Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1918-04-28
THE EXPLOITS OF SEAGBARK JONES y BY Ellis Parker Busf

of sickness to death. We will now oneF
for sale a few bottles of Shagbark oil
AT 81 per bottles for six bottlesI
after which will solve the mystery
that is worrying this here town Of
The sale Of Shagbark oil was prompt
and satisfactory.
And now. friends and fellow-ci.is
zens. he said when the sale had reach4
Cd satisfactory proportions. "remems
ber that the fun grand musical enter
tainm"nt and anatomical lecture VIII
he given here every afternoon and
evening for the rest OF this week. And
We now come to The mystery that IL
hotherinG everybody In this town Is
Mr.. Hinjin or Mr.. Iforth I'm tho audi.
cnce"''
Roth here some one shouted
Well" said ShaChark. lin llttls
while I'm goin' to tell you when a safe
amt a safe. and Mr.. Hiniin and Mr.
fiorth can tell You whether I'm right
or not. There was burglary here
lately and the burglar got away. Some
OF you here seem to think IL a sort
of mystery whore this here Sims Tudd
went to when he jumped down OF tho
road. Seems like he dissolved himscIG
into thin air and foated away. orr
No. 2"
Orlando brought on. the battered
chart and held it up before tho crowd.
=, The trouble with you folks" said
~
around and lookin' around and don't
come to Shagbark Jones and ask him
10 consult the stars when you want
TO find out things. Now. here's Venus
sort of sayin' 'Howdy'. to Mars. That
means somebody disappeared And here
is Mercury at right-angled triangles TO
Uranus. That means somebody painted
picture of short fat man And a
tall slim man on a piece OF tin and
tackled II on tree. And what's this9
Neptune and tho Great Dipper right IN
cahoots together. That means Jug
of water"
Some one laughed. Then they all
laughed.
And here's the Milky Way" Grated
ShaGbark. THAT means about 5ooo
folks in Meotock who don't know when
they've been told what is what"
Shaghark stopped.
"Go on some ore cried. Tell rs
where Sims Tudd is
Tell you. dod-whi~ it: l haze told
you," shouted the Mystery Man. He
shook his head sadly. some folks has
to ~. told and told" he mourned. II
said Sims Tudd had disappeared. didn't
u ! said there was jug OF water
didn't l. Well. do ! have TO say any
more You amt that stupid. are YOU:
Tin sign-juE of water-Sims Tudd"
The faces Of the crowd. lighted by
the gasoline-f flares. were like thou-
sand ear ger interrogations. They walt
ed breathlessly.
"Over there across the river" said
Shagbark this here astrology chart
tells me there is a tin sign tellin' about
Hinjin & Hortll havin' jewelry store
It's nailed onto tree right where this
here Sims Tudd disappeared. It's big
sien-big enough TO cover up a sort OF
door a man could saw in the side OF
hollow tree with a sharp-pointed saw.
once he started a hole with n brace and
bit \ man like Sims Judd could take
a jug of water and some food and hide
in that tree with bag of loot. and stay
there until folks got tired watching the
place, and nobody would ever think OF
suspecting she tree, because they had
seen that sign on it for years"
Orlando leaped down from the deck.
Come on folks he souealed In his
shrili treble. and more than half the
crowd ran after him. shouting and
laughing as he made for the foot Of the
bridge that spanned the river
while we are waitin' for the return
of the posse. fetchin' Sims Tudd back To
his loving friends" said Shagbark. I'VE
will proceed to sell few bottles OF
Shagbark oil"
How about When is safe not a
safer" some one shouted.
why. when Hinin e. Hor'h forget 20
lock it, answered Shagbark. When
Hiniin thinks Ho-th has locked ii. and
Horth thinks Hinjin has locked il. and
they see the joke is on them. safe Is
not a safe. ladies and gents. when 1t IL
aiar. like the door you may have heard
Of"
This. it proved. was indeed the an
swer to Hinjin & Horth's famous CO.
nundrum. for it was discovered. when
Murphy and Black Pete led the leg
cramped Sims Judd into the light of
the gasoline flares. after having OMEN
ed his tin door in the tree and walked
him across the bridge at the head OF
the crowd, that he had not sandpa-
pered his fingers like the renowned
Jimmy Valentine. He had. to his amaze
ment. found the safe door ajar.
- - Ill
where he was hidin'." said Shagbark to
Alice that night 1T was dod-whixed
clever of him. to think of hidin' in
tree right before everybodv's ewes, as
Won might saw. 1t wasn't fair to spoil
it by set.in' ShaGbark Jones onto the
mystery. I feel sort of sorry for him.
the poor dod- whillixed tree-nymph,"
Copyright. 1915, by Mcclure SynacatcD