TIIE SUNDAY OREGOXIAX, rORTLAM), ypTEJIBER 22, 1903
i LAMKD If I know -what there la
about this physical culture busl
nm thflf fa n much different
from other lines: but It seems like
when a mm comes In here, and I start
In to renew his r.ed corpuscles and
take the dark brown spots off his
liver, he begins to get confidential.
Jk they tell their troubles to the dent
lt. or the man In the cigar store, or
the old fam'ly doctor? Oh, no: they
unioar.s "em on Shorty McCabe. and be
fore I can duck I'm all tangled up In
some fool "timt or other that I wouldn't
hare run Into by myself In a thousand
years.
Hut I could see right away there
wouldn't be any of that kind of non
srse from Chandler Pullen. The min
ute he drifts In here, with a card from
Finekney. and I looks him over, I sixes
him up as one of these airtight aristo
crats, that's so skittish about mcn
tlonln' their private affairs they don't
even let on when the house Is afire.
And it was a close guess, too. Why,
Chandler'd been one of my reglars for
most a month before I even locates
the elub that was his steady hangout.
I was gettln' proud of Chandler. Just
on that account. Xo with most folks
that I meeta In undershirt and gym.
trousers it would have been a case of
Chaony and Shorty Inside of ten days;
but not with him. When he steps Into
the front office he plucks his lid as
prompt as If he was buttln' Into a
church. Then there's a John Drew bow
and a "Good morning;. Professor Ic-Cabe.-
from him. and a 'Howdy, Mr.
Pullen." from me.
"Is he payin' extra, or what?" says
Bwlfty Joe.
-Ah. throw In the reverse clutch.
Fwiftyt" saya I. "That's Just our way
of admittln' to each other that both of
us Is real rents. It's somethln- you'll
never have any call to practice."
-Ahr. .splash I" aaya Swlfty. "Since
when?"
Maybe I did have to strain my
mem'ry some to Veep it up, but it was
!! Jut as natural aa breathln' with
Chandler. I shouli say the first words
he learned was "Beg pardon." and I
don't s'pose he ever tucked a napkin
un.ier his chin In his life. He looks
the part, too, bein one of these tall,
.traight-backed chaps, with a figure
that seems Just built for frock coats
and dress suits. He's one of the early
old kind, havin' a streak of gray in
his forelock, though he can't be much
over forty, if he's that.
gets it from Plnckney that Chan
dler comes from some old Kentucky
fain'ly that's lived in New York for
tw? or three generations and has al
ways been In the swim. Tending out
on balls and dinners and teas was
Chandlers reg'lar Job In life .and It
. .. - . 1 1 1 . ( kppn In ihaoe to go
against these little 3 A. M. suppers
"C
OUXTERFEITER3 take advan
tage of every great gathering of
people, and the occasions ortne
big fairs and expositions are, as a rule,
times of laborious work for the mem
bers of the secret branch of the Gov
ernment. Such assemblages are fine op
portunities to work off bad coin, and
if the records were searched they would
show that there has not been a single
ambitious exposition since the first of
Its kind, the centennial of 1S76V that has
not been signalized by the appearance
of a clever limitation of some bill or
coin employed by the National Govero-nient-'
Captain Dickson and I were again
foregathering In front of the cheery
log fire at his home, and with the above
as his introduction launched Into a cap
ital story of counterfeiting In high
places.
"I was once stationed In the city of a
great international exposition, to watch
for culprtts that were expected to put
out the customary counterfeit. For the
first month or so of the fair there was
nothing to do but lounge about the of
flVe. and. like Mr. Micawber. wait for
something to turn up. The four of us
who were assigned to this monotonous
ditty soon grew weary of the Inactivity
and were on the point of asking for a
transfer, when an excellent Imitation of
tin- ten-dollar gold-piece made its ap
pearance In large numbers. After that
rone of the four of us had any cause
for complaint on the score of stagns-tl-n.
The con was a beautiful piece cf
irk. bearing the email 'o,' the symbol
of the New Orleans mint, and It was
so perfectly executed that It would have
pn.-s! d current almost anywhere. There
wre m'ores of them in circulation before
the ro.inerf.'it was detected, and even
after it was reported by the teller of one
of the banks, the bogus coins continued
to pnTir i::to the stream of the city's
clr.-u.ation at a rate that threatened to
r.-'. the nation. Altogether the gang
ni.it have put out some lio.ono before
w secured the slightest clew to the
j-rihahle source of the spurious pieces,
and fen the s'.U'ht bit of Information
tie picked up seemed absolutely worth
Irss, for It pointed to the president of
on" of the largest banks of the city, a
ru-in whose reputation was the best and
V.oe character was above suspicion.
"This gentleman owned a large factory
In the outskirts of the city, where sev
eral hundred men were employed. These
li cn were paid by the week, and they
wrre iu'I'y lo'rmaTis or persons of Ger
man rxtra.-fon. They lived In a portion
.f tre ,-ity where there were many beer
card- rs an-J corner saloons, and It was
and cotillions that starts In the middle
of the night that Chandler calls on me.
