Argosy All-Story Weekly — page 140: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

930 said, “this lets Bernice Rand and her daddy and Newton out.” “Does it?” Jim took him up. “It shows how dope got into the camp, but how does it prove anything else, my son? Just how does it establish their innocence?” “Haddon said he thought it would,” Judson reminded him, frowning in consid- eration of the point he had raised. “He said he imagined it would,” Jim countered. “ I’ve imagined a lot of things that weren’t. If this would clear things up, then why in time did that guy Pablo skip out from Rand’s after old Mike was brought in, an’ why did he presumably lay for Pulfer this morning and run him off?” “But if the thing was framed to throw suspicion on Newton, and throw dust in Haddon’s eyes, and Pablo was the one who switched the birds, as we think he was now—”’’ Judson began. ‘““ Now you’re shouting,” Bryce cut him off. ‘If that was what really happened, then in order to clear this matter up it’s got to be proved. Haddon knows it, too. That’s one reason why he’s gone out to see Stanley now, Ill bet. If it was worked that way, that bird knows—and if he kicks in with the information now that his cake’s dough, why, all right. But if he keeps a tight mouth, there’s work to be done before the thing can be cleared up. By the way, Dual and Haddon don’t seem to have been the only ones who suspected that Stanley was in the know.” He went on with an account of our conversation with the garage man prior to the sergeant’s arrest. “Talked to him, huh?” Judson said when he had finished. ‘‘ Come on, let’s dig him out and see if he’s got anything more to say.” But in that we failed. The fellow simply stuck to his original assertion that he had seen Pulfer talking with Stanley and knew nothing else. “Looks like he’d been right, though,” he suggested. ‘“‘He run in here and crawled into that limousine over yonder, and tried to cover himself with a robe. But the lieutenant dug him out, along with a bundle of dope he’d shoved under the rear cushion. Oh, they got him with the goods, all right.” ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY, Danny grinned. ‘ The dope was on the dog, in his collar at first,” he said. “ After Felipe went upstairs Stanley must have taken it off. I guess that’s the way they worked it. Felipe was trained to go across the line and get it, and bring it back to him here, and then he hid it on himself and car- ried it into camp.” ‘“ That’s about how, young sleuth,” Jim agreed with him, nodding. “ Well, any- way, you’ve done a good day’s work.” Danny grinned again, and then his face sobered. ‘“‘ The way it turned out. But all I did really, Mr. Jim, was just to look at his collar. Mr. Dual had told me to do that, if I ever found him running around town with it on, and got a chance. I just did what he told me. It was him that ought to get the credit really. I was just an agent.” “And did he tell you to look for that quill over at old Mike’s place, too?” Judson asked, ° “Nope.” Danny’s expression lightened. ‘““T did that myself. I just happened to see the red wax it was sealed with, and won- dered what it was. Gee, I wonder if Quag- ley’s found any sign of that Injun and Pulfer yet!” “If he has it ain’t general knowledge,” Jim said, and lighted a cigar. “ Well, let’s go back to the hotel.” He = grinned. ‘When we started out, we didn’t look for anything much to happen, but we’ve seen quite a lot.” We acted on the suggestion. Judson went off to write up his story of Stanley’s arrest. Bryce and Dan and I strolled up the street to the Moctezuma and mounted to our suite. Dual sat there—simply sat there—in the great chair he had used for days. He was not even working with his charts. His hands were folded. He was leaning back. His attitude and expression were that of one who has finished a task, who has physically and mentally relaxed—of one who merely waited to see the finished out- come of his work. ‘The thing impressed me, struck me as a compelling and at the same time an illuminating thought. Then he turned his strong, quiet face toward me and smiled. Oo COMIGIOOKSEACO