The $500 Check — page 214: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

BERT FORMS A RESOLUTION. 195 to the discovery of the thief. Some one—a young man named Harding—entered the office of the firm and informed them that he had seen your father thrusting a paper, looking like a government bond, into the inside pocket of his overcoat—it was in the middle of winter. The workmen kept their coats in a small room near the entrance of the factory. Of course the room was visited, your father’s coat was ex- amined, and in one of the pockets was found one of the missing bonds, one for five hundred dollars. Your father was summoned, charged with the theft, and required to tell what he had done with the remaining bonds. He was thunderstruck at the accusation, and denied in the most positive terms any knowledge of the stolen property. His statement was not cred- ited. He was arrested, tried for the offense, and sentenced to a term of imprisonment.” Bert’s face flushed with indignation, and he clinched his fist almost unconsciously. | ‘‘Did he go to prison ?’’ he asked hoarsely. ‘““No; some of his friends, who believed in his innocence, helped him to escape, and sup- plied him with funds to get out of the country. GOmMmichoo <S'