The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1902-06-27
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. $WMWMWWWMWWNl
& HERR STEINHARDT'S NEMESIS /
81 BY J. LMAcLAREN coBBAN
NlINlNSlNlNZ

right in front. where the reflection
from the sheet fell full upon him.
When the lights we're turned, some out
and others low, Freeman and crept up
behind the sheet, where | waited with
trembling pulse and sudden creeping
chills till the, to me, uninteresting
part Of the entertainment came to an
end. The curate acted as lecturer, and
explained with fluency what the views
meant, or told something about the
places represented. l cannot tell what
it was about. At length his series OF
views and his LECTURE were finished.
There was a moments pause--to me
wild throb of anxiety--and then the bass
voice OF the manager of the lantern
doomed forth the announcement: IA
Lacashire Mystery" Without another
word the first picture tame upon the
sheet Il crept to its corner to watch
Steinhardt). 1t was two men in an
attitude of quarrel, surrounded by col
ored vapors. The second followed
quickly without word of explanation;
the same two men the one half suffo-
Gated, struggling to get out OF vat or
bath Of vapors, while the other, with
mouth muftled, held him down. Still
no word Of explanation. Rapidly
came the third picture--the man one
lying dead aud dyed before the other,
and beside an open box. Awful whis-
pers began TO stir among the spectators,
who were the more impressed no doubt
by the silence amid which the pictures
appeared. / ventured to peep at Stein
hard; he was gazing fixedly, with part
ed lips. The fourth picture called
forth an instantaneous cry Of horror; IT
was, perhaps, too realistic. The dead
body lay stripped and quartered before
the living man, who stopped over it. |
fancied that at this sight heard low
moan from the front bench, but on
glancing at Steinhardt l saw him sit
ting as before, as If fixed as much by
utter astonishment as by horror. The
next picture rapidly blotted out the
gruesomeness of the ether; the portions
OF the body lay wrapped in three can
vas packages, and the man stood by as
II pondering. Quickly came the next;
the man digging near a ruined build
ing, with the three packages by him.
eth owd spinning MILL" some one
exclaimed aloud; had not thought the
resemblance was so recognizable. That
was almost Immediately succeeded by
the same view OF the mill, with the
packages gone, the hole covered in, and
the man standing as il pulling rope
which passed over the top of the wall.
"The devil!" exclaimed steinhardt,
starting suddenly to his feet. But he
recollected himself, and sat down again.
At once the last picture Of all flashed
upon the sheet; the wall lay fat on the
ground, and the man stood by with the
loose rope in his handl
Up started Steinhardt, and strode
down the room, amid an ominous
silence. to where the big Dick stood by
his apparatus.
"N here the DEVIL" heard him ex.
claim, sd d those horrible pictures
come from2 They were not among the
lot bought Come, no id nonsense!
You must tell me where you got them.
Who gave them to you?
There was now a wild hubbub OF
talk. Dick, l was sure, had refused to
tell him anything about them. In the
midst Of this the lights flashed forth
again, and the people began slowly to
disperse, with hushed but earnest
speech. Freeman and l slipped out by
a side door.
! went straight to Jaques's cottage.
There | found Birley. In low, anxious
voices we began to discuss what would
he (meaning Steinhardt) do now.
Louise wished she had been there, and
Birley had just said it was as we'll she
had not, when a heavy foot rapidly APP
preached, the latch was noisily raised
the door was dashed open, and Stein.
hard stood before us.
"Soh!' he exclaimed, glaring at Bir-
ley and me, 81 have found you, sneaks
and cowardsl You think with your
FOOLS tricks and your pictures you will
annoy me, and spoil mel Pffl You
ale nothing!-you are beggars!-you
are dirt! will have you, Sir Parson,
arrested for making calumnious charges
against mel" How in his fury had he
committed himself!
"Herr Steinhardt," said |, at once,
"the pictures, so far as / heard, we've
unaecompanied by a single word OF
comment, except what they drew from
the people, and no one could say that
the figures represented were likenesses.
But your guilty, black heart has charged
you. AS it says, say: "You are the
murderer OF your partner, Mr.. Lacroix,
and his remains will now be found se-
curely locked, whence you can remove
them, under that fallen WALL"
His jaw dropped, and his great body
trembled for moment, then as with
sudden impulse of fury he made as if
he would crunch me with a bearish
hug. when Birley came between us.
"Come, Manuel, none OF that. As
l told you, you'e not yet done with law
and Lancashire. You'd better 60
home, or go to our experiments. f"
'Fooll' he cried, still glaring at me.
Idiot What scrap of proof have you
of the ridiculous charge you maker
Tor one thing have proof that Mr.. |
Lacroix, before he went to you at the |
works, called here to see his old
uncle"
"Sohl Has the old idiot found his
tongue at last them"
We we all amazed, Steinhardt as
much as any, at the electrical effect of
this upon the old man. / had casually
noticed throughout the scene that he
had eagerly though painfully listened
1 was smitten with fright, as if saw
dead man rise to his feet, when he now
rose at once to his full towering height
"a height which l could not have con-
ceived he possessed as he reclined hud-
died in his chair-and, quivering with
excitement, strove 10 give utterance.
This he could not do, but with light
ming gesture he pointed with out
stretched srm to the door. Steinhardt
stood and stared open-eyed, when he
made as if he would himself compel
him to go.
&C. tGAgonoF. tss