"What—what Haworth needs," he stammered, "is a—man of education to—to assist him. A man who had studied the scientific features of—of things, might suggest valuable ideas to him. There is an—an immense field open to a rich, enterprising fellow such as he is—a man who is fearless and and who has the means to carry out his ventures."
"You mean a man who will try to do new things," she remarked. "Do you think he would?"
"The trouble has been," floundering more hopelessly than ever, "that his lack of cultivation has—well, has forced him to act in a single groove. If—if he had a—a partner who—knew the ropes, so to speak—his business would be doubled—trebled."
She repeated aloud one of his words.
"A partner," she said.
He ran his hand through his hair and stared at her, wishing that he could think of something decided to say.
"Does he know you would like to be his partner?" she asked next.
"N—no," he faltered, "not exactly."
She sat a moment looking at the fire.
"I do not believe he would do it," she said at last. "He is too proud of having done everything single-handed."
Then she looked at her father again.
"If he would," she said, "and there were no rash ventures made, it would be a good thing."
