The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1899-08-19
\ 1s7- was appointed Cashier Of the

h \ l~7- | was appointed Cashier OF the
First National Bank Of Grassboro, a
little town eff up among the Vermont
hills, and for The first six months OF
my stay there thoroughly enjoyed it Be
fore this I had been il Wall Street, and
Wall Street, as frequently happens, had
cleaned me ont. The day after Black Fri
day was without a dollar, and looking
for job Fortunately, l found this one,
and having borrowed the price Of my rail-
road ticket to Grassboro, felt myself happy
among the New England hills, where bust
ness was no longer burden.
The bank was a small, square brick
building in the main street of the village,
divided into two square little Offices in
one of which, behind the railing, stood the
huge square iron safe. Everything about
the bank was square, in fact, including the
president and directors, who were all solid
men, and never known to lose anything,
or give anything away. In this respect
they were model officials.
lived at the hotel, the Grassboro House,
whereof the proprietor was the jolliest fish
erman and the best story teller in Green
rock County. His shrew Of wife, with
her two sharp.nosed daughters, certainly
added no social charms to the establish
inent, but they were faultless housekeepers
and cooks and more than one State Sena-
tor had been known, when the Legislature
was in session. to travel miles out Of his
way that he might eat of their pies and
buildings.
! soon grew into the ways Of She country,
becoming meiitatiye and deliberate, like
most Of the GrRssboreans, and fond Of
sauntering along Main street with straw
hat between my teeth. | only thought of
Wall street and the Stock Exchange as
places in some foreign country, thousands
Of miles away. Ny duties were not labor
ious and laborious occupation was not just
then to my taste and although my salary
was small, board at the GraSsboro House
was cheap. My one clerk was an excellent
young fellow, faithful and honest, with
taste for theology, and a secret ambition to
fill pulpit--an ambition which, however,
was never gratifed beyond the assumption
of clerical tie ard side-whiskers.
One warm afternoon, stranger came
into my office to inquire about negotiating
some bonds lately issued by neighboring
township. He called my attention to the
form of the document, and being anxious
that | should examine it in every particu
lar we buried our heads in the large out
spread sheet, with its elaborate engraving
and tiers of coupons. Everything seemed
20 be in regular form, and | proceeded to
fold up and hand back the paper, when, to
my astonishment, the man was gone.
Something else was gone, as well. Joe
never could tell exactly how it happened,
having turned his back to his window for
moment. But during that moment man
had climbed over the counter, GRABBED a
package containing $4,000 in bank-notes,
with which he was Just now disappearing
through the front door. He was rather
stout man with black beard entirely
covering his face, and the gentemanly
stranger, now also invisible. was undoubt-
eddy his confederate. Where and how they
vanished so quickly will always remain
mystery. II Main street had opened and
swallowed them up, they could not have
disappeared more completely. Strangely
enough, nobody in the town ever discovered
that anything extraordinary had happened,
and the hank very wisely decided Lot to
publish its mishap.
Although the loss was quite a serious
one, it would in no way cripple the con-
Germ. But Joe and had very bad day
OF it, indeed. We recounted every crcum-
stance connected with the robbery, the
confederate covering my face, as it were,
with the blanket-sheet of the bond the
black whiskered man appearing at the
window, with the request for certain de-
nominations Of money which he knew
would oblige the teller to turn his back
upon him and go to the safe-H was all
plain enough now, after the thing was done.
By and by, | discovered something 1t
was only piece of blotting-paper, but it
was a clue for upon it was a semi-circle of
little dents, and what was of still more
Importance, there were two blank spaces in
the semi-circe. 1t was the print of a boot
heel, from which two Of the nails were
missing. Then Joe had no difficulty in
remembering that, when the thief went
over the counter with the money, his heel
had been planted upon this identical piece
Of blotter, which, upon further examina-
tion, showed the outline of a boot heel
distinctly imprinted on the soft, yielding
surface. Now, had heard of case where
the imprint of hoot heel on a bank
counter, under similar circumstances, had
led to the detection Of the thief who in
cautiously recIined at ease on hotel-ver-