Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1886-09-06

said Tom Walker.
"You shall lend money at two per
cent MONTH"
"Egad, I'll charge four !' replied
Tom Walker.
"You shall extort bonds, foreclose
mortgages. drive the merchants to
bankruptcy"
sI'll drive them all to the d."
cried Tom Walker.
''You are the usurer of my money!"
said black-legs with delight. "When
will you want the rhino?''
''This very night"
s'Done!" said the devil.
"Done!" said Tom Walker.
So they shook hands and struck a
bargain.
A few days time saw Tom Walker
seated behind his desk in counting
house in Boston.
Toms reputation for ready-mon-
eyed man, who would lend money
out for good consideration, soon
spread abroad. Everybody remem-
bers the time of Governor Belcher,
when money was particularly scarce.
1t was time of paper credit. The
country'h had been deluged with gov
ernment bills, the famous Land Bank
had been established /; there had been
a rage for specializing; the people
had run mad with new schemes for
new settlements for building cities
in the wilderness land-jobbers went
about with maps of grants and town
ships, and Eldorados, lying, nobody
knew where, but which everybody
was ready to purchase.
In word the great speculating
fever which breaks out every now and
then in the country had ragged to an
alarming degree; and everybody was
dreaming of making sudden fortunes
from nothing. AS usual the fever
had subsidized; the dream had gone
off, and the imaginary fortunes with
it; the patients were left in doleful
plight. and the whole country re-
sounded with the consequent cry of
"hard times"
At this propitious time of public
distress did Tom Walker set up as
usurer in Boston. His door was soon
thronged with customers. The needy
and adventurous the gambling spec
ulator; the dreaming land jobber; ;
the thriftless brakeman; the mer-
chant with cracked credit; IN short,
every one driven to raise money by
desperate sacrifices, hurried to Tom
| Walker.
Thus Tom was the universal friend
of the needy, and acted like "a friend
in need;' that is to say, he always
exacted good pay and good security.
In proportion to the distress of the
applicant was the hardness of his
terms. He accumulated bonds and
mortgages; gradually squeezed his
customers closer and closer; and
sent them at length, dry as sponge,
from his door.
In this way he made money hand
over hand; became rich and mighty
man land exalted his cooked hat upon
Change. He built himself. as usual,
a vast house, out of ostentation but
left the greater part of it unfinished
and unfinished, out of parsimony.
He even set up carriage in the full
ness of his vain glory, though he
nearly starved the horses which drew
it; and as the ungreased wheels
groaned and screeched on the axle
trees, you would have thought you
heard the souls of the poor debtors
he was squeezing.
AS Tom waxed old, however, he
grew thoughtful. Having secured
the good things of this world. he be-
gan to feel anxious about those of
the next. He thought with regret of
the bargain be had made with his
black friend, and set his wits to
work to cheat him out Of the condi-
tions. He became, therefore, all of
a sudden, violent churoh-goer. He
prayed loudly and strenuously, as if
heaven were 10 be taken by force of
lungs. Indeed, one might always
tell when he had sinned most during
the week, by the clamor of his Sun
day devotion. The quiet Christians
who had been modestly and stead
fastly travelling Zionward, were
struck with self-reproach at seeing
themselves SO suddenly outstripped
in their career by this new made
convert.
Tom was as rigid in religious as in
money matters he was a stern su-
pervisor and censurer of his neigh
bors, and seemed to think every SIN
entered up to their account became a
credit on his own side of the page.
He ever talked of the expediency of
reviving the persecution of Quakers
and Anabaptists. In word, Toms
zeal became as notorious as his
riches.
Still, in spite of all his strenuous
attention to forms, Tom had lurk-
ing dread that the devil, after all,
would have his due. That he might
not be taken unawares, therefore, it
is said that he always carried small
bible in his coat pocket. He had
also great folio bible on his count
ing house desk, and would frequent
Iv he found raadino If wban naopIa