"
John was by this time almost hysterical. The perspiration broke out on
his forehead every now and then, and he shuddered as he counted his
securities and entered up his figures. If cotton should go down some
more! That was the hideous possibility. They would have to put up more
margin, and then--!
Down in the vault where the depositors' bonds were kept were two piles
of Overland 4s. One contained about two hundred and the other nearly six
hundred bonds. The par value of these negotiable securities alone was
nearly eight hundred thousand dollars. Twice a year John cut the coupons
off of them. Each pile was marked with the owner's name. They were never
called for, and it appeared that these customers intended to keep them
there permanently. John, realizing that the chances of detection were
smaller, removed two bonds from the pile of two hundred Overlands and
substituted them with Prescott for the two Navigation 4s.
Then cotton went down with a slump. Prescott did not wait even to
telephone. He came himself to the trust company and told John that they
needed two more bonds for additional margin to protect their loan.
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