Part 15 (1/2)
”No; it's a pocketbook--a wallet”
”A wallet?” exclaimed Lem, with such suddenness that Jack started
”Yes,” cried the lad ”You don't itated He shuffled his feet in the dust
”Me find a pocketbook?” he said at length with a short laugh ”Well, I guess not I ain't in the habit of findin' such things as that
What kind was it, and as in it?”
”It was a long one of brown leather,” replied Jack, describing Ed's pocketbook and ignoring the question of as in it ”A friend ofhi to look in one direction, and you and I'll look in the other”
Jack tried to make his voice sound friendly, but it was difficult work
”You'll look on one side of the road, and I'll keep watch on the other,” he went on
”All right; I'reeable,” said Leh--I ain't never very lucky”
He got into the auto beside Jack, and the two started off slowly
Cora and Walter also started, and the search for thetwenty thousand dollars was continued
Jack and Lem did not talk much on the way back Lem Gildy was not an accomplished conversationalist, and Jack was too anxious to find the wallet to care for the distraction of talk Several tiht he saw the pocketbook, but each time it was a flat stone or a clod of dirt that misled him
They reached Chelton, and Lem asked to be set down in a secluded street
”Why?” asked Jack curiously
”Because if soon like this they'd never speak to rinned and showed all his yellow teeth ”I was afraid ouldn't find that pocketbook,”
he added
”Well, maybe Cora will,” said Jack
”Yes,” said Lem slowly, ”maybe she will--or some one else will”
His tone was so peculiar that Jack asked quickly:
”What do you mean, Lem?”
”Oh, nothin',” and the fellow assumed an injured air ”Only if a pocketbook is lost, some one's bound to find it, ain't they?”