Tensas gazette. [volume] (St. Joseph, La.) 1886-current, 1917-10-19

Marvel was studying out new ease.
He nodded TO me in an distracted way.
On the glass-slabbed table before nun
were a dozen or more little rolled-up
wads of paper. | knew they repre-
scented puppets he had been moving
about, shaking up, almost talking TO-
almost making them talk to him
separating, combining, analyzlng' IN
fact winnowing facts with a sieve OF
probability.
II think I've got it," he said, sweep
ing his mines from the table with al
air of precision and finality. You
have come In at the finish, probably
You were in at the start, so you VIII
have glimmering idea OF what 1t is
all about when speak one word
Razsome.".
'sThat is suggestive" told Resilius
Marvel, but scarcely enlightening. |
fancied that Alison Ransome was
closed chapter in the suppressed SEN
sations of local banking circles
What, with one hundred thousand
dollars unaccounted for, and the gag
placed with all hands around" de-
rided the great one. Hardly!
Ransome had been anybody's friend
and everybodys favorite. He had
broken into banking about year pre-
vious in the eager, rollicking fash
ion OF a college lad full of financial
theories and expecting some day TO
gain presidency in jump. His IN
Gle was the big man in the Unity
National bank. and Alison skipped
over messenger service, 1.-The books
and the currency pen in very brief
period, and had charge Of the ponder
Gus and opulent money vaults with
three men to help him fill an easy job.
Then one day a big sensation was
born at the Unity National. Ransome
and a bank policeman who had left
the institution two hours previous,
the former handcuffed to treasure
sachel, returned, both of them white
faced and scared looking. They bore
the satchel casually enough now, for
one side of it showed a circular cash
with half the surface tapping loose,
and emptiness where there had been
fifty thousand dollars in neatly packed
and labeled national bank notes.
In a word, this happened: A bank
at Riverton, a suburb twenty miles
out, had made a special deposit OF
the money noted, subject to call and
personal delivery when required. 1t
was a special fund and a larger sum
in ready cash than the suburban bank
cared to risk carrying. Besides that
the transaction was trusted by the
Uaity National. The call of that
msrning had been anticipated for sew
eral days. Ransome was deputized TO
deliver the money and bring back a
receipt
He never qualified for the receipt
and he and his guard never got as
far as the suburban bank. Once
aboard the train and occupying one
seat together, in order to rest com
fcstably the handcuff was unlocked
and the satchel was set on the cal
floor. The guard retained hold of the
end of the chain, and Ransome set his
feet firmly on the satchel SO it could
not be budged without his knowing 1t
Lo and behold! in spite of all theil
precision. as they neared the end Of
their brief journey and lifted the
satchel to rehandcuff it to the wrist
of Ransome. it was discovered empty
That is, some one occupying the sea-
ira hAhtnA fhnn, had roonh0r
under the fitting footrack, had insert
ed Q keen shoe blade within the leath
er receptacle and had quietly lifted
out its contents. The train had stop
ped at all local stations, so the clever
thief might have left the train at any
one Of six stops.
Not a soul recalled even noticing
the missing passenger. The shoe
knMe was found on the car floor Also
a cane, light and somewhat peculiar
as to it's end fltting-of which more
anon. II was now in the possession
Of the man who had reawakened IL
my mind the little history | am trying
to epitomize in my struggling. fault,
way.
Neither money nor thief was found
No possible blame could attach t.
young Ransome II marked him. how
ever, as an unlucky wight with a biz
loss to his record Then followed ;
happening that placed him in th'
''hoodoo" class. Ii was in connection
with the bank cash reserve, the rea
strength and sinew of the institution
kept sacred and apart within the hol,
of HOLES of the Unity National. Whel
foreign capitalists visited the bank
or It was policy and business to i'm
press a client. or ruralite correspond
ents were in evidence, it was the prac
tice TO show them over the institution
winding up with view of the treas
ures OF the great inner vault wher
real money was really kept.
AS in all large banks the Unity Ma
tional maintained it's actual cash re
serve In permanent form. Thus Their
were packages representing $4,000
$4,000, even 100000. In these tn
notes were of large denomination
mostly 800. $1,000, and some $1,000
bills. To facilitate the work of tn
bank examiner. these packages wer
originally verified and sealed at tn
local sub-treasury and stamped as t
amount officially. When the govern
ment examiner visited the bank b
would simply count the packages, az
cepting their stamped value. tossin
them aside and aggregating amounts
even as you and | the small chang