The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1897-07-22

prOfr-sIONRf
offered to back him for amount up TO $4,000.
But when they approached him with their prop
osiions he told them they lot of bloody
buffers: that he onghs to kick them out of his
shop. lie was quiet law bding citizen, and
against all such performances.
After completing and sending out the
description, the Superintendent and Kent
went over to No. SO Van Buren, street, and
made a thorough inspection Of the house.
They found nothing of importance. however.
1t was evident that Ragabert had only had
the house n short time. and whatever had
| been his Plans in regard to it, he had not
transferred to il any tell-tale personal be-
longings.
The desk offers the best prospects, sir"
suggested Kent. We haven't yet finished
examining that"
You are right replied the Superinten-
dent. 81 have many things of importance
to attend to this afternoon"
Kent Halliday sat down at the desk and
began overhauling its contents. He was
soon absorbed ia interesting discoveries.
Ragabert had the inordinate vanity custom
airy in criminals, especially of the higher class.
His passion for attracting public attention
and having people talk about him amounted
to q disease. There was a scrap-bools in
which he had carefully preserved every news
paper mention of him. These were very
numerous, and served to furnish enough
material TO give fair clew to his history.
1t was long story Of persistent efforts TO
get rich suddenly and wrongfully, where
the same en"rgy and persistence would,
if leyitima'ely directed, have inevitably
brought him wealth.
1t was the world-old experience that every
scoundrel is primarilya fool. and the smarter
the sconndrel the bigger the fool, for he
wastes In wrong doing powers that right
fully applied would win him honorable
success.
Time after time, in place after place,
Racabert had started grand swindling
schemes, and had worked every means to
make them succeed. Sometimes they had
succeeded, but more often they had failed
on the eve of success. Everywhere his
dnpes had lost heavily-ireGuently their all
but all the same he had made scanter
days wages" than if he had employed
himself as a bookkeeper or a salesman.
He had been arrested oiten in prison
many times, in grave danger of the peni-
Tertiary repeatedly, and indictments, law
yers, trials, judges and juries had become
very familiar acquaintance.
The newspaper clippings all ran one
monotonous round. His arrival would be
heraded in some ambitious little town
under one OF his innumerable psuedonyms
rs that OF :" gentleman having close con-
nectlOns with prominent Eastern capt.
iaiiss," whose attention had been attracted
10 the unsurpassed natural resources of
SiramOnia Tor whatever might be the name
OF the place. THEN would follow, from
week to week, enlogies of his " far-seeing
enterprise" business acumen," brilliant
abilities" public spirit" etc. Next would
follow outlines of his plans for "givipg
Stranionia the future development she de-
served" making everyb body rich in few
months. Lastly, came the doleful story of
the punctured bubble, and the flight, or
arrest and trial, with failure to convict, or
the victims to get any sort of satisfaction.
Ragabert had very recently narrowly
escaped the peniieniiary for forgery and
embezzlement by q sharp technicality raised
by his lawyers.
Underneath the scrap-book were some
letters written in cipher that Kent thought
he would have little trouble in reading. He
put them in his pocket TO decipher Mt his
leisure. Then he noticed small pocket
dictionary, which he thought might be use
iul in this work, and put it in his pocket
also.
BY this time it had gotten quite late, and
get something to eat, and make his promised
call on Miss STANDARD.
He bestowed unusual care on his toilet.
and then took the cars for Pocasset street.
He was conscious of his heart beating with
unusual energy as he assembled the steps OF
the Moreiand house and rang the bell.
While he tried to make himself believe that
his err.,nd was a matter of official duty, he
could not repress the feeling that there was
much more connected with it than the mere
object of communicating to Miss STANDARD
what had been done in regard 10 Rlgabert.
Miss STANDARD was in the pleasant little
parlOr, awaiting him with much eagerness.
Her eyes welcomed him more than her
voice, and her words were very cordial.
She allowed her hand to rest in his an
appreciable time after the greeting, and he
felt suffu. ed by a strange thrill of pleasure
at the frank, strong hand-clasp
She sat on the sofa, and he took chair
opposite, while he told his story. Eucour-
aged by her direct sensible questions and
remarks, Kent narrated the events as fully
and frankly as if making report 10 the
Superintendent. In conclusion be said:
The rascal seems to run through the
whol. range of criminality. He is up to all
the tricks and devices of crime. There
may contain important revelations. /
brought them away with me, to study them
over as l have opportunity. / am certain
that | can make them out in little while.
l was always very good at reading blind
copy in the printing office"
He spread out the letters for her to look
at, and she bent her fair head close to his,
to examine them with him. Testing for
moment from this, she saw, lying on the
sofa beside her, the pocket dictionary,
which Kent had pulled out with the letters.
What is this?" she inquired, picking
it up.
"a pocket dictionary, which I found
with the letters. l brought it along think
ing that possibly it might help me in
deciphering them. But / scarcely have
looked inside it yet"
She opened it rather carelessly
There are a lot OF hairs in it." She
said. " How could they've gotten in?
u can't imagine" answered Kent, look
ing ut the book with more interest.
They're fastened TO the pages" she said
with animation. There must have been
some design in it,"
They both began To examine the book
more eagerly. They turned over the pages
carefully, and found that the hairs were all
fastened at the tops of the pages and ex-
tended downward. They were of different
lengths, and Miss STANDARD was the first to
suggest that this probably was done to indi
cate the word on the page ut the end of the
hair.