Western liberal. (Lordsburg, N.M.) 1887-1919, 1893-06-23
0VERCONFIDENCE.


. Ten years ago in a certain good sized
town in Pennsylvania there lived a fam
lily whom I will call Mitchell. Tie fam
lily consisted of husband, vito ard two
children, the latter being a boy aged lyc
and a girl of seven. Mitchell was a pri.
vate banker, known to be honest, re-
spectacle and worth u clear 800, 600. !
knew little or nothing about the family
until certain incidents occurred. One
day his wife was fatally injured in a
railroad collision at a point about fifty
miles from home. When he reached
her, IN response to a telegram sent by a
stranger, he found she had been removed
to a>hotel and was being tenderly cared
for by a woman who gave her nam as
Mrs. A. b. Gray, of Philadelphia. She
was on the train, but suffered no injury.
Mrs. Gray, rs might as we'll tell you
now, was petite, good looking, q gooi
talker, and in d general way captiya-
ting. The fact Of her taking charge OF
Mrs. Mitchell as she had done proved
her tender heart. She told Mr.. Mitchell
she had been a widow eighteen months
and was practically alone in the world,
and though he wa burdened with grief
and anxiety, he did not forget to thank
her for her great kindness and to take
her address. She resumed her journey,
and he took his wife home to die of her
injuries. 1t was three weeks after her
death that | came into the case. After
everything was over tho husband sud-
denly discovered that his dead wife's
..jewelry was missing. She had with her
H --ha, Nla nn,fInpN fC,l -n1uan- about
81, 900 worth Of diamonds. They had
disappeared, and when he came to run
over events in his mind he could not re-
member that they had come home with
her. Mrs. Gray had turned over to him
Mrs. Mitchell's purse and a few other
Vikings, but a pair of diamond eardrops.
two rings and a pin were missing.
| was employed to proceedto the scene
of the late accident and seek to trace the
jewelry. The collision had occurred
right at the depot in q small-tOwn. Peo-
pie about the depot and the hotel assured
me tina; Mrs. Mitchell had her jewelry
on when taken to the hotel. The land
lords wife was positive, and the doctor
who was called in was positive, and
when / had worked the case out | re-
turned home TO report to Mitchell that
nobody but Mrs. Gray could have taken
the jewelry. lie was astonished and in
dignant, and not only vigorously re-
pudiated the implication, but discharged
me from the case with the assertion that
] was a novice in the profession.
| went about other business, and it
was about four months before | saw
Mitchell again. Then he sent for me in
an official capacity again. No reference
was made to my previous work, but
fresher and other troubles had come to
him. A month after the death of his
wife he had opened correspondence with
Mrs. Gray, and the result was that she
had come to take charge of his house.
He was without relatives. or at least
vwithouf iuose who could aid him in his
situation, and she claimed to be free in
her movements. You will suspect just
as | did, that she had captiyated him
but he fought shy Of any ~acknowledg'
ment Of the sort.
/ haven't told You about the bank. Il
was situated just a square from hi
house and exactly in the rear of it. Thu
house fronted OF street and the banl
on another, and there was no alley be
LMEEus llAEtu llG rear AAu VI AAAi
house led right up to the rear door o
the bank, and Mitchell used to come al
and go through the yard. In the rea
of the banking rooms, divided off by tn,
usual railing, were the private Office
and the vault. A burglar alarm wa
connected with the front doors and win
dows, but mont with the back. A larg
and savage dog guarded the rear, having
a kennel close to the door.
What the banker wanted to see m
about was this: He had not only MISE,
money from his wallet at night, but o.
two occasions considerable sdIns 0
money had been taken from a small SAT-
which stood in his Office outside tn
vault. One Of the mysteries was in tn
taking of the money. He employed
teller and IA bookkeeper, neither Of WHOM
fIad a key to safe or vault, unless it wa
aduplicate made without his knowledge
Neither had the word Of the combine
lion Of the vault, and it seemed imposst
Die that they could have taken th
money, even If so inclined. Both wer
perfectly honest, so far as any one knew
and Mitchell was all tangled mp owe
the mystery.
He hadn't talked to me five minute
when / would have taken my solem
oath that Mrs. Gray was the guilt
party, but q course / didn't drop a hiT
Of my suspicio ns TO him. She was sh,
prudent and apparently all right, and
had put in a month on the case an
made no discovery when the outsiC
safe was robbed again. A deposit an
some bonds had come in ut the last IN
ment and had been placed there for q
night. The whole thing amounted
about 5000, and bonds and greenbacl
were missing next morning. The sa.
had not only been opened with a Ike
but the bank had been entered by n
locking the rear door. No n couI
thave entered by the front withol
sounding an alarm. No stranger coul
have entered by the back on account
the dog. who was wide awake and O
right.
When Mitchell sent for me to give II
ithe news l was perfectly satisfied tn