CHAPTER 16 _A FAMILIAR NAME_
"The melon you have selected is a very good one," the market mandeclared, not understanding the significance of Penny's remark. "Shall Iput it in a sack for you?"
"I'm not interested in the melon--only in the stamp," Penny replied. "Doyou realize that you may be liable to arrest?"
"What d'you mean, liable to arrest?" the man demanded. "I'm an honestdealer and I have a license."
"Look at these melons." Penny held up one which bore the blurred stamp."The trade name has been altered."
The dealer took the cantaloupe from her, examining it briefly. She thenoffered him the single melon bearing the Davis stamp.
"Well, what about it?" he asked.
"Just this. A few nights ago a truck load of melons similar to these, wasstolen from the Davis farm near Riverview. The thief was trailed right tothis city."
"You're trying to say that I sell stolen melons!"
"I'm not making any direct accusations," Penny replied evenly. "No doubtyou can explain where you got the melons."
"Certainly I can. I bought a truck load of them from a farmer named JohnToby. The melons were good, the price cheap, and I didn't pay anyattention to the stamp."
"Is Mr. Toby a regular dealer?"
"I buy from him now and then, when his prices are right. I never botheredto ask any questions."
"Where does the man live?"
"I can't tell you that. He's a large, heavy-set fellow with brown hairand eyes."
The description was too meagre to be of value to Penny.
"Does Mr. Toby drive a red truck?" she inquired thoughtfully.
"He did this last time."
"It was a red truck which was stolen from the Davis farm," Penny saidquietly. "I'm sure these melons came from there too."
"I paid good money for them," the dealer retorted in a defiant tone. "Sofar as I knew, they belonged to this fellow Toby. I can't investigateevery farmer who offers me produce."
"All the same, you could get into serious trouble for selling stolenmelons," Penny replied. "Of course, I have no intention of going to thepolice, providing you are willing to cooperate."
"What d'you mean, cooperate?" the dealer inquired suspiciously.
"Only this. Will you see John Toby again?"
"That's hard to tell. He said he might bring in another load of melonswithin the next few days."
"When you receive the next shipment, will you notify me?"
"Yes, I'm willing to do that," the dealer promised. "If Toby is crooked,I want to know it myself."
Penny gave the man her name, address, and telephone number. Knowing thathe might not be able to reach her quickly enough, she instructed him todetain the farmer by force if necessary.
"If I can't get in touch with you, I may have the fellow questioned bypolice," the dealer offered. "I don't want to put myself into a hole."
Penny was not entirely satisfied that the market man would keep hispromise. However, she hesitated to make a report to the police withoutfirst consulting her father. Everything considered, it seemed best to letthe situation work out as it would.
"Well, your luck is still running true to form," Louise said jokingly, asthe girls drove toward Riverview. "Do you have any idea who John Toby maybe?"
"Not the slightest," Penny confessed. "The description would fit HankHolloway, or for that matter, any one of a dozen men I know."
The girls arrived in Riverview by mid-afternoon after an uneventful trip.Penny dropped Louise at the Sidell home and then went to the _Star_office to talk with her father. Mr. Parker was absent from his desk, buthis secretary who was typing letters, explained that he would return in amoment.
Penny sat down in her father's chair to wait. A bulky, unsealed envelopelay on the desk. Peering at it curiously she noted that it bore themarking: "Property Deed: Lots 456, 457, and 458."
"What's this?" she asked aloud. "Is Dad buying property?"
"Oh, no," the secretary replied, glancing up from her typewriter. "Thatis the deed and abstract for the Orphans' Camp site."
"I wonder which property it is?"
"The land Mr. Blake controls, I believe. At least he brought the papersinto the office this morning for your father's inspection. I heard himsay that if the forms are satisfactory, the deal will be completed atonce."
Penny unfolded one of the lengthy documents, shaking her head as shescanned the legal terms.
"I don't see how Dad makes anything of this," she said. "Such a mess ofwords and names!"
"I imagine Mr. Parker intends to turn it over to his lawyer," thesecretary smiled.
The editor entered the office at that moment, and Penny directed her nextquestion to him.
"Dad, is it all settled that the camp board will purchase Mr. Blake'sland?"
"Practically so," he answered. "If my lawyer, Mr. Adams, approves theabstract, the deal will be completed. Against my advice Mrs. Van Clevealready has given Blake five hundred dollars to hold an option."
"Why did she do that, Dad?"
"Well, Blake convinced her he had another buyer for the property. It'sthe old story. Competition stimulates interest."
"Do the papers seem to be all right?"
"Oh, I've not looked at them," Mr. Parker replied. "Blake is a good realestate man though, so there's not likely to be any flaw."
"Who actually owns the property, Dad?"
"It's there on the abstract," he answered. "Why not look it up foryourself?"
"Too much like doing home-work," Penny grinned, but she spread thedocument on the desk and began to read various names aloud. "'Anna andHarry Clark to Lydia Goldwein, Lydia Goldwein to Benjamin Bowman--'"
"What was that name?" Mr. Parker demanded sharply.
"Benjamin Bowman." Penny peered at the document a second time to makecertain she had made no mistake. "That's the truth, Dad. Who knows, maybeit's your old pal, Ben!"
"Are you making up that name?" Mr. Parker asked skeptically.
Penny thrust the abstract into his hand. "Here, read it for yourself,Dad. Bowman seems to be the present owner of the land."
Mr. Parker rapidly scanned the document.
"The land is held by a Benjamin Bowman," he admitted, frowning. "Astrange coincidence."
"I never heard of a Bowman family living near Riverview," Penny remarked,reaching for a telephone book. "Did you?"
"No, but Bowman is a fairly common name."
Turning to the "B" section Penny went through the telephone list.
"There's only one Bowman here," she said, penciling a circle around thename. "A Mrs. Maud Bowman."
"The name Maud Bowman doesn't appear on the abstract," Mr. Parkerdeclared, as he studied the document once more. "There's something funnyabout this."
"Mr. Blake seemed rather eager to dispose of the land, didn't he?"
"His price was a bit low, which surprised me," Mr. Parker said, thinkingaloud. "Probably everything can be explained satisfactorily."
"Then why not ask Mr. Blake to do it?" Penny proposed. "He should be ableto tell you something about his client."
"That's really a first-class idea," Mr. Parker agreed and he reached fora telephone. "I'll ask Mr. Blake to come here at once."