The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1908-08-12

woman cOuld stand. The \"gimlet-
eyes were sharp as needles. too.
With the eyes he looked back of MRS.
Tynan's hand and saw Il string OF
black pearls!
The hands holding the ruby neck
lace lost their attitude of proffering "A
love gift and fell at his sides. In the
left hand he held the string OF red
stones and the right hand pointed
menacihgly to the black Jewels Ty-
nan seemed TO find an actual difficulty
OF speech. He choked as though there
was a real clutch at his throat
Where did you get them" he
said with queer rasp in his voice.
Where did get them" repeated
Mrs. lyman. is this not something
new?"
Il pray Il may be-" said lyman. but
your question Is no answer To mine.
Where did you get them?
John" said Mrs. lyman, that is
the first unworthy question you ever
asked me-"
And you meet It with a still more
unworthy evasion"
Evasion"
Yes. evasion. For Gods sake.
Elsie. don't force me 10 add something
worse to H. Don't say another word
for. my dear wife. when Tiffany told
ME that some other man had cap
tured the pearls he gave me his name.
Barholm got those pearls. Take them
on"
The pearls looked very black now
for Mrs. Tynan's face and neck were
very white.
John" she said. this is an insult. -
Elsie" said lyman. lit is more. II
Is a shame-it is your shame. Take
them off"
He advanced threateningly, the
thunder-cloud OF his face black as
night She fumbled with the clasp
at the back OF her neck and lyman,
losing all control Of himself at the de-
lay. tore the necklace from her hands.
Throwing the black pearls to the floor
he raised his foot as though to grind
them to powder, then checked the fan
of his heel. smiled unpleasantiy,
picked up the pearls and dropped
them into his coat pocket.
IN" he said, Il guess I'll keep
them. They'll come in handily some
day"
paigner to show for long the stress
OF the battle which he had fought and
which he hoped he had won; head
ache as sequence TO famliy
scene. Janet was in ignorance OF the
disastrous interview between her IA
Their and Mrs. lyman and so effectu-
ally did lyman was not able to give
that lightning point of the finger to
her neck and the tragic glance which
she had planned as an indication that
there had been trouble over the black
pearls. so that Parholm. being unin-
| formed. was as sleek and jaunty as
ever. Under these conditions the din
ner was anartifcial success and ar
ter II lyman, still keeping IA short
towline on Barholm. steered him into
the library, where the conference was
TO take place.
| There were five conferees-three
| besides lyman and Barholm--the
other men being Peter Sterling, the
weakened, hatchet-faced nominal
head of the Stuyvesant Trust com
pany, through Barholm was the pow
er Of the great institution; T. w.
Moser. the handsome full-bodied con-
troller OF the General Transportation
company, and o. w. James, the arch
angel OF dozen light opera compan-
les and the spectacular president OF
the Gotham bank.
| The hour was an inconvenient one;
the place of meeting was thoroughly
out OF the way for the majority at
tending. the call had been hurried and
/ limited TO few words over the tele-
! phone. yet not one of those there had
| hesitated a moment about accepting
| the summons, nor had let any pre-
vious engagement interfere. Million
aires. multi-millionaires. the great
powers OF finance, the handlers OF the
monetary destinies OF New York,
they had come at John T.. lyman
call, because John p. lyman was the
despot. the arbiter Of finance, the ir-
resistible motive power In the money
mills: the He who must be obeyed,
| In the world of coin.
| There was a reason. too. for their
being at the Round Hills palace other
thanthe personal control OF lyman.
There was an uneasiness. In financial
affairs that had passed from being
an abstract condition into one of aud
ible discomfort. People were getting
restless: the spirit Of Investigation
was abroad: ugly revelations had
been made before committees OF In
Quiry by witnesses who had grown
old in a day under pitiless cross-ex-
aminations. The money market OF
the whole country were tender" and
the men controlling these markets
were distrustful OF each other.
An honest president had gone up
and down the land strenuously decry
! ing predatory wealth" and the ne
cessity of holuse-cleaning In the ex-
change halls, and an honest people
| listening 10 him had been swept away
from their ordinary powers of dis
elimination into a state of alarm. In
the language OF the man on the
street. things were in bad way"
and 1t only needed a touch to turn
that alarm into a panic.
This and a good deal more for the
meeting was confidential, was said
and talked about In John =. Tynan's
splendid library. Not only was the
meeting confidential, II was informal.
All met as financial equals but the
conference was dominated easily by
lyman Moreover il was at his house
that they met and II was he that had
called them together.
"Of course, gentlemen" said Mr..
lyman. there is nothing official about
this conference We are no stated
! body to pass resolutions, but we rep
resent allied interests and II seems 10
me possible that we can arrive at con
illusions that may direct common
course OF action"