it. His success was even greater than
Trampy's; his leaps were twice as wide, more in accordance with his
courage. The way in which he "bridged the abyss," in the huge hall where
he gave his show, was enough to prove that he was the inventor, the
creator, the great, typical, daring performer, who, disclaiming death,
marches to glory and fortune even as heroes, flag in hand, rush to the
assault under fire.

It was a bolt from the blue for the Kaiserin when the little paper
arrived, the injunction against "Arching the Gulf." A steamer caught in a
cyclone would undergo much the same disablement, under a sea sweeping her
from stem to stern, swamping the saloons, drowning the very rats in the
hold. Jimmy's active inquiries had not taken long: telegram followed upon
telegram; the British consul woke up. The law at Washington was formal and
precise: nothing could be patented that had been known, or used, or
published before the patent was applied for. Now the article in
_Engineering_, of course, appeared prior to the step taken by Trampy. And
in Germany, also, Jimmy won his case; the court found in favor of the
absolute novelty of the invention. The Kaiserin could not give its
performance short of paying five hundred marks a night to its rival, the
Kolossal. This meant the wreck of "Arching the Gulf;" and Trampy came down
with it. For a few days, he led a terrible life, a desperate struggle,
made efforts in every direction; but, at last, worried, hustled, driven to
bay, Trampy disappeared into the darkness, while Jimmy, freed from this
enervating opposition and feeling sure of himself henceforward, gained
fresh courage, added another arch to "Bridging the Abyss."

It was done, he had made his start, he had a name, he was the man who
draws crowds; he received brilliant proposals from all sides, from the
Western Trust, among others. He felt himself somebody; and money also was
coming in. He could at last realize what he had in his head ... in the
absence of love there would be fame ... oh, something a thousand times
more sensational than "Bridging the Abyss," more modern, more scientific,
something which he confided to nobody, which he kept locked up in his
brain, in his heart, like a love passion, a thing which would be his
alone, this time, which no one could take from him! For it would not be a
question of a spring and a click, only. The thing moved in his breast,
lived in his brain. When he thought of it, his cheeks became h