That's what I'm here for, and on ac
count of plnckney I've got sort of a
leanln' toward that kind. They ain't
any great use In the worldybut then
again they ain't so bad as some other
brands.
Well. Chandler and me geta along
fine, and I has braced him up a lot,
and It was all strictly business, when
one day last week, as we was fln
Ishln' up with a little genteel glove
work, he breaks his record.
"Professor." says he, "I shall be un
able to come on Thursday. I am going
to the country for a day or so."
That's nice, Mr. Pullen." says I.
"Pardon me." says he. "'but it's a
beastly bore. I detest going to the
country."
"Oh!" says X. "Got a string on you,
have they r"
"Ah r a jvhatT' says he.
It's a case of drag, eh?" says I.
"Somobody out there wlndtn' the
winch? Maybe a Lady Angelina?"
-Oh. no. no!" says he. "Dear, no!'
Then to prove his case he tells me
about Uncle Lyman. 6eems the old boy
had been a Judge .or something, and
quite soma of a party back In Ward
McAllister's times. But when Aunt El
vira, his runnln' mate, had passed in,
he took It awful hard. He'd chucked
his Job. given all his old friends the
shake and moved out Into the raw edge
of Westchester County, where he'd
planted himself In a rickety old mansard-roofed
affair, and hadn't stirred
out of It since. He'd been there a dozen
years or so, grown a blllygoat beard,
and worked up a lot of odd kinks in
his gray matter, the way folks will
when they go off by themselves.
He tried to drop Chandler too; but
Chandler wouldn't have It, bein' one that
banks) a heap on relation. Accordln' to
Chandler's notion, the least he could do
was to look the old gent up once a year,
on hie birthday, whether he was- wel
come or not. Near as I could figure out.
he wa'n't welcome at all, and this year
Uncle Lyman had took pains to send
word In advance that he needn't come.
'That la due to Fickett's Influence,"
says he.
"Flckett's a chum of his, eh?" saya L
Chandler flushes up and makes a face
like he'd tasted something bad. "Fickett
Is merely his old butler." says he", "who
seems to have developed a strong dislike
tor me."
"Kind of bossea the old man around,
does her' says I.
Chandler admits that he doe. Store n
that, he lets out that he's almost afraid
of Fickett himself. But he's bound to go
out and pay the birthday visit, meanln'
to make one last try at lnducin' Uncle
Lyman to give up the hermit act and
come back to town, where he can live de
cent and comfortable on the whacktn' big
Income that keeps rollin' In from his real
estate Investment.
"I wish, though." says Chandler. 1
could have the company-of some one on
whom I could rely; some one like " and
then hie eyes rolls toward me.
Say. It waa a bouquet I couldn't dodge.
"If It's only a one-night stand, and
there's likely to be need of a peace pro-
the bad coins were finding their way to
through these places that the bulk of
the banks. Investigation showed that
the factory operatives were receiving
the queer money from the cashier of the
factory In their weekly pay envelopes,
it long .' having been a custom of the
factory to fay Its employes in gold,
and It was easy to trace It from the
factory to the bank where the payroll
was made np each week upon the requi
sition of the cashier of the lactory.
"Saunders and McGrath. two of my
companions, by means of a miserably
sorawled. anonymous note to the chief
of police, secured Information of myste
rious boxes coming by night to the bank,
and it required but a small flight of the
Imagination to evolve a plot in which the
great financial magnate, the president of
the bank, was the central figure, regard
less of his high social standing, his re
puted fabulous wealth and his Irreproach
able character.
"Murphy and I. the other two assigned
to the case, did not accept this theory.
For my own part, my moat successful
work has resulted from following sug
gestions of my Intuition, -what news
paper men call the sixth sense, and while
I have often been carried far afield by
this inward monitor, I have won out by
following it more times than I have
failed thereby and. in consequence, I
have come to rely implicitly upon It.
Somehow. It didn't seem to me that the
solution of the case required the Impli
cating of the bank president, and al
though suspicion jfiinted generally In his
direction. I was not satisfied, nor was
Murphy. So we set out upon an entirely
different tack.
"I selected the cashier at the factory
as my man. and Murphy took the teller
of the bank, the man who made up the
payroll each week. For ten days we
shadowed them with dogged persistency.
Xbey were both men of the town and
both were members of the better class
of clubs and moved In the most exclusive
circles of society. These matters rather
strengthened than weakened our sus
picions, for neither of the men was
wealthy, and playing society is an ex
pensive game at best.
"Morton, the cashier of the factory,
was a handsome young fellow about 30
years of age, and a man of most engag
ing manners. He was a favorite with the
ladies, and possessed to the fullest de
gree that easy grace of manner which
I have often known to serve as a shield
for the most dangerous criminal. Tar
ley the teller, was a man of the same
stamp. In the 10 days that we had these
rare birds under surveillance, they led
us an amazing chase. It was a round of
calls and social functions and dropping
in at clubs and things of that character
which taxed the ingenuity of both Mur
phy and mvself.to the fullest extent.
