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ever be returned to him unless he began building within a year, was enough to fascinate him. Probably this matter of the Charing Cross was only a detail, and it was true, as Jarkins had insisted, that Cowperwood was interested mainly in the larger phases of underground unification. If so, why not some general scheme which would include himself and Stane before others were taken in? Plainly, it was still important that he and Stane meet Cowperwood. Well, that could probably be arranged at the meeting in Cowperwood’s office which he would attend in connection with the final negotiations concerning the transfer of the Charing Cross line.

Eleven-thirty of the day of the meeting found Cowperwood and Sippens together in Cowperwood’s office, Sippens pacing up and down, making such remarks as he could induce his Chief to give ear to. But Cowperwood himself was curiously thoughtful. He had acted so swiftly, he now reflected, more so than was usual with him. And this was an alien land, its ways and moods almost entirely unfamiliar to him. True, it did not follow that because he was buying the rights, he could not sell again. On the other hand, reason as he would, a kind of fatality appeared to be running through the whole affair. For if now, after buying this option, he allowed it to lapse, it would look like a tentative adventure on his part for which he had neither the courage nor the means.

But now Jarkins and Kloorfain arrived, fully conscious of their part in this, and having been assured by Cowperwood that his own obligation to them would not be overlooked. And immediately following them came Mr. Denton, Sippens, secretary, and Mr. Ostade, one of Sippens’ investigating committee. Later came Mr. Kitteredge, Sippens’ successor to the

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presidency of Cowperwood’s Chicago Union Traction lines, who was there in order to discuss with Cowperwood some of his Chicago affairs. Lastly, there was Oliver Bristol, a youthful but exceedingly alert member of Cowperwood’s legal department, who had been sent over to inform himself as to current English procedure. He was now ready for his first task. Cowperwood’s principal use for his own people, however, at this time – apart from witnessing the transaction – was to have them serve as color and background for himself, in order to impress these English gentlemen.

At last, and promptly at twelve o’clock, came Messrs. Greaves and Henshaw, accompanied by Johnson, Rider, Calthorpe, and Delafield, of the Traffic Electrical Company; Mr. Calthorpe being its chairman, Mr. Rider its vice-chairman, and Mr. Johnson its solicitor. And all were not a little impressed as, coming at last into the presence of the great man himself, they found him, sitting behind his desk, attended right and left by his lawyer and all of his assistants.

Cowperwood rose and greeted both Greaves and Henshaw very cordially, and they, in turn, with the assistance of Jarkins and Sippens, introduced the members of each group. But it was Johnson who held the attention of both Cowperwood and Sippens, Cowperwood because of his connections and Sippens because on sight he sensed a rival. The authoritativeness of the man, the almost august manner in which he cleared his throat and looked around inquiringly, as if he were a scientist examining insects, infuriated Sippens. And it was Johnson who opened the discussion.

«Well, Mr. Cowperwood and gentlemen», he began, «I believe we all fully understand the nature of what is to take place

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here. Therefore, the sooner we begin, the sooner we will be through».

(«You don’t say!» commented Sippens to himself.)

«Yes, I believe that’s a good idea», said Cowperwood. And pushing a button, he ordered Jamieson to bring in his official checkbook as well as the temporary agreements.

Johnson now took from a square leather bag – which was carried by an office boy who walked at his heels – the several books of the Traffic Electrical Company, its official seal, together with the act, and placed all upon Cowperwood’s desk. And Cowperwood, flanked by Bristol and Kitteredge, proceeded to examine them.

After checking over various commitments, decisions, expenditures, Greaves produced their option to buy, and the company, through its officers, attested to its validity. Mr. Delafield, as secretary and treasurer of Traffic Electrical Company, produced a copy of the act establishing their right to construct the line. Whereupon, a Mr. Blandish, of the London and County Bank, arrived with a certificate of deposit in favor of Frank Algernon Cowperwood for lb60,000 in British consols then and there in that bank. These the bank would surrender to him in exchange for his check for that amount.

