The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1914-05-15
An Unknown
i Friend
By JOHN N. LARNED

1 was pretty well uAcO WITCH ! W0o
married, and the future looked invit-
ing. But l had a failing-at least my
wife called 1t q failing-1 couldn't stand
to see any one suffer. 1 Endorsed a note
| for q friend to save him from bank
ruptcy and loaned others money, not
counting on the fact that I would need
what l put out, and II I didn't have it
1 would come to grief myself. And SO
l did. .
One day 1 received a letter from a
manufacturer Of automobiles that he
wished for an agent in my city. My
pay would be a salary Of $1,5OO a year
and a commission on every machine l
sold. Who the man was or why he
wished me for his agent l didn't know
and didn't stop to inquire. I accepted
the position at once.
Rathbone was the name Of the head
of the automobile company. Soon after
being settled in the business I wrote
him, asking how he came to choose me
as an agent, but received no reply. The
letter that came from the factory was
dictated by the superintendent of the
sales department, and l was not sure
that Mr.. Rathbone had ver seen my
letter, or, If he had, whether he had
found time to reply to my question. l
sold a good many Of his autos and was
making money when another windfall
came to me that surprised me more
than the first.
Mr.. RathbOne'S auto works were in
corporated. and one morning l received
a registered letter which, on opening,
l found TO contain a certificate for a
thousand shares Of the new company
made out in my name. l was
in my life SO dumfounded. Then it
occurred to me that as an employee
of the concern l was expected to sub
scribe for the stock. Though 1 had
laid up some funds, l had not enough
to pay for the stock. While l was
wondering what it all meant n Of
my employers called my attention to
a newspaper item mentioning the
organization Of the manufacturing
company for which 1 was agent at
shares Of $40 each. The par value Of
my stock was $4,000, and the item
further stated that there had been
sales at 100.
l wrote at once to ask If the stock
and on what terms I would be ex-
pected to pay for 1t. A formal reply
from the treasurer of the company
came to me that the thousand shares
stood in my name on the company's
books full paid.
When I told my wife about the mat
ter she said that the stock had been
placed in my name to serve some pur-
pose connected with the organization
Of the company and l would find out
in time that l didn't own it. l wrote
several letters to the main Office about
It, but they were not answered. My
wife was fearful that IL any financial
breakdown occurred to the company
we would be in as bad a fix as before
l was offered the agency. l resolved
to let the matter drop and await de-
velopments.
When the first quarterly dividends
were declared I received a check for
$1,000. looked at 1t in amaZement,
then. showing it to my wife, remarked
that If this was ruin I wished 1 might
keep on being ruined in the same way
as long as i lived. At this rate my
stock was paying me $4,000 a year.
It didn't seem worth while to write
for an explanation, for no such letters
had been accorded an answer. My
wife still feared that l was being used
as a dummy to put through some
financial scheme, but dummies don't
usually receive checks for hard money.
They are not the basket Of the balloon,
but the gas bag. / didn't put any faith
in this Interpretation. Since l could
get no information l determined to
leave my business in charge Of my
demonstrators, go to the Office Of the
company and find out for myself what
was at the bottom of my good fortune.
carried out my resolution and n
day walked into the Office Of the manu-
facturer. I was obliged to send In my
card to the president and received a re-
ply to call at his home that evening.
| When 1 presented myself there, after
| being admitted, an elderly woman
l co ~ In IN S.oooivo mo ond ooi6.