that he would
hold that position indefinitely--or perhaps it would be nearer the
truth to say until some more advantageous position lay open to him.

Mr. O'Connor was what is commonly termed a cold proposition, and if
there was any sentiment in him it was so carefully secreted that for
ordinary purposes it was non-existent. Yet he was not unpopular. When
he so desired, he could assume a spurious geniality so closely
resembling the genuine article that few persons, and none of his
agents, ever discovered the difference. And his business efficiency
was commonly taken for granted.

Indeed, there was but one man in the insurance fraternity who assessed
Mr. O'Connor at very nearly his proper value, and that man O'Connor
disliked and feared as vividly as his rather apathetic nature would
admit. The one man was Smith. Whoever might sail the seas in ships of
illusion regarding the Vice-president of the Guardian, Smith saw the
facts clear and looked at them squarely.

The principal cause of Smith's own position in the company was his own
vitality and industry, but next to that was the fact that Mr.
Wintermuth had originally given him a chance and then declined to
permit any one to impede his natural progression. This attitude was
due principally to the President's conviction of his own ability to
judge men. Having once made up his mind, he allowed no one to tell him
anything about any of his employees. He always said: "I watch the boys
myself, and what I can't see I don't want to know." In the old days
what he did not see was of no especial importance to the Guardian
Insurance Company, but the eyes of an old lion grow also old. Yet the
habit remained, and thus all Mr. O'Connor's efforts to discredit his
ambitious young assistant had so far fallen on ears stone-deaf and
hermetically sealed. But the Vice-president could never forgive the
younger man for looking at him with so unimpressed a gaze, and never
missed an opportunity to show his prejudice to their mutual chief.

There had been several incidents of a similar nature previous to the
mattress factory loss, where Smith had been either indirectly advised
or permitted by O'Connor to take a certain course, only to find himself
excoriated when the risk burned or the outcome proved otherwise
disastrous. Only a short time before, Smith had been sent into New
York State, acting under vice-presidential order of procedure, to
straighten out the Guardian's relations wi