He sat brooding over the power wielded by a dozen men whose names were linked with the Deacon's in Wall Street. This group of men had personal fortunes of more than eight hundred millions and controlled as much more. He believed that they dictated the policy of railroads, banks, trade, the State, the Nation, and that no king or emperor of the world wielded such despotism over men as these uncrowned monarchs of money. He felt as though he had collided with the stars in their courses and been crushed to dust. An Answer to Prayer 129 In the middle of the pile of cards he found one signed by Kate Ransom. She had written across the printed form in her smooth, flowing hand: "Please call after the service and let me know the result. I will send you my subscription to-morrow." He knew that she would make a liberal gift, but her fortune could not be more than a million, perhaps not half so large. Her generosity could not save the day even if she gave half of all she possessed, a supposition of course preposterous. He could not summon courage to go in the bitterness of his defeat. He scrawled a note and sent it by the sexton. "Feeling too blue to call. Failure complete and pitiful. The subscriptions reach only twenty thousand dollars. GORDON." There was but one forlorn hope left. He had written personal letters to several millionaires he knew in town. They might respond. He sat in his study in the afternoon, dull, stupid and sick, feeling an iron band around his brain. He could not think. Ho gave up the work on his evening sermon and determined to repeat an old one. As he sat in an aching stupor the sexton announced a gentleman who insisted on seeing him on important business. "I told him you would see no one at this hour, but he says he must see you." "Show him in," Gordon said, with a frown. The man entered, gazed at the preacher with curious interest, and stood with his silk hat in hand, smiling. "This is Doctor Gordon?" "Leave off the doctor and you have it right." "I am the bearer of good news. A client of mine has instructed me to call and say that the sum of one million dollars will be placed to your credit in the Garfield National Bank within two years, and that you will be its sole trustee for the building of your projected Temple. One-third of it will be available within three months. I am sorry, I am forbidden to disclose the name."