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THE THEFT Of I THE EBONY BOX. A Detective Story Involving Cost ly Gems and a Cipher. " By HOWARD FIELDING. [Copyright, 190?, by American iYess Asso ciation.] In the possession of the Olmstead f.tuiily there was a jewel casket more quaint and curious than any other that I have ever seen, though I have en couutered some oddities in that line in the course of nearly thirty years of detective work. It was made of ebony ?raameuted with silver and measured 9 by 7 Inches by 4 In height. There were many peculiarities of the sliver Inlay, and the design was thought to be highly artistic, but the chief point to be noted here Is that the thing an-; HE CAOGHT ntS RIGHT WKIST. peared to be solid, even upon the closest inspection. The hiuges of the lid were Ingen iously concealed. The hue between the two parts was invisible, and the hidden lock was operated by secret 6prings most cunningly devised. Nat urally so strange an object was the ceatecpiece of many queer stories, which were collected by one of the Olmsroads about sixty years ago and set down by hitu iu manuscript in a leather bound book originally Intended to be a ledger. At the end of the book is a very difficult cipher which con tains the directions for opening the casket But for this cipher the secret would have passed out of the world. A few months ago. wheu the present head cf the family. Mr. Stephen Olmstead. stumbled upon the old book of tradi tions, the casket itself had beeu for gotten. Stephen Olmstead found the r-nsket 1? a sort of vault iu the wall of the country house which his father built in March mont twenty years ago, and. having solved the cipher after a pro tracted struggle which nearly wreck ed bis intellect (as he informed me), he opened the ebony box and was dis appointed because there was nothing In It He bad uo reason to expect any discovery of treasure, but he Is not the sort of man to be Indifferent to the possibility. He w?s engaged to Mrs. Clara nol ton, a rich and charming widow, with a country house near the Olmstead place. Mrs. Helton's lack of enthu siasm for Jewels Is conspicuous. She has never been knowu to wear an expensive ornament. Nevertheless Olmstead had no sooner found the casket than h" wis possessed with the idea of buying something rare and precious to put into it, ostensibly as a wedding gift. Accordingly he appeared at his Marchmont home one evening wi'b a dazzling diamond piece of historical as well as intrinsic value, a stomacher that had one** been worn by a titled lady of the old world. Miss Sylvia Olmstead. sister of Stephen, ridiculed this purchase when the gewgaw was displayed to her and told Stephen that Clara Uolton would divorce him rath er than wear it. "She'll like the casket." said Sylvia "It's quite iu her line. How do yon ?pea Itf The diamonds were already within and the lid closed. "Cauldn't tell you," said Stephen. He put the casket away In the vault and locked the door. Immediately after this they heard ?ome one on the Veranda, just outside the windows of the library where the con versa lion which I have tried to reproduce from their recollection of it occurred. ?Both supposed that the person on the veranda was George McKellar. a neigh bor, and that he was coming to call on Sylvia. Neither Olmstead nor his sister spoke ?f hearing the footsteps, for McKellar was a delicate subject with them. Ofrustead opposed him as a suitor for Sylvia's hand on the grouud that he wns not flnanflnlly sound. McKellar bad Inherited from his father a busi ness In a rather bad tangle, and he | was having a hard struggle wUh It. They waited for McKellar to be an nounced, and one of them was disap pointed, while the other was agreeftWy surprised, nr.lf an hour Inter Mc Kellar called Sylvia by telephone and told her that he was occupied with biiainess affairs. I It may have been nbonr 1 ny?ryk If people with symptoms of kidney or bladder trouble could realize their daager they would without loss of time commence taking Foley's Kid ney Remedy. Thfis? igreat remedy stops the pain and the irregularities, strengthens and builds up these or gans and there is no danger of Urigbt's disease or other serious dis order. Do not disregard the early symptoms. Lowman Drug Co.; A. C. Dukes. Industry Is the watchdog that keeps the wolf from the door. ?when Olmstead, who was wakeful, heard sounds In the lower regions of the .house, lie was one of those nerv ous Yankees who fear everything ex cept danger. A hundred petty anx i letles assailed liim. including the dread j of taking cold, as he grumblingly made his way downstairs. In the lower hall he listened. Be yond doubt there was some one In tbe library. Olmstead opened the door and entered. Tbe room was dark save; for a feeble, fluttering light which: suddenly settled upon Olmstead with j a brilliancy that surprised him. 