al benefit to
the most distinguished member of my family--who least needs my
assistance; mercenary, because I need the money. I rather expect you
to let me have charge of the placing of this insurance, sir."

"Well, Charlie, I don't mind saying that you've made a better
impression than any of these other insurance men that occasionally get
into my office, and if I were going to take out insurance on the
traction properties, I believe I'd let you make your commission on it.
But I'm not. And now I must ask you to excuse me."

"Oh, I've not quite finished," returned Wilkinson. As he was in for it
now, he would see it through. "I think you're making a mistake, sir;
and there are still one or two aspects of the matter which you have not
considered."

"And what may they be?" inquired his uncle. "Please remember I'm a
busy man."

His visitor reflected briefly. He did not know whether to play his
last card slowly and carefully or to slam it face upward with enough
force to make the table rattle. He decided on the latter method; after
all, to succeed with John M. Hurd one did well to make him blink.

"There _is_ such an institution as the Stock Exchange," he said blandly.

Mr. Hurd looked at him.

"Massachusetts Traction has been considered a very substantial
security," Wilkinson went on, "so safe that its market value fluctuates
very little, and so well regarded that the banks generally accept its
stock as collateral at very nearly its market value. They accept it as
a matter of course because they know its dividends are fully earned and
paid regularly, and they have confidence in your management and don't
go into the details. Your company has no bonded indebtedness; the
bonds were all converted into stock years ago; if it was bonded, the
bondholders would compel you to insure, whether you wished to or not.
Perhaps the banks have forgotten that you are not forced to carry
insurance, and are taking it for granted that you are exercising
ordinary prudence along this line and insuring just the same.
Suppose--only suppose--the intelligence should become diffused among
certain gentlemen of State Street that you are likely to lose three
quarters of a million dollars by fire if your new Pemberton Street car
barn should go and the power house adjoining it be seriously damaged,
and to meet such a loss you had an insurance fund of thirty thousand
dollars. Do you suppose your stock would be quite so popular as
collatera