Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-04-18

mind that this is by no means a subject
for idle talk. 70 tell You Lhe ruin my
boy, it's a matter that has been ooIheI-
ing me greatly for two months pass
Ever since the evening that / chahctu 20
De seated here in our once, ana was
hastily summoned 10 take charge OF oId
Mr.. Weymouth in an acute nervous
attack. be has liked me and trusted me.
l spoke to you often OF the case, as you
know. l."
cat first Won spoke to me of it, Ralph"
| Interrupted; "but latterly you have
kent as silent as Il sphinx about it,"
"At first" continued my friend, rather
imperturbably, 81 thought it all merely
senile debility. MIR. Weymouth is a man
of iron constitution, and he Is owe 90
years old. 1t seemed TO me that his neI-
/ Yous system had been the first to 20, and
while / feared thai dementia which so
often carries Oh the old, l yet could not
reconcile the sound of my patients vital
organs with the wretched kind Of pros
tration from which he so constantly
suffered"
"And So" ! said, somewhat solemnly,
after a significant pause, you suspected
poisoning
Ralph made an impatient gesture.
"GOOd graciOusW he exclaimed, how you
take a man upF' And then be added
slowly: IF | ShOuLd get worse news
about poor mothers health OF there in
Topeka, and be forced TO go on, / don't
believe ] ought to place Mr.. Weymouth
in your charge. You're too unscientitic.
too imaginative in your way Of jumping
at things. I've told him that mlqht be
forced away suddenly and hat i'll should
be you were just the man to call in dur
ing my absence"
Every kind Of you, really" ! said, with
mild satire.
'sNo one has been deducing what you
assume" continued Ralph, gently i'm
pervious to my slight random shaft. II
have merely thought that the peculiar
symptoms of Mr.. Weymouth's illness
n1ight point hat way. Nothing mOre.v
Here followed quite a long pause on
Ralpn's part. "Sudden cold sweats," he
presently went on, with no real decrease
of pulse, and every organ in apparently
healthy enough condition to make radi-
cal disease out Of the question, would
suggest something like an e%XtraneOus
reason for such eIZuTes as Mr.. View
mouths. But still, you know how bafi-
ing all these questions are. The true
cause may be all in a nutshell, and yet a
fellow may not be able to find the parti-
cular nutshell and crack it.
Ralph's exceedingly sombre manner,
as he thus spoke, affected me in a marked
way. knew him so well that | knew he
would never have suspected poison unless
there had been some cogent reason for
his doing so.
You've told me-" / said, chat Mr..
Weymouth has two children, a son and a
daughter"
"Yes-by different mothers. WIlke
Weymouth is a son by his first marriage.
lie is fifteen years older, il a day, than
his sister, Miss Elena"
"And YOU said, / believe, Ralph, that
Wilke Weymouth had been something Of
a spendthrilt?"
Eyes; ] have heard so. His father has
spoken of him, during confidential talks
OF ours, with great distress and contempt.
Mr.. Weymouth has called him, in SO
many words, an inVeterate gambler"
"Ah, L see. He isn't a %drunkard,
them 2"
"A drunkard~ echoed Ralph, with a
grim laugh. "lf you looked at aim nee
cold, lean, with a pair Of black eyes that
can shine at you like a basilisk's-What-
ever a basilisk really is, by the way-you
wouldn't think Wilke Weymouth had
ever been warmed by a real stimulant in
his life.
land is his father going to leave him
any OF his large fOrtune?"
Il believe it is willed equally to his sis
ter Elena and HIMSELF
"But does Mr.. weymouth pay any OF
Wilkes gambling debts p
mot a dime of them. He has refused,
long ago"
You say that you and the old gentle
man have had confidential chats together.
Does he ever speak OF altering his will ?'
"1es. He has repeatedly spoken of it.
If be were less debilitated han he is, |
believe he would do so tomorrow and
leave Wilkes share of the money so adj
ministered that only its incOme-or a
portion OF its incOme-could be touched
by the smooth rascal during his lifetime.
BY this proposed arrangement everything
would 20 to Elena on Wilkes death, and
if the sister died before the brother a
cousin of Mr.. Weymouth's would inherit
all.''
l made no immediate response. l was
thinking Of Wilke Weymouth-and oil
Ralph's book on poisOns.
"Iell me-" l presently said, has Mr..
Weymouth himself any feelings, intui.
tions, convictions-call them what you
please-that there is evil work Of any
sort against himself within his own house.
hold?"
Ralph started a little as l put this
question and then he sobered charac.
teristically before answering it.
"Mr. W eymouth," he answered, "has
but one 'weIrd,' as the old phrase goes.
He believes that the looking glass IN his
bedroom is haunted by a shadow"
"A shadow? ?" l repeated.
"ThaJ is what he calls it. He is often
wakeful during the night, and l am averse
to his taking strong narcotics. He has
repeatedly assured me that IN the looking
glass opposite his bed he has seen al
night the shadow Of a draped figure. I
consider this merely the fancy Of a sick
man and nothing more. He cannot SLEEP
at all unless the light in his apartment is
turned very dim. IL this were not so, !
should insist upon his benefting his
peace OF mind by letting the light remain
full enough to shed its rays clearly"
$50 he is himself mystIied by this ghost
ly shadow, ehY"
son, yes-quite."
"Does he ascribe to it supernatural
origin -
"NOt precisely. But il troubles him a
! good deal. lcould teach him better If he
were rid Of the hallucination."
"Have you mentioned il to his daugh-
ter or sOnY'
"No; he has begged me not TO do so. But
/ have thought Of asking Miss Elena &c
keep a watch there some night, unknown
TO her father. My only reason tor not TAX.
ing this course rs a sense Of obllgatiou-Ot
honor. IN tact-toward the old gentleman
himself
Again. for several minutes, l said moth
ing. But presently l found myself tempt
ed 70 ask another question.