Clever Detection

“THIS must be the stolen miniature! ” Nancy gasped.

“It might be a copy, ” Bess suggested.

“It doesn’t look like a copy, ” Nancy insisted. “The gold frame has a number of tiny scratches on it as if it were old. Bess, I’m sure this was stolen from the Hendricks’ collection.”

The two girls examined the miniature in detail, and Nancy told of having seen it before the robbery.

“But, Nancy, Taylor’s wouldn’t accept stolen merchandise, ” Alice objected.

“Not knowingly. But this may have been sold to them without their realizing it was stolen. Perhaps they got it from an antique dealer.”

All agreed that the miniature was greatly underpriced, even if it were only an excellent copy of the original. Nancy promptly bought the miniature. She would find out for certain if it had been stolen from the Hendricks.

“Have you others like these? ” Nancy asked.

“I know a shipment came in, but all the merchandise isn’t on the floor yet, ” Alice replied. “I’ll ask Mr. Watkins about it. He’s head of our department.”

Mr. Watkins was a stubby, white-haired man with glasses. When he saw the miniature which was being wrapped for Nancy, he glanced quickly at the tag.

“This item must have been mismarked, ” he said. “Taylor’s wouldn’t ask you to pay more, of course, but I must check invoices before any other articles in the shipment are sold.”

Nancy expressed a desire to see the other miniatures.

“We’ll look into this, ” the elderly man said. “Come with me to the marking room.”

He led Nancy and Bess to a rear exit and across an alleyway to a building used for receiving.

“Snecker! ” he called loudly, switching on an overhead light. “Hey, Snecker! ” As a young clerk emerged from an adjoining room, Mr. Watkins asked, “Where is he? ”

“He’s not here, ” the boy said. “Mr. Snecker’s taken the day off.”

“Again? ” Mr. Watkins remarked irritably.

He explained to Nancy and Bess that Ralph Snecker was in charge of uncrating and marking all items to be put on sale, and shipping damaged goods back to factories.

“Then if a mistake were made in pricing the miniature, it would be Mr. Snecker’s fault? ” Nancy asked.

“That’s right. This miniature is underpriced—no question about that. I’ll examine the invoices.”

Nancy and Bess waited patiently in a window-less stuffy room while he checked through records and bills. Crates and boxes were piled all about, many not yet opened.

“Strange, ” Mr. Watkins remarked presently. “I can’t seem to find an invoice for the piece you have. I know a small shipment came in from abroad.” He questioned the clerk, but the young man knew nothing about the miniature.

“I’ll take it up with Mr. Snecker tomorrow, ” Mr. Watkins said.

“Is he an old and trusted employee? ” Nancy asked casually.

“No, he hasn’t been with Taylor’s very long, ” Mr. Watkins admitted. “However, he’s an efficient worker. Takes too many days off, though. Either he’s ill or he has to go fishing. The minute he’s through work, away he goes to the country.”

Mr. Watkins was still checking through a stack of papers in search of the invoice.

“The fishing bug bit Snecker hard. Why, he goes out to the river summer and winter, clear, rainy, or snowy! ”

This struck Nancy as odd. How did the man manage to keep up with his work? She thought she had better meet and question him soon, since it seemed probable he might be dismissed before long. She decided to return to the store the next day.

Meanwhile, she and Bess called at the Hendricks’ home. When Gloria and her mother saw the miniature they instantly identified it as theirs.

“The idea of Taylor’s selling stolen merchandise! ” Mrs. Hendrick exclaimed indignantly. “Wait until I tell the police! ”

“I have a hunch the store isn’t to blame, ” said Nancy.

“Well, anyhow, you got one of our treasures back, ” Gloria spoke up. “You’re so clever, Nancy! ”

The young detective shook her head modestly. “There’s a lot of work to do on this case yet.”

Mrs. Hendrick smiled. “Don’t worry, dear. I’m sure you’ll solve it.”

Next morning Nancy hurried to the department store. To her disappointment, Snecker had telephoned that he was too ill to work.

