REAL TROUBLE
It seemed to Janice Day as though the drift of trouble, which had set
her way with the announcement by her father of his unfortunate
situation among the Yaqui Indians, had now risen to an overwhelming
height.
'Rill's secret misgivings regarding Hopewell Drugg, little Lottie's
peril of blindness, the general tendency of Polktown as a whole to
suffer the bad effects of liquor selling at the tavern--all these
things had added to Janice's anxiety.
Now, on the crest of the threatening wave, rode this happening to
Nelson Haley, an account of which Marty had brought home.
"Come, Uncle Jason," she said again to Mr. Day. "You must come with
me. If Nelson is arrested and taken before Justice Little, the justice
will listen to _you_. You are a property owner. If they put Nelson
under bail----"
"Hold your hosses," interrupted Uncle Jason, yet not unkindly. "Noah
didn't build the ark in a day. We'd best go slow about this."
"Slow!" repeated Janice.
"I guess you wouldn't talk about bein' slow, Jason Day, if _you_ was
arrested," Aunt 'Mira interjected.
"Ma's right," said Marty. "Mebbe they'll put him in the cell under the
Town Hall 'fore you kin get downtown."
"There ain't no sech haste as all that," stated Uncle Jason. "What's
the matter of you folks?"
He spoke rather testily, and Janice looked at him in surprise. "Why,
Uncle!" she cried, "what do you mean? It's Nelson Haley who is in
trouble."
"I mean to eat my dinner fust of all," said her uncle firmly. "And so
had you better, my gal. A man can't be expected to go right away to
court an' put up every dollar he's got in the world for bail, until
he's thought it over a little, and knows something more about the
trouble."
"Why, Jason!" exploded Aunt 'Mira. "Of course Mr. Haley is innocent
and you will help him."
"Hi tunket, Dad!" cried Marty. "You ain't goin' back on Nelson?"
Janice was silent. Her uncle did not look at her, but drew his chair
to the table. "I ain't goin' back on nobody," he said steadily. "But
I can't do nothing to harm my own folks. If, as you say, Marty, them
coins is so vallible, his bail'll be consider'ble--for a fac'. If I
put up this here property that we got, an'--an' anything happens--not
that I say anythin' will happen--where'd we be?"
"What ever do ye mean, Jason Day?" demanded his wife. "That Nelson
Haley would run away?"
"Ahem! We don't know how strongly the young man's been tempted," said
Mr. Day doggedly.
"Uncle!" cried Janice, aghast.
"Dad!" exclaimed Marty.
"Jase Day! For the land's sake!" concluded Aunt 'Mira.
"Sit down and eat your dinner, Janice," said Uncle Jason a second time,
ignoring his wife and son. "Remember, I got a duty to perform to your
father as well as to you. What would Broxton Day do in this case?"
"I--I don't know, Uncle Jason," Janice said faintly.
"Fust of all, he wouldn't let you git mixed up in nothin' that would
make the neighbors talk about ye," Mr. Day said promptly. "Now,
whether Nelson Haley is innercent or guilty, there is bound ter be
slathers of talk about this thing and about ev'rybody connected with
it."
"He is not guilty, Uncle," said Janice, quietly.
"That's my opinion, too," said Mr. Day, bluntly. "But I want the
pertic'lars, jest the same. I want to know all about it. Where
there's so much smoke there must be some fire."
"Not allus, Dad," growled Marty, in disgust. "Smoke comes from an
oak-ball, but there ain't no fire."
"You air a smart young man," returned his father, coolly. "You'll grow
up to be the town smartie, like Walky Dexter, I shouldn't wonder.
Nelson must ha' done somethin' to put himself in bad in this thing, and
I want to know what it is he done."
"He went into the schoolhouse," grumbled Marty.
"Howsomever," pursued Mr. Day, "if they shut Nelson Haley up on this
charge and he ain't guilty, we who know him best will git together and
bail him out, if that seems best."
"'If that seems best!'" repeated Aunt 'Mira. "Jason Day! I'm glad the
Lord didn't make me such a moderate critter as you be."
"You're a great friend of Nelse Haley--I don't think!" muttered Marty.
But Janice said nothing more. That Uncle Jason did not rush to
Nelson's relief as she would have done had it been in her power, was
not so strange. Janice was a singularly just girl.
The hurt was there, nevertheless. She could not help feeling keenly
the fact that everybody in Polktown did not respond at once to Nelson's
need.
That he should be accused of stealing the collection of coins was
preposterous indeed. Yet Janice was sensible enough to know that there
would be those in the village only too ready and willing to believe ill
of the young schoolmaster.
Nelson Haley's character was not wishy-washy. He had made everybody
respect him. His position as principal of the school gave him almost
as much importance in the community as the minister. But not all the
Polktown folk loved Nelson Haley. He had made enemies as well as
friends since coming to the lakeside town.
There were those who would seize upon this incident, no matter how
slightly the evidence might point to Nelson, and make "a mountain of a
molehill." Nelson was a poor young man. He had come to Polktown with
college debts to pay off out of his salary. To those who were not
intimately acquainted with the school-teacher's character, it would not
seem such an impossibility that he should yield to temptation where
money was concerned.
But to Janice the thought was not only abhorrent, it was ridiculous.
She would have believed herself capable of stealing quite as soon as
she would have believed the accusation against Nelson.
Yet she could not blame Uncle Jason for his calm attitude in this
event. It was his nature to be moderate and careful. She did not
scold like Aunt 'Mira, nor mutter and glare like Marty. She could not,
however, eat any dinner.
