re was
little to be done in diplomacy with an oaf like that.

"Mr. Plank," he said, without any emphasis at all, "there should be some
way for us to come together. Have you considered it?"

"No, I haven't," replied Plank.

"I mean, for you and me to try to understand each other."

"For us?" asked Plank, raising his blond eyebrows. "Do you mean
Amalgamated Electric and Inter-County, impersonally?"

"I mean for us, personally."

"There is no way," said Plank, with conviction.

"I think there is."

"You are wasting time thinking it, Mr. Quarrier."

Quarrier's velvet-fringed eyes began to narrow, but his calm voice
remained unchanged: "We are merely wasting energy in this duel," he
said.

"Oh, no; I don't feel wasted."

"We are also wasting opportunities," continued Quarrier slowly. "This
whole matter is involving us in a tangle of litigation requiring our
constant effort, constant attention."

"I beg your pardon, Mr. Quarrier, but you take it too seriously. I
have found, in this affair, nothing except a rather agreeable mental
exhilaration."

"Mr. Plank, if you are not inclined to be serious--"

"I am," said Plank so savagely that Quarrier, startled, could not doubt
him. "I like this sort of thing, Mr. Quarrier. Anything that is hard
to overcome, I like to overcome. The pleasure in life, to me, is to
win out. I am fighting you with the greatest possible satisfaction to
myself."

"Perhaps you see victory ahead," said Quarrier calmly.

"I do, Mr. Quarrier, I do. But not in the manner you fear I may hope for
it."

"Do you mind saying in what manner you are already discounting your
victory, Mr Plank?"

"No, I don't mind telling you. I have no batteries to mask. I don't care
how much you know about my resources; so I'll tell you what I see, Mr.
Quarrier. I see a parody of the popular battle between razor-back and
rattler. The rattler only strives to strike and kill, not to swallow.
Mr. Quarrier, that old razor-back isn't going home hungry; but--he's
going home."

"I'm afraid I am not familiar enough with the natural history you quote
to follow you," said Quarrier with a sneer, his long fingers busy with
the silky point of his beard.

"No, you won't follow me home; you'll come with me, when it's all over.
Now is it very plain to you, Mr. Quarrier?"

Quarrier said, without emotion: "I repeat that it would be easy for you
and me to merge our differences on a basis absolutely satisfactory to
you and to