Argosy, Vol. 122, No. 1 — page 93: what you’re looking at

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

FINDINGS I§ from appendicitis and preparing for an op- eration have had anything to do personally with that crack at No. 97 Trevorth Street? It did not sound reasonable. Allan’s insinuation did not ring true. It bothered Harry Vale all during this tour, and-he de- termined to satisfy himself before he was many hours older that Allan’s suggestion was untenable. CHAPTER XII. ‘“SMOOTH DICK”? PRANDLE SITS IN. [7 was not much out of Vale’s way to put his head in at the cigar-store the next morning and ask after Grif Pelley. The girl with the blond buns over her ears and chewing a lump of gum which gave her the appearance of suffering from an ulcer- ated tooth was behind the, counter. ‘“ Hello,.Maizie! How’s your boss?’ the cop asked. “Dunno, Harry,” replied the gum- chewing damsel. ‘‘ Guess he didn’t have all the money them slaughter-house experts wanted, and they only extracted a part of his ‘pendix. I was over to the hospital vesterday, and they wouldn’t let nobody see him. Said he had a high temp’rature and low vitality. Poor Mr. Pelley! He’s got the high and low, whilst the doctors have got jack and the game. Not a chance!” ‘As bad as all that? won’t pull through?” ‘“T'll say so,” declared Maizie. “T guess if a party gets this ‘pendicitus he’s got a one-way ticket ’most always.” ““ Has he any folkse” “ Grif Pelley? Why, he don’t even own the picture of a second cousin!” declared the emphatic Maizie. “ He’s the lone- somest guy I ever heard of—honest, Har- ry. Lived all alone in a back reom up- Stairs and never had no visitors. Nice things in his room. I don’t know what will become of this shop if he flutters over the river. Maybe re ‘be locking for another job pretty soon.’ “ll bear that little thing in mind, Maizie,” the policeman assured her. ‘I know you are some little sales. booster.” You think he call his own. KEEPINGS. Ba ‘You've said it,” rejoined Maizie, not too modest to boost her own perfections. ‘““Want a bag of the makin’s, Harry? You're welcome, I’m sure.” This brief interview gave Vale no slant on the connection of Grif Pelley with the Maywell safe robbery. It .was positive that the ex-crook was in the hospital. What did Allan mean by his insinuation that Pel- ley and Andrew Maywell were “in ca- hoots’’? Surely the hospital people would not lend themselves to any substitution of patients. And Maizie herself had been to inquire for the sick man. Andrew May- well’s influence could not compass trickery with the aid of both Maizie and the hos- pital physicians! Pelley was an old-time safe-breaker, it was true. And Uncle Dan himself said that an old-timer had in all probability made that crack in the Maywell library. But here was an alibi that seemed perfect —quite as good as Allan Maywell’s own. _ Harry Vale believed he had seen Allan -——or somebody wonderfully like him in ap- pearance—standing outside the Maywell house on the evening of the robbery. Yet, Inspector McKane admitted that the young man had evidence that he could not possibly have been there at that time and got back to Hallingham in season to .take the early morning train for home again. Mr. James Dunbar, a prominent broker and man of affairs, had ridden on_that train from Hallingham with Allan. Here was Pelley, accused by Allan of knowing all about the safe robbery, yet he was in a hospital bed at the hour the crack on Trevorth Street had been pulled off. ‘Two perfect alibis! Yet, Harry Vale had an intuitive feeling that there was a flaw somewhere in both of the claims. But he had not the first idea as to how he should go about to prove his doubt. At noon when he came off house reserve duty he had three or four hours he could He had shifted to his citi- zen’s clothes. He was tempted to call on Allaine Maywell and try to sound her re- garding the mystery of the second will— this one he now possessed. He felt that the will mystery, the safe robbery, and at least Allan’s alibi dovetailed. Get ‘the dead- cComiclbooks.com