Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1893-10-26
HIS SINGULAR CASE.
A Detectives Strange Experience
with a Sloep-Wallxer.

"bRoNToN, ~ v, May H. iHa-Send your
CIVILIAN HARDY"
Such was the telegram received by the
chief of the bureau Of which l am n
member. and / was deputed 10 work
upon the case; not because was the
best man" connected with the bureau.
but by reason of the fact that was the
only available man.
Four hours subsequent 10 the recep-
ton of the message 1 was comforting
with Mr.. Hardy-a man nearly sixty
years Of age, the proprietor of small
store con nected with his residence--to
whom had made myself known, whose
story was as follows.
when, at the close of the rebellion,
after four years service in behalf of
my country, l returned TO my home in
this town, my health was so impaired
that / could not follow my former vo-
cation-that of a carpenter So con-
verified one of the rooms in my house
into a store and began to sell confec-
tionery, cigars and other small articles.
With the growth of the town my BUSH
ness has increased until IL affords me
an income sufficient TO support my wife
and myself have no children-in a
comfortable manner; and have been
able to pay all the debts which !, owing
to my impecuniousness, was obliged to
contract durin & the earlier part of my
career as n merchant" and he smiled
AZ the last word fell from his lips.
EARLY last evening" he continued,
81 was called II pom by a gentleman-a
stranger TO me-who said that years
ago he borrowed nine hundred dollars
of my father and had come To pay that
amount and accrued interest to me
my fathers sole heir. He did pay me
nearly sixteen hundred dollars.
AS it was too late TO deposit the
money in the bank l placed IL in my
safe. l had scarcely done so when,
CHANGING at one of the windows IN the
store, saw the head and shoulders of
n man, who looked like tramp and
who was watching me closely.
THE lower sash of tho window was
! slightly raised and the idea suggested
itself TO mo that this man might have
been listening to the conversation
which had been carried on in the room,
learned about the money and was
watching TO see what did with It
stepped TO the window, raised the sash
still higher, put my head out OF the
window, looked up and down the
street, but nowhere was the stranger
TO be seen.
"When l closed the store for the
night was inclined TO take the money
with me into the house proper. On
second consideration deemed it wise
IN lat 4 N H.
safe is furnished with a combination
lock, and l could leave the doors be-
q tween the store and my sleeping
room open and thus be enabled TO
hear anyone who effected an entrance
TO the store and was tampering with
the safe.
This morning, to my intense amaze
ment, found that the money was
missing from the safe, though nothing
indicated that the store had been forci-
BILE entered or any tampering with the
safe-whose combination Is known only
10 me.
/ II decided to employ detective with
out delay and wired your bureau Tor
assistance"
/ May not the burglar have gained ac-
Of the building2" inquired.
HE could not without passing
through my sleeping-room, as you will
find by examining the premises, and l
do not think he could have done this
without waking me-" was the reply.
II am not so sure that you would
have been Weakened by his passing
through your sleeping apartment, as q
professional manages TO get about a
building without making much noise.
Have you looked through the house2"
II have not"
Let us do So" arising from my seat
in the store as spoke.
We started on our investigation of
the premises and in the kithen found
an unfastened window above n sinh,
below which, out of doors. were the
tracks of mans bare feet in the dirt
that had been moistened by a slight
rain about half past ten the previous
evening.
A careful examination revealed sim
liar tracks GU the floor in the kitchen
and on the carpet in his sleeping-room,
convincing Mr.. Hardy that was cor
rect in my supposition that the burglar
had not directly entered the store
Though he passed through my
sleeping. room without waking me
cannot comprehend how he could have
reached the interior of my safe with
out injuring the receptacle" Mr.. Hardy
remarked.
From long experience ones fingers
become SO sensitive as 70 enable him
TO open a safe when the combination
is unknown to him." rejoined, after
a pause adding; Can you give me any
description of the man who watched
you through the Window"
II cannot, further than 10 say that
he was evil-looking, had heavy mus
tache and beard, was probably about
six feet in height" was the reply,
"Were his mustache and beard light
or dark?"
81 should say they were almost
black"
Il will see II / can learn anything
concerning the whereabouts Of this
man"
With these words went from Mr..
Hardy's presence, but two hours later
returned to the store, TO find him It's
sole occupant, greatly TO my satisfac.
ton.
WELL" at once dropped from his lips