Evening star., 1920-11-21

the 18th. the day the option expired.
he bought the hotel with a New York
draft for $4,000. and opened An so-
count at the old mans bank with .
old man wrote. He was carrying .
little black handbag full Of furniture
catalogues and decorators estimates
and plans he had drawn for remodel
Ing L, The A! !ground noor Of the stilton.
put it in the. bag and went Off to
make a deposit with the contractor
who was to do the remodeling. One
OF the boys from the hotel happened
to be at the Central depot about 3
Palmer going through the gates. but
he didn't speak Of 1t until the old
man began to worry because Palmer
hadn't turned up for dinner. He was
afraid Palmer had been blackjacked!
0NEXT morning he found out at
the bank that Palmer had drawn
all but fifty dollars of his five thou
out to be phoney.
They brought the case to US. but
Palmer had made q clean getaway
There was nothing in his trunk but
some hotel sheets and bundles OF old
newspaper. to give Il weight. Our
Babbing had finished his correspond.
ence. He began to walk up and down
the room in an idle interval. Hes
probably in town here now"
!! What makes you think 30. chfef?"
Why didn't you wire US? That 3
o'clock train is one Of the slowest on
the line. 1t doesn't get here till s:so
next night"
I'VE didn't have the case till late
yesterday morning. And there was
nothing to show he came this way"
He'd arrived last night. Did you
"Yes. but he was wearing a beard
and mustache'
How old?'
! 'They say about thirty-nve, and
heavy hundred and seventy or
maybe more. Five foot eight or nine.
Dressed to look like . prosperous
hotel man. Light eyes. blush gray.
Nothing peculiar about him."
| Babbing was standing at the win
| dow looking out over lower roofs Of
wholesale houses to the ferries of the
North river and the docks and Chin
| neys of the Jersey shore. It was an
invitingly clean and bright spring
day. ia like to try a long shot at
| that fellow" he said. and little Bar
ney's heart leaped with the blind in
stinct of setter pup who sees prepa-
Il tSIIOHS tut
! Snider took his hat from his ankle
and his ankle from his knee. eat
I Paimer?"
Babbing drifted back to his desk
and sat down.
Got a hunch. chief~'
| Snider asked 1t in the wistful man
ner Of envy interrogating the inscrut
able. Babbing stared at him, thought
fully. Snider blinked ana waited.
Babbing said. at last: TT was rain
ing hard last night at eight. thirty.
Hs wouldn't shave on the train"
! Snider put his hat on the floor and
leaned forward intently we couldn't
run out all the barber shops in town,
| could we?"
He'd go to hotel and get it OF
/ in bis room"
! Snider's expression indicated that
there were almost as many hotels A.
! barber shops
| Babbing glanced at his watch. "I
| can locate him In an hour II I can
! locate him at all" He rose briskly.
| tell you whore I am as soon as get
in touch with anything. Where's my
bag? Dump those reports into # :"
He opened the door Of clothes closet
| in a corner by the window and took
out q soft black felt hat. black
! on the coat. and II looked AZ proyin-
cial as a linen duster He shook out
the rolled umbrella. untidily. Come
! on. boy" he said to Barney Garry
that bag" Barney grabbed it eager
i ly. "Th's is no day to be in school,
Is it," Babbing said to him at the
door. And Barney's throat was so
4 choked with excitement that he could
only gulp and grin.
Snider. seeing them go. had the
puzzled eyebrows and the doubtful
smile Of the man who does not believe
4 that you can do 1t but would like to
know how you propose to begin. To
find, in the city of New York, a swim
dler whom you have never seen, OF
| HON YOU have no accurate descrip-
ton who may not have come to New
1 York at all, and who will be carefully
concealing himself il he has come!
No such doubts as Snider's occupied
Barney's mind. Of course He had
other things to think OF. He had his
first ride up Broadway in taxicab
for MISUNDERSTANDING along in a
bouncing rush Of luxurv whose in
credible cost grow On the taxir :: Q