The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-05-31

| II will dress later" he said; ''Nolan will be
| tired of waiting"
| Then he thrust Norbury's letter into his pocket
with the razor, washed his hands, brushed his
thin hair, and tightening the waist-band of his
dressing gown, glided cat.ike into the dining
room, where he found his confidential solicitor
walking about impatientiv, one hand in his
pocket, the other swinging his eyeglasses about.
IT have kept you too long, pray excuse me-
said Mr. Needham II did not 90 to bed until
very late"
II should Judge So for all the years / have
known you have never seen you in a dressing
| gown before said Nolan.
Sand you shall never see me again in one if
my appearance so offends you. / suppose you
are thinking at this moment what could have in
duced my constituents to call me fopl'
mo, my friend, was hot thinking OF any
thing SO frivolous. have received by this morn
ings post very strange letter impugnng the
reality of the Broadwood trust and mortgage
deeds. have accepted service of writs for ESQ.,
600, and the city this morning talks OF nothing
but your financial ruin. They say that you can
not last twenty-four hours What is to be done?
Can I do anything9 I am only here to ask these
| two questions"
| ''Thank you, Nolan; your sympathy touches
me-" said Needham. 81 feel as if / had lost my
hold on things and on life, that is fact
'You look it., said Nolan.
| II am i'll; but shall pull through"
| "You never lacked courage. Look the Difficult
ty straight in the face. Your honor is intact; you
have only been unfortunate"
II hope you may always think SO. Perhaps
that strange letter you speak of may undeceive
you who knowsq But my dear Nolan, wait.
Monday morning may do wonders for as. think
! it will. You will take breakfast?'
mo, thank you, cannot stay"
eyes you can, you must, dear friend. have
business of the last Importance to speak about. -
| Mr. Nolan did stay to breakfast, and remained
until late in the afternoon He did not return to
the city. but was driven home in Needhams car
rage On its return Needham said to the
driver:
'John I want yeu to catch the next train to
| Leighton Buzzard. don't mean to drive to the
| station Put your horses up and go yourself.
have message for you to Dick and some med
| icine for the horses. And James"
| Eyes, sir, said tne footman.
| Il wish you to go with john"
81 shall not want you here. I am going out
| tomorrow"
| eyes, sir"
| ''You will stay all night at Leighton Buzzard
and meet me, both of you. with a dog cart. at
| the Leighton station at the first train on Mon
day
Mr.. Needham looked ut his watch.
You have two hours to put up your horses
and 60 to the station. When you are ready
| have bottle for you"
Eyes sir" said the two servants together
| They took a bottle down to Leighton, with a
| note from the master; but it was not the bottle
| which had been delivered ut Portland Place with
| so much ceremony the day before. john how
ever, was instructed not to open the parcel until
Monday morning, when Mr.. Needham would
| instruct him in the of it.
| When the two men servants had gone Mr..
Needham (having asked John to leave the stable
key on the study table, went into the yard and
| smoked cigar there, very unusual thing fer
| him to do He went into the stables, and patted
the cob which he used for city work in his single
| brougham. Then he examined the harness and
the brougham, stroling in and out of the sta
| bles, the harness room and the coach house.
After while he carried the eob's harness into
the stable and put it on. He peeped out into
the yard to see If he noticed No. all was
quiet. He then examined the brougham, came
back and looked 1T the traces, went back to the
coach house, returned to the stable, embarrassed
the cob patted its neck, replaced the harness,
(, then picked up the cigar he had laid on a win
dow ledge and went back to his room.
| II might do it some other way" he said to
himself did not fate and circumstance point to
| the one way-my way-the way l was going my
self Ny own plans are laid--they are simple
/ and natural, and l see them in detailfrom first
| to last On the eve of their fulfllment there
comes to me this substitute, this second-self to
| take my place. If / accept him should put him
into my place, detail for detail, and the only
| way is to drive him to the spot where the body
| of John Needham is to be discovered There is
| no other way; but the doing of it,
| the successful carrying out of such a
| substitution OF me for another-what an
a firm hand. What if 1 bunge as l have done so
often of late? What if / bunele and am detected
in the midst of my work! Well, there will be
poison enough for both of us. / feel as if l had
| already taken some noxious stuff into my veins
| Men who commit murder must first be mad.
1T is insanity. My viii is moved by some
other power than my own 1t is as if / were
creeping and crouching for my prey; and grow
/ hot and cold"
| He paced the room in that cat-like, teerish
way which had previously characterized his
! movements, and he paused to catch sight of his
| pale face in mirrcr-pale face and bloodless
| lips. Presently ne sat down again, sat al his
desk and sorted papers. Then he made some
notes from the safe and placed them in pocket
book. Presently he rang the bell
''Send the cook to me-" he said to the parlor
| maid, who answered tie bell.
4 ~ eS, SIT.
| "And, Maryp
| eyes, SIR"
'Were you ever at the opera9"
Eyes, sir, thank you, SIR"
at is "a great night at the opera tonight
| Would you like to go to -night!"
Thank you, SIR"
'You shall, then, and Jane as we'll; there is
only Jane beside the cook ehl"
'And Sarah, sir"
well, I shall not be home until very late to-
! night, and you can all go. I will get seats for
you in the upper circle; / shall be there SO shall
expect TO see you in your places"
Thank you, sir"
"And let me see l suppose Rogers would not
mind taking charge of YOU eh?7
Don't know, I'm sure, sir"
An, we'll will speak to him-that will do"
/ Thank you sir, she said, and bowed herself
| out of the room.