The Yale expositor. (Yale, St. Clair County, Mich.) 1894-current, 1907-01-04
XIV.
TRAPPED AND TRIMMED.


power, and so make us easy victims
of the others. l thought / knew my
self pretty thoroughly and l believed
there was nothing that could tempt
me to neglect my business. With this
delusion of my strength firmly in
mind. when Anita became tempta-
ton to neglect business, | said to my
self: ITO go up town during business
hours for long lunches, to spend the
mornings selecting flowers and pres
ents for her-these things look like
neglect of business, and would be so
in some men. But l couldn't neglect
business. | do them because my al
fairs are so we'll ordered that few
hours of absence now and then make
no difference-probably send me back
fresher and clearer"
When | left the office at halfpast
twelve on that fateful Wednesday in
June. my business was never in better
shape. Textile common had dropped
a point and a quarter in two days
evidently it was at last on its way
slowly down toward where l could
free myself and take profits. AS for
the coal enterprise nothing could pos
sibly happen to disturb it; was all
ready for the first of July announce
ment and boom. Never did l have a
lighter heart than when l Joined Anita
and her friends at Sherry's. 1t seemed
tn me her friendliness was less per-
functory, less a matter of appearances.
And the sun was bright, the air deli
cious, my health perfect. 1t took all
the strength of all the straps Monson
had put on my natural spirits to keep
me from being exuberant.
I had finally intended to be back at
nv Office half an hour before the ex-
change closed-this in addition to the
obvious precaution of leaving orders
that they were to telephone me II any
thing should occur about which they
had the least doubt. But so comfort
able did my vanity make me that
forgot TO look at my watch until
quarter to three. / had momentary
oualm; then reassured. l asked Anita
to take a walk with me. Before we
set out | telephoned my riSht-hand
man and partner, Ball. AS l had
thought everything was quiet; the
exchange was closing with textile slug
gish and down a quarter. Anita and
| took car to the park.
We walked for an hour, talking with
less constraint and more friendliness
than ever before, and when left her
I. for the first time, felt that l had
left good impression.
When | entered my offices, l, from
force of habit, mechanically went di-
rect to the ticker-and dropped all in
an instant from the pinnacle OF
heaven into boiling inferno. For the
ticker was just spelling out these
words: "Mowbray Langdon, president
of the Textile association, sailed I'M
expectedly on the Kaiser Wilhelm at
noon. A 2 per cent raise OF the divi-
dend rate of textile common, from
the present per cent to has been
determined upon"
And ! had staked up to, perhaps be-
yond my limit of safety that textile
would fall
Ball was watching narrowly for
some sign that the news was as bad
as he feared. But it cost me no effort
to keep my face expressionless; was
like a man who has been killed by
lightning and lies dead with the look
on his face that he had just before
the bolt struck him.
"Why didn't you tell me this" said
| to Ball, when l had you on the
'phone?' My tone was quiet enough.
but the very question ought to have
shown him that my brain was like a
schooner in a cyclone.
1--WE heard IT just after you rang
off," was his reply We've been try
ing to get you ever since. I've gone
everywhere after textile stock. Very
few will sell. or even lend, and they
ask-the best price. was ten points
above today's closing. A strong tips
out that textiles are to be rocketed."
Ten points up already-on the mere
rumor Already ten dollars to pay on
every share was "short"-and | short
more han two hundred thousand! |
felt the claws of the fiend Ruin sink
into the flesh of my shoulders. Ball
doesn't know how I'm fixed" / remem-
Der thought, "and he mustn't know,
lit a cigar with steady hand and
waited for Joe's next words.
II went to see Jenkins at once" he
went on. Jenkins was then first vice
president of the textile trust Hes
all cut up because the news got out
says Langdon and he were the only
ones who knew. so he supposed-says
the announcement wasn't to have
been made for month-not till Lang
don returned. He has had to confirm
It, though. That was the only way to
free his crowd from suspicion OF in
tending to rig the market"
"All right" said l.
Have you seen the afternoon pa
peri" he asked. AS he held 1t out to
me, my eye caught big textile head
lines, then flashed to some others
something about my going to marry
Miss Ellersly.