The daily morning journal and courier., 1902-01-18
THE TIME LOCK.

It was small party of bankers and among them were veterans who had spent their lives in the business. There were younger men there also, put tnese were intent listeners at the conVefsa- ton of the gray heads. Bankers are al- ways interesting story tellers when they | tell shop tales, and the conditions were 1 right on this occasion
 Several of the men had related some experiences more or less trying and the turn came naturally to man every one in Kansas City knows and who has been in the financial harness for a score of years. He needed little urg- ing. for it was pla that the recollec- tion he had to relate was not exactly a pleasant one.
 "Well. you have all told of some ter rible times in your experience" he be- gan. but [ want to say that l had an experience once that had a good deal to do with the rapid multiplication Of gray hairs in my head.
 At the time this experience occurerd I was cashier of well remembered Kansas City bank that is not now in existence. It was during the worst pe- riod of the panic. You bankers Know what strenuous times there were, even under the most favorable conditions and what terrible experiences we were having all over the country.
 Our bank was weathering the panic fairl well, but there was continuous run, and we hardly knew from day to day what would happen. l remembered that it was on a Thursday that l had wired to Chicago for currency. l was in a desperate fix, for knew several of our largest depositors would be in the next day to get their money. As luck would have it, however, I got an ad- vice that on certain train that atfer- noon, we would receive enough currency from Chicago to tide us over one day at least
 '"The entire bank force waited until late that afternon for the delivery of the currency. At last it came. We got the packages from the express office and then all hands laid to count the money and it was after five o'clock when the newly arrived money had been counted and was safely deposited in the safe. This safe was the usual time lock affair and was always set for sixteen hours and had been locked at four o'clock evry afternoon for a. year or more. The assistant cashier had charge of the lock and so, when we had counted the currency on that after- noon of which I am speaking, the as- sistant turned on the combination and we went home full of relief that for one day at least we could hold out against the hordes of depositors who we knew would be clamoring for their money
 At this point of the story the old banker applied a match to a fresh cigar and was silent or minute.
 Well" he continued this is the part of the yarn that I shall never forget. The next morning I was down at the bank bright and early, and so were the others It was not more than o'clock when the anxious depositors began to gather in line at the paying teller's win dow, just as I know they would do, But I felt comparatively safe, for l knew the paying teller (we had taken off the other one) would take his time in paying out and We could stand the strain.
 1T was sitting in my little office few minutes after o'clock, when the assist ant cashier came rushing in deathly pale. He was so excited that he could scarcely stand and it was a full minute