The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1892-09-21

now Reading. Here my travelling COM
panion decided to leave the train, as by
no means could she avoid running into
her husbands arms at the terminus.
Despite her gentle winning manner, 1
| felt instinctively that persuasions would
be useless, and so 1 opened the door,
got out, and helped her to alight from
the carriage, aud with few murmured
words of repeated thanks she was gone.
When got back into the carriage 1
lit cigar and lay back on the cushions
to think over my adventure. BY the
time the train drew into Paddlngton |
had exalted my beautiful unknown into
heroine of romance, and, l regret to
say, myself into something like a
knight errant of the days of chiv airy.
y
"This is it, twelve-ninety. Are you
there, Fred9" Tie train had stopped,
and lamp flashing into the carriage
woke me up from my day dream to hear
these strange words, sDd to see couple
of men in police uniform and railway
inspector peering into the compartment.
"Hullol this must be wrong. They
aren't here, aud yet this is the right
number. Excuse me, sir, how far have
you come in this carriage7"
"From Stroud" replied, bit dazed
by drowsiness and my strange reception.
"Have you come all the way aloael"
Some mad idea connected in a con-
fused way with the beautiful woman
whose soft, clingng clasp could still
feel on my hand, stopped the truth that
rose to my lips, and instead uttered the
foolish lie:
ayes, have been alone in the carriage
all the way"
A moment later / would have given all
1 possessed to have recalled my words,
for as / uttered them the railway inspec.
tor turned his lamp under the seat
opposite to me and said in hoarse
whisper:
"Good Heavens what's that2"
My eyes followed the glare of the
lamp, and saw the toe of mans boot
on the floor of the carriage few inches
back from the front of the seat.
A minute later and the corpse OF a
somewhat uuderszed man, whose face
was still drawn in the agony of violent
death, was dragged out, lifted up and
laid upon the seat.
OF course spent the night in the
cells, for if could have procured bail to
any amount it would not have been
accepted.
Not only was I charged with the most
terrible of all crimes, but the charge was
supported by prima facie evidence that
looked practically conclusive. The
handouts had been found in my pocket,
and l was accused of procuring the
escape from justice of the notorious
Maria s., the wife of member of
the Nihilist Inner Circle, then serving
life sentence in Siberia.
No fewer than four murders had been
traced to her, and now 1 was charged
with completely in fifth, that of
well known English detective who had
sought to make brilliant coup by taking
her alone.
She seemed to have the power of fas-
cinating men with her beauty till they
became her slaves, and then striking
them dead by some terrible and myster-
ious agency that left no trace save death
behind it.
There is no need to dwell on the hor-
rors of the time that followed my arrest.
Everything that money and skill could
do for me was done, but l was CON-
mitted for trial on the circumstantial
evidence to answer the charge of mur-
der.
While lay in Jail awaiting my trial
the search for Marie s. became an
absolute hunt to death.
Despite all this, so perfect was her
skill in disguise, and so unlimited her
fertility OF resource, that she might have
evaded pursuit after all, had it not been
for one of those slips that the cleverest
of criminals seem to make sooner or
later.
A smart young chemists assistant, at
a fashionable watering place, one even
ing on the pier made the acquaintance
of very pretty girl, who said that she
was studying chemistry for the science
and art examinations.
This turned the conversation on chem
icals, and she ended by asking him to
get her a quantity of very poisonous
substance which she wanted for an ex-
pertinent, and which she could not buy
because she was stranger in the town.
The chemists assistant was Il sharp
young fellow, aud he saw the chemical
she asked for was not in the syllabus of |
the science and art department.
He told his employer of the occurrence |
the next day, and in the evening took |
the girl some crystals of n harmless salt |
which resembled what she had wanted |
somewhat closely.
"This is not what asked for" she
said, as she looked into the packet.
"No, you can't make prussic acid out
of that, miss, but it's safer to play WITH"
coolly replied the youth, and as he spoke
man who had been leaning over the
rail of the pier few yards away moved
silently up behind the girl, pinioned her
arms to her side and held her down to
the seat.
The detective called a cab on the es-
plenade, and the three got in and drove
to the police station, pulling up the win
dows to avoid any possible observation
as they went through the streets.
When the cab reached the station
there was no sign or sound of movement
inside it. The cabman got down and
opened the door, and as he did so he
staggered back and fell gasping for
breath to the pavement.
Inside the cab Mary s. sat with
her two would-be aptors-dead, aud on
the face of each corpse there was the
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