During all this time we gathered nothing
of consequence, except the information
that both men were inveterate gamblers.
Either of them would stake magnificent
sums upon any proposition of chance that
offered itself, whether It was a poker
moter among the hired help." says X,
"you 'can count me In."
"Oh. really! May I?" says Chandler.
Grateful? Say. It's a pleasure to do
things for some folk, and while aa a
general thing I wouldn't Jump at the
chance of passln' the compliments of the
season to some grumpy old duck I'd never
seen, I looks on this as a kind of Inno
cent excursion. We starts off that even
In' real cheerful, on a White Plains local.
Chandler doin' his best to be agreeable,
and at the same time tryin' to post me
on what I was up against.
"You'll find it rather a gloomy place In
which to pass the night." says he. "and
our reception Is quite apt to be far from
gracious."
"Guess I can stand the gloom if yon
can." says I. "and as for pushln' in past
a stony stare, that's all up to you."
Well he hadn't overstated the facts
any when he said It was a gloomy place.
Goln' up the front drive waa like ridln'
through a tunnel, from the trees that
shut it in: and although It was long after
dark when we lands on the door mat,
there wasn't a light showin' anywhere in
front. But after we has hammered the
panels and rung the bell for awhile, we
hears some one comin". The gas Is light
ed In the hall, and the door Is swung
open the length of a tramp chain.
"That's Fickett!" whispers Chandler.
Maybe you never eaw a toad with side
whiskers. Well, neither did I; but if I
ever do I'll say. "Hello, Fickett!" His
face had that dead white look; and the
pop eyes, and the wide cut mouth, and
the tubby shape around the middle fin
ishes off the likeness.
"He'd look real cute," says X, "under a
cabbage leaf."
Fickett, he squints out Into the dark
and sees Chandler; but I reckon he over
looks me. for after he'a grumbled some
and took off the chain, he seems mighty
surprised when I trails In too.
"The Judge doesn't care to receive
strangers, air. Chandler," says he.
"Perhaps vou will allow my uncle to
decide that for himself," saya Chandler,
real .crisp.
"Now will you say da-da for papa: en,
Fickett r says I. Just by way of showln'
I wa'n't crushed. ,
As a matter of fact, the old gent dldn t
have a word to say one way or the other,
and by the hazy look in his eyes X doubt
If he knew whether there was two of us
or only one. We finds him somewhere in
the back of the house In a kind of etudy
room, sittin' in a big Morris chair. read
In' And say, leavin' out the slump to
his shoulders, and the ragged growth of
white hair on hie face and head, he was
a fine lookln' old relic You could easy
see he'd been a sport In his day.
But now he acts like he waa doped. He
don't take any notice of me at all. and
not such a whole lot of Chandler el"
It wa'n't until he'd been reminded that
this was his birthday, .end that we id
come out to cheer him up a bit. that he
aeemed to shake the trance at all.
"And I've brought out a bottle of your
favorite old Tippecanoe bourbon, uncle
says Chandler, openin' up the bag and
producin' a quart size with a funny label
on It- "I propose, sir." he goes on, that
we pull the cork and drink to your
health."
game at the club, a horserace or the
probabilities of a change In the weather.
They had the reputation of being real
sports, and it was said of them, by their
admirers, that nothing was too big or
too stiff for them to tackle if It possessed
an element of chance. -
"But in all our pursuit and m all the
lavish expenditures of these young spend
thrifts, not once did either of them pass
or attempt to pass one of the counter
felt coins, so far as we could gather.
I don't think they could have done so
without Its being discovered, so thor
oughly did we track them In every turn
and move they made during the period
we had them under observation. They
lived together In a handsomely furnished
flat. Vlth a small army of servants, and
they entertained lavishly. Their table
was of the best and their wines of the
rarest vintages. j,
"All of these things argued that we
were on the right track, and we realized
that our game was to be of the waiting
kind, for we were now thoroughly con
vinced, by that self-same sixth sense,
that Morton and Tarley were the Indi
viduals to whom we must look for the
clearing up of the mystery surrounding
the appearance of the bad gold pieces.
"Saunders and McGrath had confined
their attention to the bank president, and
he had led them over a long traiL He
had left the city soon after they began
to pay him such particular attention, that
one or the other of them was as constant
a companion to him as was his shadow.
Both had followed him. He had an
nounced that he was going west for his
health, and they tagged along to secret
attendance on him while he crossed the
continent. They kept him under watch
while he dawdled about one of the coast
resorts of California, fished for sharks
and sea bass, and paid rather particular
court to some of the buddin beauties
that were summering at this point. Never
a suggestion of anything susplilous did
they pick up in all tills monotonous wan
dering. . .
"By a ruse that need not be detailed.
