The Bamberg herald. (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, June 09, 1921, Page 5, Image 5

Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page. It is also available as plain text as well as XML.

* PERSONAL MENTION. I People Visiting in This City and at Other Points. t ? . ?D. M. Eaves, of Union, was a j visitor in the city last week. ?Mrs. S. C. Hollifield is visiting relatives at Sharon this week. ?Mr. and Mrs. J. F. Carter spent Sunday with relatives at Kline. t ?Miss Virginia Folk is spending some time with friends in Union. ?L. L. Chartrand. of Xorth, was in the city a short while Tuesday. ?Rev. L. E. Wiggins, of Columbia, is spending some time in the city. ?Mrs. J. M. Jennings, of Charleston, is visiting relatives in the city. ?Harold R-Ce has returned home p?rtTv? TTn-rmon nnivArsitv. Greenville. II Ulii 1 U1 UiUU MM* ? v y ?J. M. Kirkland, Jr., will graduate from Clemson college this week. ?Mrs. Helen Copeland, of Augusta, visited relatives in the city last week. ?Miss Minnie Lee Ayer, who teaches in Columbia, is at home for the summer. ' ?LaVerne Thomas attended the meeting' of the Shriners in Charleston last week. ?Mrs. Amanda Miley attended the commencement exercises of Winthrop college last week. ^?Col. W. C. Duncan attended the commencement exercises of Wofford college this week. ?Mits Natalie Hooton has returned ffom Chicora college, Columbia, for the summer vacation. ?Miss Thelma Bailey, of Greenwood, is spending a month with the family of Dr. J. B. Black. ?Fletcher Kirkland and Wesley Stokes returned home this week from Wofford college, Spartanburg. ?Dr. Q,. W. Garland left this week for New York, where he will spend \ the summer with his sons. ?Misses Mary' Lee Grimes and Rebecca Dickinson returned last weeK irom vvmuruy cuuesc. ?Mioses Mary, Ann Bronson and Thelma Bruce have returned from Lander college, Greenwood. ?Little Miss Ola Hitt, of Montmorenci, visited her cousin, little Miss Dorothy Hitt, this week. ? ,?Miss Hazel Armstrong left Tuesday morning for Asheville. N. C., where she will spend the summer months. ?Mrs. J. E. Shuler and children, of Aiken, spent several days with relatives at Hunter's Chapel last week and this week. ?Mr. and Mrs. George Thomas, of Bishopville, spent a few days in the city this week with Mr. and Mrs. LaVerne Thomas. ?Dr. and Mrs. H. H. Wyman, Sr., of Aiken, are spending some time in the city with their son, J. A. Wyman, and Mrs. Wyman. ?Misses Mary .Frances Walker. Mildred Jones and Aegina Knight have returned for the summer vacation from Columbia college. ?Mr. and Mrs. R. T. Johnson left Saturday for Aiken, where Mrs. Johnson goes for medical treatment. During the absence of Mr. Johnson, M. O. Hewitt, of Montmorenci, is taking his place at the Southern ticket office. p ?Misses Evelyn, : Vista and Ida Brabham have returned home from Converse college, Spartanburg. Miss Vista was a member of the graduating class. Miss Clara Wyman, ot Denmark, also graduated from Converse last week. ?Miss Elizabeth Kirkland, a student of Lander college, is expected home this week. Leaving Greenwood she went to Clemson college, to attend the commencement exercises. She is the sponsor or tne senior ciass at Clemson this year. ?Misses Lucile Hunter and Bernice Simmons have returned from Coker college, Hartsville. Miss Hunter was a member of the graduating class. Mrs. Harry Murphy and Mrs. G. W. Garland ^vent to Hartsville to see her graduate. ESSAY SOLD CHEAP. t Original Composition of Ben Franklin Sold for $270. Letters and documents signed by nf fftrm Or /IQnfllTlPS lujai pcisuua5c? ui mi brought only $1 to $14 each in an auction sale in Philadelphia, Pa., last week, while Benjamin Franklin's essay on hygrometers went to $2 70. A parchment of Louis XIII, king of France, sold for $1, and another parchment, bearing the signature of "LeGrand Monarque" Louis XIV, j brought $3.75. A papal brief in Latin by Pope i Clement IX, dated 1000, brought | only fifty cents. The first Napoleon's i signature sold for $0, while a letter I from James II of England to the Earl j of Tyrconnell brought $14. More substantial prices were paid : for documents concerning the Ameri-1 l can revolution. CHAPTER I. The Message in the Box. Antirtinofinor tliii nncci hi 1 i t v Clf IT1V in V/ v? v train arriving late, I had named the hour of my meeting with Cuinmings as three