Show I MS I OPEN T r Go fl t TRAI L p Mr A. A V. V R. R E. E Jones Jones Average Average Jones Tones his friends cal called ed him was wa was tired of or spending his dead uncles uncle's mIllions millions millions mil mil- lions in New York and doing nothing more and craved to take part In the dynamic activities of life Ufe At the suggestion suggestion suggestion sug sug- of Waldemar Valdemar owner of an important im im- and decent newspaper he opened offices in Astor court and went advertisements advertisements advertise advertise- In for following up queer ments and tracing do down n fraudulent ad ad- Business boomed Not good enough said Average Jones The ad says sas different sir Simpson Simp Simp- spa son sn raised the read FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS THE THE aforesaid sum srn will be paid without question question question ques ques- tion to anyone anone furnishing Information which leads to the discovery of Roderick Hoff HofT twenty four years ears old who left his home homo in Toledo 0 O. on April 12 Communicate Communicate with Dr Conrad Hoff HofT Toledo Surely Doctor Hoff is good for the amount Oh hes he's good for millions The point sis is from what I can discover Mr Roderick Hoff isn't worth retrieving atan at any an- price above one dime Was Vas the information about him that asked you ou wished in the telegram tho the confidential clerk Yes all I wanted Have the Toledo Toledo Tole Tole- do 10 reporter forward his bill Left to himself Average Jones again ran ov over r the information as to the lost Toledo youth At twenty four we four ty-four it appeared appeared appeared ap ap- ap- ap Roderick Hoff had achieved a a career Emerging from college he had taken a post-graduate post course in inthe Inthe inthe the cigarette w ward vard rd of a polite retreat for nervous wrecks endured two J. J breach of suits broken the record for speed violation arrests had been and short carded out of oft t varying sums and now was the tho horror of the r of the pulpit pulp andt e delight city press Bets w were re re even in the he Toledo clubs as o delirium b. tremens or paresis would win the t. t d HIT HIT- Hoffs Hoff's LT ff ft kite kite- kit t. t d HIT HIT- Hoffs Hoff's LT ff ft kite kite- kit event around young Mr H o s er I shaped race c of a brain S With his tastes s s the tl income of or lif ty-five ty thousand dollars per annum annum r which his father allowed him proved sadly insufficient to his needs He mentioned this fact to his father early in April only to be refused with some acerbity Oh very well said he Ill go and make it myself To all intents and appearances Roderick Roderich Roderick Rod Rod- erick erich Hoff had dropped off off the earth earthon I on or about April twelfth By April fifteenth the elder Hoffs Hoff's thousand five dollar anxiety became known through the advertisement Simpsons Simpson's face appeared at the door His blond forehead was wrinkle wrinkled with excitement Doctor Hoff is here Mr Jones I told him you you you- I Following the ilie word there burst b into Average Jones' Jones private sanctum a gross old man silk and bedia- bedia whose whiskers side bristled whitely with perturbed self tan lance tance e. e In his hand was a pat patchy hy bun bun- dle die They tried to stop me he Me Im I'm worth ten million dollars dollars dol dol- dol- dol lars an a week ten office toad tries to hold me up when I come here myself from Toledo to see I I you The Visor Ad-Visor said curtly curdy 41 I cant can't take your case Good day Not take it t Did you read the reward reward reward re re- re- re ward Yes Get someone else to find your ybur hopeful It aint no case of now The boys boy's dead His strident voice quavered qua qua- vered and broke but ross rose rose again to a snarl And by b God Ill I'll spend a million million mil mu- lion to get the dogs that murdered him At the word murdered Average Jones Jones' cut clean agreeable but rather stolidly neutral face became resolute forceful and quietly alert The hesitant hesitant hesitant hesi hesi- tant drawl signified awakened interest inter interest inter inter- est cat know know hos he's hes H How w do you ou dead The other tore open the bundle he carried and spread before Average Jones Jone's a white silk shirt stained with ominous brown splotches Its his shirt Theres There's the initials Mailed to my house with the note that come pinned to it lore Here it is He produced a bit hit of coarse wrapping wrapping wrap wrap- ping paper which was this message message message mes mes- sage in rough capital letters TWO SHOT HIM SAY NO MORE j 3 Average Jones examined the wrap wrap- per It was postmarked Cincinnati He ne next smoothed out th 5 creased silk t and studied minutely the blotches Applying Applying Ap Ap- plying a cup sponge to one of the spots he rubbed the wetted portion vigorously on a sheet of o paper which lay near at hand band He Ho scratched his chin with a slow movement I 1 ont don't see Bee anything so f fir r he heI I observed to indicate that your our son sou is not alive and well at this moment r Dried blood rubs off a faint buff burr color tolor He picked up the sheet of paper from froni his desk deep brownish streak showed where he ho had applied the moistened cl Its the rawest kind kinda of a blind Why the idiot tho ho sen sent I the shirt