The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1917-09-13


/ the Oldest financiers in the city. Fa-
therly influence had given the junior a
fine start, in fact business had been so
active that double the original capital
was soon Invested. 1t was trusting a
great deal of responsibility to a very
young and inexperienced man, but
Paget, Jr., was of excellent personal
character and habits, and energetic
| and ambitious. However, the minute
new bank is started there is an i'm
mediate invasion on the part of crooks,
schemers, "pikers" and delinquents
who have been tagged at the older in
stitutions, Young Paget pretty shrewd-
ly evaded most of the pitfalls, but one
day King" Gundorf walked into the
/ bank.
1t was not as Gundorf that he did
this, but as Bogart Rutledge. He an
nOunced that he was about to buy out
the old and established Acme Metals
company, a concern so well known to
Paget that he was at once interested
Gundorf stated that he was paying
100000 for the business, half cash
now held in escrow, as a receipt
showed. He wished the bank to loan
him 100000, for which he, as the new
president of the Acme, would put up
the entire 100000 stocks of that COM
pany The bank had no right to make
a loan in one volume so largely in ex-
cess of proportional capital restric-
lions, but Gundorf claimed it would be
for only ten days and offered a hand
some bonus. and the deal was made,
In five days the explosion came To
his dismay Paget learned that the pre-
tended Rutledge, in giving the collat-
eral note for 100000 had no authority
to sign. at that time, as president of
the Acme. This fact relieved the cor
poration of all liability and the bank
| held a worthless piece of paper and a
/ nOn-valid stock transfer receipt. The
next discovery was that Gundorf had
disappeared with the 100000 received
from the bank, and that the 100000
in escrow comprised counterfeit notes
When the escrow funds were exam
ined this was made manifest, and at
.
in.
He recognized the culprit from his
earmarks at once Gundorf had been
sentenced to a long term of imprison-
ment in Brazil a year back He was
supposed to be out of the way, for
spell at least. But about six months
since there had appeared on the mar
ket a fifty-dollar counterfeit note,
which, to Marvel's experienced eyes,
was the product of Gundorf's skill.
| Before any Of them had been recog-
nized as dangerous by the banks, Mar
vel had detected the flaws in the issue.
There were two material variations
from the good notes. AS soon as he
sent out this possibility of worldwide
Identification, all fifty-dollar notes
were Of course scanned closely.
To run down the cOunterfeits was
MarveIs first purpose; to help out the
Guardian Trust and Savings an added
motive. The Acme people had lost
nothing, as they simply invalidated
the stock contract. Paget, however,
was out 100000. His father was now
trying to raise this amount SO the
bank could continue, or, if necessary,
go out of business honorably The
| banks within the Clearing House were
trying to smother publicity, for fear
of a general run. Paget had been Civ
en- thirty days by the bank examiners
to clear the situation. He had tech
nicaHy violated the banking laws, and
but for the pending strained financial
situation his bank would have been
| closed and himself prosecuted.
The Guardian Trust and Savings
cleared through our bank, Paget was
a personal friend, l held fifty shares
of the stock-that is how l was inter
ested. For two weeks Marvel had
| been on the track of Gundorf He had
his own ideas as to how far catching
him would relieve conditions.
You are interested" he said. as I
arose to leave the room, fearing !
might be in the way. Stay where
you are. l have had a man watching
the house where Gundorf lived until
he put over this last deal of his"
But vacant, l understand you to
say?"
Vacant, true, but the rent paid UP
for six months, and telephone, gas and
electricity ordered kept ready for use
and paid for ahead | fancy my man
has learned something at last, and !
also imagine he IS bringing somebody
with him.
AS the door opened on noiseless
hinges Lott ushered into the room two
men. The one who held the other a
prisoner was a powerful, unkempt fel
low, who resembled tramp who
might have been sleeping in a doc
kennel over night l later found out
that this was literally true-but for
a week instead of a day.
His companion, c1nging, terror
faced, wildly distraught, was a 1.-the
wiry man, brown as a berry, with
small, beady eyes. His garb was halt
foreign his actions those of a mental
He was in a frantic excess of terror
and trembled as Marvel fixed those
grave. boring eyes upon him.
Il made the catch on suspicion.
spoke his captor He was ringing at
the door bell Of the place we know