Volume 2 - ElectricCanadian.com

THE YUKON ADVENTURE 161ability to sleep or rest, and joined the throngs in the streets orat some place of amusement, returning after a time to haveanother try not always successful at getting to sleep. Insuch expeditions no opportunity was overlooked to enlarge thecircle of friends and customers of the bank; as a matter offact, quite a number of valuable accounts were first attracted tothe bank by one or another of the staff in this informal andhighly unorthodox manner. About four o'clock one morning aweek or so after the bank opened, a large missile was hurledthrough the canvas sign by a lone and indignant reveller, whoseloud complaint that, "I am from Missouri, and you have toshow me where they have six million dollars in that bum littleshack," was much enjoyed by all the officers of the bank whomhis noisy monologue had awakened. The messengers werebetter sleepers, or perhaps more staid characters; at all eventsthey clearly did not enjoy the necessity of getting up occasionallyat night, in response to determined and sustained poundingon the door, to explain to some intoxicated citizen, who hadrun out of funds and desired to cash a cheque, that it wasthe middle of the night, and that the bank was closed andwould not open until eight or nine in the morning. Thisexplanation generally elicited the injured response, "That'sa h of a time to wait for a drink."About 7 a.m. one of the messengers would bring a supply ofwater from the near-by river, and the various members of thestaffwith soap, towel and toothbrush, would take basins ofwater outside the front door and perform their ablutions, atthe same time explaining to a queue of would-be customers thatthey would be attended to as soon as possible. When dressingwas completed, business commenced at once, and a hastybreakfast was snatched in like manner to the lunch alreadydescribed. The various departments of the Government hadopened accounts as soon as the branch was ready for business,and the volume of business received from them was heavyand involved a great deal of work.In a week or two the two wooden chests were bulging with