re
beginning to occupy the attention of moneyed men, and Jacob had made his
venture with the rest. But he had not come out of the affairs so well
as some others had done. A history of their operations as to buying and
selling would not interest. The result, as far as Jacob Holt was
concerned, was disastrous enough, for in one way and another he had
involved himself to an extent that to people generally would have
appeared incredible. But people generally knew little about it. Those
who did know were those who had been engaged with him, who had either
made much money or lost much in the course of their transactions, and a
prudent silence seemed to be considered best. Of course it could not
but be known in the country to some extent who were the gainers and who
the losers, but no one guessed that the Holts would be "In" for any
considerable amount. But in the giving up of much valuable property at
a great loss, in order to preserve his credit, Jacob was made to feel
his position bitterly.

Squire Holt had bought and held for many years large tracts of wild
lands in various parts of the country, content to sink the
purchase-money and to pay the taxes for the present, in the certain
knowledge that as new settlers came in, and the country was opened up by
the making of roads and the building of bridges, the value of the lands
would be greatly increased. Many of these tracts Jacob was at this time
obliged to sacrifice. He rather ruefully congratulated himself on the
fact that the transfer of such property to other names might be done
quietly, so that his difficulties need not be fully known or discussed
in the community, but it was a terrible blow to him, and the necessity
of keeping the knowledge of it from his father made it all the harder.

For the squire had given his voice against all operations in mining
matters. He was conscious that he was no longer equal to a contest with
younger men in a new field of action, and his advice to his son, whose
powers he had measured, had been "to let well alone," and leave to those
who had less to lose, the chance of being winners in the new game. It
would have been well if his words had been heeded, Jacob owned to
himself; and partly for his own sake and partly for the sake of his
father, he said little about his losses. He was willing to have him and
others believe that railroad matters were not prospering as he would
have liked, which indeed was true. "The Hawkshead an