Bluefield evening leader. [volume] (Bluefield, W. Va.) 1906-1911, 1910-06-02

session i was iuvi,el to the national
capital to spend week with my
friend jim Trousdan in company with
others forming very pleasant house
party Jim had not been long mar
ricd, and / was bachelor. have
always thought that his wife got up
the affair especially for my benefit
ana that OF Miss Mildred Sweet. Mrs
Jim desiring TO make Il match between
Us. If she did she had 40 trouble. so
FAR as | was concerned, for / had not
been acquainted with NJ ISIS Sweet ten
minutes before / remarked to myself.
That's the girl / am looking for"
| have a theory that "a good way TO
win a girl is TO conjurc up something
in which you and she may have a
mutual interest. Fortune favored me
in this wise:
One evening at dinner Mrs. Jim show
cd plainly that some thing had hap
pened. She said nothing to any of the
guests ana when they spoke TO her
replied in monoSyllablcs. Trcusdail
laborcd hard TO keep n certain amount
of life in the party, but was not sue
cessful.
After dinner Jim took me up to
little den he used 10 hide away I'm
and told me what was the natter
His wife had lost diamond rs big
rs hickory nut 1t had been handed
down TO her for five generations and
been turned over to her on her wed
ding day. She had taken it out OF
its receptacle to wear il that evening
mt a reception that was to occur at
the White House and had left 1t on
her bureau while giving some direc-
tions about the dinner.
He had no sooner told me this than
it required to me TO make n detective
Of myself for the purpose OF discover
/ ing the thief and to take Miss Sweet
| into the business with me- BY inter
esting her in the case hoped eventual
ly to turn that interest from the gem
to myself
| l asked Jim good many questions.
/ but only elected the information that
every servant i'm the house during his
wife's absence from her room was
downstairs and quite busy, most Of
them with the preparations for the
dinner. The men guests were all in
/ the billiard room. Two Of the women
guests were dressing in their rooms
/ for dinner and after that the function
Mt the White House. \ third, a wild
ow, Mrs. Jernegan, with a little daugh-
ter, five years old. had finished her
toilet and was assisting her nurse to
put the child to bed
1 Mrs. Jernegan was my first choice
4 for the thief Women who are not
dressed don't run about in another
/ PERSONS house, and Mrs. Jernegan was
the only person on the floor at the
time the stone was lost. l wcnt to
the White House reception with Miss
Sweet ana during the evening told her
about the loss and began to excite her
curiosity as to who could have been
the thief
1T would be nice thing" l said.
"if You and 1, working together, could
recover the stone and turn 1t back 70
the rightful owner"
Indeed it would" she said. "but
how can we do that"
II don't know that we can. but we
can try"
/ coufided to her that / suspected
Mrs Jernegan She did not especial
~ fancy the widow, but could hardly
bring herself to feel that she had
stolen the diamond. 1 told Miss Sweet
that she, being a woman, could keep
an eye on the suspect better than I,
and she agreed to do so.
! had little scheme UP my sleeve
TO compel Mrs. Jernegan to show her
colors II she were guilty. OF course
that was not proving her guilty or get
ting back the stone, but it would
serve Tor a clew. i invited a party,
including Mrs Jerucgan, to visit the
capitol Miss Sweet was, OF course,
with us. After showing the party
through the building I took them up
into the dome. There is q whispering
. gallery In this dome in which voice
speaking on one side can be heard az
the other Leaving The widow on one
side Of the dome. ] took Miss Sweet
halfway round The scmiciu le, and
wa 'eAiug tin Mrs. JCTncgan was sep.
p aratcd from tho others, suggested 10
Miss Sweet 70 put her mouth near the
vail and whisper tho words. What
D. d.d you do with ifT'
r. She did ao. and thc effect was Son.
Simultaneous and unmistaLablc The
widow staggered ruo3 pale and
looked lurr.cdly about her WHOM sh,
turned her eyes upon us vc were
looking down 5n - the marble Go9l
far below
N'r companion was delighted with
iIe uc.cs ~ us device She seemed
+, ho struck viH surprise ana ad
7 n'rat'oH $40 wba' She was pleased 9.
ra' my ingenuity r was more inter
'tad Boz N Sweet .hIu 200 thc thief
d'srHme1 ry great slrowduess
indeed Hgs rar was simply lucky
Er mu iarp ur tHc iuu .on
, Gt fud some method nf .o1uin.
from tia widow villa. She BAD don,