Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1919-12-10

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snatched off her thin slipper. and the
last glimpse got of her as 1 turned
the corner showed her ramming it into
the crack Of the front door to hold it
open.
What she did next she told me later,
but may as well put it in here. 1
was out of sight when the man blus-
tered up to where she stood in the
open door, looking up and down the
street for somebody to call.
"You may as well tell that young
man Of yours" growled he, "that if he
don't let me in I'll break the door in"
II don't think you WILL" she said
calmly. snow CO."
"Not till get what I came for" he
said, taking hold of the door and try
ing to move 1t and finding it mysteri-
ously wedged open.
swell, you'll not do that this trip"
said she with spirit. "He isn't there
and he wasn't there. He was in the
she pointed to the seance room, the
door of which he could see stood
open-"and while you were trotting
upstairs he ran out for a policeman.
If you don't believe It wait and see
for yourself"
At that the fellow seized her arm
and tried to pull her back into the
house and shut the door, but found it
still wedged open, he could not see
with what, as he was on the inside.
But the moment he laid hands on her
she began to scream, "Help! Help!"
as loudly as ever she could.
He didn't wait to see what hap
pened-as matter of fact nothing
happened, for there wasn't soul in
sight on West End avenue when she
screamed.
"Pll have squad Of police here my
self to help you if that's what you're
AFTER" he flung back as parting
threat when he bolted down the steps
and disappeared around the same cor
ner that had just hidden me. But that
was the last she heard of him that
night. She pulled her slipper out of
the crack and shut the door. Then
she went all to pieces and had cry.
= y
AS for me, when / left the house, |
crossed the street, turned south and
into the first cross-street I came to. 1t
seemed as though everybody knew I
had million dollars in my stocking
and was just waiting to nab me, or
hand me over to the next policeman.
But as nothing happened became a
little more coherent, though had the
feeling I was being followed all the
time, yet I couldn't spot my shadow.
NV whole energy of mind was bent on
giving my pursuer the slip. When at
last I spied subway station jumped
off the car, made bolt of it for the
stairs, rushed past the ticket chopper,
throwing a nickel into his box, board
ed q train that fortunately proved to
be a north-bound express; got off at
the next station and took local; got
out and took another express anC got
out for good when the guard bawled,
"Huddn-n-forty-fif t," walked round the
block where / live, and when there
wasn't living soul in sight ducked
into the front door of my apartment
house.
The elevator was rafting down from
upstairs but didn't wait for it. / tip
tocd up the stairs, the descending ele-
vator drowning the sound of my steps.
let myself in, put up the chain-bolt
and took a long breath. Then my
knees suddenly crumpled up under me
and 1 went all to pieces in heap.
It was almost two o'clock before /
found strength enough to undfess, and
I was so day I could hardly get my
clothes off. While / was doing 1t l
had brief thoughts of keeping on my
stocking and taking the diamonds to
bed with me; but l decided no
there's limit to ones obligations IN
a case like this: If burglars come to
burgle-and have you ever noticed
how very near burglar feels when
YOU have million dollars in the
house?-Tll let them burgle. I'll not
help, but I'll not hinder; life is too
uncertain at its best. So set the box
on the edge Of the dining room table,
conveniently, where burglars who
were looking for just such a shabby
little box filled with diamonds couldn't
fail to see it the instant they jimmied
the front door off its hinges, or got
in from the fire escape, or crawled up
the kitchen dumb waiter, or came
down the gas log into the fireplace.
And then I went to bed-and slept,
expecting to find that box exactly
where put it.
CHAPTER v.