The Oakley herald. [volume] (Oakley, Idaho) 1908-1961, 1923-08-10


gether very well. I've heard that a
girl always refuses you once-a sort
of convention"
Tommy caught his arm.
"Refuse? Did you say refuse7"
"Sure thing. Didn't / tell you thatf
She just raped out a no without any
kind of reason to 1t. But she'll come
round right enough. Likely enough, l
hustledsher some"
But Tommy interrupted regardless
of decorum.
"What did she say in that note?" he
demanded fercely.
The obliging julius handed 1t to him.
The note, In Tuppence's well-known
sehoolboy writing, ran as follows:
Dear julius:
ITS always better TO have things In
black and white. 1 don't feel l can
be bothered to think of marriage until
Tommy is found. Let's leave IL till
then.
"Yours ~affectionately,
"TUPPENCE."
Tommy handed II back, his yes
Shining. His feelings had undergone
a sharp reaction. He now felt that
Tuppence was all that was noble and
disinterested. Had she not refused
julius without hesitation? True, tine
note betokened signs of weakening,
but he could excuse that. 1t read al
most like a bribe to Julius TO spur him
on in his efforts to find Tommy, but
hn ctrnnAcnI che hod NOT raallu maQnf
it that way. Darling Tuppence, there
was not a girl in the world to touch
heri When he saw her-His thoughts
were brought up with a sudden jerk.
"As you say" he remarked, pulling
himself together, there's not a hint
here as to what she's up to. Hi
Henry"
The small boy came o%bediently.
zone thing more. Do you remember
what the young lady did with the
telegram
Henry gasped and spoke.
"She crumpled 1t up into a ball and
threw 1t into the CRATE, and made a
sort of noise like 'Whoopi = sir"
They hurried upstairs. Tuppence
Ddu lCli IN MY III hCA 0OOAs 1NO
room was as she had left 1t. In the
fireplace was a crumpled ball Of
orange and white. Tommy disentan-
gled and smoothed out the telegram.
"Come at once, Moat House, Ebury,
Yorkshire, great Developments -
TOMMY"
They looked at each other in stupe-
faction. julius spoke first:
81 guess it means the worst. They've
got her"
"What?"
"Sure thingl They signed your
name. and she fell into the trap like
a lamb"
my Cd What shall we dof"
"Get busy. and go after her. Right
now There's no time to waste. It's
almighty luck that she didn't take the
wire with her. If she had we'd prob
ably never have traced her. But We've
to hustle. Where's that Brad
shawn"
The energy of Julius was infectious.
Left to himself, Tommy would probab-
ly have sat down TO think things out
for q good half hour before he decided
on a plan Of action. But with julius
Hersheimmer about, hustling was in
evitable.
"Here we are. Ebury, Yorks. From
Kings Cross. Or st. Pancras. (Boy
have made a mistake. 1t was
Kings Cross, not Charing CROSSE u so,
that's the train she went by. 2:10,
that's gone 800 IS the next"
81 say, julius, what do they want
her for, anyway
"Eh? / don't get your"
"What l mean Is that I don't think
it's their game to do her any HARM"
explained Tommy, pickering his brow
with the strain of his mental proc
esses. "She's a hostage, that's what
she is. AS long as they've got her,
got the whip hand or us. Seer
"Sure thing" said julius thought
fully. THAT'S So"
Besides" added Tommy, as an af-
terthought, 1--WE great faith in Tup-
The journey was ~wearisome, with
many stops, and crowded carriages.
Ebury was a deserted station with a
porter, to whom Tommy ad-
himself:
Can you tell m the way to the
Moat house?"
THE Moat hOusef It's a tidy step
rom here. The big house neal the
sea, you mean7"
Tommy assented bra zenly- After
listening to the porter's meticulous but
,erplexing directions, they prepared to
the station. 1t was beginning to
ain, and they turned up the collars OF
heir coats as they trudged through the
lush OF the road. Suddenly Tommy
CTo BE CoNTINUED.)