The evening tribune. (Pawtucket, R.I.) 189?-190?, 1897-05-06
A MISSING M"

nay desk opening my correspondence when
i came across a letter which conveyed to
me news that considerably shocked me.
My cid friend and client, Sir Douglas Rem
wood, was dead, and the letter announcing
the sad intelligence was from his nephew
and ran thus
COTTAGE, Staines, June /.
DEAR Mr.. GEARY-I have to inform you Of
the sad death of my uncle. He passed away at
10 o'clock last Mig ht Ii was all terribly sud
den. He caught violent chill last week,
whicb developed into information OF the
lungs. We sent for DR.. Holmes, the leading
doctor here, but he could do no good, and the
end camo last evening.
L write 10 You because / think ii desirable
that you as the family adviser should come
down here at once TO arrange for the funeral,
and also TO go into other matters connected
with my poor uncle's estate. Yours faithfully,
MARX REDWOOD.
"Aha," said to myself as / concluded
the reading of the letter. 1.-The other mat
ters which Mr.. Mark refers to are closely
connected with himself. He is the next of
kin. sir Douglas died unmarried. This
means 100000 a year for my young
friend"
then proceeded to continue my work
of opening the morning letters, and find
ing tHdI tIeTt WAS Dolnlilp Ol uFReIlt I'LL
portance therein l determined TO act on
Mark Renwood's suggestion and go down
TO Staines without delay.
/ sent 10 my head clerk and told him Of
my intention, bidding him also to find out
when there was u train from Paddington.
lie coon returned with the information
that could catch good one at l2 80, and
l accordingly drove to Kensington and col
Tod hot I fnr
an hour later was seated in "a first class
carriage on my way 10 Staines.
had announced my coming by telo-
graph from Paddington, and was there
fore not surprised TO find young Renwood
waiting for me when / alightcd.
He was tall, thin young man, with
strong, aquiline features and small gray
eyes. had known him since he was at
Eton, and he held out his hand to me with
cordial smile.
Il am delighted to see you come so soon,
Mr.. Geary," he said, speaking in n hearty
tone, "but i wish you had come on more
joyous business. This is sad affair in
deed" ="
''Ssd enough" reioined, "and yet we
must all die some day or other-else where
would the young ones come in!i
Tho cottage was about half mile from
the station, and our journey took MS along
the river bank. As we passed the boat
house on the slope be said in n low voice:
This Is the spot where my poor uncle
contracted the chill which caused his end
He and Iwere walking along this path one
evening, when we heard n cry for help,
and the next moment a child's head ap-
peared above the water. /, Of course.
would have plunged in, but AS you have
perhaps noticed am suffering from tenn
porary sprain, and l could net swim an
inch. My uncle, kyowing this, threw of
his cont, ana swimming 10 the spot where
the child was fast sinking rescued it just
as the yourgster came up for the third
time
"A heroic action indeed, considering his
time of life" l said.
ut was "a heroic action, hut il cost him
his life. 1 begged him directly we reached
home to so To bed, Int be refused, saying
that he would simply change his clothes
and have n bath, ard then Le ~ ft as POS
sible. Alas, hc was mistaken. Next morn-
ing he said be Rad caught n cold and in the
evening he was 80 shaky that went for
the doctor. Then followed Inflammation
of the lungs-and thcn-dcath."
''This DIR. Holmes | quericd, sis he
a really good nanl"
II believe he is the best doctor i'm these
parts. Had known things were ~ seri-
Gus would have wired To town for our
own man, but | never dreamed that such
was the case.
Poor old gentlclnan," said. And
he was To have been married soon. was he
notf''
Yes. That is the satldcst part Of the
business. He looked forward ~ much To
giving up the state of hachclordom in
which he had lived, and now-well, it's
no use talking of the past.
'All the came, )" could not help re-
marking diyly, it Is not such terrible
thing for You that this marriage did not
take place. Had il done so there might
have been an heir 10 the estate who would
have cut you out most completely"
He looked up with hasty glance.
"Oh, Mr. GoaIy," he said, II cannot
think of things like that at - time like
this. My uncle was father tn me, and
better than many fathers. am well nigh
stunned by the blow. Money matters just
row scem 70 me very small indeed"
well, wcll,' said somewhat testify,
I've cannot Go without money, whether
we think Of IL or not. But here we are at
- Cottage, for l suppose this IL the
place"
This is the place" he answered.
Come in"
followed him into the cottage and up
the stairs until vecamc To the room " here
the dead baronet lay.
went slowly toward the he'd ON which
my poor old friend and client rested. and
drawing aside the sheet which covered the
dead face took last, long look on the fes.
lures knew - we'll
was rouscd from my reflections by the
rntrance Of young Rcnwood, who came M
10 the bedside and pulled out his cigar csse.
Ievernl papers dropping from his pocket
ut the time
"Have a cigar, he said ss l stopped 10
pick up the papers. And then seeing n
shade Of annoyance that I could pui con.
zeal cross my face nj the thought of smok
ing st such time and In such place he
said hastily: Perhaps we'd better mo-,
smoke, though. It's barily decent I'm n
room with death in IL T"
His sudden glow of proper fcciing did
not impress me, and ! merely banded him
The pspers he had dropped ia silence.