The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1915-04-15

summer house to the yeranda. and TO
have detected this approach Jones.
had he been watching, would have
needed q searchlight. Beggs Rugged
the lattice work for another ten min
utes and then drew himself up and
~wriggled to one OF the windows. Here
was an operation that needed all his
care and skill: to lift this window with
u sound. But he a an old hand
n windows with ordinary locks were
playthings under his deft touch. He
raised the window, stepped over the
sill into the library, and crouched
down. He did not close the window;
house thieves never do. They leave
windows and doors open, because
ooner or later they ave to make
their escape that way.
Presently he stood up, flashed his
torch, found the library shelves, and
tiptoed toward them. He then selected
three or four volumes. opened them
at random and laid neat packages OF
money between the leaves. II was
not real money. but only a bank clerk
could have told that. This done, ne
moved toward the window again.
Stop" said Jones quietly.
Spider" Beggs gasped, it was so
unexpected; but at the same time al
most instinctively he plunged head
long through the window, and the bull
let which followed shipped a lock of
his hair. He threw himself off the
veranda and scurried across the lawn,
zigzag fashion. But no mere bullets
followed.
Jones turned on the lights and in
ve~stigated the room. but he could not
find anything disturbed, and naturally
came to the conclusion that the in
truder had been interrupted before he
had begun his work. He turned on
the lights and sat up the major part
of the night. Nothing more happened.
Florence came down, but he sent her
back to bed, explaining that some n
had attempted to enter the house and
he had taken a shot at him
Spider Beggs had a letter to write.
He was in high feather, He had
tackled a difficult Job and had come
away without a scratch. But he had
the misfortune to write his letter to
the secret service officials in a hotel
often freGuPnted by Norton. And so
Jim, on finishing his Own letter, biotted
it and casually glanced at the blotter.
A single word caught his eye. Being
an alert newspaper man, always on the
hunt for stories, he examined the blot
ter with care. II was an easy matter
for him to read writing backward,
having fooled away many an hour in
the composing looms. The word which
had awakened the reportorial sense
In him was counterfeit" He held
the blotter toward the mirror and
read enough to satisfy himself that
the Black Hundred had become active
once more. And this was one of the
best ideas they had yet conceived.
Hargreave had always been some
thing of a mystery to his n%eighbors.
Where he had lived in other days was
unknown; neither had any one the re-
hottest idea from what sourc his
riches had been obtained. And moth
ing was known Of Jones or the daugh-
ter. 1t was a very shrewd method
of clearing every one out Of the house
and leaving it TO be examined at leis-
ure. And he had fallen upon this
thing; he, Norton, all because his
tailor had written him a sharp note
about his bill and he had been pro-
voked to reply in kind! Counterfeit
money. There was quite a furry these
days over certain issues of spurious
paper. 1t was so good that only eX-
perts could detect it. There were two
plates, one for a ten and another for a
twenty. For a while he was pulled be-
tween duty and love. Well, 1t would
only add another interesting chapter
to the general story when he published