The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1864-04-08

"Just at present." Roe answere |, . they cam
not be sold at any price"
"What do you propose, then, to do with
your own bonds ?" inquired Burton.
II should hold them, by all means" s,id
Roe "that is-if had any,"
s'If YOU had any!" echoed Burton; 'yOu
told me you had fifty thousand dollars of
them"
81 had at one time. my dear friend, an
swered Roe" ''but sold out in April"
"Good God sir!" exclaimed Burton, strid--
ing up to Roe with an air that might easily
have been mistaken for menacing air, you
have sold out and left me in! DO you tell me
that, sir?"
.My dear Burton" cried Roe, "bc calm.
Pray be calm! 1t was the merest accident in
to sell his bonds, and promised to send them
by express the next day. made the sale, and
to accommodate the purchaser, delivered my
own bonds. In the afternoon / received a tele-
gram eountermanding the order 10 sell-but
my bonds were gone"
"Mr. Roe" said Burton, " l came to yOu in
confidence. l trusted you as would have
trusted a brother: placed all my property in
your hands, and left you to manage it without
asking question. You bought for me bonds
which you said were good f'rocing your opin-
ion by an assurance that you held large
amount of them. and securing mine. as it were,
by promising to sell mine if you ever found
occasion to sell yours. You have neverthe-
less. deliberately deceived me- Will you, sir.
give me ten cents on the dollar, for these bonds
namely, fifteen hundred dollars for my fifteen
thousand 2"
Mr. Roe could by no means permit his friend
Mr.. Burton to make such sacrifice; but he
would lend Mr.. Burton five hundred dollars on
the deposit of the fifteen thousand of bonds as
collateral neutrality-suspicious. that the bonds
should be forfeited to Roe if the loan was not
rephd in twenty days.
i l,ol
Gently heard that Roe had accumulated for
tune by purchasing large amounts of worthless
Western bonds at low prices and palming
them eff on cOnfiding friends and customers at
par. He mow believed the story. ''Mr. Roe"
said he, "yOu are the villain that you have
been represented to he; and may that God
whose laws you have outraged bring yOn to
poverty and disgrace. and that right speedily"
No sooner was Mr.. Burton gone than some
body else came in ON similar errand and the
number of this class Of troublesome, captiouS,
complaining customers exceeded a score be-
fore the morning was ended. SO great num-
Der all in one day, forced Richard Roe to re
mark lit never rains but it pOurs."
True; Roe was equal to the emergency.
He didn't break down. He took comfort in
persecution. He knew that blessed are the
persecuted-or something of that kind. Be-
sides he had that morning made several capi-
tai hits in morning prayers and his fund OF
-
having been prosecuted, he was now about to
have q chance to persecute in turn. He had
suffered some at the hands Of Paul, and he
would avenge himself by paving off Peter.
Mr.. Hicks came in with an embarrassed air.
"Mr. Roe, said he, = received your letter.
and"
''And," interrupted Roe, sterniy. you
waited till quarter past three O'Clock before
you replied to it,"
II am very sorry. sir" Hicks began again.
Docs your sorrow pay that note. sir I"
again interrupted Roe. looking as solemn as if
he really asked for information
"Mr Roe, don't be hard On me-" entreated
poor Hicks. Il have already made great sac
rifices to keep down the interest on that loan.
Pray remember sir, thai within six months
have actually paid you forty-two per cent. all
for interest, and you know. Mr.. Roe, that the
security you hold is ample
II know nothing Of the kind" rctorted Roe
peremptorily.
why, Mr.. Roe only consider" said Hicks,
who had relapsed into mental calculation and
lost Roe's last remark, that is at the rate of
eighty-four per cent. year for the use of mo-
ney; and you, MFR. Roe. a Chyistian man.
Why, sir, il is usury aud ruin. The Bible
says" .a.
s'DO you come here, sir. to tell me what the
Bible says p Uninterrupted Roe. in voice of
thunder; 'and you talk to me about usury?
Doesn't your Bible tell you to owe no man any
CnlnS anu QOu you owe lnc Ten tuOuSa0u
dollars? Didn't our blessed SaviOnr cast into
outer darkness the man who owed him one ta-
lent, because the debtor wouldn't pay him his
own usury? Besides, isn't bargain bargain!
Didn't you come to me for ten thousand dol
lars when it, and nothing but it. would save
you from bankruptcy? And didn't you agree
10 pay-yes, offer to pay-d~y rate of interest?
the end of the mouth? And DO you now come
here to talk Bible to me ?" g
''But, Mr.. Roe" gasped Hicks. perfectly
overwhelmed by such torrent OF interrOgatO-
ries. II have paid the interest and you hold
II tell you again, !" thundered Roc, II hold
nothing of the sort"
"Why, Mr. Roe" exclaimed Hicks, ''you
hold fourteen thousand dollars of those Erie
Bonds, which were never, until just now. sold
at less than seventy-five per cent"
'Read my letter again, replied ROe with
sneer that made Hicks tremble.
Hicks drew the letter from his pocket, and
remarked with q faltering voice, "you say
here, Mr.. Roe, that you will sell those bonds
at any price they will bring if the loan is not
paid before three o'clock. But, sir, l was call
ed home by the sudden illness of my wife, and
sent you word that l would call very soon
after three as have DONE"
'And you thought, suppose" continued
Roe, that after had sent you my solemn
promise in writing as to what would do, that
would deliberately break that promise and
not sell the bonds, just because your wife is
sick2 What's your wife to me, sir ? And what
business to name your wife when you can't pay
your debts?"
"But, Mr.. Roe, cried Hicks, regardless of
Roe's brutality trust, nevertheless, that you
have not sold them at their present depressed
price. They have been sold within day or
two as low as sixty-fve."
"They have been sold to-day at .ffiy," re-
piled Roc, sat least ] can answer for one sale
at that price, little lot of fourteen bonds that
held as collateral. They produced just sew
three thousand dollars, balance due on your
note"
Poor Hicks said not one word, bnt dizzy and