The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, February 22, 1903, Page 5

o THE SUNDAY CALL. N AND HER “A check will d0.” He began to drumon the desk nervously with hi) “Don’" ' _\sr well. T'1l send it to you to:flfl.)- !,k",“' ."0“ re very busy, 'n.a ‘A friend,” she sald, very uloévly. “who knows all about Wall street t keep you any longer. And you'll buy good cheap bonds for me?’ told me last might that it made a difference of $1000 to me.” ; “Yes, Mrs. Hunt “So it does, in a way; that is, if you tried to sell your bonds. ¥ & ; o7l it Gt p ) about the matter, I beg you. Never mind if the price goes off a po = hevo kind of you, Mr. Colwell. am more grateful than of two. You are amply protected. Even if there should be a p I T em - . gee that you are not sold out no matter how low the price goes. You tq pay % are not to worry about it at all.” I sold t “Oh, thanks, ever so much, Mr. Colwell. I didn't sleep a Byt my M e wink last night. But I knew—" P RESHAS B . A clerk came in with some stock certificates and o u y are to let me know immediately.” Mrs. Hunt sent him a check for $35,000 ;md Colwell bought 100 § per. stopped short. He wanted Mr. Colwell's signature in a ‘o « 4 cent gold bonds of Manhattan Electric Light, Heat and hurry, and at the same time dared not interrupt. Mrs. o - s y. paying 96 for them Hunt thereupon rose and said: “Well, I = 8 Power ( won’t take up any more of your tir Good morning Mr. Colwell. Thanks he wrote her, “will surely ad- touch e in price, and when the) a good fig 1 sell a part %0 much. - o il gt “Don't mention it, Mrs. H . W inves The opera~ morning.” she said s s Little by little the bonds contir . v so i decline. The syndicate in charge was not ready to move them Yes In't know o © Y Hunt's unnamed fri Emily's husband—did not particulars of that deal. He k street in the abstract, and had acc of insomr ingly implanted the in her quaking soul as saw sur - values decline he est to make WC 3 4 the seed grow, a natu rich soil with ominous hints head-shakings and with phrases made her firmly b ually and considerat >d mornir lg .\h,h< ol- her for the worst. On 8 She £ a:n ‘L\ !uwxou of r agony M w ¥ but, 3 into Colwell's office. will h > ex under- e and she loc those bonds. 1 Mr. Colwell si well he could tell me. I'm N ey o very impolite “Good morning at had e you prevaricate f s. Hunt. Now, me $35,000, didn’t you?”’ Her tone indicated th: nodded a little gasp, t nted that much and noth- a She mistaken, so I bou >y t the u 1 opened an account for and the Times and t e goerous pools ou were cred- It was the same in all. e en gave added . r nob and 1 to buy one hundred bo; ds He aroused her We paid 96 for them.” I men, should her insomnia A e ld you"—another arch S Enh e Ao o 's that for cach $1000 bo “Doesn’t that mean a loss of $3000?" There was a 1 It broug e deny-it-if-you-dare inflection in her voice t brought the total “No, because you are not going to sell your bonds at 93, but at 110, or thereabouts.” o dan b “But if I did want to sell the bonds now, wou 1an't I lose $30007" she SN k. e queried, challengingly. “Of course, I would, Mr. Colwell. Even I can 5 lell that.” TR e SRR 0004 “You certainly would, Mrs. Hunt; but—" gt it an «f knew I was right,” with irrepressible triumph. DA i o : “But you are not going to sell the bonds.” 0 and you owe us “Of course, I don't want to, because I can't 'ord to lose any money, much less s cou'll lat 43000, But T don't see how I can help losing it. I was warned from the first,” she o A }!Olllwlanh.sl me, gald, as if that made it worse. “I certainly had no business to risk my all Mr. rea can't help Colwell was moved. 5 = b i % h L 0oL " “You can have your money back, Mrs. unt you wish it,” he told er, quite unprofessi aby (u‘v.