od-natured
fellow, who wished the world well, Walter delighted to impart his
original ideas and the fruits of his observation to his patrons while
shaving them. Some of these received his remarks coldly, it is true,
but Walter was so charged with a sense of friendliness towards all
mankind that he was never daunted for long by a rebuff.

His interests were wide and varied; Walter found no difficulty in
talking pleasantly upon any subject; he could touch it lightly, or deal
with it in a more serious vein, as the mood of his customer seemed to
require; and he had the art of making deft and rapid transitions from
topic to topic. But there were two things in particular concerning
which Walter had thought deeply: racehorses and the stock market.

It was the settled grief of Walter's life that he had never been able
to persuade any person with money to take his advice concerning the
races, or follow any of the dazzling stock market campaigns which he
was forever outlining.

"They listen to me," said Walter, a little wistfully, but with a brave
smile, "or else they do not listen--but no one has ever yet taken my
advice! Do you wet your hair when you part it, sir?"

"What," said Cleggett, carefully concealing from Walter the fact that
he spoke of himself, "would be your advice to a man with $100,000 who
wished to double it in a few weeks?"

"Double it!" cried Walter. "Why, I could show such a person how to
multiply it by ten inside of two months." And he rapidly outlined to
Cleggett a scheme so audacious and so brilliant that it fairly took our
hero's breath away. Moreover, it stood the test of reflection; it was
sound. Not to descend to the sordid details, in three weeks Cleggett
found himself possessed of a million dollars' gain. Half of this he
gave to the excellent Walter, and in three months ran the other half
million up to twenty millions.

Then he withdrew permanently from business, as Lady Agatha complained
that it took too much of his time; moreover, he shrank from notoriety,
which his stock market operations were beginning to bring upon him.

Giuseppe Jones, who recovered of his wounds, forswore anarchy and
became a newspaper reporter, and grew to be a fast friend of Cleggett,
who discovered that he was a lad of parts. Cleggett eventually made
him president of a college of journalism which he founded. While he
was establishing the institution the man Wharton, his old managing
editor, broken, shattere