Mexico weekly ledger., 1890-05-08

%N near, and while
r. he waited the
coming of the
young lawyer, ne INDUCED in pleasant
anticipations of the sensation he would
create, the largeness Of the "scoop" he
would have upon his contemporaries,
and he even began to arrange in his
mind the details Of the narrative for his
paper.
It was characteristic of the man that
he felt no pity for the intended victim,
or gave thought to the distress his expo
sure would carry into the household of
Witherspoon.
Not that Tom was an unkindly man.
He had only been hardened in the prac-
tice Of his profession and sought his
ends remorselessly.
While he was INDUCING these expecta-
lions Holbrook came in.
."Where have you been for the past
few daysT' he said, without waiting for
salutations. 81 have been seriously
alarmed. I sent everywhere for you
and could not find you"
"To Newport"
"a pretty time to go pleasuring,"
grumbled Holbrook. 81 found your
Shadow, but he wouldn't tell me any
thing"
mo, he never tells" said Tom, COM
placently.
"You gave me a pretty fright; why
didn't you let me know you were going?"
Hadn't time. But" said Tom, "I1l
relieve you. went on the very business
you think I neglected. Shadow, who
keeps very close to Fountains man-his
valet-and worms everything out Of him,
came to me hastily before / was out of
bed a few days ago, with the informa.
ton that Fountain had been summoned
to Newport, after considerable tele-
graphic correspondence with the Ash
grove. girl. Upon the impulse of the mo-
ment, I determined to go, and I made up
my mind that il I started at once with
out delay I could get there before he did.
An Observation-Disclosures you will
impelled me to go. So not having time
to see you I left at once. I made a big
strike"
"Oh, then you have learned some
thingf"
"a great deal. Listen. I had not
time to pack anything, but I grabbed a
bag I had used on my last trip out Of
town, in which I knew there was o
change of clean linen, and just caught
the train"
"Get to your point" said Holbrook
impatiently, deeply interested.
"Take it easy, my boy, 1t is not to be
told that way. The beauty Of telling a
tale is telling it in a sequential manner;
you make your points much stronger,
and a clearer understanding is the re-
suit"
"Oh, go on your own way" returned
Holbrook, irritably, realizing that Tom
was not to be driven and that interrupt
ton only delayed the course Of his mar
rative.
"Wel1, then, as I travelled on I had
time to examine the reasons laying back
of my impulse. OF course, if Fountain
went to Newport he would go to Wither-
spoons That several kilograms had
passed between himself and the Ash
grove girl, and that Fountain had ex-
pressed a desire to remain In New York
. few days longer and had yielded in
obedience to the last telegram from
Newport, showed urgency. Now, what
urgency, and why? That was what /
was travelling to Newport to find out If
] could"
II should take it very poor reason"
interrupted Holbrook. "The idea of
travelling of so many miles upon an i'm
pulse"
"My dear fellow, your inability to ap-
preciate how controlling such impulses
are upon some temperaments, shows me
clearly you would never succeed as a
newspaper man. I make it a rule Of life
to obey the promptings Of my intuitions.
Hence my success"
"WeI, get on with your story
"After a while ! thought I would
open my bag and find what / had with
me, and to my surprise I discovered a
suit Of clothes for a laboring mana
working suit. Then I remembered that
] had used it as a disguise some time ago
when I was on another affair, and the
thought popped into my head that /
could use it again, possibly to good eff
feet. After I got to Newport ! made
my way to the Witherspoon cottage and
took in the surroundings. l knew what
time Fountain was to leave New York,
and, therefore, about what time he would
arrive.
81 determined to disguise myself as .
gardener, get on the grounds, and risk
detection. So procuring apair Of garden
shears, I did my working clothes up in
package, struggled 1t out of the hotel,
and on a plausible pretext secured q
room in a cottage in the town, where !
could make the change. About the only
thing / learned on the stage was expert
ness In make up, and when I issued from
the room ! wa as ft q gardener as you
ever saw. Iloitered around until about
the time for his arrival. I was near the
gates when the carriage drove up, and
quickly followed 1t. Fortunately Tor
me, such as were at work on the grounds
were in front and not in the rear
"Oh, do skip the details, for heavens
cried Holbrook.
"You seem to be nervous this morn
ing" reioined Tom, who, between o de-
sire to tease Holbrook and an intsnse
relish in his own tale, was indulging his
vein Of graphic recital. "WeIl, I saw
the Ashgrove girl waiting for him, saw
her greet him, and then sit down and
wait for him while he entered the house.
Shortly he came out again, and ! had an
opportunity to get close up to the veran-
da out Of sight, on the pretext Of trim
ming some vines. Then there began the
most extraordinary conversation
Tom here detailed that scene upon the
reranda, of which the reader Is fully In
During its recital Tom was
not interrupted; Holbrook was too anx-
ious and Interested to lose D word.
When he had finished Holbrook said:
aThat settles Il Fountain b the man.
81 think there II no doubt Of t. re-
piled Toa.
sNone In the least. What power OF
self possessionl OF course he realized
thoroughly what she vas driving at
sOf course said Tom, s.but he Is sure
OF her love, and does not propose to ad-
init it even TO her,
..It Is only such . firm, determined,
cold blooded kind Of eperson who could
commit 30 deliberate and cold blooded a
murder
ssTrue, but / think his exhibition OF
frmness and eeff possession at the club
mas arcu 0ra7np than IN fha veranda.s