The Mellette County pioneer. [volume] (Wood, Mellette County, S.D.) 19??-1971, 1922-04-21

very few friends, and the few times he
has been away from home of recent
years have been when he visited an
acquaintance of hiS-the head porter
in a South Side hotel. l went TO the
telephone in the house next door and
called the hotel and found WassaQuam
there. | told him over the telephone
only that something was wrong, and
hurried TO my W home to get the
key, which l had, to the Corvet house {;
but when / came back and let myself
into the house, l found it empty and
with no sign Of anything having hap
pened.
The next morning, Alan, | went to
the safe deposit vaults as soon as they
were open. / presented the numbered
key and was told that it belonged TO a
box rented by COrvet, and that COrvet
had arranged about three days before
for me to have access TO the box if |
presented the key. i had only to sign
my name in their book and open the
box. In ii, Alan, | found the pictures
Of YOU which | showed you yesterday
and the very strange communications
that ! am going to show you now"
Sheriff. opened the long envelope,
from which several thin, folded papers
fell. He picked up the largest Of these,
which consisted of several sheets
fastened together with a clip. and
handed it to Alan without comment.
Alan. as he looked at ii and turned the
pages, saw that it contained two col
umns of typewriting carried from page
to page after the manner Of an ac-
count.
The column to the left was an inven.
tory of property and profits and in
come by months and years, and the
one to the right was a list Of losses
and expenditures. Beginning at an in
definite day or month in the year 1898,
there was set down in q lump sum
what was indicated as the total of Ben
jamin Corvet's holdings at that time.
To this, In sometimes undated items,
the increase had been added. In the
opposite column, beginning apparently
from the same date in 1895, were the
missing mans expenditures.
Alan having ascertained that the pa
pers contained only this account,
looked up questioningly to Sheriff. !;
but Sheriff., without speaking, merely
handed him the second of the papers.
Alan unfolded it and saw that 1t vas
a letter written in the same hand
which had written the he
had received in Blue Rapids and had
made the entries In the little memo
randum book of the remittances that
had been sent to John Welton.
1t began simply:
Lawrence
This will come to you in the event
h a ! am not able TO carry out the
plan upon which l am now, at last, de-
termined. You will find with this a
list Of my possessions. Deeds for all
real estate executed and complete ex-
cept for recording Of the transfer at
the county office; bonds, certificates,
and other documents representing my
ownership Of properties, together with
signed forms for their legal transfer
to you, are In this box. These proper
ties, in their entirety, l give to you In
trust to hold for the young man now
known as Alan Conrad of Blue Rap
ids, Kan, to deliver any part or all
over to him or to continue to hold It
all In trust for him as you shall con-
slider to be to his greatest advantage.
This for the reasons which l shall
have told to you or him-I cannot
know which n Of you now, nor do !
know how l shall tell it. But when
you learn, Lawrence, think as well Of
me as you can and help him to be
charitable to me.
with the greatest affection,
"BENJAMIN CORVET."
Alan, as he finished reading, looked
up to Sheriff.. bewildered and dazed.
What doe it mean, Mr.. Sheriff. p
Does it mean that he has gone away
and left everything he had-everything
to me?"
If Mr.. Corvet does not return, and
| do not receive any other instructions,
| shall take Owe his estate, as he has
instructed, for your advantage"
"And, Mr.. Sh4rrill, he didn't tell you
why? This is all you know?'
Yes; you have everything now. All
we can do, Alan, is to search for him
in every way we can. There will be
others searching for him too now; for
information Of his disappearance has
got out. There have been reporters at
the Office this morning making in
quiries, and his disappearance will be
in the afternoon papers"
Sheriff. put the papers back in their
envelope, and the envelope back into
the drawer, which he relocked.
Il went over all this with Mr.. Spear
man this morning" he said. He is as
much at a loss TO explain it as | am"
He was silent for Il few moments.
The transfer Of Mr.. Ccrvet's prop
critics to me for yOu," he said sudden
ly. includes, as you have seen, Cor
vets interest in the firm Of 'Coryet,