The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1916-12-28


him to be sure to come and see her,
and she gave him the Harpers' ad-
dress.
Il suppose you know it already"
added Cousin Phoebe, las you and Nan
are such old friends
Nan blushed, and so did John Ran
som, and then Nan grew pale. and
Ransom turned quickly to see what
had caused the sudden change of color.
The three conspirators were coming
toward them, arguing in low tones.
Are those the men?" asked Ransom
quickly.
Nan nodded BE careful she whis-
pered, and then the car started and
left him alone.
He stood there rolling a cigarette,
his ears keen to catch a word from
the three men.
"Durgee played a trick on u.s. NUT
tered one.
what did he say when you tele-
phoned him just now?'
"Oh. nothing, except that Ransom
was wearing a yellow marigold when
he left Buffalo. and if we didn't know
a marigold when we saw one we were
just the bunch of blockheads he took
us for"
But Ransom might throw the flow
er away"
"Of course he might l asked Dur
gee what he looked like. He said he
was a tall chap in a gray suit, had
light hair, smoked cigarettes and wore
a topaz ring on his little finger
They laughed scornfully.
"As if we had time to stop and take
inventory of every man who came
through the gater' scoffed one. Il
told Durgee to tag him plainly
There wasn't any yellow marigold
came through that gate" insisted an
other.
"Maybe he's coming on another train.
There's another at 9:45 tonight"
eve better be on hand then-same
place."
They scattered. and Ransom. VINO
had stepped behind pillar. evidently
waiting for a taxi. smiled in a salts
fed way as he went back into the sta
ton.
He stepped into a telephone booth
and called law office.
There was a brief dialogue in which
Ransom told the state attorney what
he had escaped and that the villains
would be waiting FOR man with a
marigold in his buttOnhole on the $40
train that night.
At 9:15 that night John Ransom
mingled with the crowd that stood be-
fore the bulletin board in the Grand
Central terminal His keen eyes had
singled out the three plotters, and he
had pointed them out to dozen quiet
looking men who were also scattered
through the crowd.
The minutes dragged. An official
chalked messages on the blackboard.
The Boston express was twelve MN
utes late; the Western Limited was
on time At $40 he announced the
train, and the crowd hurried to track
% and waited outside the lines.
John Ransom was there. and so We're
the three plotters, their faces grim and
resOlute.
The gate opened, and the crowd OF
incoming passengers poured through.
The three plotters jumped forward.
A man with yellow marigold had
| passed through. They were about to
| follow him when there came another
man wearing yellow flower and still
another. until it seemed that every 9th
err man was wearing a marigOld in his
coat.
"Am dippy?" demanded Jim hoarse-
| ly of his companions.
somebody u.s. growled Bill. whats
all these guys wearing yellow flowers
for?"
BEAT it, whispered Dan. Meet me
at Leghorn's place. I'm going back to
Buffalo tonight to fix Durgee. What's
! he making a fool out of us for with
his yellow What do you want:' he
ended shrilly as firm hand closed
on his arm.
He looked tip into the determined
face Of man wearing yellow mari
gOld-a familiar face. the face of a
Buffalo detective. And another one.
wearing a marigold, was escorting Jim,
and Bill also had plain clothes man
ali to himself.
The plotters would have battled, only
| at the first sign of resistance there
| gathered score of detectives, all
wearing yellow flowers. and in the
center Of these the three flower hunt
ers were spirited away and later
brought to justice for the crimes they
had committed in Buffalo and which
the company would have overlooked
had not they conspired to add murder
to their other sins.
A few days afterward John Ransom
availed himself of Cousin Phoebe's in
vitatiOn and went to the HarperS'
house to inquire after Cousin Phoebe
and Fido and incidentally. of course,
Nan.
She seemed so glad to see him that
he forgot all about Fido and Cousin
Phoebe and thought of no one save
Nan. He told her all about the plot
ting plotters and how they had been
trapped by the cunning detectives.
who had all worn marigolds to puzzle