'Throw up your hands!" said a | volee. "Oh. nonsense!" snid Olmstead. and he felt about on the wnll for the but ton that controlled the lights. The burglar's lantern revealed It to him. and he iustantly made the room bright. Seeing that Olmstead had no weapon the burglar did not retreat, but took some steps forward, holding his re volver ready In one band while with the other he clasped the ebony Jewel box as a football player holds the ball. When they were quite close Olm stead sprang upon the man so sud denly aud with such skill that he caught his right wrist and held the arm straight up tu the air. The bur glar let fail his weapon, which made a loud noise on the floor. Olmstead hurled him backward and stocped for tbe revolver, whereupon the burglar drew another from the side pocket of his coat and tired with a considerable coolness of aim from a distance of about ten feet. The bullet struck Olmstead on the upper edge of. the left eyebrow and glanced off. Fie was stunned, but only for h few seconds. When the servants came running at the noise of the shot their master was already on his legs again and feebly attempting a pursuit of the marauder. The ease was immediately reported to the local authorities. The suburb of Marchmont has a chief of police aud twelve patrelmeu. The chief and ten of his men turned themselves loose on the trail of the Olmstead burglar, with no result what) ver. The eleventh man remain ed in charge of the station house. Tbe twe!fib man patrolled old .March mont village and caught a thief in the bakeshop of Mrs. Sophia Neely. where there was the sum of $4 In the till. He had effected his entrance through the adjoining barber shop of Gustav Swam, where there was no money. Three days later my services were requested by Mr. Olmstead. who was walking about with some plaster over his eye aud not much the worse for his adventure. After hearing li(s story I was able to give him hope of the rascal's capture, for the description furnished to me was excellent. Its most salient fea ture was a reddish, brushlike mus tache. The burglar's bair was dark browu, but his mustache was unde niably red and not false in Olm stead's opinion. Singularly enough, this description perfectly fitted the only suspicious character then known to exist within the limits of Marchmont, except the petty thief above referred to. who was smooth shaven. The suspicious char acter was Gnstav Swartz, the barber. Swartz had borne an excellent repu tation until about a month ago, when some silver, stolen from a Marchmont residence, had beeu found In his shop. The barber said that the parcel con taining the silver had been left with hbn by a customer who was to call for It and that he himself did not know what the contents were, but the story had obtained no credence. Upon hearing Olmstead's description the local police immediately exhibited Swartz. "Swartz looks very much like my burglar," said Olmstend, "except that ho has a good eye. The other fellow had a bad one. I don't believe Swartz Ls the man." Tbe case stood thns when I took hold. That evening, while I was talk ing with Miss Olmstead and her brother aud Mr. McKellar In the li brary, there catno n loud, suddeu rap at the window. Olmstead. who was uaturally nervous, nearly jumped out of his skin, but he was the first man to reach the window. He raised the I curtain and the sash, and by the light that streamed out from the room he saw the ebony box lying on the ve randa. The person who brought It had escaped. Olmstead was overjoyed. As the box showed no mark of violence the diamond stomacher must be In It. and with the anticipation of seeing this treasure again Olmstead's hands shook so that he was Of teen minutes opening the casket. He did not let us see how he did It. The casket was empty. I will not enlarge upon the mysteries involved In this performance. There was no reason why anybody should have returned the jewel box except upon the belief that the diamonds were In It 1 was doubly convinced of this fact after I had persuaded Olmstead to show me the trick of opening the casket. Somehow my snsplcions rested upon Swartz, and I mnde a searching In vestigation of the man. I discovered that he had a brother