The Jasper news., 1920-05-20

"10u WIN, Miss Cullt1On. xou
haven't proved Fendrick caused your
fathers disappearance by foul play.
and you haven't proved he committed
the robbery. Point OF fact I don't
think he did either one. But II GER
tainIy looks like he may possibly have
manufactured evidence"
Curly snorted scornfully. You're
letting your friend down easy. Mr..
Bolt. BY his own story he was on
the ground minute after the robbery
took place. How do we know he
wasn't there a minute beforef For
II he didn't know the holdup was 60,
ing to occur why did he bring Mr..
CullIson's hat with him punctured 80
neatly with bullet holeeT
Hold your hawses q while, Flan-
drau, and look at this thing reason
able. You're all prejudiced for Cul-
lison and against Fendrick. Talk
about evidenced There's ten times as
much against your friend as there Is
against Cass."
"Then you'll not arrest Fendrlckr
"when you give me good reason to
do It," Bolt returned doggedly.
The four adjourned t. meet at the
Del Mar for a discussion Of ways and
means.
"We'll keep q watch on Fendrlck-
see where he goes, who he talks to,
what he does. Maybe he'll make q
break and give himself away" Curly
said hopefully.
"But my father-we must rescue
him first"
"As soon as we and where he Is.
Killing him wouldn't help Cass any.
because you and Sam would prove up
on the claim. But II he could hold
your father a prisoner and get him to
sign a REIMBURSEMENT to him he would
be in a fine position"
"1f we could only have FendrIck ar
rested"
"What good would that do7 II he's
guilty he wouldn't talk. And II he
is holding your father somewhere In
the hills It would only be serving no
tice that we were getting warm. No,
I'm for a still hunt. Let Cass ride
around and meet his partners In this
deal. Wen keep an eye on him, all
right"
Maybe you're right" Kate admitted
with a sigh.
Sheriff Bolt, though a politician,
was an honest man. II troubled him
that Culllson's friends believed him to
be a partisan in a matter of-thls sort
Forf1ich reason he met more than
haIfNNay Curly's overtures. Young
rlandrau was In the Office Of the sher-
III a good deal, because he wanted to
keep Informed Of any new develop
| ments In the w. & 8. robbery case.
II was on one Of those occasions
that Bolt tossed across to him a let
ter he had just opened.
'I've been getting letters from the
village cutup or from some crank, /
don't know which. Here's a sample" /"
The envelope. addressed evidently In
disguised hand, contained one sheet
Of paper. Upon this was lettered
roughly,
PLAY THE JACK OF HEARTS"
Flandrau looked up with a sugges-
tion OF eagerness In his eyes.
"what do you reckon 1t meansI' he
asked.
Search me. Like as not It don't
mean a thing. The others had just
as much sense as that one. l chucked
them into the waste-paper basket One
came by the morning mail yesterday
and one by the afternoon. Tn no
mind reader, and I've got no time to
guess fool puzzles"
Curly emptied the basket on the
floor and went over Its contents care
fully. He found three communications
from the unknown writer. Each OF
them was printed by hand on a sheet
of cheap lined paper torn from q
scratch pod. He smoothed them Out
and put them side by side on the table
This was what he read:
"HEARTS ARE TRUMPS."
WHEN IN DOUBT PLAY TRUMPS.'
"PLAY TRUMPS now"
There was only the one line to each
message, and all of them were plainly
in the same hand. He could make oui
only one thing, that someone was try
ing to give the sheriff information il
a guarded way.
He was still puzzling over the thin
when boy came with a special deliv
cry letter for the sheriff. Bolt glancet
at It and handed the note to Curly.
"Another billy doc from my anxioul
friend"
This time the sender had been ii