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By GEORGE RANDOLPH
CepyrUht, 1915,
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Walllnflford a Bankar.
S bljr nnd ccnlal Jim Walllngford.
and lean and dapper Blacklo
Daw swung off the train, the
two Warden girls rushed up
to meet then), eager and excited.
"Wo thought the train would never
conic,' said Violet, slipping her hand
through BlacUlc's arm and casting
down her lasbes after he had gaed
quite long enough Into hcl sparkling
blue eyes. "You're more than nn hour
late."
"I had the train stop to gather these
violets for thee," grinned Blacklc, and
with a tremendous nourish presented
lier with a smooth little- whlto bos,
tied with a florist's ribbon.
"And 1 supiosc you plucked the
boxes from a box hedge," laughed
Fannie Warden, the flush of welcome
still on her brown checks. She was
happily untying the ribbon bow, nnd
big J. Itufus was smiling down at her
In pleased content.
"Business before pleasure," he chuc-
klcd. He led the way to a waiting
bus, and as it started the rattle of the
Infernal contraption gave them as
much privacy as if they had been lock
ed In a vault "What do you know
about rrlne?"
"Not as much as we had hoped to
flad out," reported Fannie, "He prac- )
tically owns the town, and we know
that he is guilty, for he recognized us
when wo went into his bank and drop-
"Get Back to Your Work, Qualey."
ped his eyes. We've Investigated all
the directors of the bank and all the
employees. The directors we can't
get anything out of."
"They're a sporty crowd." Interrupt
ed Violet. "They spend a tremendous
amount of money. Tell them about
Qualey. Knnule."
"I was coming to him." went on
Fannie, her brown eyes deeply thought
ful. "He's the head bookkeeper at the
bunk. He knows us too."
"He Jumps and Jerks every time he
sees ns. so we let him see us as often
as possible." added Violet.
"Hey!" yelled a voice outside. "Hey.
hey. there!"
Running beside the bus was a boy so
freckled that be looked like a Spanish
omelet. He held 1)1 cap in his hand,
and his carrot colored hair was Hying.
He grinned ecstatically as he saw
Blacklc nnd Walllngford nnd Jumped
on the rear step of the bus with a fly
ing leap. He jerked open the door and
thrust In bis head.
"Hey!" he said In a hoarse whisper
nnd reached for the bell strap. "Qun
Jey's leaving the bank!"
"GoodbyJ" cried Violet. Jumping up
as the bus stopped abruptly.
"We'll see you at the hotel," said
Fannie, and the girls were out nnd fol
lowing Toad Jesxup before the men
could offer to help them alight.
The bookkeeper's eyes rounded until
his -high arched brows stopped their
spread.
"There is likely to be an investiga
tion." he guessed, holding his wrist.
"No," growled President Prlne, his
dimple deepening as he realized that
the bookKeeer was still there. "Get
back to your work. Qualey."
A young man knocked while tho bank
directors were In session and came in.
He was a tail young man with an enor
mously high collar nnd a curly fore
lock, nnd ho looked as If he might play
a mandolin In his off hours.
"A gentleman wishes to speak with
tho board," he told President Prlne,
proffering a card, Each of the five di
rectors gianced at tho others. None of
them glanced at the young man,
"J. Itufus Walllngford," read the
president aloud, and the dimple deep
ened In his chin. "Never heard of him."
"Ho says that he only asks for three
minutes," reported tho young man,
tin ummlng his lingers on tho edgo of
tho tuble.'.'Tho tuiio ho was playing in
CHESTER, Creator of "W&ltinfefd,"
by the Star Company. Alt Foreign
Hits 0 ! ftltn ls1lnt I J tiittni tt
Down on Sunset liny." "lie nays that
I he wishes to address the board In the
handling of deteriorating loans. lie's a
: specialist In hanking troubles.'
! Silence Everybody was thinking.
"What kind i:f n looking man Is he?'
1 inquired the "president dubiously.
