register in a few
words. He did not go into details, and I do not know whether Ascher
understood what was expected of him. He invited Gorman to bring Tim and
the machine to the bank next day and promised to look into the matter.
Gorman, still under the delusion that influence matters, insisted on my
being one of the party. He described me as a shareholder in the company.
Ascher said he would be glad to see me, too, next day. My impression
is that he would have agreed to receive the whole circus company rather
than stand any longer in that grimy restaurant talking to Gorman.

CHAPTER V.

Gorman called for me at my hotel next morning at 9 o'clock.

"Time to start," he said, "if we're to keep our appointment with
Ascher."

I was still at breakfast and did not want to start till I had finished.

"Do you think," I said, "that it's wise to tackle him quite so early?
Most men's tempers improve as the day goes on,--up to a certain point,
not right into the evening. Now I should say that noon would be the very
best hour for business of our kind."

But Gorman is very severe when he is doing business. He took no notice
whatever of my suggestion. He pulled a long envelope out of his pocket
and presented it to me. It contained a nicely printed certificate, which
assured me that I was the owner of one thousand ordinary shares in the
New Excelsior Cash Register Company, Ltd. The face value of the shares
was five dollars each.

"I did not mean to take quite so many shares," I said. "However, I
don't mind. If you will work out the rate of exchange while I finish my
coffee, I'll give you an English cheque for the amount."

Gorman laughed at the proposal.

"You needn't pay anything," he said. "All we want from you is your name
on our list of directors and your influence with Ascher. Those shares
will be worth a couple of hundred dollars each at least when we begin
our squeeze and you don't run the slightest risk of losing anything."

The owning of shares of this kind seems to me the easiest way there
is of making money. I thanked Gorman effusively and pocketed the
certificate.

We went down town by the elevated railway, and got out at Rector Street.
Tim Gorman met us at the bottom of the steps which lead to the station.
He was carrying his cash register in his arms. We hurried across
Broadway and passed through the doors of a huge sky-scraper building. I
thought we were entering Ascher's office. We were not. We were tak