The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1897-08-03

He saW the great ndsttf lying on the floor
stthtfs.
may change boarding places as often as
you please, but remain in the city.
That is all. Good morning" Before
she could shy q word he had gone.
Mr.. Barnes went directly to the
Grand Central railroad depot and start
ed for Lee, where he arrived early on
the following morning, Reaching the
farm, be found Virginia in the parlor.
She advanced to meet him with cor
dial greeting.
II am SO relieved to see you back
again. What news have your"
II have discovered the murderer.
"You have? Who is he? Tell me at
once"
ut is the man who has passed as your
cousin"
MY uncle's SOM"
"No, not your unole's son, though
that is what he called himself. I must
find him at once. Where is ho?"
''He has gone"
"Gonei Gone where? I will follow
him to the end of the earth. He shall
not escape me. Where has he gomez"
"We do not know. I told you, when
I last saw you, that he would pass the
night OF the squire's, but it seems that
be must have retired to his room after
the funeral, for he was here at break
fast.''
"Well3 Go onl Go on!' The detect
i've was impatient.
"After breakfast he again went to
his room. We saw nothing more of him
until dinner time. Then l went in to
call him, but he was not there. He has
not been seen SINCE"
"Perhaps he went to the squirrels.
IT went over to see Alice this morn
ing and learned that no one had seen
him since the funeral"
"Too latel Too late after all my
troublel' moaned the detective. He
leaned his head on his hands and SEEM
ed almost about to weep. Virginia did
not know what to say to him; so think
ing it best to leave him to himself she
left the room. Mr.. Barnes
in ono position for fully ten
but suddenly he jumped up
and seemed all animation again.
miss Lewis! Miss Lewis" he cried
in great excitement. At the sound of
his voice Virginia came hurrying in
and was astonished at the change in his
demeanor.
miss Lewis" said he, speaking rap
Idly, lyon say that he went to his room
and has not been seen since?'
eyes, he must have come out'-
"Never mind that Tell mo, is it the
same room which he occupied when he
slept here on the night after the mur-
ier?'
"Yes. Thinking that he was my un-
,le' son, I gave him my uncle's ROOM"
your uncle's room? OF course. 1t is
Is clear as day. During that first night
Burrows heard mysterious noises. He
came down into this mans room and
found it empty. Burrows sat by his
door all night to ask him where he had
been, and, although he did not pass him,
nevertheless in the morning the man
was in the room. Do you understand"
"Not clearly"
at is very simple! There is secret
apartment in this house, and the MUIR
derer is at this moment concealed i'll it."
"a secret roomi 1t is impossibleP'
Anything else is impossible, you
mean. This is not the day Of miracles.
and man cannot disappear in this way
IN broad daylight.
but how will you find it, if it ex.
sts?'
1T will be easy enough to find it il
We know that it is in existence. In the
irst place, there must DO way to enter
t from that room in which your uncle
slept. Come, we will go there first. -
Together they went to the room, and
Mr.. Barnes looked about for some sign
that would guide him Alright. After
reasoning for moment, as Burrows had
lone at the Epping house, he said:
II have it. I will go straight to it.
Burrows heard this man in the secret
apartment, and Burrows was up STAIRS
10 am sure that the place Of which we
are in search is above. Now what is its
exact location? 1t must be accessible to
his room, and yet the room which Bur.
.ows occupied is as large as this Now
observe that the closet in the corner
projects out into the hall. In your room
here Is similar closet. On this floor,
n the hall, between these two projec-
ions for the closets, is the little passage
eading from tho main hall into the din.
ng room. I have noticed that up Stair
here are no closets and, of course, nc
uch passageway. Therefore the space
by them below indicates where
he secret room is to be found on the
lext floor"
"But how shall we get in?'
II think it will be difficult for you to
10 SO, for I expect that the entrance is
through the ceiling Of the closet in this
DOM. I will now look"
Mr.. Barnes opened the closet door,
md then started back as he saw the
,reat mastif lying Oh the floor within.
The dog arose and went up to Virginia,
pitifully. Then he went back
INTO the closet, raised himself upon his
lind legs, rested his fore paws against
he wall of the closet and with head up
urned howled in horribly suggestive
manner
do you see," said Mr.. Barnes, "the
,rute knows that there is something
wrong up there?" Virginia coaxed the
log away from the closet, and the de.
ective stood on a chair and examined
he ceiling. In q moment he announced:
II have it, Here is the trapdoor. A
minute later he had drawn himself up
trough the aperture and disappeared.
7eYy soon, however, he returned, and
. be dropped to the floor he said: