Evening Republican, Volume 23, Number 21, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 23 January 1920 — Page 2

Diamond Cut Diamond

By JAMB BUMKER

•MATTER XIL The Capture. Act MM nothin# happened—at teaat to Ma; but somehow the periods when nothing happened were mors alannlng than when he was boldly attedttaß' Yuusmy imagine, if you can, what I wont through on Saturday! My one diversion was to rehlde the dlamenda. This ttee after I bad taken them out of the hyacinths and poked a thimble among the stems—4 sealed than to an envelope and thumb-tacked It to the bottom of a sideboard drawer. The drawers sledded tn and oat on runnen deep enough to allow the envelop to pans. All day long I kept thinktec, "What will happen if monsieur doesn’t take the baltr It seems strange to mo now, bat I never once sated myself, “Whet will happoi if he doosF •* Thb last half hour before Billy came was positively the longest in my life, and when the bell did Anally ring I WRW stoat through the heart and ready to die. —- I came to life immediately, whispered through the door, “Who’s thereF and heard, "Ann Preswick”— the password we’d agreed on. he hasn’t killed you 1* were my first words. "Who? Toor ‘mossoo? No—l MDed hhn ea the stairs last sight—er pretty near I" I didn’t see why Billy should bestow tike proprietorship on me—be wasn’t my "smsboo," as I reminded Billy while he was polling a pair of handcuffs out of Ms overcoat pocket “A mere detail," he returned. “He WB be your own in an hour." He flung off his eoat "Whore dp we Mds these “"My wardrobe. . . . But ho won’t yes, be win—bo told me so.” I thought Billy was joking and made man,” mused Billy. -Not at all toe sort of person you’d expect to find in a diamond robbery. Wonderful knowledge of European politico—and imesimn politics, too.” „ "BOly, what do you meanr I demanded. -Why, I took your ‘mossoo’ homo to Ms hotel last night—and—" "Too didn’t r I gasped. •'Of course I did! Why not? Ton don’t owppoQß rd go off and leave Mm hero to murder you, do your Billy was making the moot out of Ma story, IeoUM ssa.

. -But — hew —aw — you — age—ltF I was still gasping. “I didn’t. Bo did. He wasn’t going to give himself away by going up■tom; be said he was going down. So we went down together, and I kept tritong to him. Whan we got to the ■tract we jnst kept on till rd seen him borne. We were thick as thlevea by that Hrnnu I tevtlad him to see Chinatown tonight and be accepted—’’ • *Btfly! Ton never—" -Tea I did! And Its how I know Mb coming tonight—see? I went round this morning in time for the Scat matt. Ho was waiting for lb Oh. be got the totter ah right! And ~T rreu an he reed it be came over aad told mo be couldn’t go to Chinatown tonight—ho bad diplomatic business that might take him to Washington—which means bore- Seer *Wy, you're the deverast thing I erar sawP I toted with real admiration. - -Thanks coming from pee J appreciate that." He said it In an offhand way, bat I canid see ho was fooling wry sot up ever himself. And I didn't Marib Mm. Ho x added. -What the ’mosaoo’ was really after—why he wouldn't lot me go out In the dark alone was to know whs I was catting on. I told him It was the people In the front flat and I couldn’t get in. I taM him ft was their cousin from Boston I was calling on and maybe they'd gme to the theater. That led to our talking about plays? that led to an In- = aptratton of genius and I asked Mm If bffd seen Otaatewn; that led to my invitation and—the root you know." -Billy, you are poeltlraly the etowr-; set man I know!” -Didn’t Mink I’d grew up Mke that. dM yeuT And teat’s not all. As for the pretty dauffhte^— your little Claire that yon thlnkwo math of—dont fhlnt now—well. toota la ft up to the neck and over her eon. Shota Ms accom- - BBea all right- Hose’s bar cable bmo* ■Sgo-" He drew out a bit of paper on which he’d copied tt and rood: -Bora a gtaL Mother and child detegwML CLAM.” -But IMs tv tote isn’t—” I stem- - ' ■ v’’* -Quite so,” atoasd Billy. ft Is and it tent! It is a ceto It imrt a yloC» cd insanity. I’ve read it—or I think I hhva Ustan now: •Born’—the pro* I ***

