CHAPTER XXIV
IN PURSUIT
Every paper in New York was fairly bristling with the new development in the million-dollar bank mystery. All the stories concerned the note of confession left by Norton, his flight, and the possibility of catching him, and getting back the million.
Of course, the Leader had the story first, but it did not go into such “spasms” as did the other sheets. In fact, after the first account written by Larry, little was printed on the case.
Not so the other journals. They went into the life history of the absconding clerk, from the time when he was a little boy up to the present, and some even had pictures supposed to be his, taken when an infant.
Of course, pictures of him as he looked just before making his escape were scattered broadcast. They were even on the police circulars, offering the twenty thousand dollars reward, and good likenesses they were.
The police of the entire country, private and public detectives—in fact, the minions of the law of two continents—were on the alert to capture Norton, for the big reward was attractive bait. And yet, after three days had passed since he had left the note of confession, no trace of him was found.
The police had gone over every clew with a fine-tooth comb, but had found nothing. All the missing man’s associates at the bank knew that he had been among them one day, no more suspected that any one was. The next day he did not come to work. Then the note was found.
All his sister knew was that he had come home as usual one afternoon, had gone to bed early, and the next morning he was not in his room, nor had his bed been slept in. He had disappeared as silently and mysteriously as if the earth had opened and swallowed him, and the million dollars was apparently with him.
“And you expect, after all these others have failed, to find him; do you, Larry?” asked Mr. Emberg, as the young reporter and the city editor were talking over the case. It was a few days after Larry’s return from his visit to the home of the missing clerk.
“I’m going to find him,” declared Larry, “that is, if you consent to my plan, and furnish me with the auto.”