Banker ' s Bet Content . It was a perfectly ordinary day at the main office of the Bank of Daggerfall . Normal transactions took place : deposits were deposited , withdrawals were withdrawn , house mortgages were collected , letters of credit were golded . When a teller named Clyton J . Wifflington saw the little old lady approaching him , dragging two large sacks , each nearly as large as her , he changed his mind . It was not to be a perfectly ordinary day at the Bank of Daggerfall after all . " I would like you to take the thirty million gold pieces I have in these sacks and open me an account , " croaked the little old biddy . " Certainly , madam , " Wifflington said , eagerly . He counted the gold in the sacks and found that it was thirty million gold exactly . " One moment , sonny , " the little old lady chirruped . " Before I open the account , I would like to meet the man I ' m trusting it to . I ' d like to talk to the president of the bank . " Wifflington wanted the president to know that he was the teller who had taken the largest single deposit that year , so eagerly sent word to the president ' s secretary . As it turned out , the president was equally eager to meet such a wealthy woman , so the old lady was brought to his office that very day . " Pleased to make your acquaintance , milady . I am Gerander P . Baggledon , " said the president , Gerander P . Baggledon . " My name , " said the little old lady . " Is Petuva Smuthworthy . " That was , in fact , her real name . " Thank you for seeing me . I like to conduct my business in a more personal way . " " I can certainly appreciate that , " said Baggledon chucklingly . " It is an appreciable sum of gold . Would it be rude of me to ask how you came by it ? " " Not at all , " said Mrs . Smuthworthy . " How came you by it ? " asked Baggledon . " I ' ll let you guess , " replied Mrs . Smuthworthy , with a trace of unattractive girlish flirtation . Baggledon was a man of enormous imagination , for a banker . He guessed inheritance and longtime thrift , but Mrs . Smuthworthy coyly shook her head . Perhaps she had sold a large , old mansion ? No . In a moment of chumminess , Baggledon asked if the gold came as a result of plunder or thievery . Mrs . Smuthworthy took no offense , but said no . Finally , he admitted defeat . " I ' m a gambler , " she said . " In arena fights ? " he asked , interested . " No , no , dearie . Different things . For example , I ' d be willing to wager twenty five thousand gold pieces that at this time tomorrow morning , your testicles will be covered with feathers . " Mr . Baggledon was somewhat taken aback by the old woman ' s words . Could she be mad ? Could she be a witch ? He eliminated the latter possibility , for he had a sense for such things . If she were mad , she was still a rich madwoman . And he could use twenty five thousand gold pieces . So he took her wager . For the next twenty - four hours , Mr . Baggledon obsessed over his testicles . He checked his pants so often that afternoon , his subordinates feared the worse and suggested that he not touch anything and go home for the rest of the afternoon . He spent the night seated , his pants around his ankles , his beady banker ' s eyes focused on his scrotum . Every time he started to doze off , his vision was filled with images of Mrs . Smuthworthy plucking feathers from his balls , cackling . Mr . Baggledon arrived at the bank late the next day - - only moments before Mrs . Smethworthy ' s arrival . Accompanying her was a lean , bespeckled fellow she introduced as a barrister from the court . Her son , it turned out . Young Mr . Smethworthy always accompanied his mother when there was money involved , she explained . " Enough banter , " she crowed . " Our bet , dearie ? " " My dear , dear madam , I can tell you that your gold will be quite safe at the Bank of Daggerfall . I hope it will not cause you distress to discover that your gold will be safer here than in your own hands . My family jewels are quite , shall we say , featherless . And you owe me a sum equally twenty five thousand gold . " Poor Mrs . Smethworthy ' s face fell when she heard this . " Are you sure ? " " Quite , madam . " " Not even one feather ? " Her voice suggested doubt . Mr . Baggledon could tell she thought he might be lying . " Not one , I fear , madam . " " It ' s not that I don ' t trust you , Mr . Baggledon , but it is quite a lot of gold . Might I - - would you - - could I possibly see for myself ? " As he knew he was soon to be a twenty five thousand gold pieces richer , and he was still a bit punchy from lack of sleep , Mr . Baggledon merely smiled and dropped his breeches to the floor . Mrs . Smethworthy examined his testicles very carefully , under , to the left , to the right . At last , she was satisfied that there was not so much as a down feather anywhere in the region . While she was looking under them one last time , Mr . Baggledon heard a thwacking noise across the office . Young Mr . Smethworthy was banging his head against the stone wall . " What in the Lady ' s name is wrong with your son , Mrs . Smethworthy ? " he asked . " Nothing , dear , " she said . " I merely bet him one hundred thousand gold pieces that by this time I would have the president of the Bank of Daggerfall by the balls . "