The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1912-02-24

| any especial suit upon that day? The
| more | cudgeled my brains over it the
| more benumbed they became, until
| at last l picked upzmy hat and rushed
out of the house. Having but little
| idea that l would learn anything by
| so doing, | nevertheless Immediately
boarded 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-
manded.
He picked it up, adjusted his eye
glasses and read 1T with slowly
forming and negative pursuing of his
mouth. Then he held it forth.
Nothing at all. What is there about
it?" I took the card from him and
replaced it carefully In my pocket al
| made my reply.
Only this-that it is a forgery. And
while did not for a 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
ooh, yes, / do. The suit ia 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 1t is now In perfect condi-
ton" I looked at him with the in
credulity with which one faces per-
son who makes an Incredible state.
ment with AZ straight face and under
the guise of seriousness.
Let me see the suit" / ordered.
He did so, and ! inspected it critic
ally. l could discover nothing amiss
with it externally, and searching the
pockets found they were empty How
ever, that was to be expected, as
could remember having nothing in
them when I had hung 1t away, Ger
tainly nothing of any value to any.
body but myself had only succeed.
ed in thickening the mystery which
enveloped this extraordinary transac.
ton, and puzzled beyond expression,
I arranged with the tailor that In the
future he should allow none of ray
clothes which he happened to have
in his possession to leave his hands
upon an order ostensibly written by
me unless the order contained
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 its genuineness which we
had just invented, that he was to de-
tain him until he could summon an
officer and have him arrested, de-
parted. What possible object any
person could have had In wishing to
secure possession OF q suit Of my
clothes which contained nothing of
the slightest worth, and who having
secured possession OF it should go to
the trouble of conveying II from my
house to the tailor shop was utterly
beyond M comprehension The for
ger. had not ssnrsd the clothes, az
some petty-nline ed enemy might have
done out Of a spirit Of spite, and ale
| together could conceive of no pos
sible benefit or satisfaction any one
could have derived from such an
elaborate and criminal subterfuge. Ut.
terly baff1ed, determined to say
| nothing more about 1t for the time.
quietly awaiting any new develop
ments that might arise.
The next morning another strange
thing had happened. I 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 al
most never came to the upper door
before the breakfast hour, and there
, fore searched her face with some cu~
riosity as | told her that she might
enter. She Immediately burst forth In
an excited volley.
'.Oh, Mr.. Tom! The house has been
burglarized again in the night. What
on earth are we coming to with such
people prowling all around In tbs
darkness? I never was so frightened
In my life. declare nearly fell in
a faint when / discovered it. Please
come with me and I will show you"
Dumfoundedly, and with my necktie
still dangling from my hand, fol-
lowed her squat figure as she climbed
down the front stairs, waddled
through the dining room and kitchen
and then one foot at time descend
ed the steep stairs that led to the
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