who was a pro fessional thief, no doubt the man who had left the silver with him. This brother was unknown In Marchmont except to Swartz himself, and I could not trace tmn up until a sudden In spiration came to me. The petty thief captured in Mrs Noely's bakeshop hnd entered ?vrarlz's ?hop P.rsL Tbe police beMevod that he had done no io steal and had then nq?i5^d on t?? Mrs. Neely's ' hnd a I different theory. I believed that thel man had broken Into the barber's shop j to shave and. being alarmed, had fled through to the other bulldiinr. not to steal, but to escape. With this Idea in mind I took Olm stead to see the thief. Olmstead conk! not be finre. TTo ca|n\ hotvovnr. fhir Everyone would be benefited by taking Foley's Orino Laxative for stomach and liver trouble and habit ual constipation. It sweetens the stomach and breath, gently stimu lates the liver and regulates the bowels and is much superior to pills and ordinary laxatives. Why not try Foley's Orine Laxative today? : Lowman Drug Co.; A. C. Dukes. The two persons to whom a wo man's voice can be sweetest are a small baby she loves and a large wo man she hates. J If lie had to choose he would Identify this man by his eyes ruther than Swartz by his mustache. "They look very much alike," he said, und 1 had begun to think so, too. though at tirst I had not seen the resemblance. I made up my mind that this was Swartz's brother, al though both Swartz and the prisoner denied it. At this stage of the investigation I was switched to a wholly new theory by a discovery which was purtly ac cidental. I learned that George Mc Kellar had encountered some sort of good fortune and had tided himself over his difficulty. Where bad he got the money? 1 asked myself this question and set to work to Gnd an answer. It appeared that he must have raised about $20.000. which could have been done by selling the stolen diamonds. But the money seemed to have come from a loan by McKellar's bank, al though he had already owed the bank an uneasy sum. It was in the midst of the late money stringency, and 1 could not believe that the bauk had obliged him to that extent. Well. I had a friend Inside that bauk. as I have in some others, and I learned the facts. A lady unknown to my friend and without McKellar's knowledge had de posited $20.000 in cash to secure this loan. This must have been done by some woman from whom McKellar would not accept a loan, and it did not take me long to work down to Sylvia Olm stead. But here 1 came upon a queer thing. Miss Olmstead was worth about $150.000 lu her own right, but it was chiefly in real estate and very bard to realize money upon in a time of panic?In fact, nearly impossible. I learned that she had raised $30.000 or thereabouts by a great sacrifice, but she had not suiveeded until one week after the $2">.000 had been put Into McKellar's bank. There was no way by which she could have got the money unless she had stolen the jewels from her brother. But how had she opened the casket? Did she know the secret? In order to test her I ananged a little comedy. I told one of my assistants how the box could be opened in order that he might be able to work with it clever ly In Sylvia's presence while I watched the girl's face. Then we went to the Olmsteads* and held a Iii lie session with the brother and sister and Mc Kellar. I explained that it was absolutely necessary for me to discover whether a persoD could guess the trick of open ing the box. My theories had ad vanced. I said, to the point where I must have evidence as to the real dif ficulty of the puzzle. Undoubtedly the thief had been lurking outside tiie window on the night of the robbery and had seen the jewels put away. He bad stolen them In the casket. Could he have got them out of it in a half hour's work? "Certainly not," said Olmstead. "My friend here," said I, "thinks be can do the trick, and I'd like you to try. Mr. McKellar, and you also, Miss Olmstead." "IU wager." said she, "that I can open the box inside of fifteen min utes." "Nonsense!" said her brother, but Sylvia took the casket, while I held the THK DIAMONDS HAD COMK BACK. watch, and she won, not in fifteen min utes, but In as many seconds. "There."' she cried and gave the box to her brother. He uttered a yell like a wild Indian. The diamonds had come back to the ebony casket It required no very great penetra tion to see through this case. Sylvia bad learned the secret of tfle box from the cipher In the old blank book. Des perately anxious about McKellar's af fairs, she had striven to