| Show money to by peter IS aysse M by voter peter 13 kyna service A A A A A A THE STORY hiram butterworth raiser miser decides to leave his fortune to a nephew elmer clarke of whom he h e has received favorable reports roe ree but butterworth t edworth tells his lawyer absolom Me Peake ot of having swindled a man out of forty years before and arranges for payment with interest terest butterworth dies suddenly I 1 CHAPTER II 11 4 mrs airs matilda bray familiarly known in Pilar eltos as old lady bray who came on duty at seven a in I 1 to handle the night letters arriving at the telegraph oin ce closed her key sat back and rend read with litterest interest the message she bad just received for elmer clarke will wonders never ceasel cense 1 the good soul murmur 1 I and reached fur for the tele telephone P hone when it responded she asked to have miss nellie cathcart called to the telephone A long wait then nellie said I Ilc lello llo Ne nellie Illel 1 what do you suppose has happened tills this Is mrs bray af pf the telegraph office speaking E elmer I 1 in er charkes clarkes Cl arices arkes uncle ibrain butterworth died back in iowa yesterday you knew that you yes mrs bray well just tills minute I 1 took a night letter from a lawyer directed to elmer of course and uncle hirama rams will has been opened and elmers been left a million dollars I 1 do you hear roe me nellie A million dollars it wonderful nellie im very happy at elmers good fortune mrs airs bray elmers good fort fortune unel old lady dray bray practically shrieked the words what about your good for fortune tunal have you just received the message over the wire mrs airs bray nellie Cath carts voice was calm tills this very minute well ali then en mrs airs bray why not send the telegram to elmer immediately and permit him to be the ohe one to tell the world of its his good fortune but I 1 thought why I 1 I 1 thought want to know it farst 1 I tear fear you think too much about other peoples business dear car mrs dray bray the telephone clicked nellie cathcart had hung up miserable ungrateful little cat snarled old lady bray and immediately mine called rev mr air claude goodfellow pastor of the first christian church of which elmer Cl arices arkes mother now deceased had been a member to mr goodfellow old lady bray in confidence tills time related the ne news ws of what she termed elmer eimer clarkes charkes Cl arkes windfall mr air goodfellow promised to respect tier her confidence and immediately returned to the breakfast table and told his wife and eldest daughter five minutes later lils his eldest daughter alice telephoned ansel moody president and sole owner of the Pilar eltos commercial trust savings bank mr moody was the treasurer of her fathers fathies church and as a banker he would naturally be interested in the prospect of a new account of such magnitude moreover miss alice was ansel moodys moods bookkeeper and was aware that some months previous elmer clarke had approached her employer with a proposition to lend him five thou thousand sandl dollars on his house and lot in C street at the time old ansel had turned a cold ear to the request and elmer had left the bank disappointed and angry anar Y now old ansel told alice she was a girt girl and as she hung up the receiver she was aflutter with the prospect of a salary raise immediately upon hearing from alice goodfellow ansel moody telephoned phoned to old lad lady y bray and ordered her to withhold delivery of the telegram to elmer clarke for one hour the banker was the telegraph com banys principal customer and old lady bray would have trembled for her position hvid hail she failed to obey hla order at half past seven that thai morning elmer clarke left his home and set forth to the locus of his labors jn in Samilla skids smoke Shop peat at the corner bf malland main Mala and F streets elmer r clarke was sam na baskins skins principal assistant and for ills his services drew i a stipend of forty dollars a week a sum regarded in Pilar eltos as truly princely at the corner of 0 and main streets elmer paused before a vacant store above the portal a faded blue and gold sig sign agn informed whoever might have been interested sufficiently to wonder what local industry had on tills this spot taken root withered and died that once upon a time 11 II wa wasser 3 ser vogel had here dispensed choice stall fed ments meats every morning of his life en route to the smoke Sli oppe elmer clarke was wont to pause before this dusty and forlorn arena of 11 II Wasser despair and in ills his minds eye make ikover it over into elmer Cl charkes clarkes Clar arkes kea kerle and sanitary barber shop and the Nonpar lel billiard an and pool parlor elmer knew to the last nail exactly how flow it could be done provided he could borrow five thousand dollars on the lot and bungalow lie had inherited from ills his mother five thousand together with ills his savings would enable him to transform the deserted butcher shop into something that would draw trade from sam has kins smoke so fast that within a year the latter place would resemble the ruins of one of those maya cities in the jungles of yucatan the trouble with II 11 Wasser rogel elmer ruminated rumina ted was that lie he had too much overhead lie ile could have got along with half the and sub slit leased the other half if I 1 A morning lornIng elmer a cheerful voice hailed tle lie turned and gazed luto into a countenance that so somehow mellow appeared vaguely familiar after the second look lie he recognized ansel moody whom lie he had seen every day for ive five years why I 1 recognize you moody elmer replied flippantly and disrespectfully to the banker ile he had been the first man in to call old ansel to ills his face anything but mr air moody no sir I 1 alze you nt af first you were sn smiling illing ila iia ba hal I 1 ilal iia ila iia har bal old ansel barked mirthlessly still holdin little grudge eh elmer 1 I still feel the old pain elmer re plied piled candidly youre a pawnbroker not fiot a banker most bankers lend some money on ability and integrity but you want collateral worth fully GO 60 per cent more than the loan and even then you require a responsible indorse ment 11 well 1 elmer us ua bankers aint got all the say pay bout that old ansel soothed him we got to bp be careful Ilo however wever I 1 been your proposition over ir since you was in the bank last an ive about conic come to tn the conclusion ill take a chance on you yon elmer why mr air moody Alo I 1 the great man rumbled on ive conic come to the conclusion ti that tat if you was to get set get up in it a swell ewel I 1 place of your own sum sam trade would follow you emer E mer like drunkards to 11 wrecked rum mm ship whenever youre ready elmer come down to the bank an see me ill give you a loan of five thousand on your property in C street an er old aksels face took on a harried questing took you pretty sure you can git by on five thousand himer elmer I 1 bite off moren more n I 1 could chew if I 1 was you start ln oil out t but er cr well I 1 really ought to have ten tell thousand I 1 have twenty five hundred in your savings depart department meni it if put that twenty five hundred into the venture by gravy show confidence in your enterprise elmer an ill give you an open credit of twenty five hundred more fair aint it more than fair mr moody ll im afraid I 1 was a little hasty with you that day and this morning hut but then old ansel raised a deprecating hand dont mention it elmer A fellers bound to make tul stakes ive made em cm myself come see me when youre ready to shoot and with n friendly wave of his hand ban lie he was off to open his little red brick hank bank for the business of the day at the corner of main and Ds rev claude goodfellow Good fello v met elmer with a broad smile of brotherly love and appreciation ile he cut around reverend goodfellow and continued on liia ills way before he had reached E street lie he had been accosted by fourman four men and two women with whom he was not particularly well acquainted certainly not friendly and he be could not help noticing that they had gone out of their way to speak to him mildly kindly und and shake hands they had never lone done that before so elmer wondered what liri lie had that they wanted and eventually clime came to the conclusion that it roust be bt alft lawn mower elmer was the only householder in his blo block C k who owned a lawn mower which was kept in excellent running or order d er TO BE CONTINUED |
