The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1895-08-05
PRIZE DETECTIVE STORIES, No. ie.

not a clean one; the weapon must have
been dull.
They searched the house lest the muir
derer should be hidden away. / heard
Rufus Benefits name whispered by one
and another. Everybody seemed TO know
that he and father had had words the
night before. L could not understand
how, because ! had told nobody except
Phoebe Dole, who had no time TO spread
the news, and / was sure that no one else
had spoken OF it,
They looked in the closet where my
green silk dress hung, and pushed 1t
aside, TO be sure nobody was concealed
behind il, but they did not. notice any
thing wrong about it, 1t was dark in
the closet, and, besides, they did not
look for anything like that until later.
All these people-the deputy sheriff, and
afterward the high sheriff and other out
of-town officers for whom they had sent,
and the neig bors---all hunted their own
suspicion, and that was Rufus Bennett
All believed that he had come back and
killed my father They fitted all the facts
to that belief. They made him do the
deed with long, slender screwdriver
which he had recently borrowed from
one of the neighbors and had not re-
turned. They made his 6ngermarks,
which were still on my fathers throat,
mt the red prints on the sltting-room
uOOT. IncN Tnudt sure lnhJ ne Ihu re-
turned and stolen into the house by the
east shed door. while father and l sat on
the doorsteps the evening before; that he
had hidden himself away, perhaps in
that very closet where my dress hung,
and afterward stolen out and killed my
father and then escaped.
They were not shaken when i told
them that every door was bolted and
barred that morning. They themselves
found all the window fastened down ex-
cept few which were open on account
of the heat, and even these last were
raised only the width OF a sash, and
fastened with sticks, so that they could
be raised no higher. Father was very
cautious about fastening the house, for
he sometimes had considerable sums of
money by him. The officers saw all
these difficulties I'm the way, but they
fitted them somehow TO their theory, and
two deputy sheriffs were at once sent to
appreheno Rufus.
They had not begun to suspect me then
and not the slightest watch was kept on
my movements The neighbors were
very kind and did everything to help me,
relieving me altogether of all those last
ofiices--in this case much sadder than
usual.
An inquest was held, and told freely
all Knew except about the blood stains
on my dress. hardly knew why / kept
might have done the deed myself, and
could not bear TO convict myself, If | was
innocent.
Two of the neighbors, Mrs. Holmes
and Mrs. Adams, remained with me all
that day. Toward evening, when there
were very few in the house, they went
into the parior TO put II in order for the
funeral, and / sat down alone in the
kitchen. AS / sat there by the window L
thought of my green silk dress, and
wondered IL the stains were out. / went
to the closet and brought the dress out
to the light. The spots and streaks mad
almost disappeared. took the dress out
in the shed and scraped off the flour
the paste, burned IL in the stove, took
the dress upstairs to my own closet, and
hung il in its old place. Neighbors re-
mained with me all night,
At 3 o'clock in the slternoon OF the
next day, which was Thursday, | went
over to Phoebe Dole's to see about a
black dress to wear to the funeral. The
neighbors had urged me to have my
black silk dress altered little and
trimmed with Grape.
/ found only Maria Woods at home.
When she saw me she gave little scream
and began TO cry. She looked as if she
had already been weeping for hours. Her
blue eyes were bloodshot.
"Phoebe's gone over to---Mrs. Whit
ney's to---try on her dress 4" she sobbed.
81 want TO get my black silk dress
fixed little, y said /.
"She'll be home pretty soon,' said
Maria.
laid my dress on the sofa and sat
down. Nobody ever consuts Maria