The Anaconda standard., 1895-12-23

time TO write to you, and yet I know
should have done So especially after
your last act of kindness. The day
after Mr.. Culbertson's return from
Spokane he put me to work keeping
books for the Tiger Mercantile COM
pany. OF course knew at once that I
had you to thank for this change in
my fortune. and do so now from the
bottom of my heart
This happened on the 9th ult.. and
since then ! have been very busy, the
Office work being considerably in ar
rears. and the end of the month being
near at hand. The rush is over now,
the books are up to date and my work
seems to give satisfaction. My health
is splendid. and I am leading almost as
regular a life as ] did in "the other
place" AS told you before. am de-
termined to deserve your friendship.
and / know / will succeed.
winter has set in here in earnest,
and the sun will not strike this town
until about next May. but I do not
know of any other place which would
have suited me better. / suppose you
have told Mr.. Culbertson my past. al
though he has been so delicate as
never even to allude to 1t. even when
he placed me in a position of trust, and
I appreciate IL very much.
There is only one thing which gives
me uneasiness at times. and that is the
thought. or rather fear. that some dis
charged convict might come up here,
and thus my past will be published
But 1t is no use to anticipate trouble.
And now. dear doctor. will close,
with my best wishes and may thanks
for everything. Yours gratefully.
Max Trautwein."
MR. CULBERTSON ASTONISHED.
II was astonished when I received a
telephone message from Mr.. Chapman,
the other bookkeeper, stating that
Trautwein was dead" said Mr.. Culbert-
son, HE was in perfect health when
left Monday night. 1 became much in
terested in Trautwein after had
learned his history. One day late in
October. DR.. Olmsted telephoned to me,
asking me II could give a man work.
saying he was willing to do anything.
/ told him to send him up and would
find something for him to do. When
Trautwein arrived, told him to go up
to the hotel and stay there a few days,
when / would put him to work. I did
not find anything for him to do as soon
as I expected, and one day he came
into the Office during my absence and
left a note on my table, saying he was
exceedingly anxious to get to work.
The penmanship was superb, and /
could not imagine whom the note was
from, having paid no attention to
Il Il
keeper who left the note, and he said
he did not know who the fellow was.
Then IL occurred to me he was the man
Dr. Olmsted had sent me up. / saw
him day or two later and asked him
IL he had left the note, and he said he
had. ! told him he was a pretty good
penman for a laboring man, and he
said he only worked as a laborer
when he could get nothing else to do.
He was willing to do anything in order
to get work. 1 put him to work un-
loading wood from the cars. He
worked faithfully at anything we put
him at.
Along toward the end of last month
we needed help on the books. About
that time l came down here and DR..
Olmsted told me Trautwein's history 1
told him i was sorry to hear it, as I
had about made up my mind to put
him to keeping books. He said he be-
lieved l could trust him. and when
went back to Burke / told Trautwein
was going to put him to work on the
books in the store. He was tickled half
TO death I told him he was to. be put
on the books on trial. and that the
length of time he held the place would
depend altogether on his behavior. He
said he believed ! would have no cause
TO complain, and went to work. He
was splendid bookkeeper, and soon
had the work up in fine shape. I told
the man in charge of the store that the
new bookkeeper had just got out of the
penitentiary, and for him to keep an
eye on him and at the first suspicion of
dishonesty to report him to me. told
the storekeeper not to tell anybody
about Trautwein's past, and no one
else knew II, not even the other book
keeper. The more we saw of him the
better we liked him. He seemed con-
tented and happy, and 1 began to feel
some of DIR. Olmsted's interest in him"