Ashland tidings. [volume] (Ashland, Or.) 1876-1919, 1913-07-07
GRANDMA'S
MONEY
BY M. QUAD
Copyright. 1918. by Associated Lit
erary Press.
By M. QUAD

SA0Ny yNoAo OAh anu hNC0 ulOnC III lnO
outskirts of the village Of Grafton
She was not poor, and she was not
without friends. She was a, bit eccen-
trio, and she lived that way because
she preferred TO. She was we'll liked
by all, and her life was passing smooth
ly along when there came an adven-
ture to turn things topsy turvy.
Grandma Phelps sold piece of land
in the west she had owned for many
years and received $4,000 for 1t. There
was a bank in the village. and one
would think that the woman would have
deposited her money there She didn't,
however. She would not lend 1t or
bank it or turn it over to a relative to
safely keep. She announced that she
would keep 1t in the house. The whole
town came to know of her decision,
and everybody predicted that some
thing would happen. After six weeks
something did happen. Grandma ran
out into the street one morning and
cried out that she had been robbed of
her money during the night.
/
1t was sure thing that grandma had
lost her money. but how? The sum
was in big bills and was wrapped in
cloth and carried In the bosom of her
dress. She could not lose II in walk
| ing about. She had not been out of
her own yard for three days previous
to missing the money. The sheriff
worked on the case a week and then
made up his mind that the old woman
was a little off in her head and had
not lost the money at all, but simply
wanted to create a little excitement
and be talked about There are such
people, and the officer was not so stu
pid in thinking he had come across
one. His belief was strengthened by
the woman's words and demeanor.
After the first outcry she took things
very calmly and finally even laughed
over the loss and said:
"Oh, we'll, let it all go. No use in
keeping the whole United States upset
| about little thing like this"
The case was dropped, so far as any
! OAiNSi WI hih6 Ou DuI VI COuISe Tie
talk didn't cease. 1t was surely mat
ter to wonder over. and it furnished
talk for three months. Even the chill
dren had theories about it. There was
just one single person among the hun
dreds interested who went at that case
to solve 1t in a common sense way, and
that person was a boy fourteen years
old. His name was Tom Henderson,
and his father was the village black
smith. The boy has since become the
head Of detective agency In the west,
and it was that case that shaped his
career.
Tom Henderson believed the woman
had neither been robbed nor sent her
money away. The boy had known
grandma for three years and had often
run errands for her. She had told him
that she believed in dreams and that
II she was worried about anything her
sleep was broken. That was the point
he started from.
Now you've got the key of the mys.
terry. Looks easy, doesn't #? And vet
a thousand people passed it by. Tom
Henderson wasn't sure he was right
of course, but that view of the case
seemed to be the only one to explain
things. Grandma had been sleeping
with the money under her pillow. She
had got up in her sleep and put 1t else
where. Where? If robber had got
into the house he would search all
ABOUT. The woman would have rea-
soned that out. The safest place for
the money would be outside. There
was no cellar. but there was a wood
shed and hencoop. In the shed was
always standing barrel of hen food.
Don't think Tom worked this out In
half an hour. 1t was two weeks be-
rore he got to it, and then he couldn't
say he had a sure thing 1t simply
seemed a reasonable theory. When
ne started out one day to test his theo-
ry he was perspiring in his excite
ment.. AS he arrived at grandma's
cottage he was hailed with:
Say, Tommy, hear that the mill
Is going to shut down for several
weeks, and | guess I'll have the hen
feed barrel filed up"
How much have you got left?" ask.
ed the boy in trembling voice.
"Oh, maybe third Of barrel"
Grandma, weren't you afraid of
robbers all the time you had that mon-
ey in the houseT
"Yes, toward the last when every
body said I'd be murdered for it."
And you didn't sleep well?"
II should say didn't didn't sleep
an hour at time. Something funny
happened to me that last night. had
counted the money over and put it un-
der my pillow when / thought heard
some one under the bedroom window.
That started me to worrying
thought some one might have been
looking in and seen where put the
money"
"Did you tell the sheriff OF thisT
mo. No one got in"
"But what was the funny thingT'
'Why. went to bed and to sleep,
and the next thing knew had fallen
over chair In the middle Of the floor.
must have walked in my Sleep"
The boy beckoned grandma TO come