Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1896-11-12

cause people are such ldlOrS
'What I said about Miracle Gold was
mostly a lie ALSO"
II knew that"
"All right. Most of what / told you
about Miracle Gold was lie. All told
you about making it was lie. | was
about to enter into league with thieves
to take stolen gold, and pretend to make
it. was going to do this for the sake
OF the fame, not the profit.
"a very dangerous kind of alchemy"
Anyway / have told you what, my
scheme was. l told Mrs. Ashton that
my clock was Independent of my hands
for winding up. You. heard Williams,
the publican, say they saw me wind up
my clock last night. Well, was not near
my clock last night"
"But he said he saw you"
"He did. Now you can understand how
necessary it was for me to lie."
II candidly confess l cannot"
swell, when I conceived the notion of
making Miracle Gold / knew l ran a
great risk. / thought it might become nee
essary to prove alternatives at all events.
The proposition of an alibi is an affirma-
tive, the deduction negative. l told you
my clock was my friend. Well, / made
lie house that my clock had now become
SO complicated that / had arranged to
connect all the movements. The clock
was to be wound up by a lever fixed near
the window, at which I sat when at work,
the only window in the room. Night after
night I worked at this lever for half an
hour, turning round exactly at a quarter
past twelve to nod at the people. Mean
while, was busy constructing life-sized
igure-the body of man every way as
like me as possible. I have skill. a good
deal of skill, in modelling. It was made to
be moved by the lever, not to move it.
easily timed the head so as to turn at a
quarter-past I inserted in the neck of
the figure like myself a movement which
would make the head nod before turning
away to go on with the winding. You
now see my idea?"
"Not quite clearly. But suspect it."
Suppose had to meet one of my eli
ents about the gold, / should make an
appointment with him at quarter past
twelve elsewhere. My clock, at twelve
o'clock, slowly raised the figure from the
floor to the place in which [ sat in my
chair, turned up the gas, which had been
dimmed to the last glmmer that would
live, and then released the weight in the
chimney and set the figure moving as it
working the lever, instead of the lever
working it. Thus you see l should have
a dozen to swear they saw me in my room,
if anything went wrong in my interviews
with my clients, Or if from any other cause
it became necessary for me to prove l
was in my workshop between twelve and
half-past twelve at night"
VERY ingenious indeed
'"There is not much more to tell. Ow
ing to a reason l need not mention, l
made up my mind ON Thursday morning
to go on with the production Of Miracle
Gold. I resolved against my better judg-
ment, and gave the word for the first lot
of the gold to be delivered at my place at
midnight exactly. You know how nay
afternoon was spent. While at Mrs.
Ashton's my better judgment and my
worse one had scuffle, and made up
my mind to decide upon nothing that
night, and certainly to commit myself to
nothing that night. What you would call
the higher influence was at work"
"Pallas-Athena?
Eyes, if you think that Il good name.
Any way, l made up my mind to do moth
ing definite in the interest of Miracle Gold
that night. I set my dummy fgure-that
figure was burned up; not L. 1 am going
fast Is there no cab? / can hardly
breathe. Have you seen Miss Ashton
since"
II have"
'Since yesterday afternoon?'
mo-
They were standing at a doorstep.
Leigh had leaned his side against the
area ratings for support. His breathing
was terrible, and every now and then
he gasped, and clutched his hands to-
gether.
eff you come to see me tomorrow, per-
haps you may not come alone?"
Hamburg flushed. He did not want to
make his confession just now.
perhaps may not" he said. "Good-
by now"
"Good-by; and thank you for your good
ness. You know whom hope to see with
you?"
Eyes"
''Who?"
'Pallas-Athena, of course"
"Of course"
ITo ho oop%;p,o1