Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1917-07-13

AT the end of a week he paid Ma
talie more than literally for her la
Dor. By this time they had become
quite well acquainted and Natalie be-
gan to look forward with secret pleas
ure to his visits. One day while he
was in the inner office there came q
telephone call from the lawyer, who
was in court. He requested Natalie to
consult the case book in the vault and
phone him the names OF certain wit
nesses in a suit he was defending.
The vault was kept always closed
and locked, as Mr.. Hull, who made
loans, kept considerable money there
at times. Natalie hurried to it and
turned the combination. She was
scarcely in the case book when she
was seized from behind. A strong
hand pressed handkerchief saturated
with chloroform over her face. Ma
talie, struggling, was appalled, to rec
ognize her visitor who had stolen into
the vault noiselessly, and then her
senses wavered.
When she recovered consciousness,
Natalie found herself in a chair kept
in the vault, where she had been care
fully placed. She could scarcely credit
the evidences of her senses. Beyond
the shadow of a doubt her visitor was
a clever thief, who had made a pre-
tense of the copying to secure chance
to rifle the vault when it was unlocked.
She glanced with apprehension at the
money box. It lay open, but not a
penny was missing, but the former con-
tents of several pigeonholes were
scattered on the floor of the vault
What was the mystery? What had the
young man so deftly, patiently plotted
to secure? Hull came into the office.
Natalie told her story. The lawyer be-
came fearfully excited when she de-
scribed her visitor. He examined the
papers on the floor of the vault, and
Natalie heard him groan! Its the
brother. He has foiled us. The pa
pers are gOne!'
He summarily discharged Natalie
1t was week later when, looking for
a new place of employment, Natalie
came face to face with the young man
who had given her the copying to do.
He did not evade her, in fact he told
her frankly he had been waiting to
see her.
Il eve you an explanation of my
rude, but necessary conduct" he said,
"And / wish to make it nOw," spoke
Gerald Hope.
Then he told Natalie that he was
the brother of Mrs. Inez Burleigh,
whom Hull had been Matchmaking.
He had seen no hope of putting an end
to the persecution, save by robbing the
lawyer in turn of the fatal letters.
(Which / did not succeed in secur-
ing" he said seriously, 'for when /
came to examine the envelope bearing
the name of my sister, found nothing
but blank sheets"
(Which | placed there, out of pity
for your sister," said Natalie at once,
"braving the suspicious of Mr.. Hull
when he discovered the substitution"
and she told the whole story, and
asked Mr.. Hope to accompany her to
her home. There she handed him over
the letters he so coveted.
''You must come to see my sister,"
declared Hope, and the visit led to
new friendship for Natalie.
II was almost daunted in my plot to
secure those papers, after 1 had known
you q day or two" said Hope one day,
"for I had learned to love you, as l
have just told you. So imperative was
their possession, however, that | acted
the footpad complete"
"For which / forgive you" said Ma
talie, with a radiant smile, 'for it has
brought us a mutual lifelong happi-
ness"