The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1914-01-11

The cashier OF the Manhattan Nationa
had been informed at once of the watch
about seven o'clock, heard the detailed
story and quite agreed that Summer
was guilty. He reloo&ed the vault door
and dismissed the police IN an effort I,
| hush up the matter, as the safe hac
proved an efficient guardian Of the fund
| In its trust, and there was no loss L
| the bank except the lucky one OF tht
| dishonest watchman.
| Before Christopher Poe finished read.
| Ing the news story, he found himself a.
the door Of the Manhattan National. as
ae entered, tho cashier stepped toward
| him with look Of relieved recognition
He bowed slightly. with Difference. ano
! pushed open the door TO his private. office
| papers That's an accurate write-up
| The reporter was one of the first here
We tried to hush the thing up. We
must muffle the clamor about this DIS,
watchman. which may cause US the loss
OF public confidence.
Yes. I feared that as ! read this
account. It's written rather lightly.
answered Poe seriously. May I look at
the safe?"
Certainly. certainly" said the cashier
quickly, leading, the way 10 the vault,
moving deliberately. calmly. beneath
heavy brown brows. as he took in every
detail of the room.
liaNllE lODAeU at INC saIes roe aSEeu
to see the body of Summers, and was
led to the presidents private room, where
1t had been carried
He scanned the corpse in quick.
Where's the missing thumb?'
"Oh, herew answered the cashier.
pointing TO a heavy piece OF wrapping
paper on which lay a group, Of objects
severed thumb. Poe turned the thumb
over, looked closely at the nail, made a
superficial observation OF the rest, and
turned TO the cashier:
digit 10 DIR, Robinson, on Thlrtieth street
and Fifth avenue. Please ask him to
cleanse 1t thoroughly, restore the skin
where II has been bruised, and put some
OF his liquid glass mixture on It, SO 1t
can be handled and examined. Tell him
to send 1t TO my apartment within two
hours
Poe made casual inspection OF the
personal effects taken from the dead
mans pockets. There was nothing 'un-
usual among them. Two pencils, a
some matches. a quill toothpick, an odd
button and few miscellaneous papers;
nothing that a night wntchman should
not carry.
patched the messenger, Poe asked
abruptly:
where's his watch?'
~ don't snow answesed astsS me he chadies had
watch. but II was decided that he wasn't
carrying one He had his roundsman's
clock
'Tt's no matter" replied Poe, but he
did have watch, and It's gone See!"
He gingerly pulled out the lining of Sum
mers vest pocket with the remark IT 3
chamois. his wife sewed 1t In; see where
the weight sagged 1t, and the wearing
backened the slSln?' Re stepped to
corner wash ba asln and rinsed his hands.
Now" he said, III you Will be so good
as to ask the janitor TO bring me ms
through the middle ventilator back there.
the one with the glass cut out COM
pletely.
Poe with Wide eyes, and then rushing
through the door into the open banking
room TO stare up at three narrow sllts
OF windows in the rear. twelve feet above
the top OF the bookkeeping cages. The
windows were secured with bars. and
the cashier at first glance could see no
difference between the middle ventllating
window and the other two no,ss All b,SS gere ana o1
twenty inches wide
Poe had stepped to the cashiers side.
and remarked:
that middle window; II looks dull COM
pared 10 the others. 7 noticed 1t as ]
came in. The pane has been cut out
around the edges. with. great precision
so no warning wires should be inter-
fered with. Where Is the stepladder?'
The cashier went off TO hurry the jani-
tor. and when he returned Christopher
Poe stood inspecting the slight trail OF
blood extending from the vault TO the
Buglary Insurance company's signal box.
Nobody could have crawled through
one Of those windows cried the cashier
anxiously, as he returned. .'Thevre too
look al the bars
Poe naae no reply. but climbed the
top. he rubbed his finger along the edge
reflectively He ran his free hand
through his upstan nding brush Of brown
hair. and then fiattened his palm agoinst
the ornamental bars that covered the
aperture. As he did so, the grating OF
bars fell out. and he thrust his head
quickly through the hole, looking down
to the ground twenty feet below, He en-
deavored 10 push his shoulders through
the window frame. but they were too
broad. CHANGING up at the bank roof. he
found n quite as impossible that any
one could have reached the ventIla,or
from there as from the ground. The
only chance was that the window had |
been gained from the adjoining building. |
r vaudeville theater. twenty feet away |
which made IL seem unlikely.
Wnggling back through the window |
Christopher Poe descended at once TO
the floor OF the bank. The cashier ,and |
several clerks stood in an astonished |
sroup' evidently awaiting an explanation
received no satisfaction
See YOU later" Poe nodded 10 the
cashier, and strolled out.
Turning the corner. lie followed the |
sidewalk which led him 10 the rear Of |
the bank. He stepped into the twentv |
foot gap between tho hank md the vaude |
Vile house. and picked up The steel graf |
ing which had dropped from It's window |
ira me.
Rotten lie commented. twisting ont |
corroded bolt Been there twenty
years without attention. Too small q |
hing 10 be worth looking after"
He threw the window grating down
iisgustedly. and glanced un ct the wall |
of the thcater opposite. There was a |
ire escape tutting out. about two feet |
oevond the line Of the building almost |
opposite the middle ventllstina window
n the bank and only two feet lower |
iovn. but eighteen feet away. The |
Kicker Of an idea flashed IN Poe's violet |
eyes; he entered the lobby Of the tbeater |
md with some difficulty obtained pernIs.
'ion TO explore the seldom used fire es |
ape.
Standing on the narrow landing. out
'ide a second-story window. he learned |
hat the fire escape was OF the self
idtusting. counter balance ordar--an
arrangement devised so that the low
'St section would connect with the
ground only when actually needed |
rhe iron stairs formed ladder about