St. Paul daily globe., 1885-05-17

TWO m0tnerS-ln-IaW Sne would say, cOulu
not be expected to get along well together,
and Reggy's wife preferred to haveher own
mother with her; and so between the dear
old lady of Mayfair and her son there had
grown up an estrangement which Mrs.
Gardner, junior, promoted with insidious
persistence. Count fourier had latterly
been rare visitor at Reggy's, owing to
misunderstanding with the head of the
house; but he often wrote to his ''dear
niece" and made q special journey now
and then to see her.
mo, | don't know where the count lives
or how said Reggy one evening at the end
of our weeks shooting when we were smok-
ing after dinner. lie is, as you say, rather
a mystery. Marie'S mother is. s.1talian, you
know, on her fathers side, and the count
belongs TO that branch of her family. At
Milan he is an authority, believe, in chemi-
cal science"
You don't like him, fear"
Like him ? / hate him p
Mrs. Gardner entered the room on the
word.
My dear, 1 thought you had gone to
bed," said Reggy.
She had been listening to our converse
ton.
Il had come to smoke cigaret with you,
If you don't mind" was the answer.
Her suspicious had been confirmed (for
our conversation was long one) that her
strange influence over her husband was in
danger of weakening; that his confidence
IN her was on the wane; that her hideous
secret, whatever it was, might be oozlng
out.
by all means-delighted," said Reggy,
and she sat down by his side, superb look
ing woman, if you did not examine her face
critically for indications of feminine gentle
ness.
During my acquaintance with her neither
she nor had ever alluded to the incident at
the Zoo, though she knew it was constantly
IN my mind. She had great penetrating
powers, and she was, like woman, con-
stantly on the watch. Reggy only saw her
great blue eyes, her faultlesS classical fea-
lures, her wealth of hair, her tall, graceful
figure, 1.-the and sinuous as a serpent's.
From the first he had been enamored of her
beauty, and he was not in the habit of look
ing behind the mask of what are called per-
feet features, nor did he understand that
face to be truly beautiful must in some
measure reflect pure soul. One part OF
our conversation which she overheard mot
that Reggy ever suspected her OF liStenlng)
referred to his will, about which had made
an inquiry, since he had only lately told me
I was one of his trustees. 1t is possible she
had misinterpreted something he had said
about altering it. l think of these and
other things now which, under other cir
cumstances, might have forgotten.
*x*
I had left Berkshire for London, and my
servant was packing my traps for Norway,
Reggy and his wife having, as | understood,
started for the Mediterranean, when L re-
ceived telegram from Reggy'ss mother:
PLEASE come at once; fear my poor boy
is dying" 1t was from Berkshire, so she
was there. had only been in London three
days. l hurried down by the next train.
Mrs Gardner had only been sent for that
morning. She thought was there. The
count had come, and local physician was
in attendance. A London doctor of great
eminence had arrived with us.
We were both too late. Reggy Gardner
was dead
He had been taken ill the day I came
away, and had gradually grown worse. The
end had been intensely painful. The wife
was with him to the last. She had attended
him night and day. He had died in her
arms. Now she was incensolable, they
said, and would not see any one. The doc
tors called the fatal malady which had car
ried him off inflammation of the heart.
They did not dream what grim satire there
was in the verdict.
At my request the London physician eX-
amined the remains of the medicine which
had been administered to Reggy, and made
other inquiries, but everything, he told me
confdentially, tended to confirm the cor
rectness of the certificate of death which the
other medical attendant had signed. He
diagnosed the case for me, making the story
of Reggy's death appear perfectly regular
and natural; and a week afterwards they
carried the boy who had accosted me that
Friday outside the Zoo to the family vault
in the little Berkshire church. A codicil
Ind boon ,naade to tho will tho oeeond day
Of the poor lads illness excluding my
trusteeship, and appointing the widow sole.
eXecutriX.
''And now good-byr' said Adrastia,
when all was over and we were alone, face
to face. ''We never liked each other; there
is now no further cause to dissemble our
hatred"
Mrs. Gardner" I answered, ST thank
you for this frankness. Let me follow your
example. l charge you with the murder of
the boy we have just buried !"
| She stepped pace backward, but her
face neither changed in color nor express
sion.
1.-The day may come when I shall reit-
crate that declaration before an earthly
| Judge"
| She swept across the floor in long train
of rustling Grape. She was dressed in deep
mourning. Looking defantly at me as she
laid her hand across the bell-pull, she rang
quick, firm peal. 1t was answered by a
sleek italian servitor. She pointed towards
me as she addressed him.
''This gentleman is leaving us; order the
carriage round for the railway station at
once"
The door being closed again, she said:
''Y our malice outruns your discretion, and
your enmity overtides your manners. 1
despise and defy your
All the same, she killed that unhappy
boy, and watched over his last agonies with
| the same cruel satisfaction that chilled my
blood in the serpent-house. 1 am sure of
it. Have proved it? No: not yet At
present Reggy Gardner's death is one of the
mysteries of London.
| MOOnshiner Betty.
From the Atlanta Constitution.
Among the moonshiners now under ar