breeding, and yet somehow he was a gentleman. All this was new to Helen Cresswell, and she liked it.
Meanwhile the men above-stairs lingered in the Colonel‚Äôs office‚ÅÝ‚Äîthe older one perturbed and sputtering, the younger insistent and imperturbable.
“The fact is, father,” he was saying, “as you yourself have said, one bad crop of cotton would almost ruin us.”
“But the prospects are good.”
‚ÄúWhat are prospects in March? No, father, this is the situation‚ÅÝ‚Äîthree good crops in succession will wipe off our indebtedness and leave us facing only low prices and a scarcity of niggers; on the other hand‚ÅÝ‚Äî‚Äù The father interrupted impatiently.
‚ÄúYes, on the other hand, if we plunge deeper in debt and betray our friends we may come out millionaires or‚ÅÝ‚Äîpaupers.‚Äù
“Precisely,” said Harry Cresswell, calmly. “Now, our plan is to take no chances; I propose going North and looking into this matter thoroughly. If he represents money and has money, and if the trust has really got the grip he says it has, why, it’s a case of crush or get crushed, and we’ll have to join them on their own terms. If he’s bluffing, or the thing looks weak, we’ll wait.”
It all ended as matters usually did end, in Harry’s having his way. He came downstairs, expecting, indeed, rather hoping, to find Taylor impatiently striding to and fro, watch in hand; but here he was, ungainly, it might be,