“You had better come another day—­the old man has just paid that judgment in the breach of promise case, and he is in a bad way.”

Hearing our voices, he said,

“Who is there?—­come in.”

I went in, and found him sitting leaning on his desk, the picture of intense wretchedness.  He was all unstrung, his jaw fallen, and a most pitiful face met mine as he looked up and said, in a broken voice,

“Come some other day—­I can do no business today; I am very unwell.”

He was indeed sick—­sick at heart.  I felt sorry for him.  Pain always excites my pity, no matter what may be its cause.  He was a miser, and the payment of those thousands of dollars was like tearing him asunder.  He did not mind the jibes of the newspapers, but the loss of the money was almost killing.  He had not set his heart on popularity, but cash.

He had another special trouble, but with a different sort of ending.  It was discovered by a neighbor of his that, by some mismeasurement of the surveyors, he (Reese) had built the wall of one of his immense business houses on Front street six inches beyond his own proper line, taking in just so much of that neighbor’s lot.  Not being on friendly terms with Reese, his neighbor made a peremptory demand for the removal of the wall, or the payment of a heavy price for the ground.  Here was misery for the miser.  He writhed in mental agony, and begged for easier terms, but in vain.  His neighbor would not relent.  The business men of the vicinity rather enjoyed the situation, humorously watching the progress of the affair.  It was a case of diamond cut diamond, both parties bearing the reputation of being hard men to deal with.  A day was fixed for Reese to give a definite answer to his neighbor’s demand, with notice that, in case of his noncompliance, suit against him would be begun at once.  The day came, and with it a remarkable change in Reese’s tone.  He sent a short note to his enemy breathing profanity and defiance.

“What is the matter?” mused the puzzled citizen; “Reese has made some discovery that makes him think he has the upper-hand, else he would not talk this way.”

And he sat and thought.  The instinct of this class of men where money is involved is like a miracle.

“I have it!” he suddenly exclaimed; “Reese has the same hold on me that I have on him.”

Reese happened to be the owner of another lot adjoining that of his enemy, on the other side.  It occurred to him that, as all these lots were surveyed at the same time by the same party, it was most likely that as his line had gone six inches too far on the one side, his enemy’s had gone as much too far on the other.  And so it was.  He had quietly a survey made of the premises, and he chuckled with inward joy to find that he held this winning card in the unfriendly game.  With grim politeness the neighbors exchanged deeds for the two half feet of ground, and their war ended.  The moral of this incident is for him who hath wit enough to see it.