Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1911-04-04
CHAPTER XVI.

CHAPTER XVI.
HE room in the Fourth National
Ii bank Of Springfield. ILL.,. in
II which the new vault had been
constructed. was a large. som,
Der Enclosure. with door at one side,
opening from the assistant cashiers
ONCE. and one directly opposite. which
led to narrow hallway opening into
the. main hail.
J Along this narrow hallway were
doors opening into the Offices of va
rious omcials Of the bank. The vaults
in which were kept the currency and
negotiable papers. bonds. stocks. notes.
ETC.. were on the floor below. and the
new vault built against the wall at
the rear Of the room was designed as
q receptacle for the banks books of
account. Therefore 1t had a larger In
terror than an ordinary vault. and as
the shelves had not yet been built in
there were several feet of free space
inside. which would be occupied BY
books and records later on.
The huge steel ribbed door had been
left invitingly open by the workmen
engaged in adding the finishing touch.
es. and consequently 1t afforded an un.
cqualed source Of delight to Bobby
and Kitty. whose active imaginations
readily converted the interior Of the
vault into the cave Of daring snug
glers who. presumably gone on a des-
perate enterprise. had left deserted their
secret cavern and the precious con-
traband articles which. Bobby assured
Kitty. were surely to be found there
In. SO what was there for high spir-
tied little girl to do. when her brother.
who never failed at asserting his SUI
pertority over a mere girl and tho
superiority of the 'men folk in gen.
eral. insisted that she 60 first into the
yawning blackness of the big safe?
Surely she must maintain the tradi-
lions Of the fearlessness of her sex as
she knew them and take the dare
which Bobby forced upon her.
Slowly into the steel bound shadows
she went. her waxen faced dolly
clutched tightly against her throbbing
bosom-yet In she went. Suddenly the
huge door scraped shut. All was black
ness. As she screamed in her fright
she heard the click Of the metal bars
a. Bobby playfully turned the han
dies. Then all was silent. save for
the means Of the little girl as she lurch-
ed blindly toward the door Of the safe
and scratched the metal thicknesses
with her tiny nails.
The dolly fell to the door, the ends
Of the soft little fingers began to bleed
from frensied contact with the bars
that ribbed the interior Of the safe
door. and after few moments the
wee girls form sank Imply to the bot.
tom Of the vault, where she gasped
ron vulsively to breathe in the air that
was gradually losing its life support
Ing qualities. Not many minutes
would elapse ere she had consumed all
The precious oxygen in the suffocating
Interior Of the necessarily air tight
vault.
Al Jimmy Valentine dashed into the
'ault room he cried to Red Flanagan.
who was at his heels:
go get one Of the clerks to run for
'ome sandpaper. Pumice stone is too
loft for this job. My fingers are not
n shape for trick like this. Go!
aunl"
Red turned and darted away on his
Urgent errand. Well he knew just how
1t was for Jimmy Valentine
o have sandpaper to rescue Kitty If 1t
we're true that the skin on his fingers
lad grown calloused or had reached
ven it, natural thickness
Jimmy Valentine pulled manfully at
he handles Of the vault door. Per-
laps. after all. the combination had
ot been turned and only the doors
Weight held It in place. But the metal
arrier would not move. He pressed
10 ear to the hairlike crack. He
card the sound as Of a little body
alling to the door and the faint means
( the prisoner calling. Bobby, Bobby.
Iobbyr'
Valentine bent over the combination.
eered sharply at It, then began to
wirl the cylinders gently. Around
nd then back he turned the knob
10: 1t was of no use Nothing could
. done until the sandpaper arrived.
liz fingers had lost their sensitiveness
nd hence their cunning. and in the
leantime Valentine well knew the
risoner was consuming whatever of
le priceless air that remained.
The door leading from his Office
wung open. and again Red Flanagan
arted In. He dung himself on the
ault room door directly below Val