The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1922-12-07

Did you hear the dreadful thing that happened to Mrs. Regent?" ask cd Lucy Pollard that afternoon, How unfortunate, after all her kindliness to people, especially to usi Do you suppose any one could have stolen it?
 How do I know?' reioined Clarke srumpily. People think so.'
 q don't believe it.''
 Don't you?" asked her husband
 "Of course you never can tell" she returned. som etimes I suppose a thief gets in under false colOrs. It is easy to be fooled"
 Very, for instance, there are MT and Mrs. Clarke Pollard. This town takes us for the real thing; I'm a banker, and you're a New York socie- ty woman, one of the younger set Lord. I thought I wanted to be rash! I thought I could come here and bluff my way"
 We've done splendidly," said Lucy. We had only about three dollars and
 half to start. and we have still near " a dollar; and we've been here two weeks Honey, I'll help you all 1 can, truly I will"
 Suddenly Lucy threw her arms
 about her husband and tucked her
 adorable nose into the hollow of his neck. From this point she could be heard saying something which Clarke took to be an assure nee of love and loyalty It was very touching, and Lucy was the most seructive and low able creature in the world. Clarke
 felt mean and guilty, and to r.slke up for it. caressed Is wife fondIy and | assured her that just by being in the same town with him she was giving him wOnd derfui assistance. But that isn't real tangible help protested Lucy ''I want to do some thing definite. It must be so diff cult for you not to have little ready money. You can't buy the other men
 gars. or-why. I was thinking you 1 ought to give the rest of the bond holders a dinner and then place your l ? an before them. Men are always so | much more receptive after a good i dinner. And you need some new 1 gloves. Then there are all those l sJockh oIders, out In the country around West Gap and up through l Rocky Bottom Valley. You ought to l have an automobile and call on every | one of them personally.
 Cant help it," said the glum Pol ! lard ''No use crying for the moon" i 'T don't know." said Lucy. Per 1 aaps I'm not so useless
 ] Clarke Pollard was a busy man | and as for finance, he learned the ! cal meaning of the frenzied kind l The popular idea of frenzied finance | visualzes millions, running amuck, | crazy. irresponsible millions dashing 1 1round among the herd and stamped | ing a lot of perfectly respectable ! placid grazing millions into a rot ot 1 trarnping hoofs and tossing horns ! you know that old cattle range met. | aphor Poor Clarke Pollard couldn't i stampede eight cents. And his anX- i ious maneuvers to cling to every ! tricy slippery dime of his fast dw- = ! ding resources would have mad c [ Wall Street weep.
 Had it not been for hs credit at i the hotel, where it was taken for | granted he was good for any amount, ! the game would have been up before | the bride and groom had oramented | West Gap thirty-six hours. ] Clarke vibrated betewen the bank and the office of the W. G. and R. B. . He was careful to time his visits so
 as not to run across Wilton. But when he could have a couple of 1 hours with Ben Tinkham, he made , god use of such interviews. Ben was i thoroughly posted regarding the trac- 1 tion company. He knew where to put h-s hands on valuable facts and
 figures relating to earnings and ex-
 penses. and was a mine of inforna- [ ton.
 ''O~ course" he said. "I don't know much about Wiltons construction
 company. That was a deal he pulled i off pretty slick. and the books are ! kept in a Safety-bON up at the bank Believe me. old Si Fishley, chairman of the state railroad commissioners | he knows a lot. though. But shucks | Those guys always keep under GOV ! CT"
 F shley is a rich man. I suppose ' That's the doost of it,' said Ben | Hes poOr-he's worse'n poor. He ! owes more money'n any man in the l State. so they tell me. He'd a gone 1 Hankrupt long ago if it hadn't beer 1 for his friends. His job is a politica ! one. too And they do say he paid ] ID quite a lot of bills a couple O.
 ears back, but I hear he's poorer l yer now. Course the State pays his