Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1918-04-21
BOUT three weeks after the al

BOJJT three weeks after the ar
IN rest of New Pangburn for the
N\ murder of Grill Taggus-and
s y the arrest was about the mid
e Of July-that remarkable old medi-
me faker and mystery man. ShagbarR
ones, arrived at the leyee at Harden
1wn, on the Mississippi. and BLACK
etc. his giant negro crew. made the
',ouseboat Euripides fast to a conFe-
3, emit pile of wet lumber.
The Euripides had been on its way
Gown the Mississippi from Galendale
:ar something over a week and nail
FOR Shagbark had started as soon as ne
beard Of the murder. The heavy erai'
iad come at something better than a
ynairs pace, stopping now and then on
lie way. and the last previous stop had
been at Buckgrove Landing. some SIX
miles above Hardentown. Buckgrove
landing was where the murder had
neen done.
Old Shagbark had made the stop at
yuckgroye Landing to allow his daush-
ter Alice to go ashore and investigate
sor she was his eyes and legs when ne
rad a mystery on hand. At Buckgrove
A.aIl
satchel of infallible greast remover
which was her excuse for getting INTO
conversation with people, and 1t was
understood she would not reJoin the
boat until it reached Hardentown- Inc
nlan arranged by Shagbark, was that
she should do her Investigating at the
scene of the crime and then climb the
bluff and get to Hemmers Corners as
best she might. That was where the
rangburns lived When she mao
-l,n ha n
across the river by the old steam ferry
and rejoin her father-but now as the
hig negro Pete made the boat fast to
the lumber pile at Hardentown, Shag-
bark looked in vain for Alice. She had
not yet arrived.
The murder, of which Shagbark had
read in the Galendale papers, was an
unusual one. even as recorded by the
newspapers. when Shagbark first read
Of it. Grill Taggus and his shanty had
been blown to atoms in an explosion
so violent that the shanty was shat
tered to splinters and the shallow cell
lar scooped out entirely, leaving a
deeper and wider hole. The murder had
been done one stormy evening The
next day Ned Pangburn had appeared
he could hardly stagger. and had
boasted of the murder. He had been
arrested and thrown into jail. where
he was still held on sixty-day sem
tence for being drunk and disorderly.
closely watched by his lawyer. Ehoch
Cargile.
Half an hour after the Euripides had
landed. this man Cargile shuff1ed up
the gangplank. Orlando. the monkey
like cook. was on the small foredeck
peeling potatoes. and he yelled for
What do you want. dod-whix it?'
growled shagbark from the interior of
the boat.
"There's man out here wants to
see you" piped Orlando.
TIL be Ding-u-el J. DANCED If
know who he IS" answered Orlando.
HE amt told me-"
Cargile put his head inside the cabin
door.
"Cargile-E. cargiIe." he said II
want to talk money to you"
You come right on in, E. Carit lie. :"
said Shagbark.
The mystery man was stretched out
cob pipe. He slid his feet to the floor.
rubbed his hand over his matted hair
and blinked at the door.
If there was in Hardentown a lawyer
unpleasant description Of shyster law
yer, Cargfle was that man. He had a
thin, wolfish face, a scraggy beard,
shffty eyes and bent shoulders. 1t was
generally OeileVeu he would go as near
the edge of crooked dealing as any
man in town. More than once he had
got Ned Pangburn out OF trouble and
had been we'll paid for 1t; and as soon
as he had heard of the murder and of
the arrest OF Ned Pangburn he had
hurried to the jail and had made him.
self Ned Pangburn's protector
Cargile had been we'll enough salts
ned with what he had been able to do
for his client until he heard of the ar
rival Of the Euripides. He knew Shay
bark Jones had come to Hardentown at
this moment. He knew that the old
medicine faker meant to solve" what
ever there was OF mystery in the muir
der. because that was Shagbark's way.
A murder mystery meant money to
Shagbark Jones. The belief that Shag-
bark Jones could solve any mystery on
which he set his brain to work, had
spread up and down the Mississippi, and
the news that he had arrived always
meant crowds in attendance at his
anatomical lecture and grand musical
entertainment, and big sales Of Shay
bark oil and Shagbark liniment. Car
gle guessed that Shagbark had come to
Hardentown to solve the Grill Taggus
n3xstsry.