Pike County press. (Milford, Pa.) 1895-1925, 1902-09-19

larger, his chin was fatter, and his
coloring was brighter red than ever
before in Georges recollection Of him.
The protuberance on the top Of his
head seemed higher than usual, and
/ the black hair stood up on It. as
il upon the back of an angry cat.
George had been i'm the great mans
presence oftener, during the past
year, than any other minor employe
in the main Office. He was an object
of envy on that account. Hartman
had intrusted to him certain portions
of the correspondence with the chiefs
Of the smaller agencies throughout
the country, and had frequently re-
eeived the young mans suggestions
with favor. George admired him; be-
lieved he was the greatest business
/ yenius between the two oceans; and
had accepted his favor as the highest
blessing in the gift Of Providence.
rhe idea Of appearing before this man
as a thief was a thing to die Of
"Lang." said Hartman, "I'm going
TO give You chance"
Georges brain made FIVE hundred
rapid revolutions in his head Could
this mean that Hartman had been
told of his dishonesty and would for
give him if he confessed? Probably;
and If he could have found a voice, he
would have begged for mercy
"Ninety-nine CLERKS IN a hundred. 3"
Hartman continued, "will always be
clerks believe that you are the
| hundredth man. You've been hand
ing some correspondence with our
lgents-under my direction-and you
rave shown a comprehension of the
ubject that has made me think well
Il you"
George merely bowed. He could not
peak aloud. All his faculty of Ian.
guage was occupied in interior sound
ess cursing of himself for his incred
ible folly. His intellect refused to
credit his memory; it was impossible
that he was the man who had stolen
s25 for suit of clothes-at the cost
Of his whole future.
"Our man Robbins, in Johnstown," :"
Hartman proceeded, "has been hav-
ing trouble, as you know"
He paused, and in the interval, the
effort of remembering who Robbins
was, cleared Georges mind. The
calmness of despair came upon him
and he spoke with perfect freedom,
as never before in Harriman's pres
ence.
Robbins is not the man for the
place. he said "He doesn't know
what he is there for"
Hartman slapped the desk gently
with his fat right hand.
Precisely" said he, "and that is
why l am going to put you in his
shoes"
The sweat started out suddenly in
the palms of Georges hands, and he
felt at the same time the sensation of
cold grip on the back of his neck.
To be put at the head of even the
smallest Of the company's agencies
a post one-tenth the importance of
that at Johnstown-was ali he would
have asked of Heaven And to think
how he had lost i'll He had sud
den vision of Williams at work on
those accounts.
"You will leave for Johnstown to-
night" said Hartman. "Here is the
order superceding Robbins. You will
draw the same salary and get the same
commissions that he does. No man
gets-such chance as this twice in his
lifetime. You must prove yourself
worthy, and do il in a hurry"
He leaned over the desk and locked
earnestly at George who, in that mo-
/ rnavf ,vor,ld bo.a ,r4,,a,, 6fr .fnl,t bo,d
to be an honest man.
81 expect you to crush competition
out there" continued Hartman.
"That fellow Wellbrook, who is run
ming an independent racket, must be
done up / don't care how you do it,
or what It costs. Lay him out. We
want ALL the business wherever we
go. That is what we are on earth for"
81 don't think I shall have any
trouble" replied George, speaking
Ike one in a dream, for he knew that
his ruin would come before he could
start upon this mission. Robbins
says that Wellbrook is a prominent
man whose father and grandfather
were in the business before him; that
he has the whole city's confidence, and
is so popular, that merely undersell-
ing him won't do the trick; but"
IF he's popular, you viii have to
make him less SO" said Hartman.
Every mans reputation can be- un-
dermined. If he has never done any
thing, put up a job on him. Only re-
member that if you're caught in it, you
can't look for any support from us.
We have no use for men who get
caught"
81 understand that" replied George.
with a shudder for his own situation.
IF you could buy up one or two
trusted men in his employe, said Har-
riman, lyon might throw him down
that way. Find out whom he owes
money to, and buy up the claims; but
don't make martyr ofhim 10 the eyes
Of the whole community. Fix itso that
he'll seem TO ruin himself, II you can
You know what we want; now let's
see results. Here is an order on the
cashier for a few hundred dollars. /
suppose youll need some clothes, and
that sort of thing, as well as your trav-
cling expenses Good luck TO you. I
rarely make a mistake I'm q man, and !
believe youn have that fellow Well
brook in the poorhousein In six months.
He laughed pleasantly, and George
tried 10 join him, but the thought Of
Williams restrained his mirth. IL was
dreadful 10 think that at the moment
when he was about 70 be trusted with
90 Important q mission, the stigma