Little Falls herald. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1889-1950, 1913-04-25
b. M |. QUAD Al!
[ Copyright, 1913. by Associated Lit
erary Press.


dress She could not lose it 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 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 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 cutlery she took things
very calmly and finally even laughed
over the loss and said:
"Oh. we'll, let it all 80. No use in
keeping the whole United States upset
about a little thing like this
The case was dropped, so far as any
! officer working on it, but Of course the
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 it in Il common sense way, and
that person was Il boy fourteen years
old. His name was Tom Henderson,
and his father was the village black
smith. Tie boy has since become the
| head Of a detective agency in the west,
! 49,
| 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
if 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 it? And yet
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 it 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 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-
fore he got to it. and then he couldn't
say he had u sure thing. It simply
seemed reasonable theory. When
he started out one day to test his theo-
~ 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 a third OF a BARREL
Grandma, weren't you afraid Of
robbers all the time you had that mon
ey in the house?''
Yes. toward the last. when every
body said I'd be murdered for it,
''And yon didn't sleep well p
II should say didn't: Il didn't sleep
an hour at u time. Something funny
happened to me that last night. l 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. I.
thought some one might have been
looking In and seen where put the
money a
did you tell the sheriff Of this?'
mo. No one got In
"But what was the funny thingr'
why. went to bed and to sleep,
and the next thing ] knew had fallen.
over chair In the middle Of the 6oor.>
! must have walked in my Sleep
The boy beckoned grandma to come
out into the shed with him. and when
they ktood by the tmrrel Of feed he
said GOD
Dig down into it!!'
ID less than Il minute she had her
$4,000 in her hands:
Now. isn't that queer she gasped.:
Il remember Of thinking one day
what safe -hiding place that would
be II there were no r9ts around !"