Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1902-05-22
THE DAILY
SHORT STORY.
THE MYSTERY
Of AN INVENTOR
IOrigfnaL.l

He had worked a number of years
before striking anything of actual
value. Then he happened to fall in
love. There is nothing TO settle man
down to steady practical effort so much
as love and marriage. The first in
vention Fairchild made after his en-
gagement he sold for $1,000. On this
he married.
His workshop was n single room on
an upper floor in a business block in
the city. There he used to so at o
o'clock in the morning and work all
day at his inventions. In few months
he had perfected n machine which he
believed would make his fortune. He
made q very excellent model of the
choicest wood. with brass fittings, keep
ing it n secret and locking the model
i'm his shop when not there. so that no
one could get ut il. When. however,
his lawyer came 10 ask for a patent,
he was Informed that the same ma
chine had been perfected a few days
before.
Great was Fairchld's disappoint-
mcnt, but greater was his surprise that
some one else had been working on the
same plan as himself and ut the same
time. Nevertheless he applied himself
diligently and in the course of n year
had another novelty ready for patent
ing. What was his establishment TO find
that in this also some one had got
ahead of him. This time he began TO
suspect that his plans had been copied.
But who could have done so? He kept
them locked in n safe in his shop, and
IL. Of FL n 70
having been opened by any one except
himself He made an inspection of the
entrances to his shop, but there was
only one door. on which he had placed
lock that no one would be likely to
pick. There was nothing about the
room that gave any evidence of having
been tempered with. However, before
completing other plans and another
model. every night before leaving he
placed a seal on the door and on each
OF the two windows. The seals were
never broken except by himself when
he returned to work in the morning.
Nevertheless when he applied for pat
ent on his next machine he found that
he had been fOrestallcd.
Hoping to get rid of the trouble by
changing his shop. Fairchild rented
n room i'm another building. Here
he made new machine. Giving the
plans to his lawyer, he awaited the re-
suit with feverish anxiety. The re-
port came, as usual. that the invention
had been patented.
BY this time he had spent every cent
he had received for his first invention
and had made nothing more. A child
had been born TO him, and his neces-
sary expenses were increased. There
was something so irritating. SO wear
ing on him that some mysterious per
son or spirit was taking advantage of
his brain work. leaving him and his
family to starve. that lie ut last broke
down with nervous prostration. He
applied to a detective agency. but as
he could not give the slightest clew TO
for having the matter followed up
they declined TO take the case.
Meanwhile as his spirits sank his |
wife rose to the occasion. She con-
tended that there was no way for any
one to steal the plans except at the |
shop and determined to keep n watch |
there herself. Her husband was too |
TO make Il new invention,
but lie wrote out Il bogus plan and set |
up a former model. While it was APP |
preaching completion Mrs. Fairchild, |
leaving their little one in care of her |
went to the shop. She en- |
tered it stealthily, so rs not to put |
my ono on guard. She sat in the dark /
till long past midnight. but saw moth |
ing unusual. The next night she went |
gain to the shop and sat in the dark.
1t was n forlorn hope sitting there /
with only the dim model to see against /
the window. 1t was perhaps IL o'clock
when she began to feel sleepy. She
shook off the temptation, but despite
her efforts her eyes became heavy. |
She pinched herself to keep awake.
there was n flash so binding |
that she was forced to close her eyes
FOR n second, and when she opened
hem all was darker than ever.
Mrs. Fairchild waited awhile so as
not to alarm any one. then stealthily left
he shop and, going to the nearest po-
ice office, told the officers she thought
here were robbers in the building
where her husband had his shop. Sew
,raI of them accompanied her. she hav-
ng the good sense to warn them to
make n search with great caution. They
every floor, mt last coming to
he one where the shop was located.
One man stationed himself on the land
ng above. one below. There were but
wO rooms on n floor, and the men d.
'ected their search to the rear room
,ack of the shop. The door was locked.
md there was no appearance of n light
within. At Mrs. Fairchild's request the
policeman broke open the door. Direct
ng n bulIseye lantern into the apart
nent. n man was seen covering in n
orner. In table drawer was found a
lumber of photographs in different
tages of finish. on the table camera.
Iear the ceiling i'm the wall between In
be room and the shop was n hole so
made and stopped when not
sed that it would never be observed &