The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1912-01-16


case and other places of possible CON
cealment. His method would have
drawn a derisive smile from Chief Of
Detectives Manning But Manning
was far downtown in Mulberry street,
and could not know the course his
subordinates were pursuing.
From a drawer in Elinor's Chippen.
dale secretary Donnelly took a box
Of rare lacquer and fitted a key TO It..
He stopped TO gaze searchingly at
Miss Holcomb for a few minutes. then
he unlocked the box.
81 hate to pry into any young iady's
little keepsakes," he said in a ponder.
ously patronizing manner, but as
Miss Holcomb hasn't been to Maiden
Lane in such long time, know she
won't object. Now, this little box, Of
course. contains nothing but trinkets
or odds and ends-love letters. may
be?" Elinor's heart sickened at the
leer in his face. She turned her eyes
to Dorothy's loving little face. and
clung to the debutaute's hand. Don.
nelly. fumbling with the key for
awhile opened the lacquered box.
Just what | said, you see." he ex.
claimed. Nothing but trinkets and
other little souvenirs-huh!-o old
romances, perhaps. Eh. it's great to
be a summer girl Miss Holcomb. II
only you had Jewels like Mrs. Mission.
er's, you'd shine with the best OF
them. Gee, but that must be beauty.
that necklace, II the imitation is so
pretty"
lie stirred the contents of the box
idly Nothing else remained to be
searched. He had ransacked the init.
mate sanctity OF the girls room. lie
felt baffled and sorely irritated. At
the thought Of failure, he thrust his
fingers into the box with such vio-
lence that everything It held fell to
the floor Carson stopped to pick UP
the scattered jewelry, placing # in
Donnelly's hand to be returned TO the
box. After recovering several bits of
jewelry he laid in his big colleagues
greedy clutch small, round object
wrapped in silk tissue.
. IAtLOs MhdA AnlNs GhNtdlIIltu llOfl-
nelly. rolling the fairy parcel between
finger and thumb. You won't mind
II peep IN the paper, young lady?
OF course you won't And this IS only
a-say, what the mischief Is It?
Oh. glory!"
Even Carson was startled into an
echolng OH" and tho three women
almost screamed. For, nesting in the
folds Of the tissue its facets twink.
ling in the irsisteut green glow Of the
vacuum lights, flashed a diamond-an
unmistakable diamord-which Mrs.
Missioner and Dorothy and Elinor rec.
ognized as one Of the lesser gems
from the Mahararoe recklace-much
smaller than the Mah2ranee diamond,
but twice the size of an ordinary
stone And It was a diamond even q
novice could tell was genuine!
All the blood left Elinor's face The
muscles of her throat leaped and knot
ted as II she were strangling. She
swayed for a moment, then took a
long step toward the detective and
stood trembling, covering her face
with quiyering hands. Donnelly, hold.
Ing tho diamond to the light, was
about to speak--in what words, what
manner, one can guess, But the mis-
cry in the girls attitude struck tho
triumphant grin from his face, and
there was momentary compassion in
the tone in which he said:
Wed better go back to the library,
I guess. Will you 80 with my side
partner, Miss Holcomb?"
Carson's advance to the socretary's
side was checked by the violence with
which she whirled toward Mrs. Mis-
sioner, again with outstretched hands,
This time the widow was slower in
meeting the appeal. She was stunned
by the detectives discovery. All the
finer senslbilities of her womanhood
were benumbed. AstonishRent, large
and compelling, was all she could feel
for the moment. Still, she took FL
inor's imploring hands in hers and
stood motionless, listening TO the
girls passionate entreaty not to be-
lieve the evidence of her eyes, not to
believe her kindness could be out
ragged In such a way, not 10 believe
that Elinor for all the jewels in the
mines of tho world could be tempted
from the high honor in which she had
been reared. Clasplng the younger
womans locked fingers in her own
soft palm. she slipped her arm about
Elinor's waist and walked with her
TO the lift. Dorothy, crying almost
childlshly. controlled her voice once
or twice long enough to beg Elinor
not to give way TO such torturing
emotion.
But Ellnor Holcomb, shaking, sob
bing, wildly beseeching, was oblivious
to the silent watchfulness OF the cent
raj Office men, the covert glances from
Blodgett's maslS-like countenance. the
amazed stare of the liveried youth in
the elevator. All the way to the room
in which Sands and Grlswold and
Ranscome waited. all the way across
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