“This individual agreed to advance the sum necessary to purchase and work the petroleum mine, which was called the Vandalia.  He made my son-in-law sign, in exchange for this assistance, an agreement which was very profitable to himself.  I was ignorant of the terms of this contract at the time of his marriage to my daughter, and according to all appearances he thought but little of it.  Unusually gifted, and understanding chemistry and mechanics, yet he was entirely ignorant of business matters, and already had to pay dearly for his inexperience.  No doubt he had trusted all the arrangements to Noah Jones, according to his usual habit.  Probably he signed with closed eyes the contract which was laid before him.  These are the principle articles agreed upon: 

     “Art.  III.  The Vandalia shall remain the sole property of Mr.
     George Durrien, the discoverer, and Mr. Noah Jones, his silent
     partner.

“Art.  IV.  Mr. Noah Jones will take charge of moneys, and pay out what is necessary for the exploration of the mine, he will also sell the product, take charge of the receipts, and have a settlement with his partner every year, when they will divide the net profits.

“Art.  V. If either of the partners should wish to sell his share, the other would have the first right to purchase it, and he should have three months in which to make arrangements to do so.  He might then become sole proprietor by paying the capital and three per cent. on the net revenue, according to what it had been proved to be at the last inventory.

“Art.  VI.  Only the children of the two partners could become inheritors of these rights.  In case one of the partners should die childless, or his children should not live until they were twenty-one years of age, the entire property to revert to the survivor, to the exclusion of all other heirs of the dead partner.

“N.B.  The last article is on account of the different nationalities of the two partners, and because of the complications that could not fail to arise in case of the death of either of them without issue.”

“Such,” continued Mr. Durrien, “was the contract which my future son-in-law had signed at the time, when he had no thought of marrying, and when everybody, except, perhaps, Mr. Noah Jones, was ignorant of what immense value the Vandalia mine would become in the course of time.  They had then hardly commenced operations, and they met with the usual discouragements incident to all new undertakings.  Perhaps Noah Jones hoped that his associate would become disgusted with the whole business and retire, leaving him sole proprietor.  The marriage of George with my daughter, the birth of his son, and the well becoming suddenly prodigiously fruitful, must have modified his plans by degrees.  He could no longer hope to purchase for a trifling sum this splendid property; but before it came into the possession of Noah Jones,