The Wenatchee daily world. [volume] (Wenatchee, Wash.) 1905-1971, 1908-08-13


misfortune in her young life.
II am no conspirator," she said gen.
tly, land you are Jacks dearest man
friend. / trust you implicitly" And
with this reassuring statement she left
me.
Why was it that the room seemed SO
vacant after she had gone? Why did
I sit for an indefinite period gazing
into nothingness? Why did the faint,
lingering Renaissance Of the odor
which she had brought into my Office
seem like incense? I sat at my desk
until daylight faded into dusk and
dark deepened into night before I fully
realized that it was time for me to
leave. A walk even in the close at
mosphere of sultry autumn evening
was attractive. and I resolved to pat
ronize no conveyance. l found Wash
ington square almost deserted and sat
down on a bench to rest. A fog was
forming, and from the damp grass a
sort of diaphanous brocade Of violet
and silver was beginning to rise, float
ing dreamily hither and yon like ghosts
in flowing garments. Yet above, the
blue arch was resplendept with stars.
Fleecy clouds chased one another
across the face of the moon, sharing
while they refracted its brilliance. And
as sat and gazed and wondered at
the power and glory revealed there
came into my soul a peace even as
remembered that, after all, the moon
shines with but reflected light.
Next morning Miss Etheridge paid
her visit to the Tombs, with me as her
attendant squire. 1t was necessarily
unsatisfactory, yet after it was over
found that it had comforted Jack
amazingly. Yet he was still obdurate-
ly determined to go to prison. willy
nilly." And so within ten days I had
the grief to shake hands with him at
the Forty-second street station as he
sat in smoker bound for Sing Sing,
handcuffed to dudishly dressed man
who l ascertained had been sentenced
to long term for squandering the for
tune of his orphan niece, the only child
of his brother, who had committed her
to him on his deathbed.
For several weeks thereafter l found
It difficult to perform even routine du-
ties. The prison rules prohibited COM
munication with Scarborough for
month to come. l had undertaken to
become channel of communication,
more or less subterranean. between
Jack and his betrothed, but had heard
nothing from Miss Etheridge. The en-
forced inactivity was becoming I'M
endurable. Over and over again l
asked myself, what can do to help
him? Over and over l read again the
minutes of the trial in the vain hope
Of discovering some loOphOle through
which his innocence might be made to
appear. At length. not with any ex-
pectation of accomplishing any tangi-
Bile result, but simply to relieve my
mental tension by making myself be-
lieve that l was doing something, l
determined to consult Inspector Ma
honey.
The inspector was at the head Of the
detective force and highly esteemed
alike for his sagacity and his probity.
While he had never been suspected OF
acumen such as Dr.. Doyle ascribed
to Sherlock Holmes, it was said of him
that his perceptive powers were ex-
traordinarily acute and that in many
a perplexing case he had been able to
designate the criminal upon having
bare recital of the facts.
He listened to my story with every
appearance of interest, putting ques-
what he seemed to regard as salient
points. When l had finished he look
ed thoughtful fer few moments and
then said: Il should say that the
strongest point against your friend is
the finding Of the gold filings on the
floor of the alcove in which the coin
disappeared. Taken in connection
with the other evidence brought for
ward by the prosecution. that circum-
stance would convince any jury in the
absence Of any stronger defense than
you were able to put up"
I admitted that he was correct. It
not only would have convinced jury;
It had done so.
! "Very well, them" went on the In
spector, find the man who put those
filings where they would be so con-
veniently found and you will soon get
on the track Of the lost noble In
other words. find the man who manu-
featured this damaging bit of evil
dence and you have found the thief"
was indignant at myself that this
simple idea had never occurred to me.
I had formed the theory that the find
ing OF the gold dust had been one of
those unaccountable condolences which
so often present themselves for no 9TH
er apparent reason than to battle the
intellect and pervert justice.
'Have you," / asked formed any
definite idea as to the identity Of the
thiefF
The inspector laughed. "That is
plump, Straightforward question" said
he, land will answer it by another.
What is your theory as to the disap-
pearance of the coin? On your judg-
ment, who besides your friend had any