Murphy and I gained access to the apart
ments -of our precious social luminaries,
and although we ransacked every nook
and corner, we found absolutely nothing
that confirmed our suspicions regarding
them. There was no place about their
flat where the money could have been
manufactured nor was there the slight
est trace of chemicals or metal of any
kind. In the drawers of a secretary In
Morton"a bedroom we found a large
amount of money, but it was the genuine
article and paper money, besides.
There were no suspicious papers: In
fact nothing beyond what might properly
be met with in the apartments of two
young men of fashion and wealth.
"My suspicion had now become a cer
tainty for the more tantalizing became
the pursuit and the less of suspicious cir
cumstances surrounding the teller and
cashier, the more firmly did my intuition
point to them aa In sonfe way connected
with the counterfeiting Job. I did not be
lieve they were the manufacturers of the
coin but rather that they were the hands
of the gang: that their business was to
put It into circulation.
"We decided that nothing was to ne
gained by shadowing them further, so
TteaFEiSliHJR
. Say, you should have seen the change
In Uncle Lyman's deep set eyes as his
fingers closes around the neck of that
bottle and he holds It up to the light.
"Sixty-four Tippecanoe! That Is cor
rect. Chandler," says he, pattln" the label.
"Why, I haven't tasted that since Chan
dler, my boy, would you mind turning, the
key In that door?"
Who It was he was barrln" out he dldn t
say; but It wa'n't until the door was
locked and the shades pulled that the
glasses waa produced and they goes
through the ceremony. That's what It
was, a ceremony. Not bein" in on the
proeeedin's. I sets back In the shadow
and watches. .
Must have been more or less kick to
that old Juice, for after Uncle Lyman had
put away three or four fingers he
straightens up his shoulders, lights a
cigar, and begins to ramble on about old
times like this was a fam'ly reunion. He
has a good deal to say about Elvira, and
how ahe looked when they was first mar
ried, and how chummy they'd always
been.
"She was the 'most charming young
woman a man ever had for a wife. Chand
ler," says he, "and that is why It is my
duty and pleasure to stay here, where
I can see her at rimes."
"See her!" says Chandler. "Why-why,
what do you mean by that. Uncle Ly
man?" Then, Just as straight as If he a been
tetlln' of a visit from some of the neigh
bors, the old Judge goes on to tell how
the spook of his dear departed had got
Into the habit of payin' midnight calls
about once a month. Honest, he was so
calm about It. and seems so pleased over
b re akin' the news to Chandler, that you'd
almost think he was tellin' somethin" that
was really "so.
I could see Chandler was all cut up et
flndln' the old boy gone so nutty all at
once; but he humors hlra along and asks
for details. Where did he usually see
Aunt Elvira? And was he sure It waa
her? Uncle Lyman gets real eloquent
then. Of course It was his dear Elvira
her figure, her hair, even the way she
had of holdln' her head.
The place she always appears was In
the long hallway upstairs, the one leadin
from the new L Into the main part of the
old buildin'. No, she 'never stopped long
enough for him to swap conversation, or
ask her how she liked the climate where
she was. Her specialty was doln the
swift, silent glide down the hallway, and
wavin' her hand as she passed his door.
That was a great comfort to him, though;
so about the middle of the month, when
she was due. he'd leave his door open,
and sit up In bed waltin' for a glimpse
of her. .
"But I do et messages irum
we left them to their frivolous social du
ties. About this time Saunders and Mc
Grath came tagging home, convoying the
bank president, tuckered out and disgust
ed with their fruitless Journey.
The night of their return Murphy and
I held a conference with them, at which
It was practically agreed that the bank
president was innocent, and that there
was nothing else to do but take him into
our confidence and make- the bank Itself
our point of operation.
'This was risky, of course, for if the
bank president were. In fact, one of the
gang this move would certainly queer
our game beyond repair With our
knowledge at his disposal. If i
on the deal, he would be In a position to
so muddy the water that all hope of cap
turing the culprit would be lost for good
andeJl. We had no evidence that would
be accepted In court, and It seemed to be
this or nothing. .
The next morning I waited on the
bank president and spent an hour closeted
with him. during which Interview I Im
parted to him Information that made, pis
eyes bulge out like those of a crawfish.
When I left him, It was with his hearty
assurance of rendering every uuABtanca
to his power, and with the firm conviction
on my part that he knew absolutely noth
ing about the case except what I had told
hfy plan of action had already been
figured out, eo the following morning the
Janitor at the bank was transferred to
the factory, and I took over the -vacant
Job. Saunders was given a confidential
berth In the manufacturing plant to watch
that end of the game.
The queer coin had ceased to be put
in circulation for some time now, and.
except for occasional floaters, as we
called them, the steady stream of false
gold, which had flowed so steadily from
an unknown source for the past month,
had stopped as abruptly and completely
as a wet-weather Spring when a bad
drought sets in. This had added to the
difficulties which surrounded the case,
for K had taken away from us the only
sure means by which the gang might toe
run to earth. 1
"I watched the teller very carefully
that week, and especially on the day
when he made up the payroll for the
factory, which was called for by Saun
ders. The sack contained both gold and
silver, but there was not a single coin
in the lot which had not been given birth
legitimately at some one of the Govern
ment's mints. Saunders made sure of
this before the sack reached the factory.
