The Meeker herald., 1920-09-25
A DISCARDED
AMBITION
By AUGUSTUS G. sHERw1N

| lie CHANGED to run across irlenu VINO
had started a detective agency. The
latter discovered, or pretended to dis
| cover In him rare intuitlve ability In
| the man hunting line. He offered
Levi half-interest In his business for
500, made due impression on his
prospective victim with the aid Of
come confedsrates by working up a
case where Levi was allowed to ap-
parently discover some remarkable
clews and make an arrest, and sent
him home all fired up with the idea
TINT he was especially born 10 become
| famous sleuth.
His practical ruralized wife sat
down on the proposed investment,
hard. "They are foolIng you. Levi
| she declared. "You have no more
| prediction for the detective business
thnn babe. Besides. all the capital
Invested In our little dairy farm here
is mine, and IN not see you waste 1t
| Drop the idea"
Which Levi did. but reluctantly. He
had caught the detective fever good
and strong. He never passed the
town marshal but he envied his dig
nifty and power. and when the local pa.
per, published by an old FRIEND. men
toned his name as probable candi-
date for marshal at the next election
Levi fondly dreamed.
you see." said the editor to Levi
one dny. your wife may object to
your becoming city detective, bu. she
shouldn't hide your ability under
bushel locally. You're bound to shine,
Levi" and the latter believed 1t and
Rugged the pleasant delusion.
Levi was hanging around me print.
ing office one day when he CHANGED to
glance Mt fresh proof of an item
announcing the escape Of one Dan
A liberal reward was offered for his
apprehension. Just beside 1t lny an
electrotypc with a proof on top of
1t. Levi studied the face portrayed
with Interest and impressed Its main
characteristics on his memory. He
even possessed himself of blurred Inn
press of the cut that had been
thrown inside, and thrust 1t into his
pocket.
| solved ms he left the print shop. Some
thing of fenther in my cap and q
big campaign argument II happen to
run across this dangerous criminal al
large"
II was the very next day that. about
dusk, near his home. he fixed his
glance upon . man coming down the
road from the electric line station. He
looked respectable enough. well
dressed. md had an Intellectual face,
but, ransacking his memory and con-
sultlng the blurred proof In his pocket,
Levi could scarcely repress an exult.
amt cry.
ats him." gloated the embryo mar
shall. ''Oh. what luckl Now to nah
him." and getting behind the unsus.
pecting wayfnrer. Levi suddenly seized
him by the collar and ran him through
the gateway of his own yard.
BOUNDS! What IL thisf finland
mel" sputtered the astonished victim
of Lewis rash suesswork. n say"
hut Levi was not to he diverted from
his stern purpose. He urged his cap
tive over to little brick structure
used as milk cooling room, thrust
him into II. slammed the door tightly
shut upon him. locked 1t. and started
on run for down town. There was
small grated window only at the
side of the building, and at this the
prisoner appeared, pale and expostu
lating hut II was too small fof the
captive to get through. so Levi felt
| 20 I,t
| Levi made for the office OF the mar.
shall to impart to him the news Of
his remarkable catch, but the latter
was not there. He began searching
for him. went from place to place. and
was In vast fiutter until long after
dark, when he learned thnt the OIL.
clal was on temporary visit to the
next town and would return on the
nine o'clock train. To put In the time
he dropped into the library hall. where
lecture was In progress. At Its door.
way he halted and stood rooted In
sheer nmnzement. There on the ros-
trum was the very man he had incar.
ceratcd In the cooling shed less than
three hours >previous!
It was well that his daughter Alice
CHANGED TO catch sight of her father
and arose from her seat In the hall
and came somewhat excitedly to him.
"Oh, papa." she whispered. THE
strangest thing Mr.. Bertram, the
lecturer! Some one assaulted him on
the street md locked him up in
shed on our place. let him out and
he invited mamma and I to the hall
How queerly you act!"
And he felt so, too! 1t suddenly
dawned upon Levi that he had COM
mitted most egregious error. 1t was
natural that the picture Of the young
and rising lecturer should appear In
The newspaper. and he had taken the
cut proof haphazard for that Of the
escaped convict.
Drlnnrpy Herfrnin ncccr knew that