The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1913-12-31
BOOK ~.
a Specter at the Feas
CHAPTER !.

""at the Box Contained. ~
Jessie Wizards visit to Ru "
van Vechten partook more of th.
lure of a visitation-as of Soma lfk
Ing shrine's patron saint; for bv
uroay night he had so far recover
.nat, at his uncle's repeated urgent #
ilcltatlons, he was able to attire hi
SELF in the habiliments of formalf'
ana attend the directors meeting j
winch already he had been notifie,
IN the gallery Of the dinirs,room-
modelled after Thane Cedric's BANQUET
ing-hall-an orchestra dIscoursed svn
copated melody IN blissful ipnoranc,
OF anachronism. The president O
sne continental Union Banking anf
trust company and the head of the At
,as oafe company occupied seats O,
nohof, and their long laudatory re-
sponses put the finishing touch to Ru
uoiph s impatlence to be up and away
Midnight approached like the tor.
mlnatlon of sentry's winter vigil
ana as ne determined to slip FROM mis-
seat near the long tables foot and
ma his hat and top.coat. there came
a diversion that stayed him. Bv con.
trast, any interruption to the oratorv
was interesting.
me butler noiselessly approached
the mead OF the table and held a whis-
pered colloquy with the host. After q
minute or two the Man of Iron nodded
tne Dutler stole away, and the man
VINO was speaking at the time. realiz.
ing That something extraordinary was
impending, paused. faltered, stopped
and sat down
-FOUR men, clad in overalls and ium.
pers. entered, carefully bearing among
them a large oblong box. They halted
and upheld it with patent effort while
Mr.. Van Vechten arose and, in his nm.
impassioned manner, addressed his
guests. '
Gentlemen" said he, some Of orr
friends have not forgotten the occa.
SION we are assembled here tonight to
ceieprate. We have here, | am as.
'ured' something that will commemo-
'ate this happy event in most re-.
narkable and fitting way :"
ana much more to the same effect.
Iheh a space was cleared in the
center of the long table, few Of tbe
lmers welP disturbed, and the hoy
vas deposited thereon. The nortor.
withdrew.
Everybody eyed the innovation on.
a bit distrustfully too
ne box, suggesting as it did the end
human endeavor, was not an in.
center-piece, nor was it in
armony with the temper of the eve.
ing; but after much jocose specula.
on respecting Its likely contents at
10 hosts command servants appear.
! WIN screw-drivers, and, amid an
ipectant hush. the lid was removed
The disclosure coming as it did into
10 very heart of the companys good
imor, was realized only resultantlv.
r the box did not belle what if sng.
'sted, 1t really contained a coffin.
le distinguished by it's elegant cream.
iored silk-plush covering and pure '
se-gold ornamentation. The lona ~,
tension handles were of the same u
etal, as was also the name.nlate "
ION this latter was single engraved =
e: b
"THE TIME LOCK- d.
With the injection into the bancuot st
an element SO sensational and u
r'iihg, Rudolph Van Vechten's de. y
to depart vanished; he was not ;,
'nected by the excitement that ~
red the rest of the company. But ca
sently he observed that the Incl. Wa
u conveyed special meaning To
tain OF those Observation-Disclosures ma
his uncle. thi
vas the whole thing a huge nrao. Sic
i joke? for
ne Man of Iron pointed ont that 1or
was, 1t must have been an e~ to
sive one for the perpetrator Then