"Mr. Harden, will you kindly tell the jury of what, in your opinion, that bit of paper in your hand was once a part?" said Moxlow.
Very deliberately the banker put on his glasses, and then with equal deliberation began a careful examination of the scrap of paper.
"Well?" said Moxlow.
"A second, please!" said the banker.
But the seconds grew into minutes before he was ready to risk an opinion.
"We are waiting on you, Mr. Harden," said Moxlow at length.
"I should say that this is a marginal fragment of a Gas Company bond," said the banker slowly. "Indeed there can be no doubt on the point. The paper is the same, and these lines in red ink are a part of the decoration that surrounds the printed matter. No,—there is no doubt in my mind as to what this paper is."
"What part of the bond is it?" asked Moxlow.
"The lower right-hand corner," replied the banker promptly. "That is why I hesitated to identify it; with this much of the upper left-hand corner for instance, I should not have been in doubt."
"Excused," said Moxlow briefly.