"Yes, King Arthur's."

-- "and only one heart that was without suspicion--"

"Yes--the king's; a heart that isn't capable of
thinking evil of a friend."

"Well, the king might have gone on, still happy
and unsuspecting, to the end of his days, but for one
of your modern improvements--the stock-board.
When you left, three miles of the London, Canterbury
and Dover were ready for the rails, and also ready
and ripe for manipulation in the stock-market. It
was wildcat, and everybody knew it. The stock was
for sale at a give-away. What does Sir Launcelot do,
but--"

"Yes, I know; he quietly picked up nearly all of
it for a song; then he bought about twice as much
more, deliverable upon call; and he was about to
call when I left."

"Very well, he did call. The boys couldn't de-
liver. Oh, he had them--and he just settled his grip
and squeezed them. They were laughing in their
sleeves over their smartness in selling stock to him
at fifteen and sixteen and along there that wasn't
worth ten. Well, when they had laughed long enough
on that side of their mouths, they rested up that side
by shifting the laugh to the other side. That was
when they compromised with the Invincible at two
hundred and eighty-three!"

"Good land!"

"He skinned them alive, and they deserved it--
anyway, the whole kingdom rejoiced. Well, among
the flayed were Sir Agravaine and Sir Mordred,
nephews to the king. End of the first act. Act

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