Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1910-04-15

You'll do your part. Nick. Oh. II
will be easier than you think! They'll
never suspect you're In it. And don't
try to report until IL tonight. Then
you know where to come-private din
ing room, tenth floor. I'll have 'em all
there at H."
When Cherub Devine appeared on
the floor a half hour before closing
time the rumors of his defeat were
passing from mouth to mouth. The
Bates-Rimmer retainers were indulg-
ing in a war dance of victory.
Silently the Cherub passed to his &C
customed corner and began tearing
pieces of paper into small bits with
the same calm. unhurried air of alb
straction as usual. Many glances were
bestowed or him, most of them Gu
rious. a few sympathetic. some tri-
umphantly vindictive. Everywhere he
was regarded as a beaten man. Now
n then a gray uniformed floor boy
handed him messages. which he read
leisurely and as leisurely reduced to
FN6h4Chtos Ouoi as lhC cCooiOn (iOStU
Pop Rimmer passed near him and
turned to favor him with an apeli1e
leer. The Cherub .blinked unrespond-
lngly. He seemed too dazed by mis-.
fortune even to disguise his chagrin.
A somewhat different Cherub De.
vine it was. however, who met his
half dozen l~ieutenants that night be.
hind the seclusion of safely locked
doors on the tenth floor a gaudy
biz motel. He had become an alert.
masterful. confident person. who thrill
sd those about him by a revelation of
~unguessed and unsupported
reserves of force.
The climax of the struggle was
reached during Thursday. Along
about the noon hour the members CT
the Bates Rimmer combination were
forced to admit that the Cherub was
still In the fight. They made the adj
mission with profane JUNCTION. They
did not understand why it was so.
They only knew that in some mysteri-
u manner their triumphant career
had peer checked.
Thus 1t went. All that afternoon
the contest waged. Now the price of
P, q. and N. stocks slumped desper-
ately, now 1t skyrocketed amazingly
Other stocks were affected. The
whole list qnaked and quivered as the
struggling giants of finance wrestled
heedlessly about the rena.
Placidly smoking a fat. black cigar
and fitting comfortably back In one
of Walloway & Co.'S mahogany office
chairs, Cherub Devine received bull
letins from the front. That was the
position in which Nick Walloway
found him when, after the day was
over he rushed in, haggard of face
and with an anxious look in his eyes
I'VE lack fifty shares" he announc-
ed briefly.
'Then that's fifty we must get to-
morrow morning." responded the
Cherub.
ut can't be done,' declared Wallo
way. dropping hopelessly into a chair.
The country has been raked with a
1fna TooThed COMP We carr get hUfTf
of another share. I'm sorry. Cherub.
but I've done my best for you. The
r., q. and Ms annual meeting is held
at noon tomorrow. and the Bates-Rim-
mer crowd has practically got us beat
IN now. If we only had fifty shares
more we could wipe them off the face
of the earth
You're as bad as the countess"
chuckled the Cherub amicably. Then
as this reflection recalled something
to his mind he thrust his hand into an
inner pocket of his coat and drew out
a long envelope. at which he stared
blankly.
A twinge Of guilt pricked his con
science. There-he had completely for
gotten the first errand with which she
had intrusted him. Doubtless 1t was
to exchange this stock for cash that
she had been so anxious to come to
the city. Perhaps she had been ex-
pecting a remittance by every mail.
Shamefacedly he opened the envelope
to make an idle examination of the
contents. At the first glimpse his ex
preston changed. Hastily he ran
through the documents, then showed
them back into the envelope.
A moment later he asked quietly
How many shares did you say we
lacked. NickT'
Fifty" gloomily responded Mr.. Wal
loway, his head between his hands.
And about how much would they
be worth to me just now?'
Worth! Why. anything-three hun
dred, five hundred, a thousand dol
lars a share If you could get them
which you can't"
MOP" responded the Cherub. "Well
what do you say to those?' and he
tossed the long envelope to Walloway.
That young man took his head from
between his hands and glanced re
proachfully at the Cherub. 1t was no
time for joking. But he took the pack
ct and began a spiritless investigation.
Suddenly he jumped to his feet.