Show y J g 7 fe P ij 0 a t e laan D RW aw 17 bj william W illiam machar car and baft vin salmer balmer copyright br edwin dalmor ALAN CONRAD SYNOPSIS wealthy and highly placed in the chicago business ap world benjamin corvet Is some thing thin of 0 a recluse and a mystery to his associates after a stormy interview with his partner henry spearman corvet seeks constance sherrill ll dau daughter ahter of his other busl busi ness partner lawrence sherrill she admits spearman has asked her to marry I 1 ini and that she barnt t given him an answer cor vet uncle benny makes her promise not to give an answer t 11 I 1 come back corvet Is much agi bated and acts strangely tl TI en he disappears sherrill ll learns that corvet has written to alan conrad in blue rap ds kan summoning him to chicago none ot of corvet a associates have ever heard of alan conrad CHAPTER II 11 2 who Is alan conrad the recipient of the letter which benjamin Een corvet conet had bad written and later so excitedly attempted to recover was asking I 1 itself a question which was almost the same as the question which constance sherrill had asked lie ile mas was the second morning later waiting alting for ta tie e first of the two dally daily eastbound trains NO ellch ell stopped at the little kansas tonn of clue blue A rapids bilich ie called home As long as he could look back into his life the question u alo I 1 0 is this person they call alan conrad and what hat am I 1 to the man who writes from chicago had been the paramount enigma of exist ence for him since he w was as now tw twenty enty three as nearly as he I 1 ad been able to approximate it and as distinct recollection of isolated extraordinary events went back to the time when he lie was five it v was as quite eigl teen years since he had first noticed the question put to the people who had him in charge so this Is little alan con rad who is he be following the arrival of cert certion aln letters which were most others arriving at tie louse by having no ink writing on the tile envelope trot but just a sort of purple or black printing like ne do vs Ts papers alan in variably arl ably received a dollar to spend just as be liked to be sure unless papa took him to town there was nothing for him to spend it upon so I 1 kely enough it w went ent into ft tie e squire square iron bank of which the key was lost but qu te often I 1 te e did spend it ac cord ng to plans agreed upon among all his friends and in memory tot bf these occasions and in anticipation of tl if e next klan s dollar became a corn com dinst aution among the children who gives it to you aim alan was a L question more often asked as time went on the only answer aim alan could give v vas as it comes from C cago the postmark post mark on the envelope alan noticed was always chicago that was all he ever could find out about his dollar he ile was about ten years old when for a reason as av inexplicable as the dollar dollars s coming the letters with the typewritten addresses and the en ell closed money ceased except for the loss of the dollar at the end of every second month a loss el much discussed by all the children and not accepted as permanent till more ilan tl an two ears had passed alan felt no immediate results from the cessation of the letters from chicago papa and marm mama felt them when the farm had to be given up and the family moved to the town and papa went to work tn in the woolen mill beside the river papa and mama at first surprised and dis dismayed maled by the stopping of the letters still clung to the hope of tl ft e familiar typewriter addressed en ell v elope appearing again but when after two years no more money came resentment which had bad been steadily rowing growing against the person who had bad bent fent the anone money began to turp turn against alan and his parents told him all they knew about him in 1896 had noticed an adver ader ti for persons to cire care for i a chilli child tl ey had answered it to tie office of if tie e newspaper news piper u wh h ch ell pr panted anted it in response to the letter a man called upon them and after seeing them and going around to see tl ft air friends frier ds hid male ma ie arrangements will them to take a boy of three aho who vho wis nis in good health and cime came of g I 1 people lie ile paid in ild advance allce joir jairl I 1 for a year and agreed to send rend a citrin amount every two months after hit that time tl TI e mm man brouil t the boy whom I 1 ie e called alin alan coniado 11 d left him for seven veirs the moi ev agreed upon came now it I 1 laj a I 1 cel ceded cd and pipi papa had no w way ay of aln fining ing the NL man tl e name given I 1 tv I 1 im ai at stared to be fictitious and I 1 e had left no DO address except general delivery cl I 1 cago papa I 1 new nothing more thai that flat he ile had ad advert ertl ed in the cl i cago pipers papers after the moi ey I 1 coming and he ha fin I 1 co I 1 with every one D mined conrad in 0 near cl leigo but I 1 e I 1 a I 1 learne I 1 noti f ing thus it the ige age of torten alan definitely krew INA what he already hid had sue gue sed tl e fact tl it it he belonged son sone e vUie ni tie else tl ft in an in ft tie e little brown I 1 louse ouse was ski all ft atiat at an ane ne if biere ere e ild lid tell I 1 ni r 1 i il 11 p gave pers