Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1924-08-24

~ derelict Is easy to deal with so
long as IL floats in plain sight. II
may be seen and avoided, or blown
up and safely sunk. But when 1t be-
comes submerged and invisible
| when all trace OF II is lost. lurking just
ibelow the surface--then II becomes a
menace and a horror to all who sail
the seas.
Something like this had happened
to the derelict son Of the house of
Littleton. AT least the telegram
sounded like it. A long message 1t
was, fast day rate, signed by firm
OF New York lawyers who were
never known to look at a retainer of
less than five figures. Crickmay
read it slowly. leaning back in his
| swivel chair, on a sunny morning of
late October.
| I'VE should be obliged if you
would undertake quiet investigation
present whereabouts and condition of
Donald Littleton. Left here six
as far as Cheyenne, Wyoming. Left
there June thirteenth. buying ticket
for your city. Had in his possession
| considerable amount high grade bonds
| secured in irregular manner. So far
as we have been able to learn has
made no attempt to dispose of same,
| but possession of securities subjects
|
ding operations. Fond of associating
with questionable characters. Our
clients insist upon Importance of
| avoiding all publicity. Forwarding
| full particulars by mail. Please &C
knowledge by telegraph"
! After a few minutes communion
with An English briar Crickmay sum-
moned from his lair long, pale, sandy
| haired apd harmless looking young man.
|
you to find this man" He pushed a
slip of paper across his big, Uttered
| desk to his henchman: he said moth
| ing about the missing securities. II
don't want to see him, you under
| stand-not yet, at least. But l want
| to know where he is. and what he is
doing, and what he has been doing
what money he owes, and what devil
try he has been up to. If any. And
| no noise about it, Henry. not a rustic
! in the grass. Understand?"
Henry read the name and the date,
and one or two added particulars.
June thirteenth" he said slowly
Lots Of things have happened since
then"
lnN the morning of the fourth day,
~ when Crickmay breezed into his
ONCE, Henry was waiting for him.
i
| told YOU" he reported. He landed
here June fifteenth and put up at that
Greek deadfall down at the station,
at first. He got in touch with some
of the old gang right away, or they
nosed him out, maybe. He didn't
show any money to amount to any
thing, and had only one suit case for
baggage"
Crickmay made a memorandum in
his small running script.
They kept him busy for a few days,
trying three or four of the old games
on him. trying to get him to loosen I'D.
They smelled money on dim. but they
couldn't find it. Then they let him win
a little stake. They figured that would
get him excited and he would produce
some real money. Instead Of that, he
| throws them down, drives up to the
Napoleon in a five-dollar-an- hour car,
| registers in his own name and gets
himself all dressed up like a harness
horse
We'll, that couldn't last long. The
gang laid off him while he was up
town. but they kept close track Of him,
watching all the time for his money to
show up. 1t didn't show up. After
few days at the hotel, what with auto
mobile parties and cafe bills, he struck
bottom. Then he went the rounds of
the big mining Offices, making q touch
wherever he could on the strength of
his name. That way he picked up a
little stake again, and the gang decided
it was no use waiting any longer. So
they pulled him under one night and
cleaned him, trying to break even. any
way. / figure they quit losers, at that.
But they finished the boy, good and
plenty. Probably gave him too strong
dose Of dope. Anyway, he woke up
next day SO badly shot to pieces and
so wild that they got buffaloed and
ran him up to the Junction in a car.
and unit on the Overland at two in
the morning. with a ticket for Frisco.
Next day the train men took him off at
Reno and sent him to a sanitorium
there. That's where he is now, using
the name the gang put on his ticket"
The Jackal had finished his story;
sordid story. but all too common.
Ibid you find any baggage or valu-
ables Of any kind" asked Crickmay.
His suit case and some new clothes
bill. Nothing of much value, the clerk
says"
Nothing in the safe?''
NO" said Henry. Like l told you,
he never did show any real money,
this time. Here's the telegram from
Reno he concluded. Crickmay read it
over. "'Partly rational. but not yet
Of getting paid. or they wouldn't be so
keen on holding him. However, that's
all right; he's better of there than any
where else, probably"
He said nothing about the missing
securities. If Henry had found them,
it was too late. And il, as seemed
probable, he knew nothing Of them
why, what he didn't know wouldn't
hurt him.
He drew his checkbook from its
drawer and paid Henry literally. They
/ always did business on a cash basis,
and so kept on excellent terms.
Thank you, sir. And any time you
need me-you know which button to
push He slipped out into his jungle
again, noiseless and sure.
TRICKMAY spent a few minutes
~ studying the full particulars by
mali which had arrived that morn
ing. The dereiict had carried off with
him bundle Of gilt-edged bonds Of
the face value of $4,000. And the
queer thing about it was that in a
way they belonged to him. That is,
they were part of his share of his
fathers estate. left in trust, however,
until he should reach years Of dis
erection, which his father. after many
bitter disappointments, had fixed at
40. He was now we'll past 80, and
it seemed likely that his father had
been too optimistic. He had been
able, by a shrewd trick, to get his
hands on these securities for a mo-
ment, and had promptly disappeared.
The family, shrinking from scandal,
had not appealed to the police. and,
to do them justice, seemed more con-
cerned over the dangers to which
the man himself was liable than over
the loss of the money.
When Crickmay walked into the