must be deposited and where was Kent's share of that margin coming from?

The rest of the story was exactly like fifty thousand similar stories.
In order to save the eight hundred dollars of his own George put up as
margin with the New York brokers the eight hundred dollars belonging to
Mrs. Stedman, his half sister. Again he paid the eight hundred to
Phillips, who sent to New York another one thousand dollar bond and six
hundred in cash. And C. M. Common continued to go down, went down until
once more the partners were in imminent danger of being wiped out. Then
it rose a point or so, and there the price remained. All at once every
one seemed to lose interest in the stock; instead of thousands of shares
bought and sold daily, the sales dropped to a few odd lots. And instead
of the profits which were to have been theirs by this time, the firm of
Phillips and Kent owned together a precarious interest in four hundred
shares of Central Midland Common which if sold at present prices would
return them only a minimum of their investment, practically nothing when
brokerage commissions should be deducted.

And then Edward Stedman, Kent's brother-in-law, demanded an immediate
settlement of the estate. The land had been sold, the estate had been
settled--he knew it--now he and his wife wanted their share.

So that was the situation which was driving the young fellow to
desperation. _What_ could he do? He could not satisfy Stedman because he
had not eight hundred dollars and he could not confess it, at least not
without answering questions which he did not dare answer. As matters
stood he was a thief; he had taken money which did not belong to him. He
and Stedman had not been friendly for a long time. According to George
his brother-in-law would put him in jail without the slightest
compunction. And, even if he managed--which he was certain he could
not--to avoid imprisonment, there was the disgrace and its effect upon
his future. Why, if the affair became known, at the very least his
career as a lawyer would be ruined. Who would trust him after this? He
would have to go away; but where could he go? He had counted on his
little legacy to help him get a start, to--to help him to all sorts of
things. Now---- Oh, what _should_ he do? Suicide seemed to be the sole
solution. He had a good mind to kill himself. He should--yes, he was
almost sure that he should do that very thing.

It was pitiful and distressing enough, and Kendrick,