y on Botany.

Inasmuch as Otis had been one of the brightest Men in his Class he was
offered a position as Instructor in the College at a Salary of $55
a Month with a promise of $5 raise at the end of five Years, if he
lived. Otis accepted, because the Outside World did not seem to be
clamoring for his Services, even though he was an Authority on the
Mezozoic Period and knew all the Diatomes by their First Names.

[Illustration: _M.A._]

Often while he was burning the Midnight Oil and grinding out
Jaw-Breakers, so as to qualify for the Master's Degree, he reflected
as follows: "It is true that Brad is making it Hand over Fist and
wears $6 Shirts and rides in a State-Room on the Pullman, but he is
not a Bachelor of Arts. And some day when he is a Multi-Millionaire
I can still look down on him, for then I shall be a Master of Arts.
I have known since Childhood that Education is more desirable than
Paltry Gold. Although the Newspapers and the General Public do not
seem to be with me to any Extent, it is better to hob-nob with the
Binomial Theorem than to dally with the Champagne Supper."

In due time the Faculty gave the Degree of M.A. to what was left of
Otis and still his Ambition was not satisfied. He wanted to land a
Doctor's Degree. He knew that any one who aspired to this Eminent
Honor had to be a Pippin. But he hoped that he could make some
Contribution to the World of Thought that would jar the whole
Educational System and help him to climb to the topmost Pinnacle of
Human Greatness.

Professor Otis did the Dig Act year after year. At the age of 49
he was still M.A. and owned a House with a Mortgage on it. In the
Meantime there had been revolutionary Changes in the World of Finance.
Everything on Earth had been put into a Pool. Each Smooth Citizen who
had something that was of no particular use to him went to work and
Capitalized it. Brad closed out his Interests for so much Money that
any one else would have been ashamed to take it. Then he and some
other Buccaneers went down to Wall Street to have fun with several
dignified Gentlemen whom Brad described as Them Fly Eastern Mugs. They
succeeded in putting the Skids under a number of Persons who did not
care to meet them Socially.

When Brad walked around in his Million Dollar Hut he had to step high
to avoid stumbling over Bundles of the Long Green; but he never had
made any further headway with his Botany.

It happened one Day that Brad was out Moting an