Jackson’s face fell as Fordney quickly replied, ‘As there was only one possible place it could have been, you found it....’
[How long did it take you to discover the knife?]
61
Forgery
‘Can it be possible that this has happened to me!’ thought Everett Taber, as he stood in the National Bank of New York ready to deposit his fortune. Having completed his arrangements late the day before with the bank’s executives, he was the first patron of the morning. Standing alone in the bank’s commodious quarters, he regretted he had no one with whom to share his happiness.
Suddenly, as he was making out his deposit slip, he decided to use his own name, Everett Mead, instead of his stepfather’s name, by which he had been known most of his life. It would be a simple matter to arrange this with the officials later. As he blotted the deposit slip, Everett Mead felt a new sense of poise and self-assurance take possession of him. He gazed fondly at the name which proclaimed him a wealthy man. By changing it he could completely sever former associations and start life anew. What a wonderful day it was!
The cashier, impressed with the amount of the deposit, was very obliging and wondered, as he thought of his own meager salary, how it would feel to have so much money.
‘I see you are left-handed, Mr. Mead,’ he said, in an effort to appear interested in such an important personage.
‘Yes,’ smilingly.
He left the bank without further conversation. Less than an hour later his name had been forged to a check for five thousand dollars, despite the fact that no one knew he had changed his name and no one had seen him make out his deposit slip.