CONCLUSION.
Mr. Emanuel Manson was considerably surprised to see Paul walk into
the office the morning after his arrival. He was not aware that our
hero was still in Mr. Bradford's employ. Though it had been at first
suggested that Mrs. Palmer should come weekly to receive a part of
Paul's salary, Mr. Bradford afterward decided to give his young agent
a hundred dollars in advance, which was placed in his mother's hands,
and obviated the necessity of her calling. Seeing and hearing nothing
of Paul, therefore, Mr. Manson naturally concluded that he had been
discharged, and was seeking for employment elsewhere.
"Good-morning, Mr. Manson!" said Paul, politely.
"What, you here again?" exclaimed Manson, by no means pleased.
"Yes, I am here again."
"It was hardly worth your while to come," said the book-keeper, with a
sneer. "We have no vacancy."
Paul smiled, for he saw what was meant.
"Is Julius here still?" he asked.
"Yes, he is, and likely to stay. You needn't flatter yourself you can
step into his place."
"I haven't the slightest wish to do so," said Paul, good-naturedly.
"Because you are so prosperous, I suppose," sneered Manson.
"You've hit it, Mr. Manson. I am too prosperous to wish to interfere
with Julius."
"What are you doing?" asked the book-keeper, not without some curiosity.
"I have been traveling for a house in this city."
"Indeed! It was a fortunate house."
"I agree with you, Mr. Manson. I have done very well for them."
"You travel! I'd as soon send a baby."
"I dare say _you_ would. Is Mr. Bradford in?"
"Yes, but he is busy."
"Nevertheless, I will venture to disturb him."
"You'd better not; he won't like it."
But Paul had already opened the door of the inner office, and stood in
the presence of Mr. Bradford.
"Bless my soul, Paul! I am glad to see you," said the manufacturer,
rising and shaking hands cordially with our hero. "When did you arrive?"
"Yesterday afternoon, and I tried to get a chance to call, but----"
"Of course, your mother wanted to see you. It's all right. Now let me
know all about your trip."
Paul gave a summary of results, and his employer listened with evident
surprise and approval.
"You have done splendidly," he said. "I did not dream of realizing
so much for the mine. And you got the better of Fox, too. I value
that as much as I do the money you have made for me. Besides your
wages, I shall make you a present of five hundred dollars, to show my
appreciation of your services."
"Thank you very much, Mr. Bradford, but I have been handsomely rewarded
by another party," and he mentioned the two thousand dollars paid him
by Jim Scott.
"I am all the more pleased," said Mr. Bradford.
"I was not sure whether I ought to accept it," said Paul.
"You were right in doing so, since it was neither given nor promised
till after you had sold the mine. That, however, will make no
difference with my gift."
As he spoke, he wrote a check for $500 and handed it to Paul, who
expressed his gratitude warmly.
"I have also," Paul continued, "made an investment for you and myself."
"What is that?"
"I had an opportunity to purchase a promising mine for three thousand
dollars. I secured two-thirds for you, and one-third for myself."
"So it seems we are partners, Paul," said Mr. Bradford, smiling.
"Yes, sir, as far as that goes."
"Very well. I ratify your action."
At this moment a telegraph boy appeared with a dispatch, which he
handed to Mr. Brandford.
"What's this?" said the manufacturer. "Who is Jim Scott?"
"The man I left in charge of our mine."
"Read that, then."
Paul took the telegram and read:
"Your mine is developing richly. Will you sell for fifteen thousand
dollars?"
Paul's eyes sparkled with delight, not alone at his prospective profit,
but at this proof of his financial shrewdness.
"Well, Paul, what shall we do?" asked the manufacturer, smiling. "It is
your affair, and you shall decide."
"We might sell half on that basis," suggested Paul. "Very good. Write
the dispatch, and it shall be sent at once. Moreover, I will consider
you half-owner, and you shall give me back that check for five hundred
dollars. Then we shall have each invested one thousand five hundred
dollars."