me a Mt Ifo one of thgee things: Mtu fills* to make It read; or a code word with an.awned swan Ing; or It refers to Mrs. Delarlo—that la, she stUl has ths diamonds—she hasn’t passed them on to some man. But let that go. The next la too easy—’mother’—the owner, of course; ‘child’ —toe precious things; ’doing wriF—got through tbo customs without botag separated. Plain as day—end when you and Mrs. Delarlo stepped out of the cable office your dear *mossoo’ stepped in and read it” -Poor nttie CtalTOl" -Poor yourselfl" snorted Billy. “Ton don’t need to waste any pain and tears on that outfit. They’re slick. Well, let’s to work—‘mossoo’ Is downstairs anxiously waiting lor you to go out" "How do you knowF "Shadowed Mm. ... My revolvers all right? And the red pepper?" -Yes—but I’ve been thinking about that pepper and how about ammonia instead r’ eonsiderod Billy. "What’s the Advantage?" "It wears off quicker, and I think ft’s probably safer for us If he struggles and we have to hold him down.” “Guess it la" Billy agreed. “Got it madyF I took him to the kitchen and showed him half a glass of household ammonia diluted with water and covered with a saucer. Then ! hung his coat and hat in my wardrobe. After that he looked at me and I looked at him —the fatal moment had arrived. “Wen?” mid Billy. I seemed to know he’d my “well.” "Well?" I repeated after him, trying to pretend to myself I didn’t know what ha meant. Billy glanced at the clock. "Your ‘mossoo* is wondering why you don’t come. By the way—there wasn’t a soul in the lower hall when I sneaked tn —he’s sent his man off for fear you won’t leave.” My knees were shaking under me. I was sure Billy knew it, but he affected not to notice. He took one of the revolvers and inserted a blank cartridge for the first shot, explaining that we couldn’t have an omelet without breaking eggs. I was to Jump out of my bedroom and fire this as soon as monsieur reached the dining room. "I calculate we’ll have him now in about fifteen minutes,” was Billy’s delicate hint to me to go on with my part, and with knees ready to close up under me like Jackknives I rang for Bomba I must say that George acquitted himself very creditably—as a spy. Instead of his usual inquisitive "Goin’ to bo out all the evening?” he put it In this way: “If somebody calls when shall I tell ’em you’ll be home?" "Tell them I won’t be home—say Pm out for too eventag,” I returned

"Tell Thom I Won’t Be Home.”

promptly; and George’s face wore the satisfied expression of a well-earned five-dollar bitt. By the time we reached the second floor Billy was ringing furiously from the sixth —this was to get George out of the way at once so I could slip upstairs—and when we reached the first tfto lurk that is said to favor naturalboon Idiots and such turned a trick for me by fetching little Mrs. Thingdownetalrs slithering along the hall. She darted past me into the car, almost knocking me over In her desire to keep George from opening the front door for me, and she made sure of my defeat by uttering an acid, -Take me up immejetly.” For which rudeness I have ever Messed her! In ten ! soronds I had gone along the hall to the front door, retraced my steps, and—thanks to her—was gilding up the stairs In her wake like a ghost. In tees than two minutes from the time she trampled me under her feet I was safe te*my own flat. Whether Billy and I had five minUtes or fifty to wait now we did not knew. Mt we took it for granted that we should have the shortest possible rises ta which George could deliver the news of my departure “for the evening" and monsieur could creep upstairs, unsown by his allweetag spy. We therefore took our prearranged flat was almost dark. One low gas jet IMfrted tbs dining room and Showed •fibs hyadtaths on the table—so aiaustall court use the moment be entered the front door; a taw light In the bathroom showed at a Hanes through the tads-open doer that no-1 ferity lurked wWMt'TM to n»

TBB BVmrtNO BBPUBUCAN, RENSSELAER, IMP.

. . .A. ... •- -- bedroom stood flat against the wan; the kitchen door nearly so, and behind It Billy, jammed In between the refrigerator and the set tubs, was completely concealed unless one entered the room, A low light burned here, sufficient to show the room’s apparent emptiness. WO calculated that monsieur would make a dash for the fire

