Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1888-02-17

Il am ill., Who would not be ill ? Bru-
denel, | am come for an explanation"
Certainly. What am to explain ?'
at is now five weeks ago since | sought
wrote me letter. Have you forgotten
that letter ?"
Mr.. Brudenel jumped in his chair.
Good Heavens y he cried, 81 had clean
forgotten that letter"
81 will read it. Then you will remem
Der. Then Herr Paulus will know. Then
yon will be able to give me an eXplana-
ton" Mr.. Kilburn pulled out his pocket
book and turned over the papers. He
found the letter he wanted, and opened 1t
and read it slowly.
"'Denr kilburn,' this he explained to
Paul has been our lyle and title be
tween each other for forty years, 1t is
more than forty years since we became
united by the bonds of common pursuit,
During the whole of that time we have
been the closest friends. | will now go on.
You shall draw your own Inference, Herr
Paulus, and Brudenel will perhaps be
able to give an explanation. Dear Kill
burn, since parting with you | have con-
sidered the questi of your investments.
1t is true that gas keeps up and that water
is thing which everybody must use. AT
the same time the interest you get for your
money Is not much 1t occurs to me that
you would do better by purchasing as
many shares as you can Ret-they do not
often come into the market-of my old
Company, Brudenel and Company. AT
present prices they bring i'll about five
and quarter per cent. The shares have
gone slightly up every year since the Go :
pany was formed. hold myself, shares
to the extent of many thousand pounds.
Think this over. Yours ever, Cyrus Bru-
denel' Think this over" repeated Mr..
Kilburn, 81 did think it over"
Good Heavens ~ Mr.. Brudenel cried,
second time ''I had pOmnlptplV for
gotten that letter"
81 did think it over" Mr.. Kllburn re
peated hammering at his point And |
bought those shares. | am not rich man
Herr Paulus, but for bachelor | have
been comfortable. Now | am poor man,
and for the rest of my life | shall be I'M
comfortable | took that advice, Herr
Paulus, and invested the half of my for
tune in that Company. 1t is bankrupt,
and the shareholders will not get one pen
ny"
az had altogether forgotten that letter."
said Mr.. Brudenel, a third time. How
could have forgotten it -
"He might have made mistake Mr..
kilburn continued to address Paul. ANY
body may make mistakes But on the
very day-the very day-that he wrote
that letter, he wrote also to his banker to
mediately Well, sir ~ he turned sharply
on Mr.. Brudenel, "your explanation, if
you please, As | take it-as it seems to
me-you deliberately put an old friend,
one who you knew would act on your ad
vice, to buy shares in a Company that you
no longer trusted. You knew that demand
would keep up the price. You sacrificed
your old friend for the sake of keeping up
the price. That is what it looks like. |
say no more. 1t looks like that sort of
thing-men do these things constantly.
Oh know that very well. We must eX
tta,, t.,h a 4 Itrt I NOT it,l-
that such things would have been done
by Cyrus Brudenel, by whose side have
sat for forty years and received the com
munications of the other world"
This is dreadful" said the unfortunate
Cyrus. paul help me-advise me. How
kilburn-I did write that letter. | re-
member writing it very well. | gave you
as | thought, the best advice"
"Yet you wrote the other letter on the
same day
did /? Was it on the same day, You
are sure it was the same day kilburn, |
declare to you that ii have no eXplana-
ton" He remembered in time that no
spiritualist would accept the only explain
alton he had to offer. Paul offered to
explain. Mr.. Brudenel," he said, was
made to sell out those shares, against his
own knowledge, by an unseen protector
Mr. kilburn groaned and shook his
head.
Not by the Spirits" he said. you may
think yourself happy if you get q plain
answer to plain question from the Spirits.
I've been questioning for forty years, and
| would not trust them an inch. As for
Brudenel being made to write a letter by
the Spirits, that-you'll excuse me, Herr
Paulus-is rubbish"
But there is no other way of explain
ing the circumstance.
Spirits have very little power at the
best" said this experienced person, 81
have known one lift pencil and write
with it, but that is the most | have seen
AS for taking a man and making him
write against his will, that is rubbish.
have been directed by an old and trusted
friend to invest money in q concern which
he knew to be rotten. Oh Brudenel, to
think that yOu-of all men-cOuld have
done such thing"
Mr.. kilburn rushed ont of the room.
Paul, can't you explain this ~
Paul changed color and looked confused
He understood for the first time, the
great law of political economy, that If one
person is saved another is lost. He mad
saved one man ana ruined another He
thought himself 50 clever, but he h II for
gotten this simple thing, and he had in
volved his unfortunate friend III a sltua
ton out of which there was no way eX-
cept one, and that way no spiritualist
would accept.
L dtlli t1u SOt lcli lIlt
"No; there is no help. 1t is most un-
Fortunate
Yet he had thought himself so clever
so wonderfully clever. And now all Mr..
Brudenels most intimate friends would
have to believe that their leader had en-
trapped one of themseves-a friend of
forty years-to his destruction, in order to
save himself from loss.
CHAPTER V.-THE SECOND BLOW.
When the tardy avenger at length ar
rives within reach of the sinner and
warns to his work, his blows generally
fall in an increasing scale of weight and
rapdity. The first blow, for instance.
caused certain dismay and mental con
fusion. 1t was nasty one from an uneX
pected quarter. 1t left an uneasness be
hind it-as used often to happen to school
boys IN the old days. The second was
heavier and much more painful and came
more Unexpectedly.
In the afternoon there was merriment
-merriment if you please in the House of
Silence and of communicating Spirits. Ii
came from the girls room No more talk
there Of Mpuplek and IZak tha E,1oeb,