“Mr. Black will altogether make a handsome thing out of this Company.” “Yes, and he promised to go halves with me!” interrupted Arthur, hoarsely. “Indeed! and now he would fulfil that promise by showing you what to buy, and then recommending us to purchase from you; a very nice way of doing business for him, doubtless—very nice indeed.” “I wish to God I had never gone into the Company at all!” broke out the Squire, weakly and passionately; “and I did it on the strength of your name, and the names of men like you.” “That was foolish,” said Mr. Stewart; “if you had asked me for advice, I should decidedly have recommended you to leave the Protector Flour and Bread Company, Limited, alone.” “But you expect to make money out of it,” said Arthur, obstinately. “Yes, but I am also prepared to lose money,” was the reply; “which fact constitutes the difference between us. If a man be, as I have always been, a speculator, he takes the rough with the smooth, the failure with the success. I lay out my plans as well as I can, but I, at the same time, take my chance. Moreover, Mr. Dudley, I can afford to wait for success; you, perhaps, are not quite so fortunately situated.” “Did you come here to insult me?” asked the Squire. “No; on the contrary, I came here to help you, if you will permit me to do so. We are not playing quite a fair game,” added the director, with sudden frankness. “You are showing me your hand—I have scarcely given you a sight of mine. Suppose, I say unreservedly, I also have embarked more money in this venture than I should care to lose, we should then stand on more equal terms. You have advanced money to float the Company; I am a shareholder—a _bona-fide_ shareholder, remember—to a large amount; I do not want our ship to go to the bottom, neither do you; Mr. Black, a very worthy individual, no doubt, has a knack of floating companies, and then sinking them. Now, it is not your interest, any more than it is mine, that this Company should fail; we want to see the shares at a premium, and to secure regularly-paid and satisfactory dividends. There is nothing to prevent such a desirable consummation, if the affairs of the Company be only properly managed. Now, if any nominee of your friend, Mr. Black, be appointed permanent secretary, there is no telling what the end of the matter may prove. Therefore, I offer you this secretaryship; say the word, and you shall have it. We will rent the Lincoln’s Inn premises from you; there is a good house there in which you might reside, and you would then be on the spot to look after your own interests, and those of your fellow-shareholders.” Arthur wavered: the temptation was great, the salary sounded large, but he did not feel inclined so readily to turn his back on an old friend. “If you had such an opinion of Mr. Black,” he said, “why did you ever go into this Company with him?”