The National tribune., 1901-11-14
.'Yps " she said

yes" she said.
"Agnesl In tho name of Heaven, what
does this mean?" he said, in voice Of
entreaty. Surely you do not mean to
say that you were alone in those desolate
woods in the darkness and stormT
"Yes-but-let us not talk about it
think l shall go mad if I cannot think OF
something else"
She sank down on the couch, burying
her face in her hands.
MY poor darling" he said, compassion
ately, forgive me if L have caused you
pain"
1T is l who should ask forgiveness
she replied; but if you love me, do not
question me about that dreadful night"
1T shall be rs you WISH" he said.
He sat looking at her in silent perplex-
ity. There was mystery surrounding
her strange actions that he could not
fathom. What was the secret of her mys-
terious journey the night before? What
ever it was, it was evident that she did
not wish to make it known.
Il ought to go to Darkwood," she said.
after a moments silence, "but-I-can-
not"
II hope you will not think Of going in
your present condition." he said. You
are i'll, or will be SO unless you remain
perfectly quiet and let not this sad affair
weigh too heavily on your mind. You
must place this matter in my hands, and
| will see that your every wish is exc
cuted. | shall return to Darkwood pres
emily"
But you will not leave me? You will
Teturn!' she broke in, in an appealing
voice.
Il expect to return at the earliest pos,
sible moment. When the inquest is com
pleted, suppose you will have the-body
brought hereT
"Yes-yes. | will leave the matter in
your hands, il you will take the response
bility"
Then you need give the matter no fur
ther thought | shall see to everything
Are there any relatives to be notifiedT
None"
An hour later Gilbert left Pine Hall
and rode in the direction of Darkwood.
When he arrived in the village he found
that the inquest was already in progress.
When it was finished the landlord called
Gilbert into his private room.
Il want to have a little private talk
with YOU" he said. This business has
taken rather queer turn, and for the life
of me | don't know what to make of it"
ANY new developments in the caseT'
'Wcll, yes, and that is just what | want
to speak about. How long did you say
you had known Col. WithersT'
Only for a few months. l never saw
him until my arrival in Springfield about
three months ago"
You know nothing about his business
affairs. then?
Nothing more than that l understand,
from a private conversation with him,
that he was a broker III New Orleans be
fore he retired from active business"
That confirms what we have since
learned. You don't know of any living
relatives except his niece, Miss Benning
TOM
nd ,f
well. we have learned that there is a
brother in Australia, Felix Withers In
the effects of the Colonel were found life
insurance policies to the amount of $J0,-
900. Thirty thousand of this is payable
to the, brother, the other $4,000 to his
niece. As soon as the news of the
COlOners death reached the city a detect
tigatiOn of the case. Mr. Fix-that is the
name of the detective-has found out
more in Il few hours than we could have
discovered i'll Il month. His first move
was to look for motive, and he set about
to discover if any robbery had been COM
mitted. 1t was impossible to be fully
satisfied on this point, but he pushed on,
letting nothing escape his notice. You re-
member L spoke of an empty bottle which
you saw lying in the murdered mans
room! Well, an investigation showed that
morphine had been placed in the liquor
which had been in the bottle. There re-
mained little doubt as to who was guilty
of the crime of numbering Col Withers,
and that was the young man who had
stopped here last night and who gave his
name as Leslie Rush.
But the next question was to discover
the whereabouts If the young man. He
had disappeared as mysteriousy as he had
come, leaving no trace behind. But here
comes the strangest part Of the matter
as far as the detective is concerned. He
would take no interest in the search for
Leslie. Rush, going quietly on with his
For the life of me | could not see
what he was driving at, but, meantime.
those who had gone in search Of Leslie
Rush struck his trail at a woodcutter's
cabin. An old man by the name of New
ton and his wife lived in the cabin, and
it appears that Rush had lost his way
in the forest, and sought shelter in tine
cabin. 1t appears that the young man
was almost frozen, and tainted soon after
reaching the shelter of the hut.
Now comes the strangest part of the
story. As the old man and woman lifted
the strange visitor to place him on a
couch his hat came off, long coil of hair
slipped down, and the visitor proved TO
be a woman dressed in mans atfire"
Gilbert uttered an exclamation of amaze
ment. his mind in Il strange tumult.
The wOodcutter's Wife who had WIS.,