Semi-weekly south Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1883-1889, 1888-01-03
CHAPTER XVIII.

Turning TO the third act Henry looked
YEARLY at the pages as he let them slip
through his fingers. Both in mind and body
lie began to feel the need OF repose. ~
III one important respect the latter portion
Of the manuscript differed from the pages
which be had just been reading. Signs of An
| overweight brain showed themselves here
and there as tho outline of the play ap-
preached its end. The handwriting grew
worse and worse. Somc OF the longer SEN
| fences were left unfinished. In the exchange
Of dialogue questions and answers were not
always attributed respectively to the right
speaker. At certain intervals the writer's
failing intelligence seemed to recover itself
for awhile, only to relapse again aud TO lose
the thread of the narrative more hopelessly
than ever.
After reading one or two of tho more CO
herent passages Henry recoiled from the ever
darkening horror of the story. He closed
the manuscript, heart sick and exhausted,
and threw himself on his bed to rest. The
door opened almost at tho same moment.
Lord Montbarry entered the room.
"Wc have just returned from the OPERA"
he said, land we have heard the news Of that
miserable woman's death. They say you
spoke to her il her last moments, and want
to hear how it happened
"You shall hear how It happened" Henry
answered; "and moro than that You are
now the head of the fnnlily, Stephen; and /
feel bound, in the position, which oppresses
me 10 leave you to decide what ought to DO
done"
With those Introductory words, he told his
brother how the countess play had come
Into his hands. "Read the first fow .pages,S
he said, ~ am anxious to know whether the
same impression is produced on both of u.s."
Before Lord Montbarry had got half way
through the first act, he stopped, and looked
ut his brother "What does she mean by
boasting of this as her own inventionsp he
asked. "Was she too crazy to remember that
these things really happenedp
This was enough for Henry; the same I'M
preston had been produced on both OF them.
"You will do as yohplease,r he said, "But If
you will be guided BY me, spare yourself the
reading of those pages to como, which de
scribe our brothers terrible sxpiation Of his
heartless moiIiage."
slave you read 1t all, Henrylp
"Not all. shrunk from reading some of
the latter part of it. Neither you nor saw
much OF our elder brother after we left
school; and for my part, felt and never
scrupled TO express my feeling, that lie be-
baved UNANIMOUSLY to Agnes When read
that unconscious confession of the muIderous
conspiracy TO which he iell victim, TO-
membered, with something like remorse, that
the same mother bore us. have felt for him
tonight, what am ashamed to think never
felt for him beforen
n,I Nfaptka,rtr tool, HE b,.oNla,,i. L...I
"You are good fellow, Henry" he said;
'but are you quite sure that you have not
been needlessly distressing YOURSELF Because
some of this crazy creatures writings acsi-
dentally tells what we know to be the truth,
does it follow that all the rest Is to be relied
on TO the endlp
"There is no possible doubt of it," Henry
replied.
mo possible doubtr his brother repeated.
81 shall go on with my reading, Henry--and
SEQ what justification there may be for that
confident conclusion OF yours.n
He read on steadily until DO had reached
the conclusion of the second net Then he
looked up.
"Do you really believe that the mutilated
remains which you discovered this morning
are the remains OF our brotherl" he asked.
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