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About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (Sept. 4, 1904)
Methods and Luck of a Lucky Man By Win. JL Osborne B Copyright, lJOi. by William Hamilton Oirijonia, CHAPTER XII millextea OV,wfe Hlta Bub II LXJ NuTON CTKEKFK had been la the vicinity of Monroe Cor soma lime. X tew miles off tha island of Swat be bad been taken aboard of u vessel bound for San Fran- " Cisco and the rest was easy. An ordinary man would bar marched himself In to Monroe, Just as be 'was, with his ragged clothes. In a white beat of Indignation ha Would hare turned the rascal out, had him locked up and once more assumed his place In the city. But Billington O'Keefe was not an ordinary man.' In the first place he recognised (he fact that a remark Able resemblance did exist between himself and tho man masquerading In his place. He had realised this from his experience, with Holrtworthy Jenkins. And since this ' resemblance did exist, be was sot quite so certain that the chief of police of Monroe or any other person would readily recog nize him as Billington O'Koefe, when hhs double posHCssed all the Indicia of the genuine O'Keefe. Possession la nine-tenths f the law, and Sml'h was In possession. He wore about hlsnck the invitable gold chain which fixed tho Identity In Monroe of Billington O'Kecre. O'Keefa felt that he - mufit first prepare himself get new clothe of. bis t-sual make; make himself so like - himself as he used to be, that bis appear ance away from the other man would carry conviction with it. He therefore bided his time. He fitted himself out In clothes of his customary kind, and trimmed his beard until ft assumed the old shape, and In ad- . dlllon he even by hook and crook purchased a brass chain; one not exactly like the other; but one that answered the jmrpose well enough. ' . ; ' He bided bts time for several reason a 1 He desired to acquaint himself wtth tho exact conditions f affairs In Monroe, and -to take the best and swiftest method of getting back bis own, and of visiting con dign punishment on Constitutional Smith. He was actuated, above all things, by an Intense desire for revenge and" he wanted -his revenge to be as complete and effective -as possible. And to that end" he was wait ing for tho arrival of just one man a man .whose presence In the vicinity of Monroe was necessary to bis scheme. Ha was going' to hit back that was alL He could have forgiven a good many things; he even admired the coup d'etat of Constitutional Smith be liked his nerve;, but Dlllington O'Keefe could not forget, the whippings the series of whippings he had received ever since bis absence, and it was bis sublime purpose to get even, and to get even Jn his own way.. In New York when some member of tho vendetta or the Mafia, stabs another, the victim puts a seal upon bis lips ; he win , not Jot the law take Its course; hi knows a better remedy. . . - "I'll fix him when I get well. Iava It to ma Just watt till I get the chance," This was Just bnw Billington O'Keefa -felt. He might with propriety have told the whole story to the Chief of Police, and Constitutional Smith would have been ' forthwith cast Into jail with many years of confinement before him. But Billington O'Keefe thought he knew b trick worth two of thatl' And besides, he was afraid that Constitutional Smith, tn the custody merely of the-public authorities, might effect aa escape. ' And at the most a prison Is but a sanitarium, and Bmith'a punish Bent la prison would be too light to suit O'Keefe. Bo he laid his plans accordingly. He met Smith, therefore, with a seductive amfla upon bis face which Smith Aid not understand. "Come, let ' us reason tosethcr said BlUlnaton O'Keefe.' Constitutional Smith nat down. O'Keefe Ud the talking, JI told him Erst, of tha visit of the Chief and HiKhlabeck. Then did Smith breathe easier. For then he knew that this man old not Intend tn give htm up As ret. O'Keere then pulled front bis pocket a pepee, Have yon nana that be asked. Smith had not. Ha took It and read it. It wag one of tha notices which had been dis tributed ansoax the creditors of 0Kaofu Unlth glanced up in surprise. "What nee ym cola tn nor ho naked, Did you 'diatribe te thenar OTKaefe aou ed tn inut -Hew' the devil ae yon AVetear tn pay themr noisnnded Smith. - O-Knefn had thought nut what he would v What no wnn cntag n an wan appar ently n - risky thin-; pet la view of the " future precautions ho would take, ho eon eluded that the risk was Justified by Me enjoyment of the discomfiture of Smith, when he found out wherein be had mis named. - Tb going to pay. them, said BUHng ton O'Keefe. m gold entn. He rone and crossed to his safe. He had ueea before that tho lock was broken off. But