The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1886-06-11

me- Lady Gladys observes, moving to the.
door.
stop my lady, the man says, taking a
red pochet-Dook out of his hat and turning
over IL few.of the greasy leaves rs if in
search OF some particular memorandum.
:" You wish to see justice done on them that
murdered Robert North, your fathers game
keeper"
Certainly do. But l know nothing.
never saw the lnan i'll my life, think. but
once"
That may be. don't doubt your word.
my lady. And 1 know you will clip us to
put our and on the chap that did it, if you
can. think you can. If you didn't know
North, others dill. lis well known that q
'ad henemies ill thi, very 'ouse Twas no
poacher shot your gamekeeper, my lady. He
was murdered in cold blood
'' But who could have had n motive for
such thing? l do not suppose the poor
lad was of SO much consequence Us to make
his death of any moment to any one in the
world.
well see that presently my lady. Beg
ging your par ing again, wasn't The young
man sweet upon girl in the neigAbor-
hood!"
81 believe he was going to be married to
Anne Grace TrIthlway, the millers daugh-
ter.
"Just So And she was a remarkably
handsome gal Wasn't s,e?'
She was generally considered so. But
do not know what THIS can have to do with
the question.
''Did the gentlemen here hadmire her?"
81 think your questions most irrelevant"
Lady Gladys answers coldly, again moving
to the door.
81
They ~. OF tie hutmost importance. Did
Lord Heriot hadmire herr"
Il believe he did, rather He danced
with her at the servants ball here on Christ
mas Eve. But | am at loss to discover
what all this Gun have to do with the shoot
ing of young North"
You will See presently. Did hanyone
else at kin5ssourt admire the pretty girl -
81 did not hear it if they did Yes-I be-
lieve Doctor Jones thought her pretty"
''The little bald gentleman? ALI But
there was n dark young gent here at the time.
Did he hadmire herr
''He never told me- Lady Gladys fushes
proudly. "Wil You tell me by what author
ity you make these inquiries?"
By the hauthority of a magistrate, my
lady. BE SO good q; to take IL chair. Did
you any reason for supposing he ever went
to the mil =
Lady Gladys tiushes with q deeper GRIM
son and looks the man steadily in the face.
"We are all in the habit of going down to
the mill occasionally My brother is maxi
ing Improvements there. Mr. Hereward has
been asked by him to look after the work.
men in his absence"
"Just so ; exactly. But he was never seen
in company with the girl!"
81 do not feel called upon to answer your
questions To what do they lead?"
II want to prove that Robert North had
m enemy" and the man makes q note in
his greasy pocket-ho0k "You can't deny
that this Mr.. Ereward was in the 'abit of
going to the mill, and was in fact seen with
the girl more than once. Now, my lady,
can you tell me where this young gent was
Oh the evening of the murder?"
Lady Gladys tries to recollect; but she
cannot at once cnll to mind any circumstance
that would fix the date and SO she tells
him.
'You don't remember where Mr.. Ereward
was on that EVENING"" the man repeats look
ing ut her keenly.
mo, do not. We we're not ut home, +
remember, for Mics Middleton said to me,
after we had heard the evidence ut the in
quest, how fortunate it was that we had rid
den that day instead Of walking, as we had
in the morning for, if we had
walked, we should have gone into the village,
and on our return by the wood path at five
o'clock we should have found poor North's
body. The shot was supposed TO have been
fired at about four o'clock.
Exactly. And you don't remember.
where this gent was that afternoon?"
''No, do not remember his saying he
could not come with us, because he had
promised my brother to look at the new
bridge 1t was feared that it would have to
come down"
"Yes, that's just it. And the new bridge
is about q stones throw from the mill. Did
he go?"
II do not remember"
Lady Gladys feels stupefed, amazed, like
one speaking and listening in q dream. She
cannot Us yet see the drift of the mans uues-
tons; she cannot comprehend to what he
would lead her. Her brain refuses to think:
She never dreams to what her own answers
are tending, or of what meaning they NAV
convey. They have conveyed none to her as
yet. She stands with her hand resting heav-
Ily on the back of the chair, and her face has
grown very white.
II can tell you that myself, my lady. He
lid go. You had just returned from a ride,
mi were standing by your horse on the ter
rice-steps when he came back You hasked
ann whether he lad seen the bridge and he
'ald Yes. That was close upon six o'clock.
At what hour had you left the house?"
Il do not remember" Lady Gladys an
;werS, vaguely