of the Board of Trade, swinging nervously back and forth in the
swivel chair, drumming his fingers upon the arms, and glancing
continually at the clock that hung against the opposite wall. It was
about eleven in the morning. The Board of Trade vibrated with the vast
trepidation of the Pit, that for two hours had spun and sucked, and
guttered and disgorged just overhead. The waiting-room of the office
was more than usually crowded. Parasites of every description polished
the walls with shoulder and elbow. Millionaires and beggars jostled one
another about the doorway. The vice-president of a bank watched the
door of the private office covertly; the traffic manager of a railroad
exchanged yarns with a group of reporters while awaiting his turn.

As Gretry, the great man's lieutenant, hurried through the anteroom,
conversation suddenly ceased, and half a dozen of the more impatient
sprang forward. But the broker pushed his way through the crowd,
shaking his head, excusing himself as best he might, and entering the
office, closed the door behind him.

At the clash of the lock Jadwin started half-way from his chair, then
recognising the broker, sank back with a quick breath.

"Why don't you knock, or something, Sam?" he exclaimed. "Might as well
kill a man as scare him to death. Well, how goes it?"

"All right. I've fixed the warehouse crowd--and we just about 'own' the
editorial and news sheets of these papers." He threw a memorandum down
upon the desk. "I'm off again now. Got an appointment with the
Northwestern crowd in ten minutes. Has Hargus or Scannel shown up yet?"

"Hargus is always out in your customers' room," answered Jadwin. "I can
get him whenever I want him. But Scannel has not shown up yet. I
thought when we put up the price again Friday we'd bring him in. I
thought you'd figured out that he couldn't stand that rise."

"He can't stand it," answered Gretry. "He'll be in to see you to-morrow
or next day."

"To-morrow or next day won't do," answered Jadwin. "I want to put the
knife into him to-day. You go up there on the floor and put the price
up another cent. That will bring him, or I'll miss my guess."

Gretry nodded. "All right," he said, "it's your game. Shall I see you
at lunch?"

"Lunch! I can't eat. But I'll drop around and hear what the
Northwestern people had to say to you."

A few moments after Gretry had gone Jadwin heard the ticker on the
other side of the room begin to chatter furiously;