glanced carelessly towards his niece.

"She's only a little faint," he said. "There's matter enough here
without that."

"What is it, sir?" the young man demanded.

Phineas Duge looked at him for a moment in silence, while he decided how
much to tell.

"You remember my daughter Stella?" he asked abruptly.

The young man looked serious.

"I remember Miss Duge quite well," he answered.

"She has been here this afternoon. This is her work," Duge said grimly.
"We had some trouble before, you know, about that Canadian Pacific
report. It was after that, that I was obliged to send her away
altogether."

The young man looked swiftly around the room.

"Has she taken anything?" he began.

"Nothing of importance," Phineas Duge answered calmly, "but that doesn't
alter the fact that she might have done so!"

CHAPTER XIII

BEARDING THE LION

Early the next morning, Littleson's automobile dashed up to the door of
Weiss' office. Without even waiting to be announced, its owner pushed
his way through the clerk's office and entered the private room of
his friend.

"Heard the news?" he demanded quickly.

"No! What is it?" Weiss asked.

"Phineas Duge is in the city. He was going into Harrigold's as I came
out. I tried to speak to him, but he cut me dead. They say that he has
sent for all his brokers, and is coming on this market heavily!"

"Then his illness was a fake after all," Weiss declared. "We can't stand
this, though. I'll get on to his office. We must speak to him."

He gave some rapid instructions to a clerk whom he had summoned, then
took a printed sheet of prices from a machine which ticked at his elbow.

"If it's war," he muttered, "we shall have to fight hard, but what I
don't understand is why he wants to break with us."

The clerk re-entered the room.

"There is a young lady here," he said, "who wishes to speak to you,
sir."

"Name?" Weiss demanded curtly.

"Miss Virginia Longworth," he answered.

Weiss and Littleson exchanged quick glances.

"Show her in at once," Weiss ordered. "What do you suppose this means?"
he asked, turning to Littleson.

The young man had no time to reply. Almost immediately Virginia was
ushered into the office. She was very pale, and there were dark lines
under her eyes. Stephen Weiss rose at once, and Littleson hastened to
offer her a chair, but she took no notice. They could see that she was
agitated, and she seemed to find some difficulty in commencing what