Newark leader. ([Newark, Ohio]) 1917-1946, 1922-04-28

CHAPTER I.-Wealthy and highly
placed in the Chicago business world,
Benjamin Corvet is something OF re-
After stormy interview with his part
ner, Henry Spearman, Corvet seeks Con-
stance Sheriff.. daughter Of his other
business partner, Lawrence Snerrii, H., anu n.G,
secures from her a. promise not to marry
Spearman. He then disappears Sherrhi
learns Corvet has written to certain
Alan Conrad, in Blue Rapids. Kansas,
and exhibited strange agitation over the
matter
CHAPTER II-Corvet's letter summons
Conrad, youth of unknown parentage,
to Chicago.
CHAPTER III.-From a statement Of
Sheriff. it seems probable Conrad Is Cor
vets illegitimate son. Corvet has decided
his house and it's contents to Alan.
Alan had started; Sheriff. looked az
him questioningly.
'.The spring of 191O," Alan ex-
planned, "was when received the
bank draft for fifteen hundred
dollars"
Sheriff. nodded; he did not seem
surprised to hear this; rather 1t ap-
peared to be confirmation Of some
thing in his own thought.
"Following his wife's leaving him.
Sheriff. went on, "Corvet saw very
little of any one. He spent most of.
his time In his own house; occasion
ally he lunched at his club, at rare
intervals, and always unexpectedly. he
appeared at his Office. | remember
that summer he was terribly dis
turbed because one of his ships was
lost. The Corvet record was broken;
a Corvet ship had appealed FOR help;
a Corvet vessel had not reached port.
:. !. And later In the fall, when two
deckhands were washed from another
Of his vessels and drowned, he was
again greatly wrought up, though his
ships still had most favorable record.
In 1902 I proposed to him that / buy
full ownership in the vessels | partly
controlled and ally them with those
he and Spearman operated. Since
then, the firm name has been Corvet,
Sheriff., and Spearman.
"Our friendship had strengthened
and ripened during those years. The
intense activity of COrvet's mind,
which as a younger man he had di-
rected wholly to the shipping, was
directed, after he had isolated himself
in this way, to other things. He took
up almost feverishly an immense num-
ber Of studies-strange studies most
of them for a man whose youth had
been almost violently active and who
had once been lake captain. / can
not tell you what they all we're
geology, ethnology, nearly score of
subjects; he corresponded with vari-
Gus scientific societies; he has given
almost the whole of his attention to
such things for about twenty years.
But he has made very few acquaint-
ances in that time, and has kept
almost none of his old friendships.
He has lived alone in the house on
AstOr street with only one servant
the same one all these years.
"The only house he has visited with
any frequency has been mine. He has
always liked my wife; he had-he has
a great affection for my daughter, who,
when she was child ran In and out
of his home as she pleased. My
daughter believes now that his present
disappearance-what has hap
pened to him-is connected in some
way with herself. l do not think that
Is So
Sheriff. broke off and stood in
thought for moment; ne seemed to
consider, and to decide that 1t was
not necessary to say anything more
on that subject.
'sIs there anything in what l have
told you which makes 1t possible for
you to recOllect or to explainY
Alan shook his head, flushed, and
then grew little pale. What Sheriff.
told him had excited him by the coin
cidences 1t offered between events in
Benjamin Corvet's life and his own;
1t had not made him "recollect"
Corvet, but it had given definiteness
and direction to his speculations as
to Corvet's relation to himself.
Sheriff. drew one Of the large chairs
nearer to Alan and sat down facing
him. He felt In an inner pocket and
brought out an envelope; from the en-
velope he took three pictures, and
handed the smallest Of them to Alan.
AS Alan took 1t, he saw that 1t was
a tintype of himself as rOund-faced
boy Of seven.
.That is your Sheriff. asked.
"Yes; 1t was taken by the photog-
rapher In Blue Rapids"
"And this?"
The second picture, Alan saw, was
one that had been taken in front OF
the barn at the farm. 1t showed Alan
at twelve, in overalls and baref0oted,
holding a stick over his head at which
a shepherd dog was jumping.
"Yes, that is Shep and /, Mr.. Sher
rill. 1t was taken by man who
stopped at the house for dinner one
day; he liked Shep and wanted a
picture of him; so he got me to make
Shep jump, and he took it."
Doesn't it occur to you that 1t Was