“At this moment he is in my apartment, rather seriously battered and absolutely penniless.”
“Well, I'll be tinker-dammed! You know who he is, of course?”
“Yes. And I want all your information so that I may guide my future actions accordingly. If he is really undesirable he shall be deported the moment he can stand on his two feet.”
The banker pyramided his fingers, rather pleased to learn that he could astonish this interesting beggar. “He has on account at my bank half a million dollars. Originally he had eight hundred thousand. The three hundred thousand, under cable orders from Yokohama, was transferred to our branch in San Francisco. This was withdrawn about two weeks ago. How does that strike you?”
“All in a heap,” confessed Cutty. “When was this fund established with you?”
“Shortly before Kerensky's government blew up. The funds were in our London bank. There was, of course, a lot of red tape, excessive charges in exchange, and all that. Anyhow, about eight hundred thousand arrived.”
“What brought him to America? Why didn't he go to England? That would have been the safest haven.”
“I can explain that. He intends to become an American citizen. Some time ago he became the owner of a fine cattle ranch in Montana.”
“Well, I'll be tinker-dammed, too!” exploded Cutty.
“A young man with these ideas in his head ought eventually to become a first-rate citizen. What do you say?”