The times and democrat. [volume] (Orangeburg, S.C.) 1881-current, 1886-12-09
DFITE MILLION POUNDS.
by II. wlENlYSS REID.
CHAPTER XIV CONTINUED.

"Yes. said grayely. u TOOK possession
Z OF the book you meution I did. not know
that it YVES you're; imagined that it be-
longed tn F.in,er. It is not in my possession
now. Birl.ki, the detective whom I en-
ployed to discover Gregson, took it to Lon
don with him yesterday, and received this
message from Ein to-day"
handel ~ Branksome tho telegram which
announced that tie secret of the cipher had
been discovered. He glanced Mt it, and as
he did so fancied that slight pallof passed
over his face. But he returned the paper to
me with steady hand, and 1t was in voice
which showed no traces even OF tha emotion
he lad displayed when he responded to my
appeal on behalf Of Daisy that he said:
at is curioua that they should think, they
have discovered my ciphsr. The very fact
that they talk Of tho contents Of the book as
Important, tells INC that they arc utterly
wrong. Fut must not detain you longer
Mr. Fenvo> ! promise you that you shall
hear from me within the next twenty-for
hourGS : "
In another moment he. had silently quilted
tho room. -. ,,.
The. anowspspsr train as It Is called
reaches York from London shortly bsfcre
ton in the morning. Il brought With 1t
Bielki, who had telsgraphed 70 apprsae rHs
OF, his coming, and whom aceordingly
awaited on the platform Tha detective
looked somewhat haggard and ezcttsd when
ho greeted ma t1tst :
GMr. Harding herss' he Hald. ~ am glad
Of it Iwant yo7 both Ihave something
very Important To lay before you" ''
We hurried to my room, whore Harding
awaited us. Breakfast was on the table; but
Bielski seemed little disposed to eat or drink
until he made his great communication 70
us The instant the waiter had left the room
he addressed w
aGentlenen, it Is oil right The young
lady is as innocent as dove, and IN forsy-
eight hours she'll be IS free as we are. You
were right, Mr. Fsnson, in your guess at sne
I way it was done; and now I can prove 1t.
What was 1t that made the little detective,
with his shrewd, keen face, stop suddenly IN
the middle OF what was evidently meant
to be long harangue? It was simply tho
sudden springing to his feet OF Harding.
whose hands the next moment held mine
and were violently shaking them, while,
with voice curtously unlike his usual one.
he gasped out: GOld fellow--so glsd-God
bless your
And II But shall not weary the reader
with any analysis of my emotions 1t was
dark December morning; ah, how unlike
that bright summer weather in which Daisy
and had first met and learned tn love each
other! But when these words fell from the
detectives lips, the summer sun shone out
again, and the birds sang In my heart, and
the very heavens seemed 10 be opened above
me.
II don't wonder at your being upset, gen.
tlemen. Ifesl q bit queer myself; but you
must really compose yourselves and listen 10
what have 10 tell you. never had such
story to tell before. Lor bless mel I'll never
believe N clever men again. Every one OF
them is alike. They play their game 80
beautifully that you think there can be no
catching 'em and then, 10 and behold you
find that all the time they have been playing
your game, TOO, and in the way that you
least Of all expected"
Having delivered himself Of this exortium,
Bis:ski took from his pocket small parcel,
from which ha duly extracted the little
memorandum book ] had found ut Great
Lortoa Hall
9This book, gentlemen, is neither more nor
less than the diary Of Francis Branksome,
ESQUIRE, II D.. for nearly the whole OF the
present year. And In 1t Dr.. Branksome has
set down. all us plain as Q pikestafP, tho
whole history OF his own proceedings during
that time, and Of the crimes which he has
committed, including the murder OF MIR:
Mauleverer, and the plan by which the sus-
picion Of that murder wns to be thrown up
on Miss Stancli6e.
A cry Of horror broke from the lips OF
Harding. For. my part, sat speubound
and silent.
~ never saw anything in my Life before to
compare with this, gentlemen" continued
the detective, shaking his head emphatically.
II have seen many queer things IN my
time; bot never anything like this Here's
a clever man, an educated man, man who
thinks that ne can take in everybody around
him. and that we are all nothing more than
chess,noa to be moved about by him at his
pleasure-aye, and man who does move
people about just as he pleases for year
after year; and yet this clever man Is such
fool that no thinks he can put his secrets into
writing, and prevent anybody discovering
'sm, simply because he mixes up two sys-
TENT Of short hand, and makes one OF his
own out Of 'em, in which to keep hts diary"
Bielski looked round as though to ask our
opinion on the subject.
remember" said Harding, "a case OF a
murderer in Paris who was convicted
through diary in which he left record OF
all his crimes" ..-..s
aDo you indeed, sir9 Well, all can say is
that it is the first time I've come across such
O case. But now, gentlemen, I must tell
you what the diary says. It took me and
my mae all day yesterday and down to
three o'clock this morning to translate it;
and we shouldn't have got done with it yet
if it hadn't been that luckily this clever DR..
Branksome had chosen for his cipher two
systems, both Of which my friend happened
to know"
Thereupon Rielski produced large batch
of manuscript, and he began to turn over
the pages, most of which saw were covered
with his handwriting.
"My friend deciphered, and wrote down
as he read it." he explained to us II am
not going to trouble you with the early part
of tho story, though there Is plenty that I
shall have to deal with afterwards I'll keep
10 uara 10