it home in his characteristic manner.

"What the hell ails you, anyhow?" the father inquired, in apoplectic
wrath. "Have you gone clean crazy?"

After some inquiry Henry realized what ailed him and who had caused him
to throw away his money, but he did not apprise Bell. More than once
they had been parties to "wash sales," and had helped to establish
artificial values, but to be victimized in the same manner was like the
taste of poison.

Of course, it meant little in the big game. At most, the firm had been
"gypped" only a comparatively few thousand dollars, and the loss could
probably be recouped by a resale; nevertheless, the incident was
significant, and, upon second thought, it appeared to shed light upon
certain other expensive transactions in other fields.

Now, oddly enough, this new oil discovery did not develop as had been
expected--in fact, the excitement died out quickly--and when Henry
Nelson undertook to dispose of his holdings he was faced by a heavy
loss, for Gray was offering adjoining acreage at low prices.

Following this unhappy experience, the scandal about the Jackson well
became public--the Atlantic Company having at last located the leak in
its pipe line--and the whole Red River district enjoyed a great laugh.
Henry Nelson did not laugh. He turned green when he realized how close
he had come to buying that lease. Of course, here was a swindle that
Gray could have had nothing to do with, and yet--Nelson wondered why
"Bob" Parker had failed to sell it to him. "Bob" had tied it upon an
option, awaiting his return, and he had hurried back on purpose to
examine it. Why hadn't he bought it? Henry asked that question of the
girl, and, when she told him as much as she knew, he began to believe
that the whole thing was, indeed, an incredibly bold attempt to swindle
him, and him alone.

Miss Parker, of course, was deeply chagrined at her connection with the
fraud; nevertheless, the banker felt his flesh turn cold at the
narrowness of his escape. He assured himself, upon calmer thought, that
his imagination was running away with him; this was too devilishly
ingenious, too crooked! And besides, Gray had promised to fight fair.
All the same, the thing had a suspicious odor, and Nelson slept badly
for a few nights. He decided to use extra caution thereafter and see
that he neither paid more for leases than they were worth nor permitted
anybody to "salt" him. Salting, after all, was rare; one read about i