fifteen or twenty years, beginning with it when it was first started by
Mr. Houston of Boston.' Is that right?"

A nod from the accused. Houston went on:

"'I figured from the first that I was going to be taken in partnership
with Mr. Houston, although nothing ever was said about it. I just took
it for granted. However, when years passed and, nothing was done about
it, I began to force matters, by letting the mill run down, knowing
that Mr. Houston was getting old, and that he might be willing to sell
out to me if things got bad enough. At that time, I didn't know where
I was going to get the money, but hoped that Mr. Houston would let me
have the mill and acreage on some sort of a payment basis. I went back
to see him about it a couple of times, but he wouldn't listen to me.
He said that he wanted to either close the thing out for cash or keep
on running it in the hope of making something of it.' That's all
right, isn't it, Thayer?"

"Yes."

"'I tried two or three times to get him to sell out to me, but we
couldn't get together on the terms. He always wanted cash, and I
couldn't furnish it--although I pretended that I had the money all
right, but that I simply did not want to tie it all up at once. About
this time--I think it was three or four years ago; I am not exactly
clear on the dates--a nephew of his named Thomas Langdon came out here,
under the name of John Corbin. He had been a black sheep and was now
wandering about the country, doing anything that he could set his hand
to for a living. I had known him since boyhood and gave him a job
under his assumed name. He pretended that he was very close to Mr.
Houston, and I thought maybe he could help me get the plant. But his
word was not worth as much as mine.' Have I taken that down correctly,
Thayer?"

"Yes. Except about Langdon. He told me when he came here that his
uncle had sent him out to straighten him up. But I don't guess it
makes much difference."

Houston, nevertheless, made the changes, glancing up once to assure
himself that Medaine still was there. She had not left his side. He
went on with the reading:

"'By this time, the mill had gotten to be a sort of mania with me, and
I almost had myself believing that Houston had promised me more than he
had given me. Then, a woman came out here, an Agnes Jierdon, a
stenographer, on her vacation. I met her and learned that she was from
Boston.'" A slight pressure exerted itself on