It was Minor whom he saw as he entered the banking house and to Minor he
divulged his business. Taking from his pocketbook the Tinplate check, he
asked if he might have it--ah--broken up, so to speak.

"You see," he explained, "I want to get--ah--five thousand dollars."

Minor appeared rather puzzled at first, and Mr. Bangs' tangled and
nervous explanations did not seem to enlighten him greatly. At last,
however, he caught the idea.

"I see," he said. "You don't want to deposit and draw against it; you
want two checks instead of one. One check for five thousand and the
other for the balance."

"Yes, yes, yes," assented Galusha, much relieved. "That is it, exactly.
I am very much obliged to you--indeed I am--yes."

Minor took him to one of the windows and introduced him to the clerk at
the desk behind it.

"Give Mr. Bangs whatever he wants," he said.

Galusha explained. The clerk asked how he would have the
five-thousand-dollar check made out.

"In your own name?" he asked.

Mr. Bangs reflected. "Why--ah--" he stammered, "I should prefer it
in--ah--some other name, if possible. I should prefer that my name was
not connected with it, if you don't mind."

"In the name of the person you intend paying it to?" inquired the clerk.

Galusha reflected again. If Martha Phipps' name were written on that
check it would be possible that, some day or other, Cousin Gussie
might see it. And if he saw it, questions would be asked, embarrassing
questions.

"No-o," he said, hesitatingly; "no, I think I should not care to have
her--that is, to have that person's name appear, either. Isn't
there some way by which the sum could be paid without any one's name
appearing? A check to--to--oh, dear me! why CAN'T I think of it?"

"To bearer, you mean?"

"That's it, that's it. A check to bearer would be very satisfactory,
very satisfactory, indeed. Thank you very much."

The clerk, who was a painstaking young man, destined to rise in his
profession, inspected the odd individual outside the railing.

"A check to bearer is almost the same as cash," he said. "If you should
lose it, it would be negotiable--practically the money itself, or pretty
near it."

Galusha started. He looked radiantly happy.

"That's it!" he exclaimed. "That's it, of course. Thank you for
the suggestion. The money will be the very thing. It will be such a
delightful surprise. And there will be no one's name upon it at all. I
will take the money, of cour