The Globe-republican., 1902-11-20
The LiOD-TumeT.
By SEWARD w. HOPKINS,
Author of Jack Robbins of America ..Iu thu
China Sea- Two 0entlenaen of
Hawaii -On False
Charge" Etc.
cs..nshs. 1895. By RoB-.r Bo.r.... so-.
CHAPTER XVI.

aoouI ms CAIN bearing, his mute
ceptance of his fate, that to me was
sacred His white hand scarcely
tremb1ed as he carried a match to his
cigar, even after he must have been
convinced that his race was run
hls lace was ashen, and the hand
some mouth was set firm and white
AFTER the preliminary announce
ment of our discoveries, which he ac-
cepted with a sad bow of his aristo-
cratic head, said:
nave here. Graviscourt the
sworn statements of the man who was
supposed to have killed Alice Gravis-
court, the man who was hired to kill
Mia Barlotti, and the man who saved
the child from the numbering physi-
clan Shall L read them, or do you
place yourself in the hands of the law
without further agony2"
Proceed he said quietly
With voice shaking with emotion.
1 read to him the statement of Antonio
S1smotta During the reading he sat
hn1shed, he raised glass of wine to
perfectly motionless, and when 1 had
his lips, firmly replaced the glass on
the table, and sat waiting.
Proceed,'' he said, as 1 paused
1.-The next,'
Then 1 read the statement of Luigi
Dambo, and still the doomed man sat
perfectly calm, the ashen pallor of his
face and hands being the only indica-
have been in his brain.
When l had finished this he drained
the glass again, and again sat wait
ing.
Proceed" he said, and this time
there was distinct sheer in his voice
Charles Sigmotta.''
began to read. Charles Sigmotta,s
statement was as folllows:
T. Charles Sigmotta, otherwise
known as Tortoni, the druggist being
duly sworn, do say and declare that
the following statement is absolutely
true:
4 have listened to the statements
of my brother Antonio. and Luigi
Dambo, and I confess that all that is
IN them concerning myself is abso-
lutely true.
81 was the familiar friend of RaInb
Grav1scourt, who, as is well known.
was poor man with expensive tastes
and heavily in debt when by the
death of his brother, he became the
guardian of the child Alice, and the
executor of his brothers will By this
Will, in case of the death of Alice be-
fore marrying, Ralph Graviscourt be-
came sole heir to the fortune of a mil
lion.
He at once plotted to get rid of
the child, and my own financial neces-
stiles made me willing accomptice
The plan was this: had a child
who had died of smallpox child of
poor Italian parents, who gladly con-
sented when 1 offered to take her
away and bury her without expense to
them 1 took this child to Gravis-
courts house, and took the real Alice
Grav1scourt away, first giving her
powerful drug, which I expected would
XIII her Our reasons for making this
substitution were that Graviscourt
feared that some of the friends of his
brother and his wife would demand to
see the body, and if it were known
that she died of smallpox this curl
osIty would no doubt be stifed: and
then again, it provided against a pub
lie funeral and viewing of the corpse
And the child substituted was so
strongly marked by the foul disease
mat one look would convince the most
curious and satisfy all misgivings
But there was no trouble The
Italian child was buried as Alice era
v1scourt, and what followed with the
real helress is truthfully told in my
brothers statement, though up to the
advent of Maligni's circus both Gravis-
court and believed that Alice Grayis-
court was at the bottom of the East
river.
Graviscourt came to me in great
alarm one day and said that a girl who
closely resembled his brothers wife
was al actress Mal1Sn1 circus and
demanded to know more about the dis
position L had made of Alice I reas-
sured him and said that the likeness
was merely coincidence and SO I
firmly believed knew that nv
brother had claimed to have daugh--
ter Nita, but never saw her, and now
understand why he so carefully kent
her out of my way
When Graviscourt had gone, I got
to thinking over the matter and nv
curiosity was aroused, and I went to
the circus to see Nita, my brothers
child was stirred by the striking re-
semb1ance she bore to the wife of
charles Graviscourt, and sought Ma
l1gnl to learn more of her. MaIigni
told me how Antonio had given her to
him, and seemed to attach no fmpor-
lance to my visit But it seems that
he had neglected to read the contents
OF the red box, having no interest in
1t. until aroused his curiosity.
The next day Graviscourt came
again, and said that Malignf had Wis
tied him and claimed to have proofs
that Mia Bar1otti was his niece even
going SO far as to tell of the box and
its contents.
.-Maligni had demanded one him.