Evening star., 1903-07-02
"The Colonel,s Own.v

Words cannot express the tediousness Of
that return journey. The affair which oc-
cupied all my thoughts was as yet too much
enveloped in mystery for me to contemplate
1t with anything but an anxious and inquir-
ing mind While clung with new and per-
sistent hope to the thread which had been
put In my hand. was too conscious of the
maze through which we must yet pass, be-
fore the light could be reached, to feel that
hghtness Of spirit which in itself might
have lessened the hours. and made bearable
those day OF forced inaction. To beguile the
way a little. I made a complete analysis Of
the facts as they appeared to me in the light
OF this latest bit of evidence. The result
was not strikingiy encouraging, yet will
insert 1t. If only In proof of my diligence
and the extreme interest I experienced in
each and every stage of this perplexing at
! fair. 1t again took the form OF summary
and read follows:
Facts as they now appear:
1. Ihe pefemptory demand for an inter-
view which had been delivered to Miss
Moore during the half hour preceding her
marriage had come, not from the BRIDE
groom. as had supposed. but from the So
called stranger. Mr. Pfeiffer.
2 Her reply to this. demand had been an
order for that gentleman to be seated tn
the library.
g. The messenger, carrying this order had
been met and earnestly Italked with by Mr.
jeffrey either Immediately before or imme-
diately after the aforementioned gentle
man had been SO sealed
4. Death reached. sMr, tPfeiffer before the
bride did. ~,
8. Miss Moore renaained In ignorance OF
this catastrophe till, afteii her marriage no
intimatfon of the same, having been given
her by the few persons allowed to approach
her before she deseende1 to her nuptials:
yet she was seen TO- shrink unaccountabiy
when her husbands lips. touched hers ard
when informed of the ,Ireadfui event be-
fore which she bele1d ali her guests fleeing,
went from the houssa changed woman
q. For all this proof that Mr.. Pfeifrer
was well known to her. if not to the res. OF
the bridal party. no acknowledgment OF
this was made by any OF Them then or after
ward. nor any contradiction given either by
husband or wife to the accepted theory that
this seeming stranger from the west had
gone into this fatal roonP of the Moores to
crafty his own morbid curiosity.
T. On the contrary. an extraordinary ef-
tort was Immediately made by Mr. JEFF
frey to rid himself of the only witnesses
who could tell the truth concerning those
fatal ten minutes: but this brought no
peace to the miserable Wife, who never
again saw really happy moment.
g. Extraordinary efforts at conceaimerr
argue extraordinary causes for fear. Fully
to understand the circumstances of Mrs.
Jeffrey's death. 1t would be necessary first
to know what had happened in the Moore
house when Mr.. Jeffrey learned from Curly.
Jim that the man whose hold upon his
bride had been such that he dared TO de-
mand an interview with her just as rane
was on the point of descending to her nyi1-
tfals had been seated, or was about to be
seated. In the room where death had once
held It's court and might easily be per-
suaded to hold court again. - 3
This was the limit of my conclusions. 4