The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-04-09
CHAPTER XIX.

W ldl G4lG AlQ say W as Ia sNN-4'@~'o
PLANTATION of her previous sentence. 1t
was not the same old man l had seen
on the doorstep, and while / was look
ing at him L became aware OF some one
leaving the house and passing me on
the road uphill. OF course this ended
my interest in what went on within,
and turning as quickly as l could hur-
ried into the road and followed the
shadow could Just perceive disappear
ing in the woods above me. 1 was
bound, gentlemen, as you see, to follow
ont my adventure to the end. But my
task now became very difficult, Tor the
moon was high ana shone down upon
the road so distinctly that / could not
follow the person before me as closely
as l wished without running the risk
of being discovered by him. L therefore
trusted more to my ear than to my eye,
and as long as l could hear his steps
in front Of me l was satisfied. But
presently, as we turned uD this very
hill, ceased TO near these steps. and
so became confident that he haG
taken 10. the woods. l was so sure
o. this that 1 did not hesitate
TO enter them myself, and, knowing the
paths well, as l have every opportunity
of doing, living, as wed do. directly oppo-
site this forest, l easily found my way
10 the little clearing that have reason
TO think you gentlemen have since be-
come acquainted with. But though
from the sounds heard / was assured
that the person 1 was following Was
not far in advance OF me, / did not care
10 enter this brilliantly illuminated
space, especially as there was every
indication Of this person having COM
pleted whatever task he had set Tor
himself. Indeed, 1 was sure that heard
his steps coming back. So, ior the sec
ond time, 1 crouched down in the dark
est place 1 could find and let TINS mys-
FERROUS person pass me. When he mad
quite disappeared, l made my own re-
treat, for il was late, and L was afraid
of being missed at the ball. But later,
or, rather, the next day, returned and
began a search for the money, which
was confident had been left in these
woods by the person / had been follow
ing. 1 found ii, and when the man here
present, who, though mere fiddler, has
presumed to take a leading part in TINS
interview, came upon me with the pllIS
in my hand, l was but burying deeper
the ill-gotten gains 1 had come upon"
''Ah, and SC making them your own,
Quoth Sweetwater, stunS by the sar-
casm in that word, fiddler.
But with d suavity against which
every attack fell powerless, she met his
significant look With one 1ully as sig
nificant, and quietly said:
III ! had wanted the money for my
self l would not have risked leaving 1t
where the murderer could find il by
digging up a few handsful Of mould and
a bunch of sodden leaves. No, 1 had
another motive Tor my action, q motive
with which few, if any, of You Will be
willing TO credit me. / wished 10 save
the murderer, whom 1 had some reason,
as you see, for thinking l knew, from
the consequences OF mis- own action"
Mr.. Courtney, DR.. Talbot and even
Mr.. Sutherland, who naturally believed
she referred TO label and who, one and
all. had a lingering tenderness for this
unfortunate old man, which not even
this seeming act of madness on his
part could quite destroy, felt = species
OF reaction at this, and surveyed the
singular being before them with, per-
haps the slightest shade Of relenting
IN their severity. Sweetwater alone be-
trayed restlessness, knapp showed no
feeling at all, and while Frederick stood
lil1e one DetTified, and moved neither
hand nor foot.
Crime that is the outcome of fore
thought is desDicable," she went on,
with a deiiberaueness so hard that the
more susceptible OF her AUDITORS Shiid-
dered But crime that springs from
some imperative and overo0wering ne
cessity of the MIND or body might well
awaken sympathy, and am
not ashamed Of having been sorry for
this frenzied and suffering man. Weak
and impulsiVe as you may consider me,
J did not want him to suffer OF account
of a moments madness, as he undoubt-
cdly would if he were ever found with
this money in his possession, SO
plunged il deeper into the soil and
trusted to the confusion which crime al
ways awakens even in the strongest
mind for him not 10 discover my sub
terfuee."
Hal Wonderful Devilsh subtle Ell?
Clever, too cleveri' We're some of the
whispered EXPLANATIONS which this Gu
1ious explanation on her part brought
out. Yet only Sweetwater showed his
open and entire disbelief of the story,
the others possibly remembering that
for such natures as hers there is no
governing law and no commonplace
Interpretation.
To Sweetwater, however. this was
but so much display of feminine re-
source and subtlety. Though he felt he
should keep still in the presence Of men
so greatly his superiors, he could not
resist saying:
Truth is sometimes stranger than
fiction. should never have attributed
any such motive as You mention to the
Young girl ] saw leaving this spot with
many backward look at the hole from
which We afterwards extracted the
large sum of money in question. But
say that this reburying of stolen funds
was out of consideration for the feeble
Old man you describe as having car
ried them there, do you not see that by
this act you can be held as an access
sorry after the fact?"
Her eyebrows went up, and the deli
cate curve of her lips was not without
menace as she said:
.'You hate me. Mr. Sweetwater. Do