The Paonia progressive and the Paonia newspaper., 1911-07-27
CHAPTER xI.-(continued.)

But II am innocent! sne pro
tested
You must prove IT," continued Mr..
Grimm mercilessly. Personally. am
convinced. and Count di Rosini has
practically assured me that"
Its unjust," she interrupted pas
sionately It's - it's - YOU have
proved nothing. It's unheard Of! It's
beyond-!H
Suddenly she became silent A min
ute. two minutes, three minutes
passed. Mr.. Grimm waited patiently.
win you give me time and oppor-
tunity to prove my innocenceT' she
demanded finally. And II ! do con-
vince you-T'
Il should be delighted to believe
that have made n mistake" Mr..
Grimm assured her. How much time!
One day? Two days?"
Il will let you know within an hour
at your ONCE" she told him.
Mr Grimm rose.
And meanwhile. in case Of accident.
shall look to Count di Rosini for ad-
,ustment." he added pointedly. Good
morning"
One hour and ten minutes later he
TestlFtu tnls uOte. uuelbutus
CLOSED carriage Will stop for you
at southeast corner of Pennsylvania
Avenue and Fourteenth Street tonight
at one"
He was there; the carriage was on
time. and my lady Of mystery was In
side. He stepped in and they swung
out into Pennsylvania Avenue. noise
lessly over the asphalt
Should the gold be placed in your
hands now. within the hour she
queried solicitously. would IT be nee
essary for you TO know who was the
the thief1'
1T would" Mr.. Grimm responded
without hesitation.
Even II it destroyed a reputation
she pleaded.
The Secret Service rarely destroys
a reputation, Miss Thorne. although It
holds itself in readiness to do so.
dare say in this case there would be
no arrest or prosecution. because Of
OF reasons which appear to be good"
There Wouldn't" and there was n
note of eagerness In her voice. The
Identity of the guilty person would
never appear7"
1T would become n matter of record
in our office. but beyond that think
not Mt least in this one instance"
Miss Thorne sat silent for a block
or more.
You'll admit. Mr.. Grimm. that you
have forced me into a most remark
able position. You seemed convinced
of my guilt. and. II you'll pardon me-
without reason. then you made IL
compulsory upon me to establish my
innocence. The only way for me to
do that was to find the guilty one. /
have done II, and I'm sorry. because
It's little tragedy"
Mr.. Grimm waited.
It's a girl high In diplomatic so
ciety. Her fathers position is an hon
orable rather than a lucrative one:
he has no fortune. This girl moves
in a certain set devoted to bridge. and
stakes are high. She played and won,
and played and won. and on and on.
until her winnings were about eight
thousand dollars. Then luck turned.
She began to lose. Her money went,
but she continued to play desperately.
Finally some old family jewels were
pawned without her fathers knowl-
edge. and ultimately they were lost.
One day she awoke to the fact that
she owed some nine or ten thousand
dollars In bridge debts. They were
pressing and there was no way to
meet them. This meant exposure and
utter ruin. and women do strange
things. Mr.. Grimm. to postpone such
an ending to social aspirations.
know this much is true. for she re-
lated II all to me herself.
AT last. in some way-a misplaced
letter. perhaps. or a word overheard