‘ who mortgage alll “You seem to worry about it so much ° i SIS LAY S0 o anh OL. T am not worrying exactly; only I do wish I hadn't bought—I mean the money was so safe O Iy s in the Trolleyman's Trust Compan t of course, If you want me to leave it here” she said, 1 T e AO.L’, very slowly, to give him every opportunity to contradict her, “of cou e, I'll do just + 5 g TS Seathe ST e ai “My dear Mrs. Hunt,” Colwell said very politely, “my only desire is to ple at . i e When you buy bonds you must prepare to be patient. It may take months before i e do much %o sell yours at a profit, and I don’t know how low the price may go in the meantime. 2 D . tell you that because nobody knows. But it need make no diff ce to you whether the ol * s s case you theoretic for 90 or even to 85, which is unlikely.” : : £ $61,000, but the b “Why, how can you say §o, Mr. Colwell? If the bonds go to 90 I'll lose $5000 — my friend 2 s r name and tt sald it was $1000 for every number down. And at 85 that would be And she gazed at " 7 - t if you wa him awestrickenly, reproachfully. “How can you say it would make no difference, Mr. OG0 S I advised ) wong Colwell 7 )‘u\_" buy ~ at out 1 Mr. Colwell fiercely hated the unnamed “friend” whe had told her so little and yet 80 much. But he said to her, mildly: “I thought that I had explained all that to you. Tt might hurt a weak speculator, but it wo 't affect you in the slight- est, since, having an ample margin, you would not be forced to sell. You would simply hold on until the price rose again. Let me illustrate. Supposing your house cost $10,000, and—" “Harry pald $32,000,” she sald, correctingly. On second thought she emiled, in order to let him see that she knew her interpolation was irrelevant. “Very well,” he said, good-humoredly, “we’ll say $32,000, which was also the price of every other house in that biock. And suppose that for any rea- son whatever nobody could be found to pay more than $25,000 for one of the houses, and three or four of your neighbors sold theirs at that price. But you wouldn’t, because you knew that in the fall, when everybody came back to town, you would find plenty of people who'd give you $50,000 for house; you wouldn't sell it for $25,000, and you wouldn’'t worry. Would yo now?” he finished, cheerfully. “No,” she sald, slowly. “I wouldn't worry. “But,” hesitatingly, “T wish 1 tad the money instead of the bonds. I haven't slept a wink for three nights thinking about this.” The thought of his coming emancipation cheered Mr. Colwell immense- 1y. “Your wish shall be gratified, Mrs. Hunt. Why didn’t you ask me be- fore if you felt that way,” he said, in mild reproach. And he sum moned a clerk. “Make out a check for $35,000 payable to Mrs. Rose Hunt and transfer the 100 Manhattan Electric Light &'s to my us back, all you have us to sell y s a silence. He stood by, defer- personal account.’ mg e He gave her the check and told her: “Here k i K sald the 2 {s the money. I am very sorry that I un- 4 > wittingly caused you some anxiety. Don't i, thank me, please; no. Good morning.” But he did not tell her t®at by taking over her account he paid $96,000 f bonds he could have bought in th open market for $93,000. He was the politest man in Wall street; and, after all, he had known Hunt for many years. A week later Manhat- tan Electric § per cent Reduced \ cided your offer.” ve bitterly, poor widow cc 1If a 1ld nd so mt wing you because afford to be a choose . e never 1 tak ose bond of m SE At S e s her breath, > y Iy ought to be 93.” mure of business came 5 But I've never . Wilson nor Mr. “But you know me g1 Colwell, with I courtesy. “My Hunt, don't bout this matter w t the ds at | thousand, Mrs. Hunt, pleas- uid 0; only one. Have you kept the . . « sel that 20 or ’e W e N 56,000, s that T bought, or have you not > 000, and nce does that make, Mrs. sting emergen- un " gs banks, “"Yes or no ase. Have you or have & por sent: Hubhe: }f:'a.nut those same {dentical bonds?’ Yes; I have. But “And to whom ¢ by right?” Sh in additton h will pay those bonds belong, was still pale, but reso- be lovely. lute. are now To me, certainly.” “To you, Mr. Colwell?” She, smil And in her smile were a thousand feei- . ¥ you will ayi fin the price in the finan- ings; but not m cial page of the newspapers, Yew, Mrs. F to me.” “And do you propose to keep them™" § 4 where it says ‘Bonds. Mar “T cert after s aapal “Not even if I pay %% will yi - ‘ Oh. thghks ever s . Not even it I pay %3 will you give ways ge * g s ""‘I"‘k'n‘ I“"” . “--;\(u.lnum olwell sald with warmth 3 find » ¢ > E 4 when I took those bonds off yo - & wenhy Dwsricet You are nothing of the 8 it represented a muflm’,",',i Rands t sell them for a lit- kind, Mrs. Hunt. I'm Pas d aper of . E e less SR ey Lt . ZI0h 1 e he smiled in pity—pity for his juds- ke to se of theslight nt in thinking her so hopelessly stupid ; f S yee .t “And when you wanted me to sell them Y g s o - ack to you at %, after tney had risen to Colwell, b L, I had 1 wished it would ging with sev- ~‘\‘( nt : s of 33000 to me. o era importar A= she 3 Mo C d ;Jsl d ,;”n XL‘ ‘1“ the pity was now m ing eals, did not fol- dignation low closely the . s : ! something for fne, fluctuations in the fi(» g’zrf‘ sake T was willing to " wher Lk to sell it price of Manhattan Ppocket the first los But I didn't see why et x stsme?” Electric Light, Heat RN 2 present of $3000,” Gonds sold for 96 again. Mrs. Hunt called on him. .. il very “If you had lost any money through my fault it would ave been differe ee that, Mrs, 1d Power Company's wMr, Colwell, you still have those bonds, haven't you?” The fact that there sk t se the little I had been any change “Why. Y % had your all was made clear «IT think I'd like to take them back.” ort capit You had nothing to lose u bought back the “Certainly, Mrs. Hunt. Ill find out how much they are to him by same bonds at p ( er of ik Mrs. Hunt. s oy of that. 1fy0U gie called a few days selling for”’ He summoned a clerk to get & quot-.on on = = % with th ¢ $5.000, Jeaving tier her first visit. She’ Manhattan Electric 6s. The bonds could be bought for 953, NOW ¥ou come i Yoe - - o ~ W\.,;);{,ln;»,l wore the mi-resolute “So you see they are practically where they were when you 'f bonds at 9% ling In the 5 eas ertan will advamee 1n 100k of a pcrson who expects to hear bought them before.” 2 market for 104, g o By e A g ' unacceptable excus She hesitated. “I—I—didn’t you buy them for me at 937 O your refusal tvice “Good morning, Mr. Colwell.” T'a like to buy them back at the same price I sold them to _ Mr- Colwell, you take advantage of my Tick k!" interrupted the «ow do you do, Mrs. Hunt? Well, I hope.” you.” positiopn to insult me. But let me tell you i T xplica it “Oh, I am well' enough. I wish I could say as much for “No, Mrs. Hunt,” he said; “I bought them from you at 9 that I am not going to let you do just as E ot "‘x‘;\” bad my financial matters.” She had acquired the phrase from the “wut the price was 93. Don't you remember it was in all the YOu please. [ am going to consult a law- will now promptly, Mes, ST FEROEIS ML 5 dre g kg o il el o BTt T save you Baok sxictly the smount that T recetved from Welb™) oo . M= Col- H st ket, you see, walts 'Why, how is that?” you. They stand on our books as having cost me 96.” 0, “Yes, madam, I certainly have. And ’ oL mwen Sor your wex.” They are 95 now,” she sald, a trifle accusingly. “But oouldn you let me have them at 93?" she persisted. in order to avold making an; ype 25, X I take the money Who are they, pray; Mrs. Hunt?” in surprise. “Tm ‘very sarry, Mre: FHunt, but I don’t see how I could. If you buy will oblige me greatly by mever seai out and bring it to The bonds. I saw it in last night's paper.” them in tha‘epon miatiet now you will be-fn sxsctly the same position as be. calliuy at thie cffice ol funis fore you sold them. Let ‘me buy them for you at 96%." oy sl by mgr:{n“""’“" :r";u; you?” , 7 miled. . H Mr. Colwell smiled. Mrs. Hunt almost became indignant at his levity, “At 93, you mean,” with a tentative smile sald the politest man in Wall street.