Evening star., 1922-03-19

| eign war broke, and Ghost Patrol
stories were forgotten.
X X =
i0NE evening Of early summer, the
~ agitated voice of woman tele-
phoned to headquarters from the best
residence section of Forest Park that
she had seen a burglar entering the
window Of the house next door, which
was closed for the season. The chief
himself took six huskies in his ma
chine. and they roared out to Forest
Park and surrounded the house. The
owner of the agitated voice, stalked
out to inform the chief that just after
she had telephoned she had seen an
other figure crawling into the window
after the burglar. She had thought
that the second figure had revolver
and q policeman's club.
So the chief and lieutenant crawled
nonchalantly through an unquestion-
ably open window giving on the pam
try. at the side of the house. Their
electric torches showed the dining
room to be a wreck-glass scattered
and broken. drawers of the buffet on
remarked Some scrap" and shouted !:
Come out here, whoever's in this
house. We got it surrounded. Ken
dali. are you there? Have you pinched
the guy?'
There was an unearthly silence, as
Of some one breathing in terror. a
silence more thick and anxious than
any mere absence Of sound. They tip
toed into the drawing room, where
tied to a davenport. was that cele-
brated character, Butte Benny.
my Gawd. chief" he walled. "get
me outa this. De place is haunted. A
bleeding ghost comes and grabs me
! and ties me up-gee, honest. chief,
he was a dead man. and he was
, dressed like has-been cop, and he
! wrastle him, and he got me down; and
| oh. chief, he beat me crool. he did,
| but he was dead as me great-grandad.
and you could see de light trough
| him. Let's get outa this-frame me
| up and I'll sign de confession. Me for
a nice. safe cell for keeps"
| "Some amateur cop done this. to
keep his hand in. Ghost me eyer
| said the chief. But his own flesh felt
ilcy, and he couldn't help looking about
for the unknown.
Lets get out Of this, chief" said
Lieut. Saxon. the bravest man in
the strong-a -arm squad; and with Butte
Benny between them, they fed
pantry window still open. They didn't
handcuff Benny. They couldn't have
| lost him!
NEXT morning when captain came
AN to look over the damages in the
burglarised house he found the dining
room crudely Strengthened up, and the
pantry window locked.
| When the baby daughter of Sim
mons, the plumber Of Little He'll, was
lost, two men distinctly saw a gray
faced figure in an old-time police he'll
met leading the lost girl through un-
freuuented back alleys. They tried to
follow, but the mysterious figure
knew the egresses better than they
did; and they went to report at the
station house. Meantime there was a
|
mons found his child on the doormat,
crying but safe. In her hand. tight
clutched. was the white-cotton glove
Of policeman.
| Simmons gratefully took the glove
| to the precinct station. 1t was a regu-
lation service glove; it had been
darned with white-cotton thread till
the original fabric was almost over
laid with short. inexpert stitches; it
had been whitened with pipe.clay.
and from one slight brown spot. it
must have been pressed out with hot
iron. Inside it was stamped. in faded
rubber stamping: DorEan, Patrol. 9Th
Precinct The chief took the, glove
to the commissioner, and between
these two harsh, abrupt men there
was q plying silence surcharged with
respect.
"We'll have to take care OF the old
man." said the chief at last.
A detective was assigned to the
trail Of the Ghost Patrol. sThe detec-
tive saw Don Dorgan come out OF his
shack at in the morning, stand
stretching out his long arms, snin
the lateniGht dampness. smile as q
man will when he starts in On the