The free press. (Poplarville, Miss.) 1890-19??, 1893-09-07

fore somebody will try it on"
"Howl"
'Well, you'll get caller in the
evening probably, and the first thing
you know you'll get rap on the head,
and before you come to he'll have
opened the safe and skipped with your
cash. It's combination, | see, but
if that can't be hit it can be drilled or
blown open. I think I'll make
things little safer for you"
The bank had no cellar, but as stone
was plenty and cost only the labor of
quarrying, the walls were built two
feet thick. To get below the frost
line they had to be sunk nearly five
feet. The space enclosed by the walls
was fiinty soil, so hard that pick
could scarcely disturb it. The floor
of the bank was little more than
four feet above the earth. Tom was
about a week, working at odd times,
to get things i'll shape. He cut out q
trap door in front of the safe, brought
down wires and battery, and when we
had finished we had a contrivance
which he alone had power over from
Grand Crossing. By means of switch
up there he could spring the bolt of
the trap door, and the door worked on
a spring to close the opening again. A
staple in the door and another in the
frame permitted the use of peg, so
there might be no fear of accident dur
ing business hours. The understand
ing we had was that Tom should drop
that door every hour between o'clock
at night and the next morning and
the scheme worked as easy as rolling
off log. For the first few nights the
click of the bolt woke me up as the
door fell, but after time it failed to
penetrate my drowsy senses.
I had to run my bank to suit the
convenience of the public, and it was
never closed before o'clock in the
evening, and was often open until 7.
AS a rule, all persons who wished to
use the safe over night came in be-
tween 6 and 7. 1 gave each one re-
ceipt for whatever he deposited, but
made no charge whatever. Many and
many night that safe held $25, 900
outside of bank money, and on such
occasions l felt bit proud at the con-
fidence reposed in me.
Toms trap had been working for q
month or more when | received q
strange caller one evening at $50.
woman was by no means rare sight
in town, though they were none too
numerous, but this visitor of mine was
a young woman, stylishly dressed, and
as pretty as a peach. I'll admit right
here that had jumping of the heart
at sight of her, and that when she
smiled on me | was as badly 1ustered
as boy caught stealing eggs. She
was from St. Louis, she explained, and
had come ont in search of brother
who was interested III n silver mine,
but had dmysteriously disappeared. She
would be at the hotel for week or
two and wished mo to safe deposit
$500 in greenbacks. She gave me the
name of Miss Nellie to insert IN
the receipt, and you will OF course
smile i'm contempt when I admit that |
had to count that money three differ
ent times to make it come out straight.
| of course offered my assistance in
the search for information, and OF
course she sweetly thanked me and
said she'd come in again. she dld
come, and when | saw her 10y day
light l was clean gone. Regular case
of love at first sight on my part, and l
have no more excuses to offer. ! wrote
several letters for her, and the search
for the missing brother was well be-
gun.
For week Miss Haines dropped
into the bank daily i'll search OF news
and one evening during the interval l.
paid her call ut the hotel. Saturday
afternoon she sent me note saying
she had news of her brother, and that
he would be down from the mountains
about s o'clock in the evening, lie
should be very anxious to go East ny
the 10 O'Clock train, and would NINA
if the two came to the bank at o'lo'
While she had to draw out her money
it was more than likely that he would
have large deposit to make IL siie
hadn't mentioned this latter clrculh-