Askov American. [volume] (Askov, Pine County, Minn.) 1914-current, 1915-07-22
The manager shrugged his shoul.

banking-room. IF there'd been any.
body else in 1t with him, where are
they now? They wouldn't disappear
in the air, you know, and they weren't
blown to atoms, because there was
no soup used. Talk facts!"
The cashier of the Manhattan Ma
tional had been informed at once of
the watchman's attempt and his death.
He arrived about seven o'clock, heard
the detailed story, and quite agreed
that Summers was guilty. He relocked
the vault door, and dismissed the po-
lice in an effort to hush up the matter,
as the safe had proved an efficient
guardian of the funds In its trust,
and there was no loss to the bank ex-
cept the lucky one Of the dishonest
Waterman.
Before Christopher Poe finished
reading the news story, he found
himself at the door of the Manhattan
National. As he entered, the cashier
stepped toward him with q look of
relieved recognition.
Il see You have read it all In the
papers. That's an accurate write-up.
The reporter was one of the first here.
We tried to hush the thing up. We
must muffie the clamor about this dis
agreeable business. Just dishonest
Waterman, which may cause US the
loss of public confidence"
Yes, / feared that as / read this
account. It's written rather lightly"
answered Poe seriously. May l look
at the safer"
Having looked at the safe, Poe
asked to see the body of Summers,
and was led to the presidents private
room, where it had been carried.
He scanned the corpse In quick,
comprehensive glance, and asked,
Where's the missing thumb"
"Oh, here!" answered the cashier,
pointing to a heavy piece of wrapping
paper on which lay group Of OBJ
jects taken from Summers pockets,
and the severed thumb. Poe turned
the thumb over, looked closely at
the nail, made a superficial observa-
ton of the rest, and turned to the
cashier
Kindly send a messenger with this
digit to Doctor Robinson, on Thirtieth
street and Fifth avenue. Please ask
him to cleanse 1t thoroughly, restore
the skin where it has been bruised.
and put some of his liquid glass mix
ture on it, SO 1t can be handled and
examined. Tell him to send 1t to my
apartment within two hours. Now II
you will be so good as to ask the jani-
tor to bring me his longest ladder,
will see IL / can crawl through the
middle ventilator back there. the one
with the glass cut out completely"
"What?" cried the cashier.
Poe had stepped to the cashiers
side, and remarked:
Don't you see, there's no glaze on
that middle window: it looks dull COM
pared to the others. l 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 steplad-
der?
The cashier went of to hurry the
| ianitor, and when he returned Christie
pher Poe stood inspecting the slight
trail OF blood extending from the vault
to the Burglary Insurance company's
signal-box.
Nobody could have crawled through
one of those windows" cried the
cashier anxiously, as he returned.
They're too small 1t would be i'm
possible. Besides. look at the bars"
Poe made no reply. but climbed the
ladder quickly. When he reached the
top, he rubbed his finger along the
edge OF the sill, and pulled In his lower
lip refiectively. He ran his free hand
through his outstanding brush of brown
hair, and then fiattened his palm
cred 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 endeavored to push
his shoulders through the window
frame, but they were too broad Glanc-
ing up at the bank roof, he found it
quite as impossible that any one could
have reached the ventilator from there
as from the ground. The only chance
was that the window had been gained
from the adjoining building, q vauda-
vile theater, twenty feet away, which
made it seem unlikely
Wriggling back through the window,
Christopher Poe descended at once to
the floor of the bank. The cashier
and several clerks stood in an aston
ished group, evidently awaiting an ex-
PLANTATION from their eccentric director
But they received no satisfaction.
See you later" Poe nodded to the
| cashier, and strolled out.
Turning the corner, he followed the
sidewalk which led him to the rear OF
| the bank He stepped into the TWEEN
ty-foot gap between the bank and the
| vaudeville house, and picked up the
| steel grating which had dropped from
its window-frame.
| Rotten" he commented, twisting
| out a corroded bolt Been there
| twenty years without attention Too
small a thing to he worth looking
| after"