarding Hawtrey as Wyllard's partner, but he
meant to gather a little more information upon that point.

"If wheat keeps on dropping there won't be any margin at all next year,
and that's what I'm inclined to figure on," he declared. "There are,
however, ways a man with nerve could turn it to account."

"You mean by selling wheat down."

"Yes," said Edmonds, "that's just what I mean. Of course, there is a
certain hazard in the thing. You can never be quite sure how the market
will go, but the signs everywhere point to still cheaper wheat next
year."

"That's your view?"

Edmonds smiled, and took out of his pocket a little bundle of market
reports.

"Other folks seem to share it in Winnipeg, Chicago, New York, and
Liverpool. You can't get behind these stock statistics, though, of
course, dead low prices are apt to cut the output."

Hawtrey read the reports with evident interest. All were in the same
pessimistic strain, and he could not know that the money-lender had
carefully selected them with a view to the effect he hoped to produce.
Edmonds, who saw the interest in Hawtrey's eyes