The Kennewick courier-reporter. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1914-1938, 1936-01-02
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to public enemies?
By appointment I met a friend
in the reception room Of the Ameri-
can Express company, Haymarket.
He arrived agog with something
important that he wished to get off
his chest. 1t wouldn't keep for
long.
"Come over here in the corner
and take an earful," he said, urg-
ing me toward a chair in an al
cove. / followed because / am nat
urally inquisitive. "You are aware,
I suppose, that certain celebrated
international crook is in London;
that Scotland Yard men are sta
toned at various points with the
object Of picking him up.
"What specifically is he wanted
for?" -.
Search me. But I've got 1t
straight from one who knows that
he is just as likely to drop in here
as elsewhere"
. Was This Sherlock
A man wearing straw hat, light
flannel trousers and swinging q
Malacca cane walked In at that
moment. He had a hawk-like nose,
a keen eye and appeared to take in
at single glance every person
present. " >1. ~ 49,. y .
"Whom do you suppose he is?"
I asked.
IF he isn't a Scotland Yard OPP
erative," said my friend, who
writes thrillers when at home striv-
ing to pay taxes. I'm a bad guess
er, that's all. Keep your eye on
that cove. Nothing seems to escape
him." ~ --... ~. -
The stranger opened up a copy
of the Paris Herald and buried his
nose in it's pages.
isn't reading single line" said
my friend. "All pretense. His eyes
are rowing. He's looking for some
body. Slick mug, that. Every ges-
ture Is furtive. I'll wager you an
English pound that he is a Yard
man."
"a harmless looking party. Might
be mere innocent bystander.
What do you imagine he is wanted
for?" I asked. SIS everybody here
under Suspicion
.
"That isn't the point. In big
city like London there is bound to
be large number of confidence
men browsing around the travel
bureaus looking for something In
the line Of easy marks. People
come in here from all parts of the
world to cash travel checks and to
plan trips. Innocently they flash
rolls and convert money into for.
eign exchange, making more or less
display, tempting con man. Ac-
cording to p. Z. Barnum, the old
circus man, there is a sucker born
every minute, and according to our
old friend, Inspector Burns Of New
York, two gangsters come simulta-
neously into the world ready to
take him. You can see how it is"
The stranger got out of his chair
and took couple more turns
among those negotiating short and
long trips by rail, steamer, auto and
air, his eyes wandering restlessly
from one to the other as he moved
panther-like from room to room.
"You can't tell me-" said the
New Yorker, shat he is doing the
gumshoe act for exercise. The par
ty he is looking for hasn't shown
up yet. When he does you will see
unmistakable signs that the hound
has nailed the fox. Well sit right
here and watch the play"
Trail Gets Hotter.
At this juncture in the analyti-
cal proceedings / began to be i'm
pressed. The man with the straw
hat and the flannel kicks made an
other excursion. For a certainty
he was in search Of somebody. Not
being accustomed to hanging about
for an international, or even a To-
cal, crook to turn up and run
smack into the yearning arms Of
Scotland Yard, 1 was in doubt as
to our next move. The man in the.
straw hat made it for me by fixing
quite suddenly his glittering eye
upon my friend.
Excuse me, gentlemen" he be-
gan with certain reserve, "are you
not Americans?"
81, for one, am" replied the COM
piler of popular fiction, "but my
running mate here, who does a
deal of travelling, hasn't yet found
country that satisfies him COM
pletely. However, we are at your
service"
The Yard man instantly expand
ed into a human being.
"Tell me if you can" he pleaded,
doffing the straw, hat for the first
time and wiping his brow with a
kerchief, ''why in hell nobody ever
keeps an engagement In London?
had an appointment to meet some
folks here at 10 o'clock for trip to
Canterbury cathedral. 1t is now
close to II, and I'll be eternally
hanged if I'll stick around here any
longer. Excuse me for exploding.
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