that settles it. I wouldn't make you unhappy a single
minute for all the wheat in the world."

"And you will stop speculating?"

"Well, I can't pull out all in a moment, but just as soon as a chance
comes I'll get out of the market. At any rate, I won't have any
business of mine come between us. I don't like it any more than you do.
Why, how long is it since we've read any book together, like we used to
when you read aloud to me?"

"Not since we came back from the country."

"By George, that's so, that's so." He shook his head. "I've got to
taper off. You're right, Laura. But you don't know, you haven't a guess
how this trading in wheat gets a hold of you. And, then, what am I to
do? What are we fellows, who have made our money, to do? I've got to be
busy. I can't sit down and twiddle my thumbs. And I don't believe in
lounging around clubs, or playing with race horses, or murdering game
birds, or running some poor, helpless fox to death. Speculating seems
to be about the only game, or the only business that's left open to
me--that appears to be legitimate. I know I've gone too far into it,
and I promise you I'll quit. But it's fine fun. When you know how to
swing a deal, and can look ahead, a little further than the other
fellows, and can take chances they daren't, and plan and manoeuvre, and
then see it all come out just as you had known it would all along--I
tell you it's absorbing."

"But you never do tell me," she objected. "I never know what you are
doing. I hear through Mr. Court or Mr. Gretry, but never through you.
Don't you think you could trust me? I want to enter into your life on
its every side, Curtis. Tell me," she suddenly demanded, "what are you
doing now?"

"Very well, then," he said, "I'll tell you. Of course you mustn't speak
about it. It's nothing very secret, but it's always as well to keep
quiet about these things."

She gave her word, and leaned her elbows on the table, prepared to
listen intently. Jadwin crushed a lump of sugar against the inside of
his coffee cup.

"Well," he began, "I've not been doing anything very exciting, except
to buy wheat."

"What for?"

"To sell again. You see, I'm one of those who believe that wheat is
going up. I was the very first to see it, I guess, way back last April.
Now in August this year, while we were up at the lake, I bought three
million bushels."

"Three--million--bushels!" she murmured. "Why, what do you do with it?
Where do you put it?"