THE STEADFAST HEART
zens he had given it to such account that Crane’s animosity expanded and multiplied.
This can be said for Crane: He believed in his project; was honestly convinced of its soundness. Two months after taking his first option he could have incorporated and sold out to his fellow-townsmen at a profit. He refused to do so. In proportion as he clung to his holdings, his reputation grew; he was lost sight of as a lawyer, a judge; was seen only as a financial colossus….
Drilling began in July. Angus watched the operations almost breathlessly, realizing what would follow a failure to strike oil…. Also he knew that drilling for oil required money. What if Crane’s capital gave out before anything was achieved?
One morning he was discussing the matter with Dave Wilkins in the printing shop. It was not Angus’s custom to talk of the matter publicly—one of his most pronounced virtues was his close-mouthedness, but Dave Wilkins was his father—was still his god. To Dave he could speak of anything—except himself and certain matters which were hidden in the secret fastnesses of his heart.
“The Judge,” he said, “has overbalanced himself. The thing has gone to his head…. Other people’s money….”
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