The new dominion. [volume] (Morgantown, W. Va.) 1876-1904, 1881-10-08

had a presentment that night, but
feared to tell the old lady for fear of
alarming her. l soon learned that
Mollie had a key which fitted the
bedroom containing the bureau,
hence my suspicious were strength
ened that Mollie had arisen in the
night, either unlocked the door with
her own key, or taken the one in the
wardrobe, and securing the money,
hid it either in or out of the house
without awakening the old lady. l
finally tolep Mollie that should have
to search 6er and make thorough
examination of the house."
WELL" she naively remarked, eff
you do find any money about the
house it won't prove that ! stole it,
will it,"
at will be prima facia evidence"
l said.
81 locked her up in her bedroom
and began thorough search, band
boxes pried into, bureau drawers
pulled out, cuphoards ransacked, and
finally went through her own room.
Under the carpet under her bed |
found in a compact wad twelve 500
bills. Now the total amount known
to be missing was only $1,000.
Where had the $l45 gone to? Where
had the gold coins gone to? Was
the bureau drawer paying interest on
its deposits?
"Now I've got you, Mollie," said,
as confronted her.
'Mollie tainted.
"a bottle of camphor and little
cold water brought her speedily to,
yet she sturdily proclaimed her in
nocence."
Il didn't take Miss Smiths mon
ey, no did not she convulsively
exclaimed between her sobs.
"Miss Smith would not allow me
to take her to Jail, where | reasoned
confinement would soon compel her
to confess.
"My work, however, was partially
done, for the gold coins had not
turned up.
Il determined that those coins
must be in the house, and resolved
upon a thorough search from cellar
to garnet. The cellar disclosed
nothing. and at last l stumbled upon
small stairway leading to the gar
ret, the door to which was q common
trap door, securely fastened by a
paddock, to which was three links OF
chain.
"Give me the key | said to Miss
Smith, "to that trapdoor up in the
attic"
'sOh, no use of looking there; the
kew has been lost for over five years,
and no one has ever been up there
since"
There were cobwebs on the door,
but | noticed that over the crack OF
the doors edge they appeared to
have been broken away, caused by
the door having been recently opened.
With an AK l speedily got the door
open and saw large footprints in the
dust. By the aid of a lamp followed
the course of the tracks over the
boards which lay across the shaky
rafters, to the farthest part of the
garrett, where over an old cross beam
hung a pair of old fashioned saddle
bags. The dust on the bags had re-
Gently been disturbed. In one of the
pockets / found the five 500 bills
which disappeared on the night OF
the Both of May, the 1855 which was
missed in the summer Of 1879, the
5000 that was lost in 1880, and bet
ter than all, the rare old gold coins
upon which Miss Smith set such
store as an heirloom. | had found
the money but / had found $1,000
too much. The mystery deepened.
l resolved upon one thing and that
Mollie must know something about
that money that was hid under the
carpet beneath her bed. talked
kindly to her, told her that Miss
Smiths money had been found, and
urged her to tell me how the 81, 200
came under the carpet beneath her
bed.
"You will not believe me if do
tell you, but if Miss Smith will go
out l will explain. / put that money
there. 1t was my lovers. He had
saved it out of his wages and given
it to me to keep. / destroyed his
letters for fear my aunt would find 1t
out. There's the story"
aBut how did the old lady get the
money into the garrett
"She carried it there herself. She
was somnambulist and walked in
her sleep"
elbow did you prove it Mr.. Nor
ris? Did the old lady let you occu-
py the bed room and catch her?'
"Oh no! ] got the old lady to take
off her shoes and stockings and place
her No. 6 foot down on sheet OF
white paper. With pencil ! marked
out her foot on that sheet of paper.
With pair Of scissors carefully cut
the exact shape of the old lady's
foot, which fitted exactly in the tracks
in the dust on the garnet boards.
Besides that, Mollie's foot is much
smaller, she only wearing No. u
shoe, and would not fit the track. |
also on careful examination, found