Here, again, we were baffled. As a last
resort. I went to the president and asked
him to direct me to clean out the big
chrome steel vault - where the cash re
serve of the company was stored.' I had
previously examined the last statement
of the bank's condition and the dally cash
slips, which showed the amounts of coins
and currency and eight exchange on hand,
but these records- had showed little that
was valuable further than that there was
something more than J190.000 of money 1n
the vault, of which more than $50,000
was in gold coin. It was this gold that
I wanted to get at.
"The cashier, a man named Powell, and
the teller both kept close watch upon
me while I worked m the big vault, as
was their duty, and this gave me scant
opportunity to investigate the sacks of
gold piled away In a pretentious row on
a low shelf. In moving them. I thought
that some seemed lighter In weight than
others, and as this would be valuable In
formation If true. I hit upon what I
thought was a rather Ingenious way of
determining If my surmise was correct.
"Concealing my penknife in the hollow
of my hand, with the blade open, I se
lected one of the sacks of ten-dollar
coins which seemed to be lighter than
some of its mates, and, as I moved it
from the ehelf, I cut the cord which
fastened the mouth of It while the at
tention of the Inquisitive cashier and
teller was directed elsewhere.
"Having shaken the mouth of the sack
open and frayed the ends of the cord so
that my ruse would not be detected. I
purposely stumbled and fell as I crossed
the vault. The coins poured out upon
the steel floor of the big vault In a bright
yellow stream,' rolling hither and yon,
while T sat dejectedly in the midst of
the golden flood and rubbed my knee and
cursed.
SKJRTY MeCABBln iSTRXTZGr
saya he. "Messages," says Chandler.
"Through whom?"
Uncle Lyman squirms a little uneasy In
his chair, as If he didn't want to give It
up; but at last he puts his hand up to his
mouth and whispers. "Fickett."
"Oh!" says Chandler, like bed seen a
light.
Soon after that we leaves the old Judge
and rings up Fickett to show us our
rooms. And say. I takes another close
look at this gent who had the Marconi
company skinned to death on the wireless
business. He's lookln" sour and glum, and
he don't have a word to say as he pilots
us up to a couple of adjolnin' rooms. No
sooner has he paddled erf downstairs
than Chandler comes in, anxious and puz-
"What do you make of it, professor?"
ays he.
"The spook story V saya L "Why, it
looks to me likethe old gent has got his
belfry f"H f to"-18' or else there's a Mra
Pepper loose around here somewhere.
Say. does this Fickett person have, kind
of a private snap In this ranch?
Accordln' to Chandler, he did. He Just
about had the run of the .establishment,
handlin' all the household funds, and
transactin' most of Uncle Lyman, a pri
vate business.
"And If the Judge should quit and move
back to town, It would spoil his graft,
eh?" says X. '
That was it. Chandler had susplcioned
something of the kind . all along, tot
didn't see bis way clear to block the
'"Tien there may be spooks, after all."
says I. "Let s slip out and take a look
over the ground. Maybe they leave some
trail."
So we ebeds our shoes and sneaks out
cautious. Ours was the first two rooms
at the head of the stairs. Farther along
was Uncle Lyman's, and runnln right
past his door was the long hallway where
Elvira was In the habit of doin' her glide.
What I waa achin" to do was to get a
good look at the spook course. There
was a low burnln' gas Jet In a red globe
up there, eo I steps along that way.
First thing I notices is that the hallway
ain't level, but has a gradual slope down
from the L. which was built higher.
They'd fixed It that way Instead of put
tin' In a few steps. Another funny thing
was that the haU carpet was laid to one
side. Instead of In the middle, leavin
about two feet of bare floor the length of
the halL . .
I goes pokin' alpng clear to the end.
where there's a door openin' Into the
servants' quarters. Just beside the door
waa a set of drawers built Into the wall,
like a linen closet. Bein' as I was in
vestlgatin', I take a notion to pull a
The two bank officials showed lively
concern at my stupid accident, and both
set about gathering up the coins. I as
sisted them as much as possible, but; my
pulse was beating too fast for my- help to
amount to much. My ruse had fully
served my purpose. The ring of the coins
upon the steel floor of the vault had not
been true. They had rung dull and heavy,
and I knew them at once for their real
false character. The verification of this
fact came when I fingered them deftly, as
I restored them to the sack whence they
had come. There was no mistaking te
feeling of them. They were greasy and
slick; that slimy touch which discloses
the spurious coin in the dark as well as
in the light Every one I touched had
that slippery, soapstone surface which
counterfeiters cannot overcome except by
the use of metal of the same fineness as
that of the genuine coin.
"As I replaced the sacks, after cleaning
the shelf, I was careful to weigh each of
them in my hand. There were fifteen
sacks, each containing a thousand dol
lars in half eagles, which were light in
weight. '
"I now felt sure of my ground, but It
was still necessary that we secure proof
against the teller. I had not suspected
the cashier until his evident trepidation
when I spilled the sack of gold, but after
that Incident I decided to have an investi
gation of him made at once.
