Show i i IDAY'S SHORT STORY ron by Americas America's Greatest Writers t by br UM Uro nack A. A M.- M. Mmary CI C Ca iA A COMPACT WITH A CASHIER I IA By William Hamilton Osborne Oborne Bay Bay was on the eve of a aera aeri era eri of pros prosperity rity There was one man however who the fact But then he saw U things other people didn't see He Hethe Hethe the the signs of the times Umes n name me was Cowenhoven a a good n its way though not Dot so soi bilious ioUS as several others he had bad fit i It was safer though at present e 9 Bolton Bay Bar bank was a quiet Scum rum concern but as trustworthy Vday e daY is long lang It has a a. small smaIl cap- cap Ca c. c very very small email And ime me and bet l-et It the confidence at ot the entire comfit com corn ty lit fit were deposited among other the litho public moneys of ot the mu- mu Cowenhoven a a. rugged gec man with manner iff but no notwithstanding kindly nature was the hate pate possessor oC ot fifty fity thousand had obtained It by means mems of or ti financial transactions which he tarried on with confiding confiding- old ladies ladles country These transact- transact eU he be had the fifty thousand e d not been caught Enough tiby tle by little he bought up the ma- ma in m the Bolton Bay bank t a well defined reason for so lt It was Just after the election for the ensuing year that twined this control He sat down and waited became b came known In to the town as a respectable but somewhat ec- ec He minded his own interfered with nobody B Keyer er made any ostentatious pa- pa oti of his goods it was con con- con I I p. p bat he was enormously rice ine pe town without any reason for lW wed down and worshiped him If N jihad a been any good reason for it t w wouldn't l nt have done It fing I ing g the year a number of mills foundries Jou foun dries that had been closed Jd up Trade was brisk in the ther r The lumbermen In the woods id the e town were piling piling- up rip small e es and the foundries foundries- and the he hen fi en n and everybody else were i money money hand over fist i N posited deposited 3 in th the Bolton Bay he bank was busy At the theof theof of the first six sit months of at the pro prosperity rity the election of ot Banks Bank's ash's anks officers took place usually so unas- unas g and inoffensive attended the Ug produced his shares of stock Bowled over the entire set of or ridE directors of the bank el elected himself president His IDs i. i tot of f directors was composed of a Ir pf of strangers portly well fed men m n but a bit too heavy in the lers ers em and a bit too thick about the theon I on Bay did not know know- them but them on filth faith In fact fact they etter known In New York York York-by by lice than lice than elsewhere Alexander the cashier bank was retained In his post post- s so so were several of ot Ms hi P was a lL young man the theof of Ka a Q very respectable Bolton Bay BayL L and nd a great religious worker in i Lurch Cowenhoven Cowenhoven who bad had a a. good t for faces recalled reviled the fact d once seen Mr lUr In York On that occasion Mr not at church would ha have been well vell for far the he been there thele at the time df disposing posing of considerable r gong jlong J ng green green more more in fact than insistent with the Income and andI andor I 11 of or a a. mo modest Bolton Bay Bap cashier Cowenhoven had bad noted all these r wand d an-d had bad treas treasured red them up In Int n Tart t lag ras on the first day of or the month Ing Ing his self-enforced self election to fico of president that he entered Mice flee flee of or the cashier and shut the him It was after hours M Sniff ens he said kindly In a aI ato I to heart tone of voice about nuch have we on deposit now fens p-fens fens stopped In the middle of a of figures and made a hasty I Station on a small piece of paper ire re he replied Ill show you fir Ilon on this piece of paper And Anda n. n theres there's twenty thousand com- com that'll tomorrow tomorrow that'll make eight 11 and ten thousand in to all The president nt smiled a a. b benignant smile Eight hundred and ten thousand he returned in a soothing voice as though he liked the sound eight bundred hun bun hundred dred and ten tee thousand thousand- Who'd havo thought it Well Wen wild said the cashier of ot course on Thursday weve we've got to make that shipment West that'll bring it down But its it's only Monday now nowr The older man nodded shortly an anthen and then with a sudden change of ot manner he drew up a a. chair and pointed the cashier to a a. second I ho he said eaid with a frown sit Elt down He paused anc and with a 8 searching glance such as few men other than Cowenhoven could assume he looked the cashier through and through steadily steadily steadily stead stead- ily for some time Then he spoke I he I was down here last night continued and went Vent through your books I see youre you're ten thousand odd short I suppose you know what that means His tone now had bad become indifferent and cold The cashier shook like a al l Its leaf at It It It-it it wasn wasn't me he said with a avain avain vain attempt at boldness You You lie lie said Cowenhoven You Ton cant can't tell me I I know wh what t I know What about Mile Mlle Victorine Th The The e cashier started up with a white whit face What hat the d devil vU do you know know- Cowenhoven stopped him That isn't the question he re re- re turned The point is whether you know what this