A CLEVER IDEA
Ted Hosmer looked at Dolly as she spoke, and a sudden light came into
his eyes.
"By Jiminy!" he said, and he drew a sharp little whistle. "I say,
Dolly, where is your Mrs. Berry?"
"Oh, no, Ted," Dolly laughed, "you can't connect Mrs. Berry with this
matter any more than you can the Mortimers' servants. Mrs. Berry didn't
do it."
"I didn't say she did," returned Ted, smiling at her. "But where is
she, that's all."
"I don't know. Probably in her room."
"Take me there, will you? I must see her at once. Why, I've got an
idea!"
"Goodness, Ted!" exclaimed Geordie. "What a strange piece of news!"
"Don't be funny!" said Ted; "I say, Dolly, take me to speak to Mrs.
Berry, won't you?"
"Why, of course, if you like,--come on."
Dolly led the way and Ted followed. The others paid little attention,
for Geordie was thinking out a new theory of how somebody could get
across from the next house, by means of scuttles to the roofs on the
front part of the houses. Of course, in front the houses were attached,
but the back extensions were only one room wide, thus giving ground
space for tiny back yards.
A tap on Mrs. Berry's door was answered, and the two were admitted.
"What is it?" and the housekeeper looked a little surprised at her
visitors.
"May we look out of your window?" asked Ted, politely.
"Surely," was the reply. "But what for?"
Ted, however, already had raised the window and was looking out. It was
dark, or nearly, and the house next door showed a dim light in the room
opposite the one they were in.
The shade was down at the window, so they saw nothing of the room but a
few indistinct shadows.
"Tell us something about the old caretaker next door, won't you?"
begged Ted, and Mrs. Berry responded: "Now, don't suspect him! Why, old
Joe is the most honest man in the city! I've known him for years, and
I'm sure he wouldn't steal a pin! Mr. Mortimer trusts him absolutely."
"But tell us a little about him."
"There's nothing to tell, only that he stays there alone when the
family go away. He lives, practically, in the two rooms; that room
opposite and the kitchen. He has no company but his parrot; he makes a
great pet of that."
"A nice Polly?"
"A handsome bird, yes. But a nuisance with its continual squawking and
chattering."
"Thank you, Mrs. Berry; I believe that's all. Pardon our intrusion.
We'll go now. Come along, Dolly."
Dolly followed Ted from the room, and he said, "Don't go back upstairs
yet. Come along with me."
"Where?"
"Never mind. Come on," and, making a gesture for her to be silent, Ted
piloted her down the main staircase and out of the front door.
"Gracious! I won't go another step till you tell me where we're going!"
"Of course I'll tell you. We're going next door. Come on; you don't
need wraps; it's just a step."
Taking her hand, Ted led her down the Forbes' steps and up those of the
house next door. He rang the bell and they waited. In a moment,
shuffling steps were heard and an old man opened the door.
"That you, Joe?" said Ted, pleasantly. "Let us come in for a moment,
please."
"I don't know you, young sir, but if I'm not mistaken, this is one of
the little ladies from next door."
"Quite right. We intend no harm, I assure you. Let us come in for a
minute or two."
The old man let them enter and closed the door behind them.
"How's your parrot?" asked Ted, conversationally.
Old Joe looked surprised, but he answered courteously, "Polly is well,
as usual."
"What kind of a bird is he?"
"A parrot, sir."
"I don't mean that. Is he honest or--or gives to thievery?"
"Oh, sir, he's the thievingest beast in the world, that he is! I don't
dare leave a thing around I'm not willing for him to take if he wants
it."
"Yes, just so. And does he ever go out of this house?"
"No,--oh, no."
Ted's face fell. Dolly's, too, for she began to see what Ted had in
mind. But if Polly never left the Mortimer house, surely he didn't fly
over and steal the earring.
"Could I go up to the room where the bird is?" said Ted, trying to
conceal his disappointment at the collapse of his theory.
"Yes, sir, if you like, or I'll bring the bird down here."
"We'll go up, please," and Dolly and Ted followed the old man to the
room on the second floor, which was opposite Mrs. Berry's.
They looked in and saw the bird in his cage, hanging from a bracket
near the window.
"Pretty Polly," said Ted, walking toward the cage. "Nice Polly. Polly
want a cracker?"
The bird cocked his head on one side, but said nothing.
"And you're sure he never leaves his cage?" said Ted, examining the
fastening on the cage door.
