The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1897-02-19

Don't you stir out of that - chair"
my trouble, not to speak Of having got a
chill, Of which / should think myself
cheaply rid il it ended in nothing worse
than cold.
1.-The scheming rascal!" said to my.
self. II might have known ne wouldn' Z
have let me down here II he hadn t
been aware that every sign of his hav-
ing companion on board had been
cleared away. / suppose the secret of it
all is that he has got word that the in
spector's coming to pay the hulks visit
shortly, and he's packed Off Mrs. Hughes
until it's all over. Very likely she set
things straight herself before she went.
All his pretended reluctance to go for
my clothes and to leave me here was
put on that he might bleed me to the
tuneof another pound / should only be
serving him out in his own coin if
gave information that he's had woman
on board.
If it was womanl It's very odd,
though, that she hasn' left some little
sign of her sex behind her--a hairpin.
q button or bonnet pin. There are only
short hairs (Hughes' evidently on the
brush and comb, but she may have had
her own and have taken them with her.
But, anyhow, might have expected to
find, if not some hair combings at least
stray hair or two which would have
let me into the secret, and the neigh
borhood of the mirrors the most likely
place to find Them
But, search as I would, not single
hair could find, and in another half
minute the near dip of oars announced
Hughes return. As l heard him Jerk
the SOULS from the rowlocks and the
grinding of the dingey against the ships
side L took another despsiring look
around in the hope of lighting on some
thing that had hitherto escaped my no
tice. One object after another was has.
tily lifted, investigated and as hastily
put down, but always with the same re-
suit. As heard Hughes step upon the
deck my eyes fell upon little square
Of soap which had fallen to the floor and
had escaped the notice probably of
Hughes as well as of myself on account
of its being hidden by the corner of an
oilskin which was hanging from the
wall. This oilskin had taken down to
overhaul, and it was when replacing it
that found the soap, which 1 saw,
when l lifted it, was of better quality
than one would expect to find in such a
place. 1t was still damp from recent
usage, and as / turned it over two or
three hairs came off from the underside
and adhered to my hand. AS / looked
at thea l gave low, long, but almost
silent. whistle. They were beyond uues-
ton the bristles of shaving brush
which was fast going to pieces from
long service. And that / was not mis-
taken in so thinking was proved by the
fact that the underside of the soap still
bore the marks made by the sweep of
the brush over the surface, and that the
lather upon it was damp
Some one had been shaving. and that
quite recently, on the Cuban Queen. 1t
could not be Hughes, for he wore
thick, full beard If the person who
passed as "Mrs. Hughes" really was a
woman, she was not likely to have re-
course to razor to enhance her charms
III, on the other hand, that person was
a man who was personating a woman
for purposes of disguise, razor would
90 an absolute necessity among his toilet
requisites.