The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1904-10-16
BY
VAN TASSEL SUTPHEN
CHAPTER Ill
House in the Middle of the Block

~ IA LII things come to him who
III M waits, quoted Indiman.
IN do you believe that?''
ITS a comfortable the
Dry" 1 answered.
But an untenable one. And For
tune is equally elusive to those who
seek her overpersistently. The truth,
as usual lies between the extremes"
"Wen?"
'"The secret is simple enough. He
who is ready to receive receives. Love,
fame, the shower of gold-they are In
the air, and only waiting to be precipi-
tated. 1 stand ready to be amused,
. and that same afternoon the Evening
I. Post aims a blow at the Tammany
Tiger over the shoulder of Mr.. Ed
ward NJ. Shepard; 1 am in the mood
adventurous and instantly the shadow
of a prodigy falls across my thresh-
old; year, though live on upper West
End avenue. Do you remember this?'
and he held out a small Yale latch key.
1t is the one you picked up at TWEEN
ty-seventh street and Fifth avenue
last night
Precisely. Now key, you observe,
is intended to open something-in this
case a door, What door? AS though
that matteredI Put on your rain coat
my dear Thorp, and let us begin a Ut
tie journey to the unknown. Fate
will lead US surely, o unbelievlng one
if you will but place your hand un-
resistingly in hers
We left the house, and Indiman
tossed a penny into the air. Broad
way, heads; Fourth avenue, tails.
Tails it was.
Arrived at Fourth Avenue, we stood
waiting for car. The first that came
along was on its way up town and we
boarded it.
Was it you who asked for cross
town transfer at Twenty ninth street,
inquired the conductor of Indiman
few minutes later, and Indiman nodded
assent and took the transfer slips.
At Eighth avenue the cross-town
car was blocked by stalled coal cart
We aHghted and passively awaited
further directions from our esoterlc
guide. Quite an amusing game for
dull. rainy afternoon, and 1 felt CRATE
ful to Indiman for its invention.
The policeman on the corner was en-
deavoring to direct a very small boy
with very large bundle. up one
block and turn east he said, impress
sively. I've told you that now three
times
had a flash of inspiration. Cop
per it, l cried.
Right" said Indiman, soberly. We
walked down one block to Twenty
eighth street and then turned west
ward.
New York is a big city, and there
fore entitled to present an occasional
anomaly tc the observant eye. And this
particular section of Twenty-eigh
street IS one of these departures from
the normal, a block or two of respecta-
bic. even handsome houses set as an
oasis. in dull and sordid neighbor-
hood. How and why this should be
does not matter; it is to be presumed
thatsthe people who live there are sat
isfied, and it is nobody else's business.
We walked on slowly; then, half
way down the block, Indiman stop
ped me. What did 1 tell your he
whispered.
The house was of the English base
ment type, and occupied two of ths
ordinary city lots; nothing particu-
larly remarkable about that, and I said
as much.
But look again." insisted Indiman.
did SO and saw man standing at the
door, evidently DESTROYS of entering.
Twice, while we stood watching him,
he rang without result and the delay
annoyed him. He shook the door
knob impatiently, and then fell to re-
searching his pockets, an elaborate OPP
GRAFTON that consumed several minutes.
Lost his latch key" commented In
diman. He walked up the steps of the
entrance porch. You might try mine, y
he said, politely, and held out the key
picked up the night before at Fifth
avenue and Twenty seventh street.
Huh" grunted the man, suspicious
~, but he took the little piece of metal
and inserted it into the slot of the lock.
The door swung open. Amazing but
what followed was even more incred-
IDLE. The man stepped into the hall.
but continued to hold the door wide
open.
You're coming in, I suppose" he
said, surlily.
Certainly" answered Indiman. "This
way, Thorp" he called at me. and most
unwillingly 1 obeyed. We passed into