Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1902-10-10
With a sigh Nell obeyed. She ad

leave the house on account Of my poor
uncle. Then I went over the keys to
the different doors by an old list we
had left by the man who had the place
before my uncle, and It was then
missed the key, and remembered that
1 had not seen it for long time"
Sir Neville made few notes before
he went on.
Before you missed the key you had
had suspicious, of course?"
Nell bowed her head in assent.
"You need not think" said the mag
istrate, sharply, that your making a
frank admission Of your suspicious
can do the lady any harm. We should
get at the truth somehow, you may be
quite sure"
II am telling you all know" said
Nell, simply.
She herself saw that no concealment
was possible any longer. And surely
If Miss Bostal were really found gull
ty Of such unlikely crimes she must
have been mad when she committed
them.
when did the idea that Miss Bostal
committed the thefts come into your
mind for the first time?"
Even now the remembrance Of the
terrible sensation she had experienced
on that memorable occasion caused
frown of pain and distress to contract
Nells pretty features.
"Jem Stickels-the fisherman who"
She stopped. =,
"Who was murdered. Yes, yes"
''He told me he-had seen the thief"
eyes. That came out at the inquest.
WeliY
"He told me that the thief was Miss
Bostal; that he had seen her come out
of the inn on the night that an attempt
was made to rob Mr.. Hemming."
"When did he tell you this?"
"On the afternoon Of the next day"
"Why did you not say this at the in
quest? Why did you let 1t be thought
be meant he had seen your
81 was in great difficulty. I didn't
know what to think, even then. I
had always thought Miss Theodore SO
good, and besides she had been 50 kind
to me, that I didn't know what to be-
lieve myself. 1t was all so dreadful,
and I asked myself what she could do
such things for. Besides, her manner
when I told her Jem Stickels had
threatened to tell the police was 30
cool. She didn't seem to be IN the
least concerned about 1t. How could
suppose it was because she meant to
get him out Of the way? Oh, can't
believe it even now, I can't, can't.
Why should she do 1t, unless she was
mad? And there never seemed to be q
trace Of madness about her. I always
thought she was very clever"
Sir Neville smiled a little at her in.
genuousness. Nell herself might not
be very clever, but assuredly she was
O loyal-hearted friend, to bear the OBJ
loquy which the affair had cast upon
her, without q thought of clearing her"
self by betraying her friend.
But this was not, Of course. the off,
cial view, which was the view he was
bound to take. He coughed severely,
and gave her a keen look.
Don't you think" he said, shat you
were bound, in the interests Of Justice,
to be more frank?"
ooh, sir, does one help the interests
of Justice against ones friendsT
zone ought to-" was the prompt re.
ply.
"And then, too, nobody asked me
any questions implying any doubts OF
her. They took it for granted that I
was the thief, the jury did, and every
body. You remember that, don't your
Yes, Sir Neville did remember that.
And looking at the candid and sweet
face in front of him he wondered how
his brother MAGISTRATES had been such
asses, and he forgot that he had been
one Of those asses himself.
"Well," he said, in more pompous
manner than ever, "you really gave
your evidence so very badly, with such
an apparent absence of straightfor-
wardness, that there was some excuse
for their mistake"
ut was because was so miserable,
cir, more miserable than anybody, be-
cause in sort OF way knew tn"
truth"
"You should have let the jury know
1t, too"
"Sir, If it had been only the thefts I
would have done co." answered she,
II was in go much trouble
with my suspicious that I had asked
one of my friends"-her blush be-
trayed ier-"to come and see me, that
I might ask his advice about 1t. But
before I had time to tell him what
was afraid Of the murder happened.
And then I didn't dare"
"Well, well, it was great pity"
said Sir Neville. "You would have
saved yourself lot Of misery, and 1t
would have done the lady no harm, as
you see. And now I want some infor.
nation, IL you please, as to the night
o. the murder. Did you, or did you
not, hear any one 60 out Of the house
Or come in, when you had come back
With Miss Bostal from your visit to
lem Stickels at his'lodgings?'
Odd hear something" faltered
Nell.
"What was it?
almost as soon as Miss Bostal left
nc in the kitchen / heard the back
door open and shut"
"Ah! Did you 60 to see who 1t was
hat had opened the doorY
"No."