tence to i internal le 11 dietl 11 1 ill i n nv d I 1 le belong who w was as he be who was ft tie e man who had brought him there had the money ceased coming because tl ti e person wao sent it was dead in flat tl at case connection of alan with the place where he lie belonged wis was per manent ly broken or w would some other communication from tl 0 t source reach him some time if not money then n ng el e bould N I 1 e be sent for some daa da 9 Extein nIly alan s learning the little that was inona about himself made no chu chege ge in I 1 is way of living he be went to tie ti e town school which corn com bained grammar and high schools under one roof and as he gre v older he be clerked in oi 01 e of the town stores during vacations vacit lons and in the even ns alan il if davs v aa s carried his money I 1 ome as part pi paa i lent of tl if ose inears ari ears which w hid had mounted up against him since tl it e letters ceased coming at seventeen having finished high school he was clerking officially in merrill s general store when the next letter cime came it was addressed th s time not to papa but to alan conrad lie ile seized it tore it open and a bank draft for fifteen hun him ired red dollars fell out there i v as no letter with the e no word of communication just the draft to the flit order of alan conrad alan wrote the chicago bank by which the draft I 1 ad been issued t tl air reply showed thit that th it the draft had been pur chased with fill currency so there was no record of the identity of the person wt wl 0 had sent it more than thit that amount was nas due for arrears an ears for tie seven years duding which no money was sent even when tie total which alan had earned was deducted so alan merely endorsed the draft over to fati fatter er and that fall jim aim alin s foster bretl er went m ent to college bit 13 it aten wl ell jim discovered discon ered that it not only was possible but planned at tie ft e uni versify for a boy to work his anva div through alin went also four wonderful years followed in companionship with educated people e ideas and manners cime to him which he could not have acquired at home athletics straightened and added heir bear ing to his muscular well forme formel I 1 body his pleasant strong noun fice acquired ind and self control life became filled title N with iab possie cities for himself wh ch ell it hid had never hel bet I 1 before but on I 1 lis Is daa da of graduation gr grad he had put aw ay the enterprises he be hi ha I 1 planned and the dreams I 1 e dreame I 1 and conscious that I 1 is debt to father and mod mot er sti stil remained rein lined unpaid I 1 e hid had returned tu to cire care for tl cm em for fati fail ers er s health hid bid filled pilled and jim wl 0 had opened a law in kansas 1 ansas city could do nothing to help no more money had followed folio ved the aft from cl leago and there hid been no communication of any kind but tl ft e receipt of so considerable a sum lad lid revived and all alan s speculations about himself tl TI e vague expectation of his that sometime in some way he be would be sent for had grown during the last six years to a definite belief and now on tl ft e afternoon bafo e the summons I 1 ad come this tune time as he tore open the en delope he saw that beside a check there wis was writing within an uneven ai d nervous looking but plainly legible communication in longhand the letter made no explanation it told him rather than asked him to come to chicago gave minute instructions for the journey jurney and advised him to telegraph wien vlen he be started the check was for a hundred dollars to pa its 1 Is expenses check and letter we e signed by a name completely to him lie ile was wils a distinctly attractive jool 1001 ing lad as he stood now on tl ft e station platform of tl ft e little town while the tile eastbound train rumbled in and he fingered in his pocket the letter from chicago on the train he be took the letter from his pocket and for tl e time reread it nas as covert a relative was he tl ft e man ft ho had bad sent the rem t alen alan was a little boa bo and it tie e one avi alo 0 liter later had sent the fifteen hui dred dollars or u was as he be a go between perhaps pert aps a law 3 ier er e w was as no letteri ead to div give e s t id ld in tl it ese speculate ti ns the ad dress to w wl I 1 ich leb alan w vas as to come was in astor street ile I 1 tad ad never heard tl ft e name of the street before was it a business C ernets address in gone sone greit great mee bulling buffing perhaps at cl leago alan f 11 wing the porter with his sul suitcase suit cise tease fr IT ii the car steppe 1 down among the crowds hurrying to and from tl if e trains lie ile was not confused ie le was only in tensely excite I 1 acte g in impi cit elt ac coi coid d wit tl e dinst instructions of tl it e letter ul ellch fell he I 1 new by I 1 eart I 1 ie e went to tl e ui icorn ed attendant it ind and engaged eng aged a taxicab itself no small exi ermence there anzald be no one at the station to meet I 1 im the letter hid bid sal I 1 he ile give the astor street address and got irto tl if e cab it I 1 il a I 1 beun to snow beai heavily fly for a few blocks the taxicab drove i orth past more or less ordinary old oid inary build ings tl if en ell turned east cast on a broad