"Thank you very much, Mr. Bradford, I can hardly believe this is real."
It was indeed hard to realize that besides the thousand dollars which
remained to him after the investment, he would receive three thousand
seven hundred and fifty for the sale of half his share, and retain
the other half, which was probably worth quite as much more. It was
probably no exaggeration to say that he was worth eight thousand
dollars, while three months since he was glad when he managed to earn
eight or ten dollars a week as a train boy.
"By the way, Paul," said the manufacturer, "I hope you won't retire
from business, now you are rich."
"I should not like to be idle, sir."
"I will engage you to travel for my firm, then, and your compensation
will depend on your success. Will that suit you?"
"Yes, sir; I can ask for nothing better. When shall I report for
service?"
"You may come here daily to get acquainted with the details of our
trade. I shall not send you out again for a few weeks."
As Paul passed out of the office, the book-keeper said:
"Well, won't Mr. Bradford take you on again?"
"I have never been out of Mr. Bradford's employment," answered Paul,
smiling.
"What!" ejaculated Manson. "You don't mean to say you have been
traveling for our firm?"
"That is just what I do say. When I gave up my position to Julius, I
was promoted to traveling salesman."
"Well, well, I never heard the like. Mr. Bradford must be crazy."
Paul smiled, and went out. It was not long before the book-keeper
found how Paul stood, and his manner changed accordingly--not from
friendship, but from policy.
As I write, Paul is nearing his twenty-first birthday. On the day he
attains his majority he is to be admitted into the firm as junior
partner. He is worth fully twenty thousand dollars, and with his
business capacity bids fair eventually to become very rich. He has
bought a comfortable house for his mother, who, I need hardly say, does
not need now to take in sewing. Near them live Grace and her artist
husband. They have recently returned from Italy, where Frederic Vernon
studied art enthusiastically, and with success. He no longer paints
portraits, but devotes his attention to general art.
Mrs. Sheldon is still a widow, and content to remain so. She is
thankful now for the narrow escape she had from Major Ashton, who
would have dissipated her fortune and made her wretched. Though she did
not approve Grace's choice of a husband, she became reconciled long
ago, and is an almost daily visitor at Mrs. Vernon's happy home.
Stephen Palmer's temporary prosperity was owing to a connection with
counterfeiters. He fled the country to avoid arrest, going first to
Canada. Once he wrote in great distress to Paul, and our hero sent him
a hundred dollars. For the sake of the relationship, Paul would gladly
set him up in some business; but Stephen is a ne'er-do-well, and will
probably never amount to anything.
Mr. Manson, the book-keeper, is still at his post, but Julius was long
ago succeeded by another boy. He proved too idle and careless even for
his uncle to tolerate. He envies Paul's success, but will never emulate
the diligence and fidelity which made it possible.
THE END.
THE ALGER SERIES for BOYS
Uniform with This Volume.
This series affords wholesome reading for boys and girls, and all the
volumes are extremely interesting.--_Cincinnati Commercial-Gazette._
=JOE'S LUCK; or, A Brave Boy's Adventurer in California.= By
HORATIO ALGER, JR.
=JULIAN MORTIMER; or, A Brave Boy's Struggles for Home and
Fortune.= By Harry Castlemon.
=ADRIFT IN THE WILDS; or, The Adventures of Two Shipwrecked Boys.=
By EDWARD S. ELLIS.
=FRANK FOWLER, THE CASH BOY.= By HORATIO ALGER, JR.
=GUY HARRIS, THE RUNAWAY.= By HARRY CASTLEMON.
=THE SLATE-PICKER; A Story of a Boy's Life in the Coal Mines.= By
HARRY PRENTICE.
=TOM TEMPLE'S CAREER.= By HORATIO ALGER JR.
=TOM, THE READY; or, Up from the Lowest.= By RANDOLPH HILL.
=THE CASTAWAYS; or, On the Florida Reefs.= By JAMES OTIS.
