The herald. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1905-1953, 1912-06-06
HIS HIDING
LACE
By HENRY SMITHSON

low worker | looked MIN over anc
was seized with one of those uncon-
trollable repulsions that we cannot ac-
count for. II there was any reason
for this dislike ! conceived for him 1t
was In his eye. which was gray. l
shook hands with him. but there was
no heartiness in my grasp nor in his
1t was evident that we were not to
be bosom friends.
Whitman did fairly we'll as clerk.
and we got on well enough together
despite my repulsiOn for him at our
first meeting. was man of all work.
salesman, bookkeeper and cashier.
Whitman was employed to sell goods,
carry parcels and do odd jobs. He
dressed well, seeming to take great
interest in his clothes. especially his
cravats. The only extravaganza about
him was smoking. tie smoked at
least one box day and often more.
For a clerk on $40 a week with no
other source Of income this required
too much outlay.
Whitman in a years time learned
good deal about the business, includ-
ing bookkeeping. which he asked me
to teach him. Then dull times came
on. and Mr.. Perkins found retrench-
ment necessary Ii was known both
to Whitman and to me that one OF
us would have to go. Mr.. Perkins
was debating the matter. He didn't
know whether to keep me at S2o
week or Whitman Mt SIS. to which
sum he had been raised. He didn't
say so, but knew that was the ques-
ton. An ominous sign was his put
ting the books and cash into Whit
mans hands. inferred that he wish
ed to try him to discover whether he
could do the work satisfactorily.
One day Mr. Perkins went out Of the
store, leaving a ten dollar bill on the
desk where he had been writing. Pass
ing the desk. saw 1t and would have
picked il up to take care of it, but the
telephone bell was ringing, and i went
on to answer it. After / had taken
down an order | forgot the bill for a
short time. and when | remembered 1t
| was too late. Mr.. Perkins came In
and told me and Whitman that he had
| left $40 on the desk. and it was miss
| ing on his return. Whitman spoke
| first denying having seen it. then
| told him that | had seen 1t and gave
the reason why / had not taken care
of It,
Whitman declared that no one had
been near the desk except me and that
only one customer had come in during
| Mr. Perkins absence and that was a
woman who had not gone near the
| back part of the store where the mon
ey had been left.
That eye Of Whitman through which
anything evil that was in him looked
out convinced me that he would at
tempt to fix the loss of the bill on to
me with view to being retained In
the store in my place. l saw it so
plainly that ! wondered Mr.. Perkins
didn't see it. That Perkins did not was
evident from the fact that, while he
seemed sure that one Of us had taken
the bill. he was in doubt which was
the thief, for he Immediately took
charge Of the books and the cash him.
self.
He was now more at loss to know
which of us he would discharge than
before, since he didn't wish to keep the
dishonest one. l was quite sure of
Whitman's game. but saw no way of
proving it. And yet felt 1t essential
that | should do so. got my mind
down on the problem ready to follow
any slight clue. that might present it.
self.
/ hunted up places where he was
likely to have bought things. especial.
ly cigarettes, but could not learn that
he had paid for anything with ten
dollar bill.
One day Mr.. Perkins told me to &c
the next day to collect large account
since he needed the money to help pay
a note that would come due before the
close of banking hours the same day
I telephoned him from my house that
I had been taken suddenly i'll and would
not be able to 60. learned the next
morning that he had sent Whitman.
went over to the house where Whit
man boarded and said we needed q
certain paper at the store that he had
In his possession and got permission &c
go into his room to look for it. / ran
sacked every nook and corner hoping
to find some clew to the lost bill when
in a bureau drawer found cigarette
box with two or three cigarettes in 1t.
I doubted IL Whitman had spent the
lost ten dollar bill and hoped to find II
in the most likely place for him to put
it. Seeing these cigarettes In place
where he would not usually keep hi:
tobacco, 1t flashed into my head thai
the most likely place to occur to 6
man to hide anything would be IN
that with which he was most familiar
Taking up the little rolls could SEE
only tobacco at the end. But one was
less pliable than the others. / tore of
the paper and found a ten dollar bill.
went at once to Mr.. Perkins with
the story, suggesting that when Whit
man returned, without giving him ar
opportunity to go to his room. hs
charge him with having stolen the bill
and hiding 1t in cigarette. He die
so, and Whitman, taken unawares