The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1881-08-23

"Who took that money!"
THAT was the question that con
fronted me, There were no signs OF
a burglary; no lock forced, windows
and doors all right. No one else in
the house but Miss Smith and MOllie.
OF course. at once examined the
girl. She talked freely, said she al.
ways had a presentiment that the
money would be stOlen-in fact, had
presentiment that night, but feared
to tell the old lady for fear of alarm
ing her. soon learned that Mollie
had key which fitted the bedroom
containing the bureau. hence my sus.
picions were strengthened that Mollie
had arisen in the night. either un-
locked the door with her own key, or
taken the one in the wardrobe. and,
securing the money. hid it either in
Or out Of the house without awaken
ing the old lady. l finally told Mollie
that should have to search her and
make a thorough examination Of the
house.
WELL she naively remarked, If
you do find any money about the
house it won't prove that stole it,
will it y
at will be prima facia evidence,
/ said.
81 locked her up in her bedroom
and began a thorough search; band
boxes pried into, bureau drawers
pulled out, cupboards ransacked, and
finally went through her own room.
UNDER THE CARPET
under her bed found in a compact
wad twelve $1OO-bills. Now the total
amount known to be missing was only
81 ,O45. Where had the S155 come
from? Where had the gold coins
gone to? Was the bureau drawer
paying interest on its deposit.
"'Now I've got you, Mollie, | said,
as / confronted her.
"MOllie tainted.
ga bottle Of camphor aud little
cold water brought her speedily to,
yet she sturdily proclaimed her limo
cence
"Ididn't take Miss Smiths money
no l did not, she convulsively ex.
claimed between her sobs.
''Miss Smith would not allow me to
take her to Jail, where l reasoned
confinement would soon compel her to
confess.
My work, however. was but par.
tally done, for the gold coins had not
turned up.
81 determined that those coins must
be in the house and resolved upon a
thorough search from cellar to garnet.
The cellar disclosed nothing, and al
last l stumbled upon small stairway
leading to the garnet, the door to
| which was common trap-doOr, sc.
curely fastened by a paddock to which
was attached three links of a chain.
"'Give me the key said to Miss
Smith, 'to that trap door up in the
attic
"'Oh. no use of looking there; the
KEYS have been lost for over five
years, and no one has ever been up
there since. There were cobwebs on
the door, but noticed that over the
crack of the doors edge they appeared
to have been broken away, caused by
the door having been recently opened.
With an axe speedily got the doc,
open and saw
LARGE FOOTPRINTS IN THE DUST.
By the aid of lamp l followed the
course Of the tracks over the boards
which lay across the shaky rafters to
the furthest part Of the garnet, where
over an old cross-beam, hung a pair
Of old-tashioned saddle-bags. The
dust on the bags had been recently
disturbed. In one of the pockets
found the five 500 bills which had
disappeared on the night of the 3Oth
of May. the 1856 that was missed in
the summer of 1879, the $3.50 tina,
was lost in 1880, and, better than all,
the rare old gold coins upon which
Miss Smith set such store as an heir.
loom. found the money, but
found 81 200 too much. The mys.
terry deepened. l resolved upon one
thing, and that was that Mollie mus,
know something about the money
that was hid under the carpet beneath
her bed. I talked kindly to her, told
her that Miss Smiths money had beeu
found. and urged her to tell me how
the 81, 200 came under the carpet Of
her bed.
"'You will not believe me if / tell
you, but if Miss Smith will 60 out
will explain. l put that money there ;
it was my lovers. He had saved i,
ont of his vaUos and Given n In mo fr