ch with an apologetic smile.

"I supposed you had gone some place to get Mr. Fair," said Garnet.

"He's in Jeff-Jack's office; they're coming over together." John busied
himself with his papers to veil his immense satisfaction. Looking up
from them he saw Leggett. "Oh!" he exclaimed, stepped forward, and, with
a constrained bow, for the first time in his life gave him his hand. The
mulatto bowed low and smiled eruptively, too tickled to speak.

At the end of half an hour the gathering numbered nine, and everybody
was in conversation with somebody. Mr. Crickwater, after three gay but
futile attempts to tell Gamble that they were from the same State in the
North, leaned against a wall with anguish in his every furtive glance,
hopelessly button-holed by Leggett.

"Ah!" cried Garnet, as Jeff-Jack and Fair entered together. The Major
laughed out for joy. In a moment it was--"Mr. Fair, this man, and Mr.
Fair, that one--you remember President Gamble, of course?--and Captain
Champion? Mr. Fair, let me make you acquainted with Mr. Hersey. Mr. Weed
I think you met the last time you were here. No! this is Mr. Weed,
that's our colored representative, Mr. Leggett. He'd like to shake hands
with you, too, sir."

"Mr. Fair," said Cornelius, "seh, to you; yass, I likes to get my sheer
o' whateveh's a-goin'."

He was about to say much more, but Garnet purposely drowned his voice.
"Gentlemen, we'll proceed to business. Mr. Crickwater, will you act as
doorkeeper?" Mr. Crickwater assumed that office.

Secretary March having occasion to mention the number of subscribed
shares represented by those present as six hundred and eleven, Garnet
explained that besides his own subscription he represented one of
fifteen shares and another of ten for two ladies, and Champion
unintentionally uttered a lurid monosyllable as Shotwell stuck him under
the leg with a pin. They were the shares, Garnet added, that General
Halliday had failed to take.

Business went on. When, by and by, Mr. Crickwater admitted Parson Tombs,
the pastor found the company listening to the Honorable Cornelius
Leggett as he expounded the reasons for, and the purposes of, the
various provisions of An Act to authorize the Counties of Blackland,
Clearwater, and Sandstone to subscribe to the capital stock of the
Three-Counties Land and Improvement Company, Limited, and to declare
said counties to be bodies politic and corporate for the purposes
therein mentioned.

"You see, g