The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1883-08-24
SELECT STORY.
CAUGHT BY A THREAD.
An ENGLISH DETECTIVES STORY.

am detective. am not asham.
ed to own it; indeed, | am proud of
my profession, as every good detective
ought to be. / know some people look
down on policeman. | should like to
know what they would do for aid
against the rogues and swindIers who
always abound in wealthy cities if it
were not for us? The very people who
make most fun of us are the first to
seek our aid if they are robbed and
swindled Therefore, | am proud of
being SO useful a member of society as
a detective policeman.
Some of our fellows who have been
relating histories in your paper have
informed You how they became de
tectives. All true, believe; but
there was no romance in my case. l
took to the police force from liking.
That being the case, and being sober
and industrious, | soon managed to
become a favorite, and rose rapidly,
and at last was made Sergeant re-
ceiving, beside my pay, what we call
Intelligence money" which makes a
very nice addition of our salary. So,here
l am, Sergeant Fox, of the detective
force, and having introduced myself, l
will go at once into my story.
One day l happened to have holi-
day, and took my wife and children to
a village beyond Hornsey, where
friend of mine kept an old. fashioned
public house-a low, rambling, COM.
Portable place, as snug as you could
wish.
My old friend gave me hearty
welcome, and we had glorious day.
The children in the fields at the back
of the house, and my wife and Mrs
Balmer, my friends wife, sat in the
bar parlor while Balmer and myself
smoked our pipes in the arbor at the
bottom of the garden and enjoyed
some cold whiskey and water.
Balmer had given us a warm wei
come, but for all that | saw there was
something the matter with both him
and his wife. For instance, when we
were at the dinner and tea, noticed
that now and then they would pause
in the conversation and listen as if
they expected to hear something.
Once during the latter meal Balmer
jumped up aud hurried out of the
| room but he returned almost immedi-
ately, and saying quietly to his wife,
''its nothing, my dear, and resumed
the conversation as usual. This, of
course, aroused my curiosity, and | de-
termned to know what the matter was
before left.
"This is a fine old place, Harry |
said, as I pNffed at my pipe.
Yes" he said, slowly, Il like it
very much, so does the wife, Still,
not as much as thought should
"What's up now, Harry demand
ed. "Why, after you had seen this
place you did nothing but talk about
it, and never rested until you bought
it. Yet you have only been here some
six or eight months, and you seem tired
of it. Is the trade not as good as you
expected 2"
"Oh, the trade is good enough.
That's not it. Look here, Charlie,
you might help me little in this mat
ter"
"lf can, am at your service l
replied
"Well, then, the one great fault in
this place is the want Of kitchen room.
| We have only a small kitchen proper,
as | may call it, and a small back one
that over there, where you see the
window" he said, as he pointed with
his pipe to kind of clubhouse The
consequence is that we have to stow
away lot of things in the back kitch-
en- that ought to be in the front one
things of value, too. Well, almost
every night something disappears, and
hang me if can make it out
"Who have you in the house that
you suspect"
"Not soul. l brought all my old
servants with me, and they have been
in my service for years. They are in
nocent."
"Humph! AS to that l don't feel
quite so certain" saidI "Have any
of your female servants sweethearts p
"Not that l know of, If they have
they never come here"
"Why do you not keep the door
locked-you say that it always hap
pens at nignt?"
"We can't do that and here Harry
Balmer went into long statement as
TO the necessity that the door should
be left on the latch during the greater
part of the evening. All of these rea-
sons need not be mentioned here.
Suffice it to say that he proved to me
that for business purposes it had to be
left on the latch at certain times,
81 can't understand it, he continu-
ed. "We have done everything to
discover how the thieves came in
taking every precaution, but all in
vain, do believe my old woman
begins to think the house is haunted,
and really it is very mysterious
very
"Ghosts don't steal, said |. Just
come along with me and show me the
place and | will see what | can make
of it,"
"Well, he took me to the place, and
| examined it carefully, and-a queen
one it was. Only a small back kitch
en- with copper sink and the usual
utensils of that sort One door opened
into the garden and another door open
ed into dark passage, and not into
the front kitchen, as is usually tn,
case. The door of the front ktcher
opened into the other, near the end o
this passage, which was very narrow
There was third door at the bottom
. OF the passage, which opened into tn,
bar. There was nothing to guide m'
there, so | walked into the garden anC
examined it.
1t was pleasant little place enough
perfectly country, having no wal
around il, and only low paling, owe
which any one could leap. Then
looked at the country, which consisted
of beautiful fields, through which raj
the New river, which, indeed, cam
right under Hary's house, just at tn
back l saw at once that if a maj
came into the house to steal the thing
he would have to cross the river by