o'clock, and, in consequence , of our reaching the city exactly on j time, was compelled to loiter idly ! about the hotel for an hour. However, i in passing through the corridor my attention was attracted by an unique curiosity shop occupying a small side room, and, merely to pass the time pleasantly, I entered and began exam- i ining the strange collection of wares on display. There were several articles I lingered over, tempted to purchase, but drifted on, rather undecided, until my eyes perceived a very quaint lacquered jewel box, of a class of workmanship quite unusual. The proprietor, perceiving my interest, joined me. "The jewel box attracts you,* he said pleasantly, opening the case and bringing it forth. "You have love for such things?" "A deep interest at least," I admitted, taking the article from his hand, "a collector in an amateur way. What is the workmanship?surely not Jap uuese: "No," smilingly. "Although positively I cannot answer as to its origin. The inscription, which can only be read with a microscope"?he traced with his finger?"is ancient Arabic, but no wild Arab ever did the lacquer." "Yet so strange a curio must have a history, an imaginary one, at least. }rVhat is the story?" "Positively none," he admitted regretfully. "The fact is, this article was found by a chambermaid in one of the hotel rooms, and turned in to the manager. He made every effort to trace the guests, only to learn that they, two men, by the way, had registered falsely. He even advertised, but with no response, and finally, after thirty days, was persuaded to accept my offer for the article." "You have put a price on this?" "Yes, ridiculously low, no doubt, yet bringing me a good profit." He named a price, and, still with the box in my hands, I yielded to the temptation, and bought it. The article was sufficiently small to find lodgment in an overcoat pocket, and, as Cummings appeared a little later, was soon forgotten in the earnestness of our conversation. We later had dinner together, and attended the theater in company, my mind so occupied with other matters that I scarcely once thought of the strange purchase I had . made, which remained securely hidden. It was only after returning to my own room, then nearing midnight, that it was again recalled to memory. Only an idle curiosity and a feeling of sleeplessness induced me to draw the article forth, and remove its wrappings, but the sight served immediately to increase my interest. It was certainly a wonderful find, artistically beautiful, and most unusual in design. , There was a mystery that must have exercised a strange spell over my imagination, for I dreamed of the longdead workman who fashioned it, for* - ' - * 1 -l?Vi A I genui or uie passing iiuurs. i clock somewhere in the neighborhood J struck, and I counted twelve, arousing j myself. Perhaps I was already half I sleeping, for as I turned to rise my j sleeve struck the .box at the edge of the table, and before I could prevent the fall, it lay upon the floor at my feet. As I stooped hastily to recover the overturned box, I was astounded to discover the bottom slipped partially aside, as though some secret spring had been touched, revealing so narrow a \ receptacle that the ordinary eye would j never suspect the possibility of its ex- i istence. Not only was there a false j bottom, but the opening revealed a j closely folded paper. I grasped this j quickly, a thrill running through me. I What ancient and long-buried message was about to be unft>lded? But no! This was plainly modern? \ o fionn -cvhit-p sheet, no folded narch- , " ~ T - * I ment of old, but some mystery of yes- : terday. There was writing there, in i Spanish, so faintly traced I could j barely decipher the words, yet clearly I revealed as of this day and generation. I know Spanish fairly well, having had i a year in Mexico City, yet it required some time before I could puzzle out the message on this sheet. The paper ! had been torn, seemingly sundered from a much longer letter, and preserved merely because of the specific address and instructions it contained. Beyond doubt all else had been destroyed. What remained may have been sufficient guidance to the party who had the benefit of what went before in the original epistle, but wa? obscure to anyone else. Yet it was , modern, something relating to this ; very time, a