Cavalier County farmers press. (Langdon, N.D.) 1920-1921, 1921-03-24

sONN y ahu L WIS III Liz DdSSaSSN
room, digging up the put-off stuff, at
the good-by minute. But 1 guess they
didn't quarrel any-the boss and Mrs.
Shella. n was laughing a little to
herself as | hsped her down from
the car, and when l asked her where
she wanted to go, she said 1 might
ask n of the porters to carry the
traps, and we'd walk to the hotel,
which was only q few blocks UP the
main street,
She took MaiSie Ann on the other
side of her and let two of the blocks
go by without saying anything more,
and then she gave that quiet little
laugh again and said, "Your Mr.. Nor
cross amuses me, Jimmie. He says
l have no business to travel without
4 guardian. What do you think
about it,"
/ told her I hadn't any thinks COM
ing, and she seemed to take that for
a joke and laughed some more. Then
she asked me if I'd ever been in New
York, and 1 felt sort of small when
L had to tell her that 1 had never
beer east of Omaha in all my life.
With that, she told me not to worry ;
that if 1 stayed with Mr.. Norcross
I'd probably get to go anywhere 1
wanted to.
Something in the way she said it
made it sound like a little slam on
the boss, and of course l wasn't go
ing to stand for that.
There is one thing about it: the
boss will make good wherever he
goes" l hit back. "You can bet Oh
that"
Il like your loyalty" she flashed out.
1T is Il fine thing in a day that is
much too careless of such qualities.
And l agree with you that your Mr..
NorcrOss is likely to succeed; more
than likely, if he will only learn to
combine a little gentle cleverness With
the heavy hand"
Il don't think you have any cause
to blacklist Mr.. Norcross," l said.
Hasn't he been right good and broth
erly to both of you this EVENING""
"Oh, l didn't mean that" she said
real earnestly. But in the stateroom
in Mr. Chadwick's car: the v%entilator
was open. you know, until Maisie Ann
got up and shut it, and we couldn't
very well help hearing what was said
about the kidnapping. Neither Mr..
Chadwick nor Mr.. Norcross seemed
to be able to account for it."
"Can you account for it?' 1 asked,
bluntly enough, l guess.
At this she smiled and said, ut
would be rather presumptuous for me
to try where Mr.. Norcross and Mr..
Chadwick failed, wouldn't it? But
maybe can give you just a wee little
hint. You saw the two men who went
v e to the auto and smoked while
they were waiting for the other two
to come back? If l am not mistaken,
l nave seen them many times before,
and they are very well known here in
Portal City. One of them, the smaller
one with the derby hat and the short
Overcoat, was either Mr.. Rufus Hatch
or his double; and the other, the
heavy-set one, might have been Mr..
Gustave Henckel, Mr.. Hatch's partner
in the Red Tower company"
This didn't help out much, but you
can bet that l made a note of the two
names.
"You are going back to Mr.. Chad
wick's carp she asked, when she was
telling me good-by and thanking me
for coming up to the hotel with them.
[ old her | was, and then she came
around to the kidnapping business
again of her own accord.
"You may give Mr.. Norcross the
hint l gave you. if you wish" she
said: "only you must be q good boy,
Jimmie, and not' drag me into it,"
81 see," l nodded: I'll tell the
boss. when I get a good chance, and
you can bet your last dollar he won't
tangle you up in it-he isn't put to-
gether that way"
"Well then, goodnight" she smiled.
giving me her hand. And with that
she sort of edged the little girl into
the elevator before w could get a
chance to shake hands. and l heard
her tell the boy to take them up to
the mezzanine landing.
BY and by, l Went down to the sta
ton and began to hunt for the Alexa.
The boss and Mr.. Chadwick were
facing each other across the table,
which was all Uttered up with papers
and maps and reports, and they hard
~ noticed me when | blew in and
sat down a little to one side.
Just after | broke in, Mr.. Norcross
jumped up and began to pace back
and forth before the table. with his
hands in his pockets.
mo. I can't see it. Uncle john
lie said. still sort of stubborn and de-
termined. you are trying to make
me believe that l ought to take the
biggest job that has ever been set be-
fore the expert in any field; to dem
onstrate, on this rotten corpse of a
railroad, the solution of a problem
that has the entire country guessing
at the present time; namely, the win
ming of success, and public-and in
duStrial-approyal for a carrier cor