Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1911-03-26

Then after a pause, looking furttvely at
Douglas: But you don't mean to say that
you think"
Course l mean It. That's why there was
no money in that pocketbook. That's why
there was blood on it. That fellow Fletcher
not only robbed him. he killed him. And
threw him in the river. That's whatr
oh nonsense! You are crazy. What
Fletcher? Impossiblel And yet The
truth Of what johnson had told him burst
upon him like a flash; but he tried to keep
up his appearance Of incredibly. What
makes you think it's Maynards ring?" he
asked
why, didn't he show it to us at Green's
that night? Didn't he explain the design
to us?"
Don't remember. I think you're a little
off this morning, Douglas"
No! That's so, You hadn't come yet
You didn't notice It. 1t was just after din
ner l think ! was the one that asked
about it. He took it off and handed It TO
us to look at The marks on It had some
Dutch name. The moment | saw It in
the paper / recognized it He stood up
and wiped his forehead again. What
want to know now is: who is that fellow
Fletcher, and where is he?'
81 thought you were the one that was
betting they couldn't find him." remarked
Hartley dryly, thinking hard at the same
time.
"Oh. that's all rot ard nonsense now.
We've got to find him and shut his mouth
somehow. When he's caught, the whole
story will come out and we'll all go TO
Sing Sing for putting up the job with him.
That's what. Even If we got off, how the
boys would guy us for picking up a crook
like that and taking HIM to dinner!'
Hartley turned a shade paler at the men
ton Of Sing Sing. He had not thought of
that before.
I'm going right to my lawyer, Groscup,"
continued Douglas, wiping his face again,
and I'm going to tell him the whole thing
And then, If they don't pinch me before
2 o'clock I'm off to Europe by the first
steamer. She sails at g."
But IL you make any such extraordinary
move as that you will attract attention
and suspicion to yourself at once" OBJ
served Hartley, who was nevertheless very
much in the humor to cut and run for it
himself
I'm going to get Groscups advice upon
It, What l want to know is Who is this
fellow Fletcher? How did you meet him? 1
don't know where to so to ask about him"
one. II you do they will lock you up as
as a witness"
But there must be something wrong
somewhere. How did you come to know
hm?"
Il never saw him before the dinner that
night at Green's. He was DR.. Ramie' s
guests, and an old friend Of Maynards, 1
understood don't know any more about
him than you do"
But aren't you going to find out?"
ION the contrary, / think it is best for
us to keep cool, and say nothing to no.
body about nothing That's Chuck Con-
ners advice for all such cases"
well, I'm going to get legal advice upon
it. If don't call you up after o'clock
this afternoon, you will know that I'm off
to Europe until this thing blows over"
II wouldn't do it," advised Hartley, who
did not like the idea of being left alone to
face the trouble should 1t come. Fancy
being a week without any kind OF news,
looking forward to being nabbed the mo-
ment you landed on the other side, and
hauled off to an English prison to await
extradition. Take my advice and stay here.
There's some mistake about something. II
what you think is so one thing is clear
to me-" he added, with an attempt TO
laugh: you will lose your little bet, all
right. The police will have that fellow
inside twenty -four hours, If the ring be-
longed to Maynard"
Douglas could only spread his hands and
shrug his shoulders as he left the ROOM
nodding a hasty goodbye, putting the
pieces Of his glasses in his pocket
Left to himself Hartley's GOODNESS dis
appeared. In a disturbed frame of mind he
began to walk up and down the office
Then he took out a fresh cigar and sci
himself to think out course of conduct.
What had happened was pretty clear tC
him. Some shrewd member OF the Ard
more gang had picked up an acquaintance
with Maynard, somehow, and had marked
him for a plucking. The little after-dinnel
bet was seized upon and cleverly worked
up as an opportunity. The man that drove
the cab must have been member OF the
gang, and the two of them had found thai
Maynard resisted when they would not e
to the Earlswood hotel. Then they haC
knocked him on the head If the story
ever came out, Hartley, the smart bust
ness man, the director in fifty companies
the president of the Hardware trust, woul'
be the laughing stock Of the town. Why +
p It that some men fear ridicule more thai
, To one thing Hartley quickly made VI
7 his mind. He would not consult any law
} yers, and he would refuse to say a wort
. 10 any one about either Maynard o
Fletcher. He would deny that he had eve
known either OF them. He was sorry nov
: that he called in Johnson. But perhaps
& was lucky that he had not called in tn
Pinkertons. They would haul him up a
s once when they found the clue. SO woul
I the regular police Still, he felt uneas
about Johnson. To put a private detectiv
s on the track Of a thief, or one who he kne,
k would turn out to be a thief, was on
thing. To have set a detective to waite
- a man who, it turned out, was deliberatel
d planning a cold-blooded murder, wa
" something else. The nasty part OF It wa
s that he, Hartley, would appear 10 haN
r known the very hour, almost that III
crime was to be committed
d He would have TO stop Johnson's activit
e somehow, and also to stop the detective
E. mouth. II would cost a pretty penny, prol
ably, and would perhaps expose him
70 blackmail for the rest Of his life. But /
?. could not help that now. lie was in a hol