The daily Alaskan., 1905-05-29
AN EXCHANGE
 OF BAGS

vertlsed for the owner Of the strange bag and for the holder of my own, and | let six weeks elapse before taking the bag to locksmlth and having him tit key.
 I had met with no great loss in my bag, and I gained nothing by ihe eS' change Aside from a few articles ot wearing apparel the strange bag con tamed only papers. felt for a time that had no right to read these docu ments, and they had been In my pos session nearly six months before l brought them out one evening and spent two hours In their perusal
 I was an old bachelor, and am Co this day for that matter. l was also a bar rlster and am not so old but what | dabble in law a bit yet. The papers were carefully prepared legal docu ments bearing on the case of Major Saunders. an English army officer who had been cashlered In Egypt They proved him great scomdrcl taken altogether, and my opinion was that some one with private grievance to satisfy had employed lawyer and a detective to trace the majors rCcord back for many years and make him out as guilty of almost everything but murder. | could not recall that | had ever read or heard of him and certain. ly had no Idea of ever meeting him face to faoa Strange things happen ir this world, however,
 On the second afternoon after my perusal Of the papers was invited hy a friend to dine with him at his club The Leisure Hour club was rcspecta ble in way, but had the reputation of numbering a good many high rollers among It's members. There was al ways play going on and it was so high that more than one man had come Co financial grief. After dinner | was taken Into the card room, and it was there that came face 10 face with Ma for Saunders. He had come home from Egypt and changed his name and by avoiding the military clubs had eScop ed recognition. Indeed, he was posing as a Frcnchman and making no claim to having been an officer.
 You will wonder how | rccogniZcd him. My profession has made me as observing as detective, Tho papers contained a minute description Of thC man-as minute as it he had been a murderer fleeing from justice. One ot the points was a particular scar on hl, face. another was the shape ot his nose another was a slight limp tn hiS gait stlll another was a iugCr missing from his left hand. carried away by Inc hUl let Of a derviSh
 Before making any move in the mat. ter set myself to find out why tho major visitsi the club at an. soon discovered that the hiCh play was the magnet, and the three o; US who watched him like so many hawks were not long in making out that hc was one of the clevereSt card sharpcrs of the day. He had been a winner from the first. but was such a slick one that he had not been detected in cheating. We made no mistake on him. Not a whiS. per was permitted to get around until we had the most convincing proof that he was a cheat and a Swindler.
 How he got on to me and the fact that I had papers in my possession in. eliminating him is a greater mystery than the exchange of bags. I have sometimes figured that he might have been the owner Of the bag | oDcnel having perhaps stolen lt from thc right ful owner. Something must have beer said in hi$Gearing by some member of the club. as he never asked mo con corning the bags ln3CCl [ had mol nasScl ten words of conversation w.tl him. In some way that win never Dc clear tO me he came Co know or tc suspect that I had the papers and had 1r might recognize him, and he laiO lis plans accordingly. | had my office at that time In a street oI the Strand. t was up four flights and In the rcM and quite cut on from any other build. ing.
 can't say that I expected a cal, from the major. I cannot even say that was sure he knew what a whip [ held over him and was prCparel fol any move on his part. If I had figured on his making any move at all tt would have been to drop out Of sight and be heard of in the club no more. Perhaps ,his would have been his course had not the pickingS been so good and had ne not been so sure that his rasC1lities were too deeply concealed to be ex' posed.
 It was one dark and foggy February day that he appeared in my chambers with the excuse that he wished to con suit me on a legal matter He stated a theoretical case with great iluency and many details, and his friendly demean' or In time threw me of my guard. Al least had he come in any other manner I should have been more or less pre- pared for the move he finally made.
 We were talking in a quiet, confden, tial way, as lawyer and client may, and he sat facing me and not over four feet away when he suddenly drew a knife and sprang at me Wat I did in defense was pure instinct. l was q pretty strong man then, paying Sonsid' erable attention to athletics, and as rose up caught him by the wrist oi | .A A..a ho1af,- thn n-,,Hfn onl y-a