The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1902-02-21

aNNHi TT.
"Tcll me what IT'S worth to mo 81
my Information Is correct-and III
prove TO you by your own books inside
OF five minutes that Il IS cowect-and
tl2n Wen proceed to business"
Information chat this firm Is 80 fool.
ish as not 20 know that an easy col
lectahle $1,000 Is due it is worth 500
to any man who viii prove It. Show
me that we are such business idiots,
ana I'll give you $50 right out Of my
own pocket. More than that, II by
the faintest chance what you should
say should prove to be true and we
can collect the $500, III give you a
third Of It."
The sombreroed stranger went down
into an Inside pocket. GO to your
books, September -, 1880" he said.
Mr.. Wade went to his books. There
after the stranger had mentioned an
invoice number they found what in
nutshell was this
Shipped to John Fox. Blcknell,
Ariz., 400 bags Of sugar Of 100 pounds
each-40,0OO pounds"
NOW turn TO your books Of January
u, $780, said the stranger, adding,
this is easy money for me-"
1t did not take Mr. Wade and his
bookkeeper more than a minute to find
out that instead of sending bill for
10000 pounds Of sugar to John Fox,
they had sent him a bill for 400
pounds, bill which he had paid
promptly. A receipt had been sent
Mr.. Fox, and the transaction closed
and through one Of those absolutely
uneXplainable bits of business mistakes
that will occur in houses doing trans
actions Of millions a year the error
had never been discovered. There was
due the firm of Wade & Scales from
John Fox $500 and interest thereon
for something like twelve years.
you see" said the visitor, Il was
Mr.. Fox's bookkeaper for years and
years When the bill for 400 pounds
OF sugar came in l called his attention
to the mistake, and he said: III pay
the bill as it stands, and if they ever
send q bin for the remaining 5000
pounds I'll pay that, too, but l guess
we don't need to worry about the mis-
take The other day John Fox kicked
me out of his employment for a trivial
mistake-kicked me out penniless at
that. What 1 am doing now you may
consider a piece of revenge. So it is
largely, but l also need money"
The Westerner left the place with
$50 in his pocket and the next mail
took bill to John Fox for $500, plus
the interest for twelve years. Actuated
by curiosity to know how the man
would explain the matter, Mr.. Wade
inclosed with the bill a query as to
why, having received 10000 pounds OF
sugar, Mr.. Fox had sent on pay for
only 400 pounds.
Within a week q check for the full
amount Of the bill and interest was re-
ceived. John Fox was too good a bust
ness man not to know that he must
pay instantly, but as far as his dis
honesty was concerned, this is what
he said in his letter, the only bit of
writing that appeared except the
name and figures on the check:
Il make it point never to pay until
bills are presented. You never sent the
bill for the extra 5000 pounds.
JOHN FOX"
Was Fox thief Or simply CONNER
cially shrewd?
In the years that had passed John
Fox had become a multi-millionaire.
Recently he wished to open a great
establishment in Chicago. A real es-
tate agent found him a finely located
building near the heart of the bust
ness district. Fox came way on to
look at it. He went to the agents
Office and found him looking somewhat
downcast, as a man might look who
was out fat commission.
"Mr. Fox" said the agent, II was
utterly dumfounded this morning when
informed by the owners OF the building
selected for you that they would not
let you have it under any circUn-
stances. The owners are a firm of
wholesale grocers. When l pressed
them for reason for refusing to let
the property to you, the head of the
firm handed me a slip of paper and
said: 1 understand Mr.. Fox is to
come to see you to-day? When he
asks you for our reason in declining
to rent to him, simply give him this
piece of paper have the paper here
but Mr.. Fox, am free to confess that
1 can't find anything in it that even