ntil he had funds
for a practical plant, in a hot climate.

He and the Dean and Ernest estimated that not less than fifty thousand
dollars would be essential for such an initial plant. The sum might
have been fifty million for all its accessibility to Roger. Most of the
wealthy men whom Roger was able to reach admitted the cleverness and the
interest of his ideas. None of them could be persuaded that the idea
would be a good investment. Once in desperation Roger went to Chicago to
a firm whose letter heads read "Bankers, Stocks and Bonds, Promoters,
Investments." Roger was turned over to a young man who wore a garnet
ring and who was at the head of the Engineering Investments Department.
The two had several long sessions. Then the man of the garnet ring
proposed that a company be organized for half a million dollars and that
his company undertake to sell the stock. Roger was much encouraged.

"That's fine," he said. "How long would it take to raise fifty thousand
dollars?"

"Not long," replied the young promoter, whose name was Eaton. "Of
course, you understand that the first money will have to go for office
expenses and salaries."

"Whose salaries?" asked Roger. "I don't want any and I need only a few
day laborers."

"You don't get me." Eaton was patient. "I'm speaking of the Solar
Company's Chicago office."

"Shucks! We don't want an office in Chicago. What we want is a plant in
Arizona."

"If you think we can sell stock in a nutty scheme like this without
plenty of mahogany furniture and high sounding titles on glass doors,
you're even greener than I thought you were," said Eaton.

Roger looked at him thoughtfully. "Oh, I see!" he said after a moment.
"When would you want to begin on this work?"

"As soon as you can raise a little preliminary expense money for us, say
$1500."

"Oh," said Roger again. "Of course, you realize that the only thing that
will give that stock any value is building plants with the money we get
from selling it."

"Why, certainly! But we must make a right start. An office in your
bedroom may go in Eagle's Wing but not in Chicago."

"Oh!" said Roger for a third and last time. And the conference adjourned
sine die.

Something about this interview depressed Roger profoundly.

He went home, locked up his drawings and threw an old canvas over the
model of the solar engine that had stood for so many years in a corner
of the graduate laboratory. It was six months before he could in