y were not there last night. It is not the money that was
taken away, either. That was one bill, a thousand-dollar note; and
here are"--he counted them again--"six one hundreds and eight fifties,
besides the original two of one thousand. You put those notes back, Mr.
Mortimer," he said, tapping the desk with two fingers of the right hand.

"I did."

"And you took the money yesterday or the day before?"

"I did not."

"Ah!" Lane repeated in a drier, more severe tone than he had used
before. This "Ah" of the cashier's, with its many gradations of tone,
had been a most useful weapon in his innumerable financial battles. It
could be made to mean anything--everything; flung out at haphazard it
always caught his opponent off guard; it was a subtle thrust, and while
one pondered over its possible meaning, Lane could formulate in his mind
more decisive expressions.

"Ah," he repeated, adding, "if you did not steal the money, who did? And
if you did not take it, why did you put it back?"

With an expressive sweep of the hand outward the cashier stood waiting,
his tall, narrow head, topped by carefully brushed gray hair, thrust
forward in the attitude of a parrot about to strike with its beak.

"I can't answer those questions," answered the man he was grilling. "The
money to pay Mr. Porter's note is here; and I fancy that is all the
bank needs to concern itself about. It was entrusted to me, and now I am
prepared to turn it over."

"Quite true; ah, yes, quite true; but it might have been vastly
different. That is the point that most concerns the bank. Whoever took
the money"--and he bowed, deprecatingly, with ironical consideration
to Mortimer--"must have needed a thousand dollars for--well, some
speculative purpose, perhaps. Good fortune has enabled the some one to
make good, and the money has been replaced."

The cashier straightened up, threw his head back, and actually smiled.
He had scored linguistically--by a clever manipulation of the sentence
he had made the some one who had stolen the money the some one who who
had replaced it. That was accusation by inference, if you like. As the
other did not speak, Lane added: "I will wire for Mr. Crane to come at
once; this is a matter for investigation."

Mortimer bowed his head in acquiesence; what could he say--what other
stand could the bank take?

"You might remain at your desk," the cashier said, "if there is any
mistake we'll discover it, no doubt."

Mortimer fe