The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1916-11-03


him to he 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 mem" 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 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
lust the bunch of blockheads he took
US for"
but Ransom might throw the flow-
er away"
'Of course he might | asked Dur
| gee what he looked like. He said he
was tall chap in gray suit, had
| light hair. smoked cigarettes and wore
a topaz ring on his little finger.
They laughed scornfully.
LAS If we had time to stop and take
inventory of every man who came
through the gate" scoffed one. II
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
I'VE better be on hand then-same
! place"
| They scattered. and Ransom, who
had stepped behind a pillar, evidently
waiting for n taxi. smiled in salts
fed way as he went back into the sta.
ton.
He stepped into telephone booth
and called Il law office.
There was brief dialogue in which
Ransom told the state attorney what
he had escaped and that the villains
would be waiting for a man with a
marigold in his buttOnhole on the 9:4J
train that night.
At 9:15 that night John Ransom
mingled with the crowd that stood be
fore the bulletin board in the Crane
Central terminal His keen eyes had
singled out the three plotters, and ht
had pointed them out to dozen quie,
looking men who were also scattered
through the crowd.
The minutes dragged. An officia
chalked messages on the blackboard
The Boston express was twelve min
utes late: the Western Limited was
on time. At 9:4O he announced thu
train. and the crowd hurried to tract
% and waited outside the lines.
John Ransom was there. and so were
I Tie Three plOltelS, tHeii laws Siih oh'
resolute.
The gate opened, and the crowd o
incoming passengers poured through.
The three plotters jumped forward
A man with a yellow marigold hat
passed through. They were about t.
follow him when there came anothe
man wearing yellow flower and still
another, until it seemed that every 9th
err man was wearing marigold in hi
coat
Am dippy?" demanded Jim hoarse
~ of his companions.
Somebody is" growled Bill. What
all these guys wearing yellow flower
forf"
Beat it," whispered Dan. Meet mi
at Leghorn's place. I'm going back t,
Buffalo tonight to fix Durgee What.
he making fool out of us for will
his yellow What do you want?' hi
ended shrilly as a firm hand CLOSED
on his arm.
He looked up into the determined
face of man wearing yellow mari
gold-a familiar face. the face of /;
Buffalo detective. And another one
wearing a marigold, was escorting Jim
and Bill also had a plain clothes mar
all to himself
The plotters would have battlcd, only
mt the first sign of resistance there
gathered a score of detectives, al
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
\ few days afterward John Ransom
availed himself of Cousin Phoebe's in.
vitation and went to the Harpers
house = iaquire after Cousin Phoebe
and Fido and incidentally, of course
Nan
She seemed 50 glad to see him that
he forgot al! about Fido and Cousin
Phoebe and thought of no one save
Nan. lie 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