ecessary third party--my
superintendent, Partridge, for instance--form a stock company with a
capital stock of three hundred thousand dollars. Then the six hundred
and fifty thousand dollars that you and your associates are to advance,
Mr. Melville, may be secured by an issue of bonds, which the company
will secure authority to issue. These bonds will bear the unusually high
interest of seven per cent., and this interest, of course, will have to
be paid before any dividend can be declared on the capital stock of the
company. That will retain the control of the company in my hands, and
in Pollard's, and that is what we want."

"Yet do you expect that it will be easy to secure such an understanding
with capital?" inquired Mr. Melville, easily. "The proposition amounts
to this: That you put in the smaller amount of capital, and yet expect to
reap the greater profits."

"By no means," replied Jacob Farnum, seriously. "We have demonstrated
the value of our type of boat, and we have some valuable knowledge and
ideas that cannot be appraised in dollars. So, though our amount of
material capital is less than you and your associates would contribute,
we feel that we are bringing to the enterprise the larger share."

"I see your point," nodded Mr. Melville, pleasantly. "Yet there is much
to be discussed from _our_ side."

So the contest was on--the quiet, polite battle that is as old as
capital itself. The men who contribute the money expect the control of
the business; the men who contribute the ideas and knowledge expect,
capital to be satisfied with a good return on its money.

Both sides were silent for awhile. The lawyer, tapping a pencil against
his lips, knew that George Melville did not intend to go into the
enterprise on any arrangement that did not allow him to gain business
control swiftly and surely.

"We have much to discuss, along these lines," pursued Mr. Melville, in
his smoothest tones and with his friendliest air. "But I have no doubt
at all, Mr. Farnum, that we shall presently reach a basis that will be
wholly agreeable to both sides."

Which, on the contrary, was what the capitalist knew to be impossible.
Melville found himself wishing that something else would come into the
conversation, in order to get the boatbuilder's mind briefly away from
the main proposition.

Steps were heard, at this moment, in the outer office, and then the faces
of Jack and Hal appeared close to the glass in the d