The Dolores star., 1909-02-05

TUT lle nTSl lnOHlH VI
SO of the fair there was nothing to do
but lounge about the office and, like
Mr.. Micawber, wait for something to
turn up. The four of us who were
assigned to this monotonous duty soon
grew weary of the inactivity and were
on the point of asking for a transfer
when an excellent imitation of the ten
dollar gold-piece made its appearance
in large numbers. After that, none of
the four of us had any cause for com.
plant on the score of stagnation.
Saunders and McGrath, two of my
companions, by means of a miserably
scrawled, anonymous note to the chief
of police, secured information of mys-
terious boxes coming by night to
bank, and it required but small
flight of the imagination to evolve a
plot in which the great financial mag
nate, the president of the bank, was
the central figure, regardless of his
high social standing, his reputed fabii-
s1ous wealth, and his irreproachable
character.
Il selected the cashier at the fac
tory as my man, and Murphy took the
teller of the bank, the man who made
g, up the payroll each week. For ten
days we shadowed them with logged
Dersistency. They were both men of
the town and both were members of
the better class of clubs and moved
in the most exclusive circles of So
ciety. These matters rather strength
ened than weakened our suspicious
for neither of the men was wealthy,
and playing society is an expensive
game at best
But in all our pursuit and in all the
lavish expenditures of these young
spendthrifts not once did either of
them pass or attempt to pass one of
the counterfeit coins, so far as we
could gather l don't think they could
have done so without it's being dis
covered, SO thoroughly did we track
them in every turn and move they
made during the period we had them
under observation. They lived to-
gether in a handsomely furnished
fiat, with a small army of servants,
and they entertained lavishly. Their
table was of the best and their wines
of the rarest vintages.
I'VE decided that nothing was to be
gained by shadowing them further, so
we left them to their frivolous social
duties. About this time Saunders and
McGrath came tagging home, convoy
ing the bank president, tuckered out
and disguised with their fruitless jour
ney.
THE night of their return Murphy
and l held conference with them,
at which it was practically agreed that
the bank president was innocent, and
that there was nothing else to do but
take him into our confidence and
make the bank itself our point of oper-
alton.
Il watched the teller very carefully
that week, and especially on the day
when he made up the payroll for the
factory, which was called for by
Saunders. The sack contained both
gold and silver, but there was not
single coin in the lot which had not |
been given birth legitimately at some
one of the governments mints. Saun- |
ders made sure of this before the sack
reached the factory.
The cashier, man named Powell, |
and the teller both kept close watch |
upon me while / worked in the big |
vault, as was their duty, and this
gave me scant opportunity to investi- |
gate the sacks of gold piled away in |
pretentious row on low shelf. In |
moving them, l thought that some |
seemed lighter in weight than others, |
and as this would be valuable informa |
ton if true, hit upon what thought |
was a rather ingenious way Of deter
mining il my surmise was correct.
"Concealing my pen-knife in the hol-
low of my hand, with the blade open,
selected one of the sacks of ten-dol-
lar coins which seemed to be lighter |
than some Of its mates, and, as / ]