The Law of the Land by Emerson Hough (the reader ebook .TXT) 📕

stenographer and rendered more or less blundering service about the office. Perhaps there was more of curiosity than evil in his nature. It was curiosity in the first place which gave him personal knowledge of a certain list of judgment claims against the Y.V. railway, which the chief agent of that road had recently cautioned Eddring, division agent, to keep revised up to date and to hold close under cover as a matter of absolute secrecy. These things were more or less familiar to William Carson through his acquaintance with the correspondence of the office. This very injunction of secrecy inflamed his curiosity to the point of action. In the absence of his chief, he rummaged through the office papers until he unearthed these lists, and to these latter he gave a more careful scrutiny than he had accorded many other matters under his immediate charge. He figured up the totals of the unpaid claims, and the figures startled him. He reflected that so much money in one sum would represent very many things to him personally. This established, he reflected further that it was in the first place most unrighteous to withhold these sums from the lawful claimants, and in the second place, to withhold them from himself. He was sure that the company did not need, and ought not to have, this money. If only, thought William Carson, these judgments might be collected, and if only—but beyond this thought his brain was not shrewd enough to travel.

It needed a bolder mind, and this, as it chanced, was at hand, after the devil’s fashion in such affairs. Henry Decherd had known Carson in the community where he had lived before his removal to the city. The two had since then met by chance now and again on the street or elsewhere. Once, when Eddring chanced to be out of town, they happened to meet and paused for a conversation longer than usual. There came a hint from Carson, a word of quick inquiry from Decherd, a flush of timorous guilt upon the face of the unfaithful humble one; and presently these two repaired to the office of the claim agent, locked the door behind them, and soon were absorbed in certain lines and columns of figures which had been prepared by Carson.

“This ain’t for ten years, nor half of it,” said the latter, at length. “But you can see it runs up to a good lot of money. Look here.” Decherd gave a long whistle as he looked at the footings of the columns of figures.

“And they’re all unpaid claims,” he said. “Judgments from one end of the line to the other, it looks like. By Jove, it does seem that the road had to pay for about everything in the Delta, doesn’t it?”

“Oh, it don’t have to pay these things, don’t you worry,” said Carson. “It don’t need no sympathy, this road don’t. It will take care of itself, all right. These ain’t claims that’s going to be paid, but ones that ain’t going to be paid. They’re ones that’s in judgment and can be collected; but the owners of these judgments don’t seem to know their rights. They don’t collect. Maybe they’re dead or moved away, or maybe they’ve forgotten all about it, or maybe their lawyers haven’t taken pains to tell them—you can’t tell about all these things. Every big accident that happens on the road, there’s a lot of judgments taken against the road; but they don’t all get paid, as you see. That is one of the secrets of our business.”

“A pretty situation of affairs, isn’t it?” said Decherd. “Looks like the road would have to pay, if these claims were fought.”

“I should say so. These judgments are on the court records all the way from here to New Orleans, and they’re all as good as gold. The company can’t dodge out of one of them, if a fellow takes enough. interest to get around and collect. Most of them are air-tight. Some have gone on appeal to upper courts, but we don’t bother to appeal these little ones. And, you know, there ain’t a court in the Delta that wouldn’t cinch the road if it got a chance.”

“How much do they foot up?” said Decherd again, reaching out his hand for the papers.

“About eighty thousand dollars, or something like that. Why, if a fellow—”

“A fellow couldn’t push the whole thing at once, you know; he would be discovered the first thing,” said Decherd. The other pricked up his ears eagerly.

“Suppose he was caught,” said he, “what could they do? If I want to go down to John Jones’ cabin, down somewhere in the cane-brakes, and give him five dollars for a judgment that he has forgot about, or is scared to try to collect, why, I get the judgment, and it’s legal, ain’t it? Or suppose I just poke him up to collect it and he gives me half? That’s legal, ain’t it? And who can help it, even if anybody knew? Why, say, if I was Mr. Eddring there, knowing what he does about these claims, do you reckon I’d be working very long? I reckon not. I’d go in along this line of road and I’d get some fellow to hunt up these claims, a few at a time, and I’d see that the company paid these judgments!” He swelled up at the thought of his own daring. “Why, Mr. Eddring,” he went on, “he could stand in on both sides—draw a salary from the company, an’ divide with the niggers and the white folks that has claims against the road. It’s easy, especially with the niggers, because they never do know what’s going on, anyhow.”

Decherd puckered up his lips, and paused for a time in thought. Carson went on. “I wouldn’t ask anything better than this,” said he, “to get plumb rich in about two or three years.”

Decherd walked up and down slowly, his finger pressed to his chin in thought. His face was worn and haggard. His clothing had taken on a seedy cast not formerly common to him. Apparently things might have been better with him in a financial way. Perhaps he saw a way to mend matters. “Halves?” said he at length, suddenly looking straight into Carson’s face.

The clerk flushed a dull red. The conspiracy was formed. “Why, yes,” said he, his voice half-trembling. “I reckon that would be about right.”

“Well, then, give me the lists,” said Decherd. “I’m up and down the road in the Delta now and then. I’ll take care of these things. As for you, whatever you see or hear, keep your mouth shut, or it’ll be the worse for you.”

“Sure,” said Carson, and endeavored to laugh.