"AN ELECTRICAL TRANSACTION."

Auckland Star, Volume XXXI, Issue 184, 4 August 1900, Page 3 (Supplement)

"AN ELECTRICAL TRANSACTION."

(By Robert Barr.) Author of "The Mutable Many," &c.

The firm of Blumstein and Ikveldt Jn the City was so rich that it was almost respectable. There had been, Borne years ago, strange rumours rewarding* the manner in which the two members of the firm had so suddenly accumulated their wealth, but these rumours died out in time, for it is well known that, be stockbrokers pure as snow and chaste as ice, there will be found some envious persons round the Exchange who will speak ill of them. All stockbrokers, indeed all City men, are doubtless honest, if we could only get ourselves to believe it, and perhaps it is because they are so much more just than the rest of the world, that the world calumniates them.

A few years ago Blumstein was a Blerk in the office of John Sanders and Co., within a stone's throw of the Bank of England, and Ikveldt filled a similarly useful position a few doors further down the street. The two young men were great friends, and ate together every day at a restaurant frequented by their countrymen.

In the days when Hand mines -were first booming1, when fortunes were made and lost in an hour, the good old firm of John Sanders and Co., got on the wrong side of the market, which is a serious place to occupy when there are great fluctuations going on. It turned out later that the two young clerks happened to be on the right side of the market, although how they had acquired money enough to be oni any side of the market is a mystery to this day.

- It is well known that Sanders blamed them for sis downfall, but his wild statements should not be allowed to prejudice anyone against the young men, for when he was taken out of a first-class carriage at Wimbledon.stone dead, the intelligent jury brought in a Verdict to the effect that he had con> initted suicide while temporarily mv pane, and there is little use in paying touch attention to the outpouring of ■wrath that an insane person leaves behind him. A ruined man usually blames others for the results of his own folly. . . Some of the old man's friends thought it was going a little too far When the sign went up " Blumstein and Ikveldt, late John Sanders and Co " but there again how can the young men be blamed ? The office •was suitable, for their purposes, and suitable offices are not easily found within a stone's throw of the Bank. It happened, of course, that the rooms became vacant on account of the Bmash of the old firm, so what coulci ibe more proper than that the newest firm should step into dead men's Bhoes. "Thus Blumstein argued, m a Bomewhat aggrieved tone when anyone Bpoke to him about the matter ; he was Very sorry indeed for the old man, and sorry thai the firm came to grief, but the office was vacant when he wanted an office and so he took it. Every sensible person admitted that this was a sensible thing to do. And so the new firm went on and prospered. John Sanders had two sons, John the elder, who represented the firm in South Africa, and Edward, the younger, who was learning'business in his father's one near the Bank. When ' Bliimstein1 and Ikvildt took charge, they had no further use for the young men, and so discharged them. BlumStein said, quite properly, that it Would have been hard for the sons to work as subordinates in a business ,' they once expected to control, and thus the prompt dismissal had really motives of philanthropy beneath it. It Was none of Blumstein'S' business what became of the, sons, and so he made 'So inquiries, holding, quite rightly, that is always best for young- men to iiiake theirs own way in the world, as he himself had done ; it teaches them fldf-.reliance,- and that sort, of thing ; besides, Blumstein was a person who believed in. attending strictly to his own affairs, and, as has been said, it i was none of his business what became of his late employer's sons. One day Blumstein received a cable message from Pretoria, in'the cypher of the firm, and the communication ■ being translated into English, said, "Cornwallis sails on 'Scot' with important proposal. Will call immediately reaching London. Don't fail to Bee him," Blumstein made a note on Us pad to censure his correspondent for being so wasteful of money in cabling, and resolved to send this censure should the proposal turn out to .be •useless. In due time the "Scot" arrived at Southampton, and the same afternoon a card was brought to Bkunstein, bearing the name "Henry Cornwallis," with the words written ■Underneath, in pencil, "From ihe toansvaal; introduced by cable." "Show him in," said Mr Blumstein, Bud presently a man as young as himself, but bearded like a brigand, was ushered into the private office. "Ares you Mr Blumstein or Mr Ikveldt? My time is rather limited, and I can deal only with the principals." .-..-■ "% name is Blumstein." •- !'yerT good. You are just the man * Want to see. Now, right at the beginningl, so that no talk may be lost, I Want to ask you if you can put up. ■two hundred thousand pounds in hard ea?h. If you qan't, then there is no ■•tts.6 in my saying any more. I shall «&r*° ?'° io someone else." . Well, that depends. It is a good fleal 6f money." i( "Can you do it? That is the question." > "Oh, I suppose Mr Ikveldt and myself might raise the money, if neces- ■ fiary." p - 4 J '■Right. Then it is within your PPwer to make anything from one pillion to fifty." . "I,have often heard talk like that ?. e"?re>" said young Blumstein cau™jyn. "What is your scheme?" < There is going to be trouble in Transvaal." there's always trouble in the .Transvaal." "But thin time the trouble is series. I know what I'm talking about, *°* I have read the messages sent

