Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1924-02-23

How long did you know him, Mr..
Dunn"
"Since the spring before his
death when / moved into the Hart
ington. He had a very good posi-
ton for SO young man-Larry
could not have been more than
twenty-five at the time of his death
and, of course, he was keeping ms
speculations on the market strictly
under cover. For month or so
after l took the rooms across the
hall from his. we had merely a
nodding acquaintance, but l often
wondered about the good-looking
boy, with a smile always on his
lips, who lived as staid and method
ical an existence as any confirmed
old bachelor.
He had a reckless. devil-may- care
air about, him and a light in his
eyes that BODIED danger if i. he ever
cut loose and yet he apparently had
no vices, no desire for any sort of
dissipation. There were never any
wild parties in his rooms and he
kept regular hours, coming in quiet
1y at night and going out about the
same time as I did in the morning."
Dunn was still pacing the floor. but
more slowly, and retrospective
note had crept into his tones. Zone
evening, early in June. / met with
a slight taxicab accident and he
heard them helping me into my
rooms-the dOOrman and elevator
boy, I mean-and came across the
hall to insist upon taking care OF me.
That was the beginning of it, and
during the long, hot summer that
followed we became friends in that
strange intimacy which sometimes
springs up between two lonely men
who are congenial and take each
ether for granted, asking no ques
tons because they are injurious.
I'VE dined together frequently and
occasionally went to roof gardens or
revues, but more often we would
spend whole evenings in his rooms
or mine, smoking and talking-Gad!
can see him now"
Dunn halted, and stood staring
blanlIly for u moment out of the
other window: then Geoff asked:
Didn't you never learn nothin'
bout him, Mr.. Dunn? Not where
he come from, nor what his folks
had been like. even If they was all
dead?"
They had been gentlefolk, Geof-
frey, one could see that" his host
responded as he turned once more.
l. llUlictu men uTSl uict HlIl lIldL
ne had u soft but pronounced
Southern accent, and now and then
he told me some little anecdote
handed down in his family which
showed they must have been pretty
big people even back in the days be-
fore the Civil War. 1t wasn't until
late summer that he told me about
the girl, and then l realized why he
lived such a quiet. clean life and
the dissipation of the city could
have no attraction for him."
What girl?" Geoff sat up straight.
"The one he hoped to marry. He
showed me her photograph, too, but
l can only recall that she was very
tall and blond and beautiful, though
rather proud and disdainful looking,
If you know what | mean
Geoff nodded.
i've seen 'en. like the earth
wasn't good 'nough for 'em to walk
on. Did he tell you her Nance"
II think he mentioned it, but
can scarcely remember think it
was Katherine" Dunn replied UNI
certainly. She lived in his home
town in Virginia and they had
grown up together. He wasn't al
together happy. though. when he
talked about her and especially
when he looked at her picture, and
| could see there was some sort of
cloud between them. He never
told ne in so many words, but
gathered that her people had had a
great deal of money and then met
with reVerseS and she wasn't taking
it very graciOuSly.'
What was his home town? Kin
you recollect, Mr.. Dunn" Geoff
was beginning to grow restless IN
der the long drawn out story. but he
was careful not to sh6w it for fear
that the shy diffident man would re-
tire into his shell again.
Bedford, or Beverly, or Bemis-
burg--something like that. | think
He only mentioned it once and
didn't pay much attention: I know
| tried to recall it after his death
and couldn't. 1t was about that
time-late summer-that | began to
suspect his secret interest in the
stock market and to wonder if he
were specializing. He knew, of
course. that l was broker. and his
questions showed that he was fol-
lowing the quotations pretty closely
for an outsider. | wasn't sure,
though. until the crash came"
Did he ever speak O Mr.. Benk-
ard? DO YOU know how thick they
was?"
He talked of him growingly as n
coming power in Wall Street, but |
thought it was just boyish enthus-
iasm. for had heard they were
friends. MIR. Bernhard was only be-
ginning at that time to make him
self known and few of us realized
what he was to become" Dunn
paused, and then went on hurriedly:
Il knew, of course. that Larry had
money Of his own aside from his
salary, although he was careful to
live within that; he had made a
Passing reference now and then to
investments which knew were
I sound in every way and he had also
put up his own bond--a heavy one
with his firm. That bond covered
almost a third Of the missing money
after his death.
During September l saw less and
less Of my young friend. but | was
engroSsed I'm my own affairs.
specialized In a different field and
did not pay much attention to the
metals market, but toward the end
OF the month every one knew there
was something big in the wind In
| regard to Consolidated Lead. 1t was
| borne in upon me, then. too. how
harassed and strained Larry was
| looking <when we did run into each
other, and 1t occurred to me that he
was rather avoiding me.
We'll. the crash came. and with
1t Larry's last attempt to bring him =