The Athena press. [volume] (Athena, Umatilla County, Or.) 18??-1942, 1917-08-31

EIva they were entirely mystifed as to
how the burglars had entered. Ther6
was watchman on the outside 9
could not have failed to see them Xs5m
the front, and the roof and back Of the
building showed not the slightest trace
of any forcible entrance.
About two days after this, Shaw, In
passing the house next his Office, saw
young man hastily coming down the
front steps. Something about him
caused Shaw to stare curiously at the
man. Instantly the man turned away
to avoid his scrutiny, and almost
stumbled down the remaining steps.
Shaw purposely stood In his way, and
as the young man lodged him, caught
at his arm.
"Elva Burt!" he exclaimed. "What
does this mean7"
LET me got" she begged. Let me
go quicklyr
"But-" he began.
Don't keep me herep she urged.
And, freeing herself from his grasp,
she hurried on, hailed taxi, and had
vanished before Cedric Shaw could
quite collect his scattered senses.
He went to his desk In dazed state
Of mind. No woman except laundress
or scrubwoman was ever seen coming
out of this house. For the girl whose
delicate womanllness had first of all
appealed to him to be seen in such q
guise, and coming out of bachelor
apartments, was shock from which 1t
was not easy to recover. He had given
her the deepest devotion, the love Of
his life, and he had meant to tell her
this. The blow staggered him. He
meant to see her again, and at least
try to wiring from her an explanation,
but he felt he could not go that day.
Late In the afternoon the telephone
rang, the senior partner took the mes
sage, and when he had hung up the
receiver he called the heads of the firm
together and told them. 1t was from
police headquarters they had made
an important arrest-two men from
the house next door. Shaw felt his
heart stop beating, and things running
before his eyes. What If one Of these
men was Elva Burt2 What If he had
to face her in the prisoners dock? A
detective was now on the way up, and
they wished someone to remain, and
go with him to the cellar. Investiga-
tion revealed tunnel from the house
next door, through which the thieves
had crawled, and which they must
have worked, digging for some time.
The police had not yet discovered the
gems, but they believed they had got
the right men, the janitor and young
fellow. A "young fellow" Shaw shud-
dered at confronting him. They went
down to headquarters. The young fel-
low" was short, stumpy, and red-haired,
and both men protested their inno-
cence.
"Well," announced the chief, "this
was about the neatest bit of detective
work you'd pull off In a month of Sum
days. The finding of that hole in the
cellar was lin dandy. You see. the
detective pretends TO 20 in there TO
inquire about rooms, and all of sud-
den he shifts something, and he yells
out to the 1anltor he smells fire. and
it's coming from the cellar. The min
ute the man unlocks that cellar door.
he's down there ahead of him. and nos
ing around to beat the band. He lights
a bit Of paper SOS he can look better,
puts 1t out, and shifts burnt smell
somewhere. But he's got what he came
for, the sight Of hole, and bricks and
dirt behind box, and he hasn't let on
to the janitor he's seen thing out of
the common, and he's awful sorry he
gave him such scare. He finds out
there's only terribly high-priced
apartment to rent, and Is awful sorry
again, 1t being too much for his purse,
and he gets out, and down here
quickern lightning. And the two fell
lows are Jailed In just about one hour
from that time"
Here one Of the partners asked If he
might SEQ the datectiva Tho nhiaf soid