Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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4g Willi Johns (Continued from Last Week.) CHAPTER X1I. It Was the second day nftei- tIs the (1a set for Claire Bradfeld's wed ding-that in the morning, niuch ear lier than customary, Gorman cane' to the prison to see me. I met him Jubilantly. My uncle's un exlected return to the city and his generous and convincing oiers of aid had filled moe with new hopes. I trusted, too, that old liufus' keen eyes quickly wouild discover the secret pas sageway 110w that I had indicated to him where to look for it. I was confi dently expecting that the resulting de velopments (iulckly would free mne from even the susipicion of being a murderer. The inuilite, however, that I laid eyes,; oil Gorman I knew that somethiig had gone wrong. "What is it?" I cried. "What's the iatter now?" "You're a wonderfut liar, you are," was his surly greeting, "with your pip)1 dreams about secret passageways and Stolen pearls." "What do you mean?" I replied. .i had not tile least idea what he was getting at. "You almost had Inc believing you," he said savagely. "If it wasn't that I knew that Wick and that girl up there were crooks I would wash my hands of the whole afalir." "I don't understand," I aniwered in dignantly. "IBvery statement I have made to you has heeti the absolute truth." "Yes, it has !" he sneered. Ordinarily I would iave resented anyone talking to m1e ii this manner, but I felt that under no circumstances could I aftord to quarrel with Gorman. He was the only friend I had in the whole city that I could rely on, ex cepting of course my great-uncle. I contented myself with merely reassert Ing: "I tell you it is all true-every word of it" "The old man's home-old Itufus," he resp6nded irrelevantly. "I know," I replied. "I saw him for a few minutes day before yesterday. le promised to do everything in his power to free me ats speedily as pos sible. After talking with him I am confident that he had nothing what ever to do with any part of the plot. H1ave you seen him?" "Yes," said Gorman, signifleantly, "I've seen him. le looked nc up yes terday and we went over the case to gether. le suggested that we go up to the Granddeck and look over the apartment, and we did. The minute we got in he went to the wvall safe anid op~ened it up and-" Gormnan stopped short and looked at mec. Its seemed to me that. hlere were dloubt and distrust in his L'xpres sion. "Gio on," I cried, "wthat did you find?" "We found," lie said, speaking stow ly and putting special emphallsis on his third word, "two jewvel boxes there, the one with the pearls and tihe other one." "What," I cried, aghast at this in credible bit of news, "two jewel cases I" TREATED RIOMIT jAT TilS 3TORE IS T w rthwhile to suff ache or poor vision w car> be ha~d at such smnal We make a thorough es without cost,' and if gha them at the lowest possi PERFECT FITTINC D/ UN D/S THE GIJI CU-A The lOMui 910 htspers 1tti~ Uu4 410*0 ton "Y 1rwir . "Sure we (ift," lit Itiliouinced trl 'urnphantly. "And the pettris were thet0 ais safe its when the old man went away./ Now what have you got to say to that?" Whit could I say? I.xuew as* positively as I knew that 1 wa.iy9 that on thtt IturLAIy w-len I alld tp'veed tih aIll sife to put ntwiy my tioney there had been but onie of the jewel boxes there. I had taiken it out and had exaitinilyd its ctiltents igain. WI i the aid of A lighted tinntell I laid _xplored every corner of tlh( steel-lined receptcle. Tht box containing the pearls and the rest of tile valiuables in tile Gaston collectioll was gone. Now ti peatrs vere ' afv'y back there again. I Iow coutih t''.ot he exphtin'd'? The anystery WaS too inuch for ine. There wits not the slightest reason for me to believe that Gorman was% lying to nie now. I haid fo'und hint 1in all our dealings straightforward and candid. If lie said he had seen great. tincle Rufus find the pearls there It must be so, but how could they hive got there? Could It he possible, I won dered, that suteonsciously, burdened with the respoisibility of the custody of such costly gelis, I might have risen, in iy sleep and In a1 soinnloleiit state removed the pearls to sone other hid Ing