Tazewell Republican. [volume] (Tazewell, Va.) 1892-1919, 1901-09-05
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{ THE MANWITH (
! . THE KNIFE o I
Z By Elizabeth Cherry Waltz. :
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Copyright, 1901, by Authors syndicate)
By Elizabeth Cherry Waltz.

defined in the ambient glow coming IN
an opening between two buildings.
They struggled a second, and then
there was a sudden double fash in the
right hand of one. Then the other man
fell, and Bertha gazed, horrOr-strick-
en-, at one huddled heap lying alone
where two forms had been writing
madly.
The shock of it photographed on her
brain the face, the form, the uncovered
head of the man with the knife. She
would know him if she met him among
a thousand others. Then the horror of
it came home to her.
She, Bertha Dunn, the shyest and
the meekest of all the teachers in the
Tenth ward school, had witnessed a
murder. She would have to appear in
court, to testify, to explain, to iden-
tify.
She closed her lips very resolutely.
No one must know it from her. God
had such matters in His hand, not man.
She closed the window softly and went
about getting her frugal meal with
shaking hands but firm determine
tion not to give way.
1t was a courageous thing to do, but
Bertha had need of courage. Some so
miles away in the deep green country
her invalid and widowed mother and
several small brothers and sisters
lived upon her salary-that is, all she
could spare. This made her live in a
small, high-up room and alone-that
her economies be not known. 1t was
in the blessed rest hour after school
that Bertha leaned out and witnessed
the tragic fate of the unknown.
Long she sat in thought over her cup
of tea. Bertha had that rare thing, a
conscience, and she weighed the mat
ter carefully. The deed, the motives,
who the man with the reddish hair
might be-these things haunted her
dreams and broke her sleep. She was
glad when morning dawned and she
could go to her school.
But first she bought a morning pa
per to see if the murder had been dis
covered. There it was in big, black
headlines! A mysterious murder OF
an unknown man, a well-dressed
stranger, in whose pockets was moth
ing by which to identify him. And, as
she read, Bertha Dunn realized with a
shudder that the murderer, also, had
been we'll dressed and that the double
fash in the sunlight had been a great
jewel on the hand that drove home the
shining knife.
The police were making every effort
to get clew to the murder. So
Bertha was prepared to meet a re-
spectful policeman in plain clothes
near her door that afternoon. Had
she seen any people in the alley the
day before? Did she know anything
of the murdered man? To which ques'
lions Bertha was able to give shy
negative. She trembled to think thai
they might ask her if she had seen the
murder committed-but they did not
and she went up the stairs very thank
full.
The little teacher bought papers the
two next mornings and read them ovel
her desk before the school bell rang
The third day she read with wildly
beating heart. The identity of thu
murdered man had been discovered
He was one of the city's retired cap
italists, a man of wealth, culture anC
travel. He was supposed to be in New
York, and it was only by accident tina
he was known. The face of the muir
dered man had been badly slashed
probably after death, and this rem
dered Identification difficult. Now tn
chase was on. The city was reused
the murderer must be found, ant
money was plenty.
Bertha closed her little red moutl
more firmly, and went about with
white face. Drag her into court
room? She would rather die a hun
dred deaths.
In those days she had troubles of he
own. Her sister, the one who kept tn
family together down in the country
wrote of the mothers increasin
weakness and need of luxuries; of tn
need of books and clothing for tn
boys, and that delicate Jenny mus
have new fiannels for the late autumn
Bertha reduced her own food to TT
least possible quantity and sent tt
money home that should have pu
chased her three meals every da
Suddenly something happened. Whe
Bertha, weak from fasting, draggf
up the stairs one evening and unlockt
her door, large white envelope Ia
| upon the floor. She stopped to pick
up and fell dizzily. 1t was address,
10 her plainly. Within was bund
of crisp bills and a slip Of paper
! which was printed only four words
"The reward of silence"
Bertha drew back In horror, but Il
money lay in her lap, crisp new bill
$500 in al. Who can measure VIII
that sum meant to the hslf-starved Ii
tie woman sick with the clamor OF ne'
in her ears and with six souls Deepen
|" emit upon her exertions?
The next day she read an announc
: ment of a thousand-dollar reward II
the arrest and conviction Of the mu
/ derer or the information leading to
!. Then she understood. But her
curled. Desperate as was her. need s.