a
state of transition, he had become immensely ambitious. He wanted to be
not nominally but actually director of the affairs of this house under
Colfax, and he saw his way clear to do it by getting editors, art
directors, department heads and assistants generally who were agreeable
to him. But unfortunately he could not do this directly, for while
Colfax cared little about the details of the business his hobby was just
this one thing--men. Like Obadiah Kalvin, of the Kalvin Publishing
Company, who, by the way, was now his one great rival, Colfax prided
himself on his ability to select men. His general idea was that if he
could find one more man as good as Florence White to take charge of the
art, editorial and book end of the business, not from the manufacturing
and commercial, but from the intellectual and spiritual ends--a man with
ideas who would draw to him authors, editors, scientific writers and
capable assistants generally--the fortune of the house would be made. He
thought, sanely enough from some points of view, that this publishing
world could be divided in this way. White bringing the inside
manufacturing, purchasing and selling interests to a state of
perfection; the new man, whoever he might be, bringing the ideas of the
house and their literary and artistic representation up to such a state
of efficiency that the whole country would know that it was once more
powerful and successful. He wanted to be called the foremost publisher
of his day, and then he could retire gracefully or devote himself to
other financial matters as he pleased.

He really did not understand Florence J. White as well as he did
himself. White was a past master at dissembling. He had no desire to see
any such thing as Colfax was now planning come to pass. He could not do
the things intellectually and spiritually which Colfax wanted done,
nevertheless he wanted to be king under this emperor, the real power
behind the throne, and he did not propose to brook any interference if
he could help it. It was in his power, having the printing and composing
room in his hands, to cause any man whom he greatly disliked to suffer
severely. Forms could be delayed, material lost, complaints lodged as to
dilatoriness in the matter of meeting schedules, and so on, ad
infinitum. He had the Irishman's love of chicanery in the matter of
morals. If he could get at an enemy's record and there was a flaw in it,
the facts were apt to become mysteriously known