menace; something to be grasped and understood. This convic- j i OR OF . r men case f cavend o Illustrations" rnr vJ-WEIL RANDALL PAR.Til SH tion absolutely gripped me. I stared at* the rather sinister words, blindly groping at what lay hidden behind them, instinctively scenting a conspir T 1 .J ,l?4.ryy,_ acy UI CVU WHICH A WUlU IIUI ucia* mine. All unintentioned I had stumbled into a clew which might lead to startling results, yet it seemingly gave me no hint of who was involved, or of Its real nature. I put the words together, weighing each one with care as to its exact meaning, and read th?m over with increased bewilderment. The torn fragment began and ended abruptly ; I could only guess at its meaning, yet the impression left upon my mind was both sinister and menacing. I wanted to know more. 108 sailed Saturday from Stockholm. Will deposit letter of credit with Krantz to your order. Amount .ample all needs. See to this at once, and advise 876 Gans, so as to tie no delay. Two raps, three?Cervantes. Waldron favors action this month; suggest Watonia. Can you be ready? Use South A code. That this letter was authentic I had no doubt, nor was its meaning altogether obscure in the light of certain events. Several allusions were familiar to me and these were what caused my earlier suspicions to crystallize into probability. It bore all the earmarks of a plot, a revolutionary plot, and one not yet brought to consummation. To be sure the note was undated, and the box had been left at the hotel thirty days before. Yet the Watonia was certainly the name of a ship and to my memory suggested Central American trade. This did not necessarily imply that the conspirators had abandoned their purpose. More likely they were not quite ready in time to operate on the sailing date of that particular ship. Some delay had occurred, and, possibly, even now prompt action might overturn all their plans. I undressed and went to bed, but not to sleep, for the darkness brought new thoughts ami suggestions for the morrow. I was still in government employ, although unassigned, and felt this discovery to be a direct call upon my service. While my first inclination should naturally have been to turn the wholb matter over to the proper bureau for investigation, two facts led me in another direction?I was sufficiently young to seek adventure, and I desired to verify my suspicions before creating any false alarm. As I rested there, sleepless, staring up at the black ceiling, the words of the strange fragment of letter remained vividly before me. Little by little I dug at the truth, coming finally to this conclusion: "108" was, no doubt, the recognized number of some agent who had been dispatched to America on a special errand to the conspirators in this country. He had sailed Saturday, a month ago, or more, and must have long since arrived at some port, bringing with him instructions not to be intrusted to the mail, and sufficient money, in form of letter of credit, with which to finance whatever nefarious scheme of revolution might be contemplated. This money Questioned Him Relative to the Mysterious Box. was to be paid out to the authorized party through a man named Krantz. Who was Krantz? There was a well known banking firm, Kulb, Krantz & Co., in Wall Street, and it was quite probable these might prove the ones involved, although to my knowledge they had no outward ?junta connections of this nature. "Gans" was evidently a street, although I could recall none bearing so peculiar appellation, while the password was in itself proof almost positive as to the South or Central American sympathies of the conspi rators. These facts were fairly clear as I thus weaved them together, but they were rendered more damning by the other name mentioned?Waldron. If this was Ivan Waldron, I had good reason to know the fellow, and to connect his activities with any scheme destined to embarrass the government. He was a professional agitator of the most pronounced type, a socialist radical, who in the past had openly advocated opposition to all law and order. Moreover, the fellow had a large and desperate following, to whom he was a high-priest. He was reported to he a Russian by birth, but spoke English without an accent, and I felt no doubt but what a sufficient amount of money would engage his interest in any desperate cause. The desire to "get