ven't," said Clavering. "Torrance's cigars are better than
mine, so I usually leave mine at home. But I'll bring the case next time,
and if you would like to copy it, I could get you a piece of the dressed
hide from one of the Blackfeet."

He turned away, and Flora Schuyler decided not to tell Hetty what she had
heard--Hetty was a little impulsive occasionally--but it seemed to Miss
Schuyler that it would be wise to watch her maid and Clavering closely.

In the meantime, the man walked away towards Torrance's office,
considering what the maid had told him. He had found it difficult to
credit, but her manner had convinced him, and he realized that he could
not afford the delay he had hitherto considered advisable. A young woman,
he reflected, would scarcely send a wallet of dollars at night to a man
whose plans were opposed to her father's without a strong motive, and the
fact that Hetty wore a chain hidden about her neck had its meaning. He
had, like most of his neighbours, laughed at Larry's hopeless devotion,
but he had seen similar cases in which the lady at last relented, and
while he knew Hetty's loyalty to her own people, and scarcely thought that
she had more than a faint, tolerant tenderness for Larry, it appeared
eminently desirable to prevent anything of that kind happening. Torrance,
who was sitting smoking, glanced at him impatiently when he went in.

"You have been a long while," he said.

"I have a sufficient excuse, sir," said Clavering.

"Well," said Torrance drily, "they are quite clever girls, but I have
found myself wishing lately they were a long way from here. That, however,
is not what I want to talk about. Apparently none of us can get hold of
Larry."

"It is not for the want of effort. There are few things that would please
me better."

Torrance glanced at Clavering sharply. "No. I fancied once or twice you
had a score of your own against him. In fact, I heard Allonby say
something of the same kind, too."

"Chris is a trifle officious," said Clavering. "Any way, it's quite
evident that we shall scarcely hold the homestead-boys back until we get
our thumb on Larry."

"How are we going to do it? He has come out ahead of us so far."

"We took the wrong way," said Clavering. "Now, Larry, as you know, puts
all his dealings through the Tillotson Company. Tillotson, as I found out
in Chicago, has a free hand to buy stocks or produce with his balances,
and Larry, who does not seem to bank his