The Kenna record. (Kenna, Roosevelt County, N.M.) 190?-1924, 1913-01-31

added to his regular business Of mer.
chandizing that Of an employment
sgent, ! saw no reason to attach an
undue Importance to the incident.
Nevertheless l relinquished none Of
my suspicious regarding Murphy, but
continued the detectives surveillance
with a fresh injunction to vigilance.
And did not apologize to Yup Sing.
Miss Clement, to whom believe
owe my life, visited me at my request.
How whelmed her with my gratitude
is no more material than how she en-
deavored to make light OF her service
to me, declaring that such Offices were
part of her days work in her chosen
field, and that her days work was her
passion. And yet It was this part Of
our interview which gave me my
strongest insight into her exceptional
ly worthy character. Absolutely I'M
selfish, she joyed In life that even
religious fanatic might we'll have
quailed before; finding flowers In
muck heaps and jewels amid tinsel.
In five minutes, too, glimpsed her
Astounding magnetism, the moving
agent in that rare efficiency which was
part and parcel Of her. Later, learned
of the weight OF her influence among
the dwellers in the Chinese colony;
not from any direct narrative Of what
she had accomplished-for she was
chary of speaking Of herself-but by
deduction, purely. Moreover, my
watch, a few trinkets and little
money, taken from me that night In
Doyers street, had all been returned
through Miss Clements good offices;
and II. thus far, she had afforded US
no real clew In our absorbing ext
gency. felt that ultimately her knowl-
edge. coupled with her resourceful'
ness, would prove to us Of unbounded
value. And, as events shaped them
selves, was not wrong.
1t was now nearly four weeks since
Cameron's disappearance, and a rear
that he had met death in some 1end-
ish form at the hands Of his abductors
had come to be with me very nearly
an obsession. The care exercised In
hiding my real state of mind from
Evelyn could not well be exaggerated
When l appeared to her most hopeful
l was actually most despairing. With
Miss Clement, however, | had no rea-
son to dissemble. With all frankness
l told her of my despair; and when,
instead of trying to comfort me with
empty words of encouragement she
agreed with me that the chances OF
our ever seeing Cameron again were
at a minimum. l liked her the better
for being Straightforward.
81 sometimes feel" l said to her,
making full confession, that we made
a terrible mistake in not at once noti-
flying the authorities. Even now am
inclined to lay the matter before them.
Anything would be better than uncer-
tainty. A few arrests and the third
degree might work wonders"
where would you start?" she asked
in a blunt, logical way that reminded
me of Evelyn's faculty Of going to the
root Of things. you see, you know so
little. The story about the portrait
and the mirror, the police would re-
gard as more amusing than convinc-
ing. And besides. you haven't any
proof. Yup Sing, you tell me, has the
only original letter, and by this time
he may have lost 1t or have forgotten
that he ever had 1t. II you had seen
as much of the Chinese as | have, you
would appreciate how willy they are.
My belief is that the police would con-
clude that Mr.. Cameron fell overheard
from his yacht and was drowned. In
deed 1t would be fortunate II they did
not take the view that he jumped
overheard and committed suicide. Or.
worse still, it would not be beyond
them, Mr.. Clyde, to charge that you
pushed him over. The yellow papers
would almost certainly intimate such
a possibility" Had some one else
voiced this suggestion l should prob
ably have resented 1t. but under
stood Miss Clement. She was as kind
as her eyes indicated; and that Is
speaking very strongly.
Nevertheless" | said, with growing
determination, 81 shall make the case
public. 1t is my duty, and l am will
ing to run all the risks you point out
shall start by making a complaint
against Peter Johnson. Well have
him arrested, get his record. and fol-
low along that trail until we turn up
the other conspirators. II poor Cam
eron's shares fall in the market, they'll
have to fall. If the notoriety rrecipi-
tates a delayed fatality of which Cam
eron is the victim, 1t cannot be helped.
| simply will not longer shoulder the
responsibility Of silence"
The way she had Of silent del.bera-
ton was almost masculine. | eau see
hor ouen now as she sat there that