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"I will tell you a little more about what happened to-day," Matthew went on, misjudging Rosina's hesitation. "I dare say you remember what I was always telling Uncle Benjamin about his factory and his method of running it."

"You thought him behind the times," she murmured.

"Ridiculously! What I could foresee then is coming to pass more rapidly even than I had imagined. The business of Benjamin Stone and Company is going to the wall. They have lost their trade. Soon they will lose their credit. I begin to understand now why he kept his private ledger under such strict lock and key. He must have been losing money for years. It is my belief that he will be a bankrupt before the year is out."

Rosina was amazed.

"But I thought he was so wealthy," she gasped.

"He had plenty of money at one time," Matthew admitted, "but there are few capitalists who can stand the drain of a losing business. Benjamin Stone is racing downhill. What there is good that remains in his business, I offered to Mr. Faringdon to-day."