The Dakota chief. (Gann Valley, Buffalo County, S.D.) 18??-1913, 1896-04-23
CHAPTER XIV.

-MtaliNI me w lII'' SHOW llHI DttI IttI--
Ana "aWkWardly in the rear. not decided
whether 90 rc,urn to Hampton or say al!
.scc he affair cut. He walked 4 few
ipacc> downhill, and all n olcr cneount y
led Gracious Ne. Willie .rit AZ If som"
3%ig"ut;r toad stood face 20 face with m.
"Shc amt much. sir" hr -iid. midi
eating Vanity with lis thumb. "lont good
.lair and mes been Instrumental in lind
ljn& of her out"
TArre he stood. with his swollen face
,214! yellow eyes and greasy attire. touch
,in- mis- cap for reward. and looking Such
a model of stumbling infamy that VII
Hes face turned crimson with shame.
"L0ok here" Willie cried furiously, IF
you ever dare to speak 10 me again-IU
-lN-d'yc hear
Gracious Me made no reply. for, read
ing the wrath in Willie SHOWS counte-
nance. he hastily concluded that his time
twas 1T hand and disappeared round the
corner with remarkable rapility. Looking
more like Il toad than ever.
Now. for the first time. Willie observed
that Il stranger was lettering abyut with
an air something like his own-as of Il
man undecided whether to 90 or stay. AS
this man eyed Willie ~curiously ana seem
ed anxious to speak, Willie, who, above
AL things. wished to avoid Vanity, turned
about 10 the stranger:
"Do you know anything of this extra
ordinary affair.""
My firm has reason 10 know n good
deal" the man answered. I'VE have lost
property to the value of five thousand
three hundred pounds in connection with
it"
"Five thousand three hundred" Willie
echoed. aghast. What "A sun of money.
To be sure. Tell me, how is this young
person connected with it? She is not the
thief"
''Thero, sir" the small man answered,
speaking. it seemed, for the detective po-
lice force and the plunderei firm, YOU
have us. Up TO last week we knew Very
little. Al this present moment we are
practically in the dark. II it had not been
for Il cat'S-eye We should have had no
Tight on the subject at all"
Willie Snow was quite staggered at
this.
Il see that cats eye" continued the
1ittic man, dropping his voice To an awful
whisper, see it in "A shop window near
College Green. Bristol. set in diamonds"
Light broke upon Willie. The ats-eye
WAS q precious stone. but as we are not
great people for jcwelry near Hampton.
he had never heard the gem mentioned
before.
Near College Green. Bristol. sir. |
WAS looking III at the window. as you
might be, thinking of nothing at all, and
saw Il stone which | seemed 10 recognizes.
Looked at it, and rs sure as | am stand
ing in my shoes that eye seemed 10 wink
at me-. ! looked deeper; there was the
identical flaw far down. Then. say l.,
"I.and at last We followed it up, and
here we are"
But surely" Willie said, wondering
what the answer would be. you do not
connect the-the young lady with that!"
That is the mystery, sir. This young
lady and her father have been for some
time travelling about, or. rather, going
from place to place. The father. SO far
as can be discovered, is II quiet. good old
man-fond of his church, they say, when
ne can get there; and he has been known
10 ask if such and such a ministry was
improving. Steady. respectable old gen
dleman. And his daughter seems fond of
him. too"
"Well,' Willie said impatiently, what
ncxt:'
Why. sir, wherever these TWO goat
beast, wherever they nave gone mp 10 this
.4ime-a man has been observed to be con-
.ncctcd with them, coming 10 their house
az n~ight-never seen by day-but evident
~ upon most intimate terms. This man
has been nj last identified as a burglar
and worse than a burglar; and the police
,|bclirrc that they are on the eve of one of
the most important discoveries that have
been made for years. In fact. England
7will ring with it-at least 80 they say"
Look here" said Willie. seeing that
sthc detective moved forward: they are
going into the farm. l must see this
matter out"
And in Il strange sort of way, much like
n walking funeral, the party moved on
toward Tumbledown Farm.