"Well, sir, he does leave his cage. I said he doesn't leave this house.
That is,--not often. So seldom as to call it never."
"What do you mean by that?"
"Well, a few days ago,--I'm thinking it was Sunday,--the bird let
himself out of his cage. The latch broke, do you see, and he could push
the door open with his claw. I came into the room, and there he was
stalking up and down the floor with a knowing look. I soon found how he
got out of the cage and I fixed the latch so he can't do it again. I
let him out often, but I'm not going to have him letting himself out."
"Sunday, was it?" and Dolly's eyes brightened as Ted went on with his
questions. "And you weren't here when he got out of his cage?"
"No, sir. But I came in soon and he was marching along the floor,
winking at me."
"And was the window open?"
Old Joe stopped to think. "No," he said, finally, and Dolly gave a sigh
of despair. If the window had been open, there was a possibility that
Polly had been the thief.
"Can he fly?" she put in.
"Fly? Yes, that he can. That's why I'm careful to keep him shut up
here. I wouldn't like him to fly over and annoy Mrs. Berry. He did that
once a year ago, and the lady was right down mad about it."
"Think again, Joe. Couldn't this window have been open Sunday, when
Polly got out of his cage?"
"Well, now, I do believe it was! Wasn't Sunday that warm, pleasant day?
Yes? Well, then, come to think of it, this here window WAS open! My! it
was a good thing Mr. Polly didn't walk out of it!"
"But that's just what he did do,--I believe!"
"What, sir? What do you mean?"
"Well, I'll tell you. A small article has disappeared from the house
next door, from a room on this side, just above Mrs. Berry's room. It's
a hard matter to find out what became of the thing, a small trinket of
jewellery, and I'm in hopes that your bird flew over and took it,
because that will let out certain very much worried human beings!"
"Oh, I can't think Polly did that!"
"Can he fly as far as to go up to that window two stories higher than
this? You say he can fly, but would he be likely to fly UP?"
"If so be that window was open he might. He's a born thief, that bird
is. But in that case, what did he do with it? A jewel, you say?"
"Yes, an old, very old earring."
"Ah!" and Joe started; "of fine work, but all broken and bent?"
"I don't know. How about that, Dolly?"
"It was old, and it was fine gold work. But it wasn't bent or broken."
"Then it's not the same," said Joe. "Polly has a lot of playthings, and
some old imitation jewellery that Mrs. Mortimer lets him have because
he loves such things. And it was Monday, yes, yesterday, he had an old
piece of stuff that I didn't remember seeing before, but I paid little
attention to it. And it was that bent and twisted it can't have been
the thing you're searching for. No, that it couldn't."
"I suppose not," said Ted, but Dolly said, "Let us see it, anyway,
can't you? Maybe Polly bent it up himself."
Old Joe went and searched through a lot of broken bits of metal tilings
in a box on the table.
"Here it is," he said. "You see how it's worn out!"
"That's it!" cried Dolly. "Oh, Ted, THAT'S the earring! Hooray!"
"Is it? Hooray!" shouted Ted. "REALLY, oh, it's too good to be true!
Polly MUST have taken it, Joe."
"Yes, he must have done so, if Miss, here, says it's the one. But let
me figger it out. I s'pose when Polly opened his cage door, the open
window attracted him, and he flew out. Then as the other windows in the
Forbes house were closed, he made for that one that was open. Was
nobody in the room?"
"No," said Dolly, "not when the jewel was taken. I left it on a table,
near the window, and--"
"Yes, Miss, I see! Polly was tempted by the glittering thing; he loves
glitter, and he snatched it up and flew right back home with it. He hid
it somewhere; that's his thievish nature, and when I came in here he
was walking up and down the floor as innocent appearin' as a lamb! Oh,
you wicked Polly!"
"Wick-ed Polly!" screeched the bird. "Naughty Polly!"
"Yes, very naughty Polly!" said Ted. "But a good Polly, after all, to
get us out of our troubles!"
"Then, you see," continued Old Joe, "that villainous bird, he hid his
treasure, and when I let him out yesterday, just to fly around the
room, he found it out again, and he hent and broke it all up."
"Well, never mind!" Dolly cried, "as long as we have it! Oh, Ted, how
clever of you to think of it! I'm so glad! Come, let's hurry home and
tell about it! My, won't they all rejoice!"
"Shall I go over and make my apologies to Mr. Forbes?" asked Joe,
anxiously.