=CAPTAIN KIDD'S GOLD. The True Story of an Adventurous Sailor Boy.=
By JAMES FRANKLIN FITTS.
=TOM THATCHER'S FORTUNE.= By HORATIO ALGER JR.
=LOST IN THE CAÑON. The Story of Sam Willett's Adventures on the
Great Colorado of the West.= By ALFRED R. CALHOUN.
=A YOUNG HERO; or, Fighting to Win.= By EDWARD S. ELLIS.
=THE ERRAND BOY; or, How Phil Brent Won Success.= By HORATIO ALGER
JR.
=THE ISLAND TREASURE; or, Harry Darrel's Fortune.= By FRANK H.
CONVERSE.
=A RUNAWAY BRIG; or, An Accidental Cruise.= By JAMES OTIS.
=A JAUNT THROUGH JAVA. The Story of a Journey to the Sacred
Mountain by Two American Boys.= By E. S. ELLIS.
=CAPTURED BY APES; or, How Philip Garland Became King of Apeland.=
By HARRY PRENTICE.
=TOM THE BOOT-BLACK; or, The Road to Success.= By HORATIO ALGER JR.
=ROY GILBERT'S SEARCH. A Tale of the Great Lakes.= By WILLIAM P.
CHIPMAN.
=THE TREASURE-FINDERS. A Boy's Adventures in Nicaragua.= By JAMES
OTIS.
=BUDD BOYD'S TRIUMPH; or, The Boy Firm of Fox Island.= By WILLIAM
P. CHIPMAN.
=TONY, THE HERO; or, A Brave Boy's Adventures with a Tramp.= By
HORATIO ALGER JR.
=CAPTURED BY ZULUS. A Story of Trapping in Africa.= By HARRY
PRENTICE.
=THE TRAIN BOY.= By HORATIO ALGER JR.
=DAN THE NEWSBOY.= By HORATIO ALGER JR.
=SEARCH FOR THE SILVER CITY. A Story of Adventure in Yucatan.= By
JAMES OTIS.
=THE BOY CRUISERS; or, Paddling in Florida.= By ST. GEORGE
RATHBORNE.
* * * * *
_The above stories are printed on extra paper, and bound in Handsome
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Printed from large type, on good paper, and bound in handsome cloth
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[Illustration]
=Adam Bede.= By George Eliot.
=Æsop's Fables.=
=Alhambra, The.= By Washington Irving.
=Alice Lorraine.= By R. D. Blackmore.
=All Sorts and Conditions of Men.= By Besant and Rice.
=Andersen's Fairy Tales.=
=Arabian Nights Entertainments.=
=Armadale.= By Wilkie Collins.
=Armorel of Lyonesse.= By Walter Besant.
=Auld Licht Idylls.= By James M. Barrie.
=Aunt Diana.= By Rosa N. Carey.
=Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin.=
=Averil.= By Rosa N. Carey.
=Bacon's Essays.= By Francis Bacon.
=Barbara Heathcote's Trial.= By Rosa N. Carey.
=Barnaby Rudge.= By Charles Dickens.
=Berber, The.= By W. S. Mayo.
=Betrothed, The.= By Allessandro Manzoni.
=Bleak House.= By Charles Dickens.
=Bondman, The.= By Hall Caine.
=Bride of the Nile, The.= By George Ebers.
=Burgomaster's Wife, The.= By George Ebers.
=Cast up by the Sea.= By Sir Samuel Baker.
=Caxtons, The.= By Bulwer-Lytton.
=Charles Auchester.= By E. Berger.
=Charles O'Malley.= By Charles Lever.
=Children of the Abbey.= By Regina Maria Roche.
=Children of Gibeon.= By Walter Besant.
=Child's History of England.= By Charles Dickens.
=Christmas Stories.= By Charles Dickens.
=Cloister and the Hearth.= By Charles Reade.
=Confessions of an Opium-Eater.= By Thomas De Quincey.
=Consuelo.= By George Sand.
=Corinne.= By Madame De Stael.