didn't even h have ve the sense to tofake tofake tofake fake bullet holes Enough to make one lose all Interest In the case he added disgustedly Doctor Hot Hoff Ho began tugging at his side Dont do nothing liko like that ho lie pleaded Come with me to Cincinnati mati If he ho aint dead they've him for a ransom Then Cincinnati is the last place on the map to look Was he particularly drunk the day before he lie disappeared No He was sober An he was Spanish Spanish eh eli How did you know about his studying Seen the in the house Someone you knew No I asked him Roddy was sore because I found out what he was up to Upon that point Average Jones meditated meditated med med- a a. moment Did you see this Spanish professor i again he inquired presently Now that you speak of it I didn't see him but the once Can you leave for Toledo on tonight's tonight's tonight's to to- nights night's train Youre goin to take he the case then the quack clawed nervously at athis at Ills his is professional white whiskers your terms he demanded That Im I'm to have full control and that youre you're to take orders and not give them Doctor Hoff HOr swallowed that with a gulp Youre on n he lie said finally Average Jones' Jones first call on arriving at Toledo was at the business office of the Daily Saw in which he inserted the following paragraph on a repeat- repeat until stopped order WANTED-INSTRUCTOR WANTED IN SPANISH One with recent experience preferred Apply between 9 and 10 a. a m. m Doctor Hoff Hoit FaIrfield Avenue Thence he climbed the stairs to the den of the city editor who obligingly furnished further details regarding Rickey Hoff as he called the young manThe manThe man The worst of it-is it said the newspaper news news- paper p per man that there are elements of decency aboM the young cub if hed he'd keep sober But theres there's nothing else for him to do so he lie just fights booze Better make malte a few inquiries at Silent Charleys Charley's that Quiet little bar kept by a talkative Swede Rickey Hoff hung out there therea a lot Charley even had a room fixed up for fo him to lay layoff off in when he was too pickled to go home Would young er er young Hoff per Hoff-er-per- er per perhaps haps keep a few few extra er extra clothes there 1 asked Average Jones seemingly seemingly seem seem- st struggling with with n a yawn a The The r i io city it editor stared stared Oh Oh I I dare r sa say He used to end his sprees pretty much mussed up That would perhaps explain where the shirt came came from murmured the Ad AdVisor Much obliged for the sug sug- Ill I'll just step around Silent Charley he found ready even eager cager to talk Yes Rickey lUckey Hoff Hort had been in his place right along Drunk No not even drinking much lately Two Tw other gentlemen had bad met him there quite often orten They sat inthe in inthe inthe the back room and talked No neither of them w was was' s' s Spanish One was big and shaven clean-shaven and wore a silk hat They called him Colonel A swell dresser The other man drank gin and a lot of it His name was Fred Ho He was Very tanned One day there had been a hot discussion over a sheet of paper that lay on the table in front of ot the three men in the back room Rickey had called a messenger boy and sent him out for a geography I told you there wasn't any such thing there the saloon keeper heard him say triumphantly triumph triumph- triumphantly antly anOy when the geography arrived Then Fred replied To h h ll 11 with you and your our schoolbook I tell you Ive I've waded across it it The colonel smoothed things over and it ended in ina ina ina a magnum of champagne being or- or dered of them And you haven't seen any since I suppose Nary a one On his return to tho Hoff mansion the investigator found the head thereof there of in a state slate of great excitement nt Say Ive I've found out something he cried gone to Where did you find that out asked Average Jones ones with a smile I been going through his papers like you told me Hes He's been outfitting for a trip Bought Bought lots lots' lotsof of truck the thelast thelast thelast last few days and I found the tho duplicate sale checks that come in the packages There's Theres stubs for a steamer ru rug and for fora a dope for seasickness and for a compass compass com com- pass he concluded triumphantly Compass eh observed Average Jones thoughtfully Anything else Lots of clothes Cheap stuff mostly most most- ly Khaki riding pants shirts and suchlIke such Colored glasses Permanganate Permanganate Per Per- of p potash tash outfit Snake country commented the other Patent water still Average Jones leaned forward Taken with tho the compass it meana means mean a small boat trip on salt water Leme Let Le me see the list I He ran rait his eye down the paper Then ho he looked at Doctor Hoff Hat with a half hatt I smile You didn't notice anything peculiar about this list Dont know as I did tt Not the the the-er- the nitric er nitric acid for Instance In instance stance Nope What of it iU Mr l Hoff Haft your son has been caught by one of the tho oldest tricks in the whole bunco unco list the list the lost Spanish mine swin swin- die dle That acid together with the rest of the outfit means a hunt gold as plain as if if it were spelled out And the he Spanish professor was sent for notto not noto notto to o