A pale complexion, strongly marked features and high forehead, with dark brown hair and clear brown eyes, make him a conspicuous figure in any assemblage.

As he rises to address his fellow-committeemen on this momentous occasion, a flush of excitement adds to his attractiveness.  He is a man of thirty-five, with the experience of a man of fifty.

“Were I to take the course pursued by those who have already spoken to you,” he begins, “I might take you back to the scenes of my childhood and portray pictures of affluence and luxury that few of you could quite appreciate.  But the days of my childhood are gone; I am a man and have to fight the battles of men, so I shall limit myself to the few facts that are pertinent to the discussion before us.

“In the past six months I have made the sudden transition from the highest stratum of society to the one in which I am to-day.  We cannot, and do not desire to pose as contented men, or as men who are looking for mild solutions of the problems that are now pressing for settlement.  I cannot, therefore, affront you when I say that by being among you I prove that I am a radical reformer.

“What you will be interested in learning will be the reasons that impelled me to come here.

“There is not a single thing to be hidden from you.  I am here for the purpose of satisfying a revenge.

“My every fibre is quickened by the desire to see the men who caused my downfall brought to my level.

“I am selfish in my purpose; so deeply rooted are my resolves to be avenged that I here and now state to you that any thing radical that may be proposed by this committee shall receive my full support.

“And do you blame me?  Listen to my reasons: 

“Six years ago I entered the employ of Stephen Steel, the New York banker.  He is a man whom the people of the city and the country at large look upon as a paragon.  His words are constantly quoted in the papers; his advice is sought by men of affairs.

“My friends told me I was indeed fortunate to be associated with such a prominent man.

“Well, he was a schemer.  At every turn he was on the lookout for a chance to get at the wealth of others.  I had not been in his employ more than a month when I discovered that he was at the bottom of a plot to loot the treasuries of three of the largest banks.  His scheme was diabolical.  It would have entailed the loss of the savings of thousands of small depositors.

“With this knowledge in my possession, I did not know just what my duty was.  To shut my eyes to the affair and let it culminate in disaster to innocent thousands, would have been a simple matter.  For several days I was in a quandary, but my conscience at length conquered.  I mustered up courage enough to speak to my employer.  I chose for my time the hour after his return from church on Sunday.  He had passed the plate with the unction of a saint.  Men and women had looked at him and inwardly said:  ‘What a fine man Mr. Steel is; if there were only more like him.’