The detective lighted another cigar, leaned back in his chair with his legs crossed and puffed awhile in silence. He was thinking hard and his listener waited for him to speak.
“I have been trying to decide upon what fact I base a vague belief that this loon has his workshop in the northern part of New York State, well toward the Canadian border. He never told me anything about himself and I have not seen his name or doings in print. The impression must be one of those hazy ones that steal into the brain without any apparent reason, and are explained by some as due to a sixth sense.”
“Such as when you located the kidnappers in this part of the world,” ventured Harvey Hamilton.
“That was quite different; I accidentally ran upon a definite clue, but there is nothing of the kind in sight here. You have no idea how many of the successes among us detectives are due to lucky accidents. Now such an original genius as Milo Morgan cannot always keep out of the public eye. His achievements are so remarkable that several of them must become known; the omni-present reporters will hunt him up; if they can get snapshots his picture will appear on the printed page, with interesting interviews, all probably faked. If this does not occur, his doings will be mentioned in some journal; if you will arrange with a press-clipping bureau, you will probably get the clue you need.”
Harvey had never thought of anything like this. It added to his hopefulness and he began to believe it quite possible that Bohunkus Johnson might be run down and saved from what seemed impending death.
“The character of Professor Morgan being what it is, why was he willing to take my colored friend with him?”
“It was not altogether the whim of a lunatic. He could not have failed to note that the negro is stupid, consequently would not bore him with questions which he did not wish to answer. At the same time, Bunk is big, powerful and good-natured,—in short an ideal assistant, for there must be arduous labor connected with the experiments of the brilliant inventor. In my judgment it was these facts which influenced Morgan to take the lad with him; Bunk would be desirable for the same reasons on a trip across the ocean and it would be an easy reward to give him for his help.”
“It seems to me, Mr. Pendar, that valuable time will be lost while waiting for news through the sources you name.”
“Possibly you are right, but I can think of no other way that promises success. From Chesterton you will first go to your home; you can reach there to-morrow; you will tell your father everything of course, and he will be as helpful as he was in getting you a new aeroplane.”
“How?”