Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1894-04-20

Hardly, Doctor. 10 CegIn WIN,
don't think you have examined that
picture as thoroughly as you might"
/ started and looked at it again.
"Turn it over. Upon the back you
may discover something"
Sure enough l did.
In mans handwriting | found few
words, as follows:
Lenore
The cause of my sleepless nights ana
watchfui days.
There was no getting around that-it
must mean that this girl was the party
whom DR.. Seabury feared
l could not but admit that the case
seemed dark for her, but why need |
care so deeply-that picture was some
years old, and its original might now
have been transformed into an ugly
woman by reason of passion.
GBv the way, Mr. Ketcham, what fam
lily has the old Doctor?"
was beginning to wonder why he had
not aroused some member OF his own
household when danger threatened; also
how it was we had Dot met with or heard
living soul.
L
see the gloom of night giving way to the
light of day
"I cannot answer that question fully,
for on my visits here | saw no one save
an old woman servant named Ursula,
and his aged man of all work, Peter, who
sleeps in the stable
"Stay-once l did catch 6eeting
glimpse of q lady's silken gown just van
fishing through one door of the library as
I entered the other, but did not see her
face"
81 believe the Doctor was bachelor. y
Report said So but we don't know
how true it was. The Doctor was one
of few men in New York who could
keep their own secrets This lady, how
ever, may have been patient, or even a
distant relative"
81 hear sounds out in the stable. Peter
is up and at work.
81 will go out and inform him of the
sad event that has taken place within
these walls last night"
"Leaving me here?"
"You can stay here, or go down to the
library. There is smoke coming from
the kitchen chimney, so the old woman
must be up, too ] see they're carly
risers here"
He passed out of the door,
was alone with the dead.
This in itself was not very terrible
thing, seeing that l was a doctor, and
used to scenes of dissolution.
The consciousness of the fearful mys-
terry surrounding DR.. Seabury's taking
off served to make me feel uncomfortable
in the presence of that cold form.
l busted myself in rocking around,
wondering If could not find some trace
of the assassin that had slipped even the
vigilant eye of Mr.. Ketcham.
While engaged in this laudable bit OF
entertainment l heard the sound OF wall
ing from the direction of the kitchen,
and knew that Mr.. Ketcham had i'm
parted the sad news to old Ursula while
passing through
went to the window and looked out.
The vines were torn as he had said,
showing that some one had made use OF
them to enter the rO0m
A little experiment proved to me that
Mr. Ketcham was right also in declaring
that the party who had assembled must
have been lighter than either of us, as
the vines would not have borne up our
weight.
Then the thought struck me that per-
haps | might make some discovery by
going below
Leaving the room, I made my way
down stairs, and finding the side door
passed out into the garden.
Here there were walks and rose bush
I11o q M
a glass conservatory near by, connected
with the library.
Evidently the Doctor or some one else
in the house had been passionately fond
of flowers.
I walked about few minutes, and
then made my way to the foot of the
vines that clambered up the side OF the
house.
The yielding soil might tell story.
found footprints.
They seemed to be those of small
man, but of course that was not positive,
for if the assassin were woman she
might have been in disguise.
Ha! what was this?
l picked up peculiar piece OF steel
that stood up in the earth, having evil
IDENTIFY fallen from above.
To my unsophisticated eyes it was q
puzzle, but l had an idea that it was
some species of burglars tool.
Undoubtedly Mr. Ketcham could throw
some light on this subject.
I placed it securely in my pocket and
continued my investigations.
There was nothing more to find, and |
amused myself by following the trail OF
the assassin through the garden to the
point where he had scaled the wall, both
in coming and going.
I saw that it was the lowest point in
the wall, and judged that the assassin
had made previous observations in order
to so ably locate this.
Then I returned once more to the
house.
The hustle of New York streets could
be plainly heard upon the morning air.
| managed to find the library, and,
entering, looked around.
1t was singularly pleasant place, and
the great cases of books, instead OF
being arranged in stiff rows, filled inches,
and gave the room the appearance a
Gothic cottage might have beside one of
the angular buildings of the past.
7 sat down in chair, and waited for
the coming of my friend, the detective.
Presently | heard the door open, and
my cars caught the rustic of silkcn
skirts.
I remembered what Mr.. Ketcham had,
said about one of his visits, and sprang
to my feet
AS turned to face the person who
entered, felt the blood rushing tony
l.A.4 ...Lil, MI, hnndc nlnfnhnd tho ton.