Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-11-05
CHAPTER XIX.
Mysterious INQUIRIES.

AS soon as he had gone through his let
tiers on the following morning Laverick.
in response to a second and more urgent
message. went round to his bank. Mr..
Fenwick greeted him gravely He was
feeling keenly the responsibilities OF his
position. Just how much to say and how
much to leave unsaid was q question
which called for a full measure Of diplo-
macy.
you understand, Mr.. Laverick," he be-
gan, that I wished to see you with re-
gard to the arrangement we came to the
day before yesterday"
Laverick nodded. It suited him to re-
main mOnOsyllabfc.
"Well?" he asked.
1.-The arrangement, of course. was most
unusual" the manager continued. Il
agreed to it as you were an old customer
and the matter was an urgent one"
7 do not quite follow ,J YOU = Laveri c,,
wish me to do? Withdraw my ACCOUNT
mot in the least the manager an
swered, hastily.
"You know the position Of our market
Of course" Laverick went on. Three
days ago / was In q situation which
might have been called desperate. could
quite understand that you needed security
to go on making the necessary payments
on my behalf. Today things are entirely
L
better off, and. If necessary, l could real
ize sufficient to pay off the whole OF my
overdraft within half an hour. That l do
not do SO is simply matter of policy and
prices"
Laverick," the bank manager declared.
/. 1.-THE position is simply this: We have
had most unusual and strictly private
inquiry. of a nature which l cannot d.
vulge to you. asking whether any large
cvrly h0 c
been passed through our account during
the last few days"
"You have actually had this inquiry?"
Laverick asked. calmly.
I'VE have. can tell you no more. me
source of the inquiry was, in a sense.
amazing"
MAY ask what your reply was?''
my reply was Mr.. Fenwick said.
slowly, that no such notes had passed
through our account. We asked them.
repeat their question In a few days time.
Our reply was perfectly truthful. Owing
to your peculiar stipulations. we are SIM
ply holding a certain packet for you IN
our security chamber. We know II 10
contain bank notes, and there is very lit
tie doubt but that 1t contains the notes
which have been the subject OF this In
uuiry. I want to ask you. Mr.. Laver1ck,
to be so good as to open that packet let
me credit the notes to your account IN the
usual way and leave me free to reply, as
I ought to have done in the nrst IN
starce to this inquiry"
'The course which you suggest. repred
the other, lis one which l absolutely de-
cline to take. 1t is not for me to tell you
the nature Of the relations which should
exist between q banker and his client.
All that can say is that those notes are
deposited with you and must remain on
deposit, and that the transaction is one
which must be treated entirely as con-
fidential one II you decline to do this.
must remove my account. in which case
shall, of course. take the packet away
with me. To be plain with you. Mr.. Fen
wick" he wound up. II do not intend to
make use of those notes. rever intended
TO do so. simply deposited them as Sc
curity until the turn In price OF Unions
came" :,
at is a very nice point. Mr.. Laverick !"
the hank manager remarked. II should
consider that you had already made use
Of them" :.
EVERY one to his own conscience"
Laverick answered calmly
'.You place me In very embarrassing
position. Mr. Laverick.
81 cannot admit that at ALL" Laverick
repIied. ''There is only one inquiry which
Won could have had which could Justify
YOU in insisting upon what you have sug-
gested. 1t emanated. I presume. from
Scotland Yard?"
(To be continued tomorrow.)