The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-10-01

very short time. He read it and reread
it, and wondered. His assistant really
did the work in the postoffice and
Marsh promptly hunted up the ass1s-
tant.
what in the thunder is wrong at
the postofice?" Marsh demanded OF
his assistant, as the story is told.
Nothing" said the surprised assist
al Yes. there is" declared Marsh.
There certainly is-there certainly
must be-"
Everything is absolutely all right
insisted the assistant WHY
Marsh produced the telegram.
THAT is the reason!" declared Marsh.
Something is up, and we simply nave
to find out. That is all there IS TO II
And Marsh and his assistant Went
to work. They stayed at that postof1ce
all night They checked over the &C
counts; they looked over this and over
that Everything was in ght-edgeo
shape and balanced to a ct. Neither
could figure out what in the world
could be wrong. All that night they
went over this and over that, ana
when morning came they hadn't oS-
covered anything wrong. They couldn
find anything that would require the
presence of the United States attor-
ney, the United States marshal and
postoffice inspector. They couldn't I'M
agine any reason for a call for Vlsl-
tation of these three high officials OF
the federal government. Marsh was
worried. But he couldn't find anything
to worry over except the telegram
from Waters saying that these three
men were to be in Wichita that morn
ing.
There was nothing to do but wait
until the train came. When 1t arrived
Marsh was on hand to meet the visi-
tors. Waters had coached Peck, the
marshal, and the inspector by that
time.
Mems Actions Worried Him.
In his usual friendly way. Murdoch
reached out his hand to the men as
they stepped from the train.
Glow do YOU do, SIR said Peck,
shaking hands rather Imply and quiet
" and turned away. The marshal the
INSPECTOR and Waters all acted just the
same way They were but little re-
moved from frosty.
That didn't tend to make Murdoch
a. bit thnsuiastic, but only caused him
to worry the more. What in the world
can it be?" he asked himself a dozen
times. Everything was, of course, all
right at the postoffice- MURDOCH ana
everybody else knew that-but why
this visit, announced by telegram, and
why this rather chilly reception?
| Murdoch went to the hotel where the
four stopped. Every so often waters
and one or two of them would get to-
| gether and talk in low tones, and
when Marsh would come up they would
stop. and didn't seem a bit DESTROYS of
| being friendly with him
| The scheme was simply working
| beautifully. Waters was delighted Win
| it. Murdoch was fretting and worry
| ing-he simply couldn't make heads or
| tails of the whole business. Most any
| man would worry under similar condi-
| tions.
Finally Marsh could stand it no
longer. He simply had to have the
| thing over with He counseled with
! himself for a time, and decided to get
a. Wichita man who was an intimate
friend of Peck's and have him go to
Peck and find out.
So he got his man and seriously went
over the whole situation. Just as serI-
| ously the friend went to Peck The
latter roared with laughter. He
couldn't hold in any longer And in
about two minutes more Murdoch hac
been thoroughly relieved of all his
worry He didn't hesitate second II
admitting that Waters had "got even