Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1886-11-17
z Serial storg.
FIVE MILLION POUNDS.
BY T. wEMYss REID.
CHAPTER, XVI.

BY T. wEMYss REID.
CHAPTER, XVI
THE SECRET OF THE CIPHER.
aGentlemen." said Bielski, when we were
alone, u think have something to say that
viii surprise you. He held in his hand the
little memorandum book, the mysterious
contents Of which he had been studying
while we had been engaged with Gregson.
sHave You discovered the ciphera Does 1t
betray anything Of the fellows secretsF'
asked with eagerness.
ayes, sir; hare found the clew to the
cipher. Doyou know what it isl 1t is an
old-fashioned system Of short hand, with
some new authorizations and arbitrary signs.
You zee had to learn short hand for my
own purposes, so know all about it"
aAnd do you mean to say you know this
systems"
GOh, dear, mol We are going little too
fast, II you'll excuse me, sir. It may take
weeks to unr.ddle this; for at the best OF
times it is not always easy to decipher short
hand. All the same, hope we may pick
the lock in shorter time than that have
friend in London who will help me-"
GAnd this is the surprising news you have
to tell US, Bielskiln interjecsed Harding.
aNo, sir, no. It is something more than
that You gave me this book as Fiinters.
But find that it is not his at all. It is writ
ten by Francis Branksome, NJ d. Here's
his name upon the first page" He pointed
to some hieroglyphics that to Harding and
myself were quite uninteligible.
aAnd have you read that already?"
SYes, that is quite easy to understand. 1t
is written in system that know something
Of myself. What makes me most suspicious
about this book is that the cipher has been
altered in many ways as the writer has gop >
on with his entries. 1t is to!erably clear
and simple at first, but it becomes NOR,
difficult and complicated as we proceed.
That shows that the man was determined to
hide from every body what he was writing.
Why should DR.. Branksome be so anxious
to do thet?"
I'VE have heard something about DR..
Branksome this morning which may per-
haps throw light upon that question" said
Harding.
1From the young man outside there|
ayes" and then related to the detective
the strange story which had been told by
Gregson.
@By Jovel gentlemen he cried, slapping
his thigh in his exultation. "this is really
magnificent What case I'll have when I
get that in hand! Isll mean trip to Aus
tralia for me, though; and I don't care so
much about that"
@But what light will it throw on Miss
Stanclihe's cases How will it assist hers'
@How will it assist here I should say
nothing could assist her more. 1t is the very
evidence we have been wanting to weaken
the motive for the murder. You must hand
this young man over to me now, gentlemen.
] must get that story Of his down in ship
shape"
Bielski was quite excited over the pros-
pect Of the task, which he had apparently
already allotted to himself. of unraveling
the whole mystery Of which Gregson pro-
fessed to have given us the outlines For my
part, carei little or nothing about that
mystery in itself. All that wanted was
evidence which would deliver my darling,
not only from a shameful death, but from
that slain of criminality which the verdict
Of the jury had cast upon her. We had
gone far, felt, towards arriving at the
truth; but nothing short OF the complete ex-
oneration of Dlisy would satisfy me, and
that alasi was apparently still remote.
When the detective had taken Gregson Off
to his own hotel to cross-examine him at his
leisure regarding the story he had told US,
Harding and I sat together discussing all
thai had now come to light. Our chief feel
ing-or mine at any rate-was one of won
der at the fact that DR.. Branksome should
be such villain as Gregson represented.
n
world who looked less like a villain. who
bore himself less like one, who seemed to all
around him to bs mora completely above
suspicion. recalled all my dealings with
him from that first day when we met in the
Grand hotel at Scarborough, and l could
not remember single incident, look or
tone of the voice, that had been calculated
to awaken suspicion in my mind. He was
always the same-cool, self-possessed, gen.
tlemanly, frank in manner, brilliant in talk.
He had never played the part Of Joseph Sur
face and assumed the functions of a cham
pion Of morality; but I remember no one
whom had met in the course OF my life
who had made deeper impression on me,
or who had more completely Won my conf
dence and regard Even now I could hardly
bring myself to believe that he was villain
much less villain Of the cold, cruel, cal.
culating type depicted by Gregson.
I remembered, however, that my first
Quarrel with him had arisen when he
dropped to me hint of his belief that
Daisy was guilty. It was only then that, in
my overpowering love for her, I had broken
through the glamour which had hitherto in
vested him. / believe that even now, when
had heard Gregsons story, should have
rejected it with my whole heart If it had
not been for Branksome's desertion Of Daisy.
That offense had never forgiven; and the
fact that he had been guilty of it enabled
me at this moment, despite all my expert
ence in my personal relations with him, to
accept the apparently incredible story of his
crime which had received from the lips Of
Gregson. saw, too, quite clearly, the
strong confirmation of that story, which was
to I've found in the fact that be hal acted
Just as Gregson had pre- Iicted that he would
act. In the event of the sentence of the law
being carried out upon Daisy. he would step
into undisputed possession of Mauleverer's
millions. Yes; I felt convinced. in spite Of
all my prepossessions, that l had indeed
been, as Gregson had declared, the veriest
dupe throughout this business-but the dupe
of q man whose villany was such as to defy
all ordinary sagacity.
Bielski, with his usual rapidity Of move
ment, darted off that very night to London,
hauling the unfortunate Greg ,on along with
him. 1t was on the following morning that
l had my second interview with my darling.
found her more altered than / had an
ticipated. The strain upon her mind had
evidently been terrible during that week
which she had passed in the grim solitude Of
the condemned cell, with nothing tut a
shameful death staring her in the face. How
my heart overfowed with love and sym.
pathy, when saw her, pale and worn,
standing upright in the gloomy cell. await
ing me with pathetic smile upon her white
lips! 1t was long, long before could MUIR
muir even the first words Of greeting.
And even then, when l had found my
voice, and when I had answered some Of
the many questions she addressed to me, l
labored under serious embarrassment
dared not tell her how had been engaged
during those days which had passed since
we met before. had written to her imme-
diately upon my return from the hall to let
her know that the strychnia had been dis
covered, but did not venture to speak or
those other discoveries for which we were
indebted to Gregson. And yet could not
leave her without some ray Of hope to tighten
her miserable cell am afraid that, ere l
Quilted her side, I had impaired to her q
share of the agitation by which myself
was possessed. And yet could not be sorry.
when that brief interview Of mingled bliss
,ad .oo,,y co,na to an end to think that her