determined to put
forward all objections possible.

"It's not much risk," said Orde hopefully. "There's nothing surer
than lumber. We'll pay the notes easily enough as we cut, and the Boom
Company's on velvet now. What do our earnings figure, anyway?"

"We're driving one hundred and fifty million at a profit of about sixty
cents a thousand," said Newmark.

"That's ninety thousand dollars--in five years, four hundred and fifty
thousand," said Orde, sucking his pencil.

"We ought to clean up five dollars a thousand on our mill."

"That's about a hundred thousand on what we've got left."

"And that little barge business nets us about twelve or fifteen thousand
a year."

"For the five years about sixty thousand more. Let's see--that's a total
of say six hundred thousand dollars in five years."

"We will have to take up in that time," said Newmark, who seemed to have
the statistics at his finger-tips, "the two payments on our timber,
the note on the First National, the Commercial note, the remaining
liabilities on the Boom Company--about three hundred thousand all told,
counting the interest."

Orde crumpled the paper and threw it into the waste basket.

"Correct," said he. "Good enough. I ought to get along on a margin like
that."

He went over to his own desk, where he again set to figuring on his
pad. The results he eyed a little doubtfully. Each year he must pay in
interest the sum of seven thousand five hundred dollars. Each year
he would have to count on a proportionate saving of fifteen thousand
dollars toward payment of the notes. In addition, he must live.

"The Orde family is going to be mighty hard up," said he, whistling
humorously.

But Orde was by nature and training sanguine and fond of big risks.

"Never mind; it's for Bobby," said he to himself. "And maybe the rate
of interest will go down. And I'll be able to borrow on the California
tract if anything does go wrong."

He put on his hat, thrust a bundle of papers into his pocket, and
stepped across the hall into Taylor's office.

The lawyer he found tipped back in his revolving chair, reading a
printed brief.

"Frank," began Orde immediately, "I came to see you about that
California timber matter."

Taylor laid down the brief and removed his eye-glasses, with which he
began immediately to tap the fingers of his left hand.

"Sit down, Jack," said he. "I'm glad you came in. I was going to try
to see you some time to-day. I've been thin