Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1891-05-02

/ ments. You will suspect just as l did,
that she had captivated him, but he
fought shy of any acknowledgment OF
the sort. She was in his house to care
for his children andto manage domestic
matters, and hat wasno ones business
but their own.
/ haven't told you about the bank. 1t
was situated just a square from his
house, and exactly in e Of it The
house fronted on one street and the
bank on another, and there was no
alley between. Indeed, the rear yard
of the house led right up to the near
door of the bank, and Mitchell used to
come and go through the yard. In
rear of the banking rooms, divided off
by the usual railing, were the private
offices and the vault A burglar alarm
was connected with the front doors and
windows, but none with the back. A
large and savage dog guarded the rear,
having a kennel close to the door.
What the banker wanted to see me
about was this: He had not only missed
money from his wallet at night, but on
two occasions considerable sums of
money had been taken from a small
safe which stood in his office outside
the vault. One Of the mysteries was in
the taking of the money. He employed
a teller and a bookkeeper, neither of
| whom had a key to safe or vault
unless it was a duplicate made without
his knowledge. Neither had the word
| of the combination of the vault, and it
seemed impossible that they could have
taken the money even if so inclined.
Both were perfectly honest so far as
anyone knew, and Mitchell was all
tangled up over the mystery. He hadn't
talked to me five minutes when | would
have taken my solemn oath that Mrs.
Gray was the guilty party, but, of
course, | didn't drop a hint of my sus-
pici3ns to him. When it came my turn
to asks questions l found out that he
was a very sound sleeper: that he oc-
cupied a front bedroom with his son;
that Mrs. Gray and the girl occupied
one in rear of his, with an entrance to
both from a hall; that the keys of the
bank safe and vault were always kept
under his pillow at night. In addition,
Mrs. Gray had won the hearts of his
children, IF not his own, and it was
only by the strongest argument that
| she had been induced to accept a salary
of ten dollars per week while occupy
ing her position. 1t was as plain as
daylight to me that Mitchell meant to
marry her in due course of time, but it
wasn't at all plain as to what sort of a
scheme she was working.
l took the case, told Mitchell | had ?
theory, and then began to study Mrs.
GRAY. | found her to be a sweet and
innocent-looking little woman, seem
ingly devoted to the children, and had
I not been a detective and q married
mar ! might have fallen in love with
her. 1t was in summer and she was
ont a great deal, and / was on hand tc
follow her. 1t seemed to be time thrown
away, however. She was shy, prudent
and apparently all right. and had put
in a month on the case and made no
discovery when the outside safe was
robbed again. A deposit and some
bonds had come in at the last maolnent
and had been placed there for the
night Tea whole thing amounted
ITO about nine hundred dollars, ant
bonds and greenbacks were MISSING
next morning. The safe had not only
been opened with a key, but the banl
had been entered by unlocking the
rear door. No one could have entered
by the front without sounding al
alarm. No stranger could have entere'
by the back on account of the dog, VIII
was wide-awake and all right.
! When Mitchell sent for me to Civ
me the news | was perfectly satisfe'
7 that Mrs. Gray was the guilty party
: | believed she had the nerve to ente
: his room in the night, secure the key
and then slip through the backyard
= enter the bank and open the safC
: When l learned tl.at the dog was
great favorite of hers this belief was
u certainty. I couldn't, for reasons a
d ready given, say a word to Mitche
about this. He wanted to suspect hi
two employees, but when we had car
r vassed the matter he was made to sc
e that it was altogether unlikely tina
!, either of them was guilty. Indeed, h
|, was alone in the bank when the bono
4 and money came in and he alone kne'
X where the deposit was placed.
e What did | do? | turned to Mr.
d GRAY again, and in about a week som
v thing happened TO prove that l was G
the right trail. One Of the street CT
+ lines of the town ran down to the raj
o road depot. 1t was Mrs. Gray's hab
IS of an afternoon to ride on this line wit
e the little girl as far down as o certai
park, and to sit near the fountain ar
is read while the girl rompcd about wit
le other children, | had closely watche
k her while in this park, but no one he
h ever come near her, and her demean'
had been perfection. On the thin
is afternoon after the robbery she occ
pied her usual seat for an hour withol
anything happening. ! sat on a benc
4 in rear of her and about thirty fe
away, and by and by ! noticed that 81
\ was writing a note with pencil. 81
did it SO deity that n sitting in fro
of her could not have told what 81
was at Beside her was a large sha,
tree, and as near asI could make o
\ she disposed of the note, when fold
4 up, somewhere about the tree. Wht
\ she left / followed her for a short di
lance, and looking back l saw a your
\ and well-dressed man occupying Il
place vacated by her. An hour late
when / could examine the tree, | four
a hollow in the trunk lust about on