Cowperwood then signed and handed to Messrs. Greaves and Henshaw his check for lb30,000 which by then was endorsed to Traffic Electrical Company. The company, through its officers, endorsed it to Cowperwood. Whereupon he wrote his check for lb60,000, and for that took over from the London and County Bank its legal acknowledgment of his ownership of the consols. After this, he handed Greaves a duly attested and guaranteed one-year’s non-negotiable agreement. The meet-

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ing then closed, with an atmosphere of enthusiasm which was hardly to be explained by the business of the moment.

The explanation of this was the personality of Cowperwood and its effect on all those present. Calthorpe, the chairman of Traffic Electrical, for instance, a blond and stocky man of fifty, had come stuffed with prejudice against any American attempting to manage a London railway property. Nevertheless, it was plainly evident that he was impressed by Cowperwood’s dynamic alertness. Rider studied Cowperwood’s clothes, taking note of his beautifully set jade cuff links, his dark tan shoes, and his well-tailored sand-colored suit. Obviously, America was producing a new and distinct type. Here was a man who could, if he wished, become a great force in London’s affairs.

Johnson thought Cowperwood had handled the situation with shrewdness and even an agreeable cunning. The man was ruthless, but in a way which the jumbled interests and oppositions of life required. He was about to leave when Cowperwood came over to him.

«From what I hear, Mr. Johnson, you are personally interested in this underground situation», he said, smiling a cordial smile.

«Yes, to some extent», replied Johnson, civilly, and yet with caution.

«My lawyers have informed me», continued Cowperwood, «that you are more or less of an expert in the traction franchise field here. You see, I have been trained on the other side, and this is all new ground to me. If you have no objection, I would like to talk with you further. Perhaps we could have lunch or dinner together, either at my hotel or some place where we would not be likely to be interrupted».

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Although it had been agreed that no information of any kind in connection with the transfer of the Charing Cross line was at present to be furnished to the press, the news somehow leaked out, possibly due to gossip emanating from Rider, Calthorpe, and Delafield. Having been shareholders as well as officers of Traffic Electrical Company before its property was thus transferred, they feared for their future and were inclined to discuss the matter. So that it was not long before financial as well as news reporters appeared, asking Cowperwood for confirmation of the fact.

Cowperwood informed them frankly that such a transfer was now in process, and that, in due time, a certificate of registration would be filed. Also, that originally he had not come to London to buy anything, seeing that his American interests still required so much of his time, but that certain representatives of London underground ventures had called upon him to urge his managerial as well as financial consideration of routes in which they were interested. The purchase of the Charing Cross had been the result of these overtures, and there were other ventures to which he had promised to give his attention. Whether this would result in a unified system

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which he would care to build depended on what his coming investigations would reveal.

In Chicago, the editorial comments following this announcement were little more than snarls of rage. That such a ruthless trickster, so recently ejected from that city, should proceed to London, and there, by reason of his wealth, cunning, and general effrontery, be able to cajole the powers of that great city into looking to him for the possible solution of their transit needs, was too much! Plainly, the British had not troubled to inquire into his highly sinister record. But once that was uncovered, as it presently would be, he would be as unwelcome there as he was to this hour and for years past had been in Chicago! There were equally unfavorable comments in the newspapers of a number of other American cities, the editors and publishers of which had taken their mood from that of Chicago.

On the other hand, in the London press, and not strange to relate – since its social, financial, and political opinions were highly realistic and never likely to be based on popular complaint – the reaction toward Cowperwood was most favorable. The Daily Mail ventured the opinion that such ability as his might not disadvantageously be centered upon the laggard London underground field, which for years had toddled far behind public necessity. The Chronicle deplored the inactivity of English capital and expressed the pious hope that if an American, in so distant a place as Chicago, could discern what London needed, perhaps the traction leaders of London would now awaken and go forward themselves. There were similar comments in the Times , Express , and other journals.

