Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-11-14
The Great Secret
Continued FINN poge
Continued from page 8


pard should fall into her train; but he was not
in love with her, was proved when we were
only one day from New York.
THE most needed knowledge we lacked was
gained unexpectedly when the purser in
vited me to his little Office the day preceding
our arrival in New York. This office was for
all the world like private bank, with men and
women coming to exchange European money
for coin of the great country they were enter
ing, and all those thousand ard one other trivial
questions to which purser must reply
Among those who came on their varied err
rands was the woman who had held herself
aloof 1t was my chance. After she had gone
said leading up to asking him the number of
her stateroom. That is charming woman in
appearance, that Miss Laura Guth'
Laura Guth?' he answered, turning away
from his window. That isn't Miss Guth. Miss
Guth has stateroom B, up on the prone lade
deck. That woman who was here is Mrs.
Carleton, widow. | understand she quite re-
Gently lost her husband
You can easily picture my surprise. 1t was
as said all the time, we were but poor secret
service men; but the slip of the pursers tongue
had given me the clue. Stateroom off the
promenade deck! / gained release from his
company when the dressing bugle called us to
dinner, made my change, and went up on the
deck. Neither Leopard nor Vialon was in
sight. / met them at the dinner table and, fol-
lowing our custom, Villalon and l left the table
where others were pacing to and fro or loung
ing in their chairs. The night and the sea were
still, with 1ow-lying moon that made the cleo
trio lights of the deck show wan and pale.
Il told Villalon, as we sauntered fore and
aft, what had learned, and we began t. cast
about for Leopard. We found him sitting dis
consulate in steamer chair abaft the library
companionway. Miss Smith was not with him.
80 Villalon said with slight touch of
sarcasm, we find YOU are not with Miss Smith,
1aruhed nat,
No. he replied. She IS for some reason de-
tanned tonight and promises me that she will
not speak to me before tomorrow. She will
not attend the ships concert tonight. She is
quite well. Any other information you might
wish
"Villalon and cut him off with the news l
had gained and he became serious.
lit seems to me- he said, that our best
method is to keep a watch on stateroom b,
which should be easy. All we have to do is to
lounge in that vicinity, and then we can iGen-
tify Miss Guth beyond question and What
do you think! Shall We commit burglary if
chance offers?'
"Villalon's jaw shut hard and he slammed
declared, certainly We are not on gentle
mems business and must sink our own ideas of
propriety to get those plans.
"'That's right asserted Leopard. fired by
fights us. We can do no better than employ
methods she employed when she stepped into
our Notifications and photographed the stands
of disappearing guns
WE waited and talked in low voices until it
w seemed certain that the decks would be
either settled down to steamer-chair quietude
or vacant and then ventured out. They were
deserted! From the saloon came the sound of
music, and the concert for the benefit of the
seamen's orphans was in full swing. The time
could have been no more propitious for our en-
deavor. Together we slipped quietly forward
along the promenade deck to where we knew
stateroom B must be located and up toward
window. To our disappointment it was aglow
with light and from inside came the sound of
voices in conversation. Leopard, for some rea-
son, permitted us to take the lead. Villalon
and simultaneously tiptoed to it, lifted aside
the curtain, the blind being lowered, and peered
within. There, leaning over drawings and pho
tographs spread out on her desk, was the girl
we had known as Miss Smith, Lepard's friend!
Il can't begin to tell you of the shock the
sight of the fair conspirators head gave me. as
she bent over those drawings, which were so
far away we could not distinguish their lines,
and one by pointed them out as she ex-
ulted over their meaning and explained them
to a man we had not particularly noticed
throughout the trip.
''Ths,' she was saying, is all that is REIN
forced with steel
1.-The man leaned forward. 1t was easy to
interpret that she was telling him of the bomb
proofs.
simultaneously Villalon and drew back