The evening world., 1894-05-30
he looks at me like thatrr

he looks at me like that!'
The sick man raved on:
Back, Donald, back into your grave!
Don't, don't do that! You're staring at
me, and ] can't die In peace. Oh! horri-
bic! horrible! horrible!
in s Sis d sear shr'e earher rne il to IS, stro mes
face! See II? Twas l h killed him!
See! My hands are crimson with his
blood, yet his blood did not stain them!
There! there"
Great beads of perspiration stood out
on the mans pallld brow, touched with
, HI rS hand , Of /, HI, death an1,,, mSsrSSi nnG 4Ts5a near as as
suddenly collapsed. falling into the arms
of his Mortified son, who had been strug-
Cling with the dying maniac, his ears
ringing with the echoes of the terrible
sel~f-aCcusations,
The awful cries OF the dying soldier
had reached the ears Of the physician
the room at the moment OF the collapse.
An Opiate was administered to the pa
ticnt by the physician, who said:
He may regain consciousness for h
moment before death. but he's nearly
gone
An Instant later. Col. Cation opened
his almost sightless eyes. They wan,
then rested fxedly upon that of
Harry's:
Forgive me, my boy, and may God
forgive met whispered he. I'm going
- Twas -l-hllltu -'ol. Hill y ~.
The-se-cret box-for-for-giye'-
With a look OF agony pictured on his
dying face. which to his last moments
Mili eyer haunt Inn so terrible ERR was II;
as 1t fled from his fathers tortured
body.
Dead. yes. Harry Cations father was
dead. The young man realized the
awful truth, but that did not appear to
disturb him. Ringing in his ears were
the deliriGus cries Of his diving father,
1t was | who killed Stroke. and not
Donald"
And then the agonizing remorse which
had seized upon his father! What could
1t mean? The young man m9thed piL-
eously, as he staggered from the death
chamber into the open air. His daZed
brain refused to analyze the situation.
For an hour he walked the lawn, terribly
agitatei. his mental capabilities seeming
Is stunned for the time being.
Harry at last seated himself on the
porch. The awful scene which occurred
at the moment his fathers spirit passed
from the body continually pictures itself
upon his bewildered brain, until he was
almost beside himself with grief and
nervous horror.
Then the words last to fall from his
"The secret box" What was that, and
why did his father refer to II in his
delirium? Almost u~nCunsciously Harry
arose aud sought the library so recently
occupied by him who would never again
cross its threshold. Scattered over Col.
CattNn'S desk lay many of his private
papers. which he had left thus carelcssly
lyinC about that morning. having been
suddenly summoned to the CITY Hall on
the business matters already referred
TO.
Harry gathered up the papers an
thrust them in the desk drawer and
closed II, but as he did so he discovered
among the documents u peculiarly
formed box made OF brass and wood
lie had never seen this before. hence
his attention was much aroused. In
Quisitivcly he examined the little affair.
1t was evidently separated into two
sections, but securely held together by a
pair OF small brass hinges n IA diminu-
tive paddock. There was a tiny hole in
the lower part OF the lock which resem-
bled a pin-head in size. II hardly CAV
the impression that ii was intended for
n key-holc.
In a tiny drawer that he found open
and showing that the contents had been
recently disturbed, the young man came
across a narrow strip Of gold, one
OF It's ends was finely tapered - Il
point.
"This will open the paddock" he ex,
claimed aloud, II know it,
He inserted the tapered point Of the
gold bar into the hole in ne paddock
and pressed gently out firmly. Almost
simultaneously the I'D few open, revealing
within a small cavity a carefully fold
ed sheet OF manuscript, upon which the
oun man saw at once was the familiar
chirography OF his father.
With still greater interest, Harry I'M
folded the paper n perused its con-
tents. He had read only a few lines