The L'Anse sentinel., 1921-05-27
CHAPTER vI-continued.


s.
Mr.. Van Britt saw and talked with
everybody, and when he could wedge
off a minute or two of privacy, he'd
60 into the third room of the suite
and thresh 1t out with Juneman, or
Billoughby, or Mr.. Ripley. From these
private rafKs l found out that there
was still some doubt In the minds of
oil four Of them about the boss drop
out-as to whether 1t was voluntary
or not.
Also, found out what had been
done during the four days. We had
no company detective" at that time,
and Mr.. Hornack had borrowed man
named Grimmer from his old COM
pany, the Overland Central, wiring for
him and getting him on the ground
within twenty-four hours of the time
Of Mr.. Norcross' disappearance.
Grimmer had gone to work at once,
but everything he had turned up, so
far, favored the voluntary runaway
theory. Mr.. Norcross' trunks were
still in his rooms at the Bullard; but
his two grips were gone. And the
night clerk at the hotel. when he was
pushed to 1t. remembered that the
boss had paid his bill up to date that
night. before going up to his rooms.
Past that, the trace was completely
lost. The conductor on the Fast Mail,
eastbound, on the night In question:
swore by all that was good and great
that Mr.. Norcross hadn't been a
passenger on his train. And he would
certainly have known 1t If he had been
carrying his general manager.
Over in the other field there was
absolutely nothing to incriminate the
Hatch people. SO far from 1t, Hatch
had turned up at the railroad office,
bright and early the morning after
Mr.. Norcross had gone. He had asked
fer the boss. and failing to find him.
he had hunted up Mr.. Van Britt. What
he wanted, it seemed. was chance
TO reopen the proposition that had
been made to him the day before
the offer of the new Citizens Storage
& Warehouse company to purchase the
various Red Tower equipments and
plants.
Mr.. Van Britt had referred him to
Mr.. Ripley, and to our lawyer Hatch
had made what purported to be an
open confession, admitting that he had
gone to Mr.. Norcross the night be-
fore, determined to fight the new COM
pany to finish, and that there had
been a good many things said that
would better be forgotten. Now, how
ever, he was willing to talk straight
business and a compromise. He had
called his board of directors together,
and they had voted-to sell their track
bordering plants to Citizens Storage
& Warehouse II price could be ami
cably agreed upon.
With Mr.. Norcross gone and new
general manager coming, Mr.. Ripley
was afraid to make o move. and Hatch
was pressing him to get busy on the
bargain and sale proposition; was ap-
parently as anxious now to sell and
withdraw as he had at first been to
fight everything In sight.
BY the morning came on the scene
the man Grimmer had, as they say,
Just about done his do. He was only
a sort of journeyman detective, and
had run out of clues. When he came
in and talked to Mr.. Van Britt and
Mr.. Ripley, could see that he fully
believed In the drop-out theory, and
even the lawyer and Mr.. Van Britt
had to admit that the facts were with
him. The boss had written letter
saying definitely that he was quitting;
he had paid his hotel Dill, and his
grips were gone; and two days later
President Dunton had appointed a
new general manager, which was proof
positive, you'd say, that the boss had
resigned and had so notified the New
York Office.
When the noon hour came along.
Fred May took me out to luncheon.
and we went to the Billiard cafe. II
was pretty rich for our. blood at two
dollars per. but guess Fred thought
his job was gone, anyway. and felt
reckless. Over the good things at our
corner table we did q little threshing
on our own account--and got a lot
more char and no grain.
Fred didn't want to agree with
Grimmer and the facts, but there
didn't seem to be any help for It. And
as for me, had other things In mind
all the time-the big scary fear that
somebody had got to the boss after
hs had left Ripley on the night OF
shockines, and had just dashed him In
the face with the story Of Mrs. Sheila's
sham widowhood.
BY and BY W got around to my
burned hand, and Frsd told me Grim