"The mystery was now more complex
and Interesting than ever. Wrhile I had
discovered the big reserve of the counter
fetters X had no evidence against any
one, and was still afraid to make ar
rests. I wanted the makers of the coin
and their machinery, and wanted them
badly, for this was the biggest case that I
had thus far In my career been engaged.
"'That nlght'l did some tall thinking,
and also made a secret trip to the bank
er's residence which I carefully examined
from the. outside, going over the extensive
grounds about the house and the outbuild
ings at the imminent peril of being shot
for a burglar. Here 1 discovered only one
thing of Importance. In the stable I
stumbled on an empty champagne case,
which was of the same brand as one I
had noticed In the vault of the bank. It
might mean something or nothing, but I
had long ago learned to take particular
notice of small things, and many is the
valuable -clew that this habit has given
me.
"Since the return of Saunders and
McGrath, they had been working on
the clew of the anonymous letter, and
the information It contained about the
mysterious boxes which had been seen
to arrive at the bank at night. They
had located the author, a discharged
messenger, who bore a grudge against
the teller to whose instance he attrib
uted his discharge. From the -ne-senger
they learned that the bo.:es had
been . delivered at the back entrance
of the bank late at night. They had
been brought to it in a one-horse
express wagon, but the wagon had not
displayed a license number and the
driver, although muffled in a great
cbat, had evidently not been a Regu
lar expressman, so the messenger in
formed them. He gave a fairly accu
rate description of the wagon, which
had been of peculiar construction.
"I had seen Just such a vehicle at
the banker's residence, a sort of de
livery wagon which seemed to be em
ployed in hauling feed for the exten
sive stable of the banker, as it had
been filled with sacks of oats and bales
of hay when I saw it.
"The next morning I reported sick
at the bank, but my service with the
banker. was not at an end. I had shifted
my position 'from Janitor at the bank
to assistant gardener and general fac
totum at the president's residence.
Armed with a note from the banker to
the gardener, I put In my appearance
at his residence. The gardener didn't
seem to like my appearance. He re
garded me with cold suspicion, while
he read the note from his employer,
and, It seemed to me. he rather reluc
tantly accepted me as his assistant. I
verily believe he would have driven me
away on some pretext. If it had not
been for the explicit terms of the n?te
the banker had written at my dicta
tion. "The gardener was a tough-looking
couple of them drawers) out, and In the
second one I rune across somethln." that
gives me the creeps up my back for a
minute. Then I takes another squint and
snickers. After that' I shuts It and puts
back for Chandler.
"Chandler," says I. "If Mr. Fickett had
any say In managin" these spook dates,
don't you figure that Elvira would be apt
to show up tonight?"
"Considering the fact that he would
wish to counteract the possible effect of
I my visit, I should say that he wouio
wish her to appear," says ne.
Then slide In here while I put you
next to a little plan of mine," says L
At first Chandler didn't want to go In
for anything of the -kind, bein' afraid
that If we made a mistake and the old
man found out he'd get his back up
worse than ever. But when I told him
what I'd seen In the drawer, and showed
him how we couldn't miss fire if Fickett
stufk tohis programme, he had to give
In.
For an hour we laid low, waltin until
everyone had turned In, and then we sets
to work. First we goes down cellar and
finds a big wooden washtub. Next we
lugs 14 palls of water from the kitchen
and fills her full. The last touch was to
set it In Just the right place and stretch
a piece of clothesline across from one
doorknob to another. Then we squats
down In, the dark to see what is goln' to
happen, feelin' like a couple of kids on
Halloween night.
Ever, wait half an hour doubled up on.
your hunkers, llstenin' for the clock to
strike? I'd have bet It was near mornln
when the first tap of 12 comes. We counts
until It strikes clear through, and then
pricks up our ears and strains our eyes
up the ball. Maybe we was that way five
minutes; but there was nothln' doin
Then, Just as we're wonderln" if we
wa'n't stung, after all. we catches sight
of somethln' rushin' down the hall
towards us. Say. I aint ever seen a real
spook, and don't want to, because I don t
believe In 'em anyway; but If the ac
counts I've had of 'em has been right,
this thing that we sees comin" our way
was all reg'lar and accordln" to specifi
cations. Ah, you can grin; but you
wouldn't have felt so gay if you d been
there In the dark and seen that white
flappln' thing headed for you at the rate
of a mile a minute. I had the gooseflesh
spine so bad you could have used my
back for a nutmeg grafer. It beta' sprung
so sudden was what rattles me.
"Gee, Chandler!" says I, "It's comin'
with bells' on."
"Sue-eus-stop It, cu-cu-can't your- says
he, hoarse and excited.
"We-e-e-eou!" savs L And 8ay" wnat 1
let out that yell for was more'n I know.
It Just had to come, and it was a peach.