=Countess of Rudolstadt.= By George Sand.
=Cousin Pons.= By Honore de Balzac.
=Cranford.= By Mrs. Gaskell.
=Crown of Wild Olive, The.= By John Ruskin.
=Daniel Deronda.= By George Eliot.
=Daughter of an Empress, The.= By Louisa Muhlbach.
=Daughter of Heth, A.= By Wm. Black.
=David Copperfield.= By Charles Dickens.
=Deemster, The.= By Hall Caine.
=Deerslayer, The.= By James Fenimore Cooper.
=Dombey & Son.= By Charles Dickens.
=Donal Grant.= By George Macdonald.
=Donald Ross of Heimra.= By William Black.
=Donovan.= By Edna Lyall.
=Dream Life.= By Ik. Marvel.
=East Lynne.= By Mrs. Henry Wood.
=Egoist, The.= By George Meredith.
=Egyptian Princess, An.= By George Ebers.
=Eight Years Wandering in Ceylon.= By Sir Samuel Baker.
=Emerson's Essays.= By Ralph Waldo Emerson.
=Emperor, The.= By George Ebers.
=Essays of Elia.= By Charles Lamb.
=Esther.= By Rosa N. Carey.
=Far from the Madding Crowd.= By Thos. Hardy.
=Felix Holt.= By George Eliot.
=Fifteen Decisive Battles of the World.= By E. S. Creasy.
=File No. 113.= By Emile Gaboriau.
=First Violin.= By Jessie Fothergill.
=For Faith and Freedom.= By Walter Besant.
=Frederick the Great, and His Court.= By Louisa Muhlbach.
=French Revolution.= By Thomas Carlyle.
=From the Earth to the Moon.= By Jules Verne.
=Goethe and Schiller.= By Louisa Muhlbach.
=Gold Bug, The, and Other Tales.= By Edgar A. Poe.
=Gold Elsie.= By E. Marlitt.
=Great Expectations.= By Charles Dickens.
=Great Taboo, The.= By Grant Allen.
=Great Treason, A.= By Mary Hoppus.
=Green Mountain Boys, The.= By D. P. Thompson.
=Grimm's Household Tales.= By the Brothers Grimm.
=Grimm's Popular Tales.= By the Brothers Grimm.
=Gulliver's Travels.= By Dean Swift.
=Handy Andy.= By Samuel Lover.
=Hardy Norseman, A.= By Edna Lyall.
=Harold.= By Bulwer-Lytton.
=Harry Lorrequer.= By Charles Lever.
=Heir of Redclyffe.= By Charlotte M. Yonge.
=Henry Esmond.= By William M. Thackeray.
=Her Dearest Foe.= By Mrs. Alexander.
=Heriot's Choice.= By Rosa N. Carey.
=Heroes and Hero Worship.= By Thomas Carlyle.
=History of Pendennis.= By William M. Thackeray.
=House of the Seven Gables.= By Nathaniel Hawthorne.
=How to be Happy Though Married.=
=Hunchback of Notre Dame.= By Victor Hugo.
=Hypatia.= By Charles Kingsley.
=Idle Thoughts of an Idle Fellow.= By Jerome K. Jerome.
=In Far Lochaber.= By William Black.
=In the Golden Days.= By Edna Lyall.
=In the Heart of the Storm.= By Maxwell Grey.
=It is Never Too Late to Mend.= By Charles Reade.
=Ivanhoe.= By Sir Walter Scott.
=Jack's Courtship.= By W. Clark Russell.
=Jane Eyre.= By Charlotte Bronte.
=John Halifax, Gentleman.= By Miss Muloch.
=Kenilworth.= By Sir Walter Scott.
=Kit and Kitty.= By R. D. Blackmore.
=Kith and Kin.= By Jessie Fothergill.
=Knickerbocker's History of New York.= By Washington Irving.
=Knight Errant.= By Edna Lyall.
=L'Abbe Constantin.= By Ludovic-Halevy
=Lamplighter, The.= By Maria S. Cummins.
