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Adelia Applegate's Compliment · The Tower Treasure

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  Chapter twenty three of The Tower Treasure by Franklin W. Dixon. This LibriVox
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  recording is in the public domain. Chapter twenty three, Adelia Applegate's compliment.
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  The curtain rolled down on the mystery of the Tower Treasure that afternoon and the
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  library of the Applegate home. The Hardy boys had gone directly to their father
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  with the story of the recovery of the lute, and Fenton Hardy had lost
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  no time in acquainting Heard Applegate. With the facts. Between them, they
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  arranged a little surprise for Chief Colleague and Detective Smuff, as well as for
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  Henry Robinson. On the invitation of Heard Applegate, the Chief brought mister Robinson
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  to Tower Mansion to be faced with additional evidence. As Fenton Hardy suavely put
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  it, Chief Colleague and Detective Smuff entered the library with their prisoner between them.
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  They had confidently anticipated that mister Applegate had discovered some new facts that would
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  further serve to tighten the web about the unfortunate caretaker, and when they came
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  into the room there was nothing at first to eradicate this impression. Heard Applegate
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  and Adelia Applegate sat by the huge library table and with them were mister Hardy
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  and his sons. Chief Collig did not at first notice the gunnysack lying on
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  the table. Well, mister applegate, said the Chief, fanning himself as
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  usual with his hat. I brought along mister Robinson, just as you asked.
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  Good as I mentioned to you, there has been some new evidence in
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  this case. I knew something would turn up grunted smuff. Not that any
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  new evidence is needed, of course, declared the Chief. We've got this
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  fellow dead to rights as it is. He ain't got a chance in the
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  world. But still it's just as good to make a real strong case of
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  it. I'm afraid you don't understand me, went on, heard Applegate.
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  This new evidence will clear mister Robinson. And when he is cleared, him
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  back in my employ again. Huh, gasped Chief Collig. What's that you
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  say, exclaimed smuff? The stolen stuff has been found. No, here
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  it is put in Fenton Hardy getting up and dumping the gunnysack upside down on
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  the table. There was a tinkle and clatter as jewels came rolling out on
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  the table, and then there was a rustle of paper as the packets of
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  bonds followed. Where was it found? Asked the Chief. This doesn't clear
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  him. He probably hid it someplace. The stuff was found just where Jackie
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  said he hid it in the old tower. But the old tower was searched
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  high and low. There is more than one old tower, went on,
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  mister Hardy. Only we didn't happen to think of that at the time.
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  It was found in the old water tower down at the junction where Jackalie used
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  to work. Chief College was speechless with surprise. He gazed at Smuff,
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  whose jaw had dropped in astonishment. Who found it, asked Smuff. At
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  last, these two lads, said mister Applegate, indicating the Hardy boys.
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  They found it this morning. Them kids, scoffed Chief Colleague. I don't
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  believe it. Well, there's the stuff to prove it, snapped Fenton Hardy.
