The Mena weekly star., 1909-05-27
"oh, they treated mo dandy. thoss

tective.
 Here the colonel came to the boy's fellef second time and drew Blrdsall aside Hest let me pump the cap little. You get downstairs and sec acw he got here, who broucht him. rheyh get clean away. It is late for tfHt as 1t is. You can report to-mor. row"
 It was the colonel, also, who ollm- mated Mrs. Milllcent by the masterly sratagem of suggesting that she pass the news to Mrs. Wigglcswcrth He arifully added that it would require tact to let the lady from Boston un- derstand that the lad had been found without in any way gratifying her natural curiosity in regard to the man. ner of finding or the cause of disap- rearance. I'll have to leave that to you,' he concluded Maybe you can see way out; I confess my hands are in the air"
 Millicent thus re,egated to the am bassadoT's shelf. the colonel slipped comfortably into his pet armchair facing his nephew on the lounge be- tween Aunt Rebecca and Miss Smith. Miss Smith looked frankly, charmingfy happy. Aunt Rebecca looked rather tired.
 "Of course" he remarked, q under stand, old man, that you have promised secrecy to the Priceless Stove gang. as we'll call them; but the other kid napers, the crowd that held up your car and then switched you off on a side track while young Fireless was detaincd-they haven't any hold on you2"
 No, sir" said Archie; ',sut--you see, that strange gentleman and Aunt Millicent--I was scared lest I'd give something away"
 They're not here now. All friends here. Suppose you make a clean breast of your second Kidnapping. It may be important you should"
 Nothing loath Archie told his story. Left outside while Tracy went into the office with policeman, to whom he gave his assumed name, he re- maiaed for hardly two minutes before gentleman and cop" came up to him, and the latter ordered him to descend from the machine-but not until tley had found it impossible to move the vehicle. When they did dis cever that the key was out and gone, the man in citizens clothes hailed a cab and the officer curtly informed Ar0hfo haf t..a, ing name) had been taken to another court and he was 10 follow. He didn't suspect anything beyond collision with the speed regulations of the city. but had he seen a chance to dive under his escorts arm the boy would have taken it. Such chance was not af- forded him, and all he was able to do was to lean out suddenly as they passed the Palace and to wave at Ran dall. q wanted them to stop and let me get some one to pay my fine" said Archie, but they said 1 was only a witness They wouldn't let me stop; they run down the curtain--at least so far as it would run. It was like all thoSc lack curtains. you know-all out of order"
 Archie" the colonel interjected here, was one of the men little fel- low, clean-shaven, with round black head, blue eyes-one of his eyes winks little faster than the other?" Yes, sir. How did you know?"
 q didn't know; guessed. Well, get on; they wanted to pump you when they got you safely out of sight?"
 Yes" Archie said, they put me into the -eat-box, all right"
 Did you tell them anything?" asked Mrs. Winter.
 Archie looked at her responsibility. Did she think that he had gone to boarding school for nothil.s' He ex- plained that. being a stranger in the town, he could net self anything about where he'd been There was an agent at the house trying to sell stotcs, and they let him take him of back to the hotel. The Iaan seemed to know all about who he (Archie) was, and about his having gone away The men asked him an awful lot of questions about HIW iC NdS teth~n away A1C ctAAd AS didn't know, and he'd promised not to tell. He couldn't tell They said he would have to go to jail if he didn't tell, because the men who had him were such bad men. But he didn't tell.
 "Did they try to frighten you-to make you tel?, said Mrs. Winter.
 "Oh, they bluffed a little,' returned Archie, carelessly, yet the keen eyes on him-eyes both worldly-wise and shrewd--noted that the lads color shifted and he winced the least in the world over some remembrance.
 But they didn't hurt you? They didn't burn you or cut you or twist your arms, or try any other of their playful ways?" Mrs. Winter demanded; and Janet began feeling the boys arms, breathing more quickly. The colonel only looked.
 NO, they didn't do a thing. I knew they wouldn't. too Archie assured her, earnestly. q told them If they did anything Uncle Rupert and you would make them pay"
 And you weren't frightened, away from every one-in that hideous guar ter?" cried Miss Smith. "Oh. my deari" She choked.
 Well, maybe | was little scared I kept thinking of rotten yarn of Kipling's; something happened to him, down In the underground quarter, in just such a hot, nasty-smelling hole. I guess. as was in; you remember.