a dazed sort of manner, accepted the paper and read it
aloud.

COPPER MINES OF TAFILA, ALGERIA.

Chairman: THE MARQUIS HENRI DE CROISENOIS.

Capital: Four Million Francs.

This company does not appeal to that rash class of speculators who are
willing to incur great risks for the sake of obtaining for a time heavy
dividends.

The shareholders in the Tafila Copper Mining Company, Limited, must not
look for a dividend of more than six, or at the utmost seven, per cent.

"Well," interrupted Mascarin, "what do you think of this for a
beginning?"

"It seems fair enough," answered De Croisenois, "but suppose others than
those whose names you have in your black list take shares, what do you
say we are to do then?"

"We should simply decline to allot shares to them, that is all. See the
Article XX. in the Articles of Association. 'The Board of Directors may
decline to allot shares to applicants without giving any reason for so
doing.'"

"And suppose," continued the Marquis, "that one of our own people
dispose of his share, may we not find our new shareholder a thorn in our
side?"

"Article XXI. 'No transfer of stock is valid, unless passed by the Board
of Directors, and recorded in the books of the Company,'" read out
Mascarin.

"And how will the game be brought to a conclusion?"

"Easily enough. You will advertise one morning that two-thirds of the
capital having been unsuccessfully sunk in the enterprise, you are
compelled to apply for a winding-up of the Company under Article XVII.
Six months afterwards you will announce that the liquidation of
the Company has, after all expenses have been paid, left no balance
whatsoever. Then you wash your hands of the whole thing, and the matter
is at an end."

Croisenois felt that he had no ground to stand upon, but he ventured on
one more objection.

"It seems rather a strange thing to launch this enterprise at the
present moment. May it not interfere with my marriage prospects? and may
not the Count de Mussidan decline to give me his daughter and risk her
dowry in this manner? One moment, I--"

The agent sneered and cut short the tergiversations of the Marquis.

"You mean, I suppose," said he, "that when once you are safely married
and have received Mademoiselle Sabine's dowry, you will take leave
of us. Not so, my dear young friend; and if this is your idea, put it
aside, for it is utter nonsense. I should hold you then as I do now."

The Marquis saw that any f