Darke Darrell, the Boy Detective — page 131: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

122 DARKE DARRELL. institute search. Here is his address. He will give you all the particulars. He handed acard to Darke, which he glanced at, and then put it into his pocket. Half an hour later he called on Mr. Stoddard, who gave him all the details, quite surprised to find him so boyish, and yet so keen-sighted and intelligent withal. Thus armed, Darke returned to his mother. | “* You will tell me now all about Deborah Dunn,” he said. ‘“Why is she wanted?” asked Mrs. Darrell, a feather- duster in her hands, looking askance at her son. ‘To testify to her signature, as one of the witnesses of a will.” | «‘ She was never a witness to a will,” declared his mother. ‘“‘She never signed any document.” ‘How do you know she didn’t, mother? You were not so constantly about her, unless you were as inseparable as the Siamese twins. It doesn’t take a minute to sign a name. I know that she did witness the document in ques- tion. Mr. Stoddard showed it to me.” : “Mr. Stoddard!” dusting briskly, yet noiselessly, with the feather duster. ‘‘ Deborah Dunn never knew anybody by that name. I told Mr. Marks go.” ‘* How do you know, mother?” he asked again. ‘‘ Why, one would think that yow are Deborah Dunn! It isn’t necessary that either of you should have known Mr. Stod- dard. He is merely disputing the will, as representative for three or four others as much interested in it as himself. Lhe man who died and made the will—or, rather,” with a smile, “‘who made the will and then died, was Mr. Samuel Westbrook.” “Oh,” ejaculated his mother, a recalling look on her face, the feather-duster tightly clinched in her hand. “I comicbooks.com