Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1924-07-26
WHO'S WHO I'M THE STORY

was q heavy cane belonging TO
James Kent. a man with an ungoy-
ernable temper and an unsuccessful ri
val for Rice,s most recent purchase-
a valuable book worth $4,000. This
book is missing. as we'll as one OF the
wedding presents-a box containing
$1,000 in gold pieces
Faith, Rice's daughter, admits the
jealousy of her cousin.
Donald MaxSon, who Is reported
drowned but who is found hiding on an
island near by with one of the stolen
gold pieces in his possession, and is
John BARLEY, crime detector and
best friend of the murdered man. he
is assisted by Dunn, town detective
Dunn's chief, who has received an
unsigned letter confessing to the muir.
der of Rice.
Pelt Bartley's friend. is the narra-
tor of the story. With BARLEY, he in
vestigates the. supposedly deserted
house where the murder was com
mitted. has a tussle in the dark with
an unknown man and is left bewil-
dered, with traces of ashes on his
coat and several gold pieces at his feet.
We Meet With Several Surprises
1t was with an exclamation of
surprise that I gazed at the gold
pieces lying in Bartley's extended
palm. Then, as if expecting to see
the floor covered with them.
looked at the rug. But there were
no more to be seen. BARLEY jingled
them in his hand for a while, then
placed them in his pocket.
Suddenly l remembered the little
sound l heard when my hand had
caught on the pocket of the mans
coat. 1 told BARLEY. who listened
eagerly. When 1 finished. he said:
THAT jingle must have been
money that he had in his pocket
You say that your hand caught in
the pocket of the coat and you are
sure that you tore it in getting
away. No doubt that caused these
three pieces of gold to fall to the
floor"
But" l answered, 'it means then
that the person who stole that box
of money was the same person that
/ shrugged with"
1t looks so. Who else would have
had ifty-dollar gold pieces with him
under such circumstances? | would
say perhaps the box of money is
hidden somewhere in the house.
THE person, knowing the family
was away, thought this was a good
time to get it. / think the ashes
will aid US in locating the box"
T. l glanced at the white places on
my coat, wondering how few ashes
could give any information regard
ing the hiding place of the missing
box. | said as much. He smiled
replying: Think it over. Pelt. Here
it is the middle of the summer. The
days are warm, very hot in fact
his hands and coat. OF course, he
lad to be where they were to get
them. Now, what does that tel
you?"
Why" I replied, from what YOU
say he must have been in the eel
lar"
Certainly! And that's where we
are going"
Leaving the electric lights on in
the room, he led the way to a door
and passed Into n hallway. At the
end of the hall he opened another
door. There was a pair of stairs
which we went down. coming out III
dining room. The room was
really in the basement and l judged
was the servants dining room
Pushing through it, we came into 8
kitchen, where we did not stop. He
opened another door and turned OF
the light.
Before us stretched the cellar. II
was a long room with a concrete
floor AS We went down it's length
could see barrels and boxes of al
kinds. 1t seemed to be used faI
more as u storeroom than anything
else. Ii BARLEY was looking for a
pile of ashes, he did not find one
In fact, there was but little coal in
the coal bin and no sign of ashes al
all.
After discovering this. he paused
for a moment, his brow thoughtful
Across from US was a large furnace
the door of the pit half open. AS his
eyes fell on it he gave a little laugh
and went over to it's side. Bending
down, he glanced carefully at the
floor, then called to me.
I'VE won't have to go any farther
he said. Look at the floor; some
one has been here"
Before the open door of the fur
mace 1 could see traces of ashes
gray against the clean floor of the
| cellar. 1t looked as if some one hao
tried to sweep them up, for / could
leaning against the side of the fur.
mace was a broom. as If it had just
been placed there.
BARLEY rose and looked around
the cellar. He found a long poker
got on his knees and poked in the
ash pit with a long piece of iron
Then suddenly throwing the poker
| down, he plunged his hand into the
pit and, after fumbling around for q
moment came out with something
1t was covered with ashes. gray anC
dusty, but as he rose to his feet
with a little smile on his lips / saw
that it was mahogany box.
He had found the box of money
there was no doubt of that.
He took it over to bench thai
was under a light. / followed him
Flinging open the lid we peereo
| eagerly within. There. before oul
eyes. were rows of shining golC
pieces. 1t needed only look to tel
that some of them had been taken
for while the bottom rows were in
frm ranks, in the top of the box the
money was loose and scattered. We
both looked for second. then he
turned.
Well he drawled. here is the
missing box. Some of the money is
gone, about a third of it, l would
say"
There was no doubt he was right
Yet l could not help but wonder why
the box had been hidden in such a
strange place. 1 voiced my thought
He smiled as he replied: at was a
very clever place to hide it. If YOU
mad never tumbled down those
stairs, / doubt il we would ever
have thought of looking there for it.
Think of it! Where could you find q
better place? The furnace is used
only in the late fall. never in the
summer. The person who took the
box thought that under the ashes in
the pit It would be secure. No one
would think of looking for It there,
and the pit would probably not be
cleaned until fall. It was a safe
place to hide the box of money"