Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1899-09-07
transom over his door. You can climb


Artie in the right direction.
Artie found the transom rather high,
but he sprang up and caught hold Of
something that gave his fingers grip.
Then he pulled himself to level with
the glass. The small and rather mea-
gerly furnished workroom of Lawyer
Doyle had no occupant
Artie had just satisfied himself upon
this point when he was seized violently
by the legs and dragged down. His
assailant was a small man, with very
large head and face that had a curl
Gus effect of being perfectly square.
He was dressed in suit of brown
cheviot.
I'm Mr. Doyle, if you're looking for
peared to be brandishing an invisible
shillalah
'Is it possible?" said Artie in tones
of mild surprise. 81 really owe you an
apology. l was looking for quite anoth-
er Mr.. Doyle, fellow with gray
coat, rather a large man, should say,
though l never saw him-that is, not
lue WuOle OIL him.
Mr.. Doyle regarded Artie with a
painfully bewildered stare.
There's power O. lunatics running
loose in this town." said he at last.
Then he unlocked his door and closed
it behind him with bang.
Artie smiled a sweet. sad smile. Then
he quietly re-entered the office Of Nor
ris & Gay.
Doyle isn't your man." said he. Ellis
coat is brown"
Mr.. Morris stroked his gray side
whiskers. first on one side, then on the
other.
What do you think Of it, Gay?" he
asked, after a pause.
81 think it's mighty queer thing
that Miss Carpenter didn't see any
body come in" said Gay. "She can
see the door from her desk"-
"But she can't see it from the look.
ing glass" said Morris. 81 suppose
she was fixing her hair She's always
doing that
Every pretty hair" said Artie
dreamily; quite worth the trouble"
At this moment Miss Carpenter re.
turned from her modest noonday
lunch. She went to little cupboard
in the room where the four men We're
and put away an umbrella. Then she
walked toward her own place, which,
was on the other side Of very small
vestibule, and she couldn't have been
more than six feet from the threshold
OF Norris room when that gentleman
jumped up eXcitedly and in a stage
whisper that might have been audible
out in the main hall exclaimed:
by the everlasting heavens, Miss
Carpenter"'
What do you meanY said Artie.
Its as plain as day" cried Morris
Gray suit; cuffs like mans. 1t was
she that took the paperv'
He was rushing after her when Ar
tie laid hand on his arm, whereupon
Mr.. Morris was surprised to find tina,
he could not move that arm any more
than if he had been tied to an iron
post.
My dear sir" said Artie in q voice
like the softest chord of an Aeoliar
harp, "if you presume to twist any
testimony of mine in such way as
to make it bear against that young
lady, I will tie you up into a double
bowknot and hang you on the chan
delier!"
''Well, sir! Well, sir.' exclaimed
Morris, unable for the moment tc
think of any rejonder that would I'll
Artie's unique threat
eff you fancy" continued Artie
that | cannot tell the difference be
tween a dainty little hand like Miss
Carpenters and the scraggly old paw
that abstracted your precious docu
ment, you don't know much about op
tics, and, While l am on this subject
let me inquire whose coat it is that is
hanging up in that cupboard? Miss
Carpenter. will you be good enough tc
open the cupboard door,
He had noticed that the fair secre.
tary, having heard her name so unjust.
ly used, had returned and was stand
ing in the doorway. She complied
with Artie's request and thus made
visible gray sack coat that was
hanging on peg in the little closet
why, that's your office coat, Nor.
ris! exclaimed Gay, hurrying toward
the cupboard.
II know it," said Morris tartly. GOT
course it is. but haven't had it on
this morning."
Yes, you did, Mr.. Norris" said Miss
Carpenter You had it on just before
you went OUT
"I'll take my OATH Morris began
but at that moment Gay thrust his
hand into the breast pocket Of the Goa,
and drew out the missing paper.
Morris" said he, you're so in
formally absentminded that I'm expect
ing every day to see you come down
to the office in your pyjamas."
Nothing of the kind. nothing of the
kind, sir" protested Morris. If tina,
paper is in my coat, somebody must
have put it there"
Undoubtedly somebody did," rejoin
ed Gay, land we won't quarrel over
the question of who that somebody
was. We've only time to get to court
Il trust, however," said Artie, tina,