“Very likely he’s out fishing, ” Mr. Watkins grumbled.

During the brief conversation with the elderly man, Nancy learned that the note sent to employees countermanding the order to turn in their charge plates had been unsigned. At once she became suspicious and her thoughts turned to Snecker and the stolen miniature.

“Do you know where Mr. Snecker lives? ” Nancy asked Mr. Watkins.

He consulted a book under the counter. “Twenty-four Tanner Street.”

Nancy thanked Mr. Watkins for the information and left the store. She stopped to ask a traffic policeman the way to Tanner Street. He gave directions to a section of town with which she was not familiar.

After riding through several drab, unattractive streets, Nancy finally came to the one she sought. The Snecker house was at the far end of it. The red-brick dwelling was run-down and old.

Nancy applied the brakes, intending to pull into a vacant space a short distance beyond the building. As she slowed down, another car which had been parked directly in front of the four-story house pulled away from the curb.

“Now, where have I seen that car before? ” Nancy thought.

Her pulse quickened. The car was a mud-splattered green sedan. Though she caught only a fleeting glimpse of the driver, she recognized him at once.

“That’s Peter Tombar! ” she thought. “Has he been at Ralph Snecker’s? And why? ”

Nancy wanted to follow Tombar. She might pick up a clue!

But almost at once she discarded the idea in favor of calling on Snecker. She had an excuse which she could not use another time—one which might prove helpful in solving the mystery.

Nancy parked at the curb and went into the apartment-house vestibule. She pressed a buzzer above the name of Ralph Snecker. In a moment a shrill feminine voice answered through the tube.

“Who’s there? ”

“I’m from Taylor’s, ” Nancy replied, purposely not giving her name.

The woman seemed a trifle flustered. “I’ll be right down.”

In a moment a tall woman appeared, breathing heavily from her haste. She had a determined chin and narrow blue eyes.

“Are you Mrs. Snecker? ” Nancy asked politely.

“I am, ” she replied, eyeing the girl warily. “The store sent you, you said? ”

“I came to inquire about your husband. We’re worried concerning his absence.”

“I know, I know, ” the woman said impatiently. “They always send some busybody around to ask questions. Well, you can tell ’em he’s sick again! ”

“I’m sorry to hear that. Nothing serious, I hope.”

“He’s in bed with the asthma. I tell ’im if he’d stay away from the river he wouldn’t get these attacks. He’s supposed to take some medicine, but how can he when we don’t have no money? ”

Nancy feigned concern. “You’re having a hard time of it, aren’t you? ”

“Whadda ya expect on his salary? Maybe he ain’t no hustler, if you know what I mean. I tell ’im he ought to ask for more, but—”

Mrs. Snecker’s tirade was interrupted by a loud call from up the stairway.

“Florence! Florence! Come here, will you? ”

“That’s ‘im callin’ me now, ” Mrs. Snecker said. “He’s a nuisance when he’s sick. Always keepin’ me on the run. He wants me to wait on ’im like a baby.”

Nancy could see that the woman was completely out of sorts.

“You needn’t tell the store what I just said, ” Mrs. Snecker advised hastily. “I shouldn’t ‘a’ spoke my piece, but Ralph’s got me down with his gripes and complaints. When he works, things ain’t so bad. Oh, well, we’ll soon be out of these shabby quarters.”

“You’re moving to a better apartment? ”

“You bet we are.”

“But I thought you just said Mr. Snecker’s salary isn’t large and he’s not a go-getter.”

“Not at store business, he ain’t. But he’s got another line he’s workin’.” Mrs. Snecker dropped her voice, so that it could not possibly carry upstairs. “We’ll soon be on easy street, struttin’ with the best of ’em! ”

“Like your friend Tombar? ”

“Sure, and believe me—”

Mrs. Snecker suddenly broke off, staring suspiciously at Nancy. Belatedly it dawned on her that she had talked too freely. Without another word she slammed the door in Nancy’s face!