The Guardian's Vice-President rose, and stood looking down at Mr. Murch
from across the table.

"You need me, Mr. Murch," he said. "I don't have to tell you that.
You're supposed to be an expert in picking winners, although you made a
bad break on Wellwood. I'm the right man for your job, and you knew it
when you sent for me. And your offer is a handsome one--I'll admit
that. I'll admit it so willingly that I'll come out and lay my
cards--and yours--on the table. I'll put it to you straight."

"Yes?" replied the capitalist, inquiringly.

"Yes. What you mean is this. I've had charge of the underwriting of
the Guardian for seven years. Many of its best agents look on me as
the company; the Guardian is just a name, but the man they do business
with is F. Mills O'Connor, and I'll guarantee that a lot of the best of
them will keep on doing business with me, no matter with what concern
I'm associated. Now the Guardian has as fine a class of big city
business on its books as any company of its size in the field, and I'll
bet that in the big cities, where you've lost your money, its business
is not only better but larger than the Salamander's. In New York and
Boston and Philadelphia you couldn't beat it to save your life. What
you want to know is whether I can get equally good stuff for the
Salamander, and I want to tell you that I can. And in some pretty
important places I can get the identical business, you understand. You
want to know how I'm going to get it. Well, what I just told you about
a lot of agents keeping on with F. Mills O'Connor is one factor, but
there are several others, and I'd rather not mention them until I take
charge. But you need have no fear that they cannot be successfully
utilized. Do I make myself clear?"

Mr. Murch smiled a deprecatory smile.

"Quite," he said. "In fact, you put it a little more bluntly than I
had expected."

"Well, then, if you want to ratify this arrangement at the next meeting
of your board, it will be all right with me, and moreover I'll
guarantee you personally that within a year the Salamander will be
taking over the Guardian's business in at least three of the principal
cities of the United States."

"The next meeting is on Monday," said Mr. Murch.

"Very well. Ratify it then, but keep it strictly under cover for two
months. If I hear from you that the deal has gone through, I'll start
laying my wires. This is the first of October. Don't let an