Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1899-05-31

And. Withal. 1t Has This Beauty:
That the Teller Did His Duty and
Adhered to Facts Exactly. as Good
ors Ought to Do.
In all the go years of his married life
Mr.. Greenup had never forgotten to look
after the valuable portable property of the
family before retiring to rest at night.
1t was his invariable custom to lock up
the jcwelry, gold and silver ware and
other tempting articles of like nature in
a cunningly devised closet of his own in
vcntion let into the wall of the dining
room 50 skillfully that the most expert
enccd burglar would never suspect its
presence.
Then, having concealed in a somewhat
similar way whatever money he happened
t have about him, Mr.. Greenup's unvary
ing habit was to examine the fastenings OF
the doors and windows, place a sheet OF
zinc or tin under the rug at the foot o.
the stairway leading up to the sleeping
apartments-the mission Of this sheet of
metal being to emit a loud noise when
stepped on-after which he always went
to bed.
For the proper understanding of this
narrative it is necessary to emphasize the
fact that these precautions had never been
omitted, no matter how late the hour. To
observe them had become second nature
with Mr.. Greenup.
One night last week, however, when on
the point of making his usual rounds, he
was disturbed by the loud ringing of the
doorhell.
On going in person to answer it he
found a boy with a telegram.
The telegram was to the effect that an
elderly aunt of his wife's was on her way
to visit the family and would be at the
station at 6 o'clock the next morning
Would he please meet her there?
To comply with this request it was
necessary for him to set the alarm clock
for 5 .. m.
When on the point of falling asleep, he
remembered with a sensation like II sud
den Jolt that he had forgotten to secure
the family valuables and examine the
doors and windows.
First time in 20 years." he said to
himself as he prepared to get up again.
Then he lay back and reflected.
"Twenty years. And in all that time
there has never been any attempt to break
into this house. have spent-let me see
at least ten minutes every night locking
things up. Twenty times 366-that's easy
lis 1900. Ten times that figure is $4,000.
Great Scottl l have spent 5000 minutes
that's over 1900 hours, or 100 working
days of ten hours each-in doing some
thing that has proved to be absolutely USE
less. And I haven't allowed anything for
leap years. Perhaps I've been away from
home enough nights to make up for that.
Four solid months thrown away! And
never a burglarl If one wanted to get in
he'd do it anyhow. Does 1t seem likely
that the one night in 1900 when I miss
locking things up is to be the II night
that some burglar is going to select for
robbing this housep Hardly. I'll run my
chances Of it, anyway"
And he went to sleep.
The night sped away.
No sound disturbed the peaceful slum-
bers Of Mr.. Greenup.
Until 5 o'clock q. IN.
Then the alarm clock aroused him.
Intent only on dressing in a hurry, at
tending to the furnace and rousing the
kitchen girl to the necessity Of having a
cup Oh nOU COHec luz auuU HoliotoPO ~
$3.50, and forgetting all about his reiec-
tions and computations Of q few hours
before, he hastened down stairs.
Then the recollection Of his willful neg
ligence, his indolent calculation of chances,
came upon him with u rush.
The air Of the rooms seemed somehow
different. Hastily he lighted the gas and
looked about him. He saw-nothing UNI
usual. Tho house had not been entered.
All, no!
With q feeling akin to sorrow, the mar
rator admits 1t. Fact Ia stranger than fc-
ton, and when REINFORCED by an over
whelming array of figures it would be
madness to fly in the face Of 1t with the
trumped up story Of a burglary that had
only one chance in 1900 Of taking place.
Chicago Tribune.