The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1913-05-09

HS~IsM of Chicago, as she gave her
43-Sgsy number to the girl at the
~SSTS> hotel telephone booth
~ moment or so of waiting
and then we started for the
dining room And as we seated our
selves, Miss Clement seemed pussy
with thought.
give Just been wondering. said she
whether ii was here or somewhere
else"
laughed at her vague remark; Miss
Clement has always been sort OF
study 70 me. There is kittenlsh
childishness, twinkle and sparkle oil
the ewes. a series of mannerisms which
give her many times the appearance
more of a child than of woman who
has tracked thieves and other eVll
doors for years. She has way oil
presenting things in the most girlish
of WAYS: there is sometimes little
air of responsibility that is fetching
to the degree that you forget entirely
that this woman ever could have had
adventures, that she ever could have
been in places where the slightest
false move would have meant death.
She perked her head coquettishly to
one side and looked at me out OF the
corner of her eyes.
Well" she asked, what's so funny
about that?"
Just the way you put the remark,
answered. "What were YOU won
dering about?'
"A certain telephone call of about
two years ago. just happened to
think about it when l came out OF
the booth and then, of course, | start
ed wondering where it had happened.
After all, | believe 1t was here. And
by the way, it was telephone call
of some importance. 1t solved a mys-
terry for me-" ..---..-
We stopped conversation for min
ute that we might give our orders and
then Miss Clement took a little note
book from her handbag.
It's marked down here as the Case
of the Crossed Wires,'" she said, land
that's about what it was. l don't care
what you say, luck certainly does play
into detectives hand if that detec-
tive knows enough to take advantage
of the opportunity when it is present
ed And to tell the truth, the drown
ing man who grasped at the tabled
straw was not any more desperate
than | was the night pair of crossed
wires started me on the way to big
arrest But that part comes later,
she added.
Three weeks before, one Of the big
mercantile companies of the city had
discovered a 100000 loss. The police
department believed that James Whit
ney, by which name we shall know the
embezzler, was still in the city. 1t was
my duty to find him.
did you ever seek man who was
hiding from you in city of two and
a half million people? For q days
sought. / had invaded every possible
place where the man might be. / had
Swallowed his friends. / had watched
the house in which he lived, | had
men stationed at every depot / had
followed out every bit of clue-and
all had resulted in failure. There was
not a thing left to work on. There
was not possibility on which to rest
a hope that / might find the man
sought: And l knew that every day
brought my chances of making the
arrest 10 smaller and smaller proper
tons
And SO it was one night that | came
into the hotel here. / was tired;
was discouraged. And so | determined
to do that thing which l have done
many times before when l have been
blue and worn out and tired-tele-
phone home to my little kiddie, and
have her tell me, over the phone, all
the things that have been happening
In her young life since l left her in
the morning. When the world of
crime seems dark and forbidding, 1t is
good to hear the voice of little child
In your ears, detailing to you all the
adventures of her dollies, all the
things she has been doing, all the
playing she has been indulging in
And so I walked to the operator and
asked for my number"
Then it was. as there came an in,
terruption in the form of a waiter
that | saw the reason that Alice Gle
ment seems always young, always hap
py. in spite of the morbid. gruesome
half of the world in which she makes
her living. She has her foil in her lit
syi,I hn toly
the stain OF the world of darkness
Miss Clement glanced around the
room and continued.
Il had hardly gotten my number
when there came great buzzing and
cracking on the line | jerked the
receiver away from my ear held i
out moment until the noise would
cease, and then called hello again
The answering voice was that of &
man.
"WelI, what became of your came
the question
II started to tell him that he wa.
talking to the wrong person. The1
something, don't know why on earth
caused me to answer differently.
81 wasn't sure of who this was
answered. The reply caused me t.
take more interest in life. There wa
something about the remark-well, d,
you believe in intuition? | do
Has anybody called up? Hav,
they got on 10 me YETI
Not yet answered. But good
ness only knows what is going to har
pen. They're hot after you
l--or, noyoa fha onen,o,