raise money to help him secretly, since he would not have accepted opeu aid from her. But she saw that she would never get the money In time to save him. The Jewels had Inspired her with a wild idea. She had taken them as soon as her brother was safely up stairs?borrowed them, let me say. for she put them in pledge and raised the money to redeem them at the earliest moment. Barber Swartz's brother stole ou empty box and was nearly a murderer for the sake of It. .After shaving in his brother's shop he was suddenly alnrmed, and he fled, leaving the box behind him. His brother found It next morning, and as he was a thor oughly honest fellow he returned it. Of course with the discovery of the Jewels my work ceased. Delay in taking Foley's Kidney Remedy if you have backache, kid ney or bladder trouble, fastens the disease upon you and makes a cure more difficult. Commence taking Foley's Kidney Remedy today and you will soon be well. Why risk a serious malady? Lowman Drug Co.; A. C. Dukes. For mild easy action of the bow else, a sin'-' e dose of Doan's Regu lets is enough. Treatment cures habitual constipation. 25 cents a box. Ask your druggist for them. SELF CLEANING BRUSH. Apparatus For Bath Use and Other Household Purposes. The device which is illustrated in the accompanying engraving is partic ularly adapted for use as a bath brush, although with slight modifica tions it may be used as a scrubbing brush for floors, windows and similar I articles. The brush is provided with an inner revolvable part, arranged, like a water wheel, to be revolved by a Btream of water, whieb is supplied from a faucet through the brush han dle. The water serves to keep the bris tles ck?f The outer ring A of the brush Is formed with a spider, B. In which the inner ring or wheel C Is Journaled. The ring A is fitted with two rows of bristles arranged to form a continuous brush surface. The spokes of^lie iuner wheel also carry bristles, the ends of which are at the same level as those of the outer ring. Formed on the periphery of the wheel is a series of buckets, D, which open through the rim. The hollow handle of the brush communicates by means of a branched pipe. E, with two nozzles, F and G. which are arranged to direct streams of water against the REVOLVING HATH BRUSH. buckets and thus rotate the wheel C. The water passes through the but kefs to the inner side of the wheel and is dashed against the radial rows of bris tles. The bristles are thus kept con tinually wet, and the water tlowiug over them serves to xep them clean. The top of the brush is covered by a casing which prevents t lie water from splashing upward. A patent on this Improved brush has been secured by Mr. M. A. Dickison of Phoenix, Ariz. Handy Concrete Mixer. A corabiuatiou barrow and concrete mixer Is now made for small jobs and repair work and saves much time in the manipulation and transportation of the materials required. The barrow, loaded with the sand, cement and wa ter, is wheeled up to a small cradle ar rangement, where a cover fits down over the barrow body and at the same time a number of blades sink into the mass. The mass is then churned by the blades until it has become thor oughly mixed, which requires but a few minutes, on account of the great efficiency of the blades. The turning may be done by hand power, but where it Is convenient this work may be done by steam or electrical power. A device of this kind is also designed for use on farms and other places of a like character, where concrete is be coming very popular because of Its great convenleuce and pliability and where it is largely used as a substitute for wood in a great variety of work. Testing the Eyesight. Roman letters of various sizes are commonly employed by oculists in test ing acuteucss of vision. Recent ex periments by Guillery show great dif ferences in the ease with which the different letters are recognized by the same person, says Scientific American. T is especially difficult of recognition and is apt to be mistaken for Y. By a similar optical illusion the angle of L is rounded off. making the letter re- J semble a reversed J. V is the easiest of all letters to recognize, and 0 pre sents little difficulty. K is more easily recognized than II. which resembles It closely, and both N and Z are easily recognized. A is easily guessed at from its general form, but is dillicult ! of positive recognition, includhig dis- ' tinct perception of the borizoutal line. E and F are among the most dillicult of all the letters. Reclamation In California. The