as not Hellbeam's way
with a paid agent.

Idepski walked across to the chair always waiting to receive a visitor
and sat down.

"May I sit?" he inquired coolly, after the operation had been
performed.

Hellbeam nodded.

"Well?" he repeated.

The agent laid his hat on the ornate desk, and removed his gloves with
care and deliberation.

"I'm just back from Sachigo," he said.

"Hah!"

The financier settled himself more comfortably in his chair, and
returned his cigar to his gross mouth.

"Tell me," he demanded.

"Easy. Things are moving our way."

The dark eyes glanced over the table for the gold cigarette box that
always stood there.

"Help yourself," the banker ordered rather than invited.

Idepski needed no second bidding.

"You got all my code messages?" he asked. "Good," as the Swede nodded.
"Then you know the position of the mill. Say, that feller Harker needs a
sort of apology from me--also from you. The mill's a wonder. And he's
the guy that's fixed it that way. You haven't a thing in Skandinavia
comparable. I'd say you haven't a feller on your side capable of
touching the fringe of that tough's genius for organisation. It's him.
Not Martin--I mean Standing."

"And Standing?"

But Idepski was not to be deflected from his purpose.

"That's all right," he said easily. "I'm coming to him presently. I gave
you, at times, the whole length and breadth, and size, and capacity of
the Sachigo of to-day. You got all that stuff. But I've saved up the
plum. There's a new man come into it. His name's Sternford--Bull
Sternford. Guess it's him I need to tell you about before I pass on to
the other. It's taken me a while to locate all I needed. And I guess I
had luck or I wouldn't have got it all yet."

For once the man's smile reached his eyes.

"What's his position--in Sachigo?" Hellbeam demanded.

"Right on top of the business side of it."

"A financial man?"

The banker's interest was obviously stirred. But Idepski shook his dark
head.

"That's the queer of it," he said. "He's a youngster straight out of the
forest with no sort of record except as a pretty tough fighting
proposition. Here, let me hand it to you in my own way, and I'll answer
any sort of question after. I got men chasing up the forest camps. You
know that. Well, I get their reports right here in this city at my
office. They're read carefully, and anything that looks good is coded,
and sent on to me wherever I am. Well, right af