El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1911-12-13
When | Was Mad
By Fritz HansataengeI.

2 HAD rendered railroad official
some slight service and to show
= ais gratitude he gave me railroad
key " lich opened all reserved camPart-
ments. As these compartments as 3
rule are empty, it was of course quite
a handy thing to be able to open them
and make use OF them whenever / want
ed to travel alone.
A few days later while travelling,
used my key to open a reserved com
partment in which I unfortunately
found a passenger asleep. Evidently
he must possess a key too / thought
When we had been travelling about
half an hour the train started ana my
fellow passenger jumped up
stIf I had 1000 square miles OF lahu,
he said with a laugh, i wOulC SOW
them all in oats and make you a pres
ent of the crop
the door Of the compartment, when
had forgotten to lock, and LETT the
train -. +i,,,a
When the train stopped the next time,
/ was not a little surprised When lle
door was opened by q gentleman III
black who asked me to get out,
I was not quite sure if the railroao
man had had any, right 70 glxe ms, me 80 80
kew. SO I said nothing about II, put got
out and asked rather tlmidly- 80
nose YOU are connected with the rail-
road?"
at Yes. I am
viii I have to pay a fine III.
mo, but you VIII have to come win
But then I shall miss the train"
THAT does not matter. IheEe Is
faster train in less than an hour.
That may be so, but 1t seems Ietl l
strange to stop me from con llLllllli -
my journey am very ~ I'm! y S7aser5z-ed
compartment and when 1 give you ~
card and address 1t ought 10 sali9AS
NO. I viii have TO take you INTO
court" he said, and pushed me rather
roughly through the WalIlng Iooil -
the front Of the station, where car
i's Please Sc get into this carriage" he said
CURLY. called
I had barely said so when two oS me.
men appeared from somewhere anu L-ei,t -
chilly put me inside the carriage, Wlle ll.
upon the trio entered and the coiclAlli'li
whipped up the horses ,-5,
For a long while ] racked my nIaIa
to find out what all this meant ~ g =
last the truth began to dawn upon N. izis
and my hair stood on END az lHe
thought The man who was sleeping IN
the Compartment when I entered was
insane I had enabled him to ger away
and now 1 was supposed to be the pa
tent . -, -, .z,,,s
hospital" I suggested
"6h. no. just to a sanitarium Tor ner-
vous people. 4or9"
a rather harmless individual sur
fering from a fixed idea.
and what is this fixed idea, If l may
ask?' .7. 70 Ia boron
Rothschild."
ct see" s
Af+er a while the carriage stopped
and we were received by tn the nla a. IA
of the saniterium, Dr. tucns' an OiN
college friend of nine
so YOU have accompanied me pa
tient here. Victor" he exclaimed Ie. 49,.
er surprised. II thought ne was coming
The gentleman in black gave DR..
Fuchs a sign, which caused MIN 70
look at me more CLOSELY an,
'Wnl you please walk into my OFFICE
I followed DR.. Fuchs willingly enough
and as soon as the door had closed De-
hind us, he looked at me sharply.
well. baron" he said, how many
Bourse? The shares Of the Bagdad-Da-
mascus railroad are quoted at zoO Dut
perhaps you wish US to run them up
little higher yet2
gan to look for something with winch
to defend myself in case he should at
tack me.
Here is the annual report Of the Rio
Tinto," he went on, handing me blank
sheet of paper
I remembered my fixed idea" and
burst out laughing.
you may save yourself any further
trouble, Hans said, FOR am neither
drunk nor mad"
And I told him just what had hap
pened
well 7 must say. you have placed
me in 2 nice hole" he said. In the
next room three alienists are waiting to
examine the patient you have turned
loose. Ny business will be ruined If the
truth leaks out, so to save me you will
have to go on playing your part until
the examination is over"
At first protested, but finally I gave
in and three minutes later the three ex-
perts were at me.
Dr.. Fuchs introduced them as well
known financiers and for a whole hour
1 had to play baron ROthschild
When the alienists had left. DIT. Fuchs
told me that two Of them had declared