Fulton County tribune. (Wauseon, Ohio) 1883-1925, 1920-04-23
CHAPTER lV-Continued.

"Oh, no, she must never know. Dad
did not want her ever told anything
about it. We talked it over, Claire
and 1, and decided to put a personal
advertisement in the papers. 1t sim
ply said, Liberal reward and no ques-
tions asked for return of important
papers,"
'Were there any answers?"
"Yes and no. One morning there
was a second note"
Delivered like the first?"
"Yes, 1 found it, too, on the floor
of my bedroom. Here it is"
More amazed and perplexed than
ever by the growing ramification of
the plots of the thieves that seemed
to involve us both, took the paper
and read:
"Ten thousand is our price for the
papers. Pay it or you'll never marry
Thayer"
did you go then to meet the man
in the park?"
"Not until after 1 got third note,
more threatening than the first and
second. Claire and / talked it over
aud over, trying to think who could
have taken the papers. We only Keep
two servants now, Sarah and Mary,
and they both have been with us since
we were children. 1t could not nave
been either of them. They think as
much of us as our own mother does"
"Do you suppose the man that she
married may have learned of your
fathers death and have returned from
France to try to blackmail her?"
"We thought of that. The notes did
not come from him. They do not read
as if a Frenchman wrote them"
"Who could it be?" 1 said more to
myself than to her.
"Then there was another note" she
went on. "It demanded that Claire
wear a red carnation and meet the
writer in the park and bring ten thou.
sand dollars. That was the time ]
first met you. Your presence must
have frightened them off, for we had
no more demands until night before
last"
did you have ten thousand witt
you that night first met your"
She shook her head
1--WE haven't ten thousand dollars
in the world. Outside of our furniture
and our jewels and our motor, Wa
have very little. If all the bills W,
owe were paid, we'd have almost moth
ing at ALL"
"What did you propose doing whe1
you met the manor men?"
81 didn't know. I was going to tr.
to plead with them to give me the pa
pers. I would have promised anythin,
to have gotten them back"
"But the man-the men-migh
have harmed you"
She smiled incredulously.
Hardly. There was little DANCE
of their attacking me there in tn
park so near the avenue, with peopl
constantly passing, and besides, cal
ried this"
She reached again into the pocke
Of her habit and brought forth
vicious-looking automatic.
at was Dads" she said. "H
taught me to shoot with it, though
don't think either of us thought the
there would come a time when Nigh
need it."
"What did the last note sayT
"Here it is"
| This was written and folded as th
others had been, on the most ordinar
kind of writing paper. 1t read:
"Unless we get the money Wedne.
day, Thayer gets the papers Thursda,
No wedding then for yours. Sam
bench at six-thirty."
"What can do about it?'
"rn go in your place." I suggeste,
"Oh, no, 1 couldn't permit that"
"Let me explain" hastened to sa,
"rm in this mystery as deep as yo
are. Only last night discovered tht
all the CASTOR jewels which had bee
left in my custody are gone"
"Not stolen" !" she cried. "The Ga
ton pearlsw ~
"Yes," 1 replied, "the pearls, too"
"Why, they are worth two hundre
thousand dollars, at least. What hay
you done about it? Have you notifie
the police?"
mo, as yet have told no one of Il
robbery but yourself"
"Why not? You must notify the p
lice at once"
/ hesitated. It was hard to expla
my actions without telling her Il
whole miserable story, without ADM