"No; at least, not now. Mr. Forbes won't hold you at all to blame. It
was merely coincidence that the bird happened to get out of his cage,
just when the jewel lay there unprotected," said Ted.
"And, he'd taken something else if he hadn't found that. Anything
glittering or sparkling catches his eye, and he steals it. But 'tis
seldom he gets a chance outside the house."
"Why do you keep such a bird?" asked Dolly.
"He isn't mine. I wouldn't care to have him. He belongs to Mrs.
Mortimer, and she only laughs at his thievin' traits. She thinks
they're cunning. So, I must needs take good care of him. 'Twas careless
of me to leave the window open, and him here alone. But I didn't think
he could break loose from his cage. I'm thinkin' the door was ajar."
"Well, we're much obliged to you and to Polly. Oh, just think if you
hadn't reasoned it out, Ted, we never would have known the truth! You
see, Joe thought the earring was one of Polly's own belongings, so, of
course, he never would have paid any attention to it."
"That I wouldn't, Miss. I supposed it was some of the trinkets the
missus gave him. She buys 'em for him at the five-and-ten. He breaks
'em as fast as he gets 'em!"
"I hope this can be straightened out, and I think it can," said Dolly,
as she looked at the bent gold work.
"I'm sure it can," agreed Ted, "but anyway, it solves the mystery and
clears you girls! Hooray! Hurroo!! Come on, let's go and tell them all."
The two dashed into the Forbes house next door, and found the rest of
them down in the drawing room, wondering what had become of Dolly and
Ted.
With a beaming face and dancing eyes, Dolly went straight to Mr. Forbes
and dangled the bent and twisted earring before his surprised
countenance.
"Bless my soul!" he cried, as he saw it. "Did you--where did you find
it?"
Dolly realised that he had been about to say, "Did you decide to own
up?" or something like that, and she was glad that he changed his
sentence.
"Next door!" she exclaimed, for Ted stood back and let her have the
pleasure of telling. "That old parrot came and stole it!"
"Oh! the parrot!" cried Mr. Forbes. "Why, of course! I see it all! Why
didn't _I_ think of that? Once before, I saw that bird light on my
window sill and I shooed him off. Strange I didn't think of that
solution!"
"Tell us more!" cried Dotty; "who thought of a parrot? Whose parrot is
it? How did he get in? When?"
"Wait a minute, Dot," said Dolly, laughing, "and I'll tell you all
about it. You tell some, Ted, I'm all out of breath!"
So Ted told the whole story of their visit to the next house.
"And I thought it was n. g. when the old chap said the window in his
room wasn't open. Also, when he said the bird never left that house, I
thought again we were off the track. But when we went on to discuss the
matter, and he said the bird was a born thief, and also he finally
remembered that his window was open on Sunday afternoon, why I felt
sure we had found the culprit. Then, the old fellow produced the
earring, which he had seen, but had scarcely noticed, thinking it was
some of the bird's own junk. It seems Polly also collects antiques!"
"Well, well, Hosmer, my boy, you did well to think of such a solution
to our mystery! What put you on the track in the first place?"
"I think it was the birds of your collection, sir. I'm very fond of
birds and bird study, and I know a lot about parrots, and their ways.
Well, seeing all your stuffed birds, put birds in my head, I suppose;
any way, when Dolly spoke of a parrot next door that annoyed Mrs.
Berry, I thought right away of how that Polly bird would like to grab a
gold trinket if he had a good chance. So I looked up his chances, and I
began to realise that if your window was open, the one in the other
house might have been too. Sunday was such a warm, pleasant day. So, I
looked into matters a little, and concluded we'd better go over there.
I didn't say what we were going for, because it might easily have
turned out a wild goose chase--"
"Instead of a wild parrot chase!" said Alicia. "Oh, isn't it just fine
that it's found!"
"I guess old Fenn will be surprised," said Dotty, with an angry shake
of her dark head. "He tried his best to fasten it on Dolly--"
"Fasten the earring on?" asked Geordie Knapp, laughing.
"No; I did that myself," rejoined Dolly. "Oh, Uncle Forbes, you didn't
think I took it, did you?"
"I didn't know what to think. No thought of that bird came into my
mind. And so I had to cudgel my brain to think how it did disappear.
For I HAD to know! Yes, I positively HAD to know!"
"Of course," agreed Bernice. "You didn't want to lose that jewel."
"It wasn't only that, there was another reason, a reason that I'll tell
you some day."