How the Lein Law Hit a Builder

This story r,vas told us by a yourrg.lumberman of Los Aneeles, u,ho states that it is true, on'ly too true bec'ause irr.-lor."'i, on him. preliminary to the joke he told us of his i*.i"" years exPerience in the retail lum'ber 91-": how he traa sta'rtea when he was seventeen as an office boy, had trt." t it turn at the estimating, order desk, shippi"q 4tp"ii-."t, ancl that for a number of years had handled the iredits and collections. In this departme'nt it was his duty, oi-.oo.t", to watch the jobs closely a9d see that no lien tinfiit expireil. You know, a credit man has a hard job otr'tti. nands when he is cornpel'led to go to the owner of a building and iniorm him that some bill will have to be p"la, #ft." the poor owner 'has taken the receipt ofan irresponsible confractor and'has thought the matter settled. The man in this storv had had'man.v such cases to handle, and he tells us that he had done so much of this work that he had become sort of a half baked attorney, thought that he knew all about the lien laws ind rvoutrd be able to 99p:e with any situation, and HE SURE GOT HIS CHANCE'

Last fall he decided to build a home' "Isn't it strar.rge that so many lurnrberman live in rented houses, and so many barbers ,t""i " shave?) Bought his lot, financed the deal' and proceeded as nlost men do. Everything went fine, until he signed a contract with a plasterer ulho had been introduced" to him by a friend. Good price, the plasterer oromised all kirtds of g.ood work ancl speed' The lath were helivered the next rtay, eV A LUMBER COMPANY IN GLENDALE, hauling these lath to Los Angeles as they had a perfect right to clo. He survived th'is shock, paid the plasterer ir-r fu11*a felv days later, this without asking for a iingle receipt ancl withon! pfolilq..the Glendale people, wh6m he krierv, to see if the lath bill had been paid'

Filed his rrotice of completion, moved in the house, congratulatecl himself that he had built the place with no hitch 6f u'y kincl arcl if the truth was cor{essed, felt just a little

'cocky that he could build and get through with a house without any of the trouble that others seem. to be having all the time.

NOW. The day before the expiration of the lien time for material men on this property, this young man had a phone call from his Glendale friends asking for settlemert of the lath account on his 'hottse. It developed that the plasterer was a bad actor, had s.kipped after a bootlegging scrape and left many bills behind. The shock just about killed our egotistical young friend and we think that his stock dropped way below par in the n3x.t few minutes.

There was nothing for him to do but to write a check for a little over a hundred dollars, (being very oarefu'l to have the stub reading to "cash," in case his wife should see it) and then try to forget it. We hope tha tthe Bentley boys out in Glendale will not give away any names. You all know the man in the case and we are not goin,g to give him away.