The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1903-08-13
Jennie BAXTER: JOURNALIST
BY ROBERT BARR
Viii. TheRObbeIy In The Sleeping Cor.
copyright, 1000, by Robert Barr.l
Continued

ooh, pardon meH' cried Jennie. I'm
afraid a ]urch of the car threw me
against you.
The Russian, before answering, cast
a lock at the floor and saw the large
envelope lying there with its seal up
permost He quietly placed his huge
foot upon it, and then said, with an
effort at politeness:
at is no matter, madame. l am
afraid that l am so bulky have taken
up most of the passage"
at is very good of you to excuse
me, - said Jennie. Il merely came out
to ask the conductor if he would make
up my berth Would you be good
enough to translate that to him."
The Russian surlily told the conductor
to attend to the wants of the lady. The
conductor muttered reply, and that
reply the Russian translated.
"He will be at your service in a few
moments, madame. He must first make
up the berth of the gentleman in room
A."
With that she retired again into her
compartment, the real letter concealed
in the folds of her dress, the bogus one
on the floor under the Russian foot.
She closed the door tightly. Then, taking
care that she was not observed through
either of the holes the conductor had
bored in the partition, she swiftly placed
the important document in a deep in
side pocket of her jacket. AS a general
rule, women have inside pockets in their
capes and outside pockets in their jack
cts, but Jennie, dealing as she did with
many documents in the course Of Ter
profession, had had this jacket espc-
cially made, with its deep and roomy
inside pocket. She sat in corner Of her
sofa wondering what was to be the fate
of the unfortunate messenger, FOR in
spite Of the sudden shutting OF the door
by the Russian she caught glimpse
of the man lying face downward on the
floor of his sitting room. She also had
received Whit of the sweet, heavy gas
which had been used, that seemed now
to be tincturing the whole atmosphere
of the car, especially in the long, narrow
passage. 1t is not likely they intended
cause an awkward investigation, while
his statement that he had been rendered
insensible might easily be denied. As
she sat there, the silence disturbed only
by the low, soothing rumble of the train
she heard the ring of the metal cylinder
against the woodwork of the next COM
partment. The men were evidently re-
| moving their apparatus. A little later
the train slowed, finally coming to a
standstill and, looking ont of the win
dow into the darkness, she found they
were stopping at an i'll lighted country
station. Covering the light in the cell
ing again. the better to see outside, her
and another man place the bulky cyl'.l-
der on the platform without the slight
est effort at Concealment. The tall Rus
sian stood by and gave curt orders. An
instant later the train moved on again,
and when well under way there was a
rap al her door. When she opened it,
the conductor said that he would make
up her berth now, if it so pleased her.
She stood out in the corridor while this
was deity and swiftly done. She could
not restrain her curiosity regarding the
| mysterious occupant Of room A, and to
satisfy it she walked slowly up and
down the corridor, her hands behind
her, passing and repassing the open door
of her own room and noticing that ever
and anon the conductor cast a suspicious
eye in her direction. The door of room
A was partly open, but the shaded lamp
in the ceiling 1.-THE interior in dark
ness There was now no trace OF the in
toxicating gas in the corridor, and as
she passed room A she noticed that
fresh breeze was blowing through the
half open doorway; therefore the win
dow must be up. Once as she passed her
own door she saw the conductor engaged
in task which would keep him from
looking into the corridor for at least
minute and in that interval she set her
doubts at rest by putting her head
swiftly into room A and as swiftly
withdrawing it. The man had been lift
ed on to his sofa and lay with his face
toward the wall, his head on pillow.
The dispatch box rested on corner Of
the sofa, where doubtless he had left it.
He was breathing heavily. like man in
a drunken sleep, but the air of the room
was sweet and fresh, and he would
doubtless recover. Jennie still paced up
and down thinking deeply over what
had happened. AT first, when she had
secured the important document, she
had made up her mind to return it to
the messenger, but further bordering
induced her to change her mind The
messenger had been robbed by the Rus
sian police. He would tell his superiors
exactly what had happened, and yet the
letter would reach its destination as
speedily as if he had brought it himself
as if he had never been robbed.
Knowing the purpose which Mr., Hard
wick had in his mind, Jennie saw that
the letter now was of tenfold more value
to him than it would have been had she
taken it from the messenger. 1t was
evident that the British embassy, or the
messenger himself, had suspicious that
an attempt was to be made to obtain
the document; otherwise room G of the