The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1904-07-10
0'KEEFE, AK00ND OF SWAT =:

Immediately he did two things:
First, he assumed place of promi-
nence among the people of Monroe;
and he was looked up to and admired.
People forgot about poor Ellington
o'Keefe. They bowed low to Billing
ton O'Keefe, the wealthy And from
the first all that he touched seemed
to turn to gold. He made some real
estate investments and sold out at
considerable advance; he bought stocks
ON the rise and sold them on
on top He was all right, all the time,
was Ellington O'Keefe AT least so
thought the people Of Monroe
He did another thing. He had man
ufactured for himself out of the first
few ounces OF gold that he had dug
and washed the heavy watch chain
which he wore about his neck It was
curious chain, fashioned not in the
conventional links. 1t had snaky,
scaly appearance, caused by the fact
that each So-ealled link was made like
an infinitesimal peach basket and
fitted into its neighbor as one peach
basket fits into another. It's manu-
facture had been quite as expensive,
il not more so, than the material Of
which it was made. And it weighed,
as has been said, one pound and one
ounce.
THE one ounce" remarked Billing
ton O'Keefe to his friends, lis for good
measure. And besides, the gold Is soft
and the ounce will wear off before I
de-
But there was more about the chain
than its fine material and it's superb
manufactured was the distinguish
ing feature of Mr.. Ellington O'Keefe.
Strangers were advised to watch out
for the man with the big watch chain
about his neck.
For that's Ellington oKeefe.' the
citizens would say.
Now, Constitutional Smith treasured
all these things IN his heart-and a
good many more besides. And first of
all, he deliberately ceased to shave him
self. His beard began to grow. Then
he started in to find out all he could
about Ellington O'Keefe. Day after
day he logged the latter's footsteps,
where; made mental note of all his
haunts and habits. For Constitutional
Smith was nothing If not systematic
and business-like.
Time went on apace, and with it grew
the beard. Somewhere on the CONT
nent several of the most astute detect
ives were securing city after city, with
view to laying hands on Mr.. Consti-
tutional Smith. And the trail was get
ting hot and hotter as they went
There is a certain comraderie among
the denizens of the underworld the
whole earth over. Constitutional Smith
was not proud. He was a New Yorker
with an enviable record, but he was
willing to believe that there were some
of fair sort in the city of Monroe.
One day in an obscure part of the
town, In an obscure grog shop, Consti-
tutional Smith sat in the back room
holding confabulation with two of
the citizens of Monroe. The names of
these two gentlemen are immaterial.
1t Is enough to say that they usually
worked together and that the wonder
full art of photography had enabled
them to be known and recognized in
one Of the more famous picture gall
leries in Monroe as No. 399 and No.
400
Now" said Mr.. Constitutional Smith
to these gentlemen, now you know
and that I can swing anything 1 un-
dertake. You understand the whole
scheme, and Just what there is in it for
you? Is that right?"
They nodded In unison. You see,''
went on Mr.. Smith, there can't be the
least danger. Nobody in Monroe knows
me, and If I'm showed aboard vessel
nobody will be the wiser. In the
meantime everybody will be passing
this Klondike king on the street here,
and bowling and scraptng to him."
He grinned as he said it. $50 he GER
tainly won't be missed. Nobody will
be missed. That is, excepting me.
And nobody. as said, will miss me-,
except the plain clothes gang from the
East. And that's just where and how
1t is; just about. And If it's all right
say so and We'll put her through"
Nos. 399 and 400 indicated, with an
assuring flow of words, that the whole
thing was to their liking. So Mr.. Smith
whispered into their respective ears the
details of the whole thing, presented
each with crisp bill as token of his
eafneStneSS of purpose, and left them
to their own devices.
Two nights later, Mr.. Ellington
O'Keefe, having been summoned to a
distant part of town by note pur-
porting to come from one of his many
friends, left his spacious house, where
he lived bachelor. and, struck out for
his destination. His course lay through
some poorly lighted streets. On one Of
these streets was an old shed.
In front of this old shed, on that
memorable evening, something hap
pened. and happened in the twinkling
of an eye.
Just as O'Keefe reached 1T something
long and strong and powerful shot out
into the air This something smote
Ellington O'Keefe just behind the ear.
At that instant, for Ellington O'Keefe,
the world went out into darkness. He
fell down like dog. and where he fell
down there he lay.
Something had struck him, and that
something was nothing less than the
terrible right of Mr.. Constitutional
Smith.
The rest was easy. Mr. Smith
dragged into the shed the unconscious
figure of Ellington O'Keefe. Once in
side, he moistened small rag with
something that smelt sweet and heavy
upon the evening air, and held it for
some moments upon the nose and
mouth of Ellington O'Keefe.
Then, with considerable rapidity, and
in very business like way, Constitu-
tionaf transformed the shed into a
body eventually was to be placed un-
der becoming monument on the
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