him" added zest to my interest in the affair. If he was actually at the head of these fellows, these plotters against the neutrality of the United States, the catch would be worth while, i As soon as possible next morning I sought out Burke, the manager of the hotel,'-with whom I had a speaking acquaintance, and, without confiding the extent of my discovery, questioned him relative to the mysterious box, and the guests who left it behind. Two men, he said, both well dressed, but with nothing particularly to distinguish them, had registered together late in the afternoon of Friday, September 27, and on request had been assigned to one room with twin beds and a bath. The larger man, who had inscribed himself as "P. S. Horner, Detroit," alone had a bag; his companion, known to the hotel as "Gustave Alva, Toledo, Ohio," being without baggage. The bill was paid the next morning by Horner, and the; two departed together. It was an hour later when the chambermaid on tha^ floor reported finding the box in the room vacated. After holding it for a day?or two in expectation that it might be called for, no such inquiries being made, the hotel endeavored to trace the men, but to no avail. The fellows had either false Iy registered, or were entirely unknown where they claimed residence. The first was the most probable condition. After thirty days, and having exhausted all reasonable efforts to find the rightful owner, the hotel felt legally justified in selling the trinket. That was all Burke knew of the matter, and his interest in it was not keen. I am inclined to think now that I went at the problem without much system, and that any success achieved was through pure accident. During the forenoon I dropped in upon Clement Breckenridge, cashier of the Dover's National bank. We had been classmates at college, and I generally called on him when in the city. This time I led the conversation to Kulb, Krantz & Co., on the pretense that I had received mail from them relative to some recommended investment Clement knew Krantz well and favorably, and my probing elicited the information that the man was Austrian by birth, but a naturalized citizen, rather deeply interested in political matters. If his sympathies were at all revolutionary he had carefully refrained from any such open expression. The firm had made a specialty of handling South American business, and had intimate financial connections in both Rio and Buenos Aires. The company ranked high In financial circles. i "The present war must have cost them a rather heavy loss," I hazarded. "However, this is nothing to me. By i the way, Clement, do you chance to know of a Gans street in this town?" ! "Gans? That is a new one on me. Try the city directory?there on the ! edge of the desk." | The name was not to be found, nor any otner approacning it in souna or spelling, and I finally drifted out onto ' the street, really no wiser than when I first entered. I made one more effort, however, telephoning to a detective sergeant whom I knew well, as to the ! present whereabouts of Ivan Waldron. The last heard of Waldron, he was in West Virginia, speaking to striking miners; that was less than a week ago; he had not been seen in the city . since. ! The whole affair looked hopeless. About all I could do would be to send the torn note to the proper authorities in Washington, .with a statement of how it came into my possession, and let them dispose of the matter in any way they deemed best. I wrote such a letter carefully on hotel stationery, and went down to mail it in the lobby. Before disposing of it In the mailbox I encountered the manager, Burke, and stopped for a word. We were still talking when a bellboy came up hurriedly with a message. Burke turned. "What fc it fJonrcro?" i "That Gans street party Is on the wire, sir." I "Oh, all right. Excuse me, Severn, i but I've been trying to get connection ! for an hour." "But wait a minute," my veins tingling. "Did he say Gans street? Where is that? There is no such name in the city directory." "Gans! Why, over in Jersey. Yes, j I'm coming." I I thrust the unmailed letter into my pocket, and sat down, staririg at the ! crowd in the lobby, but entirely indif. ferent to their presence. Here at least was an opening, a chance?Gans street was in Jersey City. Then it was not all a dream. I would at least look over the ground before I