give lessons but to translate the fake ako letter Where does your son bank Fifth National Telephone there and find out how much he ho drew Doctor Hoff sat down at the phone Five hundred dollars he said pres pres- Is that all 1 asked the tho other pointed Yes Wait He Ie had six checks certified cere aggregating ten thousand dol dol- lars ars Then uThe it isn't South America or the West Indies Hed He'd want a a. letter of credit there Must be some part of the he United States or just across the border The evenings evening's thinking formulated itself itself into a telegram legram t to Average Jones' Jones club the Cosmic Tho The reply was disappointing Cyrus C. C Allen absent from town Will forward orward your wire COSMIC CLUB Well poised as Average Jones normally normally nor nor- mally zanily was he lie chafed over the tho ensuing dela delay of four days The only relief was a call from the Spanish instructor who answered Jones' Jones advertisement He le was the same who had served oung young Hoff His former employment had lad been merely the translation of aletter a aletter letter etter in base Spanish he said There was something about a lost gold mine and reference to a map No no geographical geographical geographical geo geo- graphical names were mentioned but butin butIn in n several places the capital letters C. C seemed to indicate a locality Doctor Hoff who had been ramping with Impatience over the mans man's lack of definite memory now rushed to the atlas and began to study the maps You needn't trouble said Average Jones co coolly B C. C is Baja California California California Califor Califor- nia the Mexican peninsula of at California Califor Califor- nia Jones sent a supplementary wire to this his effect to Cyrus C. C Allen of the Cosmic Cosmic Cosmic Cos Cos- mic club and within a few hours received received re re- re- re a reply from that eminent car- car cartographer cartographer who had been located in a remote emote part of Connecticut r Probably Laguna Lacuna Salada not on map Seventy miles long lone four to eight feet wide Can Cn be be- reached by water from Yuma or pack train front fron Calexico White says ays Captain Funcke best guide LLEN Average Jones tossed this thi to J the he father said sons son's As I figure it he your two wo friends had this all all mapped out beforehand beforehand be- be forehand for him What I dont don't see is how they caught Roddy on such an old game Hes He's easy but Ut I didn't spose he was that easy To do him justice he isn't isn't quite They put it up to him rather cleverly In the room over Silent Charleys Charley's bar I found a newspaper with this in it p I 1 i Ill Spend a Million to Get G t the Dogs He lie handed to Doctor Hoff a thin clipping marked Daily Saw March 29 SPANISH LOST-SPANISH LETTER AND MAP Of no value except to owner Return to No 16 this office offic and receive heartfelt h thanks Well said Doctor Hoff after reading reading reading read read- II ing it over twice that d dont don't tell me nothing No Yet its it's pretty plain The two crooks slipped letter and map into a pocket of his coat while he was drunk Then they inserted their little ad and casually called the tho advertisement to his attention The Tho rest would be easy gem goin to do next Pa Pack k for Yuma or Calexico Ill I'll need five hundred dollars expense money Say Siy you dont don't want much do ye snarled the doctor his avaricious sou soul soulin soulin in revolt at the prospect of ot immediate outlay Quito so agreed the other othor bland blandly ly lYe It isn't too late to call it off oft you know No I do wanta do that said the theother theother theother other with ith contorted face And about the tho live five thousand dollars I reward I think Id I'd better have a word of o writing on that Ill have my lawyer draw up a form of contract and mail mall it after you tomorrow tomorrow tomorrow to to- morrow promised the doctor with a crafty look No you wo wo- wo began Average Jones but he lie broke off with a a. smile Very well he amended If things work worle out as I figure them that will do And And he added dropping into his significant significant sig dr drawl wl and looking the tho doctor flatly in the eyo eye dont you you bank or bank on my not my-er-not er not understanding your offer offer and and er you Average Jones bought a ticket for Yuma Disembarking at the Yuma station three days later Average Jones blinked in the harsh sunlight at a small compactly built bunt keen eyed man roughly dressed for the trail Im Captain Funcke said the stranger His speech was gentle slow even hesitant but there was something something something some some- thing competent and reliable in his bearing rearing which satisfied the ho shrewd young reader of mens men's characters from the he outset Your wire wiro got me two days since and I came right up Any trace Left here two days ago Three of them Flat bottomed narrow-beamed narrow Yes boat sloop-rigged sloop pretty light Know anything of the men H Only the big one Calls himself Colonel Richford Had a fake copper outfit in the tho mountains east of Ala Ala- mo Where do you think they're headed for Probably the wildest country they can find if they want to get rid of young Hoff Hor said the other who had been apprised of the main points of the situation That would be the Pinto Pinto |