Omaha daily bee., 1874-08-12

was to Toy" 1 could not stol
him. He developed his nlans. Witt
a frankness which astonished m,
he gave me details OF his private
fortune, which was ample. Th,
money he had il the firm was to b.
untouched. I was to attend to the
South American business. Endowed
at twenty years of age with no end
ofenergy, but having a circumspect.
ness even beyond my years, I com.
batted the South American scheme,
At last it was daybreak before the
matter was settled; a reluctant con.
sent was given on my part. AT the
business L went tooth and nail. NV
principal occupied himself with the
general plan of the business, but all
the details of purchases anu ship
ments devolved on me. My sum-
mer vacation was passed in attend
ing to it. Two or three shipments
were made, and my heart was in
my mouth until reimbursements
came. We cleared some $50, 900 in
a six months, in gold, on the first
shipment. awe shall stop now" I
said. "Here is money enough made
for a first venture, and you have
means row for explorations in Peru.
"Nonsense, my dear boy" was the
reply, Kit will take a quarter of a
million before 1 can even begin.
This time IL people want artillery
trains. At it again. Chances are
more than ever in our favor. We
are to be paid heavily this time, and
in addition 1 have had a concession
made me of some hundreds of square
miles in Peru, exactly where my
researches are to commence" 1
pleaded and pleaded in vain, but
was bound to the wheel. A lighter
positiOn-one occupying me but a
few hours-was given me in the
office, and all the rest of my time
was devoted to the arms business.
1 had managed, so far, to be very
clrcumspect in my purchases, but
could not be always on my guard.
All large banking houses have a
peculiar set of men, who frequent
them-Old men often, who some
times comes for news, or who make
occasional purchases. Often these
persons may have been acquaintan-
ces of many years. standing, who
had been on intimate terms of
friendship with the fathers of the
present firms, and who are allowed
the privileges of the offices. Among
these friends was an old man who
dealt particularly in notes. He was
a Frenchman, who spoke English
fluently and elegantly, with scarce
an accent. Pick him up in the
street, and you would not think he
vas worth five dollars. One suit of
clothes sufficed him all the year
round. For ten years l had known
him to wear the same bandanna
handkerchief round his neck.
A new bandanna marked
a decade in his life. He was highly
educated, and, though filthy in per-
son, had, strange to say, distingue
His passion was money
making. With a flare, as the
have it, a keen sense of i'm
pending trouble, he was ever ready
improve the situation to his profit.
| could not call him q vulture, nor
one would suck your blood or pick
your ones(commerciallv with a rel
ish. Balzac's Gobseck was not exact
ly like him, 70. this old Frenehman
was charitable to a certain degree,
away every year q fixed sum
to benevolent institutions. But a
note once purchased by him, ithad to
be paid to the minute. His word was
bond. Ifhe purchased a note for
Observation-Disclosures he took q few
risks, only buying gilt-edged paper
he never gave his check for it.
His signature few had ever seen,
He would draw the bill himself from
bank, and pay in money for the
notes. His curiosity, his acquaint-
with everything in the city
was wonderful. No man failed, or
ever was OF the eve of it, but this
character knew it. With
intuitive perception akin to the
marvellous, he would, with a single
sniff of his long thin nose, smell out
a genuine, bone tide note, issued in
a legitimate way, from a kite. Oc-
.asionally he would stray into our
private office. He had a taste for
art, andone day when 1 was alone,
aSpanish dictionary for a
word / wanted, he entered and
up a fragment of q South
idol, which was in use as
paper weight.
(1b be continued.)