The Alaska citizen., 1911-02-20
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 insure faithful performance of con tract for which clause every crock cd municipality has a particular af- lection. they were Co purchase a million dollars worth of bonds. Each year one hundred thousand dollars worth were retired Iu the tenth year. in renewing their franchise for tha next ten years. they were compelled tn also renew their mil li.n dollars of city bonds. These bonds they then used as collateral. Stone carried all that he could. at enormous uSury. l understand, and let some ot his banker friends in on the rest: and l suppose the banks paid him a rakc-oft. The ten year period is up this fall, and their bonds are naturally retired; but of course. they will renew"
 I'm nor so sure about that said Bobby. Look up everything con nected with il in the morning, and I'll see you al nOon.
 When they met the next day al noon. however. before Bobby could talk about the business in hand Chalmers. with a suppressed smile handed him a folded slip of paper
 Bobby examined that legal docu- ment - a dissolution of the injunc- tion which had tied up a hundred and fffy thousand dollars in his bank for more than two years - with a sigh of relief
 Tt seems said Chalmers drylE. that n the time you laid your self liable To Madame Nillenauve's hreach-cf-pr0misc suit she had an un- divorced husband living. Monsieur Vinenauye complaCeutly hiding him self in France and waiting for his share of tEe money, Let this be a lesson 10 you. young man.
 Bobby hatly resented that grin.
 I'll swear 10 you. Chalmers he asserted. | never 50 much as thought of that woman except as a nuisance
 T apol eize. old man" said Chal- mers But al leasr this will teach you not to back any more grand opera cCmpanies.'
 'I prefer to talk about the cleo. tric situation" said Bobby severe ly. What have you found oul about lt9"
 That the Ebony Jewel Coal com
  threatened suit against the Consoli- dated for their bill. The Consoli- dated is in a pinch and must raise money. uur only to buy that alloi ment of the new waterworks bonds. but t4 meet the Ebonys and other pressing accounts. II must also float this bond issue. for it is likely to fall behind even on it's salar' list"
 Fine. said Bobby. T can see a lot of good citizens in this towh holding stock in a bankrupt illumin- atiug concern. Just watch this thing. uil you. Chalmers? About this nice. lucky hundred and fifty thous and. We may count it as spent
 What in?" asked Chalmers. smil- ing. Do you think you can trust yourself with all that money?'
 Hush" said Bobby Don't breathe it aloud. I'm going to buy up all the Brightlight Electric stock l can find It's too bad, Chalmers he added with q grin, that as mayor of the city you could not. with pro priety. hold stock in this company, y and although Chalmers tried to call him back Bopby did not wait. He wa, tee busy he said
 Quietly Bobby preceded tO buy up. here and there, nearly the entire stock of the Brighllight purchasing it at an absurdly low price. Then he went to De Graf. to Dan Ellis ton. and to others to whose disCre- tion he could trust His own plans were wei under way when the Con- solidated Illuminating and Power Company announced, with great flourish of trumpets, it's new bond issue. The Bulletin made no com ment upon this. It merely publish ed the news fact briefly and con- cisely an unexpected attitude, which brought surprise, then won- der then suspicion to the office of the Chronicle The Chronicle had been a Stone organ during the hey day of Stones prosperity; the Bulle- tin had fought the Consolidated tooth and toe-nail; the already criminally- overcapitalized Consolidated was about to float a new bond issue; the Bulletin did not fight this issue; ergo the Bulletin must have some thing to gain by the issue
 The Chronicle waited three days, then began to fight the bond issue itself, which was precisely the ef- feet for which Bobby had planned. Grown astute, Bobby realized that if the bond issue failed the Con- solidated would go bankrupt at once instead of a year or so later. The newspaper. however. which would force that bankruptcy would, by that act, be the apparent means of losing a vast amount of money to the poor investors of the town, and Bobby left that ungrateful task to the Chronicle. He even went so far as to defend the Consolidated in a mild sort of manner, a proceeding which famed the Chronicle into fresh fury
 For three solid months desperate attempts were made by the Con- solidated to make the new bonds attractive to the public, but less than one hundred thousand dol lars was subscribed.
 VII.
 T hope you didn't come into town to dig up another scandal, Ferris, said Bobby, greeting his contractor friend with keen pleasure as he stepped into the office.
 No" said Ferris; come in to give you bit of news. The Great Eastern and Western railroad wants to locate it's shop here, and is building by private bid. I have se- cured the contract, subject to cer- tain alterations of price for dis tance of hauling and difficulty of ex- hut thin0 iC 1i9hla