escape when I shot off the blank cartridge from my bedroom and Billy was then to greet him with the ammonia. In my own room 1 stood pressed against the wall Just inside the doorway. In my right hand was the revolver. Neither Billy nor I uttered a sound. The little metal clock echoed along the hall, horribly loud. It chkned the half after seven. I counted ticks —one minute gone. I counted and thought of hundreds of things I meant to do, or had forgotten to do, all the while counting mechanically. Three minutes gone—four—five — A key slipped quickly, boldly, regardless of the noise It made—my lock! No—it couldn’t be I The lock turned. A quick illumination filled my hall from the gas Jet outside and was gone almost before I had realized it The d°° r dosed. My heart jumped out and ran about the floor and tried to hide under the bureau. I remember thinking, “Suppose It doesn’t come back but stays away? Then poor Billy’s done can’t move a muscle without my.-heart r And all the time I was thinking these Idiotic things, I heard the cautious indomitable pad, pad, pad of whispered footsteps. They paused at the bedroom door for a glance within—nothing there; paused at the bathroom door— nothing in there; paused at the kitchen door —nothing In there; then made for the table. The light blazed up in the dining room and my heart came back: wltb* plop. Monsieur had turned up the light In order to remove the diamonds and leave me to discover it, as It might H) B nc<>—tomorrow or a week firom to-

morrow. . With the light, all my fear left suddenly. I popped out of the bedroomsaw monsieur with the hyacinths in his hand-fired the blank aad yelled, "Hands upl” and stood facing him and between him and the door with a smoking revolver In my hand. He sold, “Mon Dien I”—took In the rituatlon —and bolted for the fire eecape—got a smashing blow from the kitchen door as Billy Jumped from behind it and then half a glass of amn£nla in the face. Two seconds later we three were a writhing strangling heap on the floor. The next thing I remember, I was Atting on monsieur amidships and Billy was snapping a handcuff. I gasped and rolled off on the floor; picked myself up from to® inelegant position by way of my hands and knees, got a wet towri and sopped monsieur’s face as tost as I could—though why I perfortnod this humane act so quickly, I can’t say; and as soon as he stopped strangling —for a lot of the ammonia had gone Into his mouth and very little in his eyes—Billy and I dragged him to the dining room, propped him against the sideboard and opened a window. I believe that none of the three or us uttered a word, during the entire performance— Billy says he can’t remember any; but one of the strangest things was that the firing of toe revolver elicited no investigation from the populous house. All this might have happened in the center of I*aramle plains In a snowstorm the day after the faH roundup fob the amount of notice man or beast took of it It was a faultlees achievement. And now we had monsieur—we had captured him, as Billy said we au by our little own selves. He and I silently regarded the crumply creature Hitting against the sideboard and then Cor the first time the Idea came Into our heads, “And now that we’ve got him, what are we going to do with him?" „ . I looked at Billy and he looked at me. We asked each other the question with our eyes. As for monsieur, his tears had swallowed up his chagrin at the Indignities heaped upon him. Strange as it may seem, he was the first of the three that found his voice. . to biA

“Zere has been a great mistake, ne bfegan, to which Bitty retorted: -It looks that way." “Ah—ctaet vous F breathed monsieur, suddenly recognising Billy. “Of course. Who did you think it wasr returned Billy with a tang cd pertness, for which he might on that occasion be forgiven. Monsieur repaid It by ignoring him and addressing himself to me. “If madame will permit me a chair and allow me to explain—F We couldn’t very well refuse him that—particularly as we didn’t know what to do with him anyway—so ws helped him to a chair and when we’d aot him in It. I took my turn to to mark severely: -There’s not much to explain. You were caught In the act of breaking and entering my flat—yew mag make your explanations to Hie pb Uce. We’ll have then here In five minutes.- That was a fine shot On mg part, I felt Monsieur’s face proved It Madame!" he cried. “Ze police—no! Ito your own sake—for se avoidance of se scandal. Madame, you totally misunderstand se so strange situation—" -It certainly is,” commented Bttly. —“in which lam Piece. But I can explain all—everystag—why I' am here. I have se absolute proof sat madame has ne—as Jewels of My daughter—which do not belong to nto dame In bar apartment." . Billy and I couldn’t Mfr smiling rt tWa end monstanr seemed ustanflsbsm I sneered, -IndeedF ta too, way Mat always set him <m edge. ; ' < J : '