Next minute there"s a sound like hittin
a feather bed with a club, the doorknobs
creak as If they was bein' pulled out by
the roots, some one nncorns an um
customer. There was an atmosphere
of suspicion about him which put me
on my guard and caused me to watch
him with caution. He was a smooth
Individual, however, and I had served
In my new capacity for three days
without discovering anything worth
mentioning, when he set me at the task
of wheeling out the ashes from the big
bin In the cellar. The bin was situated
at the rear of the furnace, near the
entrance of the basement, and In pass
ing to and fro at my task, I noticed
several wine-cases plied In a dark cor
ner of the basement. I took advantage
of the first opportunity to examine
them and. while the lids were securely
nailed down. I found, by lifting th'.m,
that they were as heavy as chunks of
''"That night I burglarized the banker's
statement, while two of my companions
kept watch outeide to see that I was not
disturbed. In .the champagne cases I
found the molds and other accessories of
the counterfeiters, and a large quantity
of metal and newly manufactured coins.
"Before we left the banker's residence
the gardener was a prisoner, and before
the night was over we had, nabbed Ma
son and Tarley and Cashier Powell. The
gardener turned state's evidence and gave
the whole thing away. The three society
men held out firmly to the . last. They
were convicted only after considerable
difficulty. Except for the assistance of
Books Added to Library
The following new books may be examined
at the Public Library during this week,
and will be ready for circulation Monday.
November 30.
BIOGRAPHY.
Buckingham The romance of George fi
llers, first Duke of Buckingham, and some
men and women oil the Stuart court, by P.
HTe,rVbyblEll'en Terry, by Christopher St.
Jonn (pseud.) 11W7.
BOOKS IN FOREIGN LANGUAGES.
Abiornnen ft Hoe Eventyrbog for born.
Balzac La Couslne Bette.
Bazin Le ble qui Jeve. -,lk,Ku
Dahl Jolian Sverdrup at Btorthlngsbll
lede. 2 volumes.
Decken Die Eiken von Elkenheide.
f lor Haandbog I den Dannke llteratur.
.laeobson Im dienst.
Maeterlinck La vie des abelllea.
Riehl Ein ganzer mann.
DESCRIPTION AND TRAVEL.
Henderson & Watt Scotland of today.
1!McKenz!e The Unveiled East. 1907.
gayce The archaeology of the cuneiform
inscriptions. 1007.
FICTION.
TSazin The Nun.
Booth The Post Girl.
Church Lords of the World.
Litchfield The Moving Finger Writes.
FINE ARTS.
MariB The Brothers of Maris: ed- by
Charles Holme, text by D. C. Thomson. 1907.
Elliott Pottery and Porcelain. J&78.
Murillo Murillo. a Biography and Appre
ciation; by A. F. Calvert. 1907.
Patterson Chats With Music Lovers, n- a.
HISTORY
Acton History of Freedom and Othr
Efays. ln". .
Marsrollouth Cairo, Jerusalem and Da
mascus. iyo7. "
LANGUAGE.
Bonilla Spanish ' Dally Life, a reader.
3ii7.
PJuehler A modern English grammar,
with composition. 1906.
LITERATURE.
Aflalo. comp. The Call of the Bea; a
prose anthology. 11)07.
Jessopp Frivols. Simon Ryan and otlier
papers. Ed 2. 1907.
Trent & Hennemann, coznpa The seat
American Tales. ( 1907.
SCIENCE.
Campbell Modern Electrical Theory. 1907.
Hessler & Smith Teacher's handbook to
accompany the essentials of chemistry. 1902.
McCook Nature's Craftsmen: popular
studies of ants and other insects. 3907.
ltIcn Feathered Game of the Northwest.
l9Kerviss Astronomy With the Naked Eye.
19Strasburger and others Textbook of Bot
any Ed 3. 190S.
SOCIOLOGY.
Cronson Pupil Self-Government; its the
orv'fand iractlce. 11S.
irau youth; its education, regimen and
hygiene. 1907. ,
that must have started from down deep,
and then there's a splash that sends
water all over both of us and clear to the
ceilln'. It was that cold sprinkle that
brings me to.
'Turn on that light!" I sings out to
Chandler as I makes a Jump for the tab.
But' there wa'n't any need to rush, and
we hadn't made any mistake. In. spite of
the lovely long brown wig and the soakln'
sheet draperies, we could recognize Fick
ett. He was Jammed in good and solid,
too, havin' turned a complete flip-flop
when he struck the rope, and landed in
the tub as neat as If he'd been practlsln"
that particular stunt for a year. We was
still standln' there, watchin' hira tryin' to
swab the water out of his eyes, when
here comes Uncle Lyman tiptoe 10" down
the hall.
"What what is It?" says he.
"It's something you've been, watch in
lor," says L "Take a look."
With hat he steps around where he
can get a good view of what we has In
the tub. "Why, Fickett!" says he.
"What on earth has happened to" And
Just then he gets a glimpse of Flckett's
feet that was stlckln' straight up.
