Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-10-25
CHAPTER xxx.

When they had passed the edge of the VII
lage, Crane said: II doubt If you would
have shaken hanus with Mr.. Mortimer II
you knew-I mean he Is under strong sus-
piclon-more than strong suspicion, Tor ne
IS practically self-accused of having stolen
81 sum of money from the bank. In fact,
I'm not sure that 1t wasn't from your father
lie really stole IT,
II do know of this terrible thing" she
answered. Il shook hands with him be
cause 1 believe him innocent
You know more than we do" 1t was not
f. sheer, if so, too decately yelled for de-
lection; the words uttered in tone
Of hopeful inquiry.
Mr. Mortimer could not steal-it is i'm
possible"
Have you sufficient grounds for your
faith? Do you happen to know who took
the money? For II was stolen.
The girl did not answer at once. At hrst
her stand had simply been one or lmpllclt
faith in the man she had conjured into a
hero OF all that was good and noble. She
had not cast about for eXtenuating evil
delce: she had not asked herself who the
guilty man was; her faith told her 1t was
morally impossible for Mortimer TO become
q thief Now, Cranes questions, more ma
terial than the first deadening effects of
Alan's accusations, started her mind on
train of thought dealing with motive and
possibilities.
She knitted her small brows. and tapping
the jogging horses quarter with the whip,
sat for many minutes silently absorbed.
Crane waited for an answer with his
usual well-bTed patience. Perhaps the girl
had not heard him; perhaps She did not
wish to answer question so una.Iswerable.
He waited.
Mortimer being innocent, replaced the
stolen money. AIlis mind tabuat ed-she
ticked this thought off the horse with
her whip-it was to shield some one. Her
heart told her. His eyes had told her that
he would have taken upon himself this
great risk but for one person. her brother.
Yes, Mortimer was hero. The horse lazi-
ly going, jumped a little in the traces-she
had struck him a harder tap with the whip.
Why did Mortimer go to Gravesend? 1t
must have been to see Alan-Alan was
there. If he had discovered that the money
was missing, and thought Alan had taken it.
he would do that If he had suspected some
other person. he would have made the mat
ter known to the cashier. He did not re-
place the money at once, because he hadn't
II. She knew that Mortimer was poor He
had failed to find Alan until after Iuzanne's
victory; her brother had told her this much
over the horse.
Why he had bet on Luzanne she knew
not; perhaps Providence had guided him
had helped him that much. But surely that
was the money, his winnings with which
he had replaced the thousand dollars.
The girls mir / had worked methodically
following sequence Of action to sequence,
until finally the conviction that Mortimer
had sought to shield her brother, and
chance, or Providence working through her
self and Luzanne, had placed in his hands
the necessary funds, came to her as fiXedly
as though the whole past panorama of
events lay pictured before her eyes.
She saw all this mentally. But would 1t
avail anything in actually? II Alan dis
claimed guilt as he had-if Mortimer limited
his defense to a simple denial, refusing to
fmplicate her brother-what could she do
except give him her moral support? To her
1t seemed such small reward for his he
roism. Her faith would not save him from
the brand of felony, and to follow out her
convictions publicly she must denounce her
brother, cast upon him the odium of theft
Truly her position was ono of extreme hope
iessness. TWO men she loved stood before
ner mentally, one accused of others as a
thief and one-her own brother-charged
by her reason wl,h a crime
She knew that Alan had lost money on
Iucretia; that he had fel* SO sure of Cranes
horse winning that he had sought a loan
from her to recoup his losses by backing
the Dutchman,
Under the continued silence, Crane grew
restless; the girl. almost oblivious of his
presence, deep in the pathology OF the crime
gave no sign OF desire to pursue the dis
cUSsion-
of course I am anxious to clear the
young man II he Is innocent" hazarded
Crane, to draw her gently back into the
influence that he felt must be of profit to
himself. The assertion Of Cranes was only
assimilatively truthful. AS president of the
bank, naturally he should wish to punish
70 Mortimer for the girls affection he could
not but be pleased to see the younger man
removed from his path-and In way which
would forever preclude his aspiring to AIiis'
hand. Believe In Mortimer as she might
Crane felt sure that she would not run
contra to the inevitable wishes of her
mother, and marry q man who stood pub
Ncly branded a thief.
Allts answered his observation-he dis
tinctly felt the vibration of pain in her
Eoice-with a startling depth OF analytical
dlscernment:
While believe in MortImer's innocence.
ara VIII always believe in It, 1 am afraid
mat ne has drawn such a web of circum-
stahtai evidence about him trying to shield
some one else-that-that-it Is too terriblar'
she broke or passiOnately. "he is innocent For
Gods sake. Mr. Crane" she took the reins
IN her whip hand and put her left on his
arm pieadlngly-'for Gods sake for his
mothers sake, save him. You can do it
You can believe that he is innocent and
stop everything The money has been paid
back"
1t isn't that, Miss Allis-' his voice
was so cuttingly even after the erratic iumn
of her own-''in bank one must not have
dishonest person. We must investigate
10 the end and II Mortimer can clear him
self by fastening the crime upon the per-
potrator-"
He Will never do that; he cannot If he
would"
What can I do then. Miss Allis? But
why shouldn't he?"
Cant you see-don't you understand the
man? He commenced by shielding some one
else, and he will carry II through to the
bitter end"
Il am afraid there was no one to shield
but himself. Everything points 10 this con-
clus!On The money was locked up. he had
the keys, no one touched them-except your
brother Alan. and that but for a minute
but If any suspicion could attach to your
brother IL IS all disspated by Mortimer's
subsequent actions. It's unpleasant TO even
mint at such a contingency, but If Mortimer
is innocent then your brother must be the
guilty one"
He expected the girl to denounce indig-
nantly such possibility; he was surprised
that she remained silent. Her non-refuta-
zion of this deduction told him as concu-
sively as though she had uttered the ao-
cusation that she thought Alan had taken
the money and Mortimer was shielding him
1t was but phase Of blind love; 1t was the
faith the women place in men they love of
which he had read and scoffed at
Against all evidence, she was holding this
man honest believing her brother the thief
Surely a love like that was worth win
ming; price was too great to pay. Her
very faith in Mortimer-through which she
Sought to save him by inspiring Crane de-
termined the latter to crush utterly the