The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1912-01-22

The Detective ouickened His Pace,
Heading South.
ready assured her warmly OF his DO
lief in Elinor's innocence. Could 1t be
he was not going to clear the girl
after all?
you know nothing OF her engage
ment to a Harvard undergraduate,
them" he persisted.
The widow shook her head
Before her father lost his fortune.
mean" said the sleuth.
Neither before nor after. Mr..
Britz." replied Mrs. Missioner. rising
impatiently. Miss Holcomb, being a
beauty, naturally received a great
deal Of attention. but never heard OF
a betrothal"
Lieutenant Britt, still standing be-
fore the hearth, moved to let Mrs.
Missioner pass. The widow pushed
aside the heavy hangings of a window
and peered into the twilight backed
by the trees in the park. BritE,
having moved, took another step.
Those gray eyes Of his shifted so rap
idly they were upon the three others
almost simultaneously SO gradually.
so slowly did he approach the table
that no one noticed his hand upon It.
Resting that hand upon the edge, he
went on: 'f'W
II am sorry you are not more min,
utely informed concerning Miss Hol-
combs university days" Slowly his
fingers extended until the tips rested
on the tiny pad. "In q case like this,
the smallest knowledge may be OF
value" Slowly, ever SO slowly. the
fingers contracted. drawing the pad
with them. "Perhaps II you make an
effort, you can recall something about
the--the prisoners past, Mrs, Mis-
sionerY" The pad was In HIS hand.
Deity he tore on the top sheet. and
inclosed It in his fingers. As the
widow started to speak. and entirely
unobserved by Griswold or Sands, the
detective slipped that agile hand into
his pocket. When tho hand came out,
It was empty.
ANOg bdAu lAG lANh WOAh0h WhNA
more emphasis than would be expect
ed OF her large good nature. Il can
recall nothing. am sure there is
nothing to recall. You must look else
where II you seek to forge links in
chain of evidence against Miss Hol-
comb have told you all know
all | could possibly know"
THAT being the case" said Briz
brislkly, there is nothing more TO say.
With your permission, l will send a
draughtsman to make plans Of the
room and diagrams of the safe" He
hesitated. 81 suppose these little art
gems OF NINE" he resumed with a dry
smile, may as we'll meet the fate
they deserve" With a quick move
ment, he threw all the sheets of paper
on the table and the pad as vel, into
the heart of the fire. .stEf
Guess I'll say Good afternoon,
and with bow to Mrs, Missioner and
the coolest of mods to the men, he left
the room, the Widows detached Good
afternoon, Mr.. Britz," floating after
him.
Was he mistaken, Britz asked him
self as he walked quickly along the
passage, or Cid he see pair Of eyes
beneath towering turban peer at
him from the corner of cross corri-
dor? He made mental note TO have
the Hindoo servant watched more
closely as, treating Blodgett's lofti-I
ness with exasperating indifference,
he tripped down the steps OF the Mis-
sioner mansion, and hurried along q
of the shadows, the detective quick
ened his pace. heading south. tts
He stopped under the low-hanging
bough OF great oak tree to get a
better light. AS he was about to
strike a match, his use OF that par
ticular cigar suddenly ceased, for.
gripping, clinging, strangling. some
thing soft and silky was drawn tightly
about his neck, HIS elbows were
jammed against his sides, his knees
were squeezed together so closely he
could not take a step. and In another
minute he found himself bound,
gagged, helpless, with Shree men sit
ting on him, bowling rapidly In cab
along the park drive In a direction
which. owing to the swirling excite
ment of the last sixty seconds. he
could not ascertain. All he knew
was that he was captive; that he
had been seized In a way unusual to
city highwaymen, and that for the
present a struggle for release would
be simply a useless perhaps worse
than useless-expenditure OF his
! strength.
ITO Re f,on.i,,,,oaA