The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1896-01-22


largest iankers and brokers III kEoNYilie
anu ten minutes icfurc 10000 in EoI,
had bcrn brought into The Office, III Pay
ment of tote maturing that day. IL wa:
rather an unusual proceeding, but the !cttcl
amour ing the deliN cry uf The money hat
miscarrcd i'll some mysterious way, ant
thus Sic was The only one III the Office
TO receive IL. Although IL WIS scCurey
locked up IN tie sale and sEc alone knew
the cor. Dination, size anNiOusly hoped thai
Mr.. Bangs would speedily return ana relieve
her OF All responsibility in lie matter.
1t was growing late, and the winter
twilight was already darkening the ICON
in which she sat, when TWO rough-.oukiug
men enicrcu the OFFICE and Cooliy prCCccGcC
TO loCk Tie door after them. Just then In,
telerii. lie Len rung sharply, and gong icis
urcIy tC ward the instrument she was a;ou
10 answ ihesumn.ons when one OF them IN
teTECsed.
no, Io, my dear" he chuckled: THAT
wont do at all Hang up the machine and
give us The combination. We've come for
all the gold and intend TO have 1t, even ii
we have TO kill you. Come, out with ii,
quick"
Her heart thumped dangerously loud, but
outwaruiy she was calm and collected us
ever.
Just let me answer the message she
said quietly. You can easily dictate VIVA t
pectins an important message"
"All right answered The other man.
"Give nle the receiver and IN see whether
II is Il proper message ;or you TO hear
She gave up the instrument but expert
enccd queer, faint feeling when a CLEAN
OF light strack the polished handle Of a re-
yolvcr pointed directly at her. just then
the man handed back the receiver with the
words:
..l,p ahead and answer if "
The message was from Mr.. Bangs himself;
he wished to know how much longer she
could stay in the office, as he had been de-
laycd and would he una ble to return Il : soon
as expected. Suddenly, with the courage
born of despair. she remembered that upon
first coming To work for him he had ARA ueed
acodesiguai with the telephone bell by mca ms
of whicA size could at once inform him of
any danger threatening the office. Ii was
simple enough just three rings of the bell
d pause, then another ring. But would he
remember? Five years had elapsed since she
entered his employ as clerk, and during that
time not the slightest occasion had arisen for
putting the code in Use. She rung the bell
ncr. ousiy, thus giving it additional force and
emphasis, while at the same time her busy
brain was conjuring ways and means by
which to make time and delay proceedings.
She waited, coolly saying to the man that
the telephone girl had switched them off;
then she gave the signal a second time, but
as one Of the men was regarding her sus-
piCiOuSly and half started to speak, she at
once said:
Hello! Hello! l shall be able to stay
here until o'clock
Then she rang off and came back to her
work.
The men folio wed, demanding the combi-
nation. She hesitated. saying it was in Mr..
Bangs private desk (whle cIriousiy enough,
rk,g.
stances. ii was wicked TO tell liesj, and as
she did not know the combination they
woaid first have 10 break open the desk.
Immedia tely both men said:
That's too good We know that you are
the only one who can open the safe
Il could work ii all right until that
money was put in therc," she quietly replied;
"then they sent for the safe men and
changed the combination. The only copy of
1t is in Mr.. Bangs desk"
Ste turned to her work. as II Diminishing
them, and one OF the mcn said:
by jovc, but you're a cool onei This little
plaything is loaded, see!''
He thrust his revolver before her eyes but
She sat there, quietly making entries in her
cash book as if it were an everyda occur
renee tohave two men bra ndishing weapons
in her face.
The thieves at last went to work but as
their tools were hardly fitted for the task
and as the desk was very strongly put to-
gcther, they made slow progress. One of
them, meantime, watched her closely, but
this was unnecessary, she told him, as there
was literally nothing for her to do. He
grinned in reply, but still watched her.
The minutes dragged along. Never did
time pass SO slowly. Not of n strong con-
stiution. she could feel herself trembling
all over. but managed, by dint of tremendous
will power. to undauntedly pursue her work.
If they broke open the desk before Mr.. |
Bangs arrival with the hoped-for aid or,
more terrible to imagine, IL he had not |
understood her signal. then all was lost; |
Tor, upon not finding the combination, the |
men would 1T once suspect her dup,icity. and |
then-;hat queer, sick sensation again |
Threatened TO overcome her-then-what |
would become OF her? |
SIddenly it seemed as il she heard one Of |
the stairs outside creak. as though some one |
was stcalihily mounting them; the robbers, |
busy at work in the inner ROOM had eyi.
IDENTIFY heard nothing. Again she noticed |
the so3nd. and then all three doors were |
burst open-a crowd of men and policemen |
flied the Offices-a billet whstled harm |
less'y over her head, and she tnercifuily |
fainted.
When she came to herself Mr.. Bangs was |
bending anXiously over Ter; her head and |
shoulders were drencbed with water, and |
the crowd, policemen, robbers and all, had |
vanished.
This is no romance, but a sober fact, and |
so Mir. Bangs did not marry Miss Harwoo |
a reward for the heroic effort she had made |
to save his money. AS he already had q |
wife, this would have been rather difficult |
to accomplish. But he managed to keep the |
affair ont of the papers and gave her a
vacation, while increasing her-
yearly salary $500.
Still as Mr. BaDCs remarked:
at isn't what you say over the telephone
Or in any other way that amounts TO any
thing: II is what YOU do that tells in the long