respectable nephew of the "Big Eye's."

Evan went down to the basement for his hat, not quite expecting to find
it there; in truth, he would not have been much surprised to find the
basement itself gone. Certainly, the foundation had disappeared from
under a structure mightier and stronger, as he viewed it, than piles of
stone and mortar. He had frequently criticized the office slavery of
the bank, but he had never lost faith in the institution's magnitude
and imperishability. It was the solidity of it that he had banked on
and clung to, in spite of blinding work; but now the golden god had
crumbled, like the smitten image of Daniel's dream--so far as Evan was
concerned. The idol still stood for idolaters, of course, like that
other image in the Prophet's time; but to the enlightened, the
awakened, it had perished. And, to carry the analogy further, Evan,
like Daniel, saw before he understood. He must have his vision
interpreted for him. Time would accomplish that. Just now he gazed
and wondered. Clearly he saw a ruin, but as yet it was inseparable
debris, and the sight of it put his head in a muddle.... While he
washed his hands in the basement he stared at the wall, and looking
away from that his eyes met those of Bill Watson.

"Hello," said Bill, hurriedly, "what are you fooling away your time
down here for at this hour of the day? You must have the c. b. down
finer than ever I got it, Nelsy. By gum, you've travelled some since
you came here; I was on the job six months----"

Watson paused suddenly.

"What's the matter?" he asked.

Evan saw that Bill was uninformed. Such is the rush of a city office
that one man does not know what happens to another, until the pipes are
lit and "chewing the fat" commences.

In a few words Nelson told his old desk-mate what had happened. Bill
was speechless. He did not even swear. He stood looking at Evan, but
his eyes seemed too wide-open to see anything. While he was trying to
frame words the voice of Charon sounded at the head of the basement
stairs.

"Watson, Watson!" A customer was probably waiting to deposit.

Urgent as was the accountant's voice, Bill delayed long enough to shake
hands and say:

"Come up and see me at the boarding-house; I want to tell you
something."

Evan half promised--but never went. The next time he saw Bill they
were far away from Toronto and banking.

As the cash-book man walked through the office with his hat in his
ha