The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1872-08-08
THE STol.nls NOTE.
BY a RETIRED ATTORNEY.

Y
man. His one great fault hung like a
dark shadow over his many virtues
He meant well, and when he was So
Der he did well.
He was halter by trade, and by in
dnstry md thrift had secured money
sufficient to buy the house in which he
resided. He had purchased it several
years before, for three thousand dol
lars, paying one thousand dollars down,
and securing the balance by mortgage
to the seller.
The mortgage note was almost due
at the time circumstances made me ac-
quainted with the affairs of the family.
But Wallace was ready for the day; he
had saved up the money there seemed
to be no possibility Of an accident. 1
was well acquainted with Wallace,
having done some little collecting, and
drawn up some legal documents for
him.. One day his daughter Annie
came to my office in great distress, de-
claring that her father was ruined, and
that they should be turned ont Of the
house in which they lived.
aPerhaps not Miss Wallace" said I,
trying to console her, and give the af.
lall, WnaCeseI ~ woS," " oAASAo "SPcOs'
"What has happened {!
my iather .as sne repnen, pns%.~a mad e, the the
money 10 pay the uiOrtysee on the
house in which We live, but it is all
gone now.
"Has ne lost 1t
II don't know, l suppose 60. Last
week he drew two thousand dollars
from the bank, and lent It TO Mr.Brycc
for ten days.
VINO ID MT. bryce
"Hc is broker MY miner got ac-
quainted with MN through George
Chandler, VINO Doards Mltn us, ana
who Ii Mr.. Bryc6s clerk q
"DOes Mr.. Bryce refuse 10 pay III
"He says he has paid n.
"Well, what - the trOuDae tnen
.Father says he has not paid II "
"Indeed! Bat the note Will prove
that he has not paid 1t. Of course yOu
have the note SCI
@N0. Mr.. Bryce has II.
"Then of course he has paid IT,.
II suppose he has, or he would not
have the note" sq.t
@What does your father say !"
@He Is positive that he never recelv-
cd the money. The mortgage, he says,
must be paid Tomorrow
Every singular. Was yonr faith
er-"
/ hesitated to use the unpleasant
word which must have grated harshly
ON the ear of the devoted girl.
"Mr. Bryce says father was not quite
right when he paid him, bnt not very
bad "a
81 will see your father"
"He is coming spp here, in a few oAs-
tl6aatS., 4 tAOdRht would see you
first, and tell you the facts before he
came
II do not see how Bryce could have
obtained the note unless he paid the
money. Where did your father keep
Iit?"
ale gave ii to me and l put it into
! the Secretary"
"Who was in the room when you
put it in the secretary" ?"
sMr. Bryce, George Chandler, my
! father and myself"
The conversation was here interrupts
cd by the entrance of Wallace. lie
looked pale and haggard, as much the
effect of anxiety rs from the debauch
from which he was recovering.
.She has told You about it sup
pose,' said he, in very low tone.
ssShc has,
I pitied him, poor fellow, for two
thousand dollars was a very large sum
for him to accumulate in his little bus
iness. The loss of it would make the
future look to him like a desert. II
would be a misfortune which one must
undergo TO appreciate ii.
"What passed between you that
day"
AHe says Mr.. Bryce remarked, when
he sent him. that he was going to nav
the money"
/ aJust so.'
sAnd when George came in he went
into the office again and took the
money. Then he came back to me
again, and did offer to pay me the
money"
sHad You the note with YOU p,
"No; now remember, he said he
supposed / had not the note with me, Ol
he would pay it. told him to come in
the next day and / would have II
Ircady-that was YESTERDAY. When ]
came to look for the note, 1t could moi
be found Annie and have hunted
the house all oyer.n
"You told Bryce SO
| - did. He laughed and showed
his note, with his signature crossed
lover with INK, ana punch hole
through 1t.