The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1909-03-25

nv unreasonable friend. or, at least,
postpone it until later. What / want
to hear now is how you managed TO
find her so quickly.
Tell me all about it. Who is she?
Where is she? Why is she?''
"Her name is Laura Hamilton. She
is the new stenOgrapher at our office.
She arrived this afternoon.
The new stenogTapheT,' exclaimed
Clayton. eXcitedly. Gee whizz. this is
surprise for a fact So Arthur Bar
rington has given her a job. 1t must
be part of the mysterious game which
he and the sinister-looking italian are
playing"
Wilbur shook his head
mo, you're wrong there, Steve 1t
wasn't Arthur harrington who hired
her. 1t was Frank"
The senior partner, Ell? So he's in
the game, too. 1 always told you that
those brothers were a pair of scoun-
drels. You want to watch over that
girl pretty closely, Wilbur, while She
in the employ of harrington & Sons.
There's some crooked work afoot, as
sure as you're BORN
4 think so. too Wilbur assented.
But I'm not by any means certain that
the two brothers are working together
in this affair 1t looks to me as If
they're pulling in opposite directions.
Whatever the game is. Frank and Ar
thur Darlington are on different sides,
I'm pretty sure"
What makes you think SOP"
We'll. you ought to have seen the
look on Arthur Barrington's face when
he found the girl in the office. 1t was
quite evident that Frank harrington did
not take the Junior partner into his con-
fidence when he engaged her. Arthur
was apparently the most surprised man
in New York to find her sitting at the
typewriter. He was very much agitated
at the discovery, too. You should have
seen the way he scowled. He walked
into his brothers private office and they
proceeded to have a violent quarrel
Those two brothers seem to hate each
other Ike poison"
Abr
'Ha," exclaimed Clayton eagerly
What was the quarrel about, Wilbur %
Il couldn't tell YOU exactly. The door
of the private office was closed, and, of
course l lost a whole lot of the CONVEX
sation. They spoke so loudly at times.
however, that I was able to catch a few
words
( Arthur, il seems. began by taking his
brother to task for hiring an employee
without first consulting him He de-
clared angrily that his rights as junior
| partner were being trampIed under foot
and he didn't propose TO stand it,
And what did Frank say to that?''
Frank didn't give him much salts
faction. 1 heard him tell Arthur that If
he wanted to know more about what
was going on in the office he ought 70
! stay around little more than he's been
doing lately"
Didn't they say anything of interest
about the girl? Anything that would
throw any light on the mystery sur
rounding her picture, l mean?' inquired
! Clayton.
mo. l didn't hear them say anything
about that. OF course there was whole
lot said which I wasn't able to catch.
1t was only when their anger caused
them to raise their voices that I was
able TO hear them through the closed
DOOR
That's too bad. muttered Clayton.
''Well, what does the girl herself say?
OF course you questioned her, old man?
Didn't she shed any light on the sub
ject?"
Wilbur shook his head and sighed.
mo. On the contrary, she has added
to the mystery. She denied that she
ever posed for a photographer named
Scala in Rome. She declares that she
hasn't had a picture taken in ten years
OF course she couldn't have looked any
thing like that photograph ten yeare
ago.
That's very queer" commented Clay
ton. Are you positive. Wilbur that
the new stenographer is really the orig
iral of the photograph you found in
the library book2 Your imagination
may be playing you tricks. you know.
You may have been thinking Of that
face in the picture so much that you
have actually deluded yourself into the
belief that the new stenographers face
looks just like it."
NO. 1 am sure that IL is the same
girl declared Leslie with positiveness.
Did you compare rer with the pic
ture? Did you look at her face and
the face in the picture at the same time
I mean, and compare the two faces
feature for feature?''
+ No" replied the other. Il couldn't
do that"
Couldn't Why not2"
Because 1 haven't got the photo
graph. Il has been stolen from me-"
stolen, The deuce you sayr" cried
Clayton excitedly. so they got the
best Of you after all, Wilbur? And you
with a loaded revolver, tool How die
they manage it?''
Il don't know" replied Leslie with a
frown. Il only know that the picture
has disappeared from my pocket. 1 am
inclined 20 suspect that Frank Barring
ton is the thief
He proceeded 10 tell his friend the de-
tails of how he had discovered the loss
OF the photograph.
YES" commented Clayton when he
had finished. 1T surely looks as If
Frank harrington may have taken it
or else the girl. It's quite possible that
she's the thief, you know, old man.
No! Mo- I'll not believe that" cried
! Wilbur holly. That girl couldn't be