blic, you know, always chooses
the best depositaries." He chuckled softly. He had turned his eyes
towards the window so as not to see the ghostly figure behind the young
man's chair which had such a world of reproach in its face. "There is
only one thing to do, Peters. We must water it a little, eh?"

"It seems to me we've been using the watering-pot rather too
frequently."

The Judge started. Had he detected a menace in the tone?

He temporized. His plans were not sufficiently matured yet. When they
were he would crush this tool of his as surely and as carelessly as he
would have crushed a fly.

"Nonsense, Peters!" he said pleasantly; "that is only a little clever
financing to tide us over the hard places. Of course we will make it all
good to the public--by and bye."

"How?" The question rang out through the office like a pistol shot.

The Judge looked at the man before him in amaze. For once his face
showed determination and an honest purpose.

"Will you tell me how we're going to do it?" he persisted with a strange
vehemence. "I've been a fool, Judge Hildreth, a blamed, gigantic fool!
I've let you hood wink me and lead me by the nose for years. I've done
your dirty work for you and borne the credit of it, too; but I swear
I'll not do it any longer. I thought at first--fool that I was--that
everything you did was just the right thing to copy. My poor old mother
told me you were the pattern I was to follow if I wanted to be an
honorable man. An honorable man! Good heavens!

"Do you know where I've been these last months? I've been in hell, sir;
in hell, I tell you! Every night I've dreamed of my mother and every day
I've bamboozled the public and sold bonds that weren't worth the paper
they were written on, and paid big dividends that were just some of
their own money returned. And now you tell me to keep on watering the
stock when you know we haven't a dollar put towards the 'Rest' and the
money is just pouring out for expenses and directors' fees. There's
barely enough left over to keep up the sham of dividends. You know it as
well as I do. I've been an ass and an idiot, but I'm done with living a
lie. Judge Hildreth, I came to tell you that if you don't do the square
thing by these people who have trusted us, I'll expose you!"

His vehemence was tremendous and the words poured out in a torrent which
never checked its flow. He had risen and in his excitement paced up and
down the room. Now, overcome by his