The million pound banknote

Then I suddenly realized what had happened, and I owned up like a man.

'I took the dearest girl in this world - into my heart.'

So then he came over with a rush, and we shook hands, and shook, and shook till our hands ached. He didn't blame me for not having heard a word of a story which had lasted while we walked three miles. He just sat down, like the patient, good fellow that he was, and told his story all over again.

Synopsized, his story was this. Lloyd had come to England with what he thought was a grand opportunity. He had an option to sell the Gould and Curry Mine extension. He had to give a million dollars to the locators of that extension, and he could keep all he could get over that amount.

He had worked hard and had pulled every string he knew of. He had tried everything possible without being dishonest, and had spent nearly all the money he had in the world. Still he had not been able to get a single capitalist to listen to him, and his money would run out at the end of the month. In a word, he was ruined. Then he jumped up and cried out:

'Henry, you can save me! You can save me, and you're the only man in the universe that can. Will you do it? Won't you do it? Give me a million dollars and my passage home and you can sell the mine extension instead! Don't, don't refuse!'

Vocabulary:

Own up: Confess
Blame: Think that something wrong has been done
Patient: Able to wait without getting upset
Synopsized: Told in a short form
Option: A chance, something one can choose to do
Extension Here it means an extra part, a part added on to what is already there.
Locators: Here, the people who had found the new part of the mine
Pull strings: Talk to people who can help one
Capitalist: Someone who invests money for profit
Passage: Here this means 'money for a journey'