means Ill I'll tell you With Bolton Bay on top of you as it will be when this comes out it means ten y years years years-if if If not that then seven Ill I'll see e to It Now let that fil filter filter filter fil- fil ter through your cranium The cashier said never a a. word He was game at least From a man who had been merely scared he had become one who was desperate He was determined to put the best face on the matter Well or- or he said when the other man had finished I They sat there looking each other in the eye Finally the elder man spoke Well WeIl he said finally now you know what It Jt means Ive I've got something something some some- thing t to say to you In the first place I want you to look me over Do you know me The cashier looked at him In sur sur- prise Then he slowly shook his head Well Nell ell resumed the other Til tell you He lIe leaned over and whispered a few words The cashier started up again By George orge youve you've got nerve he said finally when his surprise would let him speak And these fell fellows ws with my nie-my nie my di directors di- di rectors say rectors say they're my kind all right if they're not in my class Now Ill I'll tell you the whole thing thing- in a nutshell and andis Its is Just this Im president of this bank and these fellows are directors for just one thing thing- and only one oDe and Ill I'll tell you what that is is- is Tell me returned the younger man Cowenhoven smote the table with his hand I Its to steal that eight hundred thousand odd weve we've got here on de deposit deposit deposit de- de posit and by heavens were we're going to todo todo todo do It He drew a a. plug plug- of tobacco from his pocket and bit off a large piece of it The cashier started to speak but Cowenhoven Cowenhoven Cowenhoven Cow Cow- stopped him Now see here weve we've got you where the hair is short Understand nd Youve You've got to go up Ill I'll see to that anyway The only question Is whether youre you're willing to steal this eight hundred thousand for us and go up for it and get your share of the swag sag when you come out If you dont don't do it you go up anyway anyway anyway any any- way and well we'll take the stuff in some other wa way and cut and run with it If you do it you'll have something when you come out and your confession confession confession confes confes- sion will exonerate us and were we're out of at it tee see seer The youn young man settled down In his chair with his chin in his hand and thought for a a. long long while Ill do it he finally replied Til Tildo do It upon two conditions and only two The first is that my share goes at onto once to a a. person I shall name and the second Is that every everyone one of you sign a statement at once Implicating yourselves In the whole thing Accede to that and Ill I'll go co you you The older man shook his head What do you want the paper for he JIe inquired suspiciously The cashier placed d his hand on hC C Cowenhoven's e knee I Ill Til tell you why he replied If I dont don't get my share when I come out Ill I'll have som something hing up against you fellows fellows fellows fel fel- fel- fel lows to make you come down with enough enough that's that's all Im I'm not taking any chances Ill I'll do that or nothing Its a go You'll get It tonight he said finally Shake I They shook As their eyes met the cashier spoke When does the big deal come off he Inquired the matter with Wednesday night nigh t responded the president Wednesday night it is then re returned returned returned re- re turned the cashier a r The next morning was Tuesday The president reached the bank at 10 He fie was met at the door by one o othe of the clerks clerks clerks-a a white gasping staring spectacle Mr Cowenhoven he exclaimed breathlessly and then almost colla col col- col- col la lapsed s Cowenhoven pulled him together What the devil is the matter with the boy he exclaimed Mr rr the the cashier gasped the clerk Well what about him Gone Gone cleared cleared out with out with every cen cenIn cent In hl the bank The devil he has exclaimed Cowl Cow Cow- Cowenhoven en v l He loosed sed his hold on the boy andI and I strode down the street to fo the hotel In Ina Ina a back room sat half halt a dozen men directors directors di directors di- di rectors of the bank He burst in upon them I gone gone cleared cleared out out done done us dirt he sputtered out And then he told them One man cooler than the rest spoke up This Is nothing he be said He Hes reS re'S s only a a. day or or two ahead of ot time Well We'll hear from him all right It was probably probably probably I ably more convenient to him at the time Well We'll hear from him is game g m All weve we've got to do is wait By Br George exclaimed the president president president dent iq in a relieved tone of voice By George George youre youre you're right That's what it is Is game W Well We'll ll hear from him All weve we've got to do is to wait And so they waited And they are wal waiting ting yet S Somewhere over yonder on the road to lo Mandalay where the flying Hying fishes play the cashier cashler spends like water what he got in Bolton Bay And Mlle Mile well Victorine-well Victorin weIl well R S The management of the Belton Bay bank never located the cashier They never even tried They considered the matter and concluded that it was somewhat too delicate to deal with especially after taking into account the paper they had tuned signed And so it was after all |