Pierre weekly free press. (Pierre, S.D.) 1889-19??, 1915-04-29
: III MI an
I'LL iii III
VI--Continued.,

~" SAS poAAS hiAN
laughed aloud.
1T would have to be a very big
needle or a very tiny camel cried she.
Well leave that to the imagination"
said he, as we do most everything else
that really doesn't matter"
Eric's eyes cleaned with a sudden
discovery.
What are you doing in Tasmir, MI.
CARR"
II was locking for a much sharper
thing than a needle said Adam Carr.
Did you find it,"
II did"
Eric's voice thrilled with excitement.
Il know what you are now. Gee! He
gazed at the masklike face in open
eyed wonder. You are a detective"
Sometimes l doubt It," was Adam
Carr's extraordinary way OF acknowl-
edging his profession.
A two hours run brought the tug to
within hailing distance of the heteroge-
neous fleet of small craft, cruising in
the outer bay. There was no mistaking
the business of these slow moving
boats. big and little. They were en-
gagged In the hopeless, the imbectle task
OF dragging the Day, an undertaking
inspired by the command of Horace
Blagden himselG. Not that Horace, who
was a calm and sensible a thought
that the bodies could be recovered
from the %boundless, shifting waters by
any such means, but hat he regarded
1t as his imperative duty-you might
say his personal prerogative-to make
such a showing Of resoluteness, such
defiance of the utterly impossible-that
all Corinth would rise up and say in
the same breath that he had at least
left no stone u%nturned. If the simile
may be applied to the case.
Dozens OF boats of all descriptions
were plying the blue waters Of the bay.
Recognizing the futility of their efforts.
the crews lay back at ease. smoking
opposite direction from that which
their business required; they looked
lazily at the blue sky from the fiat of
their backs. instead Of at the water
In which 1t was reflected. They were
being well paid for their efforts. which.
after all resolved itself into a sort of
special pageant arranged for the per-
petuation of Horace Blagden's name
for indomitableness.
The tug blew It's triumphant blasts
n even as the futile searchers awoke
from their lethargy. hurried past them
toward the docks. almost scornful In
Its haste. Behind trailed the aston
ished, irritated boatmen, a long line OF
odds n N converging to a certain
point.
Call up my uncle's house and let
him know" sal Eric as they clamb-
cred to the pier.
No. objected Adam Carr, you'll
be sure to find him at the bank. A lit
tie thing like this wouldn't disturb the
habit of a lifetime"
Sure enough. Horace Blagden was
at the bank. Over the telephone, in
response to the message from the dock
he said:
Indeed. Well, 1 declare. Tell Eric
to go home at once. His aunt Is wor-
rial NrhN Qn,rtI thny,C Ho~rC Ar1
him to stop at the bank in a day OF
two. Thank you Goodby."
For two or three days after his re-
turn to the Giants Castle" Eric was
vaguely aware Of a troubled, pre-occu-
pied look in his sisters eyes; ark cir
cles began to appear beneath them
and a certain pathetic usefulness
came into their depths when he seemed
to be asking questions of her with
his own puzzled. but observing eyes
At first he attributed these signs to the
worry and grief that must have tor.
tured her on that eventful day ant
night, but as her ve-y gladness in hav.
ing him with her once more seemed
tinged with a strange, unusual reserve
he was at last forced to believe the
there was something else OF her mind
Her Joy in seeing him had been wild
almost to the point Of delirium. Sh,
uau SODDeu ia Ills dIllS LOT hours, i
seemed to him., and she was reluctan
to have him out of her sight. He,
somber. p~laintive eyes followed hin
| everywhere, until he began to feel
haunting dread OF them.
She was paler than he had eve
known her to be. and h was spirit
less; a most unnatural condition 70
full OF the Joy Of living.
On the morning Of the day selecte'
by the committee for the awarding O
the prize, he bluntly commanded her t
tell him what it was that troubled hel
They had been chatting with old Jabe
lodge, and she had failed utterly t
respond to the jokes OF the perplexe'
old man. who crustily demanded tn
cause OF her Crouch" Eric notice,
that Adam Carr studied her pale fac
with peculiar ~intentness. The detectiv
had been telling him Of his interview
with Horace Blagden q few days be
fore. At the mention OF Chetwynd.
name. the girl looked up with a quick
half frightened CLEAN In her eyes.
What Is 1t, Mary? Tell me-" pleade
Eric as they were walking homewar,
across the meadow.
It's nothing. Eric" she protested
over and over again.
There's something wrong" he In
sisted. Il know 1t. You can't foo ms
grille. What's up?" He waited for
moment and then blurted out: "Wha
has GhetHyna -heel eIng2,
She burst into tears and threw her
self upon the ground at the foot OF tn
great oak near the gate in the wall sur
rounding the Blagden place. He, wa
down beside her In an instant. pleading
begging. urging her to tell him every
thing.
Then the story came out