From the archives: Despair, guns (and murder?)

This story was first published on Sept. 17, 2006, in the Montreal Gazette.
“Official announcement of the new conditions of trading was made yesterday on the Montreal Stock Exchange.”
The Gazette, Tuesday, Sept. 22, 1931
On Sept. 21, 1931, in the depths of the Great Depression, Britain freed the pound from its ties to the gold standard. The action would lead, however indirectly, 10 months later to one of the enduring mysteries of St. James St., then the financial heart of Canada. It i