Cameron County press. [volume] (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, 1908-05-21
There was q nanse.

You are" she replied.
He had never met such remarkable
directness. He was enraptured.
MY excuse is that | have a rather
important proposal to make" He ar
ranged his necktie. "As | said before
l have a very high opinion of your in
tellect."
YES" she said
'And | have for some time been
looking for a partner whom | could
trust with the management of fair
share of my business"
Such persons are difficult to find"
"They are; but l have come to the
conclusion that l have found one"
II was under the impression that
you would have no business to man
age by the end of next week"
THAT depends" he said. ut has
also occurred to me that for a man In
my position who may at any moment
by some unfortunate accident be in
volved in colossal bankruptcy it Is
very useful to have wife"
who may come forward at the
proper moment before your creditors
as the real owner of all your property:
that is true" she said.
You understand me perfectly. Now,
on the other hand, you are liable at
any moment to be made bankrupt
and | think you admitted that crush
ing me will very likely ruin you"
There is bare possibility"
;,I,
be freed if you have a husband to
carry on the business in his own
name. \ GU keep the money; he incurs
liabilities and the creditors get moth
ing. / think that is the law"
Yes, roughly that is so" she said
ponsively.
The alternative is that we cut
each others throats and both become
bankrupt"
You suggest that we should mar
ry?" she asked.
THAT is what / propose"
ut seems a reasonable compro-
mise"
He went on in glowing terms:
Between us we control the whole
market United we shall be irresisti-
BILE. The world will be at our feet:
for all practical purposes we should
be king and queen of the country. 1t
seems to me a proposition advantage
Gus to both of u.s."
He bent over the table earnestly,
but stopped, for she was not listening.
She was engaged in some complicated
calculation occasionally putting down
a note on the paper before her He was
about TO go on, but she said: II shall
not require to hear you further. l
have sufficient data to form a conclu-
sion" So he waited for her decision.
He felt more anxious than he had ever
been even over his most gigantic COM
pany flotation.
At last she looked up and said, with
some deliberation: Il am in the habit
of making up my mind rapidly. You
must not suppose | am always as slow
as this. ! have considered your pro-
posal in all it's bearings and it seems
to me likely to lead to important re-
suits.
Yes" he said impatiently.
Il think, on the whole" she said,
"the advantages would outweigh the
disadvantages"
Then you will be mine?" he cried,
with an unbusiness-like fervor which
he regretted at once.
Il will be yours she said firmly,
Subject of course to the usual legal
and ecclesiastical formalities."
"Of course" he replied, subject to
the usual formalities. VIII you ar
range about that, or shall II"
She looked at the clock and replied:
81 think we can settle that tomorrow.
| can see you"-she consulted a dairy
from 11:30 till 1877 tomorrow
morning."
He took out his pocketbook.
81 am afraid l am engaged at that
time" he said; ''can you give me an
appointment between two and three?"
Yes" she said, "2:15 till 2:25 will
suit me eXcellently."
THAT is better" he said. Three
minutes longer. | must not delay
you" He took up his hat and rose
to go.
Pardon me-" he said; before
going, as there are now no secrets be-
tween us, may ask how you managed
to undersell me?'
Quite simple" she replied, smiling
sweetly; 81 was able to buy hairpins
from you so cheaply that it was possi-
BILE to lay in an enormous stock and
practically give them away at a
trihing expense"
He staggered back.
Then these"-he pointed to pile
on the floor-"are really mine?"
"They will belong to the partner
ship now. Good-morning."
He left the room dazed, but wonder.
ing whether there was an economic
falacy underlying her scheme How
ever, no law of economics or any other
law could prevail against such a
n