Missouri Valley times. [volume] (Missouri Valley, Iowa) 1874-1931, 1903-08-20
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Il would like to have that trunl
hecked for Boston. please-the ons
with the canvas cover and the initial:
I'J. r. l mean"
He was middle-aged and had an as.
pect OF belonging to one OF the learned
professions. He spoke in a voice soft
agreeable and deliberate-too deliber-
ute the busy baggageman probably
found 1t, for with the qutckness OF Ions
practice he had seized the speakers
/ meaning and a pair of checks. had slid
one of the latter Off the strap. anc
lad darted away to fix the other to
he trunk several words in advance c1
he end of the sentence.
The fingers OF the Boston bound
traveller had not fairly closed over the
Dit OF cardboard offered him when II
was knocked from his grasp by the
violent jostling OF q person who seemed
20 have more use for haste than FOR
| ceremony. He was u youngish man
With a red moustache and a wideawake
air, and 1t seemed he had not meant
% be rude, for as the check touched
| The floor. perceiving what he had done,
| he stopped and, bending quickly, picked
t up.
I'm sure 1 beg a thousand pardons,
sir" he exclaimed. In rather exagger-
atcd apology; sit was inexcusnbly
careless in me, l know, butt
| The slow flush that had been creep
ns into the cheek of the older man
began to subside, and. as he received
| he check which the other handed him,
Ne said with forgiving smile:
Don't mention 1t, sir; there's no
1arm done.' Then. putting his check
nto his pocketbook, he bowed slightly
and turned away.
4 While he was disappearing In the
| crowd the man OF the red mustache,
| whose impulse to hurry had died out
!, IS If by magic. stood stock still looking
after him. Not until tho object of his;
interest was quite beyond his sight did
ne turn. seeming suddenly TO remem-
Der himself, and call to the baggage
master.
Il say. where shall find the train
for Boston,"
"Out on the tracks. spose," was the
tart reply. accompanied by a disgusted
.ooll that man driven nearly to the
1 INIT with business should be made the
victim of so idiotic a question.
Instead OF trying to find the train
ne had inquired about, the red-mus-
.ached man fingered for some time in
the neighborhood OF the baggage room
| lIllll II CERTAIN u ip.iN f.tso III ~ II
TO the train shed. when he went and
posted himself near the baggage car
70 watch until nearly all the trunks
aad been transferred to it, Finally,
satisfied and with mind at rest, he en-
cred the smoking car OF the Boston
express aud temporarily subsidized.
sleanwhile the middle-agcd traveller.
seated in the parof car, was busy with
Il book of an appearance as sedate as
l,,jr Ga ~ wa hc In Al
ing as to be unaware of the presence
If a meek, smooth faced little man who
had come in just after him and taken
q seat near the rear end OF the car.
Even had he CHANGED to notice him
1t would not have occurred to his Wild
st maginings that, in an unobtrusive
way the smooth-faced man had been
t.eepng his eye on him since the even
ing Of two days before.
Eleven minutes late the train pulled
out of the station, taking with 1T the
three travellers whom we may desig-
, nate as Graybeard, Red Mustache and
smooth Face. From a chilly Novem-
Der sky flakes of snow were beginning
to fall; Albany had not been left far
behind ere the atmosphere was filled
With them and 1t became apparent that
A serious storm might be expected.
Graybeard. oblivious of the weather
| W IeSlQ soliiOOlll dSS ICl6IlCA
to have dropped into a doze. In the
smoker Red Mustache furtively took
from his pocket q baggage check which
he held within the hollow of his hand
1t was check for Boston and bore
the number 1850. He eyed 1T lovingly
for several moments, then put 1t away
more carefully than IL it had been d
twenty dollar goldpiece.
The train crossed the state line In
- Ia
lost nineteen additional minutes and
it left Chester more than an hour be-
hind schedule. 1T was about here that
Graybeard. after glance from his
watch to the timetable folder, showed
mis- first sign of uneasiness. and he
edgeted Enthusiastically until Spring.
field was reached, when he rose hur-
riedly and left the car. Thereupon
Smooth Face awoke from his cat nap
and followed him-at n discreet dis
tance. ybeard went straight to the
Telegraph Office, where he seized a
blank and wrote message. Smooth
Faces discreet distance became an in
discreet proximity when he took the
liberty of peering over the writer 3
shoulder and reading these words:
Boston Cab Company, Boston:
Have carriage meet Albany train
number sixteen. take passenger and
trunk across city hurry.
JAMES RIDLEY"
The sender of this dispatch seemed
to breathe more freely after he had
got back to his chair. But Smooth
Face had evidently taken in food for
renection; he did not even pretend to
sleep any more, but sat erect and
turned certain matters over and over
In his innermost mind.
At Springfield Red Mustache had al
so got out to send Il telegram and buy
some so-called evening papers. He oc-
,upied himself with the latter during
4 part of the rum to Worcester. There
were two features under scare head
ngs on the front page. One had to do
with the failure OF sSticllney & Co., the
we'll known bankers, and the supposed
guilty flight OF Jonas Ralston. the jul
Nor partner. The other purported to
give the latest developments in the
election contest of 81 certain great
state, where a strange condition of af-
fairs had shown itself. So evenly bal
anced was the power between the two
political parties that the result would
turn upon 81 pivotal ward of the prin-
cipal city. The returns from that ward
were unaccountably long In being rem
dered. What could have caused the
delay had not been suffered to trans
pire, until now 1t was rumored that
QullA6 lAC SOalAAoAOAi AOliONAAlS a liilSu
alarm Of fire In the wardroom the bal
lots. check lists and all other data
which could have given any clew to the
result had mysteriously disappeared.
After merely glancing at the account
OF the Stickney failure, Red -Mustache
began and continued to read the other
article with an interest that was un-
mistakably keen. He even muttered
comments to himself more than once,
although had his mutterings been over
heard they would hardly have told
much to any one not in the secret of
his inmost thoughts
Six o'clock had struck when the ex-
press. snow-covered but triumphant,