Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1917-12-17
The Daily
Short Story
MRS. SIMPSONS BOOMERANG.
By Ethel Holmes.

sMoliie." said Mrs. Simpson 10 her
friend Mrs. Mariweather, Are You con-
fident that your husband is true 10
your
Perfectly was the reply.
Il wish | could feel the same abon,
mine. Don't you ever watch him.
Every night"
why, I thought you said you trust
ed him.
Il do not trust men generally in
such matters While l trust Jack in
plicity as an individual, as one of the
male sex, don't trust him at ALL
why do you watch him at night. es-
pecially?"
What mean by that is go through
his pockets for love letters every nigh,
after ne is in hes
Il see that's good scheme; / will
avail myself of the suggestion"
Mrs Simpson did avail herself of the
suggestion and at the end of a few
months was rewarded If it may be SO
considered-with find. In Mr. simp-
sons vest pocket was a slip of paper
on which were the figures, /, a. ,l,7.
In lead pencil.
Now Mrs. Simpson had married in
| opposition to her parents wishes and
/ they had resisted TO many devices.
whereby to communicate in spite of be-
ing watched. Mrs. Simpson, then Miss
| Molineaux, was very ingenious. She
gave Simpson an expedient to use
when he wished TO meet her that would
not cause suspicion He was to mail
her an advertising card on which had
been put in pencil certain figures de-
noting the month, the day, and the
hour. Thus if he wished to see her on
the seventh day Of November. at !
O'Clock in the afternoon, the figures
would be Ii, Z, 3. The place of meet.
ing was always the same and need mo-
be designated on the card.
Mrs Simpson had hardly seen the
figures on the slip she had found in
her husbands pocket when she in-
ferred that her invention Of several
years before had become boomerang.
She collapsed, but not for long. Be-
fore many minutes had passed she had
made up her mind TO interpret the mes
sage and surprise the guilty parties at
their meeting. Taking up the paper
she noticed that the first figure was l.
January was the first month in the
year. 1t was now December. The
next figure was II. might represent the
day of the meeting. 1t was now the
2Sth of December The figure must
mean o'clock either in the morning
or evening What and meant she
could not tell. Doubtless the guilty
pair had invented way to designate
the place Of meeting.
Mrs. Simpson was quite sure that
on the 18th of the next month, at
in the evening her husband would
meet her rival; but since she did not
know where. she could not confront
them.
There was a cold time between Mr.
and Mrs Simpson from the 2sth OF
j, December to the 18th of January Mr..
Simpson was at loss to account for
the reason, but disdained to ask for it
more than once, when she obtained No
, satisfaction.
! 1t was Mrs. Simpsons intention on
the evening Of the 18th of January to
) hang on to her husband like a leech.
! She would prevent his meeting her
+ rival, and would accuse him of his
perfidy.
!, One evening at dinner she asked him
If he remembered the device she had
p given him whereby TO notify her when
: he wished hr TO meet him. He said
. he remembered her ingenuity very well
? and suggested that il ever she became
. obliged TO earn her own living she
. should apply for position in detee-
!, tive office.
: q have often thought since then
a she said how we could add TO the de-
: vice plan to indicate by figures, the
r meeting place"
: Whether Mr.. Simpson refused to be
!. caught in this trap his wife set for him
N TO give her clue to the last two fg-
n ures of the cipher message. or wheth-
er he did not know what she meant, he
did not appear to take any further in
Il terest in the matter and made no re-
! ply.
II On the evening of the 18th of Janu-
L airy Mr Simpson about O'Clock told
! his wife that he had an engagement
,t with his partner to talk over bust
r ness program for the year Mrs.
Simpson stood like statue, listened
to what he said, then handed him the
r slip Of paper saying:
n Il see that You have used my inge-
IN AtillE " communicate WIN Suui ASe
l. fame, but in this case she seems 10
" have addressed you instead OF your
+. addressing her.
al Simpson looked at the cipher then
at his wife.
III you would like to meet her" he
le said calmly. you can do so by going
II with me TO the Office"
e. Mrs Simpson did not understand
J. this move. but she put on her hat and
a sealskin and went with her husband.
r When they arrived there. the Office was
s, lighted up and Mr. Simpsons partner
X was waiting for him
to Jack said Simpson I've found
0r the missing key to our new safe We
to had SO much trouble about couple
lg OF weeks ago"
Simpson took the cipher from his
pocket and explained it to his wife,
ct Il ordered the lock of the new safe
n. to De opened on these numbers.
es stands for the first letter in the alpha
If het IL for the 18th. or 1: for the 9Th
al and SO on, the whole spelling the name
tn of my dear wife.
H. The next thirty days were Mr. and
e- Mrs. Simpsons second honeymoon.
SO ---------..
as
a proved fatal to Elmer Common of Dav-