Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1912-12-05
CHAPTER XII.
Temptation

covered chair in the little
sitting room he gazed into
the Pickering fire with a feeling of
strange excitement.
He could hear Bivens giving orders
to his employees about the removal of
his millions to the vaults below. It
would take hours to complete the task.
He could hear the deep vibrant ring of
the gold. as the men dumped it into
bags.
AS he listened to the curious sound
he began dimly to realize that the
foundations of his life and character
were being undermined. There conld
be n mistake about it, although be
had made some brave talk to Bivens'
face as ne stared at the daring display
Of his money.
He lifted his eyes from the fire n
cney resteu OH an eAqu1slLe Ii
of Nan which had been painted Just
after her marriage. He forgot the ten
black years Of loneliness and struggle.
He was standing before her again in
all the pride and strength of those last
days Of passionate longing and bitter
rebellion. His heart gave a throb of
fierce protest against the fate that had
robbed him Of the one thing on earth
be had ever really desired. He tried
in vain to separate her from the strug-
gle OF character and principle he was
fighting with Bivens
When Bivens entered he found his
tall figure ent low in the chair and a
scowl on his face. The little black ewes
sparkled with the certainty of victory
He knew the poison was at work and
it's wine had found the soul.
"Now, Jim, down to business! You
can see that | have the cash. What
i must have to do the big thing I've
dreamed is u right hand man whom
| can trust with my money. my body
and my soul. He must be a man with
brains and farseeing eyes. A man
who will fight to the death and be loyal
with every breath. who will work
day and night, a man of iron nerve.
iron muscle and Il heart Of steel. Come
in with me. Jim. for all you're worth.
with all your brain and will and per-
%sonality, without a single reservation
and ri give you a partnership of one
fourth interest in my annual income.
and III guarantee that it shall never
be less than a million a year"
Stuart sprang to his feet and stared
at Bivens. gasping.
''You mean this-are you serious? /
expected the offer of a generous salary.
Cal, but this is simply stunning"
Il told you I'd make you a PROPOSE.
ton so big and generous you couldn't
get away from it. But mind you. I've
the best reasons for making it. We
are entering the last phase of a world
struggle for financial supremacy. This
country is to be the real center Of
modern power. We must become and
will become quickly the economic
masters of the world. When that hap.
pens somebody is going to be master
here"
Bivens rose and paced back and forth
a moment.
Somebody's going to be master here.
JILL uS lcECdlOOs duu ~ uOL eO1uS
to be a mob. the stupid, bowling, slob-
bering thing that clutched at your
throat that day in front of my bank"
mo"
Nor will it be a clumsy soulless cor
poration called a trust either, a
thing that can be badgered and hound
ed by every hungry, thieving politician
who gets into Office, The coming mas
ter of masters. the king Of kings will
be a mana man on whose imperial
word will hang the fate of empires. |
met the king of America the other
You can bet | answered the call. He
made me eat dirt and swear that
liked the taste Of it. But I'll get eve
with him yeti"
Two livid spots suddenly appeared
on the swarthy cheeks and he choked
into silence for a moment, continuing:
A'The world is waiting for it's real
master-not a multi millionaire, but the
coming Millionaire. The king of kings
is yet to come. If l had been ready
in this panic with the capital l have
today l could have made a billion.
With the power and experience l now
have and one such man as you on
whom | can depend I'd double my
fortune every year. That means that
in five years / will be a Millionaire.
and only forty-two,
IA billion dollars will double itself
in seven years. At forty-two I'd be
worth a billion. At f%orty-nine I'd
have two billions. At lfty-eight I'd
be worth four billions-and just old
enough to really begin to do things.
"Give me one billion answerable to
my will alone and l can rule this
nation. Give me four billions and
no king or emperor. president or par
lament IN this globe dare to make
peace or war without consulting me.
"How long could this republic stand
If such a man should see TT to change
its form2 Even now our petty million.
aires buy courts and legislatures. and
the control of great cities. But the
new king would know no limitations
to this power. If Europe now cringes
at the feet Of our present millionaire