gave up in despair, for I had stumbled upon a way out of the blind alley?Gans street, Jersey City (To be continued next week.) ! ?L. Kobetz, who recently underwent an operation in Columbia, lias returned home, and his friends will ! be glad to know he is recovering his I strength. MARKERS FOR VETERANS. i Government- to Erect Gravestone Over All Who Died in Service. A headstone or marker will be pro| vided for every American who was | killed or died from sickness while in | the service during the world war. | .Many persons have written to xnemj hers of congress asking about this ' matter, in answer to a letter from a ! North Carolinian on this subject, Senator Simmons of that state, said: "The war department is now authorized by law to take this action and in every case where the family of the dead soldier will apply to the secretary of war for it the department will furnish a fine quality of granite headstone for the soldipr's grave. "The department will do this not only in the case of the graves of the soldiers who gave their lives in battle but a headstone will also be furnished upon application for the graves of any soldiers who died of disease either before or after discharge from the service. "I am sure that you will be pleased to learn these facts and I hope that you will give them as wide a circulation as practicable among our people. "I hope that not a single grave of our gallant North Carolina soldiers will be left unmarked and that applications will be made in every instance where the graves have not already been properly marked by the relatives." NOTICE TO CREDITORS. All persons having claims against the estate of Mrs. Hibernia J. Hays, deceased, are hereby notified to file the same with the undersigned Administrator, duly itemized and verified. E. C. HAYS, Administrator. Bamberg, S. C., June 4, 1921. 6-23 NOTICE TO CREDITORS. Notice is hereby given to all persons having claims against the estate of Edward R. Hays, deceased, to file the same, duly itemized and verified, with the undersigned Executor. E. C. HAYS, Executor. Bamberg, S. C., June 4, 1921. 6-23 A A. A A, V V V V V V V V V V V " i FIRST NAT! ^ Member Federal k BAMBI | ^ERCLW I -OFF! ? ? PRESIDENT W. A. KLAUBER k CAS f W. D. C (ere is no time in t ire susceptible to ti ig boyhood days. ,ny a successful bu 'rtrtAOfi iti lovnrn moQ a JLiiO DUUUCOO J.U. AU/xgv/ J-LAVW* I a boy. I Don't you think your I starting of a bank accou I There is no excuse for I RESOURCES 0V1 | l-WWtfKfl&ST | mo oh I S*V IH6S ACCOPWTS MBHBBEm ?? ? ?? MO11 I XOTK'K TO CREDITORS. i All persons having claims against the estate of Miss Addys Hays, dej ceased, are hereby notified to file the ! same, duly itemized and verified, with : the "undersigned Administrator. X. R. HAYS, Ad ministrator. Care E. C. Havs, Bamberg, S. C. ! Bamberg. S. C., June 4. 1021. 6-23 1? JOHN H. CARNEs"" CARPENTER AND 1 BUILDER. Repair Work a Spec- ] ialty. R. R. Ave. Next to Jones tp* . rii.it.. 1 i cros. stamps. m 1 M. 'I Bamberg, S. C. 8 Winthrop College SCHOLARSHIP AND ENTRANCE EXAMINATION j The examination for the award of "vacant Scholarships in Winthrop | College and- for admission of ne students will be held at the County ;Court House on Friday, July 1, at 9^ a. m. Applicants must not be less than sixteen years of age. When j Scholarships are vacant after July jl they will be awarded to those making the highest average at this lexamination, provided they meet I lie conditions governing the award. I a fny larchir?a .ipir Jirauio iui uvut. iwi ^. write to Preside^* Tohnson before the examination for Scholarship examination blanks. Scholarships are worth $100 and free tuition. The next session will open September 14th, 1921. For further information and catalogue, address Pres. D. B. Johnson, Rock Bill, S. C. I DR. G. M. TRULUCKI SPECLIALIST I . Eye, Ear, Nose and I " Throat. I Barton Bldg. Phone 274 I * ^^Orangeburg^!^!^^i A. A^A yr T W I0NAL BANK? Z ! Reserve System I :rg, s. c. ? ID ON SAVINGS f ICERS? t ;? J VICE-PRESIDENT A PR. ROBT. BLACK iHLER &. OLEMAN A. A. -r^V T^T T^T n ' AM ACCUVN7 I ? J I ' E' J >W ARE ~~N Xz! ^ I Au^ T / MAKING THE pi// I ^_/^Vr ^|y I he life of a man when he I aining, to discipline, than | siness man of today owes I sure to proper training as I ^ * boy's future is worth the B nt for him today? I a Slacker Dollar to day. I iR $1,000,000.00 I ' V 1 '