The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1906-11-15

IleSe men IelC ne naQ put III SOOu
days work" Tandy was sure that by
letting the young man have a few
shares in firmly established enterprises
he could 'rope him in,'' as he phrased
it in his mind, for the purchase Of some
more doubtful things. Temple, in his
turn, was convinced that by buying in
to some Of Tandy's more speculative
enterprises he could ultimately secure
the shares he had been set to buy in the
X National
The telegraphic reply from the New
York bank had been received and was
was, Temple drew on New York for
$4,000 and, with the draft, opened a
deposit account for that amount in
Tandy's bank.
Then he went to his hotel. His first
impulse was to send q message to
Captain Will Hallam asking whether
he might take the barrel factory stock,
and perhaps some other things Of like
kind, in aid OF success in his mission,
but upon reflection he decided to act
upon his own judgment, without con-
sultation or advice. Hallam had given
him free hand, leaving him to work
out the problem in his own way. Any
communication between him and Hal
lam OF between him and Duncan would
involve something of risk. So he sat
alone in his hotel room, thinkinS and
planning.
He did not know or dream how anx-
ious Tandy was to draw him into some
of his schemes. He did not know that
. both the barrel factory and the gas en-
terprise had recently become veritable
white elephants on Tandy's hands. He
did not know that Tandy, in his eager
ness to overreach Hallam, had 'stretch-
ed himself out like string" as Hal
lam picturesquely put it, by investing
more money in these two companies
and several others than he could just
then spare. Especially he did not know
that Hallam had himself completely
organized and capitalized both a gas
company and barrel company and
that Tandy's two companies represent
ed an unsuccessful attempt to rival
enterprises into which Hallam had
"breathed the breath Of life''
He was surprised, therefore, when a
bell boy brought him Tandy's card as
he sat there in his lonely hotel room
planning the morrow's campaign.
II thought you might be lonely" said
the banker as he was ushered into the
room, seeing that you're stranger in
town, so I have dropped in for a
chat"
The chat very quickly fell into flnan-
cial channels, and it did not proceed
far before shrewd Richard Temple dis
covered some things of advantage to
himself. Among the things discovered
was the fact that Tandy was some
what overanxious to hasten the bust
ness in hand. He listened with every
indication Of interest to all that Tan
dy had to say concerning the two still
unlaunched enterprises-the barrel fac
tory and the gas company. He asked
interested questions concerning them,
and at last felt sufficiently sure Of his
ground to venture little farther.
Il am inclined to Think" he said,
that I shall want to take at least a
little Of the barrel factory stock to-
morrow. and possibly I may subscribe
for some Of the gas stock also. Of
that | am not yet sure. But before I
take either I must invest four or five
thousand dollars in something abso-
lutely secure. I have been going over
the latest reports of your bank and the
other one - Hallam's - and they have
impressed me with the conviction that
the very best and safest Investment a
man of small means, like myself, can
make in this town is in bank stock.
This city is a point at which so many
lines of travel and traffic converge that
the exchange business itself must be
sufficient to pay banks expenses. In
fact, it pays more, as the reports show.
And then there is the larger business
lending money on sound enterprises,
financing industrial companies and es-
peclally advancing money on bills Of
ladlng for goods in transit. In view Of
all this it surprises me to learn that
the stock in the two banks here stands
only trifle above par.''
People here have got it into their heads
that anything less than 10 or II per
cent as return for money invested is
ridiculously small. So they don't want
bank stocks. On the other hand, the
eastern capitalists have got it into their
heads that anything which pays more
than OF per cent must be risky, and
so they don't set up banks here, as
they surely would do but for their fool
1sh timidity. The prospect of big re-
turn for their money simply scares
them out of their seven senses. So
Hallam's bank and mine have a mo-
nopoly of as pretty business as you'll
find In days walk. Why, when the
rush was on last winter and twenty
steamboats, day were leaving Cairo
with full cargoes, to say nothing of
great fleets Of grain barges, Hallam
and both went to New York with our
pockets full of government bonds and
borrowed money on them for sixty or
ninety DAYS. We maid G nor cont nov