Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1900-12-19
CHAPTER XVII.

Sweetwater was telling his story with
great earnestness and no little show Of
pride.
Gentlemen, when / charge young
woman Of respectable appearance and
connections with such revolving crime
as murder. do so with good reason, as
I hope presently to make plain to you.
"Gentlemen, on the night and at the
hour Agatha Webb was killed, ] was
playing with four other musicians in
Mr.. Sutherland's hallway. From the
place where | sat | could see what
went on in the parlor and also have q
clear view Of the passageway leading
down to the garden door. AS the
dancing was going on In the parlor l
naturally locked that way most. and
this Is how came to note the eeger-
ness with which during the first part
of the evening Frederick Sutherland
and Amabel Page came together In the
quadrilles and country dances. Some
times she spoke as she passed him and
sometimes he answered, but not al
ways, although he never failed to show
he was pleased with her or would have
been If something perhaps 1t was his
lack of confidence in her. sirs-had not
stood in the way Of perfect under
standing. She seemed to notice he
did not always respond and after
awhile showed less inclination to speak
herself, though she did not fail to
watch him and that intently. But she
didn't watch him any more closely than
l did her, though little thought at the
time what would come Of my espion-
age. She wore a white dress and white
shoes and was as coquettish and seduc-
tive as the evil one makes them. Sud-
denly missed her. She was in the
middle Of the dance one minute and
entirely out Of it the next.
NATURALLY | expected that she had
slipped aside with Frederick Suther-
land, but no. he was still in sight, but
looking so pale and so abstracted was
sure the young miss was up to some
sort Of mischief. But what mischief?
Watching and waiting, but no longer
confining my attention to the parlor,
| presently espied her stealing along
the passageway. | have mentioned
carrying a long cloak which she rolled
up and hid behind the open door. Then
she came back, humming a gay little
song which didn't deceive me for a mo-
ment. Good! thought l, she and
that cloak will soon join company
And they did. AS we were playing the
Harebell mazurka | again caught sight
Of her stealthy white figure In that dis
tant doorway. Selling the cloak, she
wrapped it round her, and with just
one furtive look backward, seen, war.
rant, by no one but myself, she van
ished in the outside dark. Now to note
who follows herr thought /. But no.
body followed her. This struck me as
strange, and having a natural love for
detective work, in spite Of my devotion
to the arts. | consulted the clock at
the foot of the stairs. and noting that
it was half past II. scribbled the hour
on the margin Of my music, with the
intention of seeing how long my lady
would linger outside alone. Gentle
men. it was two hours before saw her
face again. How she got back into the
house do not know. 1t was not by
the garden door. for my eye seldom
left it; yet at or near half past ! |
heard her voice on the stair above me
and saw her descend and melt into the
crowd as If she had not been absent
from it for more than five minutes. A
half hour later saw her with Fred
erick again. They were dancing, but
not with the same spirit as before. and
even while | watched them they sep
arated. Now where was Miss Page
during those two long hours? | think
I know, and it Is time unburdened
myself to the police.
"But first | must inform you Of a
small discovery made while the
dance was still in progress. Miss Page
had come down stairs, as ! have said,
from what ! now know to have been
her own room. Her dress was, in all
respects, the same as before. with one
exception-her white slippers has been
exchanged for blue ones. This seemed
to show that they had been rendered
unserviceable. or at least unsightly, by
the walk she had taken. This In itself
was not remarkable. nor would her Pc
culiar escapade have made more than
a temporary impression upon my
curiosity If she had not afterward
shown an unaccountable and eXtraor-
binary interest in the murder which
had taken place in the town below
during the very hours of her absence
from Mr.. Sutherland's ball. This, In
consideration of her sex and her being
a stranger to the person attacked, was
remarkable. and, though perhaps had
no business to do what | did, ! no
sooner saw the house emptied Of
master and servants than stole
softly back. and climbed the stairs to
her room. Had no good followed this
Intrusion, which, am quite ready to
acknowledge, was trifle preSump-
tuous, | should have held my peace in
regard to it; but as did make dis
covery there which has, us believe.
an important bearing on this affair, |
have forced myself to mention it. The
lights In the house having been left
burning. | had no difficulty in finding
her apartment. knew it by the fol-
derols scattered about. But did not
stop to look at them. | was on
search for her slippers. and presently
l came upon them, thrust behind an