Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1909-03-06
i i i i i i i
THE LACK BAG
ByLOUIs JOSEPH VANCE.
ICopyrieht-By Bobbs Merrill Co.

Copyright-By Bobbs, Merrill Co.

dren, / forgive you iieeiS'
wood, / felicitate you cordially on nay
ing secured most expensive VIE.
Really-dyou know? = feel as II ,
ought to do something for you DOM:
Gurgling with delight he smote MS
fat palms together. Il Just tel you
what" he resumed, mo one yet ever
called George Calendar tight-~ad'
tust believe I'm going to make you
kids a. handsome wedding present
So The good Lord knows there's
enough of this for a fellow to be Ut
tie generous and never miss it.
The thick notified fingers tore nef-.
rously at the catch; eventually ne
got the bag open. Those about the
fable bent forward, all quickened hy
The prospect of for the first time pc.
holding the treasure over which they
had fought, for which they had sutef-
ed, so long
{ a heady and luscious fragrance per
Waded the atmosphere, exhal!ng from
4he open mouth of the bag. A silence,
Indefinitely sustained, impressed itseH
h,pon the little audience GREATNESS
pause ended eventually by sharp
snap of Calendars teeth. "Mmm \
Erunted the adventurer in beWllder-
hent He began to pant
1 Abruptly his heavy hands delved
into the contents of the bag, ike
Terrier. digging in earth. To Kirkwood
khe air seemed temporarily thick with
Hyinp objects. Beneath his aston!shed
ewes a towel fell upon the table =
nrumpled, soiled towel, bearing on its
Hingv hem the inscription in indeSble
H.,
IA tooth-mus of substantial earthenr
ware dropped to the floor with crash.
"a Shiny soap dish of the same manu-
Sacture slid across the table and INTO
BrentWick's lap. A battered alarm
clock with never a tick left in its
hbused carcass rang vacuously as u
fell by the open bag. me
remainder was-oranges, a dozen or
more small round, golden globes CT
sipe fruit, perhaps a shade overripa,
therefore the more aromatic.
! The adventurer ripped out an oath.
sMulready, by the living Cod" lie
ragged in fury Done up, I swear.
Done by that Internal sneak me,
blind as a bait"
s He fell suddenly silent, the blood
congestine in his face; as suddenly
broke forth again, haranguing the
company.
That's why he went out and bought
those damned oranges. IS ito Think OF
ID me sitting in the hotel in Antwerp
and him Juggling in oranges By the
hasful because he. was fond Of fruit
when did he do it? How do I know!
If i. knew, would I be here AMI him
the devil knows where, this minute?
When my back was tut ned. of course,
The damned snake! That's why he was
&c hot about picking a fight on tho
boat, hey? Wanted to get thrown off
and take to the Wooos- leaving me
with this! Anil that's why he felt. so
lawful done up he wouldn't take a
hand at hunting you two down, hey?
lWe!l-by-the- I'll camp
ion his trail the rest Of his natural
born days. I'll have his eye-teeth for
this, I'll
t ne swayed, gibbering with rage,
mis- fat hands shaking as he struggled
flor expression.
\. And then, while yet their astonish-
fment held Dorothy Kirkwood, Brent
wick and Stryker speeches., Charles,
the mechanician, moved suddenly
upon the adventurer.
There followed two metallic clicks.
Calendars rawlings were abrupted as if
ibis tongue had been paralyzed He
Hell bach. a pace, Aabby jowls pale and
shaking, ponderous jaw dropping on
his breast, mouth wide and eyes
lcrazed as he shook violently before
him his thick feshy wrists securely
handcuffed
Simultaneously the mechanician
across the floor, and caught Stryker at
the door, his dexterous fingers twist
ling in the captains collar as he, jerked
thin back and tripped him.
"Mr Kirkwood." he cried Here
please one moment Take this mans
tgun away from him, will your"
Kirkwood sprang to his assistant &c
land, without encounterine much trou
bile. succeeded in wrestling Webley
from STRIKERS limp. Aacid fingers.
Roughly the 1nechanician shook the
imam, dragging him to his feet. Nov,
Ehe ordered sternly, you march to thai
Ecorner, stick your nose in it, and be
Egood. You can't get away if you try
Hive got other men outside, waiting
flor you to come out. Understand"
! Trembling like a whipped cur stry
tker meekly obeyed his instructions t.
1.-The letter.
The mechanician with a contemptu
Eous laugh leaving him, strobe back tc
tCalendar, meanwhile whipping off hi:
goggles; and clapped a hearty hant
upon the adventurer's quaking should
ters.
Well" he cried Are you still sail
ling circles round the men from Scot
Eand Yard, Simmons, or Bellows, o
Henderson, or Calendar, or Crumh
lstone, or whatever, name you prefer t.
lsail under?"
Calendar slared at him aghast
lthen heaved a profound sigh, shrugged
This fat shoulders, and bent his heat
I'm thought An instant later he looke'
Eup. .You can't do it, he informed tn
detective, vehemently; you haven
Egot a shred of evidence against me
whats there? A pile of oranges an
<w> On ~,s srxp 6n<a yyzsn. On