Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1908-08-06

Then ,coged tie battle its rcpose.
Of tcills, both men And then
standing mottonless. waged the bat.
tie OF wills, both men standing mo.
tionless, tense. vibrant with dynamic
force.
Slowly, little by little. Horrigan's
eyes dropped. He moved awkwardly
to one side from his position in front
Of the door and Bennett. without so
much as backward look. passed out
The boss, like man In a daze. sank
heavily into a chair and gazed straight
ahead of him. his usually red face
gray and pasty.
But he was not to enjoy even the
Ecant boon OF solitude. From the ante.
room Gibbs strolled in.
They're going over some unimpor-
tant preliminary business" remarked
the broker, sol came out for breat
Of fresh air. How nre things going?"
Were beat" gruntcd Horrigan, not
booking up.
Beat" screamed Gibbs, ashen and
inert ut the news. You don't mean
1t! You can't mean II! Great heaven"
The sight OF the others cowardly
emotion seemed to rouse Horrigan
from. his apathy
az l can stand II, you can" he snarl-
ed. "You only lose your percentage
on the deal, while r.
"A percentagc?' echoed Gibbs, too
panic stricken to heed his own indis-
erection. Every cent had In the
world! u
lie checked himself an instant too
late.
"So?" drawled Horrigan, bis keen
little eyes soaring the other with
boundless contempt. 80 1t was you
who were secretly buying up the stock
and failing In on to our game. hey?"
"I'm ruined! Broke. Aud
"And you've got 1t coming to you,
you whining traitor! The man who
goes back on his partners deserves all
the kicking he gets
IL didn't mean any harm" mum.
bled the crushed Gibbs. 1T couldn't
hurt you people to have me buy BOr-
ough stock for myself, and I'd have
cleared up a million and more. Oh,
don't glover like that, IIorrigan, but
try to think out some way off,
"Of what, you cur?"
isn't there any way even now to
make Bennett let up on his flght?"
III there was you couldn't be OF use
to Us, so why should | talk about 1t
to you?"
"Bnt ia do anything in the world
anything
You wouldT cut in Horrigan
sharply.
YES. yes' Only give me a chance!
3D.
Horrigan considered. then said re-
dectively:
mo chance Is too slight to take Mt a
time like this, and nobody's too rotten
to be Of use. I've found there are
three things, one OF which vii! always
buy any mana woman, ambition or
cash. We've tried Bennett on ambi
tion; he doesn't need money. so only
the first Of the three remains"
"A woman? don't understand"
MISS wainwright"
BUT
"Listen here BENEFITS In love with
Wainwright's niece. You've cut him
out Go and tell him II he'll let our
bill alone you'll smash the engagement
and leave her free to marry him,
GeeT
II can't! hold on, though. After
ward I could deny the whole thing
couldn't l? tia be his word against
mine, and she'd never believe could
do such q thing. IL might try"
YES" growled Horrigan. you might
A cur that's lost all his nerve can try
things that even an ordinary crook
would balk at"
But Gibbs did not hear. He hnd re-
turned to the corridor in search OF
Bennett The man scarcely deserved
the epprebrium heuped on him by Hor'
rigan. A brilliant. daring operator. he
was. unknewn to himself, a rank cow
ard at heart For the Arst time 10 Dis
life the cowardics had cropped out