The Tupelo journal., 1915-08-20

well. hello, Poe. Glad to see you

back from the wilds of New Orleans
and Mexico" greeted Mitchell, Presi-
dent of the Bankers Protective Asso-
citation, as Poe stepped into his private
room, unannounced, the second day
after his return from Mexico.
Il was just on the point of calling
you up" continued Mitchell.
Saved you a nickel, then" drawled
Christopher Poe. dropping into a
chair, and beginning to ian himself
slowly with Ills hat. What's new?
You look as though you'd just side
stepped a bomb"
Something interesting" Mitchell
announced, glancing %uneasily at the
door, a trife open. Rising abruptly,
he stepped over, and shut it securely.
Coming back, he reached out mechan-
Iically, as though he had made the
same motion a hundred times that
day, and drew from a pigeon-hole a
handful Of crisp five-dollar bills, thrust
ing them into Poe's fingers with nerv-
GUS quickness.
lis this hush money, or a donation
to the head Office boy Of the Bankers
Protective, which capacity / SO hum
bly, FLIP" asked Poe, lifting a highly
,arched eyebrow, and holding 1t CULVER
ering for a questioning moment.
Look it over" said Mitchell. turn
ing sidewise, and drumming nervously
,on a magnifying-glass he had dropped
lat Poe's entrance.
Christopher Poe separated one Of
the bills from the package, held it first
to the light, started slightly, and then
quickly turned the bill face up, and
smoothed it over his knee, bending
close to examine it. Quick as thought
he snatched the magnifying-lens from
Mitchell's fingers, and studied the bill
for a full minute. Then he looked up
and smiled
why. it's at least a millimeter
out. Nobody's ever been able to get
old General Jackson's jaw just right,
except the man who made the genuine
plate, It's been tried often, hasn't it?'
"a There are two other counterfelts
of that BILL" answered Mitchell.
Neither of them any good at all. But
this is different. They found out the
bill was bad by that lengthy jaw. But
that bills been slipping through sew
eral banks for a week OF more. Think
of it! Just discovered today. Good
looking bill, isn't it? Paper fine, print
has the proper snap; everything right
but that jaw; it's just a hair less than
a millimeter too long, as O noticed.
l knew it wouldn't escape you"
How much of the stuff is out?"
Nearly twenty thousand is in"
cried Mitchell. IT'S a fine mess! God
knows how much is out! Think of it!
Think of New York banks being fooled
on punches of this stuff; they've
taken in twenty thousand dollars, and
the roll you have there contains SAM
pies of it all"
But it's the best paper I've ever
scent" exclaimed Christopher Poe,
slightly flushed, having turned again
Ito the bill. The counterfeiter hasn't
missed on a thing but that jaw, and
how any man could duplicate that is
more than | can tell. President Jack
sons jaw was a lucky thought on that
P07 note; nobody could ever copy his
head exactly as it's reproduced on the
bill. It's a lantern jaw, SO shaped hat
lit can stand the extra millimeter n
escape notice. But that paper is what
worries me. 1t looks just like the real
thing. That fellow must have got
hold of a batch of the real stuff some
where. Measurements are exactly
right. The two scatter-silk lines run
ming through the bill are correct. By
George, here's a mystery worth a
mans troubled"
Its a remarkable BILL" replied
Mitchell. do you notice the web
stitching on the back is exactly right,
itoo?"
: Poe turned the certificate over.
"Remarkable!" he exclaimed, hav-
ing examined the green and white
webbing, put on with the effect of
tfan-tracery in the ~cathedrals, in In
ftricate design, difficult to initiate.
There's nothing else out of proper
ton but Jackson's jaw" queried
Christopher Poe, glancing at the fine
tVTluIluS Ou tuC 6iCCA O0Nh VI NV
note. which begins: This note is a
legal tender at it's face value"
mo, they didn't report anything
else. and | haven't found a thing"
Poe paid no attention to the reply;
he seemed deeply interested in the
printing, reading it carefully through
the magnifier. Suddenly, right at the
end, he stopped, and looked at Mitchell
Iquizzically.
Handing Mitchell the bill and point
ing to the printing, he queried:
Have you read this?"
mo, | dare say that's all right. The
fellow wouldn't likely be such a
lshrewd engraver and make any mis-
take on the plain printing"
Suppose you read it, then" Poe
handed him the bill and picked up
another, holding it far from his eyes.
md staring at it abSently.