placee. No, I deelded, that the ory w'a;* too prosterotis and absurd for even at moment's consideration. If I had done that in iny sleep I itust also have restored them to the snfoe again In my sleep. It was far more likely that the thief, beconing alarimed over tlhki IlieltIily brought to the Grattddeck &- the iiurer, had been afraih to attemit to dj pose Qf gems so wellenown as the Gaston pearlsland iar"3estored theIn the satie glysterious way that he tatd ab stracted them. I suggest'd thii'theory to Garman. "Nothing doing," lie sneered. "Any crook daring enouglo to steal those Iearir., on- lie had got his hands on then,, never would return them. Pearls are too .easily (is1posed of. You've rot to dig tp a better expla nationt (lhan that." "What did Mr. Gaston think? What (id he say when lie found thei there?" "lie had nothing to say. He was I so tickled at finding then again that ie hustled with them right away to the safe deposit Vaults .and did not rest until he had theta safely locked up. Ile took both jewel cases wvith him and made n go along with him to protect them." "Didn't you look at all for the secret passageway I told you about?" "Still dIreaminag ablout that, are you?" scoff'ed Gorman. "No, we dlidnm't. On the way up tn thte Granddeck thle ()d~ man1 spoke abo'ut it and I told him that in myl3 oplinionl tlrere was inothinag to it. AXfte hile rec'overedl the pearls he was trio excited to thinitk abuouit anything else. It seemted to bireak huum all up. and I took* him bac'k to hIs hot el anid left him there. lie said lhe lhad somet wrIting to do, andt t hat lhe would meiet tme at my13 ofllce at no00n today." "I low do you account for the r'e turni of tile pearls?" I cried dlesperate ly. "What's your' theory about thleml?'' er from eye ache, head an relief is so near and I cost? arnination of the eyes ~ses are needed, furnish bLe price. SGUAPAN TEED. Oe 0E~S 4ENC$Fp.it ~vr o] -U- O "I ha'lVen't aly,", he relled. "It's upy to you to exp!lil It. MNybe by the time I cotte to see yotu tomorrow you'll have ,thought. up a iew yarn to stin," " Please, please," I called after him1 as IN-' tutrned away, "dTo look tomlor row an(d see if that. secret passage is not where I said it was." ITO walked away without a1swerin.;. Inck Once inore in iiy cell, I stretched itiyself desponldently onl mly little Iron cot, and closiig my eyes, tried to concentrate iy thoughts on 11n1 at tempt to solve this new mystery. which I could plainly see had all but destroyed ( torman's faith in my hour esty. I mullst solve it if I wUiS to re tain him in aiding xne to get free, yet the whole thing seemed inlexplicable, I could hardly blame him for doubting mne. The great value Qf the. Ilearls had been motive eiough for titeIr theft, but what possible uotive could there have been for - the thief ieturiin Ing thei ? With a shock it came to mie, too, that the restoration of the pearls practically upset the whole theory of ily defenlse. L; I c(01114 have estah lished the fact of this theft, a Jury might he persunded to hi-l leve my tallo of antiolyiolu i otes. mIvsterious whis pers, andi a secret passaigeway by which the thief 1111( gililedll access to the tiliartment, but without the motive of theft, my story, unsuipported by wiitnee ad111 uncotmoriated by oth er evidentce, surely woutld lie incred ible of belief. I had Just one hope left. Old Itufus must ind that secret pissageway mnd see whither it led. That, with our knowledge of the identity of the tele phone giil and the posibility of prov Ing Gormnan's bellef that W'ick was ti ex-conviet, seemied likely to be my oilly sa. I vat lion. (01l Itufis must imi4 that paissagewaty. lie inust ! ie mtust! For. hottrs I liy there racking my brains over the unsolvable probleums. My. lunlcheonu was brought in, but I waived It wyil 1111touched. Werilily I won(ered whetliher the orecovery of tlie petrls had destroyed my aged rel ntive's faith in me, as it seemed to have destroyed GortanII's. I c0uld hardly blame him if he doubte(dl me after finding that my story of the dis. apperaniiceof tm pearls wa*its appar ently untrue. In my brief experience as a pritoner I had learned ill too well trie bitter fNet that once u iumn Is discredited, heniceforth no oe(, trusts