Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1917-08-24
Stolen
Diamond
A Case OF Double Detective
Work.
By DONALD chamberlain


One winter when congress was in
session I was invited to the national
capital to spend a week with my
friend Jim Treusdail In company with
others. forming very pleasant house
party. Jim had not been long mar
ried, and wassa bachelor. have
always thought that his wife got up
the affair especially for my benefit and
that Of Miss Mildred Sweet, Mrs. Jim
desiring to make match between US.
II she did she had no trouble, 80 far
az I was concerned, for I had not
been acquainted with Miss Sweet ten
minutes before remarked 60 myself,
That's the girl am looking for"
I have theory that good way to
win girl Is to conjure up something
in which you and she may have q mu-
tual interest. Fortune favored me m
this wise:
One evening at dinner Mrs. Jim show
ed plainly that something had hap
pened. She said nothing to any of the
guests and when they spoke to her
replied In monosyllables. Treusdail
labored hard to keep certain amount
Of life in the party, but was not sue
cessful.
After dinner Jim took me up to a
little den he used to hide away in
and told me what was the matter.
His wife had lost diamond as big
as hickory nut. II had been handed
down to her from five generations and
been turned over to her on her we'd
ding day. She had taken 1t out Of
its receptacle to wear 1t that evening
at reception that was to occur at
the White House and had left 1t on
her bureau while giving some direc-
lions about the dinner.
He had no sooner told me this than
1t required to me to make a detective
Of myself for the purpose Of discover
ing the thief and to take Miss Sweet
into the business with me. BY inter
esting her In the case hoped eventu-
ally to turn that interest from fhe
gem to myself.
I asked Jim good many questions
but only elected the information thai
every servant in the house during his
wife's absence from her room was
downstairs and quite busy, most Of
them With the preparations for the
dinner. The men guests were all In
the billiard room. Two of the women
guests were dressing In their rooms
for dinner and after that the function
at the White House. A third, Wild
ow, Mrs. Jernegan, with little daugh-
ter, Ave years old, had finished her
toilet and was assisting her nurse to
put the child to bed.
Mrs. Jernegan was my first choice
for the thief. Women who are not
dressed don't run about in another
persons house, and Mrs. Jernegan was
the only person on the floor at the
time the stone was lost went to
the White House reception with Miss
Sweet and during the evening told her
about the loss and began to excite her
curiosity as TO who could have been
the thief.
1T would be a nice thing" said,
'1f you and I, working together, could
recover the stone and turn 1t back to
the rightful owner"
"Indeed, 1t would" she said, "but
how can we do thatT
81 don't know that we can, but we
can try"
l conflded to her that suspected
Mrs. Jernegan. She did not especially
fancy the widow. but could hardly
bring herself to feel that she had
stolen the diamond. | told Miss Sweet
that she. being n woman. could keen
an eve on the suspcct be.ter than 7
and she agreed 70 do 40
had a uttIo scbcmo nm nv s,oovo
m connoi Ntru Torrooo, 20 sLo,, no..
colora n sbo wero entity or corroo
TINT wos NOT nroving her guilty or
getting bock tho Stone but n would
servo for n Glow invItod n norty
incIud,ng ura Jorrooon 20 ytsi, ~
conItoI NIss sweet yos os course
with no Af,or sbowIno tbo nor,y
through tho huiIdino 7 tool them mn
int tbo do,no rharo 4, ,,h,ano,,,,a
goIIorv In ,hts dono ,n u,htob a ,n,oe
spooLi no, on ono s,Ido oon 30 hoord =.
Tho o,her roo,,,n, .ho r,tdo,r o., 90
s,do 90 ,ho don,o , 81. NJ Co..
halfway round Tho sorntc,rcio ond
wotchInc I'm No Iornaaon NO. aan