Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-06-30
XVII.
A Fresh Start.

was far from being good company that
night. I knew this without being told. My
mind was too busy. / was too full of re-
grets and plans. reasonings and counter
reasonings. In my eyes Miss Tuttle had
suddenly become innocent, consequently a..
victim. But a victim to what? To some
exaggerated sense of duty? Possibly; but
to what duty? That was the question. to
answer which offhand 1 would in my pres
ent excitement have been ready to sacrifice
a months pay.
For 1 was moved not only by the admi-
ration and sympathy which all men must
feel for a beautiful woman caught in such
deadly snare of circumstantial evidence,
but by the conviction that Durbin, whose
present sleek compIacency was more Of
fensive to me than the sneering superiority
of a week ago, believed her to be a guilty
woman. and as such his rightful prey. This
alone would have Influenced me to take the
opposite view; for we never ran along to-
gether, and in case where any division of
opinion was possible always found our
selves. consciously or unconscfously. on diff
ferent sides. Yet did not really dislike
Durbin. who is a very fine fellow. I only
hated his success and the favor which re-
warded it.
know that have some very nasty fall
ings, and l do not shrink from owning
them Ny desire is to represent myself as
l am. and I must admit that 1t was not
entirely owing to DISTINGUISHED motives that
l now took the secret stand I did in Miss
Tuttle's favor. To prove her innocent
whom once l considered the cause of, If
not the guilty accessory to her sisters
murder. now became my dream by night
and my occupation by day. Though 1
seemed to have no sympathizer in this
effort and though the case against her
was being pushed very openly in the dis
trict attorneys Office, yet chung to my
convictions with an almost insenate per-
sistence. ihwardly declaring her the vic
tim OF circumstances, and hoping against
hope that some clue would offer itself by
means OF which I might yet prove her
SO.
But where was to seek for this clue?
Alas. no ready answer to this very i'm
portant query was forthcoming. All pos
sfble evidence in this case seemed to have
been exhausted save such as Mr.. jeffrey
and Miss Tuttie withheld And SO the mon
strous accusation stood. and before 1t all
Washington-my humble self included
stood In daze of mingled doubt and COM
pa ASSIGN. hunting for explanations which
failed to appear and seeking in vain for
some guiltier party who evermore slipped
from under our hand.
Had Mr.. Jeffrey's alibi been less complete
he could not have stood up against the sus-
pfcions which now ran riot. But there was
no possibility of shifting the actual crime
back to him after the testimony of SO frank
and trustworthy man as Tallman. II the
stopping OF Mrs. Jeffrey's watch fixed the
moment of her death as accurately as was
supposed-ahd never heard the least
doubt thrown out in this regard-he could
not by any means of transit then known in
Washington have reached Waverley ave-
nue. in time TO fire that shot. The gates Of
the cemetery were closed at shutdown; sun
down took place that night at one minute
past Z. and the distance into town is con-
siderable. His alibi could not be eainsaid