The Caldwell watchman. (Columbia, La.) 1885-1946, 1912-05-31

had been to tho Derby or hadawosb
any especial suit upon that day The
| more l cudgeled my brains over IT the
more benumbed they became,J until
at last picked up my hat and rushed
out Of the house Having but little
idea that would learn anything by
so doing, l nevertheless Immediately
boarded a car and going to the shop
of my tailor threw the note on the
counter before him. What do you
know about that note, Johnson" de.
handed.
! He picked it up, adjusted his eye
glasses and read it with slowly
forming and negative pursuing of his
mouth. Then he held it forth.
Nothing at all. What is there about
it, took the card from him and
replaced it carefully in my pocket ~
l made my reply.
only this-that it is forgery. And
while l did not for moment think
that you had any information about
it, went to the pains of coming here
to ask you. Neither do suppose you
know anything concerning the where
about Of the clothes mentioned" His
answer furnished me the second sur
prise of the day.
| "Oh, yes, l do The suit is here
all right. 1t was brought in yester-
day by a strange men who said YOU
wished me to press it for you. have
done so and it is now in perfect condl
ton" looked at him with the In.
credulity with which one faces per
son who makes an Incredible state.
ment with straight face and under
the guise OF seriousness.
Let me see the suit" ordered.
He did so, and l inspected it critic
ally. could discover nothing amiss
with it externally, and searching the
pockets found they were empty. How
ever, that was to be expected, as I
could remember having nothing in
them when ! had hung It away, Ger
tainly nothing Of any va'ue to any
body but myself. had Only succeed
ed In thickening the mystery which
envGoped this extraordinary transao.
ton, and puzzled beyond expression.
I arranged with the tailor that in tho
future he should allow None Of my
clothes which he happered to have
in his possession to leave his hands
upon an order ostensibly written by
me unless the order contained a
secret mark which we then and there
agreed upon. Then instructing him
that If any one called for the suit In
question and presented an order for
the same not bearing the minute
token of it's genuinensss which We
had just invented, that he was to de-
tain him until he could summon an
officer and have him arrested, I de-
parted. What possible object any
person could have had in wishing to
secure possession OF suit of my
clothes which contained nothing OF
the slightest worth, and who having
secured possession of 1t should 60 to
the trouble OF conveying it from my
house to the tailor shop was utterly
beyond my comprehension. The for.
ger had not injured the clothes, as
! some petty-mipded enemy might have
done out Of a spirit Of spite, and d
together I could conceive of no pos-
sible benefit or satisfaction any one
could have derived from such an
elaborate and criminal subterfuge. Ut-
terly baffled, l determined to say
nothing more about it for the time.
quietly awaiting any new develop
ments that might arise.
The next morning another strange
thing had happened. ! was dressing
for the day at my customary hour for
arising when suddenly the house
keepers knuckles fell upon the door
in series of nervous taps. She az
most never came to the upper floor
before the breakfast hour. and I there.
fore searched her face with some GU
riosity as told her that she might
enter. She Immediately burst forth in
All excited volley.
"Oh, Mr.. Tom! The house has been
burglarized again In the night. What
on earth are we coming to with such
people providing I'll around in the
darkness? 1 never was so frightened
y my life. dec;s-ze l nearly fell IN
4 faint when l DISCOVERED 1t. Please
come with me and l viii show you"
Gumfoundedly, and With my necktie
still dangling frox, my hand, l fol-
lowed her squat figure as she climbed
down the front stairs, waddled
through the dining room and kitchen
and then one foot at a time descend
ed the steep stairs that led to tho
basement. There was only one door
entering from the outside into these
lower regions and that was never
used-in fact, had been bolted ever
since my occupancy Of the premises.
The aperture in the side of the house.
through which the coal supply was
dumped from the drive into the bin
was protected by an iron grating
which was always carefully locked
after such an operation. and the low
windows which admitted light to tho
furnace room had fixed iron bars on
the outside. The police, LeDuc and
myself had gone over this region
thoroughly in our search and had