Middletown transcript., 1908-09-12

gagged him in town; | had not
seen him previously. Now shall
| call up the servants one by one
for you to cross examine them?
Pardon me, there is no need.
But isn't it usual?
Hardly under the circum-
stances! The buffers guilt is, |
take it, a matter beyond dispute.
Yes, of course, but-and she
looked at me as though she
doubted if I were an inquiry
agent at all, so unothodox were
my proceedings. Isustained my
character by producing note.
book.
| presume, madam, that you
can account for the new buffers
abrupt departure on no other
score2
Certainly not!
Then please give me a descrip-
tion of the man to the best of
your remem brance.
AS she rounded off her de-
scription with the exclamation,
Oh, my valuable jewels! a small
hurricane came into the room in
the person of Mr.. Warrington
Stout. He was dressed in loud
check suit, an aggressive green
cap (which he retained on his
head, presumably because he
thought my social position in
ferior to his) and in his hand he
carried riding whip.
Think you'll catch the beggar,
eh? he remarked, surveying me
through his monocle.
l opined that with the price
less assistance of the local police.
the thing was possible.
Pity l was in the chops of the
channel at the time! If only I'd
been here what a time he would
have had! and he fourished the
whip alarmingly in the air.
Oh, Peter, you couldn't have
done more than l did! exclaimed
his wife, applying her pocket
handkerchief to her eyes.
Personally 1 thought Peter
would have done more. He would
have pulled that bell pull in their
bedroom right down.
l declined the offer of refresh
ment (which would have been
partaken of, I felt convinced, in
the servants halD; took a snack
at Grantham Station and caught
the next train back to town.
By this time l had mentally re-
solved that those local police
should have the honor and glory
of hunting down the pseudo
butler which that fool had en-
gagged, and recovering the stolen
articles.
If Mrs. Warrington Stout's
jewels did not blaze this season
in Covent Garden Opera House,
so much the better.
| Which was mans view, of
course, and wholly unprofes-
sional.
l welt the following evening to
one of the best known of the
I London music halls. Variety
entertainment do not often at
tract me, but the special excel
lence of the program promised
something out of the ordinary,
and the promise was kept. A
succession Of turns, increasing
in interest, concluded with the
usual pictures on the bioscope,
which always find intensely fas-
cinating.
A humorous series was first
shown, and then appeared on the
screen the title of the next:
"Arri 1al of the Scotch Ex-
press at Kings Cross"
The time and date of the TAX
ing of the picture were shown.
1t was 7.10 A. M. on the previous
day. The bioscope is nothing if
not up-to-date.
First you saw the people on the
station awaiting the arrival of
the train. Some things do not
strike you as funny until you see
| them in a picture. That ragged
line of porters, standing any
where and at all angles, made me
laugh. Somehow ! felt that they
ought to be drawn up in military
line, and every man jack Of them
made to salute the brave engine
driver as he brought the huge
locomotive gracefully to rest at
the platform. Then an inspector
ought to call "Break away" and
they should fall upon the luggage
with their accustomed ferocity.
4 But my whimsical idea was
soon put to fight, for there, talk
ing to a porter in the immediate