The Red Cloud chief. [volume] (Red Cloud, Webster Co., Neb.) 1873-1923, 1909-07-15

session was less clear. and yet It was
reasonable, after all. to presume that
Maitland should prefer to hold his
own. Possibly Auisty had seen the
girl slip the canvas bag into Maitland'a
pocket while the latter was knccling
and binding his captive However
that was, there was no denying that
he had trailed the treasure To it's hid.
ing place. uncrringly; and succeeded
in taking possession of II with consum.
mate skill and audacity When Matt.
land came to think of II. he recalled
distinctly the trend of the burglars
inquisition In the character Of Mr.
Sraith," which had all been calculated
to discover the location of the jewels.
And when he did recall this fact, and |
how easily he had been duped, Matt.
land could have ground his teeth in
melodramatic ragC--but for the cir.
cumstance that when first 1t occurred |
to him. such feat was a physical i'm |
possibility. and even when ungagged |
the operation would have been painful |
to an extreme.
Slipping the grateful drink which !
O'Hagan presently brought him, the
young man pOndcred the case; with
no pleasure in the prospect he fore.
saw II Higgins had actually com.
municated the fact of Anisty's escape
to the police. the entire affair was likely
to come out in the papers-all of it,
that is. that he could not suppress. But
even figuring that he could silence
Higgins and OIlagan-no difficult task
though he might be somewhat late
with Higgins-the most discreet mag
Unable explanation of his extraordinary
conduct would make him the laughing
stock of his circle of friends, to say
nothing of city that had been ac'
customed to speak of him as Mad
| Maitland" for many day. Unless
All, he had it, lie could pretend
| $50 long as II suited his purpose, at
| all events, to have been the man
caught and left bound in Higgins care.
| Simple enough. The knocking over Of
| the butler would be ascribed to nat
ural ebullition of Indignation, the sub
| seQuent flight to "a hare-brained notion
of running down the thief. And yet
|
ties. How was he to account for the
fact that he had failed to communal
cate with the police-knowing that his
treasure had been ravished?
1t was all very involved. Mr.. Matt
land returned the glass to OHagan
and grading his head in his hands
racked his brains In vain for a salts
factory tale to tell. There were so
many things to be taken into consid.
ei alton. There was the girl In gray.
Not that he had forgotten her for an
instant; his fury ragged but the higher
al the thought that Anisty's interfer.
ence had prevented his (Maitland's)
keeping the engagement. Doubtless
the girl had waited, then gone away
in anger, believing that the man in
whom she had placed faith had proved
himself unworthy
But that telephone call?
"OHagan," demanded the haggard
and distraught young man, who was
that on the wire just now?"
Being q thoroughly trained servant,
O'Hagan had waited that question in
silence, a-quiver with impatience
though he was. Now, his tongue un-
leashed, his words fairly stumbled on
| one anOthers heels In his anxiety to
get them out in the least possible time.
Sure, an twas a Teddy sor, be the
vice av her, askin' were ye in, and
meslf havin' seen ye go out no longer
ago thin wan o'clock and yersilf sayin'
not q worrud about comm back at all
a, all, pwhat was to be tellin' her,
aven If ye were lynn there on the die
van all unbeknownest to me, which
the same mesilf can not"
"Help." pleaded the young man
feebly, smiling. "One thing at time.
please, O'Hagan. Answer me one ques
ton: Did she give a name?"
She did not, sor, though mesilf--"
There. there Wait a bit | want
to think"
or course she had given no name; 1t
wouldn't be like her What was he
thinking of. anyway? 1t could not
have been the gray girl; for she knew
him only as Anisty; she could never
have thought him himself, Maitland.
But what other woman of his acquain-
lance did not believe him to be out OF
town?
With a hopeless gesture. Maitland
gave it up, conceding the mystery too
deep for him, his intellect too feeble
to grapple with all its infinite ramifca-
lions. The counsel he had given
OHagan seemed most appropriate to
his present needs One thing at a
time. And obviously the first thing
that lay to his hand was the silencing
o. O'Hagan.
Maitland rallied his wits to the task.
"OHagan," said he, this man, Snaith,
who was here this afternoon, called
himself detective. As soon as we
were alone he raped me over the
head with a loaded cane. and, sus-
= pect, went through the fiat stealing
everything he could lay hands on.
Hand me my cigarette case, please
4