But as the party began to look through the car windows for the bears of the Rocky Mountains, the bears of Wall Street began to indulge in pernicious activity. They all attacked E. & W. with entirely new lots of stories, which were not denied rapidly enough for the good of the stock, for some of the more active managers of the E. & W. clique were more than a thousand miles away. Dispatches began to hurry Westward for new and bracing information, but the whole excursion-party had taken stages, a few hours before, for a three days’ trip to see some of the rich mining-camps to which E. & W. had promised to build a branch. No answers being received, E. & W. began to droop; as soon as it showed decided signs of weakness, and seemed to have no friends strong enough to support it, the bears sprang upon it _en masse_ and proceeded to pound and scratch the life out of it. It was granted a temporary breathing-spell through the assistance of some operators in other stocks, who feared their own properties might be depressed by sympathy, but as soon as it became evident that E. & W. was to be the only sufferer all the bulls in the market sheathed their horns in bears’ claws and assisted in the annihilation of the prostrate giant who had no friends. The excursion-party returned from the mines in high spirits: even the president of the company declared he had no idea that the property was so rich. He predicted, and called all present to remember his words, that the information he would send East would “boom” E. & W. at least ten points within ten days. Marge’s heart simply danced within him: if it was to be as the president predicted, his own hoped-for million by the beginning of the stagnant season would be nearer two. He smiled pityingly as Lucia’s face rose before him: how strange that he had ever thought seriously of making that chit his wife, and being gratified for such dowry as the iron trade might allow her father to give! The stages stopped at a mining-village, twenty miles from the station, for dinner. The president said to the keeper of the little hotel,-- “Is there any telegraph-station here?” “There’s a telephone ’cross the road at the store,” said the proprietor. “It runs into the bankin’-house at Big Stony.” “Big Stony?” echoed the president. “Why, we’ve done some business with that bank. Come, gentlemen, let’s go across and find out how our baby is being taken care of.” Several of the party went, Marge being among them. The president “rang up” the little bank, and bawled,-- “Got any New York quotations to-day?” “Yes,” replied a thin, far-away voice. “How’s the stock market?” “Pretty comfortable, considering.” “Any figures on E. & W.?” “El,” was the only sound the president could evolve from the noise that followed.