The Mellette County pioneer. [volume] (Wood, Mellette County, S.D.) 19??-1971, 1912-12-06

ook at my Erard!" he gasped 7
looked. and felt sorry both for tho ~ m
ana Tor the Erard. Punch -
payne. lemonade, every rerresbmen,
served had left mark on the ins,rr
hent' without reckoning the scratches
ana knocks, OF which 1t bore numerou.
traces. Jus
why did not follow VI. Dominppez
when he walked 10 the door IN CON.
quot me to the dining room? Wbv ala
! sit down on the music stool before
,hat Infused piano? / cannot tell All
hno" Is that gazed at the greasy.
smudgy keys, and that suddenly folt
something like an electric shock For
there' on one of the keys. in the high.
or notes, was slight pinkish stain.
similar 10 the one on the paper knife,
Ihls scene had not lasted a minu,e Q.
and l caught NJ. Dominguez in the
nan as he was turning back 10 see
what had become of me.
Still no clue, M Goron?" asked the
master of the house, looking at me
from the corner Of his eye.
still no clue" I retorted, "but I
have few questions to ask You. Who
were the people who performed on the
piano last night?"
Madame fumbled about some papers
and handed me the program OF the
musical portion OF the soiree. There
was a pianist, violinist. prlma-
donna from the Opera Comique, and
two Montmartre singers, all WELL
known artists.
Now ! said: II want to know who
played after the concert, and whether
you engaged pianist for the dances"
NO, We had no professional. The
dance was impromptu. and the gentle.
men took turns at the piano"
Can YOU give me the names Of
these gentlemen?'
1.-THE names?" repeated Madame
The namcs-let me think moment.
No, | only know one, VI. de C.
He played n lot. The four others had
come 10 the house for the first time,
and did not know them. Do you re-
member any, Enrique?"
! had no reason 10 be dissatisfied
with my mornings work. The rob-
berry, | felt certain, had been commit
ted BY one of the guests at the soiree,
The case was of too delicate 4 ma
ture to instrust It to any OF my subor-
dlnates. | myself had TO forge the
chain from the one link hoped pos
sessed, and my first step was TO send
for VI. de C. whose address Mad
ame Dominguez had given me.
VI. dc c., who belonged to a
very wealthy and highly esteemed
family, replied promptly to my call.
He had heard of the robbery, and
led the conversation on the Domin-
gucZes.
81 do not know much about them"
he said. laughingly: they are new ar
rivals, and, / am told, very rich.
Madame Dominguez was introduced to
one of my aunts. and, as she was in
want of young men, she sent me an In
vitation with the request to bring
whom | liked. / never saw such q
noisy gathering. Some of the men
were really too bad"
"You worked very hard" l said, land
presided over the plano?"
We'll. not exactly. / did my share,
but others, too, banged away as hard
as did
"Who were the others?"
He grinned 1T me a moment.
DO YOU, also. want to give n soiree,
NJ. Goron? If so, don't engage any
of that crowd, because they have no
respect for pianos. But to tell you
the truth, only know one. a painter. l
don't know where no lives, hut he
goes every night to Duvars, Place de
la Madeleine
"Will you do me TIE kindness to
dine with me there this evening" |
asked.
"With pleasure" he retorted, and
that same night we were in the we'll
known "Bouillon," waiting Ter the
paintcr-pianist. a.,
NV young friend kept a careful
watch. and eight o'clock had struck
when he cried out:
"Hurrah. there he is. And-but
that's really funny. You are in luck
NJ Goron. Do you see the chap ne
e with? He, too, was one OF the mu-
steal ornaments of the soiree."
Even before looking at the two
young men I was convinced that neith-
or of them was likely to be the bur-
glar.
We waited till the two gentlemen
had finished their dinner and put on
their hats. when NJ. de G. went up
and introduced them to me, and l In
vited them to accompany me 10 a
neirhboring cafe. They were all deep
Iv interested in the robbery. and our.
ing Ave minutes / patiently listened
to their
when my young friends had ex-
their wit, I turned the con-
vorsation in other channels. In re-
nIv 10 my question, the painter IN
formed me that he knew another man
who had obliged the company with
DANCES at the Dominguez soiree. and
as,or a few more jokes about the IN
,arest took In these amateur musi'
Tons be promised to bring the other