Erle Gardner - The Case of the Baited Hook

“ ‘P employs H, a stockbroker, to purchase at the market 10,000 shares of stock in A’s name but for P’s account. P dies, this being unknown to anyone. A few moments thereafter, A purchases the shares. A had no authority to purchase.’ ”

Ganten blinked his eyes rapidly, his only outward symptom of nervousness, but he avoided glancing in the direction of his client.

Once more the door was pushed open, and a short, thick-set, genial individual in the early fifties pushed his way into the room. “Good morning, Mr. Loftus,” he said. “Good morning,” and walked across the office to grasp Loftus’ hand and pump it up and down. Then he turned to include the other two occupants of the room with his genial smile.

“Mr. Ganten of my legal department,” Loftus introduced, “and Mr. Perry Mason who is trying to upset that fifty-thousand-dollar sale of Western Prospecting stock… Gentlemen, this is Mr. Emery B. Bolus, the president of the Western Prospecting Company.”

Bolus remained genial. He shook hands with Ganten, and then grasped Mason’s hand cordially. “Glad to meet you gentlemen,” he said. “What’s this about upsetting that sale? The sale has already been completed. The transaction, so far as our company is concerned, is closed.”

“Stock transfer been duly entered on the books?” Mason asked.

Bolus hesitated a minute, then said, “Yes.”

“Don’t answer his questions,” Ganten said after a moment. “I’ll do the talking. Your interests and those of my client are identical, Mr. Bolus.”

Mason said, “Rather a damaging admission coming from an attorney who has specialized in the law of agency and of contracts, Mr. Ganten… I don’t want to suggest how you should conduct your office, but if your investigation should disclose that the facts are as I contend, then it would be very much to the interest of your clients to help me impound that fifty thousand dollars until the validity of the transaction can be determined. Otherwise, any judgment which we might recover would leave your clients holding the bag. If we’re going to get judgment, it’s to your interest to see that it’s paid with that fifty thousand dollars Bolus is holding, instead of fifty thousand your clients will have to dig up out of their own pockets.”

Mason got to his feet.

Bolus said genially, “Come, come, boys. What’s all this?”

Loftus said, “Mason contends that Tidings was dead when we closed the deal on that stock. It’s in the morning papers.”

For a moment there was silence in the room, then Bolus turned to Ganten. “Well, Mr. Ganten,” he said, “as attorney for Loftus & Cale, you can take care of our interests in the matter. Personally, I’m not going to concern myself with legal technicalities.”

Loftus said raspingly, “Just a minute, Ganten. Are we apt to tie our hands doing that? You heard what Mason said.”

Ganten said cautiously, “Well, perhaps it would be better, under the circumstances, for Mr. Bolus to consult his own counsel.”

Bolus said, “Come, come, Loftus. You’re not going to let Mason’s goofy ideas interfere with our cordial relationship, are you?”

“Where’s that fifty thousand dollars?” Loftus asked.

Bolus tugged at his ear. “Well now,” he said, “let’s find out just where we stand before I start making statements to you. Do you consider there’s any possibility you folks might try to go after that fifty thousand dollars?”

Mason said, “Of course, they’re going after it.”

Ganten glared at Mason. “The whole situation is absurd,” he said. “Tidings was alive and well when that agreement was concluded. There’s positive, irrefutable evidence to that effect.”

Mason yawned.

Bolus said, “That’s not answering my question. Is there any possibility that you people are going to try and impound that fifty thousand dollars?”

Ganten said, “It might not be a bad idea to simply hold matters in abeyance until we’ve investigated the case in all its ramifications.”

“What do you mean by holding them in abeyance?”

“Oh, just take steps to preserve the status quo.”

Bolus lost his smile. “I don’t know what you mean by the status quo,” he said.

“Just see that everyone is protected,” Loftus explained hurriedly.

Bolus said, “The way I’m going to protect myself is by putting that fifty thousand dollars into circulation.”

“I don’t think that would be wise,” Loftus said.

“Why wouldn’t it?” Bolus asked, his eyes glinting. “Your own attorney has said that the claim is absurd.”

“Nevertheless, it’s a claim.”

“And what do you propose to do about it?”

“We’ll investigate it,” Ganten said.

“Go ahead and investigate,” Bolus said. “Investigate all you damn please, but don’t pull any of this status quo business on me. It’s my money isn’t it?”

“The corporation’s money,” Ganten corrected.

Bolus said, “You folks have the stock. I have the money. I don’t give a damn what you do with the stock, and you aren’t going to tell me what to do with the money.”

“Now wait a minute,” Ganten said. “You’ll admit that you don’t want to become involved in litigation. I think the whole thing is absurd. I think a few days’ investigation will clear up the entire matter. We will use all of our facilities to see that that investigation is made promptly and thoroughly.”

“And in the meantime?” Bolus asked.

“Well, in the meantime,” Ganten said, “it’s to the interest of all of us to see that the situation doesn’t become any more complicated.”

“What are you driving at?”

“Well, you should co-operate with us.”

“In what way?”

“In making the investigation.”

“Anything else?”

“Well, of course if the transaction should be declared invalid, we’d all of us want to be in such a position that we could protect ourselves.”

Bolus said, “As far as I’m concerned, I made a deal. I’m going to stand back of it… That stock’s a good investment, a mighty good investment. There are things the general public doesn’t know anything about. I’m not at liberty to say what they are, but within sixty days that stock is going to be worth— Well, it will be worth plenty.”

Loftus nodded.

Mason said casually, “Then why did you unload all of your holdings, Bolus?”

Bolus whirled on him angrily. “I didn’t unload all of my holdings.”

“How much stock do you have at the present time in your own name in the company of which you’re president?”

“That’s none of your damn business.”

“Did any substantial part of that fifty thousand dollars go into the corporation’s treasury?”

“That also is none of your business. I don’t have to answer your questions.”

“That’s right,” Mason agreed affably, “you don’t,” and once more devoted his attention to the cigarette smoke which eddied upward from the tip of his cigarette. “As I understand what happened, you’d be foolish if you did.”

Ganten and Loftus exchanged glances.

“Well,” Bolus asked, “are you standing with me in this thing, or are you against me?”

“We’re not against you,” Loftus said hastily.

“What my client means,” Ganten corrected, “is that in many respects our interests are in common. That is, it’s to the interest of both of us to show that Tidings was alive when the deal was completed.”

“Do you mean to say that if he was dead when the stock was actually turned over and the cash was passed, you can come back on me?”

“Of course,” Ganten said, “if the transaction was void for any reason, then we’d want to see that you had the stock back and that the money was returned to the proper person.”