The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1875-06-19
CHAPTER XI.
TIE FRAUDULENT BONDS.

To secure a height which at first seemed
inaccessible, to gain a point involving all
the energies and thoughts Of an individual,
to obtain the elimination Of a lifelong
endeavor to find the end attained, and to
see plain sailing in the future-such paral-
lels express the condition Of Eugene Fa-
ber upon the day when Bill Forest, the
convict, came to him with the welcome
intelligence the Shooting Star had sailed
for Australia with his hated and dishon-
ored cousin, Cecil Elsmond, on board.
The last and only obstacle in my way
is removed, he cried. gleefully. % have
sstSi..esi my Oh; ST, ara eSi ts0i discretion.
will secure to me what ] nog desire. In
funds belonging To the company, which I
shall appropriate. l have nearly twenty
i've Thousand pounds. In property by the
deeds ! have so skllfully forged ! own
Cecil Esmond's unlncumbered town house
in Westminster Square, and nothing hind
ers me from obtaining the hand of the
fair young Evrline, Sir Edward Berton's
daughter The end to all my struggle
and toll is over, and my every object is
attained. You are sure he has gone I" he
inquired, aloud of Forest.
Yes"
And the Star does not touch at any
place until she reaches Sydney in Austria
liza r.
The vessel is bound direct for Sydney,
and Captain Scott will see that Mr.. Es-
mond does not leave the vessel until it
reaches its destination. Besides he has no
disposition to re>mrn to England"
That evening the ex secretary Of the
Australian Gold Mining Company repaired
again to the residence Of Sir Edward Ber-
ton. He found Eyehne pale and sad, and
was not a little chagrined at her evident
neglect Of himself, and her solicitude for
her fugitive lover. He saw that her love
for him had not been uprooted, and he re.
turned home determined and satisfied to
wait until time had in measure removed
her affection for Cecil Esmond.
One week later the affairs Of the Au
stralian Gold Mining Company were SUN
narily closed up. The auditor paid all
bonds presented, and in less than month
every bond had been paid except the ten
thousand pounds IN fraudulent bonds.
! These were held in trust by the auditor,
and after the villa and other property
mortgaged to the government had been
sold, the parties holding the fraudulent
bonds levied on the residue over the one
hundred thousand pounds obtained by the
sale of the Derty, and we're paid The
bonds were ~ rs evidence Of fraud, to
be used against Cecil Edmond should he
ever be spprehended aud brought to trial
There was one very singular thing, how
ever, which came up IN the settlement of
these claims. All the good boLds were
numbered from TO 1000, and the cou-
pons for 3l00 each bore the same number
The fraudulent bonds were numbered Ill,
I12, 1l3, ia, ll5, ll6, III, 119, 1l9, and
l2U. The bonds numbered l0l, 1U2, l03,
l04, 105, LOG, 107, l08, l09, and ITO, we're
missing. Possibly these bonds had been
also fraudulently issued perhaps in blank
had been destroyed. But whether de
stroyed or still ahOat and uncancelled no
word of them was received.
This fact caused the ex secretary no
small amount Of anxiety ana worriment.
He knew that the company had blank
bonds numbered from one to two hundred.
One hundred Of these had been issued,
registered and sold up to the day upon
which our story opened. When he con
templated the issue Of the fraudulent
bonds, he took from the drawer where the
remaining one hundred blank bonds were,
ten blank bonds to ill out He was GER
J tain he took from 101 to ITO inclusive, and
yet no such numbers were on the recov-
cred fraudulent bonds in the auditors
office. The numbers there were from Ill
to l20 inclusive. How had this come
about He looked at the remaining blank
/ bonds-there were only 80 left - from
numbers Ill to 200 inclusive. Twenty OF
the bonds were gone, and yet only tel
were to be accounted for. Could Cecil
Esmond have also unknown to him issued
ten fraudulent bonds. No, it could not
be. He finally settled the business in his
mind by believing that ten Of the bonds
had been destroyed in blank, and he had
been mistaken about issuing the bondl
from 10l 20 ITO inclusive.
So the failure Of the Australian Cole
Mining Company, the issue OF the fraud
ulent bonds, the disappearance of Cecl
Esmond, and the entire affair was nine
day wonder, and then business resumed
its natural course, the failure was thin.
of the past, and Cecil Esmond almos
passed ont of the minds Of men.
Only one besides Eugene Faher was con
stantly thinking Of him, that one was tn,
woman whom he had 80 fondly loved ant
who so fondly loved him still-Evelin
Berton.
To BE CONTINUBD.