Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1913-09-11

early In the month, and most boarding.
houses are let from the first to the
flrst." Since tho place. for the time
being, was OF no use to any one else,
Inspector McGee took the precAution
OF setting guard over 1t. Az another
; precaution for remote contingencies,
he left Captain Hanska's room undis.
| turbed.
| To this house, plain four-story
building Of worn brick near it's turn
for destruction In the next transforna-
ton OF impermanent New York--came
Captain McGee and Resale Le Grange.
They approached with all the caution
Of forothought, entering the block
through an once building on the next
street, opening the area door with a
pass-key, going into the house by the
basement door at the rear ty
Ugh! hate to touch It," said
Rosalie, drawing her skirts away from
the wreckage Of the cellar. "1'm glad
I wore my old clothes. Guess Mrs.
Moore never kept this place any too
well--an' with this dust an your un.
tidy cops, Martin MCGEE, it's just scan
dalous now. Well, come ont" And SO
she dragged her police escort through
floor after floor, room after roon--at
first a. superficial survey and then
minute search.
[ ''Itx huntin' for needle In hay
stack when you don't know for sure
whether you dropped 1t in the barn
yard or the pasture" said ROsalie -
she settled down to the moro careful
stages Of her search. .S$
What ia the needle. anyway? = asked
McGee.
II amt sure It ID needle--it may
best air Of mystery.
This was a house Of four stories. In
Mrs. Moores reign 1t had a dozen oc-
Icupants, what with boarders and serv-
ants. Each room held . score Of those
|imipedimenta, large and small which
the completely Of modern life has lain
upon the simplest OF us. Not an arti.
Gle but might be the mark which would
set Resale upon the trail The pre-
iliminary search-reinforced by old
Questioning among her boarders had
given Rosalie the lay OF the land. The
lparlor, the dining-room and Mrs.
Miss Harding and Miss Jones lived In
were two vacant rooms-for Mrs.
lperous days. The third floor, where
iby Mr.. North, Professor Noll, and
Captain Hanska. Tommy North had
the front room. Ncll and Hanska
NJ 40 xh
Captain Hanska's room, the main
objective OF Rosalie's search, was to
the right OF the passage. The top
floor, again, had only one occupant
Miss Estrilla. She lived at the rear
Of the house, where the lights were
lower. Her room was directly above
Professor Noll's. Across from Miss
Estrillas and above Captain Hanska's
lumber-room, the catch-all for trunks
and odd furniture. e
AS they came to Captain Hanska's
made GRAFTON.
you cam See" he said, that 1t was
an inside job. Beginning on the roof
hatch which goes down into the lum
1
lations, the hatch couldn't be locked,
but 1t was closed inside by bolt. That
hadn't been monkeyed with. In fact
the dirt around the edges showed that
the hatch hadn't been opened for .
long time" 5#
"And the fire-eecape?" asked Rosa
I lie, pursuing her brows with concen-
tration.
Runs from the lumber-room
straight down. Passes at the third
floor the windows OF Captain Hanska's
room. The corresponding room on the
second floor is vacant. That nreescaps
violated the Are ordinances-some one
should have been pinched. In the hrst
place, you couldn't possibly reach It
from the roof, on account Of the over.
hang OF the caves. Then 1t stopped
short at the second fioor-and there
was no ladder below. Fire little way
to break bones in case OF IRE! To
reach It from the ground, q man
would have had to Jump sixteen feat
lin the air. "A professional acrobat
couldn't have done it-unless they
teach 'em In the circus to shiny up
smooth brick wall. No one entered
Iby the basement, either. Windows and
Idoors all bolted inside and showed no
Fsigns Of being tempered with. You
see, It was this Wade fellow, or an In
side Job. And while we're talking
labout locks"-here Martin McGee
|opened Captain Hanska's door and
stood with foot on either side OF the
Threshold this is a little piece Of cyl.
dence rye figured out myself. Notice,
The had springlock. Mr. Moore says
Ehe put it on himself. That indicates
The was afraid of somebody Wade,
4 probably. Him being 80 particular on
that point, 1t was only natural he
should keep 1t locked when ne was
lasleep. Now look here"
This was an "inside"sprlng-lock Of
1.-The ordinary pattern. It could be con-
Itrolled from without only by the heJ.
within. however, was knob and 2
button by which one could turn back
1.-The catch and render II temporarily
useless as lock. well, now said