him. If Itufiis Gaston failed mle at this juilictuir I did.not seeb how I could possibly extricate myself utn. scathed from the web thi1atseen hands bad so skillfully and mali clously woven around me. The only ray of comfort that I could find anty where In the whole situation was in my firma belief that though old Itufus and Gorman an(1 the whole world (Ahted 11e, Barbara Brndford-my Barbarn, I ventured to call her in my innermost heart'-would continue to believe in me. She would be sure, to) matter how much lplpearances weit ngninst me, that I was telling the truth. Burbara an(] I knew. Eveni If she had not known that I could not possibly have fired the shot that killed Miss Luton. I wis certain that site still would have trusted mile. Thinklg about liiaraira I recalled that it Wap the day of hei' sister's wedl. ding. L mnd one of the prisoi tittel ants gvt me the eveillig pa pets to -see what they had to say about it, for I was fearful lest sonme hireath of scandal at the last mioment livi-ng the Bindfor-ds mIght brIng about a Ipostplonemtenut. Eagerly I was hopIng that)t ntoth~ig had happetied to p'"vent the mar31riage takiig place. WIth the fortunes of heir slster assutredl and( tier mot11her's future soafe, I reahlized that thle coulrse of rmy relatiotis with linrhtarnl would be0 lIkely to be tmutch Smoot her sailinag, providled (if couirse Stat I was nectlt tedl. In the few chiin;s I htad had withl her, 1 hnd1( teal lzed thaitt weal th and ( Ii lry antd soelaol posi1tlOnl meiantit not hintg to 1 libar's haplpiness. She was thle sortt (of girl who fot au 11an3 she loved gladly would bra~ive poverty, ha11rdship, everyltig a sincere. true-hearted woman~l withl a clear visilon of the real vplutes (If ex 1at ence. My tmesseniger returned with the niewspaplers, and~ as I pieked thema upi, eeryt hintg wetnt blniek. "MIllIonaire "Millionair0 Gaston Found Murdered," Was the Startling Headline That Flashed Before Me,. statling headline thtat flashed before me, right thore In the colun next to the oecoutnt of the Blradford wedding. The sinister effect of this terrible news dhawned on mae instantly. With my great-uncle Ituftin dead, without lhe rpossibility of his corroboratIng tiny partt of thy story, my case wats htoem (lspunt-n. unetinably it would Incan that I would be founi guilty of murder and sentenced to death in the electric chair. As soon as I could suillelently compose myself I read every word there was in the newspapers about this new tragedy, utnlling grimnly at the thought tlht. at least they could not blispde t,13 Inur der oi) ie. Mr. Gaston, it appeared, had come to the Granddeck about ten o'clock in the mnorning ind had gone at once to lils apartient. On his arrival lie had been greeted by the telephone girl and had informed her that lie was Oilly in the city for a few days and was stay hlus at a hotel. He had added that he w ould not be occupying the apatiitment for sevpral weeks until his wiff's re turn to the eity; -Ab6it hutlf-past twelve hthere - had conf a telephone call forhutlm. The. girl- had been un able to -get any 'response from the apartment. Knowing that he had not gone out, and fearing that lie inight have had a sudden attack of illness, she had becoie nilarnied and notified Air. Wick, the superintendent. The superintendent, the account continued, had summlned Mr. Henry Kent, the owner bf the Granddeck apartinents. Together they had gone to 3Mr. Gaston's rooms. Weing unable to get tiny reply tp repeated rings and knocks they had finally let theinselves in with i pass key in possession of the owner of the building. In his study in the rear of the upartnient they were horrified to find old Rufus Ga.iton, fully clad, lying onl the floor, face (own, stone d(enl. A great wound on the back of his head showed tlint he had been killed, prob ably instantly, by a terrifle blow from somle sort of a blunt instrument. A seuarch Of the roonis failed to show ainy sort of a weapon. The pollee theory wasit,; that the erline was undi(loubl)te(iy the work of a bur glar who had been trapped by the re turn of Air. Gaston so unexpectedly to his aairtmaent. How the murderer escaped after attacking Air. Gaston was a puzzle to the detectives at work oil the case. The