The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1909-09-14
THE HATTIESBUR(4 NEWS


laundry" l 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 fled up the drive.
To Thomas! A London bag with
mirrors and cosmetic jars of which
Thomas could not even have guessed
the use! However, 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 basersent stairs
was double barred, and lad a table
pushed againgt 1t; and beside her on
the table was most of the kitchen par.
aphernalia.
did you see IL 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
ner came in then with handful Of
small tools, and Mr.. Jameson went
with him to the basement. Oddly
enough, I was not alarmed. With all
my heart wished for Halsey, but
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 blaekness of the drying room
beyond!
Mr.. Jameson gave an exclamation
of disgust "Gone!" he said. Con
found such careless work! l nigh
have known"
1t was true enough. We got the
lights on finally and looked al
through the three rooms that con
stituted this wing Of the basement
Everything was quiet and empty. Al
explanation of how the fugitive hat
escaped injury was found In heaped
up basket of clothes under the chute
The basket had been overturned, bu
that was all. Jameson examined tn,
windows; one was unlocked, ard of
fered an easy escape. The window O
the door? Which way had the fugi
tive escaped! The door seemed mos
probable, and hoped It had been SO
I could not have borne, tls< then. I,
think that It was my POOR Gertrud,
we he'd been bounding through tn,
darkness, and yeti had Met Ger
trude not far from that very window
went upstairs at last, tired an,
depressed. Mrs. Watson and Ldd,
were making tea In the kitchen. Il
certain walks Of life the tea pot Is tn
refuge IN times Of stress. trouble o
sickness; they give tea to the dyin,
and they put 1t in the baby's nursing
bottle. Mrs. Watson was fixing ira
to be sent In to me, and when I aske
her about Rosie she confirmed he
absence.
she's not here" she said "but
would not think much of that, Miss In
mes. Rosie Is pretty young CIR
and perhaps she has sweetheart. l
will be good thing if she has. Tn
maids stay much better when the
have something like that to hold Their
here"
Gertrude had gone back to he
room, and while l was drinking m
cup of hot tea, Mr.. Jameson came IL
1--WE might take up the conyersatio
where we left off an hour and a hal
ago." he said. But before we go OF
want to say this: The person VIII
escaped from the laundry was won
an with foot of moderate size an
well arched. She wore nothing bu
a stocking on her right foot, and, 1
spite of the unlocked door, she g.
capped by the window"
And again l thought of Gertrude
sprained ankle. Was it the right Q
the left?