The Winslow mail., 1899-08-03


they saying? Netta-Netta had done
this for me, while | had sat stupidly
crushed and inactive!
Sh. Miss Baldwin-the young lady
who let us in just now. was told off.
went to work, and ran across my man
here three weeks ago-he had not gone
so far, after all. He told me something
that put me on anoth er scent altogeth-
er. You'll be rather surprised, if moth.
ing more. 1t stood to reason that the
thief, if he meant business, would never
attempt to patent the affair here, or in
his own name either. made inquiries,
and yesterday, sure enough, word came
to hand that a shady agent, well known
to the police, was forming a syndicate
in Berlin to put your clock exclusively
on the market there, keeping himself
well in the background in London. l
shadowed him for just two hours, and
then l saw him in confab with the man
we wanted-the man who, as it hap
pened, Lamont here saw creeping down
this staircase at five a. m. on the day
of the theft-with your invention un-
der his arm, no doubt. Lamont thought
little of it, but there's no doubt the
thief had his notion as to where the
| blame, would be sure to lie next morn
| ing. Now!" He lowered his voice a note.
| ''Er-Mr. Marcel, it is rather unfor-
tunate that the man who stole your
| brainwork should be the father of the
girl who thoughtfully put us up to the
job!"
Baldwin," 1 got out, with husky
! culver. For me, the room was spin
ming round; one dear face looked i'm
ploringly at me out of a mist. Bald
win! Netta's fatherl The
cocoa that night-drugged by himself!
Aye! 1 fancy it's not altogether his
first attempt at shady work, either.
We shall see. I've a warrant here for
both of them, and-but you'll have your
clock back, sir, with grand advertise
ment, in a few days; and 1 hope you
won't forget me. Baldwin S
out, the girl says, but he'll be back in
a few minutes. She knows nothing, of
course, and you'll like to avoid fuss, 1
know. l shall have him as he steps in.
If the matter hadn't gone so far"
A faint, thrilling scream from behind
| the door. He threw it back, and there
stood Netta. She had heard all-saw
what she had done in her loving desire
to help me-her face told it. White,
wide-eyed, her shaking hands put out,
she stood there-a picture to go to a
mans heart and print itself there for
ever and just at that moment,
! to complete the unnerving tragedy of
| the situation, we heard the turn of a
key in the halldoor below Merciful
heavens! | know / stood dumbed aad
thrilled as much by the nameless sus-
pense as by the incredible thought that
| my life's triumph was within reach
again. Baldwin? Yes, and he was 60
| ing down the passage.
What really happened? 1t seemed
afterwards like some dream. The de-
tective took a step. Another pitiful
cry-I could never forget it. Netta's
arms barred the way.
dad! Dad Go-go, for your life!
They know! Sirs, you dare
not! Mr. Marcel, you couldn't-oh, for
love of me, you'll never let them take
| him!"
And I-no! All the blood seemed to
take life in me again as Netta's prayer
sank into me. For love of her! her
own father! 1t all happened in an in
| describable minute; there was rush
in the passage below, and simultaneous
| ly | must have thrown both arms about
| the detectives waist, and held him fast.
! In that wild moment of revulsion
thought of nothing but sparing Netta-
! of sparing the man because he was what
he was to her. And the door down there
| banged; he was gone.
"You madman! You'll lose him
everything!" painted the detective. But
Meta had put me to the greatest test
of mans love-I clung on as if for my
own life-till suddenly the reaction
came For love of her [ had lost what
had seemed dearer than life itself. /
slid down, and knew nothing more.
That, gentlemen, was 80 years ago.
That model was lost--destroyed, no
doubt, within "a hours-we never heard
of il or the man again. But here, to-
I
night, stands its duplicate-and du.
plicate of this we can see in thou
sand shop-windows. Need [ say that
we owe it to Netta-the loving wife who
has stood by me, built up my hopes
again, and spurred me on to the great
task, day by day, for those 30 years?
Need 1 say what L won when it seemed
had lost everything? Left alone, l
could never have brought myself to 60
over all that old ground again, but the
patient inspiration of years has done
at last what you see. And when [ lost
her. when death took her from
me, year ago, her last whisper was
There, no, / can't. But here it
is-and Meta knows! Meta knows!-
Tit-Bits.
Hint to Economical Housewives.
In the Year Book of the United States
Il i