The star. (Reynoldsville, Pa.) 1892-1946, 1906-08-22
THE DEPOSIT.
Translated From the French Of
Maurice Level.
BY LOUISE WARING.

ground for criticism of his work. His
books were well kept and no errors
were found in his accounts.
He lived by himself, stunned all
new connections, visited no public re-
sorts, had no desire for female attach
ments; in short, he seemed to lead a
peaceful and contented existence.
When any one remarked in his pres
ence: 1T must be a great temptation,
this handling of such great sums" he
quietly answered: why? Money
which doesn't belong to one is simply
no money"
He was the embodiment of rectitude
and all delicate questions on finance
were left for him to decide.
One evening he failed to return TO
his lodgings. The thought of anything
fraudulent never entered the mind of
those who knew him; all they feared
was that he had met with some acct
dent. The officials examined his last
days work. All his checks had been
promptly presented; the last one had
been cashed at Porte Montreaux about
seven o'clock. What he had taken in
up to that time amounted to 200, 600
francs. No trace of him was to be
found. Searchers were sent in all d.
y~ections and kilograms to all frontier
stations. All in vain! Finally the d.
rectors of the bank as well as the po-
lice came to the conclusion that he
had been foully dealt with. They ever
went so far as to say they had found
evidences which led them to believe
that this plot had been prearranged by
crooks long before it was carried out.
One man in the whole of Paris shrug.
ged his shoulder or reading these no.
tees in the daily papers, and that
man was Ravenot.
While the most experienced detec-
tives were getting off his track, he was
skirting the outlying b%oulevards lead.
ing to the river. Under the arches
of one of the bridges the night be.
fore, he had hidden a civilians suit.
After putting this on, and safely stow
ing away the 200, 900 francs in his pock-
cts, he made a bundle of his discarded
uniform, tied a stone in it, and threw
it in the river, then quietly return.
ing to the city. He had ample time to
take a train and get beyond the frontier
but he was clever enough to know that
a few hundred kilometers would not
Keep him out of the clutches of the
gendarmerie. He clearly knew what
awaited him if caught. Accordingly,
he reasoned along entirely different
lines.
The following morning he put the
100000 francs in al envelope which
he sealed five times and went to a
notary. "Sir," he said, 81 ask your ser.
vice. This envelope contains papers
of great value, which l wish to place
securely before starting on a long jour
ney from which | know not when |
may return. Will you take charge of
this? l hope you do not object?"
Not in the least. l simply give vol
a receipt"
Ravenot acquiesced. Suddenly he be-
thought him what he should do with
~fo SNNhpN "bNlV w hlut Ito WIlOm
to entrust it. He realized these com
plications which he had not taken into
account, and said in a natural voice:
Mon Dieu! | am alone in the world.
without relatives OF friends. The voy-
pge | am about to undertake is long
and dangerous; might lose the receipt
DR. 1t might be stolen from me and de-
stroyed. Could you not keep it in
your archives? On my return all that
Eill be necessary will be to mention
my name to you or to your possible
successor"
yes, but"
You will make a note on the re-
beipt that it can only be claimed in
Mat way"
Very well. Will you be good enough
b give me your name?"
Without hesitation, Ravenot an.
ywered: "Duverger, Henri Duverger."
On regaining the street he gave a.
Sigh of relief. The first part of his
program was ended. They might ar.
rest him now; he knew his booty was
safe.
He had coolly reasoned in the fol.
lowing way: When shall have
served my sentence, l shall draw out
my deposit. No one will be in a posi.
don to dispute it. Five or six years in
prison will Don be over, and then I
shall be rich. This is less stupid than
to grind out ones days to the end I
shall live in the country and be known
to everybody as Monsieur Duverger.
] shall reach a peaceful old age. and
do good without any remorse."
He waited another twenty-four hours
in order to be sure that the numbers
of the banknotes were not known: then
he gave himself up.
Many a man in his position would
have invented some kind of a tale-he
preferred to tell the truth and confess
to the theft. Why lose time?
During his preliminary examination,
even before the jury, he would not say
what he had done with the money. All
he would answer was: Il do not
know went to sleep on a bench and
was robbed"