ve-Ledyard-cars-in-any-case-_

Bannon's eyes were half closed, but the superintendent thought he was
turning a little toward the open doorway.

"Do you feel cold?" he asked. "I'll shut the door."

He rose quickly and started toward it, but Bannon was there before him.
He hesitated, his hand on the knob.

"Why don't you shut it?" snapped the superintendent.

"I think I'll--I think I'll send a telegram."

"Here's a blank, in here. Come in." But Bannon had slipped out and was
standing beside the operator's table. From the doorway the
superintendent saw him biting his pencil and frowning over a bit of
paper. The general manager's message was still coming in.

_We-don't-help-put-up-any-grain-elevator-in-Chicago-these-days._

As the last click sounded, Bannon handed his message to the operator.
"Send it collect," he said. With that he strode away, over the hand
rail, this time, and down the stairs. The operator carried the message
to the superintendent.

"It seems to be for you," he said.

The superintendent read--

Div. Supt. G. & M., Blake City. Tell manager it takes better man
than him to tie us up.

MACBRIDE & COMPANY.

Bannon had nearly an hour to wait for the next train back to Ledyard,
but it was not time wasted, for as he paced the smoky waiting room, he
arrived at a fairly accurate estimate of the meaning of the general
manager's message.

It was simply a confirmation of the cautious prediction he had made to
Peterson the night before. Why should any one want to hinder the
construction of an elevator in Chicago "these days" except to prevent
its use for the formal delivery of grain which the buyer did not wish
delivered? And why had Page & Company suddenly ordered a million bushel
annex? Why had they suddenly become anxious that the elevator should be
ready to receive grain before January first, unless they wished to
deliver a vast amount of December wheat? Before Bannon's train came in
he understood it all. A clique of speculators had decided to corner
wheat, an enterprise nearly enough impossible in any case, but stark
madness unless they had many millions at command. It was a long chance,
of course, but after all not wonderful that some one in their number was
a power in the reorganized G. & M.

Already the immense amount of wheat in Chicago was testing the capacity
of the registered warehouses, and plainly, if the Calumet K should be
delayed long enough, it might prevent Pag