The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1893-05-24


circumstances occur more than once In
hundred years?"
Once more he took up the telegram
and read 1t. In his first hasty perusal
he had overlooked one point which a
second and more careful reading now
brought ont with startling prominence.
"'We look to yourself and Mrs.
Maynard "--he read the sentence aloud
In puzzled way" for explanations
What does this mean? Can it be pos
sible that they suspect Good
heavensl 1t all flashes upon me nowl
Why was ] So blind as not to see it be-
fore?"
Dashing the telegram down on the
desk, he rose to his feet with his face
grown suddenly white, and commenced
topace rapidly to and fro.
( Mrs, Maynard, the claimant, ollin
North, her confidential legal adviser.
What had been his own previous suspi-
cion concerning these two. Only too well
did he remember it now; and he saw it
plainly reflected in that message of
Hopkins & Shepherd. In swift rush
of thought Allan North reviewed all
the incidents Of the case that had first
led to his suspicion; he took up one by
one the various links which, though
slight and insignificant in themselves,
yet when slrillfully united formed q
complete chain of damaging evidence;
and by the time this swift review was
finished he had surrendered most re-
luctantly to the belief that seemed to
be irresistibly forced upon him
Can 1t be possible" he asked him
self, still in maze of bewildered
thought, of unwilling conviction, "that
Noll has so far forgotten his personal
and professional honor as to descend TO
such deed as this2 There is only one
hypothesis upon which / can explain 1t
at all. He must have been mad-in-
fatuatedl A beautiful face has lured
many man to his ruin, and Noll has
doubtless been the victim Of the artful
wiles that were practiced upon me to-
day. So be It'll Fate has most strange
ly put 1t within my power to visit a
just retribution upon her, and 1 will
exercise that power without mercy. |
will deliberately keep up the deception
in which I have thus far acquiesced for
my own idle amusement, and in the as
sumed character Of my brother ascer-
tain how far Mrs. Maynard has know
ledge and completely in this forgery.
And II / find that she is responsible for
the wretched conspiracy, let her be-
ware"
There was pitiless anger In North's
heart as he spoke these words in
audible soliloquy, and a pitiless ex.
preston on his stern, set face. He did
not for one moment question the cor
rectness of his suspicious, the justice OF
his conclusions; he felt an inward con-
viction of their truth which was TO his
mind "confrmation strong as proofs Of
holy writ" The thought Of the crime to
which he believed that his brother had
been lured, the exposure and disgrace
that threatened him, the stigma that
would thenceforth rest upon the fami'
ly name, was maddening TO him. And
thus his resolution was formed; he
would take advantage Of the peculiar
circumstances In which an exceptional
turn Of fortune had placed him, to learr
the whole truth concerning the forgery
and II possible divert public suspicion
and discovery from his brother, for the
sake Of the innocent ones who would
suffer II his crime became known.
FRO RE Continued