Iowa Heritage Digital Collections
State Library of Iowa

1917 Yearbook

1917 Yearbook

Title

1917 Yearbook

Description

ADVENTURES
OF
SURELUCK COMBS
Preface and Introductory
This story portrays the adventures of an
imaginary personage whom we shall call
Sureluck Combs. A few ideas are from a
book I have read, but the greater part is
original, and is in no way taken from the
Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, although
the similarity of names might lead one to
such a conclusion. No ambiguous words are
used in its chapters, and any person of
average intelligence should be able to read
and understand it.
Hoping to afford the reader a few hours
of pleasure and amusement, and the scholar
a delight in perfect English, I now leave
you to enter into its contents, for I know
the author's name alone assures one, that
there is a good story to follow.
THE AUTHOR.
ADVENTURES
OF
SURELUCK COMBS
Although many are acquainted with my
name, and the great crimes I have solved,
especially the great Spud mystery; yet few
are acquainted with my methods of procedure.
One of the most essential methods which I
possess is keenness of observance. I will undertake to illustrate this by a minor incident,
which occurred during my pursuit of crime,
in the depths of Rock Island, and in so doing,
it will be necessary to touch upon some of
the events of my private life, which will
show that I am human, and possess no preternatural qualities, which have been attributed to me, but that my successes are
due to sound reasoning and brainwork.
One rainy day in April, as I boarded a
north-bound "Cork Hill Limited," which
would convey me to my humble apartments
on Kasy street, after a fair day's work, having solved twenty-six murder mysteries and
thirteen robberies, I was forced to join the
army of strap hangers, directly in the rear
of two flashy-dressed gentlemen, whom I
recognized at once. Standing, or rather
hanging, in front of these, was a portly gentleman whom I recognized as Patrick Hogan, the ex-bricklayer and multi-millionaire,
and, I hoped, my father-in-law to be. I
noticed a rather prominent bulge in his rear
pocket, which I perceived by keen observance to be caused by a well filled wallet of
yellow backs.
Now Patrick had looked unfavorably upon
me as a suitor for the hand of his daughter
Lizzy, heir to the Hogan estate. "Ah, boy,
Lizzy was as beautiful a maid as ever softened* the heart of man." "Sky blue eyes that
bored to the depths of one's soul." "A
shapely Roman nose of natural size and lips
as red as the roses of June."
One evening papa Hogan had told me
never again to see his daughter until I had
proved myself a real sleuth, as then ho
might consider the vital question. I had
left with the resolve to do this, but no opportunity had as yet presented itself, so I
was forced to content myself with daily
epistles to my lady love with the resolve to
wait patiently until the opportune time
should come. All these thoughts entered my
mind, as I saw Hogan's enormous profile before me, and was in despair as to how I
should prove my worth to him, when the car
gave a lurch, as cars are in the habit of doing, and Patrick fell back against the two
gentlemen in his rear. When he resumed his
hanging I happened to notice that the bulge
in his rear pocket had disappeared, also the
wallet. At last mv time had come and I
resolved to make the most of it. Seizing
the gentlemen in a grip of iron, I announced
in one of my professional tones to Mr. Hogan. "Pardon me, Mr. Hogan, but could you
change a fifty." He felt for his wallet and
finding it gone, exclaimed, turning pale, "My
God! It is gone." "Exactly," I replied.
Then to one of the gentlemen I had seized I
said, "Joe, kindly return the wallet to the
gentleman and then accompany me to Magistrate O'Bryon's office. I believe he would
like to see you."
That evening I received a phone message
from Lizzy, who said that her father had
just told her what a brave hero I was, and
that I might call that evening if I wished.
It is needless to say that I was there with
bells on, and with the determination to propose.
About 9 o'clock Lizzy began to get restless. I knew that the fatal moment had arrived. Would my iron constitution stand the
strain ? Would she accept or refuse ? Striking a brave attitude I burst out. "Lizzy I
love you, will you marry me? I've loved you
ever since I set my eyes upon you. I swear
to be true. Will you marry me? Will you
be my wife?"
"Oh Sureluck," she said, hopping daintily
into mv outstretched arms, "this is so sudden."
One evening several months later, after
my wife had retired, I was sitting in my
study in profound thought when the butler
entered bringing a telegram and a letter.
The letter from Magistrate O'Bryon of Scott
County was as follows:—
Mr. Sureluck Combs:
Ike the Slasher, and Slippery-fingered Joe,
who were convicted in my court through
your evidence as pickpockets, have escaped
from Ft. Madison. I suppose you remember
that they swore to get even with you at the
trial so I thought I would-put you next.
O'Bryon of Scott County.
This I cast aside with a smile of contempt,
and opened the telegram, and on reading it
realized that it was in a way connected with
the letter I had just cast aside. It was as
follows:—
Come at once. Valuable documents and
large amount of money stolen.
MR. P. HOGAN.
The next day found me at the residence of
Mr. Hogan. After investigating the case I
returned to my office and set to work the
great chain, which I had spent years in

Date

1917

Identifier

http://cdm16810.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/p16810coll2/id/2177