n to his feet, and
smiling grimly at the figure he made.

An hour later, Houston presented himself at the sorting rooms, where
Haight met him with many smiles, offering to show him through the
rooms.

"Another time will do, Mr. Haight," said Houston coldly, "I have
business with yourself this morning."

"Oh, yes," said Haight, as if the thought had just occurred to him,
"that unfortunate business at the table this morning; Mr. Houston, I
am more than sorry for what happened, and assure you, that, so far as
I am concerned, it shall never occur again."

"It will be much better for your interests that it should not,"
replied Houston; "I have not been in the habit of hearing such
insinuations against ladies, or such language in their presence; and
there is something more I have to say to you," he continued, as he saw
Haight was trying to speak; "you were bookkeeper for the company, for
a while, were you not?"

"Certainly," replied Haight in a tone of surprise, "I kept the books
for a few months last year."

"So I have been informed since coming here, and I wish to state that
the other day I had occasion to refer to some of the old books kept by
you, and I very soon found evidences of a few shady transactions on
your part that I think you would not care to have come to the
knowledge of the company."

"You must be mistaken, Mr. Houston," said Haight, trying to preserve a
calm exterior, but paling visibly; "it must have been some of Mr.
Johnson's work you found."

"No, Mr. Haight," said Houston firmly, "it was your own work, in your
own writing, and very bunglingly done at that; a man would not need to
be an expert accountant,--and that is what I am,--to detect the
fraud."

"Mr. Houston," interrupted Haight, in trembling tones, "everything
here shall be as you wish, and I will help you too,--I can be of
use to you,--if you will just say nothing. There were certain
circumstances that I cannot now explain, that justified the
transactions you allude to; and as I have told you, I regret what
occurred this morning, and it shall not be repeated. But really,
Mr. Houston," he continued, "I had no idea that my teasing Morgan
this morning would have such an effect; you see, what I was joking
about was really to Miss Maverick's credit; it seems that a few
weeks ago, he was rather smitten with her and attempted to be what she
thought was a little too familiar, and she gave him a black eye,
and--"

"He has another one now,"