He talked with the bright-eyed Irwin for less than half an hour. Then he showed his visitor from his dusty office full of law-books that were never consulted.
"Easy?" he chuckled as he bowed Irwin out. "It’s a hundred-to-one shot. I’ll tell you what I’ll do: I’ll——"
"No, you won’t tell me," laughed Irwin. "The less I know, the better for me. All I want to be sure of is that I can count on you."
"Let me know as soon as it’s tried. Then we’ll talk about the next move—if one’s needed."
"I understand. And whatever’s needed, I’ll deliver the goods inside of three weeks."
Irwin said he hoped nothing more would be needed and that a few days would suffice, and Quirk, screwing a derby-hat on one side of his head, walked around the corner to the police-station to see his friend, the red-faced, genial Hugh Donovan, lieutenant of police.
§2. Ex-Judge Stein, in the handsome room overlooking Broadway, had been having another telephone-conversation with the head of the Titus & Titherington Mercantile Agency while Mr. Irwin was consulting with Mr. Quirk.
"That man has saved a bit," Alexander Titus was reporting; "but outside of his salary he has really only a hundred thousand dollars, and it’s all invested in the R. H. Forbes & Son clothing firm over in Brooklyn."
The Judge made a note of this on a desk-pad.
"I see," he said. "Who is the head of that firm, now?"
"Wallace K. Forbes; I think he’s a grandson of old R. H."
"How do they stand? Oddly enough, I have a client interested in their affairs, too."
"The Forbes people? Pretty well. I had to get a report on them last week."
"Only one that might hurt them: two hundred and fifty thousand dollars at call with the East County National."
"I want to be quite clear about this," he said—"quite clear: my client in this Forbes matter is considering an investment. Am I to understand that if the East County National should call this loan, if it could not be renewed elsewhere, the firm would become insolvent?"
"Oh, there’s no doubt about that. But then, there’s no doubt about its not being called, either. The company’s quite sound, Judge."
"Thank you," said Stein. "You will have that other full report sent over?"
"Thank you again. You had better follow it with a copy of the Forbes report. If that bears out all you say, I shall instruct my client to go ahead."