"Say now, General; you know Gabe Carnine's coming in as county treasurer right after the first of the year, and we will make him help us.

You make your personal check for the nine thousand, and give it to the old cuss who's in the county treasurer's office now, with the descriptions of the land, and get the tax receipts; he'll bring the check back to the bank; you give him credit on his pass-book with the other checks, and just hold your own check out in the drawer as cash.

If my check was in there, the inspector might drop in and see it, and cause a disturbance.

When Gabe comes in, I'll make him carry the matter over till next summer." The transaction would cover only a few days, Barclay explained; and finally he had his way.

So the Larger Good was accomplished.
And later Adrian Brownwell came into the office to say:-- "Mr.Barclay, our friend, Colonel Culpepper, confessed to me after some transparent attempts at subterfuge that my signing an accommodation note would help you, and do I understand this also will help our young friend, Robert Hendricks, whom I have never seen, and enable him to remain at his post during the winter ?" John Barclay took a square hard look at Brownwell, and got a smile and a faint little shrug in return, whereupon, for the Larger Good, he replied "Yes," and for the Larger Good also, perhaps, Adrian Brownwell answered: "Well, I shall be delighted--just make my note for thirty days--only thirty days, you understand; and then--well, of course if circumstances justify it, I'll renew it." Barclay laughed and asked, "Well, Mr.Brownwell, as between friends may I ask how 'circumstances' are getting on ?" Brownwell shrugged his shoulders and smiled blandly as he answered: "Just so-so; I go twice a week.