Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1918-12-16
The Daily
Short Story
A STRANGE ADVENTURE
By Ralph Hamilton.

youth and there was sentiment 10
his generous action. AS time went
on | fitted into the groove OF farm
life contentedly and there grew up
between us a mutual friendly affec-
ton.
His land holdings afforded mere
| livelihood. l had just passed TWEEN
| ty-one when the peace of our lives
! vas rudeIy disturbed. A letter ar
| rived from the city signed by an
attorney informing Mr.. Bart that
note which he had Endorsed for
! $500 for a friend two years before
was due. The friend had paid in
| terest and renewed the note, and
had died, leaving nope OF the prin-
cipal liquidated.
Il shall have to pay the debt" "
( Mr.. Bart sighed distressedly, and
| his only way was 10 mortgage his
little property.
| l was loath to give up the happy
life l was leading, the more so be-
cause in becoming acquainted with
| Gladys Ellis / had found the only
woman 1 could ever love. My duty
was plain, however, and l said one
day:
Uncle Josiah" l so called him,
you managed to give me a fair
education along with all the other
| benefits you have bestowed upon
me- Let me use it for year or two
N business life and see what 1t will
do towards pulling us out of our
mire of debt"
knew little of the. great, teeming
marts of commerce. l had fondly
believed that there was a place
ready in the busy metropolis for
one willing to work, but was soon
disillusioned. An odd transient job
| or two saved me from actual star
vation. without references, eXpe-
rience or influential friends, I was
| unsuccessful.
l started on foot for a smaller
! city one day, pretty well discour-
I aged.
/ l shall never forget the day when,
within few miles of my new des-
| tination, l awoke from a sleep of
fatigue and exhaustion IN the midst
/ of a sheltering thicket The sound
. of music and voices had disturbed
/ my sodden slumber. Peering
| through cluster of bushes l view
| ed three men arrayed in unfamiliar
! costumes, with tawny faces and
| bright, cleaning eyes. They were
| squatted tailor fashion, upon the
green sward in a semi-circle. Be
| side one of them was a small OBJ
long box. "a second was blowing
soft, mOnotonous notes from a red
flute. The third was waving his
hand in a swaying rhythmical way
as though Yoicing some sort of an
! Incarnation. Suddenly there arose
in the basket a brilliantly metal
| hued serpent. 1t darted it's head
| hither and thither in consonance
with the music and then, its part
in the ceremony or entertainment
concluded, coiled back into its cot
| ton nest
Then one of the men drew a strip
! OF cloth from his breast and spread
il open. My eyes were dazzIed with
the sparkle of many flashing gems.
One of them. as large as a hickory
nut, fairly blinded me with its prts-
matte intensity.
Three days later on I YEARLY
trOd the pavement of a blind court
connecting two thOroughfares; /
lad found no work in the little city.
and had just about made up my
mind that fate was against me and
that there was nothing to do but
return to the farm
Suddenly something grazed my
hat, struck my cheek, which tingled
and smarted from the contact, and
fell at my feet. AS l lifted my hand
10 my face | found that it was
bleeding. Then I noticed the OBJ
5ect flung or dropped from some
window in the big office building.
1t was the core of an apple It had
split in two as it struck the pave
ment and protruding from one sec
ton was a blaze of brilliancy.
| picked it up Lo, and behold!
"a perfect, precious diamond, and
one of its fasces it was that had
grazed my cheek.
l do not know why, but at once
the stone recalled the three Hin
docs and their hoard of gems. The
mystery of the imbedded gem
could not solve. Why had it been
thus cast away? By whom? star
60 up the front of the structure. but
no one looked out or, down, that /
could discover.
Going around to the front of the
building | entered it, to find its
various floors given over to offices
Of jewelers., manufacturers agents.
small jobbers in various lines. and
The like. No enlightenment came
TO me until l passed an office from
which two policemen were leading
hashily dressed man and a richly
arrayed woman.
They stole the GEM" | heard an
excited voice say. and in some sur
prise / recognized the leader of the
HlndoO group. True, they have
been searched and nothing found.
But make them confess, recover the
precious Diana gem and | will paw
you one-yes, two thousand dol
lars"
The throng about me were dis
cussing the visit OF The man and
wife, professional thieves. | later
learned, pretending they wished to
buy diamond. Later still, | rea-
soned it all out The man had en-
tered the place, casually eating an
apple. He had distracted the big
diamond from its tray, secreted il
IN the apple core and tossed il to |
the court, where later he planned
TO recover il.
The HindOO was true to his word |
He promptly, gleefully paid me the |
promised reward. Then home. |
Gladys and happiness,