Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1917-07-10
The Message in the Air

busily in the plaqity, Everyone seemed
honestly, industr| at work.
Looking out Of aperture pre-.
pared for the put .ance Allison
saw nothing suspI Yet Monsieur
the General had = so sure that in.
formation was leaking, in some mys-
terious way, from this very room.
Lance had been surprised that the
fame of an American detective should
have made any impression in France:
more surprised when the General, on
learning, his identity. had personally
solicited his aid.
Sitting with ears as well as eyes
alert, his quick brain began to dis
( sociate the sound Of the typewriters
one from another.
That tall girl in black-the one with
the pale, pale face. he amended in his
thought, so many alas! were in black,
that girl wrote with an even mo-
notony in consonance with her ex-
pressionless countenance. H
The pert little lass in blue seemed
to write each word with an emphasis,
for her spacing was noticeable each
time.
And so 1t went, each typist showing
some marked popularity as his ear
picked out the particular rhythm.
His examination had reached the
last one, and for the first time he OBJ
served its operator closely. Some
1 thing familiar and different about that
girl. !. a. Not her clothes, nor her
couture nothing he could put fin
ger on.
Then he caught the click of her ma
chine. Different from any Of the
others, it seemed to jerk out the
words and syllables with amazing ir-
regularity, dwelling on one letter.
sighting another, pausing between.
Here, too. was something hauntingly
i familiar.
In the meantime men came and
went, and Lance's watchful eye follow
ed the slightest movement made by |
each newcomer. At any moment some
signal might give him clue to the
disclosures which the General de-
( clared seemed to be made daily.
A timid country lad entered, wiping |
the dew of embarrassment from his |
brow. After some awkward hesita- |
ton, he conferred with one of the
clerks, evidently stumbling and halt
ing In his Inquiries.
No word Of the colloquy reached |
Lance's ear, but he suddenly became I
aware of message in the air-clear.
deliberate, reiterated!
Fifty thousand English left Paris I
this morning. Destination, Arras.
An hour later the girl who somehow
n s.r49f fao = different. was confronted IN
the private quarters Of Monsieur the
General by Lance Allison, American !;
detective. Bright-eyed and defiant, she
smouldered under the guards re-
stEaint. III
*You are an American!" There was
curt reproach in the detectives tone.
sWell, what of that" she snapped.
How came you traitor, to the
ATTEST"
Then. as she did not answer, he II
bowed to Monsieur the General. II
This girl gave out her information
.toa young clod-hopper to-day. More
than likely some other one yesterday
and the day before, or to him in a
different disguise. At any rate, they
were men who could spell English
or American" he added whimsically.
"But how? How, Monsieur lie detec-
tive? He approached her not-nor
even looked toward her"
mo-" smiled Lance. "but he had his
ear cooked in her direction"
He turned to the seething girl.
Now, make clean breast OF it,
Miss. You are done for. What evil
spirit prompted treachery in one born
under the Stars and Stripes?"
Suddenly the smouldering fire burst
into the flame of speech.
Twas Jean Armand, the low-down
dog! Pretended to love meme! Kiss
ed me-took my hard-earned money
for his own comfort. And then--the
day he went to the front-he married
Elsie, stupid, wax-faced doll!
Them swore to betray France as he
had betrayed me-and I have done
it,"
But how" The Generals question
was addressed to the detective
by the clicks of her typewriter,
Monsieur. She practised peculiar
jerky touch so tLat it would become
unnoted. Then when spy came in
was the hand on the heated brow the
signal, wonder?-she talked to him
by the dots and dashes Of the Morse
code with as much clearness as if
the words were breathed into his ear
yes, and 1t took an American to
find me out" she glowed with strange
exultation. "These conceitcd French
les we're all at sea. And-Jean,
the husband of the fat Elsie, fell
yesterday under charge from troops
] sent to meet his regiment-so-1
don't care what you do to me, now.