The Project Gutenberg eBook, Jacob's Ladder, by E. Phillips Oppenheim,
Illustrated by F. Vaux Wilson

This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or
re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org

Title: Jacob's Ladder

Author: E. Phillips Oppenheim

Release Date: June 7, 2010 [eBook #32732]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII)

***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK JACOB'S LADDER***

E-text prepared by D Alexander and the Project Gutenberg Online
Distributed Proofreading Team (http://www.pgdp.net) from page images
generously made available by Internet Archive/American Libraries
(http://www.archive.org/details/americana)

Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this
file which includes the original illustrations.
See 32732-h.htm or 32732-h.zip:
(http://www.gutenberg.org/files/32732/32732-h/32732-h.htm)
or
(http://www.gutenberg.org/files/32732/32732-h.zip)

Images of the original pages are available through
Internet Archive/American Libraries. See
http://www.archive.org/details/jacobsladder00oppe

JACOB'S LADDER

by

E. PHILLIPS OPPENHEIM

With Frontispiece by F. Vaux Wilson

Boston
Little, Brown, and Company
1921

Copyright, 1921,
By Little, Brown, and Company.

All rights reserved

Published February, 1921

The Colonial Press
C. H. Simonds Co., Boston, U. S. A.

[Illustration: "I AM OBLIGED TO YOU ALL FOR PUTTING UP WITH MY
COMPANY FOR SO LONG." FRONTISPIECE. _See page 17._]

JACOB'S LADDER

PROLOGUE

Seated at breakfast on that memorable July morning, Jacob Pratt
presented all the appearance of a disconsolate man. His little country
sitting-room was as neat and tidy as the capable hands of the
inimitable Mrs. Harris could make it. His coffee was hot and his eggs
were perfectly boiled. Through the open windows stretched a little
vista of the many rows of standard roses which had been the joy of his
life. Yet blank misery dwelt in the soul of this erstwhile cheerful
little man, and the spirit of degradation hung like a gloomy pall over
his thoughts and being. Only the day before he had filed his petition
in bankruptcy.

The usual morning programme was carried out, only, alas