=Last Days of Pompeii.= By Bulwer-Lytton.
=Last of the Barons.= By Bulwer-Lytton.
=Last of the Mohicans.= By James Fenimore Cooper.
=Light of Asia, The.= By Sir Edwin Arnold.
=Little Dorrit.= By Charles Dickens.
=Lorna Doone.= By R. D. Blackmore.
=Louise de la Valliere.= By Alexandre Dumas.
=Lover or Friend?= By Rosa N. Carey.
=Lucile.= By Owen Meredith.
=Maid of Sker.= By R. D. Blackmore.
=Man and Wife.= By Wilkie Collins.
=Man in the Iron Mask.= By Alexandre Dumas.
=Martin Chuzzlewit.= By Charles Dickens.
=Mary St. John.= By Rosa N. Carey.
=Master of Ballantrae, The.= By R. L. Stevenson.
=Master of the Ceremonies, The.= By G. M. Fenn.
=Masterman Ready.= By Captain Marryat.
=Merle's Crusade.= By Rosa N. Carey.
=Micah Clarke.= By A. Conan Doyle.
=Michael Strogoff.= By Jules Verne.
=Middlemarch.= By George Eliot.
=Midshipman Easy.= By Captain Marryat.
=Mill on the Floss.= By George Eliot.
=Molly Bawn.= By The Duchess.
=Moonstone, The.= By Wilkie Collins.
=Mosses from an Old Manse.= By Nathaniel Hawthorne.
=Mysterious Island, The.= By Jules Verne.
=Natural Law in the Spiritual World.= By Henry Drummond.
=Nellie's Memories.= By Rosa N. Carey.
=Newcomes, The.= By William M. Thackeray.
=Nicholas Nickleby.= By Charles Dickens.
=No Name.= By Wilkie Collins.
=Not Like Other Girls.= By Rosa N. Carey.
=Old Curiosity Shop.= By Charles Dickens.
=Old Ma'm'selle's Secret.= By E. Marlitt.
=Old Myddelton's Money.= By Mary Cecil Hay.
=Oliver Twist.= By Charles Dickens.
=Only the Governess.= By Rosa N. Carey.
=On the Heights.= By Berthold Auerbach.
=Our Bessie.= By Rosa N. Carey.
=Our Mutual Friend.= By Charles Dickens.
=Pair of Blue Eyes, A.= By Thomas Hardy.
=Past and Present.= By Thomas Carlyle.
=Pathfinder, The.= By James Fenimore Cooper.
=Pere Goriot.= By Honore de Balzac.
=Phantom Rickshaw, The.= By Rudyard Kipling.
=Phra, the Phoenician.= By Edwin L. Arnold.
=Picciola.= By X. B. Saintine.
=Pickwick Papers.= By Charles Dickens.
=Pilgrim's Progress.= By John Bunyan.
=Pilot, The.= By James Fenimore Cooper.
=Pioneers, The.= By James Fenimore Cooper.
=Prairie, The.= By James Fenimore Cooper.
=Pride and Prejudice.= By Jane Austen.
=Prime Minister, The.= By Anthony Trollope.
=Princess of Thule, A.= By Wm. Black.
=Professor, The.= By Charlotte Bronte.
=Put Yourself in His Place.= By Charles Reade.
=Queen Hortense.= By Louisa Muhlbach.
=Queenie's Whim.= By Rosa N. Carey.
=Ralph the Heir.= By Anthony Trollope.
=Red Rover.= By James Fenimore Cooper.
=Reproach of Annesley.= By Maxwell Grey.
=Reveries of a Bachelor.= By Ik. Marvel.
=Rhoda Fleming.= By George Meredith.
=Ride to Khiva, A.= By Captain Fred Barnaby.
=Rienzi.= By Bulwer-Lytton.
=Robinson Crusoe.= By Daniel Defoe.
=Rob Roy.= By Sir Walter Scott.
=Romance of a Poor Young Man.= By Octave Feuillet.
