The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1890-09-27

girl, she seemed singularly quick and
smart in the performance of her house.
hold duties. In a week Mrs. Whitney
had voted me treasure. In month
had sized up every member of the
household, and come to the conclusion
that Samuel Whitney was one of the
greatest villains the world had seen in
u long while.
81 had discovered that my uncle was
completely in the power of Mr.. Whit.
ney and his wife. They alone attended
to his wants and gave him his medi.
cine. Not another living soul, except
the doctor, was permitted to approach
him. Once to my great indignation
heard my mothers name mentioned by
the sick man. He had evidently been
frequently in the habit of asking for
his sister.
"Why does not Mary come and see
me? he was asking
81 have written to them several
times replied Whitney.
"The liar! Almost 1 had mind to
tear aside my disguise, rush in, declare
| myself and comfort him. ,...-....
"And have spoiled every thing. My
| uncle had never seen me. While
Whitney would have been futtered at
first, he would have soon recovered
himself, and should have been igno-
miniously thrown out of the house.
Take some more of this medicine,
heard Whitney saying.
"'No, no! No more of that. Medicine
won't save me. / don't like that stuff,
Samuel. i think it does me more harm
than good.
ga new light broke in upon my brain.
l had heard of such things, but dis
missed the idea as too utterly improba-
BILE. Whitney could never be re-enact-
ing in the nineteenth century the crime
peculiar to the age which produced the
Borgias-he could not be slowly killing
this man by poison.
''But though / dismissed it the idea
returned to mo with tenfold force that
night as l lay in my narrow cot AL
though 1T was long past midnight, /
could not sleep 1t was a very close, sui
try night / arose and opened the door
of my room to have more air.
"As / did so l caught the sound of
voices
"'What was that?' 1t was Mrs. Whit
ney who was speaking.
Nothing replied her husband.
"'But heard noise
LIT is nothing, l tell you; rats or
something like that Go to sleep
''The Whitneys were lying in bed,
awake, and their door was open. Beyond
it was the room of the sick man. An ir-
resistible desire to hear further prompt
ed me to steal softly from the room into
the passage way. Ny foot caught in
the mat. / could hear Mr.. Whitney
raise himself up in bed.
who's that% he called out.
''bly heart stood still for a moment.
It's Emma, sirv ] replied.
"'What are you doing out in the pas
sage this time of night?' he asked sus-
piciously.
"'Why, amt in the passage / re-
piled. 1T was hot and / Just got up to
open the door,
"'Well, go back into your room,' said
Mrs. Whitney, and don't let me catch
you out of it till morning
''But would not go back. Something
could not define recalled my suspicious |
Of previous evening. felt intuitlvely |
that they meditated some evil against |
my uncle.
What are you standing there for? |
Why don't you go back into your room |
again? called out Mr.. Whitney.
1T was trying moment. l knew
that If i once shut the door could not |
reopen it without making some noise, |
which might lead to suspicious, which |
suspicious might lead to an investiga-
tion of my trunk and effects which |
would be only sorely discomforting.
Yet as it was i ran an awful risk.
stood here my natural self; no rouge,
no wig, no spectacles, just as ! had risen
from my bad. Every dictate of pru-
dence told me TO go back; yet an inner
consciousness whispered: Go forwardr
"'Are you going 10 stand there all
nightP' came the now exasperated voice
of Mr.. Whitney.
"'No, I'm not / snapped out; but
it's hard a poor servant gal can't get
breath of fresh air. And / banged the
door to with much unnecessary violence,
as If had got out of temper.
-iuu iNbiCpVSo iheN my iopns
''No. / had resolved to brave every
thing. In that brief moment of time
there had come a vision to me of my
poor helpless uncle in the power of
these wretches. had banged the door
to, but had left myself outside stand
ing in the passage, with beating heart
and lin bs which trembled, for knew
that the flash of a light might reveal me
at any moment, and / had learned by
this time the desperate character of
these people, the Whitneyr Beyond
doubt of it they were slowly poisoning
the man whose wealth they coveted.
''It had been impossible to get to the |
sick chamber; it was too well guarded |
for that, but had had to wash some |
medicine glasses, and had drained into
a little vial the contents of one not en-
tirely swallowed. A local druggist |
whom / took into my confidence had |
told me it was undoubtedly arsenic.
"'Well, that hussy's out of the way
| heard Whitney remark, when / had
shut the door DO you know, don't
like the looks Of that girl. Discharge |
her!'
Discharge her!' said Mrs. Whitney.
Il wouldn't do that. She's the best girl
I've ever had, and she's such fool, too.
I'm sure she suits in every way
"If / thought she suspected any
yrow1ab Wbitnav sd soon cat