as a perfected traction factor, and that all his
lines would soon have to be done over to meet that condition, or that
it was costing him thousands and thousands to stay the threatening
aspect of things politically. In addition he must now plunge into this
new realm, gaining franchises by the roughest and subtlest forms of
political bribery. The most serious aspect of this was not political,
but rather financial. Elevated roads in Chicago, owing to the
sparseness of the population over large areas, were a serious thing to
contemplate. The mere cost of iron, right of way, rolling-stock, and
power-plants was immense. Being chronically opposed to investing his
private funds where stocks could just as well be unloaded on the
public, and the management and control retained by him, Cowperwood, for
the time being, was puzzled as to where he should get credit for the
millions to be laid down in structural steel, engineering fees, labor,
and equipment before ever a dollar could be taken out in passenger
fares. Owing to the advent of the World's Fair, the South Side 'L'--to
which, in order to have peace and quiet, he had finally conceded a
franchise--was doing reasonably well. Yet it was not making any such
return on the investment as the New York roads. The new lines which he
was preparing would traverse even less populous sections of the city,
and would in all likelihood yield even a smaller return. Money had to
be forthcoming--something between twelve and fifteen million
dollars--and this on the stocks and bonds of a purely paper corporation
which might not yield paying dividends for years to come. Addison,
finding that the Chicago Trust Company was already heavily loaded,
called upon various minor but prosperous local banks to take over the
new securities (each in part, of course). He was astonished and
chagrined to find that one and all uniformly refused.

"I'll tell you how it is, Judah," one bank president confided to him,
in great secrecy. "We owe Timothy Arneel at least three hundred
thousand dollars that we only have to pay three per cent. for. It's a
call-loan. Besides, the Lake National is our main standby when it
comes to quick trades, and he's in on that. I understand from one or
two friends that he's at outs with Cowperwood, and we can't afford to
offend him. I'd like to, but no more for me--not at present, anyhow."

"Why, Simmons," replied Addison, "these fellows are simply cutting off
their noses to