Even Thorne's optimism had realized the
difficulties of pressing to a conviction against such powerful interests
without some evidence of a fraudulent intent. Could it be that the
presence of this Saleratus Bill in company with Oldham meant that Baker
was contemplating so sinister a removal of damaging testimony?
A moment's thought disabused him of this notion, however. Baker was not
the man to resort to violence of this sort; or at least he would not do
so before exhausting all other means. Bob had been, in a way, the
capitalist's friend. Surely, before turning a gun man loose, Baker would
have found out definitely whether, in the first place, Bob was inclined
to push the case; and secondly, whether he could not be persuaded to
refrain from introducing his personal testimony. The longer Bob looked
at the state of affairs, the more fantastic seemed the hypothesis that
the gun man had been brought into the country for such a purpose.
"Why do you suppose Oldham is up there with this Saleratus Bill?" he
asked Ware at length.
"Search me!"
"Is Bill good for anything beside gun work?"
"Well," said Ware, judicially, "he sure drinks without an effort.
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