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besides blue?”
Eric considered my statement and then said, “I do believe colors other than blue were used, not for cheating, rather for shading ones’ eyes from the sun’s glare. Darker shades of amber glass and a tan-hued glass were utilized. Though, the concept of shading one’s eyes from the sun was not nearly as prevalent then, as it is today.”
“Yes, I know that. Seems to me, I read somewhere that colored lens eyeglasses have been around for a couple of centuries, and that it was not until the early 1900s they caught on. But, really, Eric, you do see my point, don’t you?”
“Yes.” Eric had, once again, agreed with me in an absentminded way. He was handling the clown figurine again. “You should not have this in your company.” He turned to me and said. “Seamus and Connor O’Kelley would not oppose if you were to pass this along to a more appropriate owner.”
“Like who?” I asked.
“Marta Keller.”
My eyes widened with excitement. “Oh, I love your idea. And when I call her, I can suggest that I will deliver the clown figurine to her house. I’ll fudge a little on how I got it, maybe say it was delivered to me today, after lunch. That way, Marta won’t question why I did not mention the clown at lunch. Also, by visiting her home, I can scope out her place. Maybe pick her brain some more about her ancestor.”
I turned around to get out my cell phone. I was about to enter Marta’s number when it dawned on me, what about the eyeglasses? I looked up to ask Eric if we should replace the spectacles, put them back in the figurine, but Eric had vanished. Rats! I decided to keep the spectacles in my possession and not mention them to Marta.
A quick call to Marta was more than successful. She invited me to dinner that very evening. As soon as I hung up, I brainstormed a place I could hide the eyeglasses. Hotel rooms are notoriously scant on good hiding places. One can’t hide an object, even an object as small as these spectacles where the maid service might find it because, what if the maid thought a previous guest had left them behind? She’d probably not mention them to me and then the eyeglasses would end up in the bottomless pit of the hotel’s lost and found room. Moreover, I most certainly did not want to leave them in plain sight, they are an antique and what if I accidentally bumped them off the table? I could put them in the dresser drawer, or, better yet, I’ll keep them with me. I emptied my purse on the bed and grabbed my own eyeglass case, which I kept my favorite pair of sunglasses in. The hard clamshell case would protect these little spectacles and keep them handy for me. I exchanged my sunglasses for the little spectacles.
After tucking the spectacles safely away in my purse, I glanced at my watch. It was three in the afternoon. I had plenty of time to get on the Internet and research as much about Jonathan Rupp as I could before dining at Marta’s. I wanted to see if Rupp was known to have dealings with gamblers of his era, or was one, himself.
Two hours into my research I had not a thread of evidence that Jonathan Rupp had been involved in gambling, or ever associated with gamblers. I did come across a newspaper journalist’s account of how he died. Because the report was different enough from what I had been told about his death, I copied the newspaper article verbatim:
Edgewild Eruption: Four Dead. May 23, 1912. One month ago and five miles outside of town an unprecedented eruption of violence left four persons dead. Edgewild Tavern owner, Jonathan Rupp, known to all as Brother Jonathan, returned home from a twoweek business journey to San Francisco to discover squatters on his land. Rupp told the squatters to pack and leave, saying “It is in your best interest to have vacated my property by the time I return.” Rupp left and rode back into town.
Rupp returned the next morning accompanied by Albert Breedlove, Archie Freeman, George Morris and Silas Markum; men known in