The Argosy, October 1906 — page 32: what you’re looking at

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

406 . He tried the other doors to the suite ; but- with no better success.. “ The Cau- ~ easus Oil and Pipe Line Co.,” ‘“‘ The Pike’s Peak Investment Co.,” “ Abner J. Wackermann,- Stocks and Bonds,” and all the rest of them-seemed either to have gone to Europe, like Harry Paine, or to be taking a day off. The idea struck him that this might be a holiday pecujiar to. New York, and of which he therefore had no cognizance; but the.air of bustle and hurry through. out the rest of the big building, and the shirt-sleeved men and shirt-waisted-sten- ographers whisking in and out-at- other doors, refuted ‘such a theory. ng In his perplexity’ he sought outthe superintendent of the. building and asked for ,an.explanation. ‘No. 611, eh?’ repeated that func- tionary, with a. burst: of profanity that ,- would have done-€redit to a river. Mate. “You ain’t.thefirstone that’s asked that question this Morning, and I wager you won't be the last. WeH, I guess.you can count yourself one‘ of the suckers ‘along with the rest of us. That old fox of a Wackermann has dished me out of three months’ rent, and all he has left be- hind is some- second-hand furniture that won't pay for-its. being carted off to the kindling factory.. They say he sailed for _Europe yesterday, just escaped the dis- trict-attorney’s man, and is headed for Belgium, where an extradition treaty can’t reach him. I'll bet he didn’t take less than a million dollars with him that he'd grafted off the ‘come-ons.’ ”’ “But there are other concerns in the suite besides Wackermann’s,’’ broke in Horace eagerly. ‘There is ‘Fhe €au- - -Casus oi and eee Line Co.,’ and the “Lord, but you are green,’’ — inter- rupted the superintendent, surveying him with compassionate derision. ‘ Don’t you know that all those things were Wackermann’s under another name? It was all Abner J. Wackermann, and he has proved himself the greatest “ get- rich-quick ’ artist this country has ever known.” ‘““And Henry S. Paine?” faltered Clarkson. ‘“‘ Was he connected with the swindle?” ‘“T don’t know anything about him. He’s only been here a month or so, and | THE ARGOSY. he sublet from Wackermann, not from us. I stippose he was in the game, too, however. At least somebody said he had skipped out to Europe with the rest of- the gang.”’ There was nothing more to be lefned. so with hopes dashed. once more, and a: new bitterness gnawing at his heart, Horace left the building and Vie aimlessly up Broadway. . As he strolled: along he ion sight of the name: of the safety deposit com- pany where he had stored his monéy. Although he knew it was -useless, he en- tered the tall structure with its granite pillars and made _Tequest that Ais™box be opened. ® A few searching inquiries develontite ,the fact that he was not able to present an unimpeachable identification, and that the key had been neither broken nor. destroyed, he was courteously” but es firmly refused. On inquiry he Jearned, however, that. Paine had presented himself with the key and a written order, and had visited — the box-on more than: one occasion? The ~ door-keeper could not be absolutely posi- tive, but ‘was under the impression that he had béen in within the dast four or - five days. | ea In view -6£ these facts, the horse. was stolen;* but on the “bare chance that his old-time chum might be: acting on the square with him, and that the key had fallen into the hands of un- authorized parties, Clarkson. gave in- structions that in the future no one save himself should be allowed access to the box, no matter what their credentials. — He had+to admit ‘that it was a pretty forlorn hope, though. Paine’s shady as- sociations, his sudden and unexplained — trip abroad at the. very time when the rest of the gang- were fleeing to cover, ,the temptation offered an unscrupulous man in having such a large amount of money where he had only to help him- self to get it, even his telegram calcu- lated apparently to hoodwink- ~Clarkson and keep him unsuspicious up to the very last minute—all- taken together made out a case of circumstantial evi- dence which it was pretty hard “to get away from. Still, Shi deep down in his LI it seenied~a = little like locking the barn. door after | Eomicbooks.con