The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1908-03-07

spare. I'm only clerk IN the bank,
and I'm sufferin' under an attack o.
honesty just now"
! puts away my drill and begins to
work with my fingers and my ears,
talkin' with the Teller sociable-lke. 1t
was very kind O him to treat me SO
( perlite. for knowed he wouldn't be
that away onless he had me covered
and ready to enforce orders. Referrin'
to his last remark, says:
II had that disease myself onct, but
wife and couple o. kids cryin for
bread TUX 1t clean ont o. me. Diseases
require medicine. aud sometimes the
cures worse than the disease. gave
myself dose o. dishonesty for IN anti
dote, and the habit got fixed on me
like takln' a drug"
"But you kept the kids from staryin'.
I suppose
"That's what I've done SO Far, but II
my work gifts check for the matter o.
ten years or so they're still liable to
starvation. If could az got througlg
few years more they'd be old enough
to fill their own mouths"
He didn't make any answer to this.
and Ikep' on monkeyin' with the tum-
blers, listenin' to how they fell and
maxim up my mind what was the com
bination.
whats the time?" asked.
Two twenty five" he said IT
doesn't begin to get light now TIN
o'clock. Can you do II in that timer"
'If | can do it at all"
l heard somethIn' between a sigh and
grunt
as it very important?s says.
sYes, IT Is. I'm responsible for the
vault bein' shut without any one know
In the combination. II we can't get in
there by 8 o'clock tomorrow mornin'
therell be no end o. trouble. III get
fred, OF course"
Don't worry" | says. II wouldn't
have such perlite young gentleman
fired for all there Is inside. Just YOU
stop talkin' to me for awhile It both
ers me-and reckon / can do the job
worked till near o'clock before / /
got on to the problem; then heard the |
last tumbler drop into place. and. turn
in the knob. opened the vault door
Keep your face to the vault and lay /
your weapon on the floor behind you" /
said the clerk.
| lay not only one revolver on the I
floor, but two, and knife and a billy /
aaef1@a 7 ~oai,a., tI.fo r-.,-, ls,,, 80. = I
dence. for he told me might 60 and I
stand by desk some ten feet away. / /
did SO, and he went to my light, took
1t up and turned it on me.
go in there and bring me a tin box (
on a shelf to the right
did as he said. He opened the box,
took out a fifty dollar bill and tossed
1t to me. l picked It up and handed it
back to him. Somehow / felt ashamed
o takin' money from a man who would
keep faith with me under the circum-
stances.
II don't make any charge for this
small service remarked. 'sYou can
make it hot for me if you like"
"And it would have been hot for me
today If It hadn't been for you. Can
you give me the combination
called it of. and he wrote 1t down
''Now You can get out the way you
came in. aud I hope you'll do it safely.
It wouldn't do for me to risk bein
seen lettin' you out. If you think
you'd like to break the dishonesty
habit, come and see me here about
half past 5 this afternoon"
got out just as the dawn was be-
ginnin' to break and went home.
Ellen" said to my wife. Il haven't
got any swag, but mebbe | got an
honest job"
oh Tomr' she gasped "God grant
that It may be truer'
/ told her the story. and we both
went to sleep feelin' better than any
time since l went into the business.
The next afternoon l called on the
clerk. and he succeeded in gettin' me
! Job. I've made an honest Twin ever
since. THOMAS j. CHRISTIE.