Waterbury evening Democrat., 1905-08-12

again if she had 'em. So he let them lie snug in his trousers pocket-where he had put the chamois bag, when his eyes lit on it, under the corner of the carpet. He might have passed it over to her then, but you see, Tom, she hadn't told him to look for bag; it was key she wanted. Bell-boys are so stupid.
 This time she followed his every step. He could not Dat his hand on the smallest thing without rousing her suspicion. If he hesitated, she scold- ed. If he hurried, she fumed. Most unjust, I call it, because he had no thought of stealing-iust then.
 Come" she said at last, we'll go down and report it at che desk"
 Hadn't better wait here, ma am, and look again?''
 She looked sharply at him.
 No; you'd better do just as l tell you"
 So down we went. And we met Mir Norway there She'd telephoned him. The chambermaid was called,
  the housekeeper, the electrical en- gineer who'd been fixing bells that morning, and, as I said, a bell-boy named Nat, who told how he'd just come on duty when Mrs. Kingdoms bell rang, found her key and returned it to her, and was out of the room when she unlocked the box. That was all he knew.
 ''Is he telling the truth?" Norway asked Mrs. Kingdom.
 'Y-es, guess he is; but where are the diamonds? We must have them you know-to-day, George" she whis- pered. And then she turned and went upstairs, leaving Moriyay to do the rest
 There's only one thing to do, ma jor," he said to the proprietor Search 'em all, and then"
 Search me? It's an outrage!" cried the housekeeper.
 Search me. if ye loike," growled Mccarthy, resentfully. ''Oi wasn't there but a minute; the lady herself can tell ye that
 Katie, the chambermaid, flushed painfully, and there were indignant tears in her eyes, which, I'll tell you in confidence, made a girl named Nancy uncomfortable.
 But the boy Nat, knowing that bell boys have no rights, said nothing. But he thought He thought, Tom Dor gan, lot of things and a long way ahead.
 The peppery old major marched us all off to his private office.
 Not much. girls, it hadn't come. For suddenly the annunciator rang out.
 Out of the corner of his eye. Nat looked at the bell-boys bench. It was empty. There was to be a ball that night, and the bells were going it over all the place.
 Number Twenty-one. shouted the clerk at the desk.
 But Number Twenty-one didn't budge. His heart was beating like hammer, and the ting-ing-ing of that bell call ing him rang in his head like a song
 Number Twenty-one," yelled the clerk
 Oh, he's got devil of a temper, has that clerk. Some day, Tom, when you love me very much, go up to the hotel and break his face for me.
 You! !-boy-confound you, can. you hear?" he shouted
 That time he caught the majors ear-the one that wasn't deaf. He looked from Powers black face to the bench and then 10 me. And all the time the bell kept ringing like mad
 Git" he said to the boy. And come back in a hurry"
 Number Twenty-one got-but leis- urely It wouldn't do for bell-boy to hurry particularly when he had such good cause
 Oh. girls. those stone stairs. tho servants stairs al the St James, They're fierce. tell you. Mag. scrub ping the floors at the Cruelty ain't so bad But this time I was jolly glad bell-boys weren't allowed in rhp ele- vator. For there were those diamonds in my pants pocket, and must get rid of 'em before got down to the office again So I climbed those stairs. and every step I took my eye was searching for a hiding place. could have pitched the little bag out of 3 window. but Nancy Olden wasn', throwing diamonds 10 the birds any more than Mag here is likely 10 cut of the braids of red hair We usei to play horse with when we dr'.e '.ar about 'he Cruelty yard. One flight
 No chance.
 Another.
 Everything bare as stc-c ... ---. could keep it.
 The third flight-ny knees began tn tremble. and not with climbing. The call came from this floor But ran up folsrth just on the chance. and there in a corner was a fire hatchei strapped to the wall Behind that hatChet Mrs Kingdoms diamonds might lie snug till evening put the ends of my fingers first in the little crack to make sure the little bag wouldn't drop 10 the floor. and then diyed into my pocket and And there behind me. stealthily com | ing ID the last turn of the s-airs. was { Mir George Norway. Don't you hate a soft-valking man. Mag That cute feIIoS wss cutter than I he old r-zinr hfrnserf and had fol-