The Washington times., 1937-11-29

parlor where she's good for two to
three hours.
Getting into the house was a
cinch, and his hunch about the
radio was right. 1t had a false
bottom. Even if the gang knew
he'd spotted it they wouldn't have
done anything about it. That's
how they despised him.
80 the Wombat goes to work
and makes neat little package Of
the phony dough he finds there.
The dough looks pretty good to
him. It would be a cinch to pass
it if he went about it right.
when the Wombat got home
and counted the dough, he started
to get shaky again. Because there
was cool six grand there. in fives,
tens and twenties. It was some
haul, all right.
Right away he beat it over to
bank near Times Square and
rented a safety deposit box under
some alias. He only held out a
couple Of tens to keep him going.
"He laid low for a couple Of days
and then he goes out and buys a
secondhand suit. Everything went
swell. The storekeeper didn't even
take a second look at the dough.
Then Monty Reina, who is okay
by this time, gets tripped up when
he tries to pass a ten spot in a
store and happens to get an ex-
bank teller for a salesman.
Monty has to take 1t on the
lam, and the shop guy goes down
to take look at the Rogue's Gal.
lery. He points out Monty right
away and we go after him.
''We raided the Bronx place and
got them all, including the dame.
We found plenty of the phony
stuff, too.
$50 we hauled 'em all down to
the TombS and asked a couple
of questions. Pretty soon it comes
out that somebody pulled a job on
them and that they think it's the
Wombat.
Ray Gallagher, who's in charge
of my district, sends me out to
pick him up. I'm running in luck,
because I spot the Wombat right
on Broadway.
II follow him, and he marches
into a bank and me right after
him. The Wombat goes down
stairs, so I flash my badge on the
guard and he leads me down to
the vault.
SCARED CROOK
"We meet the Wombat coming
up the stairs. The minute he sees
me he starts shaking.
'Okay, little fella,'" I says,
let's have the key" He don't
make any bones about it and we
all go back in the vault.
All of asudden,a I'm opening
the box, I look up and I see the
Wombat smiling in a sickly sort
of way.
"The guard looks inside the
box. Then he stares at me as if
I'm nuts. Because there's nothing
in it but ashes!
Pretty Slick" I says to the
Wombat. $50 you burned the
evidence, eh?'"
What evidence?'" the Won
bat says, figuring I can't have
anything on him now.
so tell him what happened
and that we know he pulled this
job on the Geraughtys. I even
ask him how he found out, but
he don't answer that.
He just says, $50 even if ]
did burn the stuff, just did you
guys a favor by burning that Junk
l really been helpin' you boys
II took him by the arm. Yeah,
but you wasn't helping yourself
any. That dough you swiped
from the radio wasn't phony.
1T was real. You got away
with pure profits. The counter
felt money was hidden up in the
attic"
when this sank in the Wombat
looked ready to keel over. He
could have been out Of the coun
try weeks ago.
1T burned real money he
mutters half to himself.
Yeah, you bet your life you
did, I come back. And that en-
titles you to a nice little stretch
up the river for wilfully destroy
ing American currency. YOU
never thought Of that, did you?'
THE END