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_ to put on a fresh bandage.
- “The fellow who wrote that note may. not have meant
that these pearls in the bag were ‘on the way.’
“Meppy nod, aber it looks doo ‘keveer, for a habben-
chance. It gif mea cholt, Matt, ven you saidt dose tings
“vas bearls, und I recollectioned vat vas saidt in der note
about bearls.. Meppy Pringle und some.odder pad eg
. dry to holt dis feller oop und dake der pag avay from
him.”
“That may, be. How i is the man now
_“Aboudt der same like he vas.’
_ Matt had been driving the carat a smart + clip, and they
had taken the turn in the road and were reaching out for
the main street of the town
_ There was a doctor’s office across the street from the
hotel, and Matt drew up in front of it. Some loungers
on the sidewalk, observing the unconscious form in the
_ tonneau, began crowding around the car and: asking. ques-
tions,
“T don’t know what’s the matter,” said Matt. “We
found this car running away and picked up the man from
the roadside. Is the doctor in?”
The doctor himself looked from a second- -story window
and answered the question. Some of the bystanders’
helped remove the man'from the tonneau and carry him
up the stairs to the doctor’s office. Matt. and Carl fol-
lowed.
“Keep quiet, Carl,” whispered Matt to the Dutch boy ;
“don’t tell any of these people what we’ ve found. That
information will have to go to the officers.” —
“Sure t’ing,” returned Carl, with a wink. “I know
more as you t'ink, Matt. Ve ought to ged a rake-off on
dot pag. Id vould be easy, to be jeerful mit a rake-off.”
. The unconscious man.was laid down on a couch in the
, doctor’s office, and.the room was cleared, of all the mor-
bidly: curious people. Only Matt and.Carl were left with
the doctor. -
ra
3
bandage, kept"up a running fire of talk as he worked.
‘ He wanted to know all about the runaway-car, how it
had been stopped, just where the man had been found,
- whether he had been unconscious ever since he was picked
up, and so on.
MOTOR: STORIES.
yet. Wait till you get a little strength, Here, drink some
more of this.”
The man. took another swallow ‘of. the stimulant, ‘and
seemed to get better control of himself.
“How did I come here?” he asked.
Matt, obeying a gesture fromthe doctor, told how the
car had been stopped, and how he and Carl had gone: back
along the road and found the man unconscious among the
Needles.
bushes. .
For a minute or two after hearing Matt’s explanations
the man lay silent and thoughtful.
“Tf you did all that,” said he. to Matt finally,“ ‘youn must
know how to run a car.’ :
Matt nodded. :
“T used to work for a motor company in “Albany,” che
answered, “and they had me give demonstrations... I had
to know all about cars.and take out a license.” :o
“A queer gleam arose in the man’s eyes. | ,
~ “Tam James Q. Tomlinson, of: Denver,” ‘said he,‘ ‘and
have been touring Southern California and Arizona for
my health. With my chauffeur, I came up from Yuma in
the ‘Red Flier, and the chauffetir was taken’ sick at the
Am expecting to pick up a friend in Flagstaff.
“The friend is waiting there for me, and I thought T- would
The latter, busily stripping away “the blood- stained :
wi
- Carl let Matt answer the questions; and Matt was glad :
that: none of .the, doctor’s remarks brought up anything
about the pearls.
“His injury is not serious,” said the doctor. “His fore-
head has been grazed by a bullet. A tight squeak, buti in
-a case like this a miss is always as good as-a mile.”
“Why i is he unconscious?” queried Matt.
» “Just weak from loss of blood. We'll bring him around
ina jiffy, and then he can tell all about what happened to
him
The doctor proceeded. to cleanse the man’s ; wound, and
Then, holding up his head,
he forced’a stimulant between his lips. :
“He must be a w ealthy man,’ ’ remarked the doctor, his
‘ ey es on the watch-chain and the good clothes. “But what
’ does a wealthy man want:to be pounding around the
country for—especially a country like this—all by him-
self?
Before either Matt or Carl could hazard a guess,. the
. man gave a slight start and opened his eyes. For an in-
stant he stared blankly into the faces of the doctor and
the boys, muttered something, and tried to get up.
“T wouldn’t do that,” said the doctor.’ “You' re. weak;
drive the car. through to’ Flagstaff from the Needles ‘my-
self. I found I didn’t know as ‘much about it as I thought
I did. However, I managed to peg along.
“Early this. morning, about twenty miles out. of. Ash
Fork, I. was set’ upon by three. masked men. . They’ or-
dered me to stop, but 1 opened tip tle’ machine. and made
a run past them, The scoundrels fired at me, and one of
their bullets grazed my head. . Iwas sttinned for.a mo-
ment, but managed to keep my sensés and hold ‘the auto-
mobile in the road. ’ Had an idea that I could get to Ash
Fork, but somehow I kept- growing weaker and weaker.
It became hard for me to manage the steering-wheel, so *
I tied it with a rope; then; all at once, ‘the car tilted, and
I was thrown out.
“I can remember falling into o the road, and crawling to
some bushes where {I could be out of the hot sun. After
that my. wits left me, and I remember, nothing more, until
now.”
A knock fell on the door of the outer office. The doctor
excused himself for a. moment and avent out, closing the
~ the car,’
door of-the private office behind -him....
As soon ‘as he: was :gone; Mr... Tomlinson’ $ tianner
changed quickly. Thrusting a hand into: his -pocket, he
withdrew it with a cry of ‘alarm, | Then he fixed: upon
Matt and Carl a suspicious look.
“Did you boys see anything, of a bag, a: ‘little green silk
bag?” he demanded. t.
Matt took the bag from his pocket and handed it to
him.
“Tt dropped out of your coat z as we were lifting you i ‘into
* said he.
A gasp of relief went up’ from the man.
“Do you know what it contains?” he queried, opening
the bag with trembling - fingers. “
“Pearls,” said Matt, “twenty black pearls.”
Assuring ‘himself that the pearls were all in the, bag,
Tomlinson closed it and pushed it into his pocket.
“These pearls are worth thirty thousand dollars,” ‘said:
he, in a guarded tone. “You boys are honest, and will be
rewarded, but say, nothing | to anybody about the bag. Un-
derstand? LS,