The new Catteline-Harvard car was standing at the kerb before the
door, shrieking its newness. A great sign over the door told the world
at large, and in no uncertain manner, that the Langford-Ralston
Financial Corporation was doing business below. The two windows were a
dainty display of the show-card writers' art, hanging above and around
a miniature fruit ranch, complete with trees, house and barns in the
one, and a miniature townsite in the making in the other. "Come in and
Talk It Over," said one card. "Nothing in Land We Cannot Buy for You.
Nothing We Cannot Sell," proclaimed another. "If you have tried all
the others and have not got what you want--try Us." "Better Save
Yourself Time and Worry by Trying Us First." "The Recognised, Reliable
Okanagan Land Agents." "Our Time and Our Cars are at Your Disposal."

In addition to these were dozens of neat cards in plain letters and
figures, offering wonderful values in Ranches, Wild Land, Homes and
New Sub-divisions, the real owners of which the Langford-Ralston
Financial Corporation could no more than make a guess at.

It was not long before the windows were attracting the early morning
passers-by in the dozens.

Someone telephoned McWilliams, who came along and had a look at the
display. He went away in high dudgeon to inform Somerville, Brixton,
McIntyre and the rest of them that the new outfit had been getting
next to their customers and had succeeded in getting the listings of
almost every piece of property in the Valley.

Meantime, Phil and Jim were comfortably ensconced in easy chairs
behind their new desks, each smoking a fine brand of cigar, but busy
poring over a profusion of maps and blue-prints, in a belated
endeavour to get some notion--however indistinct--of how the land lay
according to numbers. They knew where Kickwillie Loop was; they could
go blindfold to Blear-eyed Monoghan's Ranch, or Mudflats, or Sunset
Avenue, but when it came to driving out to, say, lot 21 sub-division
16, district lot 218--well, that was quite another matter and called
for deep and urgent concentration.

Jim kept his brand-new, high-tension, low-geared stenographer busy
typing and re-typing forms of Agreements for Sale and Deeds, in
anticipation of later business.

Several prominent citizens came in to compliment them on their
enterprise and to wish them good luck. The numbers of these
well-wishing citizens increased as the news went round, and
the Langford-Ralston stock