gressing well. Mortimer, as you
will see by enclosed copies of correspondence, demands a revaluation
which would not be advisable before he will underwrite any of the
capital."

Deringham laid down the letter, and his daughter turned suddenly at his
exclamation. "The fools should have bought him off!" he said.

Then he took up the telegraphic message and read, "Scheme
impracticable. Cannot compromise with Mortimer. Harper and the
Syndicate against us. Details following."

Deringham said nothing, but sat staring before him with a face that
seemed to have grown suddenly grey and haggard, until his daughter
spoke to him.

"Have you had bad news, father?" she said.

The man, who had been sitting so that the light which shone out from
the room behind them fell upon him, moved. "I have," he said. "This
message informs me that at least ten thousand pounds have been
virtually taken out of my pocket. As it happened, I wanted the money
somewhat badly."

He rose, and entering the house met Alton coming out of it. The
Canadian brushed past him with a letter in his hand, and Deringham
turned a moment and looked after him. The financier's face was not
pleasant just then, and there was a curious glitter in his eyes, while
Seaforth, who was following his comrade, stared at him as he passed,
and came up with Alton on the verandah.

"What has gone wrong with Deringham?" he said.

"I don't know," said Alton lightly. "Do you think anything has?"

"That," said Seaforth, "is what I am asking you. He looked condemnably
ugly just now. One could have fancied that he contemplated killing
somebody."

Alton laughed. "Got a little business trip up, I expect," he said, and
moved forward as he spoke. "Here's word from Mrs. Jimmy. She wants to
know when I'm going to begin. Women are very persistent, Miss
Deringham, but this one has some reason."

"They usually have," said the girl. "I do not, however, know Mrs.
Jimmy."

"Of course," said Alton, smiling. "Still, I expect you'll see her up
here presently."

It was a day or two later when Alton returned to the topic of Mrs.
Jimmy, and he was then kneeling in the stern of a canoe which slid with
a swift smoothness down the placid lake as he dipped the glistening
paddle. Miss Deringham was seated forward on a pile of cedar-twigs,
with a wet line in her fingers, and in no way disturbed by the fact
that she had caught nothing. Such expeditions had become somewhat
frequ