Semi-weekly herald., 1912-01-08

MISS March instantly wearied of the
waltz. to the dismay OF the youth
whose arm encircled her, and who
rather fancied himself as n dancer.
She lost no time in having herself es.
corted to small conservatory. where
she dismissed her partner with scant
ceremony. and where, few moments
afterward. she was joined by Girls.
void
Even then the debutante's unwilling
tangling Of the threads OF Grlswolde
fate might not have had such influence
upon his future II she had approached
her subject with directness. Had she
told Grtswold at once what she had
said to the detective concerning his
skill as q drnughtsman. the clubman',
suspicious would have been aroused.
and he might have taken steps thai
would have had a marked effect upon
the development of the great Mission
er mystery. But Dorothy was too flut
tered. too prettily remorseful. to 20
straight to the heart OF the subject
and In her innocent endeavor to post
Griswold In respect of her chat with
Britt without making him think abe
was gossiping little busybody, she
protracted her interview with the club.
man through SO many danceB that
when it ended 0riswold persuaded him.
self the morning would be ample time
to do that which he felt must be done
to avert the probable consequences of
Dorothy's girlish frankness. His van.
ity again played its part. too. for when
he had thanked little Miss March for
what he pleased TO consider her inter.
est in him, and when Dorothy. having
signally failed to impress upon him the
impersoDal nature of her conscience
stroke. found herself in a further f,ut,
ter Of bewilderment, Curtis Qriswold
proceeded to parade her up and down
the dancing floor as effectively MS he
had shown off the rich and beautiful
widow In the larger ballroom a little
farther up the avenue. GriswoId
prided himself on his versatility. He
argued that It was as easy for him,
as he would have expressed 1t to his
club intimates, ito put Ally through
her PAGES" as It had been to advertise
the fact before the whole ballroom
beauty and worshiped possessor OF
many millions, apparently was on the
point of accepting him as her second
matrimonial venture.
All Of which resulted In Grlswold's
long stay at the dance. In his ride with
Dorothy to her home In an automobile
otherwise occupied only by a satisfac.
torlly self-centered chaperon; and In
his waste of further time at one of his
clubs after parting with Miss March
and her duenna--a waste of hours any
one OF which might have been made az
useful to him az year OF ordinary
time. He was further disposed to pro
crastinate in this crucial moment by
the success Of the Headquarters man
In throwing all suspected persons Oh
their guard by keeping Elinor Hol.
comb In the Tombs. Through all his
work on the Missioner case, Britz had
been beset with requests from Mrs.
Missioner Sands and other friends OF
the Widows secretary. to permit them
to give bail for her. Sands and Mrs,
Missioner were particularly inHistent
In their desire to SEQ Elinor at liberty.
Fitch. though normally his wish to see
his fancee free must have been
stronger than that Of anyone else, was
partly reconciled to her protracted i'm.
prisonment by the detectives frequent
assurance of her ultimate vindication.
Moreover, the doctor. in consequences
OF his work on the case with Britx. had
direct knowledge Of the Importance
thaf tho attqntcinpu of ~ ~
not be alarmed. He had been with the
detective when the card OF Bruxton
Sands was discovered In the posses.
sion Of the old curiosity shop man; he
knew Of the note addressed to Curtis
dear" and signed "Millicent," and also
OF the desperate attempts made by the
Hindoos to find the diamonds. So Fitch
did not bother the sleuth as much AZ
did other friends of Elinor's, and II
was well: for Britz several times was
at his wits ends to dissuade Mrs. Mis-
sioner and Sands from going to the
District Attorney and offering q heavy
security for Miss Holcombs appear.
ance in the trial court. However,
Britz had hold them OF. and It fol-
lowed that Griswold nurssd the delu.
sion that Elinor and Fitch and Sands
were suspected 30 strongly by the
Central once men that no search for
evidence against anybody else was in
progress. Donnelly and Carson also
had fostered that misconception on the
clubman's part by their unAbated &C
tivity in hunting proofs Of the girl SEQ,
retary's guilt. Those worthless spent
every day Of their work on the case
In tracing Elinor's past, and in efforts
to couple Fitch with her suspicious
theft Of tho Jewels. Furthermore, be-
ing the sort OF men who would rather
win credit for detective work than do
anything quietly in the way of real
detection of crime or criminals, they
could not refrain from expressing their
belief in Elinor's dishonesty At every
turn. They talked literally to the see
soned reporters in the newspapsr
rookeries opposite Police Headquar-
ters. to the newspaper men In the po-
lice stations. and the magistrates
courts, and to the several star repor-
ters of the more enterprising papers
who had been assigned especially on
the case. Every word they uttered
hinged on their evidence In the return
OF . verdict against Miss HoIoomb,
and with the exception Of tive or three