"Gtd-yeo-enadanta. I have • proof to your sabtasMß" I gave him another "IndeedF to toe Mme tone. This was the moment I had been waiting for. I dipped a paper out front under a pile on the table—the carbon copy of the decoy letter. -Is that ItF I sweetly asked, showing it to him. “Yeo—l thought so. . . And is this it, tooF I handed him the copy ofi the decoy letter supsood th be-fro* MM Ddarto to himself. After that I said: “Really, mon--4mrr v in an amused tone, and Billy waved Ms band toward the typewriter and informed him blandly, “Homemade cake. Written here last evening just before I bad th® pMtonre of making your acquaintance on the stairs. Mailed by me after I saw you to your hotel.” The poor man looked from one to the other of us—and actually I did feel sorry for him! He stammered: "I eannot understand —I recognize ze writing of Madame Delarlo—” He was silent a moment and'then light seemed suddenly to break on him and he launched an ultimatum of accusation at me: “If madame did not have ee wtnnro if she has not seen ze stones—how could she refer to zem? How could she have composed zls—to deceive me?’ He nodded In a way that said: “Now andtoer that—if you can.” I had expected some such. question and I was ready. “That’s too simple,” I assured him. “You remember you accused me of stealing Jewels from your daughter; therefore I knew what you were after.” “But sis word ‘gum-drops’—it refers most evidently to unset Jewels —- “Oh. I put that in,” Billy Interrupted. “It doesn’t mean anything but what you make it mean. See?” He spoke in a tone that said: “You’re giving yourself away.” Monsieur Ignored him and looked at me as If expecting me to continue my explanation. “The hyacinths,” I went on—they lay, a draggled bunch on the floor, “you overlooked them In your search—it was the one thing you did not open, that bunch, so I knew you’d remember it when I called your attention to it. You see, monsieur,” I added, “I knew you would remember the one thing you’d overlooked” —he bowed and a faint smile flitted across his face at the compliment I was paying his Intelligence—“and come back to investigate—if you had the chance. I gave you the chance, that was all.” "Bdt how do you know sat I can come back so easily as sat?” he asked, partly puzzled and partly to draw me out, "You had a pass-key to the flat—you opened the door with it the other night and I stood behind it while you were n,»riring at the chain-bolt. I saw your bund—” "And you said nosring—you de not scream when you see a man try to get into your apartment in ze middle of ze night?” he interrupted, his tone a mixture of incredulity and—l hope Hl be forgiven the apparent conceit—admiration for my bravery. "Why should I say anything—or ■croam? I knew you couldn’t get In, «o what wm there to be scared ovarF (TO BE CONTINUED.)

NOTICE OF FILING PETITION FOR HIGHWAY IMPROVEMENT

Petition for Highway Improvement in Keener Township, Jasper County, There was thia day filed ta_ my office, a petition duly signed by more than fifty freeholders and voters, which petition reads as follows: State of Indiana. County'of Jasper, ""in the Commissioners’ Court to February Terai, liM. , Petition of Richard Grevenstuk, et al., for an improveed Highway in Keener Township, Jasper County, Indiana. The undersigned Petitioners, represent and show to Board that they are freeholders and legal voters of Keener Township, County, Indiana, and that this petition is rtgned by more than fifty such freehodlera and lend voters of said Township, that there now exists in said Township a certain established and much traveled public highway upon and along the line hereinafter described and that the grading, draining phving of said highway would be W great public utility, and that the benefits arising from said grading, draining and paving of said highway would greatly exceed the costs and expenses thereof, and that said public highway as hereinafter described would be less than three miles in length, and connects at each end thereof- with an established and improved tree stone road in said Township, said highway is described as follows: _ Commencing at the southwest corner of section 18,. and the southeast corner of section 2A i» township 82 north, range 7 west, in J***®* bounty. and state of Indiana and running thence north for a distance of one mile, to the southwest corner of section M. and the southeast earner of section 20, in township 32 north, range 7, thence running east for a distance of two miles. to the southeast corner or 22, and thenorthem* corner of section 27, in township 32 nwth, range 7 west, in Keenertownefeip, Jasper County. Indiana, where said highway asked to be Improved terminates .Petitioners further Highway to improved by a road bed twenty-four . tort in width and that upon said road bed there to placed crushed stone of an WPJ°yod Quality to too width of *in« ft*”* to the depth & inSe~ ta Mid road bed to prepay drattodso tU? J?.-?. cases unwiwn GREVENSTUK IE SSSS* fs, Al 3*5*7 action thereS and allobjectkms will to cony SMuaed which may to on tn? Wtobtng the validity of sald pstto Board of Commissioners, this 14th d& ° f ROBINSON. Auditor of Jasper County, Indiana

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