It was nerve-racking to sit there, playing with her fork, awaiting
Uncle Jason's pleasure. Janice's eyes were tearless. She had learned
ere this, in the school of hard usage, to control her emotions. Not
many girls of her age could have set off finally with Mr. Day for the
town with so quiet a mien. For she insisted upon accompanying her
uncle on this quest. She felt that she could not remain quietly at
home and wait upon his leisurely report of the situation.
First of all they learned that no attempt had been made as yet to
curtail the young schoolmaster's liberty; otherwise the situation was
quite as bad as Marty had so eagerly reported.
The collection of gold coins, valued at fifteen hundred dollars, had
been left in the committee room next to the principal's office in the
new school building. It being Saturday, the outer doors of the
building were locked--or supposedly so.
Benny Thread, the janitor, was with the four committeemen in the
basement for a little more than half an hour. During that half-hour
Nelson Haley had entered the school building, using his pass key, had
been to his office, and entered the committee room, and from thence
departed, all while the committee was below stairs.
He had been seen both going in and coming out by the neighbors. He
carried his school bag in both instances. The collection of coins was
of some weight; but Nelson could have carried that weight easily.
The committee, upon returning to the second floor and finding the trays
empty, had at once sent for Nelson and questioned him. In their first
excitement over the loss of the coins, they had been unwise enough to
state the trouble and their suspicions to more than one person. In an
hour the story, with many additions, had spread over Polktown. A fire
before a high wind could have traveled no faster.
Uncle Jason listened, digested, and made up his mind. Although a
moderate man, he thought to some purpose. He was soon satisfied that
the four committeemen, having got over their first fright, would do
nothing rash. And Janice had much to thank her uncle for in this
emergency; for he was outspoken, once having formed an opinion in the
matter.
Finding the four committeemen in the drugstore, Uncle Jason berated
them soundly:
"I did think you four fellers was safe to be let toddle about alone. I
swan I did! But here ye ac' jest like ye was nuthin' but babies!
"Jest because ye acted silly and left that money open for the fust
comer to pocket, ye hafter run about an' squeal, layin' it all to the
fust person that come that way. If Mr. Middler or Elder Concannon had
come inter that school buildin', I s'pose it'd ha' been jest the same.
You fellers would aimed ter put it on them--one or t'other. I'm
ashamed of ye."
"Wal, Jase Day, you're so smart," drawled Cross Moore, "who d'ye reckon
could ha' took the coins?"
"Most anybody _could_. Mr. Haley sartinly did _not_," Uncle Jason
returned, briskly.
"How d'ye know so much?" demanded Massey, the druggist.
"'Cause I know him," rejoined Mr. Day, quite as promptly as before.
"Aw--that's only talk," said Joe Pellet, pulling his beard
reflectively. "Mr. Haley's a nice young man----"
"I've knowed him since ever he come inter this town," Mr. Day
interrupted, with energy. "He's too smart ter do sech a thing, even if
he was so inclined. You fellers seem ter think he's an idiot. What!
steal them coins when he's the only person 'cept the janitor that's
knowed to have a key to the school building?
"Huh!" pursued Uncle Jason, with vast disgust. "You fellers must have
a high opinion of your own judgment, when you choosed Mr. Haley to
teach this school. Did ye hire a nincompoop, I wanter know? Why! if
he'd wanted ever so much ter steal them coins, he'd hafter been a fule
ter done it in this way."
"There's sense in what ye say, Jason," admitted Mr. Crawford.
"I sh'd hope so! But there ain't sense in what you fellers have
done--for a fac! Lettin' sech a story as this git all over town. By
jiminy! if I was Mr. Haley, I'd sue ye!"
"But what are we goin' ter do, Jason?" demanded Cross Moore. "Sit here
an' twiddle our thumbs, and let that feller 't owns the coins come down
on us for their value?"
"You'll have to make good to him anyway," said Mr. Day, bluntly. "You
four air responserble."
"Hi tunket!" exploded Joe Pellet. "And let the thief git away with
'em?"
"Better git a detecertif, an' put him on the case," said Mr. Day. "Of
course, you air all satisfied that nobody could ha' got into the
schoolhouse but Mr. Haley?"
"He an' Benny is all that has keys," said Massey.
"Sure about this here janitor?" asked Uncle Jason, slowly.
"Why, he was with us all the time," said Crawford, in disgust.
"And he's a hardworkin' little feller, too," Massey added. "Not a
thing wrong with Benny but his back. That is crooked; but he's as
straight as a string."
"How's his fambly?" asked Uncle Jason.
"Ain't got none--but a wife. A decent, hard-working woman," proclaimed
the druggist. "No children. Her brother boards with 'em. That's all."
"Well, sir!" said Uncle Jason, oracularly. "There air some things in
this worl' ye kin be sure of, besides death and taxes. There's a few
things connected with this case that ye kin pin down. F'r instance:
The janitor didn't do it. Nelse Haley didn't do it. None o' you four
fellers done it."
"Say! you goin' to drag us under suspicion, Jase?" drawled Cross Moore.
"If you keep on sputterin' about Nelse Haley--yes," snapped Mr. Day,
nodding vigorously. "Howsomever, there's still another party ter which
the finger of suspicion p'ints."
"Who's that?" was the chorus from the school committee.
"A party often heard of in similar cases," said Mr. Day, solemnly.
"His name is _Unknown_! Yes, sir! Some party unknown entered that
building while you fellers was down cellar, same as Nelson Haley did.
This party, Unknown, stole the coins."
"Aw, shucks, Jase!" grunted Mr. Cross Moore. "You got to give us
something more satisfactory than that if you want to shunt us off'n
Nelson Haley's trail," and the other three members of the School
Committee nodded.