The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1915-02-04
CHAPTER VliI.
The Case Of Miss Virginia PLANK.

The Case of Miss Virginia PLANK.
n NOVEMBER JOE and had been
III following moose Since day
l break, moving without speech.
Suddenly FROM somewhere
ahead there broke out the sound Of
two shots and after Il minute Of two
more.
Two shots going on at steady inter-
vals.' said Joe. That's call for help.
Tnere they go again. Wed best fol-
low them up"
We travelled for half an hour, guided
by the sound. and came in sight of a
man standing among the trees. We
saw him raise his rifle and fire twice
straight upward to the sky
Its Plank said Jue in surprise
What? The millionaire you Went
into the woods with to locate timber
last year,"
"The Identical man.'
AS we approached Joe hailed him
PLANK was thick shouldered. stout
man, his big body set back upon his
hips. his big chin thrust forward in
way that accentuated the arrogance of
his bulging lips and eyes.
"Ho. It's you. Joer' he cried.
"Yes. Mr.. Plank"
THAT is lucky. for l need your help
My daughter was murdered yesterday"
The words made me gasp. and not
me only
Miss Virsinnyr' cried Joe You
can't mean that. Nobody would be
brute enough to kill Miss Virginny!"
AS We walked PLANK gave us the fol-
lowing facts: 1t appeared that he had
been spending the last two weeks in
a log hot which had been lent him by
frieI' Ny Wilshere.. His household
consisted of one servant-his daugh-
ter's nurse. Il middle aged woman whom
they had brought with them from New
York-twe guides and man cook On
the previous day Miss Virginia had
taken her rod after lunch, as she had
often done before, and gone off to the
river to fish
"At went to join her. She was
not there. Her rod lay broken, and
there were signs of a struggle and the
tricks of two men. I shouted for Ed.
the old guide. He came running down,
aud we took up the trail 1t led us
straight over to Mooseshank lake The
r,1ffians had put her in our own canoe
and gone out on the lake"
PLANK paused and presently contin.
ued:
We went round the lake and found
on the far side the spot where they had
beached the canoe. Leading up into
the woods from that point. we again
struck the trail of the two men. but
my daughter was no longer with them
When they left the canoe they were
goir & light. They must have drowned
her in the lake. It's clear enough
Presently l saw something foating Oh
the water. 1t was her hat
Had Miss Virginny any jewelry OF
her!' asked Joe.
"a watch and necklace"
''What yalue?"
'Seven or eight hundred dollars"
Huh" said November refectively
"And what did you do after finding her
hat!''
We trailed the two villains until
they got on to some rocky ground. II
was too dark then to do more. so we
returned Five thousand dollars if you
lay hands On them" he said.
By the river the traces were so plain
that any one could read them--the
slender feet of the victim and the
larger footprints of the two men. The
fishing rod. snapped Off toward the top
of the middle joint, had been left
where it had fallen. 1t seemed as IL
the girl had tried to defend herself
with it. Next we went to the lake.
November literally nosed his way
along The moccasined tracks of the
two men showed family here and there
on the softer parts of the ground.
Looks as If they was toting some
thing" said Joe. ''They must a car
ried her. Stop! They set her down
here for SPELL
Another moment brought us over the
rise and in sight of Mooseshank lake
| halted involuntarily The place seem
ed created for the scene of tragedy.