Evening capital news. (Boise, Idaho) 1901-1927, 1914-07-15
TheEvening Story
A SNIFF OF
CHLOROFORM
By M. QUAD
Copyright, 1914, by Associated lat
erary Press.

The Kincardine bank was one Of the
Oldest and strongest banking institu-
lions I'm New England, though situated
and doing business In a town OF 1000
Inhabitants. 1t made loans to hum
dreds Of farmers, and 1t did business
with many shipbuilders and shipown-
ers along the New England coast.
Many and many a time, as assistant
cashier, l have seen 81 5000 stack
ed in our vault and have tossed pack
ages of $4,000 about as If they bad
no more value than SO much old paper.
say we did large business. but yet
our building was a humble one and
our methods as primitive as might be
found In a country store. We had
a brick vault with iron doors. but
the LATEST sort of craftsman would
have dug his way into it in an hour
with a crowbar Outside Of the vault
was an old fashioned bolt headed safe.
which locked with a key only. 1t had
a strong, massive look. but the lock
could have been picked In q quarter
of an hour. and two ounces of powder
poured into the keyhole and exploded
would have torn the door of. 1t will
surprise you when / say that sums OF
money as large as $4,000 were often
left in that old safe over night My
uncle, James Gordon Kineartline,
who died a few years ago, was to
blame for our way of doing business
He was a set man. He hated innova-
tons.
was twenty-three years old when
place was given me as assistant
cashier. l had been In the bank al
most two years when the rooms over
head were vacated and rented to a
travelling doctor for a month
On the 18th Of a certain October,
when he had been our tenant for two
months, he came into the bank at the
noon hour, a time l was always alone,
to get change for a bill. Thereafter,
until the climax came. ne dropped In
almost every noon. He never attempt
ed to come behind the counter, though
the door sometimes stood open, but
on several occasions went out to him.
His calls after the first three weeks
were for the purpose Of manipulating
a swelling on my jaw, and ! always
passed outside the counter and sat
down on a chair. On the Sth OF No
vember, which was cold and dismal.
we had in the Kincardine bank exact
~ $32S,250 in currency. On the next
| day there was to be a big withdra wal
to pay the hands at a mill. and some
$4,000 was to go to certain Boston
banks by express. l hadn't been left
alone for over five minutes when DIR.
Jordan came in to attend me. AS he
worked at my jaw he gradually turned
my head to the left, so that ] no longer
saw him or the door. He asked me to
repeat a story | had told him a few
days ago, and l was doing so when
the door opened | did not stop my
talk, and l could not turn my head.
The man who came in did not speak,
but he must have passed the doctor a
sponge saturated with chloroform.
got the odor of the stuff at once and
was wondering what 1t was when my
/ neck was gripped by the doctors left
hand. and with the right he thrust
the sponge into my face. l think
tried to rise mp and fight the sponge
away, but am not clear about 1t. | do
distinctly remember. however. of hear
ing the doctor say:
Now, then. lock the doors. and I'll
soon have the money in the bagsT
1t was an hour later when | heard
faraway voices and after d struggle
opened my eyes and found the bank
full of people. Up to that tAne no one
had discovered anything wrong. except
with me. They had found me lying on
: the floor and supposed was in a 1T
though all detected the presence OF
) chloroform. My first words were to
ask them to look for the money. OF
i the $32s,250 not a shilling remained
Safe and vault had been plundered to
the last penny. When astonishment
passed away | was charged with hav,
ing robbed the bank. 1t was not a
fair thing for an uncle to do. but James
Gordon Kincardine, to his everlasting
, shame. was for having me locked uI
at once.
1t was a long hour before we got the
tangle Strengthened out. and that hour
lost my uncle every dollar he had IL
, the world. The robbers had a star
of an hour and q half. and the only
! cute thing they did was to make bali
circle around the town and mislead
pursuit for day.
!. My uncle had detectives almost By
the dozen. and the majority of then
a tried much harder to convict me thar
, to overhaul the robbers. was CUES
I toned and cross questioned until bored
i to death, and for a change they would
: threaten me. Some thought l had bur
I led the money somewhere. as II one
: could go at high noon and do such &
), job. and the sleuth Of all sleuths was
i sure that had stood in with the tive