e me Mr. Atwater--this is Mr. Murch speaking. That you,
Billy? How's the market?"

He replaced the receiver with a snap.

"Everything off at the opening. Bad slump in Maryland Traction and P.
N. T."

"It ought to go off some more when the fire companies in general start
liquidating. There will have to be a big unloading to raise the amount
of cash necessary to pay those Boston losses. I suppose, though, the
British companies will send the money across--they usually do, and
that'll help a little. That's the worst of these fires--they hit you
going and coming. Suppose we lose seven hundred thousand; well, before
we get through we'll have to sell eight or nine hundred thousand
dollars' worth of securities, at present prices, to pay it."

"How much cash have we on deposit?" Mr. Murch inquired.

O'Connor handed him the last weekly statement in silence. The fact
that the other man had expressed no definite intention was to him
encouraging. It might be that all was not over yet.

"Roughly, our surplus," commented the financier. "Now, how about our
other assets? Stocks and miscellaneous securities, $1,500,000. Only
it won't be a million and a half by the time we get rid of them.
Probably a couple of hundred thousand less. Encouraging, isn't it? In
other words, this fire is going to cost us $900,000 before we're
through. And the present question is, how are we to get through?"

O'Connor looked him over with an appraising glance.

"Well, the Salamander has paid good dividends for years," he said.
"Probably more than most companies would have thought it prudent to
pay--they'd have put a larger amount into surplus to take care of such
a smash as this. And I've made the company a better money-maker on the
underwriting side than it's ever been before--you'll admit that, I
think. There's no reason why we shouldn't go on. My suggestion would
be to assess the stock."

He awaited the answer nervously, toying with a penholder, not daring to
glance at the other man. He did not have to wait long.

"Not much!" said Mr. Murch, coldly. "I'm going to get out of this as
fast as I can, and I'm going to stay out, you understand. No more fire
insurance business for me. It's the only business I ever made a
complete mess of. The Salamander would have done better if they had
never issued a policy--if they had merely let me invest their money for
them. Now the next question is, how to get out. You are an insurance
m