In the darkness he fell over a chair, and
by the time he had disentangled himself and had reached the corridor the
safe-blower was gone. Racing to the elevator, Blount rang the bell until
the sleepy car-tender set the machinery in motion and lifted himself to
the floor of happenings. Here the incident ended abruptly, so far as any
helpful discoveries were concerned. The elevator-man had carried no one
down, and he confessed shamefacedly that he had again been asleep, and
could not say whether or not anybody had descended the stair which
circled the elevator-shaft.
Blount went back to his office, turned in a police alarm, and waited
until a policeman came from the nearest station. Then he went to report
the safe-blowing in person to the night captain on duty in the basement
of the City Hall. A drowsy clerk took notes of the story, and the night
captain contented himself with asking a single question.
"Do you know how much you lost, Mr. Blount?"
"Nothing of any great consequence, I imagine," said Blount, remembering,
with an inward thrill of thankfulness, the morning impulse which had
prompted him to transfer the one thing of inestimable consequence to the
security of the bank safe-deposit box. Then he added: "There was a
little money in the box, and some papers of no especial value to
anybody. Just the same, captain, I want that man caught.
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