largest of all the schemes of reclamation contemplated by the gov ernment has recently been undertaken by the engineers of the Sacramento valley. Its ultimate object Is to con trol the flow from a watershed of over 4,000 square miles and to improve the two great rivers of California. When the task is completed over 600,000 tcres of rich land, which at present is dry and sun baked during eight months of the year, will have been brought under irrigation, and large areas of bottom hind which at present are subject to aunual overflow and great destruction by the floods will have been reclaimed. Safety on the Rail. The many Improvements which have been made both In track and rolling stock, to say nothing of the Introduc tion of block signaling, are beginning to tell in the direction of lowering the list of fatalities and injuries. The Penn sylvania railway is to bo congratulated on its remarkable record of the past year, during which, although It carried a total of 141,fH"'J.ri43 passengers, not one wus killed. Wood For Water Tanks. Water tanks of white pine used on railway work, states the Engineering Record, have In the past had a maxi mum life of twenty years, while the maximum life of cypress is twenty-five years. -. Many people with -chronic throat and lung trouble hi ve found com fort and relief in Fo-ey's lloriry and Tar as it cures stubborn coughs after other treatment has failed. L. M. Rttggles, Reasnor. Iowa, writes: "The doctors said 1 had consump tion, and I got no better until i took Foley's Honey and Tar. It stopped the hemorrhages and paia in my lungs and they are now as sound as a bullet." Lowmau Drug Co.; A. C. Dukes. CLASSIFIED COLUMN One-half Cent u Word Found Notices Free. Gillette Razor Blades on sale at Sims Book Store. To Rent?Two nice .cottages on Green street. Apply to C. W. Prescott. To Rent?Boarding house over R. C. King's furniture store. Apply to L. E. Riley. For Sale?Lot and House on Green Street, in good location. Apply at The Times and Democrat office. Lost?On Saturday night, June 5, ? one white belt with buckle. Re ward if left at No. 10 Academy street. 7-3-1 For Sale?One Middleby's portable oven, in perfect condition. Ad dress Geidfusa' Bakery, Charles ton, S. C. For Sale?20,000 good second-hand cypress shingles cheap. Two fine milch cows, with young calves. Apply to L. E. Riley. If you want Winter Cabbage Plants to be sure to Ik ad up for winter use, D. D. Dantzler has them at 20 cents per hundred. D. D. Dantzler, 49 Whitman street. Wanted?Every business and profes sional man to see our line of the celebrated "Shaw-Walker' Filing Devices. Suit any business, large or small. Sims Hook Store, Or angeburg, S. C. For Sale?One hundred bushels Toole Cotton Seed, raised in Or angeburg County. This stood a high test at Georgia Experiment Station last season. Ayers & Wil liams, Orangeburg, S. C. For Sale?1 double-box revolving cotton press, 2 70-saw V'anwinkel gin feeds and condensers, 1 suc tion elevator system complete, 1 Lidell sawmill and circular saw, 1 30-h. p. Lidell engine, l 40-h. p. Ret tubular boiler; only run two ginning seasons. apply to J. W. Smoak, Orangeburg, S. C. Wanted?To correspond with owners having farms for sale cheap. De scribe land and improvements. R. S. Fletcher, McColl, S. C. A good worm powder for horses and mules. Safe and effective. Sent postpaid on receipt of 25c. T. E. Wannamaker, Cheraw, S. C. Wedding Invitations and announce ments. Finest quality. Correct styles. Samples free. James H. DeLooff, Dept. 6, Grand Rapids, Mich. Manuscript of Novels, essays, plays, poetry, etc., wanted for issue in book form. Address Tiroadway Publishing Company, 835 Broad way, N. Y. Real Estate?If you have any prop erty for sale list it with us. No charges unless sale is made. Carolina Sales Agency, Orange burg, S. C. Bagging and Ties?Ginners, farmers and merchants, save money by making contract with us now for fall delivery. Write without de lay. Address, Bagging Factory, Boykin, S. C. Why don't you work for Uncle Sam? Civil Service Manual, which pre pares you for the examination. Three volumes (with maps), $3. express prepaid. Sims' Bcok Store, Orangeburg, S. C. Wanted?Hardwood lumber and logs. In lumber we want poplar, ash, cottonwood, gum and cypress. In logs we want cedar, walnut and poplar. Prompt cash and inspec tion at your point. Savannah Val ley Lumber Company, Augusta, Ga. Teachers?Write for free booklet, "A Plan," showing how we help you get a better position. Thou sands excellent vacancies open, paying |30 to $150 monthly. Schools supplied with teachers Southern Teachers' Agency, Co lumbia, South Carolina. ORIENTAL RUG COMPANY. 