Children -- Conduct of life -- Juvenile fiction; Motherless families -- Juvenile fiction; Siblings -- Juvenile fiction
"Then of course it goes without saying," continued Fortune, "that the
gypsies passed on the little dears to other folk. Now the question is,
What sort of folk would be interested in a little pair like them?
They was both young, both lissom, both handsome, and Miss Diana was
the bravest child I ever come across--maybe they was sold to someone
to train 'em to walk on the tight rope."
Uncle William smiled indulgently.
"The detectives would certainly have found that out by this time," he
said. "Besides, there were no traveling companies of any sort within a
radius of quite fifteen miles."
"Very well," said Fortune; "then, perhaps, sir, you'll allow me to
manage things my own way. I aint a detective, but I'm bent on
detective work for the time being. I'm going straight off to Madersley
this morning. I'm going to have descriptions of those children printed
in very big characters, and posted all over Madersley."
"And why specially all over Madersley?" asked Mr. Dolman.
"'Cos Madersley is, so to speak, their native town," answered Fortune.
"Why, there aint a person in Madersley who don't know Delaney Manor;
and strangers, when they come there, drive out to see Delaney Manor as
they would any other big place, and folks at this time of year travel
from far to stay at Madersley, because the place is bracing and the
coast good for bathing. So you see, Mr. Dolman, there'll be lots of
people who will read my descriptions, and when they read 'em they'll
begin to talk about the children, and there's no saying what may
happen."
"It doesn't sound a bad idea," said Mr. Dolman.
"Bad!" repeated Fortune. "It's a first-rate idea; it's an American
idea. In America we never let the grass grow under our feet. I'm off
to Madersley this minute to see after those posters. Why, we post up
everything in America, every single thing that is lost, let alone
children, and we do it in big type, as big as they make it, and we put
the posters on the walls, and wherever there's a scrap of available
space. By your leave, sir, I'm off to Madersley now."
Fortune was as good as her word. She not only went to Madersley and
interviewed some of the best printers in the place, but she also
visited the police station, and told the police to be on the lookout.
"For the two youngest little Delaneys are missing," she said, "and
found they must be, if heaven and earth are moved to accomplish the
job."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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