The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1912-03-25
D0wBLE-cR0SSED BY MEMORY
BANK ROBBERS PLAN FOR AN EASY LIFE CAME To NAUGHT
WHEN HE FORGOT THE ASSUMED NAME.

without Il uulNer OF the eyelldS. He
Mas now "a years old AT 40 he would
Imprisonment as an insignificant, nee
essary sacrifice.
He was a model convict. just as he
had been Il model bank employee. He
noted tho passing of tho days without
impaticnce or ennui, taking the best
of care of his health.
At last the day of his LIBERATION ar
rived! He accepted the small sum
allowed him at leaving with indiffer.
ence. His consuming desire was to go
10 HI notary's n claim his deposit.
How often he had rehearsed the scene
about to he enacted. He would go in
to h office: would the official recog-
nize him" Probably not. as he had
certainly grown much older. Rut that
would make the scene only the more
interesting. The man would ask his
business and he would reply:
II have come to reclaim a deposit
made here five years ago"
I'm whose name?"
In the name of Monsieur"
Here he paused abruptly in his re-
hearsal and exclaimed:
"Ha! l can't remember the name!"
He thought and thought. Nothing
came of it. He sank down on a bench.
q faintness stealing over him. He
said to himself:
Keep cool and think. Monsieur
Monsieur-it began with-what let
ter?'
For an hour he sounded the depths
of his memory, trying to find some
Glow. some thread that would lead up
to the missing name. 1t was all in
vain. The word seemed to dance be-
fore him. around him. He was about
to seize it. when it would e!ude him.
At first this was only annoying: it
speedily became torturing. painful.
Waves of heat swept over his body.
His mucles contracted. He bit his
feverish lips and was torn by a desire
to CRY out or to fight. The harder he
tried to concentrate his thoughts the
further the name seemed to flee from
him. He rose up impaticntly, think
ing:
What's the use of trying to recall
it? If l don't think of it at all it
will probably come to me-"
The haunting idea could not be ban
ished, however. No matter how much
he tried to rivet his attention on the
passersby or to listen to the noise of
the streets under it all ran the re-
frain:
Observation-Disclosures"
Night came on and the sidewalks
were deserted. Tortured and weary.
he vent to a hotel. took a oom and
threw himself onto the bed without
undressing. He did o fall asleep I'M
til daybreak. He awoke late, and his
momentary satisfaction was banished
by the haunting thought of the for
gotten name.
What could it be?"
A new feeling now took possession
Of him. Fear! What if he neve
could remember the name? He left
the hotel and walked. for hours at ran
dom, keeping in the ne~ighhorhood of
the notary's office. Night came a sec
ond time. lie was on the verge of dis
traction. He fairly dug his nails into
his head, muttering:
~ shall certainly go mad"
100000 francs-badly acquired, it is
true-but still his own-and he could
not get possession of them. He had
endured a. prison for this money, and
! o it was going to slip away from
him. 1t was within his each if he
could only recall Il single word. oh.
the torture Of it. He beat his head
with his fists, ran against lampposts
and iostlcd passers-by. A frenzy pos
that the word had gone forever. 1t
seemed to him that voices sneered in
his ears and hat fingers were pointed
at him. He began to run straight
ahead.
After a time he saw the dark waters
Of the Seine rejecting the starlight.
Mechanically he went down some
steps leading to h bank. and. lying
fiat on his face. he stretched himself
out toward the stream to battle his
face and hands. He reached out far
Their and farther. until the water came
over his eyes and ears. He felt him.
self slipping downward, but he made
no attempt to cling to the bank. Fin
ally his whole body was covered. Then
the chill of the water seemed to
arouse him to action. He struggled
stretched out his arms-raised his
hcad-went down-rose again-thcn
suddenly. with a last despairing effort,
he shouted:
1--WE found it, Duverger! Help!
Help! Duverger! Du'-
But the place was deserted and no
one heard his cries. The black water
Tapped mournfully against the piles OF
the bridge. The dark arches flung
back the name in dcrision. The waves
lazily rose and fell, rejecting the red
and green lights. One wave, higher
than the rest. seemed to rise to lick
the shore-then all was still!