1101 Cathedral St., Baltimore, Md. We make you handsome and dur able Rugs from your old wornout carpet, any size to fit a room or hall. Lot us send you a price list; just write for one. This Crib $7.00 $1,00 Cash 50cents Week We have a complete line of Furniture at the right price. See us before you boy. R. C. KING, 00 and 62 E. RusseU Street. Get WeU IP you are sick, you wish to get well, don't you? Of course you do. You wish to be rid of the pain and misery, and be happy again. If your illness is caused by female trouble, you can quickly get the right remedy to get well. It's Cardui. This great medicine, for women, has re lieved or cured thousands of ladies, suffering like you from some female trouble. For Women's Ills Urs. Fannie Ellis, of Foster, Ark., suffered agony for seven years. Bead her letter about Cardui. She writes: "I was sick for seven years with female trouble. Every month I would very nearly die with my head and back. I took 12 bottles of Cardui and jras cored. (Cardui is a God-send to suffering women." Try iL AT ALL DBUG STOEES DRUG STORE NEEDS TO MAKE YOUR VA CATION ENJOYABLE! The more we are civilized the more care we bestow on our toilet needs, as that means respectability. We mention a few of the more im portant needs that you should take with you on your vacation. In our complete drug store we can tell you of many more. Brushes. Combs. Tooth Brushes. Common Medical Needs. Tooth Paste or Powder. Alcohol Stoves. Rubber Gloves. Sun Burn Lotions. Cold Creams and Lotions. Talcum Powder. Wash Rags. Soaps?100 kinds. Witch Hazel. Mosquito "SkootS." Hand Brushes. Cigars. Candy. Razors, Strops and Soaps. Manicure Goods. Stationery. J. G. Mfg. Co. "All Your Drug Store Needs." Mail Orders Filled. Special Prices FOR 10 DAYS, Commencing Mon day, June the 21st, and continuing to July 1st. We are going to offer these fol lowing items at prices to make them move: 40-inch White Lawn at _8 1-tfc Other 40-Inch White Lawn 10 to I8e ir> and 20c Colored Lawns at 12c 10 and 12c Colored Lawns at..?c 8 I-3c Colored Lawns at .Oc Our 15 and 20c Colored Flaxen. very stylish, at .12c Dress Gingham at. . .."?c 40-inch Sea Island, bne value, ,3c A good 36-inch Bleach, 15 yard* for.$1.<;0 15c Suiting.12 I-Sc No cards given on the above items. Come, we will please in prices and quality. Yours, etc., SPAHR'S TALK ON YOUR VACATION NEEDS! There are many things you want on that trip. First of all you may need a re membrance for those you are going to visit. No matter how much yon take with you it is the thought that counts. We are particularly well stocked for gifts to take with you. Then we can tell you some good things you should take with YOU. THERE IS A GOOD KODAK FOR ONE THING. There is no Kodak like the East man and we are direct agents. Gather the idea? You trade with one price. YOU MAY WANT A GOOD WATCH, or a cheaper one. We have utern. Little toilet articles which are in dispensable on a trip let us supply you. Perhaps you are an Elk and will go to the Los Angeles meeting. Wo can give you the emblem direct? beautiful ones with the right price. Ask us. The Best Jewelers Since '6T. SPAHR'S A PIANO OF MERIT Beautiful case, Splendid Tone, Honestly mude, Fully guaranteed. Price $250.00. TERMS: $10.00 cash, $7.00 monthly. HE?Iarchant Mask oo* East Russell street, Orangeburg, S. C. TIDE BANK OF SPRINGFIELD. Edisto Dry Sooas Co. Phone 12?. 5? West Russell Street. UAVDEN & BRIGGMAN, Managers. Some men go to the dogs gradual ly; some get there immediately by going into politics. 1). In commencing treatment for ^ :;iight irregularity that could have been cured quickly by Foley's Kidney Remedy may result in a seri ous kidney disease. Foley's Kidney Remedy builds up the worn out tis sues and strengthens these organs. Lowman Drug Co.; A. C. Dukes. Oi?cera. L. M. Minis, President; Jno. McB. Bean. V. P.; J. B. Smith. Cashiar; Edith Phillips, Asst. Directors. L. M. Miras, Jno. Bean, Joe. A. Berry, L. B. Fulmer, W. P. Hut to. J. W. Jumper, H. A. Cd,m, T. L. Gleaton, O. C. Salley. All business Intrusted to us re ceives careful, official attention. Leave your Surplus tund? with as at four per cent n'terest. Undivided Profits.12.00O.O0 Capital.f30.000.0C Plants for Sale. Rev. D. D. Dantzler, 49 whitman street, has tomato plants at 25c a hundred. Late summer cabbage plants 20c a hundred. The thing a man admires about his wife's swell curtains is when they are packed away for" the summer.