Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1910-01-15

louuu ulIH, ne explained. In the
custody of the policeman on this beat
| saw the gilt clock sticking out of his
pocket and brought him in to have
You identify It,"
The telephone rang summoning the
officer. After a brief co1loquy with
headquarters, he turned to the father
and daughter.
ITS all right. The two policemen
| called caught a couple of men enter
ing basement. They found your sill
yer and the Jewels all right, but no
clock. There must have been three
thieves"
Make another search. Silvia" said
her father. Maybe you were mistaken
about the clock
She went upstairs and returned car
rying the clock.
1T was there. after all. In my ex-
element / had overlooked it."
TITS dead ringer for the one the
fellow had" said the officer.
only in form, doubtless. This was
made to order"
She slipped bank note into the Of
fcer's hand and he departed we'll sat
isfied with the nights achievement.
The Owen house returned to dark
ness and quiet save in Silvia's apart
ments. She paced the floor, vainly
seeking a solution to the mystery. The
alarm clock had been given to her by
her lover. Valentine Lorme. They had
been wont to take early morning rides,
and her f1ance had suggested an alarm
clock for Silvia's use Being of an in
ventive turn Of mind he had devised a
clock with a rich musical alarm Mind
full of his days in the Spanish-Ameri-
can war he had chosen the reveille.
Two long months ago had come their
first quarrel. Neither would make the
overture for reconciliation Yet every
night, for old sake's sake, she had
wound the alarm.
She didn't know when she had re-
ceived her first subconsciousness that
the man whom the officer had brought
in was Valentine When he had slipped
past her in the dark she had felt his
presence and then had come that one
strain of the reveille. She had misdi-
rected the officer in order that her
lover might escape. She supposed that
he would go out by the front door I'M
til she found the clock in her sitting
room. BY it, she found a scrap Of pa
per on which was hastily scrawled:
Come to me today at 10 o'clock in the
park"
Why he had taken and returned the
clock in so mysterious way she could
not imagine.
The park she sought at the appoint
ed hour was small unfrequented
spot in an questionable part of the
city
She found Valentine waiting for
her.
Silvia" he said tensely, as he came
up to her, "is it all right between us
again."
YES" she whispered.
He led her to little sheltered
seat.
"Tell me- he asked, chow you got
the clock to me? When I heard the
reveille in my room knew I was for
given"
Got the clock to you? Why, valen-
tine, did you not come into my room
and take it while I slept?"
II went to your room only to return
it and leave the note. found it in my
iooi4i WHCi dWohSAlCu. hC lCFClllC
is never far distant from my thoughts.
so when awoke this morning at 2
o'clock and heard it, I thought for a
that it was an echo of my
dreams. Then it dawned upon me that
1t was our clock. am not believer
in mental telepathy, but I had firm
conviction that you were In trouble
and had got the clock to me in some
way as signal. l put on my shoes,
trousers, coat and cap and hurried to
your house. A policeman took me in
custody. I was trying to explain my
presence when another policeman
came out of your house and nabbed
me. It didn't seem the time nor place
for explanations. so I ducked. In pas
sing you I couldn't resist clicking a
strain Of our signal to show you that
| was near. went to your room and
came down the fire escape from the
hall window"
Valentine" she said family, II can
not understand 1t. wound the clock
last night, but was so sleepy I must
have mistaken the hour set it for.
| awoke suddenly at two o'clock and
found it gone"
Don't let's try to account for it,
Silvia. We were both awakened by
some signal. Maybe one Of us walks in
our Sleep" he added, laughing.
Meanwhile one Of the thieves, a
novice, was undergoing an ordeal in
the sweat box at headquarters.
"I got the silver and Jewels and I
took a gold clock Off the table by the
girls bed. Then me and my pal went
to house further down the street. I
had the clock under my arm. I set 1t
down on table when off went an
alarm like a cannon. I heard some
one in the next room get out of bed
in a hurry and got out of the win
dow"
A policeman. listening to the recital,
looked puzzled and then incredulous.
Hes Icing" he, thought. "She said
her clock wasn't stolen, and l saw it
there myself"
Rev. /. w. Williams Tessifies.