Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-03-22

clamation. lt hurt him like a SHARP
! wound to hear her make such an astound-
ing statement to this man without raising
her voice or so much as the flutter OF an
eyeld. How could she expect him to
believe her after this2 Still without the
nutter Of an eyeld she glanced saucily at
Craig-and there was a challenge In her
! glance. II was as though she sald-"t
! am doing this Mr. Rutherford, not you"
She turned back to Leclere.
You will find also" she said slowly,
"an affidavit from me covering specific
! ally all persons who have entered my
| home You will find the afidavits of the
| manager and the clerk Of the Hotel Mono
| nth. They will prove to you that my
father registered there exactly % min
| utes after he was through with the GUS
| toms officers at the dock where the
| Gothic landed and that he has lived there
ever since, spending each night and most
OF every day at that hotel"
rutherford said no more and withdrew
his eyes from the girl--though she did
not withdraw her eyes from him He
would have been uneasy had he known
that those eyes were laughing at him. He
leaned back In his chair, busying himself
In studying the menu card. He remem-
bered distinctly the events of that first
crowded day He had heard her father
in the West 10th street house not later
than an hour after he himself had left
the dock Knowing the suspicion at
tached TO the smusgled necklace he was
certain that MIR. Bullantyne would have
had longer seance with the customs Of
fcers than he himself or course, the
presence of tho necklace In his own pocket
had doubtless resulted in an earlier es-
cape for Mr., Ballantync; but certainly he
could not have finished with them gone
across town and registered at the Mono
nth and then gotten downtown to West
10th street again in less than an hour!
Craig sought refuge from this stag
Eerlng weight Of evidence by puzzling
again over the unexpected appearance of
HeIderman that afternoon Then he sud
denly remembered that the banker had
deliberately brought up the subject of the
blue buckle on that first meeting on ship
board.
Like a flash II occurred to Craig that |
Helderman's interest in II and that OF |
Miss Aranv might he identical! He did |
not recall having seen them together On |
the Gothic but the banker might have |
met and mingled with many passengers |
unknown to him. 1t would he quite natu-
raj that Miss Arany, evidently n for
eigner, should have rested her claim to
the buckle in the hands of this blatant |
flnancier whose queer connections abroad
had brought him to her attention Hell
dermen might we'll have heard of the
Sophie and have come in person to see
what tho Ballantyne faction were doing
to outwit his client It was clever lit
tie ruse and had worked admirably.
II must examine ana verify these" OBJ
served the lawyer ut will take the bet
ter part of week.
And then - ?" the girl questioned
eagerly leaning forward, her eyes spar
king with excitement.
"On Friday of this week--if can man
age it by that time" said Leclerc. look
ing through his thick glasses as though
he had only now discovered n humanness
and charm in this new client. Meet me
at o'clock in the afternoon"
"Here?" she finished, too impatient to
await the slow speech of the man at law.
"No-at the offices of my correspond
ents, Cowen, Covngton & Brown, 80 Mas
sau street. VIII you undertake to pilot
Miss Ballantyne downtown" he asked
turning to Rutherford.
The latter took a memorandum book
from his pocket and consulted its pages.