Eagle River Democrat. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1893-1896, 1895-09-30
BY CONAN DOYLE.
CHAPTER v-(Continued1

y
sour trial?' asked the inspector.
81 may aever be tried" he answer
ed. You needn't look startled. 1t
asn't suicide I'm thinking of. Are you
q doctor?" He turned his fierce dark
eyes upon me as he asked this last
question.
Eyes, L am" I answered.
"Then put your hand here" he
said, with q smile, motioning with his
aSnacled wrists toward his chest.
1 did so, and became at once con-
SciOuS of an extraordinary thrObbing
and commotion which was going on
Inside The walls Of the chest seemed
to thrill and culver as a frail build
ing voald do inside when some pow
erful engine was at work. In the 81
lence of the room I could hear dull
humming and buzzing noise, which
proceeded from the same source.
why" I cried, you have an aortic
anel'Emr'
THAT'S what they call it," he said,
placidly. II went to a doctor last
week about it, and he told me that it
is bound to burst before many days
pass. 1t has been getting worse for
years / got it from exposure and I'M
Mountains I've done my work now,
and 1 don't care how soon I go. but
I should like to leave some account
of the business behind me. 1 don't
want to be remembered as a com
mon cut-throat."
The inspector and the two detec-
tives had a hurried discussion as to
the ACCESSIBILITY of allowing him to
tell his story
E'DO you consider, doctor, that there
is immediate danger?" the former
asked.
''Most certainly there Isl" I answer
ed
''In that case it is clearly our duty,
in the interests of justice, to take his
statement" said the inspector "You
are at liberty, sir, to give your account,
which I again warn you will be taken
down"
''Ill sit down, with your leave" the
prisoner said. suiting the action to the
word. "This aneurism Of mine makes
me easily tired, and the tussle we had
half an hour ago has not mended mat
ters. I'm on the brink Of the grave,
and | am not likely to lie to you
Every word l say il the absolute truth,
and how you use it is matter Of no
consequence to me-"
With these words, Jefferson Hope
leaned back in his chair and began the
following remarkable statement lie
spoke in calm and methodical man
ner, as though the events which he
narrated were commonplace enough.
1 can vouch for the accuracy Of the
subjoined account, for / have had
access to Lestrade's notebook, in which
the prisoners words were taken down
exactly as they were uttered.
1T didn't much matter to you why
L hated these men," he said; ''it's
enough that they were guilty Of the
death of two human beingS-a father
and a daughter-dnd that they had,
therefore, forfeited their own lives
After the lapse of time that had passed
since their crime, it was impossible for
me to secure a conviction against them
in any court. | knew of their guilt,
though, and I determined that I should
be judge, jury and eXecutioner all
rolled into one. You'd have done the
same, If you have any manhood in
you, if you had been in my place.
That girl that / spoke Of was to
hive married me twenty years ago.
She VAS forced into marrying that
same Drebber, and broke her heart
over it. L took the marriage ring
from her dead finger, and 1 vowed
that his dying eyes should rest upon
that very ring, and that his last
thoughts should be Of the crime for
which he was punished. I have car
ried it about with me, and have fol-
lowed him and his accomplice over two
continents, until I caught them. They
thought to tire me out, but they could
not do it, If | die tomorrow, as is
aikely enough, I die knowing that my
work in this world is done, and we'll
done. They have perisned, and by my
hand. There is nothing left for me to
hope for or to desire.
'They were rich and l was poor so
that il was no easy matter for me to
follow them. When 1 got to London
my pocket was about empty, and [
found that I must turn my hand to
something for my living. Driving and
riding are as natural to me as walking,
so I applied at a cab-owner's Office,
and soon got employment [ was to
bring certain sum week to the own
err, and whatever was over | might
keep for myself. There was seldom
much over, but 1 managed to scrape
along somehow. The hardest job was
to learn my way about, for l reckon
that, for all the masses that ever were
contrived, this city is the most confus-
ing. / had a map beside me, though,
and when once l had spotted the prin-
cipal hotels end stations, L got on
pretty well.
''It was some time before I found
out where my two gentlemen were liv-
ing but I inquired and inquired, until
at last I dropped across them. They
were at q boarding house at Gambler
well, over on the other side Of the
river When once I found them out
I knew that 1 had them at my mercy
I had grown my beard, and there was
no chance Of their recognizing me.
/ would dog them and follow them I'M
til 1 saw my opportunity. I was de-
fermined that they should not escape
me again.
"They were very near doing it, for
all that. Go where they would in Lon