The Elk Mountain pilot., 1922-06-29
Copyright by Edwin Bolmer
SYNOPSIS

BENJAMIN corvet is something OF re-
cluse and mystery to his associates.
uer. Henry Bpearman, Corvet seeks Con-
stance Sheriff.. daughter Of his other
business partner. Lawrence sheriff.. and
secures from her q promise not to marry
epeArman. He then disappears. Sheriff.
learns Corvet has written to q certain
and exhibited strange e asitation ii over % ne
matter
Conrad, youth Of unknown parentage.
to Chicago.
CHAPTER II-From q statement Of
Sheriff. 1t seems probable Conrad Is Cor
vets llegitimate SON. Corvet has decided
his house and its contents to Alan.
CHAPTER Iv.-Alan takes possession
Of his new home.
CHAPTER What night Alan discov-
ers man ransacking the desks and bu-
reau drawers in Corvets apartments. The
appearance Of Alan tremendously agitates
ghost and raves of THE Miwaka." After
q struggle the man escapes.
CHAPTER vI.-Next day Alan learns
from Sheriff. that Corvet has decided his
entire property to him. Introduced to
covery that he is the man whom he had
found in his house the night before.
CHAPTER vII.-Aian tells no one of
his strange encounter. but in private
interview taxes Spearman with the fact.
spearn,an laughs at and defies him.
CHAPTER vIII.-Corvets Indian serv-
ant, WassaQuam, tells Alan he believes
hs ef y dfad He aso tss h%
cordinR to old superstition beats once for
every life lost on the Great Lakes Twen-
was had Iso0 soDs down with M on
board, but the Drum had sounded for
only twenty-four leaving the inference
was general belief that the drum never
erred Pursuing a stranger who .,as had
CHAPTER x.-Alan learns from Was
saquam that II was Corvet's habit to
keep the sum Of 1900 in the house. appar-
e ss' ~so In
the absence Of Wassaquam. Luke comes
to the house demanding to see Corvet.
to s aiceSoi eSen and " e.posnre. sure. ' SonTsd tries
connection with coryet- The man dies.
Wassaquam gives Conrad paper on
which IL a list Of names.
my father took newspapers from
those places, did he notT
WassaQuam looked over the ad-
dresses again. Eyes; from all. He
took them for the shipping news. he
said. And sometimes he cut pieces
out Of them-these pieces, see now;
and afterward burned the papers;
he would not let me only throw them
away"
That's all you know about them,
JudahT
Eyes, Alan; that is ALL"
Alan dismissed the Indian, who,
stolidly methodical in the midst of
these events, went downstairs and
commenced to prepare dinner which
Alan knew he could not eat. Alan got
up and moved about the rooms; he
went hack and looked over the lists
and clippings once more; then he
moved about again. How strange
picture of his father did these things
call up to him! When he had thought
Of Benjamin Corvet before, 1t had been
as Sheriff. had described him. pur-
sued by some thought he could not
conquer. seeking relief in study, in cor
respondence with scientific societies,
In anything which could engross him
and shut out memory. But now he
must think Of him, not merely as one
trying to forget; what had thwarted
Corvet's life was not only In the past
1t was something still going on. 1t had
amazed Sheriff. to learn that Corvet,
for twenty years, had kept trace Of
Alan but Corvet had kept trace in the
same way and with the same secrecy
of many other people-of about a
score Of people. When Alan thought
Of Corvet, alone in his silent house,
he must think Of him as solicitous
about these people; as seeking for
their names in the newspapers which
he took for that purpose, and as re-
cording the changes in their lives. The
deaths, the births, the marriages
among these people had been of the
intensest interest to Corvet.
1t was possible that none of these
people knew about Corvet; Alan had
not known about him in Kansas, but
had known only that some unknown
person had sent money for his support.
But he appreciated that 1t did not
matter whether they knew about him
Va AOt AVA a. oOAuC ROAht NOAAAAhOA& ~
all of them, the lives of these people
must have touched Corvet's life. When
Alan knew what had been that point
Of contact, he would know about Cor
vet; he would know about himself.
Alan had seen among Corvets
books a set Of charts Of the Great
Lakes. He went and got that now and
an atlas. Opening them upon the ta-
BILE. he looked up the addresses given
on Corvet's list They were most OF
them. he found, towns about the north
ern end Of the lake; very few upon
other lakes-Superior and Huron
but most were upon or very close to
Lake Michigan. These people lived by
means Of the lake; they got their sus.
tenance from 1t, as Corvet had lived
and as Corvet had got his wealth. Alan
was feeling like one who, bound, has