Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1911-02-15
CHAPTER XIV.
Suspicion and Discord.

Every one was nasty the next morn
ing. Aunt Selma declared that her
feet were frost-bitten and kept Bella
rubbing them with ice water all morn
ing. And Jim was impossible. He re
fused to speak to any of us, and he
watched Bella furtively, as if he sus-
pected her of trying to get him out of
the house.
When luncheon time came around
and he had shown no indication Of go
ing to the telephone and ordering it,
we had conclave, and Max was
chosen to remind him of the hour.
Jim was shut in the studio, and we
waited together in the hall while
Max went up. When he came down
he was somewhat ruffed
HE wouldn't open the door," he
reported, "and when | told him it
was meal time, he said he wasn't hun
CRY, and he didn't give whoop about
the rest of us. He had asked us here
to dinner; he haGn't proposed to
adopt u.s."
So we finally ordered luncheon our
selves, and about two o'clock Jim
came downstairs, sheepishly and ate
what was left Anne declared that
/ Bella had been scolding him in the
upper hall, but l doubted it. She was
never seen to speak to him unneces-
sarily
The excitement of the escape over,
| Mr.. HARRISON and l remained on terms
of armed neutrality. And Max still
fnd 11Ci11
the men declared, as a good excuse to
avoid tinkering with the furnace or
repairing the dumb-waiter, which took
the queerest notions, and stopped once
halfway up from the kitchen, for an
| hour, with the dinner on it. Anyhow,
| Max was searching the house syste-
matically, armed with a copy of Poe's
| "Purloined Letter" and GabOriau's
Monsieur Lecoq." He went through
the seats of the chairs with hatpins,
tore up the beds, and lifted rugs, until
| the house was in a state of confusion.
And the next day, the fourth, he
| found something much, but it
was curious. He had been in the
studio, poking around behind the dusty
| pictures, with Jimmy expostulating
every time he moved anything and
the rest standing around watching
| him.
Max was strutting
eve get it by eliminations," he
| said, Importantly "The pearls be-
ing nowhere else in the house, they
must be here in the studio. Three
parts of the studio having yielded
nothing, they must be in the fourth.
Ladies and gentlemen, let me have
your attention for one moment. tap
this canvas with my wand-there is
nothing up my sleeve Then I pre-
pare to move the canvas-so. Ard 1
put my hand in the pocket of this dis
reputable velvet coat, so. Behold"
Then he gave low exclamation and
looked at something he held in his
hand. Every one stepped forward,
! and on his palm was the small diamond
clasp from Anne's collar!
Jimmy was apologize. He tried to
smile, but no one else did.
well, I'll be f1abbergasted!" he
said, 81 say, you people, you don't
think for a minute that I put that
thing there? Why, l haven't worn
that coat for a month. lists a
trick of yours, Max"
But Max shook his head; he looked
stupefed, and stood gazing from the
clasp to the pocket of the old painting
coat. Betty dropped on a folding
stool, that promptly collapsed with
her and created a welcome diversion,
while Anne bounced on the clasp
greedily, with little cry.
eve will find it all now" she said,
excitedly did you look in the other
pockets, MAXI"
Then, for the first time, I was con-
scious of an air of constraint among
the men. Dallas was whistling softly,
and Mr. HARRISON, having rescued
Betty, was standing silent and aloof,
watching the scene with non-commit-
tai eyes 1t was Max who spoke first,
after hurried inventory of the other
pockets.
Nothing else," he said, constrained
ly. 'I'll move the rest cf the can
vases"
But Jim interfered, to every ones
surprise.
81 wouldn't If / were you, Max.
There's nothing back there. I had
em out yesterday" He was quite
pale.
"Nonsense!" Max said gruff1y. IF
it's a practical joke, Jim, why don't
you TESS up? Anne has worried
enough"
The pearls are not there, I tell
you" Jim began. Although the studio