ion and voting power. I want you to explain this very fully
to me."

"I thought you were quite satisfied with our talk last night," returned
Sam, glancing hastily over his shoulder.

"I am, in so far as the investment goes, Sam. I've promised you that
I'd take a good block of stock, and you've promised to make room for me
in the company. I expect to go through with that, but I want to know
about this other phase of the matter before I get into any
entanglements with opposing factions. Now you sit right down there and
tell me about it."

Despairingly Sam sat down and proceeded briefly and concisely to
explain to him the various plans of incorporation which had been
proposed. Ten minutes later he almost groaned, as a trap, drawn by a
pair of handsome buckskin horses, driven by Princeman and containing
Miss Josephine, crunched upon the gravel driveway in front of the
porch. Miss Stevens greeted Mr. Turner very heartily indeed, Princeman
stopping for that purpose. Sam ran down and shook hands with her. Oh,
she was most cordial; just as cordial and polite as anybody he knew!

"I did not expect you at all," she said, "but I knew you were here, for
I saw you from the window as you came up the drive. Pleasant weather,
isn't it? Oh, papa!"

"Yes," answered Mr. Stevens ponderously from his place on the porch.

"Up on my dresser you will find a box of candy which Mr. Turner was
kind enough to have sent me, and he confesses that he has never tasted
maraschino chocolates. Won't you please run up and get them and let
Mr. Turner sample them?"

"Huh!" grunted Mr. Stevens. "If Sam Turner insists upon running me up
two flights of stairs on an errand of that sort, I suppose I'll have to
go. But he won't."

"You're lazy," she said to her father in affectionate banter, then,
with a wave of her hand and a bright nod to Mr. Turner, she was gone!

Sam trudged slowly up on the porch with the heart gone entirely out of
him for business; and yet, as he approached Mr. Stevens he pulled
himself together with a jerk. After all, she was gone, and he could
not bring her back, and in his talk with Stevens he had just approached
a grave and serious situation.

"The fact of the matter is, Mr. Stevens," said he as he sat down again,
"these people are the very people I want to get into my concern, but
they are old hands at the stock incorporation game, and even before
I've organized the company they are planning to get it out of m