Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1901-02-27

the fact that when a vacancy occurred
in the First National bank Of Kings,
Lavery was called to the place. Right
here his career began. Nobody in
town was jealous of his good fortune.
no one thought Of being, for the whole
town sort of regarded 1t as Lavery's
right to get the first good thing that
came along. Now the job that Law
cry took was not very remunerative.
He only got So a week, and his work
was Of the most menial kind. running
errands and doing Office work, from
early morning until quite late In the
evening sometimes. say it wasn't
the JOB, so much as the opportunity
that it gave I.avcry to rise, that made
it a good thing for him. Well, Law
cry boned in like good fellow. He
was just the sort of fellow to dig in
and get on to things. He fairly thirst
ed for knowledge and verify believe
that he would have made go out of
peanut stand, if his father had started
him in that line.
Careers in banks are not of the
meteoric order, but Lavery certainly
established a precedent in this regard.
He didn't have to wait for people over
him to die, in order to get ahead. He
crowded the men over him out, and
when he was only 80 years old was
cashier Of the National bank Of Kings
at salary of $4,000 year, which was
quite good deal, even for bank OFF,
cial, in a small town like Kings. Law
cry had married the sweetest little
girl in the town. in the meantime, and
had duplicated her with another little
girl, who was his pride and JOY. He
was the happiest man in that town.
and with his home, his wife and his
baby, he had every reason to be. He
had little money saved up and fine
fat place that no man living could get
away from him, as long as he behaved
himself
"Now, I've had a great deal Of eX
perience with crooks, and | have stud
led their ways and the motives that
lead them to live lives Of crime with
great care, but this man Lavery was a
mystery that | never could solve. Here
was man no had never done dis
honest act a.. his life. who had nothing
to gain, and everything to lose by dis
honesty, and yet carefully planned out
a robbery Of the bank with which he
had been connected since early child
hood, and the officers of which trusted
him implicitly Don't ask me why he
did it. do not know, and no one else
knows. He had never speculated or
gambled, had good home all paid for,
a loving wife, baby and a fat sur
plus at the bank. If you want to know
my real opinion of the matter, will
tell you that think Lavery was
crazy, clean crazy, and yet In posses
sion of all the faculties that enable a
man to plan and carry out some great
enterprise.
"IIavery didn't juggle his books or
monkey with any other mans ac-
counts. If he had | wouldn't have had
this story to tell. He would then have
been an ordinary, every day felon, and
would be wearing a number in some
prison. No, that was not Layerys
game. With all the cunning of an eX-
perienced thief, he planned to rob the
hank of all the money in the vaults,
and then just drop out Of sight. What
might have been the stiffest kind c. q
Job for a band Of experienced cracks
men, would be easy for Lavery, be-
cause he and the president were the
only ones who had the secret Of the
great locks to the vault, and they