The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1895-08-14
An IrIsb Bonkinc Incident.

Ireland has good reason to be proud
of her banks, and their system of
banking is perhaps as perfect az any
that can be devised. The small local
banks and private banking firms
which are so numerous in England do
mot exist in the Emerald Isle, and their
absence gives an air of stability to
Irish banking which it might not 9TH
erwise possess, Instead, Ireland has
nine great banks, and these have so
spread network of branches over the
country that every little town and viii
lage is provided with banking accom-
mediation.
The Irish peasant is, as rule, hon
est In his dealings with the bank. OF
course he is no better than any one
else in this respect; he will take all the
money the bank is willing to lend him,
without considering whether he is ever
likely to be able to return 1t. Fur
ther, if hard pressed, he will resort to
every means in his power to defeat the
banks process But all this is, in his
opinion, fair and above-board. He has
also disposition to keep anything he
is overpaid, and to look on it as sort
OF godsend, which 1t would be unlucky
TO return. With those exceptions,
however, he is fairly straight; and dur
ing an experience of twenty-tree years
I have met with but one case of down.
right roguery. This happened on a
busy fair day, when I had large
crowd before me waiting to be paid.
was cashing a check for respectable
cattle-dealer, and while he was count
ing the money, l had turned to attend
ito somebody else, when l heard him
say, II think this is a pound short,
sir" perhaps So" I said; "let me
see" took the notes, counted them,
found it was as he had stated, and
handed him another pound Some fif-
teen minutes afterwards a man whom
I had just given some five-pound notes,
called out ''This is five pounds short"
! knew this could not be, for the first
mistake had made me particularly
careful. I told the man to count his
money again He did, and then threw
the notes back to me, saying he would
like to see me make them more. I
reckoned them; they were certainly
five pounds short, yet felt as positive
as I had ever felt about anything, that
the money was correct when I gave it
ito him.
I deliberated for an instant what I
should do. No use to tell him to come
back in the evening after I had bal
anced my cash, for I suspected he had
the money, and knew that if he once
left the office I would never see it
again. 7 recollected now having seen
him near the counter when I was pay
ing the cattle dealer the pound his
money was short, and felt convinced
that had a rogue to deal with.
Accordingly, I passed round to the
public part of the office, and examined
the floor under the counter; but the
note was not there. There was big
crowd looking on, and the fellow pre-
tended to be very indignant at being
doubted. I asked him if he had any
objection to turn his pockets inside
out, and he Immediately emptied their
contents on the counter. He also
opened his waistcoat, permitted me to
examine his sleeves, and expressed his
willingness to undress himself alto
gether if / wished. I was fairly puz-
zied, and was about to give 1t up, when
it occurred to me to look under his
boots. When asked him to move his
feet, however, he emphatically de-
clined to do so, and knew at once his
reason for refusing. I half turned tc
request the manager to send for a po-
aiceman, and as did so saw the fell
low give his leg a. sudden kick back
which sent the note flying from under
his boot across the floor. I should
have liked to prosecute this man fol
attempted fraud, if only for the sake
of example; but my superiors advised
to let the matter drop. So he got off
Chambers Journal.