Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1916-07-14

Not more than thai: -.
Oh yes; you say the Hl,man check is
in; l had overlooked it. All right.
thank you"
When the waiter had removed tho
desk set. the engineer leaned toward
his table companion.
Mr.. MaSSingale. I'm going TO ask
you to ten me frankly what kind OF a
deal it was you made with Cartwright
and the bank people"
1T was the biggest tom-fool razzle
that any Twin live mar out Of a luna
tic 'sylum yer went into" confessed
the prisoner of fate. Il was TO stock
the Susan for half a million-oh, she's
worth II, every dollar Of it; you might
say the ores in sight for i right now"
this in Difference to Brouillard's
orowlifting of surprise. They was to
put in a 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.
1 was to have two-thirds Of the
stock and they was to have onethird.
The hundred thousand for develop
ment we'd get at the bank, on my
notes because was president and tho
biggest stakeholder. with John Yves,
as indorser. Then, to protect the bank
accordin' to law, they said. we'd put
n whole bunch O. stock-mine and
theirn-into escrow in the hands Of
Judge Williams. When the notes was
paid, the judga'd hand the stock back
to US"
Just a 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"
80 it amounts to this; You have
given them a clean third of the Susan
Tor the mere privilege of borrowing
n 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 a sober man Looks like | needed a
Janitor to look after my upper story,
don't 1t? And | reckon mebby | do"
One thing more" pressed the re-
lentless querist. Did you really handle
the hundred thousand-do oil develop.
ment fund yourself, Mr.. M"assingale?"
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
n%achurly, we bein' a 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
specially was the making of estimates.
Hence he was able to say, after u min
uto oT TWO OF HSurlnB'
It's q bad business any way you at
tack 1t. What you have really got for
yourself out Of the deal is the ten thou
sa%nd-dollar deposit to your personal &C.
count, and nothing more; ard they'll
probably try to make you a debtor for
that. Taking that amount and a fair
estimate Of the company's expendi-
lures to date-say thirty-hve thousand
in round numbers, which is fairly
chargeable to the company's assets as
a w~hole-they still owe you about fifty.
five thousand Of the original hundred
thousand they were to put in. II
there were time-but you say this is
the last day%
"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
Ill write It out for you-and get the
stock released. After that, well give
them a 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 a picture Of dis
mayed incertitude.
Il reckon you're %forgettin' that I
haint got money enough to lift n
edge O. them notes." he said gently.
Brouillard had found a piece of blank
paper in his pocket and was rapidly
writing the "iron-clad" receipt.
mo, l hadn't forgotten. | have some
thing over a hundred thousand dollars
lying idle in the bank. You'll take 1t
and pay the notes"
1t was a bolt out of a clear sky for
the old man tottering OF 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 a diver
sion-and by the time the wreck Nas
repaired speech was possible.
Are you-are you plumb sure ;'ou
can spare it," asked the debtor husk-
lily. And then: Il cayn't seem to sort
O. surround tall in a bunch, that
way. | knowed J. Wesley had me
down; the 'Susan's' the only piece O.