The Man Higher Up (Henry)

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O. Henry

The Man Higher Up

Summary of the Short Story

Microsummary: A man named Jeff Peters meets a burglar and a financier in a small town. They form an unlikely trio and engage in various schemes to make money, including a successful poker game.

Jeff Peters, a swindler, and Bill Bassett, a burglar, met in a small town after both had fallen on hard times. They were soon joined by Alfred E. Ricks, a disgraced financier who had lost all his money.

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Jeff Peters — professional swindler; incorporated, uncapitalized, unlimited asylum for the reception of dollars; experienced, proud, and unique philosophy of ethics.

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Bill Bassett — burglar; cheerful, confident, and skilled; interested in starting a poker room.

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Alfred E. Ricks — financier; involved in fraudulent land sales; disgraced and ruined; dependent on others for meals.

"There are two kinds of graft," said Jeff, "that ought to be wiped out by law. I mean Wall Street speculation, and burglary."

"There are two kinds of graft," said Jeff, "that ought to be wiped out by law. I mean Wall Street speculation, and burglary."

The three men decided to work together to get back on their feet, with Bassett robbing a local bank to provide them with some starting capital. Ricks left the group to seek help from friends in Denver, while Peters and Bassett traveled to a town in Arizona called Los Perros. There, Bassett decided to open a poker room, but Peters had other plans.

"I'm going to start a poker room. I don't seem to care for the humdrum in swindling, such as peddling egg-beaters and working off breakfast food on Barnum and Bailey for sawdust to strew in their circus rings."

"I'm going to start a poker room. I don't seem to care for the humdrum in swindling, such as peddling egg-beaters and working off breakfast food on Barnum and Bailey for sawdust to strew in their circus rings."

He bought all the playing cards in town, marked them, and then sold them back to the store at half price. When Bassett's poker room opened, Peters used his knowledge of the marked cards to win all of Bassett's money.

Afterward, Peters invested the money in gold mining stock, believing it to be a surefire way to increase his wealth. However, he later discovered that the president of the mining company was none other than Alfred E. Ricks, now going by the name A. L. Fredericks. Realizing he had been swindled, Peters could only hope that his investment would somehow pay off in the end.

"Gold mining stock," he explained, "every cent of it. Shares par value one dollar. Bound to go up 500 per cent. within a year. Non-assessable. The Blue Gopher mine. Just discovered a month ago. Better get in yourself if you've any spare dollars on hand."