“Why, yes. You know that perfectly well. I’ve been associated with that railroad for years, in one way or another.” “That’s the road that receives so much favor from the Government, isn’t it?” “Oh, that’s mere gossip. There’s no such thing.” Helen looked straight into her husband’s face. Her figure had become rigid. “What do you do for the railroad, Douglas?” His eyes flashed; his nostrils turned white. “You’re going too far, Helen,” he cried. She did not stir. “I have a right to ask these questions,” she continued, keeping her voice low. “Oh, I know you consider that I can’t understand these things. You acknowledge that you receive thousands of dollars a year from that railroad--five times as much as your salary.” “I made no such acknowledgment,” Briggs replied, angrily. “But it’s true; you know it’s true, Douglas. You can’t deny it.” “I won’t take the trouble to deny it, since you evidently want to believe it.” “And you know you don’t give the road an hour a day of your time.” His lips curled. “My dear girl, lawyers aren’t paid by the hour, like your seamstresses.” “And the railroad’s regular attorney is Mr. West,” Helen went on. “You know that.” “Well, West does all the dirty work,” he said, with a laugh. “And what do you do, Douglas?” She hesitated. “Answer me, Douglas--what do you do?” “Wait a minute,” he said, in a low voice. He raised his hand. “I warn you that you are interfering with matters that don’t concern you, that you can’t even comprehend. You are doing it at your peril.” “What do you do for that company?” she repeated. He extended both hands in a gesture of deprecation. “I simply look after its interests in the House. There’s the truth, now. It’s perfectly legitimate. There are plenty of men who do the same thing for other corporations--men in big positions.” Her face grew pale and she swayed forward slightly. Then she stood erect and her eyes filled with tears. “Oh, Douglas!” she said. XI On the morning after the reception Franklin West sat at his desk in his office in the Belmore Building. His head was bowed over a mass of type-written sheets. He paid little attention to them, however. He found it hard to work this morning. He was thinking, with considerable disgust, that he had made himself ridiculous the night before. He had, moreover, made a misstep that might lead to serious consequences.