People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1894-03-09

and from that moment he never left
her until they rose early next morn
ing, to be in time for the train that
was to take them to Liverpool. So
much Stephen Croft said in his evil
dence, most reluctantly given, but
still more reluctantly two damning
pieces of evidence against her were
drawn from him.
He said they had arranged for
their landlord to take over the few
poor sticks of furniture they pos
sessed, and had sent on their small
personal belongings the day before,
but there were some few odds and
ends to be carried between them, and
he had brought in coil Of stout rope
for binding them together. At start
Ing, the rope vas missing, but his
wife could not account for its disap-
pearance more than himself, and did
not "fuss" about it as most women
would have done under the
circumstances. At breakfast (this
was only dragged from him bit by
bit) he noticed that she ate very
little, but turtirely collected food on
a plate, and set it aside, as If for an
unexpected guest. He asked her
why she did this, and she said the
neighbors would be all over the
house the moment their backs were
turned, and she would crafty their
curiosity as to what they had for
breakfast. He reminded her that
thGir landlord was trawling that day,
and several subsequent days, at
distance, and that no one could
know the secret place, previously
agreed upon, where they were to
hide the key of the house. She
laughed strangely, and said that
though you may lock people out, you
could not lock them in; but this
speech, though he did not under
stand it, was afterwards distinctly
quoted in her favor. Then they col
lected their small effects, and with
out God-speed from a friend, or a
kindly eye to follow them on Eeir
path, passed away from the home in
which they had been so happy, to the
one that had yet to be earned in the
uncertainty Of the future. Perhaps
the man looked back, but at some
distance from the house the prisoner
did more, she affected to have for
gotten something, and bidding him
go forward, retraced her steps quick
ly. But he reluctantly admitted
that she returned empty-handed, that
she was pale as corpse, with wild
eyes, that she gasped for breath.
stammering and presenting every ap.
pearance of woman who has re-
ceived some horrible shock, but when
he asked her i she had met with some
insult from a passing neighbor,
she shook her head, but Would give
no explanation of her state. She
showed extraordinary eagerness to
reach the train, but did not utter a
syllable during the journey, though
sinister incident occurred during
it That incident there the counsel
turned and looked steadily at meg was
witnessed by gentleman, to whose
keen observation. swift action, and
mastery manipulation of fact and
surmise was due the brilliantly con-
elusive chain Of evidence that had
brought the prisoner to where she
stood that day.
This gentleman had in his hurry
jumped into third instead Of a first,
class carriage, and congratulated
himself on his mistake when he saw
the two other occupants of the com,
partment They were simply the
two most magnificent specimens o.
man and womanhood that he had
ever seen in his life, but the mar
looked troubled and perplexed, anC
the woman gave one the same i'm
preston as OF some usually calm
majestic aspect OF nature, now con
vulsed and shaken to its very core
He saw the fine hands clenched be
meath her wooden shawl, the splendiC
eyes blind to all save some awful in
ward sight, and he recognized that
tragedy had been, or was to be en-
acted, and he watched her, with en-
tire Inconsistencies to herself, un
remittlngly for mile upon mile.
The vigilance was Unexpectedly
rewarded. She moved abruptly
searched her pocket for handker
chief with which to wipe her dam
brow, and pulled out with it small
. curiously shaped silver box that fel
into the mans lap. The blank hor
ror Of her eyes slowly quickene
with some recollection, she street.-the
her hand to take it. but he DIRE
back, and with establishment in hi
face lifted the lid, and found th
contents to be white powder. Int
, this powder he thrust hi
fore-fnger and instantly applied
to his tongue, on the moment cryin
out that his tongue was burnin.
then that his throat aud stomac
; were on fire, and violent nausea con
= pleted the symptoms of having swa
:. lowed violent irritant poison.
"You have taken arsenicm erie
!. the stranger present, wherein I'll
; prisoner shrieked ont, snatched tt
box from Stephens hand, and thre
it far out the window.
p The stranger, approaching Il
). window, took the exact bearings
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