Strapped on his shoes waa what I'd seen
in that drawer a pair of these rubber
wheeled, bicycle roller skates. Them and
the wig and the sheet told the story of
that Elvira glide business plainer than a
whole raft of expert testimony.
"You you lying scoundrel!" says the
Judge. "Get up from that and clear out,
and 1f I ever see you again, I I" He
couldn't connect with the words, but by
the way he doubles up his fists Fickett
understands what he means and tries to
splutter out something.
"Not a word!" shoutes the Judge. "Out
you go!" T
"Come Little Bright Eyes," says I, geU
tin" a grip on his hands and bracin' one
foot on the tub for a hard yank. "It's
you for the fresh air. Up you comer
And say. the wet streak he left as he
trailed down the stairs was still there
next mornln'. Where It led to, or where
he shed the wig and sheet. I aln t heard:
but I guess that'll be his last appearance
In the Elvira role.
As for Uncle Lyman, he was so broke
up over findin' out how he'd been played
for a spirit come-on that for awhile we
didn't know how he was goln' to act. But
it works out all right. Seems it was Just
some such Jar that his system needed.
Now I hears from Chandler that he a
had the face lambrequins sheared off.'
booked a suite of rooms in a swell Fifth
avenue hotel, and is goin' to quit the her
mit stunt for good.
"Professor." says Chandler, "you. have
done us a great service."
"Ah, pickles!" says I. "I'm owin you
for the time of my life. It aint every
day I has a chance to give the water cure
to a roller coaster ghost, is it?"
(Copyright, 1908, Associated Sunday Mag
azines.) the gardener In securing evidence, we
should never have been able to have made
out against them anything more than a
strong circumstantial case. We recov
ered about UO.O0O from the culprits and
In the bank's vault was more than J18.O0O
of the counterfeit money. The night
watchman at the bank was also Impli
cated and convicted. ,
The gardener, who had many aliases,
was an old offender. He had worked at
one time In the Frisco mint, and was re
garded as a skillful ' workman. After
leaving the mint he had put out a gold
coin of the twenty-dollar denomination,
but had been caught and had served a
prison term for it. He had drifted East,
after serving his term, and had figured
out the plan which he had there put In
operation. He had manufactured the
coins, using the big furnace at the bank
er's residence for that purpose, and had
secured the three society men, all of
whom were heavily In debt and therefore
ready victims, to palm off the money.
Their method was to take good money
from the bank vault and replace it with
the bad, which they worked off at the
factory In the weekly payroll. The cash
ier at the bank had secured the place for
the counterfeiter at the banker's resi
dence, but this had not been with any
particular design further than it was a
place that was especially suited to the
necessities of the counterfeiter."
(Next week Captain Dickson will re
late the story of "The Katydid Mine.")
Lowell The Government of England. S v.
19p'rry The Management of a City School.
19?8' RELIGIOUS.
Balzanl The Popes and the Hohenstaufen.
1901. .
Gwatkln The Arlan Controversy. 1BOS.
Programme of Modernism; a reply to the
encyclical of Plus X. 1908.
USEFUL ARTS.
' Audel's Gas Engine Manual. 1908.
Barton Terriers, their points and nr.an
agement. 1908. - ---
Can- Open nearxn steei wupi w.
Creighton The steam engine and
heat-motors. 1907.
Hasluck Practical metal plate
other
work.
1967.
Lodge Electrons. 1907.
Oswald German cookery for- the Ameri
can home. 1907.
Practical Upholsterer. 1891.
Schofleld The Force of Mind. 190S.
BOOKS ADDED TO REFERENCE DE
PARTMENT. Brynlldsen Dictionary of the English and
Dai:o-Norweglan Languages. 2 V. 1902.
Heck The steam engine and other steam
motors. 2 v. 1805-1907.
Hiscox 'Modern steam engineering in the
ory and practice. 19U7.
verity and others Flats, urban bouses
and cottage homes. 1908.
BOOKS ADDED TO JUVENILE DEPART
MENT. Adams & Baker Harper's electricity book
for boys.
Baldwin Second fairy reader.
Brown Star Jewels and other wonders.
Knapp Raphla and reed weaving.
Madden Two Royal Foes.
The Drop of Water and Grain of Sand.
Said the little drop of water to the little
grain of sand,
"Do you hear what they are saying? Do
you really understand?
We 'make the mighty ocean and the pleas
ant land.' they say.
We -are a famous coupler let's work no
more today."
So down they sat together and sang upon
the sand,
vWe'U make ho mighty ocean, we'll make
no pleaaant land!"
The other drops of water beheld what they
had done
They whispered to the sand-grains and
beckoned to the sun.
The sun gazed' fierce and angry upon the
wicked pair.
And dried the drop of water, which van
ished Into air.
Then came a laughing wavelet, as frisky as
could be.
And washed the little sand-grain away Into
the sea.
But still the sea was mighty, with Just as
loud a roar.
And still the land was pleaaant. as It had
.been before;
For no one drop of water' and no one grain
of sand
Can make or mar the ocean nor chanse
Uis pleasant land.