=Romance of Two Worlds.= By Marie Corelli.
=Romola.= By George Eliot.
=Rory O'More.= By Samuel Lover.
=Sartor Resartus.= By Thomas Carlyle.
=Scarlet Letter, The.= By Nathaniel Hawthorne.
=Scottish Chiefs.= By Jane Porter.
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=Second Wife, The.= By E. Marlitt.
=Self-Help.= By Samuel Smiles.
=Sense and Sensibility.= By Jane Austen.
=Sesame and Lilies.= By John Ruskin.
=Shadow of the Sword.= By Robert Buchanan.
=Shirley.= By Charlotte Bronte.
=Silas Marner.= By George Eliot.
=Silence of Dean Maitland.= By Maxwell Grey.
=Sketch-Book, The.= By Washington Irving.
=Social Departure, A.= By Sara Jeannette Duncan.
=Soldiers Three, etc.= By Rudyard Kipling.
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=Spy, The.= By James Fenimore Cooper.
=St. Katharine's by the Tower.= By Walter Besant.
=Story of an African Farm.= By Olive Schreiner.
=Swiss Family Robinson.= By Jean Rudolph Wyss.
=Tale of Two Cities.= By Charles Dickens.
=Talisman, The.= By Sir Walter Scott.
=Tartarin of Tarascon.= By Alphonse Daudet.
=Tempest Tossed.= By Theodore Tilton.
=Ten Years Later.= By Alexandre Dumas.
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=Tom Brown at Oxford.= By Thomas Hughes.
=Tom Brown's School Days.= By Thomas Hughes.
=Tom Burke of "Ours."= By Charles Lever.
=Tour of the World in Eighty Days, A.= By Jules Verne.
=Treasure Island.= By Robert Louis Stevenson.
=Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea.= By Jules Verne.
=Twenty Years After.= By Alexandre Dumas.
=Twice Told Tales.= By Nathaniel Hawthorne.
=Two Admirals.= By James Fenimore Cooper.
=Two Chiefs of Dunboy.= By James A. Froude.
=Two on a Tower.= By Thomas Hardy.
=Two Years Before the Mast.= By R. H. Dana, Jr.
=Uarda.= By George Ebers.
=Uncle Max.= By Rosa N. Carey.
=Uncle Tom's Cabin.= By Harriet Beecher Stowe.
=Undine and Other Tales.= By De la Motte Fouque.
=Vanity Fair.= By William M. Thackeray.
=Vicar of Wakefield.= By Oliver Goldsmith.
=Villette.= By Charlotte Bronte.
=Virginians, The.= By William M. Thackeray.
=Vicomte de Bragelonne.= By Alexandre Dumas.
=Vivian Grey.= By Benjamin Disraeli.
=Water Witch, The.= By James Fenimore Cooper.
=Waverly.= By Sir Walter Scott.
=Wee Wifie.= By Rosa N. Carey.
=Westward Ho!= By Charles Kingsley.
=We Two.= By Edna Lyall.
=What's Mine's Mine.= By George Macdonald.
=When a Man's Single.= By J. M. Barrie.
=White Company, The.= By A. Conan Doyle.
=Wide, Wide World.= By Susan Warner.
=Widow Lerouge, The.= By Emile Gaboriau.
=Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship.= By Goethe (Carlyle).
=Wing-and-Wing.= By James Fenimore Cooper.
=Woman in White, The.= By Wilkie Collins.
=Won by Waiting.= By Edna Lyall.
=Wooing O't.= By Mrs. Alexander.
=World Went Very Well Then, The.= By Walter Besant.
=Wormwood.= By Marie Corelli.
=Wreck of the Grosvenor, The.= By W. Clark Russell.
=Zenobia.= By William Ware.
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TRANSCRIBER'S NOTES:
Text in italics is surrounded by underscores: _italics_.
Emboldened text is surrounded by equals signs: =bold=.
Inconsistencies in spelling, punctuation, and hyphenation have been
standardized.