The bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1916-09-29
SECRET SERVICE WATCHES
y. THE SPIES FROM EUROPE

'"s 'he Gay. One morning when he
euihe 10 work an old sailor who w,s
engaged as an attendant in his Office
approached him with worried mir
and said:
interested In Blotters.
Sir there is something going on
mere that you ought to know about.
1ou burn your papers every night hut
"nat 90 you do with your blotters?"
| why said the officer, II leave
them on the desk and you throw them
away. presume"
Yes, l throw them away." soid ,he
old man, but l could sell them--and
Tor good price, too. That's what |
thought you ought to know about"
The officer turned pale.
Have you one of those used blot
ters abOutT he asked.
The seaman handed the officer a
plotter he had left on his desk the
previous evening and which the faith
1ul fellow had saved because of his
suspicious.
Inc officer snatched 1t and held 1t
before small mirror. The inverted
signs made by the blotting were thus
rendered lcgible. by heavens!" he
exclaimed; tell me about this offer
for the used botters!"
1t seems that the night before
rather shabbily dressed man had
stopped the sailor on his way from
work and asked him If he would be
willing to make few cents extra each
week by selling the waste blotting pa
per. He declared that attendants In
offices where number Of clerks were
employed were doing the same thing.
He offered to pay 81 week for the
blotters from the office in which the
aged sailor worked. This seemed too
big price for the extremely few blot
tiers used, although the stranger said
he wanted them for a new process Of
making ornaments of a sort Of papier
mache.
what did you tell him?" asked the
officer
Secret Service on job.
II said would give him an answer
SoOn," the seaman replied, "but he
seemed in big hurry and left me
telephone number, insisting that call
him today"
The fficer sent messenger to the
secret service bureau and operatives
we're at once put on the case. In
natter of minutes device had been
attached to the telephone wire rum
ling to the number the man had CIV
N and an operative could hear every
word that passed over the line with
tut any interference with the connec-
ion.
Everything being in readiness, the
attendant was sent out to telephone
he suspected man that he could have
he blotters. Meanwhile it had been
earned that what the stranger said
bout buying used blotters from the
Jerks offices was true, and as moth
ng of importance could have been
earned from these it began to look
S though suspicious of a plot were
nfounded. Still there was a possibil-
ty that this had been done only as
lind.
The secret service operative ut the
eceiver Of the wfre-tapping device
leard the aged man call the suspect
md tell him he could have the blot
ers. A little while later this man
allied a number and q woman's voice
ANY success?" she asked.
II can let you have some of tlfe very
,est old blotting paper" he replied.
Daily deliveries G. O. D.. It's only
,sed slightly and you can reclaim a
air percentage, believe"
To the secret service operative &C.
}. D." meant code, Every best" meant
lavy, as the navy code Is recognized
IS the very best In existence, and the
emainder of the sentence meant that
S the blotters were not badly smeared
With ink they ought to yield few