s we protect him
and keep him out of State prison he will give up the whole game to
the district attorney. That would be fun, wouldn't it? The district
attorney wouldn't waste much time on Arthur P. Hawkins if he could
land Gottlieb & Quibble in jail for subornation of perjury, would
he--eh? We've got to scratch gravel--and quick too!"

"But where can we raise fifty thousand dollars?" I groaned
helplessly.

"Dillingham," he retorted without hesitation. "He's our only hope.
He's in as bad as the rest of us. If we go we can pull him along
too. I understand that the woman is prepared to swear not only
that Hawkins admitted to her that he was properly served, but that
she told this to Dillingham, and that he and Hawkins talked the
thing over in her presence. Besides, Cohen confessed to me to-day
that she had pumped him all about Hawkins's coming over to New York
and signing papers; and, although he swears he didn't tell her
anything in particular, yet I don't trust the idiot. No, Quib;
it's bad business and we've got to get Hawkins out of the way at
any cost."

It was not until nearly three o'clock in the morning that I discovered
Dillingham's whereabouts, which happened to be at the Fifth Avenue
house of a fashionable friend, where he was playing draw poker.
He greeted me in much the same inhospitable fashion that I had
accorded to Gottlieb, but only a few words were needed to convince
him of the gravity of the case. I had never loathed the man more
than I did at that instant when, with a cigar stuffed in his fat
face, he came out of the card-room, dressed in his white waistcoat
and pearl studs, and with a half-drunken leer asked what I wanted.

"I want fifty thousand dollars to keep you and me out of State
prison!" I cried.

He turned a sickly yellow and gave a sort of choking gasp.

"Hawkins!" he muttered. "Damn him!"

Then Dillingham had a sort of fit, due no doubt partly to the fact
that he had drunk more champagne than was good for him; for he
trembled with a kind of ague and then broke out in a sweat and
blubbered, and uttered incoherent oaths, until I was half beside
myself lest he should keep it up all night and I should not get
the money from him. But at last he regained control of himself
and promised to borrow the fifty thousand dollars the first thing
in the morning and to have it at my office at ten o'clock. Yet,
as I bade him good night, he had another turn of terror and his
teeth chatt