The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1932-09-09
CHAPTER Iv-Continued

'sThe devil you say! Bert Candy
burglar ?" Ormsbury calculated. "That's
ridiculous, Wally. l grant you any
thing you care to charge him with In
the blue-sky field; he is burglarizing
the community pocketbook to the
queens taste in the promotion schemes.
But he doesn't need a cracksman's kit
to do that. What did you do with it?
II put it back where had found 1t.
1t is up to you to rediscover it. If you
want to. / don't know how 1t got
there, or what use, if any, he means
to make of it; but it's there"
.'But see here, Wally; perhaps"
What the manager was about to
say was left unsaid, for at that mo-
ment the Office door opened to admit
the promoter himself; and the leather
case he laid upon Ormsbury's desk was
the one Markham had so lately re-
stored to it's hiding place. A.,
"Hello, Markham y Candy exclaimed
cheerfully. "Glad to find you here.
Two witnesses are better than one,
any day in the week." Then to Orms-,
bury, "a few minutes ago, as I was
putting my grip away upstairs,
found that thing hidden In the bottom
of my wardrobe. It isn't any Of mine,
so I'm turning it In"
"What is it?" Ormsbury asked.
SEARCH me; haven't opened 1t.
Wouldn't, you know, not without wit
nesses. It may be an internal ma
chine, for all know"
Suppose you open 1t, John, and let
Us see what it u.s." Markham suggested.
Ormsbury unbuckled the straps and
spread the contents of the bag on his
desk. Canby's establishment was either
real or faultlessly simulated.
"Well-Ill be d-d!" he burst out.
wouldn't that set your back teeth on
edge? Who do you suppose planted
that outfit on me?"
"Where did you say it wasp Queried
Ormsbury, sparring for time.
~Under the bottom of my wardrobe.
The bottom board is loose, and when /
opened the door to put my grip away,
saw that one leg of the trousers had
got caught under the loose board, and
when I picked the clothes up, the
board came with 'em. And there in
one corner. was this thing. What Is it
Ia plant, or joker"
Markham was watching Candy mar
rowly as he talked, but his open-eyed
frankness was as convincing as 1t
was disarming.
"If it is a joke, somebody must
have a badly distorted sense of hui
NOR" Markham put in. ut strikes me
that the point Of joke like that
would be rather hard to discover"
"Oh, L don't know" Candy returned,
with an easy laugh. "There are still
few standpatters in Carthage who are
calling me all the hard names they
can dig out Of the dictionary. I don't
doubt some Of them would be ready to
shout, I told you sor If should be
caught with burglars kit in my pos
session. It's up to you, now, Orms-
bury. What will you do with the
stuff"
II suppose 1 ought to turn It over
to the police" he said, half doubt
fully.
'srhat would be the part Of good
law-abiding citizen" Candy agreed.
ION the other hand, though, 1t would
earn a good bit Of unpleasant pub
licity for the hotel, wouldn't it?"
at would" Ormsbury admitted with
wry smile. II guess I'll lock the
bag up in the hotel vault for the time
being, and wait to see what, If any
thing, develops"
"That is sensible. Meanwhile, I'll
keep an eye out for the joker-if it
Is joke"
swell, what do you make of it,
John?" Markham asked, after Candy
had gone.
"Just what you did, imagine. The
fact that he brought the stuff here to
me clears him. But that isn't all. You
remember the series of burglaries we
had last winter, don't you. At the
time they were going on, we had
man and woman who was registered
as his wife in Suite Three-Sixteen-
Canby's room. About the time when
the town got desperate and called in
aNwell-known detective agency to work
with the local police, the couple van
ished-disappeared between two days"
"And you think the man was the
burglar?"
aPve always had a sneaking idea
that he might have -been-and had
nothing to tie It to. This hidden tool
Kit knocks out the doubt, doesn't iti"
Still holding mental reservation
or two on his own part. Markham said.