Evening star., 1924-07-27
Traditional Rival

business borough. Because of his old
time Affiliations with the place, as
well as because Of the lack of more
promising timber, he had been made
borough treasurer This, three years
earlier
He had swung the local job in con-
nection with his city law practice. He
had done more. A year back certain
mos attractive speculations had pre-
Sented themselves to him. His expe-
| rience told him that here was one of
the rare times when man with a
little capital might well hope to be-
only mortgaged his house, but had
| called in all his few small invest.
ments, in order to clean up.
The sum still was short of what he
wanted. There were borough funds
which his official position made avail
able for temporary use. These he ap-
propriated He did so with many
by nature either a thief or a murderer.
But the temptation to exchange low
income drudgery for life of opulent
leisure was too strong. And he COM
forted his conscience by telling it
over and over again of the perfect
safety of this speculation, and of his
ability to restore the borrowed secur-
tiles as soon as the cleanup should
have been made.
But the cleanup was never made.
The seemingly safe speculation crum-
bled. It's collapse left Roke not only
penniless, but with a big deficit Of
borough funds which he could not
make good.
For a time, thanks to his position
and his legal knowledge, he kept his
head above water, and his defalca-
tions from discovery. Then, as usual,
Give came upon the scene.
TWO years earlier. Give had moved
= to Paignton with his young wife.
At once the couple had become more
than well liked. They were among
the most popular people in town, and
were in the center Of all local activi-
ties.
Partly because OF this popularity,
partly because of suit he had helped
the council to win, Maxwell Give was
nominated for borough treasurer. And
at the election he beat Roke by a
healthy majority.
On the 1st of January the new bor-
ough treasurer would take office. His
ho Of n o.
deficit And that inevitably must
mean prison, or flight. for Roke.
If only the lucky candidate would
die before he could step into his
predecessors shoes. That would af-
ford time for Roke to turn around
time for possible new speculations to
recoup old losses-before a special
election could be held. The chances
were that with Give out of the way,
the easy-going borough would even
re-elect Roke. In that case many
months of security might lie ahead
months wherein anything or every
thing might develop to save him
Roke took to straying past the Give
house. in the evening. with no definite
aim in view, but scourged on by MS
hate and by his stark need OF the
others elimination. And twice, dur
ing these strolls, he had seen light
in the garage and knew that Give
was pottering about his beloved car.
That was why he lay awake all
night and for three successive nights
until his campaign was complete
and flawleSs.
The basis of his plan, naturally, was
to cause Maxwell Gives death by
carbon monoxide gas, and to make
that death seem accidental. 1t was a
form of murder unknown to the long
and smudgy annals Of crime-a form
of murder which could not be proven
against the perpetrator. unless some
egregious blunder should be made.
From one angle after another Roke
approached the subject. If the scheme
contained the very tiniest flaw, Roke
dismissed 1t at once and fell to work
devising another. At last he hit upon
the one f1awless idea he sought-an
idea which he told himself was proof
against blunder or chance.
Not content with going over its
every move in his resourceful brain,
he sat down and wrote it out, in
brief:
This is what he wrote:
&C. goes to the city in his car every
Friday afternoon. to see his mother
and to take dinner with her. He re-
turns to Paignton, always between
1880 and 70. He leaves the city not
later than 10. I have verified this by
watching him four successive weeks.
He crosses the river by way of the
42d street ferry.
Next Friday night I shall wait
at the ferry slip until his car ar
rives. 1 shall keep out OF sight
| until it boards the boat. Then
shall stroll up to him and say 1 am
on my way home by train and ask if he
minds my riding out to Paignton
| with him instead, as I have some
minor matters connected with the
treasureship to talk over with him.
If any one else is with him or joins
him on the boat I shall postpone
doing this until the following week
or. if necessary, the week following
that.
HE will probably offer to drive
me to my own door, a mile beyond
his house. This shall refuse to let
him do. I shall say have something
Of special import to tell him and
shall ask his leave to drive to his
home and to talk with him there for
a few minutes. Being hospitabIe and
easy tempered, he cannot very we'll
| refuse.
'1f he offers to leave me at the