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  I've got my jewelry back thanks to them, declared Adelia Applegate. Shrilly,
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  they were smarter than the whole pack of you. If it wasn't for
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  them, the stuff would never have been found. And I was the one
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  who didn't want to let them search the old tower, and who spoke crossly
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  to them. Why they're real detectives? Both of them. In all the
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  talk and excitement that followed the clearing up of the Tower mystery, the hardy
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  boys received no compliment that they treasured so much as that remark of Adelia Applegate's
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  well, said Chief Collig, scratching his head. I'll be bumped. He
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  looked at Smuff. I'll be bumped too, declared Smuff. This beats all,
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  said the Chief. It does, agreed his faithful satellite. Shut up,
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  snapped the Chief. Who asked you to say anything nobody? Well,
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  then keep quiet. A fine detective you are. Why didn't you think of
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  that the old tower? Of course he meant the old water tower? What
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  else could he have meant? But you wouldn't think of it, not in
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  a hundred years. You wouldn't think of it. What kind of detective are
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  you? Anyway? Here was a case that was as simple as a b
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  C. And you couldn't think of it. You let yourself be beat by
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  a couple of boys. Smuff looked properly ashamed of himself, although it was
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  plain that he was struggling with a temptation to ask the Chief why he had
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  not thought of the water tower too, But he stifled the impulse and thereby
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  doubtless saved the Chief the trouble of dismissing him for impudence and insubordination. Yes,
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  said herd Applegate. The Hardy boys recovered the treasure, and I think
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  you will admit that mister Robinson is cleared personally. I am satisfied that he
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  knew nothing whatever of the theft, and I want to apologize to him for
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  any unjust suspicions I may have had, mister Robinson, will you let me
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  shake your hand? Trembling, Henry Robinson stepped forward. His face had been
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  illuminated by a glow of incredulous hope from the moment he learned of the discovery
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  of the loot. Am I really cleared? He asked? I knew things
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  looked bad against me all along. I hardly dared hope. I guess you'll
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  be let off now, all right, said Chief colleg grudgingly. There will
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  be formalities, of course, said Fenton Hardy, but I'm pretty sure the
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  prosecution won't continue. The discovery of this loot proves red Jackally's story was correct
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  from start to finish. But how about that nine hundred dollars demanded smuff suspiciously
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  mister Robinson straightened up. I'm sorry, he said, but even yet,
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  I can't explain that. I can in a few days, perhaps, But
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  I've promised to keep silent about that money. It's a private matter entirely.
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  I don't think we need to bother about that, objected herd applegate. I've
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  checked over the treasure and it's all there, all the bonds and all the
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  jewelry. There is nothing missing. As for the nine hundred dollars. Why
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  that is mister Robinson's own affair. Reluctantly smuff subsided into silence. Will you
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  come back into my employ mister Robinson asked herd applegate. Of course, I
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  feel very keenly because you are unjustly accused, and I want to make it
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  up to you. If you will consent to come back to Tower Mansion as
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  a caretaker again, I will increase your salary and I'll also insist that you
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  accept back pay for the time you were away. Why, stammered mister Robinson.
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  This is good of you, mister applegate. Of course I'll come back.
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  I'll be glad to It'll mean a lot to my wife and daughters,
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  and to Perry. He'll be able to go back to school again, good,
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  exclaimed Joe Hardy, impulsively slapping his knee. Then, finding that he
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  had attracted attention to himself, he sank back into his chair, embarrassed.
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  And as for the Hardy boys proceeded her to applegate, seeing they discovered the
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  treasure. Real detectives, shrilled Adelia, Real detectives, both of them smart
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  lads. Yes, they showed some real detective work, and I hope they
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  grew up to follow in their father's footsteps. But as I was saying,
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  they discovered the treasure, so of course they will get the reward. A
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  thousand bucks, exclaimed detective smuff In Awe dollars. Mister smuff dollars, corrected
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  Adelia, Applegate severely, no slang, please not in tower mansion. One
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  thousand iron men, declared Smuff, unheeding one thousand round fat juicy smackers for
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  a couple of kids and a real detective like me. The thought was too
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  much for him. He sank his head in his hands and groaned aloud.
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  Frank and Joe did not dare look at each other. They were finding it
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  difficult enough to restrain their laughter without that. Yes, a thousand dollars went
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  on, heard Applegate all write the checks, now five hundred for each.
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  With that he took out his fountain pen, reached in a drawer of the
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  table for a check book, and soon the silence was broken by the scratching
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  of pen on paper. Heard Applegate wrote out two checks each for five hundred
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  dollars, and these he handed to the boys. Frank and Joe accepted them
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  with thanks, folded them up and put them in their pockets. And that
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  I think concluded, mister Applegate finishes the mystery of the tower robbery thanks to
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  the hardy boys. Chimed in his sister real detectives both of them. I
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  must ask them for supper some night. End of chapter twenty three s