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These comments were, from a financial point of view, as Cowperwood saw it, unfortunate. They were likely to concentrate not only English but American financial ambition on his own purpose and awaken obstructive activity, and in this he was certainly not wrong. For no sooner were the notices of the sale of the line confirmed, and his admission as to other offers and his possible future interest in the London transit problem made public, than the chief stockholders of both the District and the Metropolitan, the two lines most impugned, were in a fury of indignation, and in so far as the future was concerned, most certain to oppose him.

«Cowperwood! Cowperwood!» sniffed Lord Colvay, shareholder and one of the twelve directors of the Metropolitan, as well as of the new City and South London. He was having his breakfast, with the Times to the right of him, for reasons of mental dignity principally, but at the moment was reading the Daily Mail , his favorite paper. «And who the devil is this Cowperwood? One of those mushroom Americans, gadding round the world, telling people what to do! I wonder who his so-called advisers are – Scarr, maybe, with that Baker Street and Waterloo scheme of his, and Wyndham Willets, with his Deptford and Bromley route. And, of course, Greaves and Henshaw, looking for contracts. And the Traffic Electrical anxious to clear out».

Equally annoyed was Sir Hudspeth Dighton, director of the District and a shareholder in the Metropolitan. He was already seventy-five years of age, ultraconservative and not at all interested to enter upon radical railway changes, particularly when they represented large expenditures, the profit out-

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come of which could not definitely be foretold. He had arisen at five-thirty, and after having his tea and reading his paper, was walking among the flowers on his estate at Brentford, pondering the problem of these Americans, with their newfangled notions about everything. To be sure, the undergrounds were not doing so well as they might, and the equipment might be modernized to advantage. But why should the Times and the Mail be pointing out the fact, and particularly in connection with the arrival of an American who certainly could do no better than any of a score of Englishmen when put to it? It was no more and no less than belittling British ability, which was nonsense. England ruled, and would continue to rule, the world. It certainly needed no outside help. And from that moment on, he was prepared to argue against any foreign interference in connection with the development of London underground transit.

So, too, with Sir Wilmington Jeems, whose residence was in the region of Wimbley Park. He was also a director of the District. He was willing to admit that modernization and extension were desirable. But why an American? When the proper time came, that could be arranged by Englishmen.

And something related to the opinions of these three men constituted the majority reaction of the directors and largest shareholders of both the Metropolitan and the District, as well as those of the other underground railways of London.

But it was Colvay, the most aggressive and dynamic of the three, who was finally roused to defensive action. That same day he proceeded to consult the other directors, Stane first of all, as to what action should be taken in the matter. But by

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then Stane had been sufficiently impressed by Johnson’s account of Cowperwood, and what he had read in the papers, to answer Colvay very cautiously. He stated that this proposal of Cowperwood’s was a natural development. It was something which anyone apart from the older directors of both companies could see as necessary. Certainly, the obvious thing, now that a rival system was proposed, was to call a meeting of the directors of the Metropolitan and the District, and both groups should confer as to a proper course.

Colvay next called on Sir Wilmington Jeems, and found him in a perturbed frame of mind. «It’s a hundred to one, Colvay», he said, «if we and the Metropolitan don’t join up, this fellow is likely enough to pick off enough shareholders in both companies to do us all in. Count on me for unity against Cowperwood, as long as our individual interests are fully protected».

With this encouragement, Colvay proceeded to call up as many of the directors as he could reach. Out of twelve, he found seven who were alive to the import of what he had to say. Accordingly, special directors’ meetings in both companies were scheduled for the following Friday, and at these meetings a request for a joint conference between the directors of the two companies was voted for the following Thursday, when there would be consideration of this new issue.

Stane and Johnson went into conference on this sudden development. It was very interesting, and most opportune, in view of the forthcoming dinner engagement between Johnson and Cowperwood.

«Depend on it!» said Johnson, «he knows everything about us through that fellow Jarkins, and he wants to sound us out».

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