'A' very largo man," returned the
mandolin player, with no trace of ani
mation coming Into his countenance,
which was an Immovable one. "He's n
very pleasant man. with fashionable
clothes nnd n large diamond In hts cra
vat. He appears to bo some one very
lmrortnn
"Scud htm In." directed President
1'rlue, returning to the board room,
and u minute aud ti half later J.
Itufus Wnlllugford Stood before them,
thoroughly at vase aud tn smiling pos
session of them, every one.
"Gentlemen." said he, In a round
voice which had a suspicion of the ora
torical In it, "I am a professional goat,"
and ho chuckled jovially at them. Ills
broad shoulders heaving, his eyes half
closing, nnd the color of his face deep
ening. ye win," declared
WaJllngford to
Blacklc Daw, as the telepkono bell an
nounced President Prlne. "It's n safe
bet to tell any crook he'd better como
and see you. He always comes."
Blackle rose to go.
"According to your program. I don't
get a speaking part in this until the
last act," he observed.
Stick for tho chat," grinned Wal
comfortable with two in the room."
President Prlne proved the truth of
J that observation by losing a degree of
. his suavity the moment he caught
sight of the lanky, black mnstached
I partner of Walllngford.
"Mr. Daw; Mr. Prlne." introduced
I Walllngford urbanely. "Mr. Daw Is
one of my trusted men. His specialty
t is entering bankruptcy."
j Mr. Prlne. surveying Mr. Daw in the
coal black eye. began to look as if he
were sorry he had come.
"You're Introducing me to a lot of
new thoughts," he observed, deciding
to sit in the big leather chair Walllng
ford pushed forward. The chair look-
; ed 'iuvltlng, but a man sat huddled
back in it so deep and so low that he
was at a tremendous psychological dls-
' advantage. Walllngford, sitting oppo
site in a stiff chair, fairly towered over
him. "You were so vague at the bank
this morning that, I scarcely under
stood anything more than your invita
tion to call. So I have called out of
curiosity."
Wnlllngford grinned down nt him.
"You called to help yourself ont of a
scrape." he declared. looking Mr. Prlnfi
unwaveringly in the eye.
President Prine looked at the door,
but he did not get up. Blackle Daw
watched him a long moment, and then
with a grin, sauntered to the telephone
and ordered drinks. Walllngford. emll
Ing Jovially, paused to wipe bis brow,
his neck and the edge of his collar,
as he always did after winning a
strained iolnt: then he closed the door.
"Thnt's better." he observed, stand
ing big nnd broad before the banker
"Now you can tell me the truth, as you
would to your lawyer or your doctor.
Ill explain my business n little better.
Suppose your bank has loaned a lot of
money on bad notes: suppose that mon
ey was passed by the borrowers to you
and everything nicely covered up so
that you couldn't be called anything
worse than a fool; suppose that when
the time comes to let go you And
there's one unreliable man in the com
bination nnd you don't dare kill him.
Well, you need a goat. I'm it."
President Prlne became less Indig
nant than be was interested.
"I dou't think I follow you."
"I'll explain Mr. Daw's business." re
sumed Wnlllngford as Blacklc returned
from the phone. "He is willing to bor
row any amount of money 'on hts notes
aud not pet the money."
President Prlno's eyes seemed to
'draw closer together.
"I don't see it." he acknowledged,
"No," agreed Walllngford. "If it
were so simple as that you might have
thought of It yourself, ncre's what
we'll do with you for $50,000 we'll
step In nnd bear tho blame for any
thing Irregular In your bank. If any
body's pinched we'll stand the pinch.
If anybody's to go to Honduras we'll
do the traveling."
"now?"
"You step down nnd out of the bnnk
with every bad note for which you are
responsible paid off and entered in the
bank's cash account; then we step in
nnd cover the cash which isn't there.
Suppose you have $300,000 of indebted
ness which you knew couldn't be col
lected when you permitted It to bet
made. Mr. Daw has G.000 acres of line
cotton land, which he hasn't. After
you step out we'll loan him $.'(."0,000 on
that ground, but he only gets $30,000 of
it Tho $300,000 remains In tho bank
to cover your deflclt, and the responsU
blllty for that foolish loan is mine."
