'
'And you spent your time in looking up other properties for yourselves,
did you?'
Kenyon reddened at this question.
'My dear sir,' he said, 'if you are going to talk in this strain, you
will have to excuse me. We were sent by the London Syndicate to do a
certain thing. We did it, and did it thoroughly. After it was done the
time was our own, as much as it is at the present moment. We were not
hired by the day, but took a stated sum for doing a certain piece of
work. I may go further and say that the time was our own at any period
of our visit, so long as we fulfilled what the London Syndicate
required of us.'
'Oh, I meant no offence,' said Longworth. 'You merely seemed to be posing
as a sort of goody-goody young man when I spoke of mining swindles, so I
only wished to startle you. How much have you to pay for the mine--that
is the mica-mine?'
Kenyon hesitated for a moment.
'I do not feel at liberty to mention the sum until I have consulted with
my friend Wentworth.'
'Well, you see, if I am to help you in this matter, I shall need to know
every particular.'
'Certainly. I shall have to consult Wentworth as to whether we require
any help or not.'
'Oh, you will speedily find that you require all the help you can get in
London. You will probably learn that a hundred such mines are for sale
now, and the chances are you will find that this very mica-mine has been
offered. What do you believe the mine is really worth?'
'I think it is worth anywhere from one hundred thousand pounds to two
hundred thousand pounds, perhaps more.
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