Charlevoix county herald. (East Jordan, Mich.) 189?-1953, 1920-02-27

cases had disappeared.
And now | stood hesitating at the
telephone. Sef-protectiOn babe me
notify neither the superintendent nor
the police. Yet | must do something.
The Jewels entrusted TO my care had
been stolen. The thief must be found
and the pearls recovered.
Why should not I myself play the
detective? / had abundant leisure
now My great-uncle had Informed
me that there was something wrong
in the house and had charged me TO
discover what ii was. Here was the
opportunity for me to fulfill the trust
he had imposed or me.
The thought flashed across my mind,
too, that perhaps the crafty old gen.
tleman had deliberately planned the
disappearance Of the gems. Perhaps
he had devised an elaborate test to
see If | was honest. if | was of the
right caliber to be his heir. Maybe he
and his wife had not gone TO Maine
at all. They might even he quartered
in another apartment in this very
house. SurreptitiouSly entering when
they knew | was absent There real
ly had been no necessity for them to !
give me the combination of the safe. &
They need not have told me anything
about the pearls. | wondered If they
themselves might not have taken away
the jewel box just to see if | would
discover the loss and TO ascertain
what | would do about IT,
Another theory suggested itself. My 30
aunt evidently priced her jewels high
ly. After they had started she might
have repented having left them behind
and have sent the old cOlOred butler
back to get them. He Of course
would have a key TO admit him and
they would have supplied him with
the safe combination as they had me.
Probably he had been told to leave
some message for me and had forgot
ten to do so. More shan likely in a .
day or two | would receive letter
from old Rufus that would explain
everything.
was glad now I had not notified
the superintendent nor the police. My
ical than the first II seemed prepos-
ferrous that they would risk hundreds
of thousands of dollars worth Of gems
just to test my honesty.
Still, determined t6 make thor
ough investigation. IF they had been
stolen, I would set about in a scien-
tific way to discover the method of
ton. would keep my investigation
secret, and if II turned out that the
pearls were safe, no one would know
Of my fright about the mQtter 7 be-
gan outlining my work asa detective.
First, would examine the safe
knob for possible finger prints.
Second | would interroeate Mrs.
Burke I would watch her carefully
for any appearance of guilt. would
try, without arousing her suspicious.
to ascertain If she had let her key
out of her possession.
Third, I would insert an advertise
ment offering a reward for the return
of the jewels so wordcd that only the
thief and myself would understand.
Fourth, | would try TO locate the
Gastons and would question the hall
boys and telephone girl rs to whether
they had surreptitiously returned.
Fifth, must try and discover what
was in the mysterious letter that had
led TO my discharge. While this did
not seem to have any connection with
the other affairs that were troubling
me- IL I was TO remain in New York
and become better acquainted with
Barbara Bradford. as I fOndly hoped,
| meant to have nothing hanging over
me.
was about TO get into bed. had
turned out the light, in fact, when /
recalled the errand that had led me 10
open the wall safe. had more than
two hundred dollars in my trousers
pocket and | purposed putting il
where 1t would be safe. With the
feeling that if the jewels had disap.
peared, so might my money, | pressed
the light button in the sitting room
and looked about for hiding place.
Recalling a custom of my mothers, i
stepped over to the bookcase and tax.
ing Macaulay's History, Volume
Three, from the shelf, placed between
the leaves all of my money except
fifteen dollars. No burglar was likely
to find 1t there.
l extinguished the light and In the
darkness stepped back into my bed
room, and stopped stock still. @
From somewhere in the room there
came three distinct taps. Instructive
ly l crouched in an attitude of self
defense and strained my ears to listen.
My first impression was that there
was someone in the room, probably
the burglar. | hesitated about turn
ing on the light If he were armed
IL would give him all the advantage.
Breathlessly I listened. Once more
there came three distinct raps, this
time apparently from somewhere out
side the room. I wondered If it had
been sounds like these that had so ter
rifed the old couple.