from London to Pretoria; Government messages I mean."

"How did they come into your hands?" said Blumstein suspiciously. "For five years L have been at the Pretoria end of the cable to London."

"But Government cables are in cypher."

"So are the cables to and from the firm of Blumstein and Ikveldt, yet I have deciphered them, and have in my "possession all the communicationa that have passed between you and your agent since you began business here. The particulars of that South Rand deal chat didn't come oft", you remember, including your own cable of July 14. The mention of the date will be enough to convince you that I speak the truth, Mr Blumstein."

"The devil you say," cried Blumcteiu, sitting up suddenly with eyes opening more than usually wide. "Still," he added after a pause, "nothing came of that."

"No. That's what I said. I merely wished to show you that if I can decipher the cables of Blumstein and Ikveldt, I could probably do the same for the Government dispatches."

"Then the cable from my agent re garding your visit "

"Exactly. Just as you suspect. It was bog-us. I sent it myself, so you see I am reasonably familiar with your office code. My business was too important to trust to any agent. As I said at the beginning, I deal only with principals."

Mr Blumstein moistened his dry lips; then he said in hv.sky tones: "What was your object in decipherin? our cable's? Blackmail? "Oh, bless you, no. Blackmail is too small and mean a business for bigmoney to be made at it. I'm in for a fortune."

"Still you haven't told me why you tampered with our messages."

"I didn't tamper witn them. They went through all right. You may bet your last pair of boots that if I had tampered with your messages I could have ruined you long- ago, as you very well know. I deciphered everybody's cables; I have a gift that way. I wanted to find out which was the most unscrupulous firm in London, for I knew the time would come when I could make my fortune by the help of such a firm." , "Then you honour us by thinking we are—" "Quite so. I knew that if there were millions to be got, you wouldn't hesitate even if I were to demand a couple of hundred thousand as my share. That's what we're here for, isn't it? To make money." "I suppose so. What is your plan? "There is in the harbour of Cape Town a fast and comfortable yacht. It will remain there till I get back, which will be by the next Cape steamer. The master of this supposed yacht is the modern equivalent of a pirate. He will go on a short cruise, and no questions asked, for the sum of £ 5000. I will take with me from London, instruments for cabling, which differ from the ordinary land telegraphing machines. You will come with me, leaving your partner to watch things in London, or your partner will come, just as you choose. There must be someone on the spot down there who understands finance who can .tell me w"hat to cable. We sail up the coast of Africa to a spot I know where we will be free from interruption; we grapple for the cable, land it, cut it, and from that moment you control communication between the Transvaal and London. Whether you make one million, or ten, or fifty, depends on how much money you have to play with, and how much courage you possess when lam doing1 the cabling. I telegraph to London, let us say, that the Eaad and President have declared war on England; that the forts around Johannesburg have opened fire on the town; that a stated number of Outlanders have been killed, and the rest are helpless prisoners and that sort of thing; I know how to word it just right; not too exaggerated, you understand; I can give the names of the killed, and will add that the President deplores the outbreak, and says to Europe that it is all the fault of the Outlanders who tried treacherously to capture the forts; what do you think the effect will be on lland stocks? Why, you are well aware that there will be the greatest slump ever known in the City. Very good; then's the time to buy, I should say."

