Then, one day, came back to him through the mail ten of his immaculate machine-made storiettes.

They were accompanied by a brief letter to the effect that the syndicate was overstocked, and that some months would elapse before it would be in the market again for manuscripts.

Martin had even been extravagant on the strength of those ten storiettes.

Toward the last the syndicate had been paying him five dollars each for them and accepting every one he sent.

So he had looked upon the ten as good as sold, and he had lived accordingly, on a basis of fifty dollars in the bank.