her particular in
attention to Edith, his daughter; and apart from the fact that he had
wasted his money in an unprofitable scheme, and had not been prudent
enough to consult him, old Matthew Page had no particular objection to
him as a son-in-law. His family stood high in the State, and his
father, previous to his death, had been for many years in the State
senate. The idea that Jordan would take a fancy to his daughter had not
once crossed the mind of Mr. Page, or he would not have stood so firmly
upon his dignity in the matter of being consulted.

Rather doubting as to the reception he should meet from the young man,
he called upon him, one day, when the following conversation took place:

"I'm afraid, Mr. Jordan," said Page, after some commonplace chitchat,
"that your saw-mill business is not going to turn out as well as you
expected."

"It has not, so far, certainly," replied Jordan, frankly. "But this is
owing to the fact of my having been deceived in the mill, and in the
integrity of my manager; not to the nature of the business itself. I am
still sanguine of success."

"Will you allow me to make a suggestion or two? I think I can show you
that you are in error in regard to the business itself."

"Most gladly will I receive any suggestion," returned Jordan. "Though I
am not apt to seek advice--a fault of character, perhaps--I am ever
ready to listen to it and weigh it dispassionately, when given. A doubt
as to the result of the business, if properly carried out, has never
yet crossed my mind."

"I have always doubted it from the first. Indeed, I knew that you could
not succeed."

"Then, my dear sir, why did you not tell me so?" said Jordan, earnestly.

"If you had consulted me, I would"--

"I never dreamed of consulting any one about it. I had confidence in
Mr. Barnaby's statements; but more in my own judgment, based upon the
data he furnished me."

"But I have none in either Barnaby or his data."

"I have none in him, for he has shamefully deceived me; but his data
are fixed facts, and therefore cannot lie."

"There you err again. Barnaby knew that the data he gave you was
incorrect. I had, myself, demonstrated this to him before he went far
enough to involve himself seriously. Something led him to doubt the
success of his project, and he came and consulted me on the subject. I
satisfied him in ten minutes that it wouldn't do, and he at once
abandoned it. Unfortunately, you arrived just at this ti