"But suppose war really comes?" "In that ease it will merely mean holding "on a little longer; the war will be short, and England will be in possession at the end of it. Then your stocks will be up in the skies. But as a matter of fact I know that there will be no war. Kruger will give way, but he will do it so slowly that we will have ample time for all operations. "And your share in this?"

"Is to be £200,000."

"I am to pay this money when the deal is complete; when we get back to London."

"When the deal ia complete, yes. When we get back to London, no. The £ 200,000 is to be deposited into a bank, and paid oyer to my brother, to whom I will give an order for it, when you send your partner a code word that you both will agree upon."

"But when the cable is cut what is to prevent you sending that code, and having the money paid over?" . "Simply because I won't know what the code word is."

"Well, suppose, on the other hand, that the money is not paid over to your brother, if I do send the coda •word."

"I have arranged for that also. My brother is to send me word which will indicate that the money is paid. You see, when the cable is cut, I shall be in constant communication with London. It will perhaps be as well not to let them know that the wire is cut, as that might interfere with our plans. We will let any ordinary message pass through, but we will supply the political news ourselves. This will keep me rather busy at the instrument, but I'm used to it, and have done it for years for less money than I hope to get this time." "Well, t will have to talk over the scheme with my partner. Can you call at this hour to-morrow?" "Certainly. But your minds will have to be made up by then, for there is no time to be lost, and the offer will

not to be made to you a second time. There are others in this city who will jump at it." "Perhaps,"-said Mr Blumstein.

When the yacht swung out from Cape Town, Cornwallis took sharp charge of the expedition, and Mr Blumstein found that he was expected to obey. They cast anchor in the lee of a promontory where Cornwallis said the cable passed, and under his direction a little hut was erected on the sands. Bliunstein thought the telegraphing could have been done from the yacht, but the operator said that was impossible, lie needed a iirrn and stable foundation for his instruments. When everything was set up, the cable was grappled for, found, and hauled in shore with some difficulty. The crew had been told that the voyage was for the purpose of repairing the cable. The long snake-like dripping rubber cord, festooned with seaweed, was hoisted up on a wooden block beside the hut, Cornwallis pulling harder than any of the sailors. "Now, Blumstein," he- cried, "take that axe and chop it in two." "Can't one of the men do that?" objected Blumstein. "The men and myself have to hold it in place. Do what I tell you." "I'd rather have some one else cut the line," demurred the financier. "Chop that cable," hissed Cornwallis in the ear of the hesitating man. "Don't you see the men wondering at your delay? They will suspect something is wrong in a moment." Blumstein, the sweat starting in great drops from his brow, for it is hot on the African coast, hacked away for some moments before the last strand was severed, and the cable fell apart. Cornwallis, with great dexterity and little loss of time, joined the severed ends, and ran his wires into the hut, connecting them with his already set-up instruments. "There we are, Mr Blumstein. We haven't interrupted communication for long. Do you want to know what they are talking about? They're having a" blooming conference somewhere; old Kruger and the Governor of1 the Cape. We're just in time to set the world on fire, so perhaps you will now give me the code word to send to your partner, and then the moment I iind the money has been paid to my brother I shall be ready to begin operations." "That wasn't the bargain," said Blumstein. "The money was not to be paid until the deal was finished. Besides, we need that £200,000 to buy shares with. Do you think we're made of money?"

"Just as you say, Mr Blumstein. No business message is going- over this line until that cash is paid. What a pity it is that you cut the cable, because if you hadn't we could have shoved it back into the sea, and no harm done. Now I'm afraid you have placed yourself within jeopardy of the law for no purpose. Shall we go home, then, and leave the Cable Company to make their own repairs? I didn't bring- materials for mending, and besides I fear I haven't the skill."

"But you are as much in this as I am."