superintendent of tile building expressed the opinIon that the uurderer had gained access in the guise of a nueter inspector. Attend ants in the hall recalled that there had been such a lutau In the building thmt morning. As lie wore the usual uniforn aw1l presented the customary credent I1als, he had beenl permnitted to enter and leave the biling u lested. There followe long review of Ru fus Gaston's'bus. ess career and an estimite of sone of his extensive hold Ings in Ftocks, bonds and real estate, froin which it appeared that his for tune was likely to run to over teln million'dollars. It was with soee sur prise that I learned that a -score or more of years ago the old muan appar ently had been a powerful figure in the life of the metropolis, active both in its buiIness and social life. What interesed m e i uost was tile attention p1id to the rennarkable co incidence that only a few weeks be fore a nurder had taken place in the apartinent juist below, under practi cally the saine circunstances. The po lice, tile account stated, were inclined to believe that the murderer was one of tile gang to which young Nelson, now in prison charged with the inur der .f Miss Idtllua, uIioubItedly be longed. Their theory was that a bur glar gang iceeded in plaiting Ne. sonl in thle aipartmlent al a caretaker, and thait this enabiledi thiem tn got their bearings in thle huli~ing and pro Vidle themnselvesa iwth false keys for ranlsnekinlg (lie roomis at their bI-sure. The guilt of youing Nelsoni, thle plilce say',, is establlishe~d bieyonid (quest1ion, and1( they3 are hloilmful of' being able to roundl~ uip lil associnates. TIhelre was5 ailsoa ri ief ilte(rviewl with W~ick, inl wleih lie waus quoted as Allying: "I was suspicious of Nelson f'romi the start anld trlid to keep an e'ye 011 him, ie wasll very se'cret ive nhbout is (comings and1 goings and1( waIs always pryinlg abolmt trying to 1.enrnl some1( Mir. (mnstonl (entne( to (emplo4y 1him1 AS enlretak~ler I ne(ver iearnied, but it woublit crook like him to b impiose oni s0 ob1( ai man11 as5 Ar. (hislt0In with aiI cock andl~ hull1 story,~." I snlirred lidignani~tly as5 1 rend1 tIs. I kno'w thant W\ik was dllibera':tely try lng to stili fuz:the d11'iscredilt mle.I reen'lled~ that lhe irulf hadl toild tule tert i . I .:ton hmolt4i( I menioed our Ii remlatmmsbIlm:. It~1ki wasP1 obvis thot heit wa delibrtey w'i.2 4 ithhhlinig tis rein I 2I'liu (hsmne rt. h ne h had sh le iot lvisy PulE Illwasc tmorily ceri n I it wa1 hl inined' toI14i gre lwithl (i'irman 1( th:t e ie f not mill inurdre: The21 (.1 t t 111 heml arrfy 4)1nardly11 (hnd 1ri(ing naturlWIii Ie ele to102 rine, a t soin ho'vI1111b-n aeih fhowld hilW'd 'y that was ntr. h CntinuedAls o~tn Pa iled ) n SUITS TO 'ORDER SPECIALS Tailor-Made Suits Reduced 20 Per Cent $50.00 Suits in Stock Reduced to ,$39.75 Suits made to order, with extra trousers of same material, trousers at half price. J.Willie Henderson NOTICE! After July 1st we will only deliver coal] for C A SH. When you send in your or der mail your check with it. We are forced to do this on ccount of the time and wo caused by collecting *ccounts. Laurens Gin & Fuel Co. Tire Treads Improved 25% The latest Miller triumph is a super-grade tread. It excels the best rival treadls today b~y an~ nyerage of 25 per cent. This has been proved, tmnder careful wvatch, by many road comparisons. The Miller Tire mileage is the talk of the (lay. But these new-grade treads outwear the balance of the tire. Not one Miller Tire, built with this nov tread, has ever come backc with the tread gone. These treads do niot vary. Every day the Miller treadl stock is vulcaizedcc andl testedl in the labratry.It must prove up) to these new stand ards before a tread is made. Miller Cord Tires, in the factory tests, now aver ge 15,000 miles. Miller Fabrics from 8,000' to ,000 miles, And these factory tests rc extreme. Watch your mileage on one Miller'. T.Iire. Comp'are it with any other ' and it will win you. You owe that to yourself in view of Miller records. *. Tread Patenited Cter tead sooth with auetion cps to Roadside treads mnosh lke cogs In dirt. Wilier Tires Now the Record Makere Cords or Fabric Geardto-the-Road Vincent Motor Car Co. La~irena.,S. C.