The Montgomery tribune. (Montgomery City, Mo.) 1892-1910, 1907-05-31
The Mystery
Carney-Croft
By
JOSEPH BROWN o
Copyright, 1907. BY Story Press CorporauonJ
CHAPTER TX.
Two Ghosts.

AS he spoke a reacne0 fOr
his cigar case and my eye followed
his hand to the table beside which we
both stood and where I mad seen him
lay 1t only a moment before.
1t had vanished as completely as II
the earth had swallowed 1t up.
~Instinctively / sprang back and
closed the door with a bang, while
MacArdel was going through his peck
cts in a bewildered sort of a way that
was ludicrous to witness.
The things gone!" said MacArdel,
as he finished his search. 81 wouldn't
have taken an even hundred for it,"
These mysterious occurrences are
usually explained in a very simple
manner, when all is said and DONE"
/ observed, dryly. Doubtless we'll
have no trouble in finding out what
became of it,"
"Oh, dry up!" said MacArdel, i'm
politely, as was his wont.
"The door was only open about, six
inches" I continued. Nobody could
have come in"
COR gone out" said MacArdel.
Well" / went on. 'it's shut now.
Suppose we have a look about"
Without any apparent reason we
searched the room high and low for
the missing cigar case, peering into
vases and jars, moving furniture about
and disturbing things generally until
the place looked like a curio shop in
the middle of housekeeping.
Finally we gave up in disgust, and.
suddenly struck with the ridiculous
ness of our own performances, sat
down in the chairs that we had for
merly occupied by the side of the
table.
The cigar case was lying under the
lamp where MacArdel had first laid
it down.
There vas nothing to say, and SO
we said nothing. At length, MacArdel
picked it up, examined it carefully, put
lit in his pocket and muttered: Let's
get out of here, Ware, l want some
fresh air"
"Once outside the house, he contin-
ued: That's the most remarkable &C.
currence l ever heard of. Ghosts don't
walk by day, SO it couldn't have been
spooks, but how on earth do you ex.
plain it,"
II don't explain it." l replied. Its
just like the note on the bed"
"Oh, hang the note on the bed!"
cried MacArdel. "This happened right
under u eyes and noses!"
"Well, what if it did" I persisted.
at isn't any more mysterious, and
we've got to get to the bottom of the
whole business before we can let Miss
Carney come back. No vacation for us,
my boy. We must stay here and find
out what's going on"
We walked all around the house, in
vestigating every nook and corner of
its walls and shaking the cellar win
dows and other subterranean openings
to assure ourselves that they were Sc
curely fastened. Not finding anything
of interest on the outside we returned
again to the interior and beginning at
the top, inspected every square inch
of space until we reached the base
tment and were ready to descend to
the cellar. I had discovered two can
dies, which we lighted for this explor-
alton, and / confess that my hand
Travelled instinctively to the revolver
in my hip pocket as we started down
the stairs.
The cellar, however, disclosed moth
ing Of Importance, though we examined
it thoroughly. AS we were about to
ascend, l noticed the pile of empty
whisky bottles, and, after finding that
there were exactly two dozen of them,
had not a doubt that they were the
mes Mr.. Carney had ordered and emp
tied during his short stay at Carney
Croft three years before. +
In brief, there was nothing to indi-
cate that the house had been disturbed
in any way since 1t was closed by Miss
Carney, and we strolled slowly along
the road to Hoskins' for our luncheon,
completely bafled at every point.
Don't you keep a Waterman here?"
asked MacArdel at length.
II wanted to-" I replied. But the
Carneys didn't think 1t necessary"
That night we sat on the veranda,
discussing the happenings OF the day,
? while the full moon shone coldly in
the zenith and the river splashed fret
fully against its banks back of the
trees.
The town clock in the distant vii
lage had Just struck the hour of mid
night and ! was beginning to yawn
openly after my long day of excite
ment and exertion, when MacArdel
said laughingly:
"Now's the time to trot out your
ghosts, Ware, The clock Just struck
~, you know"
AS he spoke ! grasped his arm and
pointed 10 the path leading to the
river. Two flmy white figures. one
larger than the other. were waited
along under the trees, as II they were
part OF the air itself, and from them
came an odor, so faint and yet 80 over