Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1894-05-18

tcrtained by EIr Kctch1m-that Leo
more, I'm fit Of mental insanity, had
cone the decd which Lad created srcl
confusion in the mind OF the od de-
tectve.
OF course this was but a scheme Oh
his part to evade punishment.
The man was capable of r;uch cum
ning-I saw that he was no ordinary
character, but that he possessed strong
powers.
Returning to the attack, / once moro
pushed him hard
"You have not acquitted yourself in
nv mind, sir. Remember, the charge
against you is terrible one. 1t would
serve your interests well were you to tell
me tho real nature of your visit to that
house."
Nv words impressed him. l saw that
he was thinking deep'y.
"Am | to understand that unless
prove my innocence to you, Doctor l
shall be arrested, charged with this
heinOus and most unnatural crime?
"You are so to understand.
$50 be it. / cannot tell you why !
climbed to that window, but simply ret
peat my former statement that | was
not in the room, and am innocent OF the
deed"
Young Seabury spoke like a man who
| had made up his mind as to the course
he should pursue-hiS rudder was ashed
and there should be no change. j
Naturally l sought for motive in this
mcst singular act on.
1t was hard to find
Two courses seemed open to me, and J
could take my choice.
The first concerned his own guilt, and
somehow it came hard for me to apply
his strange actions to him here. could
understand how he might deny every
thing blankly, if guilty, and swear that
he was not within mile of the spot
at the time of the murder but to admit
that he had even climbed the vines and
looked into his fathers room, at the
same time vehemently as jerting his In
nocence. was piece of strategy on the
part of a guilty man that L could not
readily grasp.
On the other hand another picture
was presented to my view.
Suppose this young man was all that
he should be-that he had gone to tho
house to make personal appeal to his
father. or for some such reason, and,
upOn climbing to the old Doctors win
dow had looked upon q sight that had
frozen the marrow in his bOncS-waS h
the man, then, to take guilt upon his
own shoulders rather than have it fall
on the head of one he loved?
I looked at him critically with this new
thought in my brain.
As | have said before, his face was a
strongly marked one-ther. were no
signs of weakness there.
He was capable of great things, either
for good or evil, as the spirit might sway
him.
"Will you not tell me what you saw
there, Seabury?" l asked.
He shook his head.
81 cannot, Doctor"
"Meaning you will not?"
"Take it as you please My lips are
sealed upon that subject.
Nv interest was bounding on apace.
could hard keep it in sight.
"If understand you correctly, you ac-
knowledge having looked into the room
of the old DOctOr?"
81 do not deny it,"
"And you saw something that occurred
within that chamber"
He did not answer.
| could see his teeth close hard, and he
had the appearance of a man who was
sternly resolved upon his course
"Do you refuse to tell me what it was
you saw?"
81 have nothing to say"
"Perhaps you forget that your life may
pay the penalty of this refusal to speak
and clear yourself"
81 forget nothing. Would to heaven
could forget! At the same time, if il
must come, so be it. am resigned. As
the Arabs say, Kismet-it is fate"
was becoming more and more in
terested in this man. He was charac-
ter to study with profit. In fact, dc
not know that ever met one who gave
me more of chance for observation.
"Since you are determined upon this
course we will drop that question; bu
perhaps you will not object to answer
ing certain others OF minor import
ance."
| was going to beat about the bush
and perhaps discover in an indirect way
what he refused to divulge openly.
"Anything l can answer l shall do 81
with the greatest of pleasure" he said
quietly.
"You admit entering the grounds bJ
means Of the wall?"
"Yes."
"You made your way direct to tho foo
of the vines, retraced your path to th'
wall. and then back once more to th'
side of the house. What made you dt
this thing?"
"You are mistaken, Doctor.
"In what?"
81 passed through the garden onl!
oncc each way"
"There were two sets of tracks there
| saw them myself"
"Then some one else made the other
"Impossible They were near enough
alike to have been made by the sam'
man."
"And yet / stand ready to swear thai
7 went direct from the wall to the house
and when I left / followed the same
route"
He was quite determined in his manner
| could not say that he was telling
lie: at the same time felt sure he mus
be very much mistaken.
Possibly at the time he hardly knew
what he was doing, and had fled from
the Sui, ONLY to return again, drawn
tbither by some terrible fascination.
To assist my investigation, pretended
that had fallen in with his idea
"Then you think some one else mus
have been in the garden on the same
night. and almost followed your c"%Is'