The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1890-08-10


glance confirmed his worst sus icions. He
knew now TO absolute certainty what old
Margaret had been doing.
Ola Margaret turned round to him with faint
glmmer of defiance on her sallow, skinny.
weazened-up old face. "Are you the con.
stable ?'' she mumted out ironically, after
fearful effort. " Have you got search-war-
rantP Show me your authority This is free
country, and knows my lawful rights. Leave
me alone to DO my duty. You Kills 'em. and
washes 'em, and M0wler bulies 'em. The less
we speaks TO one another In the execution of
our duties the better"
Hugh Chaudos answered nothing, but strobe
away, sill mt and awe-struck, TO the neighboring
police station.
CHAPTER VII.
The Superintendent hardly saw his way 10 do
anything. They must have more evidence before
they would be justified in applying for warrant.
However,. Old Margareps howell in the chemists
yard being next door to the police station. they
might at least watch her closely. From the side
window il would even be possible for a constable
to drop down into the narrow space between Old
Margarers howell and the wall and look In at her
back easement. Hugh volunteered to accom-
pany the constable and piece out this strange
mystery till he had fitted all its bits accurately
together.
At O'Clock old Margaret came in and lighted
her candle Hugh and the policeman, looking In
eagerly through The one dirty pane, saw her take
out of her pocket the surgical instrument and
tie little pill-box. Their curiosity was at its
utmost. But old Margaret disappointed them by
simply taking down loaf OF bread and a small
a
of cider; after which she sat down beside The
table and mumbled away with her tooihess jaws
as best she might at this hard and dry provender.
They waited, breathess with anxiety, until she
had finished, and then watched eagerly for her
next movement Old Margaret rose from her
chair after long pause, look down the chemical
scales from her rude wooden dresser aud rTo-
ceeded 10 extract from the recesses OF a drawer
another and larger pIl-bcx, which she placed
beside the one already on the table. Then,
STOPPING down cautiously and peering about her
with witchlike cunning, she lifted loose plank
in The flooring and took from under it an old
wooden stocking. HugRs heart beat slow and
long; he was on the eve OF proving the secret of
The old woman united the stocking slowly and
took out gold sovereign. She held 1t up and
looked at IL lovngly; II was a bright one
unwoIn and full-weighted. Then she laid it
carefully in one scale aud watched IL weigh down
the delicate balance with intiuite qualification.
After that she poured the contents OF the smaller
pill-box into The larger one and began doing out
slowly The joint hoard INTO the opposite SCALE
Hugh and the policeman could see now quite
distinctly what she was weighing. Ii was gold;
small Jumps or nuggets OF gold; very tiny, very
shapeess ana very dull, but still gold, unmis
takably hravy and yellow.
OLD Margaret weighed out one soyeregn's
worth and laid 1t aside cautiously in a separate
plll-box. Then she drew out half sovereign.
and weighed the remainder OF the loose gold
scrupulously against IL. 1t was too light, and
with an angry humble of her touthless Jaws, she
poured IL back again. Next, she put away all
the things except the pill-box with the s0yereigns
worth OF gold; and sitting down, she directed
and many haltines, IN shaky, round band, 10
an address which Hugh could not decipher at SO
great distance. But he hadn't the slightest
doubt in his own mind that she was going to
send off the loose gold TO jewelers. in London.
There was another pause, and then old Mar
gaiet took down from her shelf still, and began
going through some strange performances with
liquid that she poured into II from bottle.
Hugh and the constable needed now to watch no
more. They had seen enough to justify an
arrest at least on suspicion.
In ten minutes more Hugh Cnandos and the
MaIgareps howell with hastily signed warrant
to arrest the corpse washer on charge OF at
tempting to murder.
Old Margaret rose slowly and opened the door
to them.
lily, gl,rng with dim eyes at Hugh Chandos.
Forty year Pve washed corpses here at Aiding
ton, and you're not going TO trouble old
woman for nothing in her latter days. are you,
doetor?"
II have warrant Margaret Wallis" the Su-
perintendent said. with Official cOnciseness, Ito
arrest you on charge of attempting 10 murder
LetItia Merton"
Old MargaI cts Impassive face broke once
more into feeble smile Attempting only?"
she mumbed, with concealed satire. 'Its at
tempting. Is it? Well, after forty years, that's
not so very bad. neither"
1--WE have other charges against you, that we
hold over for The present. the Superintendent
said quietly. This one Will be quite sufficient
for us TO deiain you III on. Take care what you
say. Ii may be used In evidence against you"
Old Margaret answered nothing, but turned
round with Incredible alacrity for one so aged
and shaky as she was. A mug lay beside the
still on the plain deal table. Before Hugh or the
Supe inlendent could interfere to prevent her
she bad lifted the mug quickly 10 her lips and
drank it off al a single gulp
"There," she said putting IL down again,
hastily, with mechanical nod like lay figure.
THAT warns the heart, II do, policeman! That's
fox glove wateIi"
She had poisoned herself with her Town dlgita-
line.
They carried her off to the. prison infirmary,
lest she should turn out TO be merely shammng;
but IN few hours the deadly poison began TO
work, and she tossed and turned on the narrow
hospital bed IN a sort of dead-alye, mechanical
half-unconseous. senile agony. All Hugbs az
tempts 10 administer antidote, however,
failed utterly; the old polsOner Kept her tooth
less gums pressed so hard and tight together,
aided even by the conyulsfre action OF the drug,
that 1t was impossible 10 iOrce anything between
them. She spoke only once more before she
died, aud then II was merely 10 utter what
seemed at fist sight like a bare prediction in
political economy.
"GOld'll be getting scarcer every year now"
she mumbed plantiyey. Then alter pause
she added In explanation: They buries 1t all
underground piecemeal III body's teeth nova
days"
Nobody knows to this moment how many vlc-
Tins. first aud last, old Margaret had succeeded
in poisoning for the sake OF those wreicled
scraps OF gold in her forty years work at Aid
lngton.
THE end
Copl9.ight, 1890, By the authors AHidnce.