Page:O'Higgins--The Adventures of Detective Barney.djvu/97

 smiled at him, amusedly. He retreated to the back platform, giggling, and grinned at his ease out the door.

He was still grinning and still breathing hard when he entered the Babbing Bureau at room 1056, and hurried into Babbing’s private office to find Chal Snider reading a morning paper at Babbing’s desk. “Here ’s his bag!”

Snider looked over the top of his newspaper. “Whose bag?”

“Palmer’s.”

“What!” The cry was not wholly incredulous; it had the quality, too, of envious amazement.

“Sure! Hurry up an’ see what ’s in it. The Chief wants to know. Hurry up. He ’s got him.”

Snider dropped his paper and grabbed the ’phone. “Hello? Hello! Bring me in a bunch of skeletons for a small satchel. Quick.” He caught the bag from Barney. “Well, I ’ll be switched. How the hell?”