Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1885-12-25

IL
KEPT me awake to become the witness of
II crimc-pr ovidcntallN perhaps. What
do vOU think - demanded the narrator,
suddenly pausing to put the question;
llarcoult never replied by word or look,
ana hi. ace User continued his story
II heard my ueighbOr come up into his
room. lock his door, and move about, pre-
pairing to get into bed. hoped that he
would close his windows He had two
windows to that corner room one south
window, opening on the balcony III Il line
with mine, and one east window, opening
ON roof. | knew that troublesome moon
beam came through the open east window,
the moon being in the east. Pray, excuse
these details they are really necessary to
the understanding of the case, said Han
son, interruptng himself to cast glance
at his wretChed companion.
But llarCourt might have been dead for
any sign he gave.
81 heard GelvertOn go bed, and-wlth-
out closing any of his windows After u
while heard him snoring, while still
lay awake tormented by the moonbeam rs
well as by the snores Are you listening,
or are you in II trance p inquired the
speaker, suddenly stopping and turning
to the silent and frightened clerk.
II am listening" replied HarcOurt in Il
hollow voice that seemed to come from
suhterranean depths rather than from the
inOtOnless man III the chair
every well, then, | will 90 on. | lay
awake, harassed 10y the SHORES and the
mOOnbeam until heard the distant clock
strike two. y few minutes later the
sound of the snoring began tOsubsdc and
finally ceased. Then thought il | could
stop uU that knot hole through which the
moon shone might 60 to sleep. put
out my hand and picked up one OF my
socks from the floor and thought would
poke the toe of It into that troublesome
hole. / stood up on my bed until my face
was opposite the hole looked into the
muOnlit room and saW-but UOU We're
there Won know what saw -
"Oh, Lord in heaven Why was | ever
born = walled llarcourt, startled out of
his stiffness and wrlnging his hands above
his head
You were there Oh, how steathiy you
must have entered never heard you
but saw You in the brilliant moonlit
room. You did not see me with my eye at
the knot hole, for mn room was dark but
saw you and saw all that happened.
you stood by his bedside. You took
his trousers YOU searched the pockets
and drew from them Il packet and placed
1t in your bosom. At that moment Vel
verton aWokc, discovered you, -rIlr =
tol from under his pillow ANA irv.'lcd T. ut
your head. You sprang upon him and
threw up his arm before he vuulu pU!i HE
trigger. There was molurutalH o'lu--
Gle for the possession of the pistol, then
an explosion. Ielyertou fell bach, shot
dead"
"Oh, that it had been my,rl' :" wal
the youth.
Indeed - sneercd Hanson, II shouldn't
! have thought that tn have lcrlr your ,,.u.
| timcut at the time. for THINK | never
saw an instance of the instinct ol SELF pre-,
serVatlUu so Instantaneous IN assert t- IL
/ self. or SO promptly ObeNcd. ONE iu u,.ui
| yuu gaZed upon your victim, th,n IrItco
to the door, locked it ON the inside. lrH\ inl
the key in 1t, snatched mp UH"th'r key
| from the floor, hurried to the open win
dow on the roof and closed It fast, da,ted
| to the open window ON the balcony. pas
ed through it and closed the shutters
which fastened by Il spring on the inside
and could not he opened from the outside
Thus you made good your escape. leaving
the room locked and bottled from irtdiU
even while the reused house was hurry
ING along the mall towards the spot from
which the report OF the pistol had been
heard. They tried the door, and finding
it locked on the inside, bulatit open. They
found the man dead in his bed. They
found the windows fastened ON the inside
No one could have entered the room, they
sad. GelVcrton had shot himself, wa,
their verdict. He had attempted suicide
once before, it was said. Every one wa,
shocked, but no one was much surprised
y man who led such life as ltlNertol
might have ended it by his own hand a
any time these ten years past. Such wa'
public opinion. Only one man knew tn,
facts of the case. That man was myself
But | gave no sign"
"Why did you not '' breathcd liar
court in hollow tone.
because the secret was too valuable Il
be thrown away
But as you saw all that occurred yOl
must have seen that it UuS an accident :.
pleaded llarcourt.
IAN accident was it accident that YOU
stole to Ielverton's room in the dead o
night, to rob him of his money -
NO, no not to rob hlm-to get bacl
my own, or what was more sacred thar
my own-anOther mans money that hal
been ntrusted to my keeping as clerk o
the hotel '-moaned Harcourt.
And that you staked at the table ant
lost to Ielyerton-'
"A blackleg-a sharper, who won b.
cheating" broke in the youth, i'll ton
of desperation, trying to justify hlmSel
tor endeavoring to get the money back.
Il" Don't malign the dead. " sternly CON
manded Hanson.
do not wish to, but told the plai
truth
"What business had you to be i'll tn
company of Il backlog and Il sharper, an'
of all things, what right had you to stak
another mans money ~
"None! none! on God Easy is tn
descent to hell, grOancd the miserable
criminal, tearing his hair.
"Ncs," assented Hanson, coldly; "an'
in your case it was not only descent |
was Il plunge, IL tumble, Il dive. You were
half way down before you realized tina
, You had started But come you nee'
not 20 neadlung to thee bOttOmleSS pit, un
less You choose. | am willing to admit
that, from yo,r point of view, the death
of NelVertun may have seemed an accl
dent; but under the circumstances @
your presence in the room, no jury IN TIM