"I don't think so. I didn't cut the cable, while you did, with your own fair hands, assisted by an axe. I have witness to that effect. You see, I'm a poor young- operator looking- for a job, at least that is what I was when I met you. Poor but honest. I had no idea what you were up to until you cut the cable, and proposed to me, when the men returned to the yacht, that I should send false despatches. Then my indignant honesty was aroused, and I refused as soon as your nefarious proposal was made known to me." "Then you are a blackmailer, after nil. But you shall make nothing- of it; not a penny. What is to prevent me shooting- you dead where you stand?" "Oh, a great deal, Mr Blumstein. You haven't the courage, in the first place. You can lie, and cheat, and steal, all within the law, of course; you can round on your benefactor, and, using- the knowledge got in his employ, you can ruin him; yes and murder him in the only way that your class has the pluck to murder. You see I know your history "

"Who the devil are you?

"I am John Sanders, eldest son of the man you robbed. I've been waitingl for you for years. I thought I had you on that July swindle, but, as you said, it did not come off, so I became impatient and laid this trap for you. You're not the first man that has been nipped in South Africa, are you?" "I'll signal the boat, sail away, and leave you here. The steamer is mine. I chartered her for this trip, and the captain dare not refuse to obey my orders."

"My dear Blumstein, you talk like a child. The captain can refuse any orders that are illegal. Is it likely that he is going to maroon me here because you tell him to? Your project is too absurd. The fact is that you ore helpless. My brother in London has all the evidence needed to convict you and your partner of a most rascally scheme to defraud the public —a scheme which involved the cutting of a submarine cable; and you should really have looked up the penalty for that before you grasped the axe."

"But the plan was yours from the beginning." "Oh, no, it wasn't. I'm the innocent, deluded, incorruptible young man as I told you some time ago. Do you think you could persuade a judge and jury toat I put you up to this? Then why did I round on you^ Why did I not go in for the sjaoil? Thera was any amount of money to be made by k««plng quiet and doing what you told me, and nothing to be gained by exposing you."

"But I will show that you are the son of the man I was said to have ruined, and I will show that you did this for revenge."

"But you have protested all along that you did not ruin my father. There is a statement to that eifect in the files of the 'Financial Argus,' don't you remember it—'A Vindication'—l think it was called. Besides no one -would believe that I threw away a fortune in order to have a belated revenge on a man I had never seen before. But granting1 all that; granting that you could convict me as an accomplice, before, after, and during the act, how

does that help j-ou? You joined this piece of villainy with your eyes open. You voyaged to Cape Town and chartered this steamer at piratical rates. At the very worst they will believe that I repented in time to prevent a gross swindle; my better nature corning uppermost at the last. But you're into this up to. the neck. You axe an outlaw at the present nioinent."

"If I agree to have the money paid over to your brother you will then do what cabling I want you to do. You promised, you know."

"A man must not keep an illegal promise, Mr Blumstein. JN To, I shall not cable any false news."

"Then, you mean simply to rob me of this money if you can. You talk of swindling* the public, but you are determined to swindle me -and my partner out of £200,000." "It's all a question of terms, Mr Blumstein, and if you like to call it swindling, I don't mind in the least. You see, I've been a good part of my life in South Africa, where we are not as law-abiding, perhaps, as in England. England has such a respect for the law that as you got that amount out of my father under cover of the law, why, it was all right, although everyone knew you for a cheat. I couldn't recover through process of law, so I took this method of getting back what should have belonged to my brother and myself. Now, Mr Blumstein, are you going to have that money paid, or do you prefer to be arrested the moment you set foot on land, for I'll have the authorities watching for this steamer, by a few words sent along this wire."

"I'll pay the money," said Mr Bhuristein. "What are you going to do about the cable?"

"Oh, there's nothing to do, but just chafe the ends a bit, and shove it back into the sea, hoping the Company will imagine the rocks have cut it. It will do England and South Africa good if they are without news of each other for a few days. Give 'em time to cool."

"The cable between England and South Africa is again in working order. It is alleged there was a break off point Frisky. It is rather surprising Jhat these convenient breaks should occur just when they are most welcomed by the Transvaal." Daily Paper.