The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1928-05-25
The
Colfax Bookplate

POSSESSION anu WITHOUT DdchWdTu
glance, walked around Mr.. Case. past
the front of the desk to the door,
out into the night Mr.. Case turned
quietly around, and disappeared into
the main aisle.
AS soon as | heard him speaking to
Mr.. Dibdin, l made for his office.
Excuse me for interruptingl I've
been looking at Miss Abbott's work,
and it's getting along fast"
"GoOdl Wen soon be through here,
too" Mr.. Case spoke exactly as usual
He looked rather white. but working
overtime plus glare from a green
shaded lamp does not improve the
complexion.
''Then tomorrow morning ought TO
be plenty of time for me to finnish"
said. $50 do you mind if | get the
ten-thirty-fi five train"
"Go, by all MEANS" agreed Mr.. Case.
So l put on my things and went
back to my desk and closed 1t, with
the exception of the lowest ieft-hand'
drawer, which ! opened for one in
stant> If il was the style to want
to steal Clarhews NOTES." nobody
could truthfully say | was out of
fashion. With a consuming passion
[ wanted to steal It
And furthermore / did so.
caught the 1885 easily. with sew
eral seconds to spare, and the stroke
of eleven found me boiling the Colo
uial front door OF our Elizabethan
villa. Having next reviewed the con-
tents of the refrigerator and decided
ON glass of milk. sliced chicken and
roll, l extinguished the hall light,
and tiptoed upstairs through the still
ness. punctured at this door and that
by gentle snore. TO my own room.
| took Clarihew's "Notes on Medical
Statutes in the Virginia Code" from
my underarm bag, resolving to dis
cover its mysterious attraction if the
process took all night. first exam
inea it meticulously page by page
Fortunately il was a thin volume
There was not stain or sOil-mark
inside it Several pages had never
been cut. Aside from ordinary wear
natural to a binding a century and
more old. the only damages appeared
to be small number of faint parallel
scratches on the back, and a few
rather deep Titles gashes in the card
! board inside the back cover. These
injuries were negligible; the book was
in remarkably good condition. Finding
nothing that could give clew TO the
interest it had held for so many per-
sons, | decided that the only thing
left to do was to obey my orders and
take off the bookplate.
| laid a hot wet blotter on the
plate, and sat waiting patiently sew.
eral minutes for the paste TO soften.
But though l applied an inquiring
finger nail several times to the edge
of the drawing, and renewed the blot
ter more than once, the bOOkplate
stuck fast except at one lower corner
which had always been a bit loose.
Only after hong time did it even be-
gin to come away from the board, and
then with an unusual slOwness that
tried my patience.
Finally resolved to assist the hard
worked blotter; and getting a pen
knife, opened the dulleSt blade and
inserted it cautiously a little deeper
under the edge OF the bookplate than
my finger-nail had gone. found that
at last the soaking was taking effect;
the picture was loosen. l tried the
corners in turn, found that loose
| lower right-hand one now yielded
readily to the blade, got it free of the
cover, and then with my fingers began,
very gently, to peel off the bookplate.
II had to be coaxed now and then, but
| little by little it came away clean and
uniform. Then, as | got more hold on
| the looser part, pulled 1t more evenly
and rapidly, and at last off it came,
| with a single swift motion. And then
the sight before me caused me to drop
the bOokplate in complete consterna-
ton, and forget all about it.
In the center of the space from
which l had just peeled it, sunk into
the thick calfskip cover of the old
law book so that no hint of it pro-
truded above the surface of the board.
was-a key.
1t was black, about two inches In
length; the shank was long and mar
row, the bit deliberately fashioned. the
head solid piece of metal about half
an inch across. | stared at ii intent
l.. but dazedly.
Curiosity, however, q vulgar trait
| but often a life-preserver, came rap
| idly to my aid. | snatched up the
| penknife again, and very slowly and
cautiously pried out the key from its
| resting place. The underside was
| identical with the upper; at its thick
est point the little implement was less
than an eighth of an inch in diameter.
| | examined the depression I'm the book.
cover wherein this strange old-fash-
Toned object had been lying. This de.
preston had evidently been cut out In
the thick board WITH the very greatest
| care. No hint of the operation could
be either seen or felt in the binding.
| | replaced the key In the depression,
and ran my hand across the inside
that even with my bare palm | could
hardly feel anything but a plain sur
face.
1 left 1t In its resting place and
gazed at II moment. Was the book.
| plate-the forged bOOkplate-after all
not the object of the extraordinary eff
forts put forth by so many persons?
Was II the rev under the bOOknIafe2