I can't believe that my daugh-
ter is wilfully consorting with such men. She always
has been full of life and spirit; but she's got a clean
mind, and her little escapades have always been en-
tirely harmless--at worst some sort of boyish prank. I
simply won't believe it until I see it with my own eyes.
If she's with them she's being held by force."
Burton made no reply. He was not a man to jump to
conclusions. His success was largely due to the fact
that he assumed nothing; but merely ran down each
clew quickly yet painstakingly until he had a foundation
of fact upon which to operate. His theory was that the
simplest way is always the best way and so he never be-
fogged the main issue with any elaborate system of de-
ductive reasoning based on guesswork. Burton never
guessed. He assumed that it was his business to KNOW,
nor was he on any case long before he did know. He
was employed now to find Abigail Prim. Each of the sev-
eral crimes committed the previous night might or might
not prove a clew to her whereabouts; but each must be
run down in the process of elimination before Burton
could feel safe in abandoning it.
Already he had solved one of them to his satisfac-
tion; and Dopey Charlie and The General were, all un-
known to themselves, on the way to the gallows for the
murder of Old John Baggs.
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