Meade County news. [volume] (Meade, Kan.) 1900-1918, 1916-09-14
Not more than thatf

his table companion:
"Mr. Massingale, I'm going to ask
you to tell me frankly what kind Of q
deal 1t was you made with Cartwright
and the bank people"
1T was the biggest tom-fool razzIe
that any Twin live man out of a luna
tic 'sylum ever went into" confessed
the prisoner Of fate. 81 was to stock
the Susan for half million-oh, she's
worth it, every dollar Of it; you might
say the ores in sight for it right now"
this in Difference to Brouillard's
brow-lifting Of surprise. "They was to
put In hundred thousand cash, and
was to put in the mine and the ore on
the dump, Just as she stood"
The engineer nodded and Massingale
went on.
II was to, have two-thirds Of the
stock and they was to have one-third,
The hundred thousand for develop
ment we'd get at the bank, on my
notes, because was president and the
biggest stakeholder, with John Yves,
as indorser. Then, to protect the bank
accordin' to law, they said, we'd put
the whole bunch o. stock-mine and
their'n-into escrow In the hands Of
Judge Williams. When the notes was
paid, the judged hand the stock back
to u.s."
Just moment" interrupted Brouil-
lard. did you sign those notes per-
sonally, or as president Of the new
company"
That's where they laid for me-"
said the old man shamefacedly. Right
there is where John Wes ten-dollar-a-
bottle sody-pop stuff we was soppin'
up must a foolished me plumb silly"
so it amounts to this: You have
given them clean third of the Susan
for the mere privilege of borrowing
one hundred thousand dollars on your
own paper. And if you don't pay, you
lose the remaining two-thirds as we'll"
That's about the way it stacks up
to sober man. Looks like needed q
Janitor to look after my upper story,
don't it? And reckon mebby do"
"One thing MORE" pressed the re-
lentless querist did you really handle
the NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. develop
ment fund yourself, Mr.. Massingale?"
We'll. no; not exactly. Ten thou
sand dollars of what they called q
contingent fund was put in my name;
but the treasurer handled most of it
nachurly, we bein' stock company"
Brouillard took out his pencil and
began to make figures on the back of
the menu card. He knew the equip.
ment Of the Little Susan" and his
speciality was the making of estimates.
Hence he was able to say, after a min
ute or two Of figuring:
IT'S a bad business any way you at
tack it. What you have really got for
yourself out of the deal is the ten thou
sand-dollar deposit to your personal &C
count, and nothing more; and they'll
probably try to make you debtor for
that. Taking that amount and a fair
estimate of the companys expendi-
lures to date-say thirty-ive thousand
in round numbers, which is fairly
chargeable to the company's assets as
whole-they still owe you about fifty.
five thousand of the original hundred
thousand they were to put in. If
there were time-but you say this is
the last day."
1.-THE last half O. the last day." Mas
singale amended.
That being the case, there is no
help for it; you'll have to take your
medicine and pay the notes. Do that,
take an iron-clad receipt from the bank
I'll write 1t out for you-and get the
stock released. After that, we'll give
them whirl for the thirty-three and
a third per cent they have practically
stolen from you"
The old mans face, remindful now
Of his daughters, was picture Of dis
mayed incertitude.
II reckon you're forgettin' that
haint got money enough to lift one
edge o. them notes." he said gently.
Brouillard had found piece of blank
paper in his pocket and was rapidly
writing the "iron-clad" receipt.
mo, hadn't forgotten. have some.
thing over hundred thousand dollars
lying idle in the bank. You'll take II
and pay the notes."
It was bolt out of clear sky for
the old man tottering on the brink OF
his fourth pit Of disaster, and he
evinced his emotion-and the tense
strain Of keyed-up nerves-by drop
ping his lifted coffee cup with a crash
into his plate. The little accident was
helpful in its way-it made q diver
sion-and by the time the wreck was
repaired speech was possible.
Are you-are you plumb sure you
can spare it," asked the debtor husk
lily. And then: II cayn't seem to sort
o. surround tall in bunch, that
way. l knowed j. Wesley had me
down; the 'Susan's' the only piece o
real money in this whole blamed free
for-all, and he knows it."
After they had made their way
through the excited sidewalk ex
changes to the bank, and Brouillart
had written his check, the old man