boulevard lou levird levard alere tall tile ind and brick brief and stone structures towered till their roofs nv were ere I 1 adden in the sno snowfall cfall A strange stir and tingle quite distinct fiam the excitement et of the arrival at the station pricked in alan s veins and has ily he dropped the window to his right and gazed out the lake as he be had bad known since his geography days lay to the east of chicago therefore that void out alere beyond the park part was the lake or at leist least the harbor A different air seemed to come from it sounds suddenly it all was shut off the taxicab su swerving erving a little was dashing bet veen een business blocks a row of buildings had risen again upon the right they brol e abruptly to show him film a wooden walled chasm in which flowed the river full of ice tee with a tug dropping its smokestack as it cut below the bridge wt ich tell tt ft e cab crossed build ings on both sides again then to the right a roaring heaving clashing ex p inse the sound alan knew had been coming to him as an undertone for many manutes now it overwhelmed s swallowed wal lomed all otter oti er sound it w was as great real not loud all sound which alan had heard before except the sough ng of the wind over his prairies cime came from one point even tie monstrous city murmur was centered in compall son with this over the lake as over tie land the soft snowflakes sno flakes lazily floated down scarcely bv the slightest breeze tl ft at roar wis was the no voice ce of the water that awful power its own alan chol ebol ed and gasped for breath his pulses pounding in I 1 is throat he lad 1 ad snatched snitched off his hat and leading leal ing out of it tie e w window sucked the lal at e air in I 1 is luns lungs there hid had been nothing to mal e him expect tl if Is ON over er v helming crush of feeling the lake he had thought of it of course as a great body of water an interesting s for a prairie bov boy to see that was all sit no physical experience in all his memory I 1 ad affected him I 1 lie I 1 e tl ft is and it was without warning ft tie e strange thing that had stirred within him as the car brought him to the duve down dovin toNn to was strengthened streng tl ened now a tl ft busand fold it amazed half fri frightened likened half dizz ed him now as the motor suddenly s vung around a corner and shut the sight of the lake from him alan sat back broad less the car s arved to the eist east curb about tl ft e middle of tl e blochl and came to a stop tl TI e I 1 ouse before nal nfl ellch tell it had lulled halted was a large stone house of quiet good design it was son sone e generation older apparently than the houses on each side of it w kiich I 1 tell w were ere brick briel and terri terra cotta of lecent fashionable architecture alan only glanced at them long enough to get that impression before ae 1 e opened the cab door and got out but as the cab drove away he stood beside his suitcase looking up at the old house wi ellch fell bore the number given in ben jamin conets letter then around at the other I 1 auses and back to tl it at again tl TI e neighborhood obviously pre eluded the Drob probability ability of conets be ing merely a lawber a go between he must be some the ques alon ever present in alan s thought since the receipt of the letter but held in abeyance as to the poss ability and nearness of conets con et s relation to I 1 im ina took sharper and more exact form forin now than he had dired dared to let it tat tae e before anas bis his relationship 0 0 X yr Y r on the train he took the lett lette from his and for the dox do anth time reread it C r arvet et perhaps tl tie e closest of all re lation sl aps fps inis IN is conet his f tl it ei el he ile checked tl ft e ques question tiou 1 itself for the time had passed for mere speculation upon it now alan nas as trembling excitedly for whoever corvet might be the enigma of alan s existence w was as going to be ansi answered ered when he I 1 lad ad entered that house he was going to know who he was all the possibilities the responsibilities the attachments the opportunities perhaps of that person abom he be was but whom as jet he did tie know were before him he ile went vp the steps and with anger fidget excitedly unsteady he pushed the bell beside the door the door opened almost instantly so qu chaly alter atter the rine ring indeed that alan with ft ath leaping throb tl rot of his heart knew that sonie some one must have been awaiting him but tie tl e door opened only aalf 1 lif way and tl ft e man who ho stood will in fazli g out at alan question angly was obviously a servant what Is it I 1 e asked as alan stood looking at him and past him to the narrow section of darkened hall ball wt fell w was as in sight alan put his hind hand over the letter in his pocket IN ive e come to see mr corvet conet he be said mr benjamin conet wl WI at Is your name alan gave his name tl ft e min re petted it after him in the manner of a trained servant quite without in alan not familiar with such tones waited uncertainly so far as ae 1 e could tell tie tl e name was entirely strange to the servant awakening neither welcome nor opposition but indifference the man stepped back but not in such a manner as to invite alan in on the contra contrary ry he half closed the door as |