Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1900-09-28


trif1e Suspicious. for he was beginning
to weld together many hitherto iso-
lated facts into q strong chain which
vas leading him from the knicker-
boolsr bank and Chatham, through the
Manhattan Chemical company, to the
smotionless man In whose presence he
now stood. Some important links
were missing, however. and sturgis
could not afford to lose any chance OF
msktng the chain complete.
He therefore accepted Murdock's In
vitation. in the hope of making some
discovery which would throw positive
light upon the somewhat hnzy situa-
ton.
Every we'll" said Murdoch; wait for
me just one minute while open the
ventilators of the laboratory. 1t be-
comes pretty close In there when the
place has been shut up for some time"
So saying, Murdoch turned crank
which projected from the wall. A
grating sound was heard, as OF the
rasping of metal upon metal. Then
he returned to his desk, where he
OuoiNo liAlhoOAA 4OA " ACW luIHutSS uuucT
pretext of looking for some notes of
his experiments. When apparently he
had found what he was seeking he
went toward the door OF the extern
sion. This was of massive hard wood.
Before turning the knob, the chemist
stopped as though to examine the
lower hinge. Sturgis was not con-
sciously following Murdock's move
ments. His mind was bent upon ac-
complaining certain object; and, with
that end in view, he was gradually
drawing nearer to the typewriter. But
so accustomed was he to receiving de-
tailed Impressions OF oil that occurred
before his eyes, that the chemists ac-
tipns, unimportant as they seemed at
the time. were unconsciously recorded
upon the reporters brain.
Murdoch opened the door Of the ex-
tension and passed out of-the room.
Sturgis, watching his chance,
snatched up sheet of paper from
the table, inserted it in the typewriter
and ratified off something as fast as
he could. Looking up when he had
finished he saw that Murdoch had re-
turned and was observing him with a
sardonic grin.
"Morc happy thoughts2" he In
quired.
Eyes" answered Sturgis. calmly
folding the paper and slipping it into
the pocket of his coat.
Murdoch chuckled to himself, as If
enjoying quiet Joke.
Well" said he. IF you will do me
the honor, we can step down into the
laboratory"
Sturgis nodded and went toward
the door which Murdoch held open.
Az he passed the chemist the reporter
caught his eye and. in fash, read
there some sinister purpose, which
caused him to hesitate, on his guard.
At that moment there came knock
upon the hall door.
| "Pshaw!" exclaimed Murdoch. "here
comes an interruption, suppose
Please step downstairs; I shall b,
with you directly"
With these words he quietly bu
firmly showed the reporter into tn.
extension and. with rapid motion
| pushed forward the door.
Sturgis almost lost his balance, but
ipstinctively put out his foot between
the door and the jamb. He felt q
strong pressure from the outside, but
he knew he was master Of the stu
alton and patiently bided his time.
Presently the pressure ceased and he
was able to open the door.
Murdoch wore an air Of panied sur
prise.
What is itr" he inquired.
Il have just remembered an impor-
tant engagement" said sturgis, un-
ruff1ed. II fear. after all, that I shall
be unable to visit your laboratory at
present. / hope, however, that the
pleasure is only postponed for short
time"
Il hope So" replied Murdoch. calm
" meeting his steady gaze.
All this had happened in the space
of few seconds. Meanwhile the
knocking at the door was renewed.
Come in" said Murdoch, moving
toward his easy-chair.
The door opened and servant ap-
peared.
"Plaze. sur. Miss Agnes wud loike
ter know kin yer reserve her sum
tonne this afthernoon?"
Eyes, Mary; tell Miss Agnes I shall
be In all the rest Of the afternoon.
and that shall be at her disposal at
any time"
sturgis. picking up his hat and coat,
hurried from the house.
"Why did he want to shut me in
the extension?" he asked himself over
and over, and he could find no salts
factory answer to the question.
Thep he took from his pocket the
lines he had written on Murdock's
typewriter and compared them care
fully with those on the sheet which
he had laboriously pieced together in
the Knickerbocker bank on the previ--
GUS day.
The result Of the examination was
apparently satisfactorily; for, when
Sturgis returned the papers to his
pocket. his face wore an expression Of