The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1908-02-27

be silent. | shall want more money
every time you open your mouth
/ BETTER hear him OUT said Jetfer-
SOD, CURLY.
Bludgeon rolled his cigar between his
strong fingers.
Correct" said Storm, you have the
Judgment" His eyes twinkled at JEFF
ferson Il want money. The fact is
Storm was as pleasant in his manner
/ dis an insurance canvasser-"I m a pub
Usher. Now, as men Of the world, you
know how difficult the publishing bust
ness is. We often want money-We
publishers. | have little booklet here
which Will interest you. The author
wrote it to interest you. You Will find
it amazingly Interesting. 1t is only a
trife to look at. | can afford to put it
on the market at a penny. You will
realize, gentlemen, that a booklet which
will interest you will interest many
people. TO interest many people IS the
aim of the publisher. | think the pub
lie will snap it up al ID penny copy. L
anticipate we shall sell sou, 900 of them.
At least | have printed that many. 1t
we don't sell a hundred thousand by
noon tomorrow | shall have to give
them away-that is why | want mon-
ey."
He said all this so pleasantly and put
the book on the table with such an un-
affected air of guilesSness that the part
ners were puzzled.
Goldsten picked the book up ginger
ly and glanced at the table. He drop
ped it like a red hot coal-the title was
enough.
"Redsand- New Gold Nine was
the title that stared him in the face.
jefferson picked it up.
He looked over the index. He noted
the chapter headings. They contained
years. The headings were so accurate
that he could guess the rest.
"Blackmail," he said, coldly.
'Blackmail!" shouted Bludgeon.
Storm nodded to each, pleasantly.
81 don't mind you saying it quietly"
pointing to the Jew, 'can only gasp it.
But this insolent bully"-he nodded
pleasantly to the fumiug Bludgeon
.-''shouts it, 1t will be safer for you
to whisper it, In few minutes l may
Gy,astein rang the bell.
toEbs came quietly in, servlle, unob-
truSive, but expectant.
s'Dobbs," said Goldstein, II want
YOU to listen and remember. This man
makes us proposal which looks like
er-blackmail. We may need the pO-
lice soon. We may need your indepen-
dent memory afterward.'
"Now, sir,'-ths to Storm-"let us
understand each other. What do you
want?'
"Fifty thousand pounds" Storm
answered, promptly and quietly.
"You know how you stand?" Gold
stein persisted.
Quite" Storm said, tersely.
"What do you want $4,000 for?"
asked Goldstein.
''For this book. 1t interests you. 1t
might interest you enough to buy
smiled pleasantly.
Nov" said Goldstein, eve under
stand each other. Let us turn to the
book. You know nothing that can
hurt us"
Turn to Chapter 5-the Redsand
Mine. think you will find something
there that will hit you very hard and
will interest you monstrously. 1T IS
nicely written-one of the most enter
tanning chapters of the book"
Goldstein read. As he read, his hand
trembled and he made funny noises in
his throat. That chapter was the his
tory of the Redsand Mine, as he knew
1.-THE history of the transaction writ
ten on the ground floor. He could not
have added more if he had been think
ing aloud. 1t described the land, it
described it's vagabond owner; it de
scribed their negotiations; it gave the
price paid and the real value; it gave a
copy of the first report, which said
there was no gold in the land, and 1t
gave a copy of the cooked report,
which said there was gold in the
land. :,
ats nothing but a damned lie,
Goldstein said, and, bad as he looked
and vicious as he was, the bluff he put
up was plucky and full of fire.
There is not thing in it which is not
the absolute TRUTH" Storm answered
pleasantly.