The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1904-03-19

All, uOW lntl Tt III. 4 ucdi lntiA ioVt
steps and voices in the hall. They're
searching the ground-hoor rooms, ex-
pect."
Keep still, every man of you"
whispered Number Two sternly. You
three and lubbock and | are the only
living souls who know about this
room. What cause the police have for
suspecting me, and what they've come
for, | can't think, But. whatever they
have got to know. they don't know
about this room, and If we keep per-
fectly still, the chances are, after
they've satisfied themselves that no
one is in the house, that they'll so
away again. And If they do find us
out, and il comes to fighting, so much
the worse for them, We're five to
two, and after all the risks we've run
we're not going to be taken by a
couple OF Marlborough boobies"
They're coming upstairs now, sir,"
interpolated lubbock w~arningly. We
must be very quiet when they're in your
room below, for | believe | left the cup
board door open, and when that's so,
the sound of what is being said or done
in that room m up surprisingly
clear. Number Seven, you're nearest
TO the trapdoor that opens into the
cupboard. Would you mind standing
on ii, in case they should happen to
try If it pushed up"
| tiptoed to the spot indicated, and
took IN my position as desired. The
next moment we heard the two search
els enter the room below.
This is the last room, Stocker, y
said a voice, and now | think we've
pretty well satisfied ourselves that no
one Is in the house. All the same,
we're sure Of our man, | think. Mr..
Hall is a gentleman-every one knows
that--aud directly he hears who the
william is that he's been employing as
a servant, and what he's wanted for,
he'll be only too glad to assist us to
make the arrest
There cant be any doubt about
that. sergeant" was the reply, and
lucky for him too that he hasn't been
murdered in his bed before this with
that fellow about the place. How so
pleasant-spoken a gentleman as Mr..
Hall could a-got imposed upon to take
such a devil in his service | can't
think. A forged character done 1t, |
expect. That lubbock d stick at
nothing. Fancy him being the man
who is wanted for those murders, and
all the country a-wondering who 1t
was as done it, and crying out against
the police for not finding out. This
ought to mean promotion for you, ser
geant, when you've made the arrest.
and | shouldn't be surprised If Mr.. Hall
came down with something handsome
as we'll"
An exclamation from the sergeant
checked the voluble Stocker.
Some ones been a-writing in this
room, and not very long ago. ex-
planned the officer excitedly. THE
blot on this sheet Of paper amt dry.
See. | can smear it easy with my
finger. don't like the look of this,
Stocker."
mo more don't l, sergeant was the
answer.
cts very suspicious about those two
doors both being fastened on the in
side. The windows was all bolted,
too, as we know, because we tried EN-.
And if the doors was fastened on the
inside and the windows too, it looks
as if them as fastened EN- must be in
the house too. Ay, Stocker?"
at does that, sir" acqu!esced the
sdmiring Stocker. by Jiggins, what
d headpiece you've got!"
"Stocker, I'm going to see this thing
through-that's what I'm going to do.
Hush! what's that?'
"Cistern in the roof a%-gurgling,
think, sir. That's what it sounded
like"
perhaps 50. Why, there 1t is again.
1t is a most extraordinary noise!"
1t certainly was. Even to us over
head who saw it c~oming-if one may
be permitted to speak of seeing a
noise come-and knew to what 1t was
attributable, the sound seemed weird
and unearthly; but to those who heard
the noise without knowing its origin,
the effect must have been mysterious
in the extreme. The day was, as !
have already said, windy, and when
Hubbock's eye was applied to the open
spy-hole in the roof, it was apparently
struck by a ~squall." So at least we
assumed from the red and watery as
pect which the organ in question pre-
scented when he returned to his seat
That, however, was an infiction which
the rest of us could have borne with
becoming resignation; but when GER
tain hideous distortions OF the pa
tents face apprised us of the approach
of a seizure which we hoped at first
might mean only sudden death or
fit. but which we were alarmed to see
developing into a sneeze, we felt thai
the situation was becoming--in a di-
plomatic sense-strained. With ad'
mirable presence Of mind the nearest
man to lubbock banded him a hand
korchief to put to his nostrils In plac,
of that which the sufferer had already
stuffed into his mouth. Then-likt
brave men who, having done theil
best and failed, sit down to wait death
calmly-we sat and waited for thai
sneeze. 1t was a long time coming
At first it seemed 30 long that Hope
told a lattering tale, and we began
all except lubbock. who still had tht
handkerchief stuffed in his mouth
to breathe again. That he should
breathe again was a matter of only
secondary Importance and had he ther
and there had the decency and con