The Arizona sentinel. [volume] (Arizona City [Yuma], Yuma County, A.T. [Ariz.]) 1872-1911, 1885-11-14
BANKERS ANECDOTES.
How Persons Who Handle Other
Peoples Money are Tempted.
1t Was the President, Not the Boy, Who
Was theThief-Russeu Sage's Econ
omy-An Honest Clerk Declines
to Steal 100000.

1hreo Q0Wn-tOWn bankers sat at q
lunch table in one of the cozy eating
rooms on the top floor of the Mills
building. 1t was after banking hours on
lpleasant autumn afternoon. The mild
sunlight peered through bull eye win
low facing the bay and danced merrily
,ver the glIttering silver and glass para
,hernaia of the table. 1t also caused a
,laze of light to flash from the jeweled
carf of one of the bankers. The three
gentlemen had met by accident. and
hey tarried over their coffee and cigars
enjoy a half hours social chat. One
If the number had suggested the de-
irability of throwing greater safe
guards around the cash vaults of banks.
Additional checks should be placed
Ipon the cashiers and telers,' he said.
"Banks must either put stop to these
requent defalcations or they will suf-
er through the speedy loss Of E Bio
,onfdence." "
The youngest and smallest mem
Der of the trio, who Is q hriss
1sttGb 60 .-----if- al--i- - - A7-- 7-f--
whiskers, q dearlh Of hair on his head
md keen, observing eye, exclaimed.
"Pshaw what can you do? It is i'm
possible to keep 3 man honest by
watching him. You must trust your
cashier and you must trust your teller
20 certain extent, no matter how strict
Tour methods are. If a man has a
grain of dishonesty in him the realiza-
ion that he is being watched will ex-
lite his baser qualities, and in nine
cases out of ten will make thief of
lim. There is that in human nature
hat makes a man-especially clerk
proud of being trusted. Some men,
however, are bound to be thieves, and
whether you watch them or trust them
makes no difference. have in mind a
notable case of what 1 call instructive
dishonesty"
''Let US hear it." exclaimed the other
7wo gentlemen, setting back comforta-
bly, in their chairs.
''All right, you shall lave it. When
my clearinghouse was IN Wall street l
10 5000 in United States Treasury
notes of large denominations One of
my customers had left the notes at nv
nffice with request that they be sent
tothe bank of -, which was then, as
you know, one of the soundest financial
Institutions in the city. Ny customer
wanted his notes exchanged for a GER
lifted check draw by that particular
bank. OF urse, after taking the or
der, turned the matter over to one of
my clerks a7d thought no more about
ffDr-f fho4 Io1v n farr a. s
terward the owner of the Treasury
notes came Tor his certified check and l
called upon my ohkeeper for it.
why, have seen no such check said
the bookkeeper.
But YOU must have it, l insisted.
q remember distinctly telling you to
send the notes to the Bank of - and
exchange them for a certified check.
II recall the circumstance now,'
said the bookkeeper, 'but no check was
ever brought to me-
"A dligent search was then made
through the Office and it die not take long
to find the clerk who had dispatched the
package of treasury notes to the bank.
He speedily picked out the messenger
whom he had sent to deliver the notes.
y L Il,
very honest and faithful. He remem-
bered having taken the package to the
bank, but he said that he did not re-
member any instructions concerning
certified check. He was positive that
he took the notes where he was told to
take them, but he could not recollect to
whom he gave them. He came directly
back to my office and nothing was said
to him about certified check. Well, |
sent my confidential clerk to the Bank
OF -, and he saw the president, cash
ier and receiving teller, and was as
sured in the most positive manner by
each one of them that no
such package of treasury notes
as described had been received at
their bank. Next 1 subjected my mes
senger boy to a searching cross-exami-
nation. He stoutly insisted that he had
delivered the package as directed, but
being mere lad he naturally became
nervous and began to cry. I told him
thai If he had lost the package and
would tell ime all about it would | forgive
him. He, however, persisted in his
frs statement, and believing that he
bad either stolen or lost the notes |
discharged him. At the same time l
sent the numbers of the missing notes
to the Treasury Department at Washing
ton with the information that the notes
ha" either been lost or stolen"
- ell?' Interrogated the listeners,
as the speaker paused.
Almost year passed before | heard
any ythlng of those notes. One day re-
ceiYed o letter from the Treasury De-