“That might account for its having gotten into the pawnshop,” said Hans eagerly, “if the thief was near there and happened to see it (then in a moment). Sure that’s what happened. Didn’t he show up within five minutes after you left the place? You drop the envelope on the sidewalk without knowing it, he comes along, sees it, picks it up, and as one name is as good to him as another, and as he doesn’t expect to call for the medal again, he fixes up that story for the pawnbroker to show him he doesn’t want to part with the medal forever and that makes the broker loan him the money on it, because they had rather make loans to people who redeem their pledges than not. People who do this have the habit and become steady customers. We’re doing fine.”
By that time it was nearly daylight. They had been up all night without noticing it. They felt they had made a start. At last they decided to get an hour or two of sleep.
Hal went to his bed exhausted but couldn’t sleep, he was so worried. Hans fell asleep promptly or thought he did. As a matter of fact he was only half dozing with the problem going through his mind. He was so intent on it that he was thinking of it unconsciously and as he thought he was asleep he thought he had a dream of getting on a train to go some place. Oh yes, he was trying to find Hal, he was getting on the back end of the train and as he walked into the car he saw Hal sitting on the last seat of the car, blue hat, mixed gray suit and all, and he saw himself going up to speak to him and greet him in true college-boy style, hitting his friend on the back as hard as his right hand would permit him, and just as his hand was about to fall on Hal’s shoulders he looked and, “By George!” said Hans, jumping out of bed and running over to Hal’s room like mad, shouting, “I’ve got him. The fellow with the blue glasses! Blue hat, gray suit, just like yours on the same train.”
Then he told Hal about the fellow on the train whom he had almost forgotten. How he thought he was Hal and was just about to hand him one when he had noticed the blue glasses and then found it wasn’t Hal. He wound up by saying, [“Find the other fellow with] the blue hat, the mixed gray suit and [the blue glasses] and we’ve got the medal thief.”
[“Find that man with the blue glasses!”]