“We'll have our own tin-an' iron-mines, of course,” said Eph. “An' our own printin'-shops fer labels an' advertisin' an' showbills.”  

 “Better buy out the magazines an' newspapers. We can use 'em,” said Phin. 

 “Yes,” agreed Eph, “an' have our own paper-mills.”  

 “Certainly,” said Phineas, “there's good money in all them. We'll make more than them that's runnin' of 'em now. We'll economize on help.”  

 “That's right,” said Eph. “By consolidatin' we can do away with one-third of the help. We'll have a whoppin' big pay-roll as it is.”  

 “Well,” said Phineas, “you've got to pay fair wages where you have to depend on your help.”  

 “Fair wages is all right,” said Eph; “but nowadays they want the whole hog. You don't hear of nothin' but labor unions an' strikes. If you an' me put our money into a big thing like American Pie, we take all the risk and then the laborin' men want all the profits. It ain't square.”  

 “No, it ain't,” said Phineas. “An' if you don't pay them more than you can afford they strike right at your busiest time. They could put us out of business in one year. First the farmers would strike at harvest, an' all our fruit an' wheat would go to rot. Then the flour-mill hands would strike an' the wheat get wormy an' no good. Then the bakers would strike, an' no bread in the country—we'd most likely be lynched by the mobs.”  

 Eph thought deeply for a while, and the more he thought the more doleful he became. 

 “Phineas,” he said, at length, “I don't know how you feel about it, but I think this American Pie business is 'most too risky to put our money into.”  

 Phineas had also been thinking, and his face offered no encouragement. 

 “Eph,” he said, “you're right there. If our farmers an' millers an' bakers did strike, an' folks starved to death, we'd like as not be impeached an' tried for treason or something, an' put in jail fer life, if our necks wasn't broke by a rope. I like money, but not so much as to have that happen.”  

 “Neither do I,” said Eph; “an' I been thinkin' of another thing. Could we get our old women to go into this thing? My wife ain't so far-sighted as I be; an' just at first, until we made a million or two, we'd have to sort o' depend on them to do the 

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