Evening star., 1916-08-27

In spite of himself, he couldn't resist
the temptation of speculating what he
would do with that windfall if no claimant
ever appeared. 1t was curious-he'd just
been touching on that very point in his
conversation with Hancock. Why, with
twenty-five hundred dollars he could go
to New York and live for year or more
while he looked around. He could afford
to be leisurely, to select the best of all
possible openings, to use what slight in
fiuence he had in certain quarters. He
could establish graft, and manipulate
it. During these international complica-
tions, exporting was the thing-he might
easily secure berth if he could waste
six months in laying plans and pulling
wires. One has to have friend on the
inside to get anywhere in business to-day.
He could get into Wall Street-or he could
get into real estate. Big money is to be
made in city real estate. He could buy
a patent right and go into manufacturing
for himself. What couldn't he do-with
twenty-five hundred dollars?
At his left junior draughtsman in
quired of the landlady: "Do you wish for
the apricots?" And the bulky matron
responded gracefully: "Thank you, no;
don't choose any,"
He escaped from the table long before
the runner-up had tasted his coffee; and
when he was in his own room again, he
locked the door, dug down through the
moist tobacco to the fiat package of bills,
and recounted them. Twenty-Five
right!
A CREAKING board sent a thrill down
= his spine. AS he replaced the notes
he experienced the first shock of guilt.
Uncomprehending, he contracted his
brows. Why under the sun should he feel
guilty? Not once had he harbored the
faintest impulse toward an overt act. He
was performing as best he could the duty
of a custodian, a trustee. 1t was in con-
sideration of this that he hadn't men,
toned the incident to any one. If it had
really been his own money, now, the
whole town could know it and welcome
Was it because he had wondered what he
would do with that money if it We're his
own?
His watch showed a quarter past eight.
Nearly two hours had elapsed-and no
message from the Majestic. That was
curious. NOU many men cOulQ ufOp
twenty-five hundred dollars out of the
window and remain in ignorance of the
loss for nearly two hours. Either the
owner didn't know what had happened
or else he hadn't been in the hotel any
way. Those were the only sane deduc-
tions. If the money had fallen from one
of those Office buildings, of course there
would be an advertisement in the morning
paper. But if it were from the Majestic,
why this protracted delay?
He tried to read, but the story con-
cerned the business success of bright
young man with small capital, and he dis
covered that he was dreaming again. He
tried solitaire and sat for fifteen minutes
in the middle of the game without playing
card. Twenty-Five hundred dollars
would allow margins on lot of good
stocks; Midvale Steel looked good, and
Chevrolet Motors. He put down the
deck, and verified the process which had
assured him, by mental arithmetic, that
twenty-five hundred dollars was as much
as he would earn, at his current salary, in
three whole years. lacking nine weeks.
The material evidence of labor takes up
l:t4l, c,nnni