The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1934-01-12

only Otner thing l did BEFORE tnat was
to mail from the Fenton on March
f1fth a letter she mailed out to me.
with an inner envelope addressed TO
Mr.. Stuart Jordan in Philadelphia"
That was the last communication.
Rankin reflected. the student received
from his wife. presumably from St.
Louis.
do you still have your instruc-
tions?" he asked. "I'll want to see
them"
The girl shook her head. "No. de-
stroyed them after memorizing them.
That was a part of her orders"
swell. let's have the rest of your
story-after you checked out of the
hotel"
The directions in question. Myra
Prentiss proceeded. arrived on Thurs
day, March fourth, allowing her ample
time to be on the boat Sunday. Dur
ing the voyage, as the detective al
ready knew, she was to feign seasick-
ness to escape observation. Unfortnn-
ately, however, she actually became
i'll; 1t was this neglected and trivial
possibility, Rankin realized. which en-
gendered the carelessness that dis
closed the entire fraud. After the
Florida locked at noon on Friday, the
girl went to Philadelphia directly.
where she met Laura Jordan at four
o'clock. In two hours, In the woman's
room of the Pennsylvania terminal, the
actress secured all the details and EVIL
dences Of the trip: at seven o'clock.
she left to appear at headquarters.
She had not, however, taken Myra's
baggage. AT the outset of the scheme.
she had purchased duplicate sets of
suitcases. one for the show-girl and
her own set she brought with her
weeks before.
Myra Prentiss returned Immediately
to st. Louis because of an attachment
she formed there of her own, during
her stay. Ordinarily. she might have
remained in New York and sought an
other engagement; but this new friend
had clearly Indicated his devotion and
interest In her. Except inasmuch as
it had lightened his problem Of tracing
her. Rankin did not long concern him.
self with this purely personal matter
But his interest in Doctor Prince
was intense. Thus far, all he knew Of
him was that, as student at Haw-
thorne university In Fort Wayne he
belonged to the Omicron chapter of
Mu Beta Sigma. And, as a loyal
alumnus, he notified the Philadelphia
chapter of Jordan's matriculation, rec
ommending him. Mr. Merrick, In his
single business meeting with the physi-
clan. had divulged Stuart's presence at
the eastern university, when they dis
cussed schools during their converse
ton. Apparently. Arnold Prince had
had no other connection with the boy.
Now. however. It was obvious that he
must have known all about him before
that through the actress. His practice
and residence, the detective recalled.
were In st. Louis.
Nov about Doctor Prince, Miss
Prentiss," he said, when the girl fin
ished her narrative. "What else did
Laura Du Monte tell you? Where does
he live, for instance?"
Il suppose right here In st. Louis"
Myra replied. because she spoke of
leaving with him from here. But |
don't know the address. She was very
cautious about letting fall anything
more than needed in case l had to
get in touch with her quickly"
1T shouldn't be difficult to locate
him. at any rate" Rankin confided 70
Captain Chambers; then to the girl:
"Have you any idea how long they've
been acquafnted?"
'Well. only incidentally, l figure
their affair must be going on over
year-at least. since last January. At
first, was afraid to agree to the
proposition: and TO reassure me.
Laura said she had been cheating her
first lover with him even last winter
and he was none the WISER"
And who is he? Can you tell me
that or where he might be found?"
Rankin queried.
But as he expected, Myra Prentiss
was ignorant of any facts concerning
the man she supposedly helped to out
wit. Not once did the actress reveal
his name or discuss her establishment
with him. AS with most of her ex-
PLANTATION. Rankin was convinced his
very existence was fictitious-part of
her alibi to cloak her nefarious jour-
ney to Philadelphia.
But unlike the mythical duped lover.
the physician was a very real indi-
vidual And that portion of Mrs. Jor-
dams fiction dealing with him came
perilously close to the true situation
last May, when Stuart had been his
wife's dnpe and that of her paramour
After their marriage In February a
year ago. she had continued her secret
relations with her lover. begun before
she met the boy. But her letters had
never named him; now. suddenly, the
show-girl had identified him with the
confederate who helped her create her
alibi. Certainly. Rankin calculated.
the evidence logically indicated they
were the same.
If the physician were actually the
lover over whom Laura Jordan quar-
relied and separated from Stuart, then
he was manifestly as interested as she
in preventing the boy from depriving
her of the Jordan estate.
Rankin was amazed. once he con-
cluded that they plotted the murder to-
gether. how the complete details of the
crime fell into proper place. Step by
step, he could trace every develop
ment-Doctor Prince with the knowl-
edoe az n member of the fraternity.