Montgomery County sentinel., 1933-08-31
Bolingworth's
Proxy
By R. T. M. SCOTT
@, by Mcclure Newspaper Syndicate.
WNU Service.

~ uaDle document. IL WOulu Uc
worth millions at board meeting In
New York the following day. Jeffries
and Sanderson motored out to Boiling
worth's country house on Long Island
to argue against each other for the
document but, of course, they did not
travel In the same car. Fat, old JEFF
fries took Aurelius Smith along with
him to safeguard SO valuable a paper,
II he obtained 1t, up to the minute
that it would be voted on the next day.
"rn get the paper and you win keep
it." rumbled and chuckled old Jeffries.
Together we'll lick Sanderson and his
dirty crew."
AS the two entered the big, country
house, feminine shrek rang out and
Smiths long legs carried him up
fight of stairs without their custom
ary Incidence. In a back room he
found a pretty maid with her foot
caught in a steel-jawed rat trap. He
wrenched the jaws apart.
The business meeting occurred In
the music room on the ground floor.
It had to be short as Bolingworth was
leaving by plane within an hour on
his way to California. There was
nothing Immediately for Smith to do.
He shook hands with Bolingworth and
Sanderson and got their names mixed
up as deaf people door stupid peo-
pie, or people too lazy to think much.
Few people could believe that so in
dolent a man was observing everything
with almost Photographic accuracy.
While the three men gathered
around a little table, Smith wandered
to the piano and ran his fingers over
the keys, but stopped quickly so as not
to disturb the conference. He stretched
himself in a chair and smoked while
he listened to the rumble and chuckle
Of his employer In argument against
the rasping harshness Of Sanderson's
voice.
At the end Of an hour Bolingworth
signed a paper and Jeffries had won.
Bolingworth had left the house at once
after ordering luncheon to be served
to his three guests. The proxy lay
upon the table beside a heavy blue en-
velope. Jeffries inserted it in the en-.
velope and sealed the flap.
At that moment the roar Of plane
sounded outside. Jeffries dropped the
envelope on the table and turned to-
ward the window. Sanderson looked
away also. The roar Of the plane be-
came louder and all three men walked
to the window near the piano. Smith
and Jeffries approached the window In
advance Of Sanderson. When they re-
turned to the table the envelope was
gone. There were other blue envelopes
In rack on the table, but they were
all empty.
Sanderson laughed vindictively and
offered to let Jeffries search him. The
offer was accepted and Jeffries found
nothing, while Smith wandered to the
piano and again ran his fingers over
the keys while he frowned as If trying
to think. Suddenly he turned around
on the piano bench as If an idea had
at least been born, and said that be
ought to make certain that the maid
had put antiseptic on her foot so that
she would not be poisoned by the rat
trap. "a
II didn't think l brought you out
here to fiddle with maids ankles"
grumbled Jeffries. "Bolingworth is In
Tho oir opA -ua cap,f not anotAar
proxy. We're dished."
Smith shrugged his shoulders and
rang the bell. The butler summoned
the injured maid who limped to Smith
and talked In low tones with him while
she secretly received q ten-dollar bill.
The maid llmped out Of the room and
shortly after she returned, Smith
Joined Jeffries and Sanderson in the
hall where Jeffries had ordered his
car.
II can't understand you, Smith,"
said Jeffries, as the two walked to-
ward the front door, leaving Sander
son behind.
Have little patience" returned
Smith softly and opened the door to
tell Jeffries' chauffeur to drive away
and come back in half an hour.
Jeffries looked his astonishment as
the car roared off. The two stood for
a few minutes in the doorway, Jeffries
too surprised to speak. Suddenly a
yell sounded inside the house.
Come on" called Smith as he
dashed back to the music room.
Beside the piano stood Sanderson
with the rat trap dangling from his
hand while he cursed. Blood dripped
from his hand to the floor.
II knew that he must have taken
the envelope from the table," ex-
plained Smith, ''but / did not know
where he had put 1t until 1 touched
the piano keys the second time and
found that three strings were dead"
Sanderson, desperately helpless, let
Smith pry the trap from his hand.
"The maid brought me the trap"
continued Smith, "and l placed it on
the strings, under which he had
slipped the envelope, and covered II
with my handkerchief"
Then 1t was that Sanderson strug.
gled to turn defeat into victory. He
reached out into the piano and
snatched out the blue envelope. With
an exclamation Of rage he painfully
used his injured hand tn taar tha ON