Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1889-09-12

preached the door and seized the handle tc
work the combination. | gave the handles
the usual preliminary turns and then
started to work the combination. To my
great surprise-to my horror, | may say
found that the combination was completely
obliterated from my mind. / couldn't re,
member turn nor figure. ] was as ut
terly helpless as If | had never seen COM
bination-lock in my life.
Is hut my eyes and rubbed my forehead.
1t was no use. The combination wouldn t
come. 1t was something that had never
occurred before, the combination being
always so ready in my mind that | worked
it almost mechanically. But tonight it
was no go. Some influence had so upset
my mind that the combination was entire
ly wiped out of it.
Hurry up, Tom" said Bob, land LETT
get through with this business"
But | can't said l helplessly; II
have actually forgotten the combination. F"
Come, come, Tom," said Bob, that
won't do, you know. If you don't want
to let me have the money, why, so So,
but don't resort to a subterfuge like that. y
Its no suubterfuge at all, / answered
Indignantly You shall have the money
if can unlock the vault, but | delare to
you positively that know no more how to
work this combination than you do.
well, that's singular, said Bob,
Haven t you a memorandum of the COM
bination somewhere?"
Eyes, . said |, Il have-and it is locked
up in TIE vault -
1.-The deuce!'' exclaimed Bob. ''Wen,
wait little while and it may come back
to you
We sat down and tried to converse on
other matters, but | couldn't bel p cudgel-
ing my brain to try to make it yield up
that combination. But it was of no use,
my mind was a blank so far as those num-
bers were concerned.
There's no help for it, Bob" said |, at
length. IF my life depended on it |
couldn't open that vault at this time.
Deuce take the luck anyhow Six thous-
and two hundred and fifty dollars just
within my grasp, and now to lose it.,
all on account of this COMPOUNDED mental
freak"
Tom, interrupted Bob, who had been
doing some serious thinking, lit may be
all right / confess | am little supersti-
tious, and what you call strange mental
freak may be something else don t know
what; but something seems to say, Stop
right here, and I'm going to. Tom, I'll
let this opportunity slide. and trust to time
for further explanations.
And we left the bank with the money In
the vault undisturbed. | went to bed, still
trying without success to recall that COM
bination. l finally dropped off to sleep,
but awoke as the town clock struck II.
Just as the last stroke died away, quick as
flash, the combination appeared clearly
in my mind again.
The time is up" l said to myself.
''Was Bob right in his theory?"
The next morning about clock, who
should rush into the bank but Bob, his face
lighted up with some unusual excitement.
Reckoning me into private room he
opened the interview by exclaiming i'm
pressively, Tom, it was special provi-
dencen'
what on earth do you mean, Bob?''
said l.
Just this: By your forgetting the com
blnatlOn we were prevented from being
duped to the tune of $1,000 Ny friend
was an innocent tool in the hands of the
most adroit set of sharpers 1t was ever my
fortune to encounter. 1t was the most
cleverly concocted scheme the mind of NOR
tai man ever conceived, and plausible
enough to deceive better and sharper men
than either you or l. So say, Tom, you
are under the care of special providence,
| and you must be singled out for some great
work In life.
Bob's theory began to make some i'm
preston on my mind, but something hap
pened afterward that clinched my belief
| called on Nell that night for-would you
believe it ?-I hadn t seen the dear girl for
forty-eight hours, and it seemed as many
mears-when, after we had given testi-
mOny to the stability of our joint and sep
than forty minutes, Nell remarked In the
most artless manner:
Tom, | had such a funny thing come
into my head last night that I must tel
you of it. 1t was about $50, and
COUNT for the life of me keep my mine
from running on the vault in your bank
and don t you think even got to imagin
ing that | could work the combination
Why, the figures came into my mind Sc
distinctly that | jotted them down on 6
piece of paper, and here they are. 0.
course they don't amount to anything, bu
| thought | would show them to you
| glanced at the figures she had noteC
down, ana almost gaSped as L recognized
the exact combination. What had gone
out of my mind had gone straight int
hers, where it was in safe-keeping.
made Nell occupy the same chair with me
and then told her the whole story.
You are indeed my guardian angel, ;
said l, ''for you have guarded in myster
ious manner not only my position, but m!
honor, which, next to you, | value above
life itself.
Then l kissed her fifty or sixty times
and we took walk under the silent stars