President Prlne knotted his brows
for a long tlnie, and then ho smiled.
"The banking laws In this state"
he advised.
"Let us, do the worrying about that.
Now we'll get down to figure and to
details, Mr, Prlne. What are the
amounts of your bogus securities?" '
The rabbit pyed bookkeeper answered,
ar.d CHARLES W.GODDARD
Rights Reserved
tno ben of tnc new manager witn weak
knees, but the hugely Impressive Wal
llugford beamed on hlui with n cordial
good will whleh was so full of vitality
that it seemed llko n tonic.
"Well. Qualey. hero we are," observ
ed Wnlllngford pleasantly.
"Yes, sir," ami Qualey'a face bright
ened for tho llrst time In live years.
"Now we'll tnnko this an honest
bank," chuckled the big man. "Please
bring me these notes." nnd be handed
over a list, one glance at which brought
back Into Qualey'a countenance nil the
wrinkles he had been nccumulntlng
since ho llrst begun to blink tils eye at
tho sight of n brass button.
"Ye, sir," fluttered Qualey. nnd tnk
lug that list Into the vault of the bank,
he leaned his head for Ave minutes
against the cool surface of locker CG2.
When ho brought the familiar notes to
Wnlllngford he laid them down and
crumpled up In n chair like, a ripped
balloon.
"Very good." remarked Wnlllngford.
lighting n thick, black cigar. "These
notes are all to be canceled nnd paid
today."
"I don't ere whr wo can't reslcrnvln n
body nnd be done with It." growled tlw
Ocrco whiskered little director, who had
been out of town nnd was being plung
ed into the whirl of events without ex
planation.
The president, the secretary, tho high
shouldered director nnd tho fat one
with the upturned noso were each ready
to tell him.
"In that case we'd have nothing to
say about our successors," stated Presi
dent Prlne. who was quicker of speech
than the others, nnd his dimple deep
ened with misgiving as ho glanced nt
the four strangers clustered with Wal
llngford around the tick of the grand
father's clock. "Our resignation In u
body would necessitate n special stock
holders' meeting for an election of ofll
ccrs, and slnco we no longer hold n
majority of stock we wotid have suc
cessors who" ho paused for a choice
of words "who would not understand
finance."
"Oh!" observed tho ftcrco whiskered
director, his face lighting with pleas
ure. "As I sec it wo step out of office
with every piece of commercial paper
about which there could be any possi
ble question called in, paid in cash and
canceled." ' g
"All paid." corroborated Secretary
Morris, twlrllmr endlcsslv nt his clossr
brown mustache. Ho was worried tblr
morning, no was about to purchase a
new car, and he could not decide on
which of two makes.
"In cash," added tho high shouldered
director, cracking the knuckles of his
ten Angers In succession. The left
thumb gave him some trouble, but he
managed it.
"Fine!" exclaimed the belated little
director. "Where's the cash?"
"Well, as It Just happens, there U no'
need to handle the actual specie slnco
Mr. Walllngford Informs me that he Is
to make n specie loan of $50,000 morej
man me amount couecieu, anu uis cli
ent will nccept specie orders .on the
amounts represented by the notes, tak
ing the notes themselves for delivery."
The tierce whiskered director puzzled
over that until bis beard began to knotft
nnd then he slipped down into a vacant
chair by tho president
"Let me understand this." ho whls-j
percd, "We don't touch the cash?"
"No,"
"Currency, please," iald Daw,
"Then Mr, WnHfugrorors borrower
gives us his notes for $350,000 aud
tukes nothing in return?"
"Fifty thousand. We'ro not supposed'
to know about this, though," tho presi
dent added. "Wo have no responsible
ity for what tho pew president inuy''
(Continued on Pago. 7)
TO
January
For
The News' solicitor has been adding
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years for $1.50, payabie 50 at a time.
If present subscribers will pay to date and
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1918.
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Try the
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Oregon
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THE LANE COUNTY NEWS,
Springfield, Or.
yyt, -
WITH
Power
1918,
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