Produced by Roger Frank, the Google Books Library Project (https://books.google.com) and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This book was produced from images made available by the HathiTrust Digital Library.) MARK TIDD, MANUFACTURER Books by CLARENCE BUDINGTON KELLAND Mark Tidd in Egypt Mark Tidd in Italy Mark Tidd Mark Tidd in the Backwoods Mark Tidd in Business Mark Tidd’s Citadel Mark Tidd, Editor Mark Tidd, Manufacturer Catty Atkins, Bandmaster Catty Atkins Catty Atkins, Riverman Catty Atkins, Sailorman Catty Atkins, Financier HARPER & BROTHERS Established 1817 [Illustration: THE HAND CAME CLOSER AND CLOSER] MARK TIDD MANUFACTURER BY CLARENCE BUDINGTON KELLAND AUTHOR OF “MARK TIDD” “MARK TIDD IN THE BACKWOODS” “MARK TIDD’S CITADEL” “MARK TIDD, EDITOR” ETC. ILLUSTRATED HARPER & BROTHERS PUBLISHERS NEW YORK AND LONDON Mark Tidd, Manufacturer Copyright, 1918, by Harper & Brothers Printed in the United States of America ILLUSTRATIONS The Hand Came Closer and Closer “If You’ll Look Where I’m Pointin’ You’ll See a Door. It Leads Outside” “I’ll Bet He Thought the Whole Bunch of His Ribs Was Plumb Caved In” “You Won’t Never Get Our Dam Till We Say So” MARK TIDD, MANUFACTURER CHAPTER I Binney Jenks, Tallow Martin, and I were sitting on Mark Tidd’s front porch, waiting for him to get through supper. Maybe you’ve got an idea that didn’t take any patience, but you want to change your mind pretty quick. Eating supper wasn’t any two-second job with Marcus Aurelius Fortunatus Tidd. You can bet it wasn’t. He didn’t just grab a bite and run like us fellows do, but he sat down to the table with his stummick about six inches away from the edge of it, and kept on eating till he touched.