The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1931-06-19

old ruin back into his chair again. 1t
must have been a minute before the
millionaire could find breath enough
to speak with, but when he did it
was-strangely enough-in the voice
of man with a grievance.
mcfarland was wasted, where he
was. He knew as much about the
chemistry of petroleum as any man
in the world; more in some ways. And
he was nothing but a college professor
working along a line l was interested
in, and when l saw he was going to
read a paper in Cleveland before the
Oil Chemists institute went down to
hear him. Luckily he hadn't got far
enough with his discoveries to give
anything really practical away, but he
came near enough to it to make me
sweat. So l saw him after the meet
ing and talked to him. 1 had Stafford
with me and we came back with him
as far as Chicago. Spent most of the
night trying to get him to listen to
reason. Here he was on the edge of
thing that might be worth millions
to him personally, to say nothing of
anybody else, and he was getting ready
to broadcast it. wanted him to leave
the university and let me fit him up
laboratory. I'd pay all the expenses
of his research and give him con-
tract that would make his fortune as
soon as he had the thing on a prac-
teal basis.
Il never saw anybody as stubborn
as he was. He'd hardly listen. Prac-
tically told me to go to HI. He said
the university had financed his re-
searches up to now and it would be
disloyal to leave them. 1t didn't do
any good to talk big figures to him.
He didn't know what money was about.
He was throwing away fortune
anyway that's how it looked at the
time-like giving nickel to a news
boy. l was about ready to quit, but
Stafford had an idea.
81 don't say it was very nice idea,
but your father hadn't left us anything
else we could do. Stafford said If
there should happen to be some little
scandal out at the university so that
Mcfarland would resign, he'd prob
ably come back to US.
swell, that's all. He went ahead
with il. l didn't know what he was
going to do. He went too far; further
than / meant him to. / didn't think
there'd be a trial. / thought McFar-
land would realize there was some
thing on him and get out quietly.
Only, you see, he was so innocent he
didn't realize there was anything on
him. And when the thing really got
started it was too late to STOP"
Rhoda's set face conceded him moth
ing, and cringing away from the sight
of it he turned to Martin. "You can
see how it was, can't you? 1 didn't
know he'd take it so hard 1 didn't
mean him any real harm. 1 meant to
make him a rich man."
you didn't make his fortune.
though" Martin said. why not?
How did you trick him out of it?"
81 didn't trick him out Of it," Forster
answered, with more assurance than
he'd shown before. Il gave him a
perfectly fair contract. / fitted up a
laboratory for him, paid all his bills
for supplies. and gave him hundred
dollars week in cash for his personal
expenses. 1 kept that up for four
years. 1t must have cost me alto
gether forty or fifty thousand dollars.
He was always just going to find the
thing he needed to make his discovery
practical, but he never did"
Rhoda flashed into the scene. "Then
why did you offer Claire Cleveland
one hundred thousand dollars just now
for the contract you made with my
father?"
Forster had to gulp twice before he
could answer. Il didn't mean anything
by that. l was kidding her, you might
say. / knew she hadn't got it. She
hadn't either"
Rhoda confirmed that with a nod
before she went on. But then you
told her to send for it. You said,
Send for whatever you've got and
have it brought up here just as it is.'
That meant my trunk, | suppose, that
you thought she'd stolen. You told