The Celina Democrat. (Celina, O. [Ohio]) 1895-1921, 1910-08-05

'to "a AuCebAllyt III kOOu times OF Dhu
II that machine is practicable, you can
make pipe for less than half the pres
ent cost Then we talked ways and
means Money is tighter than a shut
hst-up East as well as everywhere
else But men with money to invest
wiz still bet on a sure thing Mr..
CIarkson advised me to try our own
banks first. Failing with them, he au-
thorlzed me to call on him. Now you
know where I'm digging my sand"
Inc OLD iron master sat back In his
chair with his hands locked over one
knee, once more taking the measure OF
this new creation calling itself Tom
Gordon and purporting to be his son.
Say Buddy" he said at length, "are
there many more like you out yonder
IN the big road?-young fellows that
can walk right out o. school and tell
their daddies how to run things?"
Toms laugh was boylshly hearty.
Plenty OF 'em, pappy; lots Of 'em!
The old world Is moving right along:
It would be a pity II It didn't, don't you
| think? But about this pipe business:
/ want you to make over these patents
to me-"
They're yours now, Tom; everything
I've got will be yours In a little while"
SAID the father; but his voice betrayed
the depth Of that thrust Was the new
Tom beginning so soon to grasp and
reach out avariciously for the fruit Of
the old tree?
You ought to know that I don't
mean It that way" said Tom, frowning
a little But here Is the way It sizes
up. There Is money in this pipe MAX
ing; some money now and big money
later on. Farley has refused to 20 into
1t unless you make 1t a company prop
osition; as president and a controlling
stockholder you can't very well go into
1t unle-s you make it a company prop
osition; as president and a controlling
stcckholder you can't very well 20 into
1t now without making It some sort OF
company proposition. But you can
transfer the patents to me, and can
contract with Chiawassee Consolidated
to make pipe for me-"
That would certainly be givin' Colo
mel Dubbury a dose of his own medi-
cine; but l don't like 1t, Tom It looks
as If we were taking advantage of
him"
mo. I'd make the proposition to
him, personally, II he were here. and
the boss; and he'd be a fool If he didn't
just jump at it," said Tom, earnestly.
But there is more to it than that II
we make go of this, and don't protect
ourselves, the two Farleys win come
back and put the whole thing in their
pockets. l won't go in on any such
terms When they do come back. I'm
going to have money to fight them with
and this Is our one little ghost of a
chance Ring up Judge Bates and get
him to come over here and make a TO-
gal transfer of these patents to me-"
The experiences Of the summer were
all hardening. He plunged into the
world of business, into a panic-tIne
competition which was in grim reality
a fight for life, and there seemed to he
little to choose between trampIing or
being trampled. By early autumn the
iron Industries of the country were
gasping, and the stacks of pig in rbe
Chiawassee yards. kept down a little
during the summer by a few meager
orders, grew and spread until they COW
cred acres. AS long as money could be
had, the iron was bonded as fast as Il
was made, and the proceeds were turn
ed into wages to make more But when
money was no longer obtainable from
this source. the pipe venture was the
only hope.
With the entire foundry force at the
Chiawassee making pipe, Tom had gone
into the market with his low-priced
product But the commercial side of
the struggle was fre-new to him, and
he found himself matched against men
h1IyiVn
knew smelling and casting. They rout-
ed him, easily at first, with increasing
difficulty as he learned the new trade,
but always with certainty. It was Nor
man, the correspondence man, trans
formed now into sales agent, who
gave him his first hint of the inward
ness.
Were too straight Mr.. Gordon;
that's at the bottom of It," he said to
Tom, over a grill-room luncheon at the
Marlboro one day. 1T takes money to
make money. Four times out of five
we have to sell to a municipal com
mittee, and the other time we have to
monkey with the purchasing agent Of a
corporation. In either case it takes
money-other money besides the differ
ence in price"
Tom was in town that day for the
purpose of taking a train to Louisville, |
where he was to meet the officials of an
Indiana city forced, despite the hard
times, to relay many miles of worn
OUT water mains. He made a pencil |
computation on the back of an envel- !
ope- The contract was large one, and |
his bid, which he was confident was
lower than any competitor could make, |
would still stand a cut and leave a |
margin of profit. Before he took the |
train he went to the bank, and, when |
he reached the Kentucky metropolis, |
his first care was to assure the wheel |
horse" member OF the municipal pur-
chasing board that he was ready to |
talk business on a modern business ba- |
sis.
Notwithstanding, he lost the contract. |
Other people were growing desperate, |
too, 1t appeared, and his bribe was not |
great enough. One member of the |
committee stood by him and gave him
the facts A check had been passed, |
and 1t was a bigger check than Tom
could draw without trenching on the |
balance left in the Iron City National |
to meet the months payroll at Cor
1onia.
You sent boy to mill" said the
loyal one. And now it's all over /
don't mind telling you that you sent
him to the wrong mill at that. Bullin-
gers a hog"
"Td like to do him up" said Tom
We'll, that might be done, too. But
1t would cost you something"
Tom did not take the hint; he was
not buying vengeance. But on the way
hn1na he n-raun hltterar with auarv a1lh-