Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1909-09-15
ing cool and comfortably lie looking in
terror. Perhaps you'd keer to set on
the porch an rest yOu'self."

terror. Perhaps you'd keer to set on
the porch an rest you'seH."
1t was SO evident that Thomas did
not want me inside that went in.
Tell Warner he is needed In hur-
ry,".I repeated, and turned into the
little sitting room. could hear
Thomas going up the stairs, could
hear him rouse Warner, and the steps
of the chauffeur as he hurriedly
dressed. But my attention was busy
with the room below.
On the center table. open. was a
sealskin travelling bag. 1t was filled
and it breathed opulence, luxury, fem
ininity from every inch of surface.
How did it get there? was still ask.
ing myself the question when Warner
came running down the stairs and
into the room. He was completely but
somewhat anonymously dressed, and
his open, boyish face looked abashed.
He was country boy. absolutely
frank and reliable, Of fair education
and intelligence-one of the small
army of American youths who turn a
natural aptitude for mechanics into
the special field of the automobile,
and earn good salaries in a congenial
occupation.
What 10 It, Miss 1nnes?" he asked
anxiously.
There is some one locked in the
laundry" replied. "Mr. Jameson
wants you to help him break the lock.
Warner, whose bag is this?"
! He was in the doorway by this time,
and he pretended not to hear.
warner" / called, "come back
here. Whose bag is this?"
He stopped then, but he did not turn
around.
"It's-it belongs to Thomas" he
said, and fed up the drive.
To Thomas! A London bag with
mirrors and cosmetic jars of which
Thomas could not even have guessed
the use! However, I put the bag in
the back of my mind. which was fast
becoming stored with anomalous and
apparently irreconcilable facts, and
followed Warner to the house.
Liddy had come back to the kitch-
en-; the door to the basement stairs
was double barred. and had table
pushed against it; and beside her on
the table was most of the kitchen par
aphernalia.
did you see II there was any one
missing in the house?" asked. ignor-
ing the array Of sauce pans, rolling
pins and the poker OF the range.
'Rosie is missing" Liddy said with
! JUNCTION. She had objected to Rosie.
the parlor maid. from the start. "Mrs.
Watson went into her room, and found
she had gone without her hat. People
that trust themselves dozen miles
from the city, in strange houses. with
servants they don't know, needn't be
surprised if they wake up some morn
ing and find their throats cut"
After which carefully yelled sar-
casm Liddy relapsed into gloom War
per came in then with handful Of
small tools. and Mr.. Jameson went
with him to the basement. Oddly
enough, ] was not alarmed. With all
my heart I wished for Halsey, but I
was not frightened. At the door he
was to force Warner put down his
tools and looked at it. Then he
turned the handle. Without the slight
est difficulty the door opened, reveal
ing the blackness of the drying room
beyond!
Mr.. Jameson gave an exclamation
of disgust. "Gone!" he said. "Con-
found such careless work! / might
have known"
It was true enough. We got the
lights on finally and looked all
through the three rooms that con-
stituted this wing Of the basement.
Everything was quiet and empty. An
explanation of how the fugitive had
] escaped injury was found in heaped-
up basket of clothes under the chute.
The basket had been overturned, but
that was all. Mr.. Jameson examinedthe
windows; one was unlocked, and of
fered an easy escape. The window or
the door? Which way had the fugi-
tive escaped? The door seemed most
probable. and I hoped It had been 80.
could not have borne, Just then, to
, think that 1t was my poor Gertrude
we had been bounding through the
| darkness, and yeti had met Ger
trude not far from that very window.
/ went upstairs at last, tired and
depressed. Mrs. Watson and Liddy
were making tea in the kitchen. In