ho felt of the door to nee that It was well closed. . Then encircling the room,' at various points upon the wainscot he pressed his thumb. He did this la an Irregular way, pressing one and then another, and then coming back to press a third one; then crossing the room to press a fourth. Soma of them be pressed more than once. The things be pressed were little invisible through wtth this safe, now that I've had this little experience. A safe deposit vault -will be good enouglt for mo hereafter." ' He reached In and pulled half a dosen bags out upon the floor. c When he had done so be rose and pointed his finger at Smith. "Smith," he said, "there are twelve ricked men private detectives, every one of them inside and outside this house. They don't know who you are and they haven') seen you; but they have such orders that it will be Impossible for you to leave this house. You probably-would make some attempt to get away. Better not try It Tou can rest easy, however. I've cot. a proposition to make to you. It wasn't altogether bad for me that, you shipped roe off, and as long as you didn't planaliona, Explanations would he In order - after bis credit had been restored; and ho felt satisfied that ho wan able to make up n yarn that would nutt the situation. On this occasion he paid up every man whom he owed paid him In fUO, and In golden com. And oven then, of tha cola that be had taken down, there Was much left. The next day Billington. O'Keefe' credit was restored. His business name wa redeemed, People didn't require much explanation; money talks, and Billing ton O'Keefe had money and everybody knew It What was the cause of bis previous default no one ever . knew. They do not know to this day. They attributed It to temporary aberration of mind to a whim, freak of mind, eocen. trldty-anythlng. They didn't care no long DOPKB FOR QNCB IN HIS LIFTS HAD BEEN DOPED. " JL'T.T TZJ? ' that he W wth my caah, I'm not no flare pressed tho last one there was a sharp about lt Rt . . . , click. He returned to the safe, and, using on of the Mages aa n handle, tugged at It gently. It iU be remembered that the nafe was net In the wall and that It was somewhat nhaUow, and that Smith had heen able to find very little of value In it. The raason of this was that tha small safe Itself was nothing more nor lens than the door 'to a larger safe, whose Interior O'Keefe now exposed to view. The small nafe was merely a, blind. O'Keefe, a very cautious man, had entrusted his wealth to no one. He had not deposited It In a hank, nor n safe deposit vault, nor had he changed It Into treasury cotes. He had appointed himself the custodian of his own wealth and he had provided against loan try burglary or Bra. There lay bts fortune, anugty tucked, in the shape of bags of gold win, fa the large safe, of which the small nafe was but tbe door. -Lucky thin me.- remarked O'Keefe. "that you never found this out. But I'm , v. while I pacify these howling creditors of yours. You've done one thing for me, you've ruined my business reputation; but I'll fix that eomehow. Just no long as I've got tbe cash to back it You etay hete! He picked up hag after hag of gold and handed them out te some one In the halL Then he shut the nafe tight, tried It care fully. Then be left the room. Constitutional Smith had watched 0Kerf unlock that safe. O'Keefe had touched Invisible buttons rapidly and In nuch man ner that aa ordinary man could not ham followed him. Smith's buetnesa was to un derstand these things. He. had an tdoa . that sometime or ether it would he n good thing to he able to open that safe, O'Keefe wan downstair for about an hour, fn that time SmKb had opened nad abut the MS nafe three Unas, hut be bad left ; Below- O-Keee'e creditors opened their -nyea la anwtaienat, TiCnnAs made an ' aa O'Keefe was able to par caen u.. long as be spent it freely. There was one individual who did care, however, and that was Patricia Jelllff .Robeson. Wben she heard the news she could not believe her ears; wben it was confirmed, she thought she divined in her heart of hearts the reason for tho strange conduct of Bfllington O'Keefe. He. bad dono it to try her her, Peggy's mother. Us future mother-in-law and he had found her wanting. She had cast him off heraueo he was poor; Peggy had cast him na because he was poor. lie had seen through It, and he had deserted them. - She had put her. foot la it But he was be yond recall-be had tried them and found them wanting. Her self-reproach deepened finally Into anger, first sX Peggy and then at BtlHngton O'Keefa She saw In bis conduct merely n trick to cat rid of Peggy and of her. .- .- . "It was n trick, reggy, she would re- . mark, "an ungentlemanly trick. To think erf ill If yen warn a Vt of any spirit yon