Waterbury evening Democrat., 1904-09-07

reduced a visible change in his man ler His eyes flew first to one door
 md then to another, as if 1t were he vho feared intrusion now.
 II beg your pardon for speaking on
 70 painful topic, went on as soon IS saw he was ready to listen to me-
 My excuse is that I came upon a lit
 le thing that same night which have
 lot thought of sufficient importance to
 mention to any one else, but which it nay interest you to hear about"
 Here I took from a book l held a
 ,iece of plotting paper. It, was white
 n one side and blue on the other. The
 white side I had thickly chalked,
 though this was not apparent. Laying down this piece of plotting paper, chalked side up, on the end of a large
 table near which we were standing, took out an envelope from my pocket and, shaking it gently to and fro, re- marked:
 ''In an upper room of the Moore house-you remember the southwest chamber, sir?'
 ] An, didn't he! There was no mis-
 doubting the quick emotion-th the shrinking and the alarm with which
 he heard this room mentioned.
 Tt was in that room that I found
 these.''
 Tipping up the envelope, scattered over the face of the blotter a few of the glistening particles had collected from the place mentioned. He bent over them, astonished: then,
 as was natural, brushed them together in heap with the tips of his fingers and leaned to look again just as
 breathed heavy sigh which scattered them far and wide
 Instinctively he withdrew his hand, whereupon I embraced the opportunity 2 of turning the blotter over, uttering meanwhile the most profuse apologies. Then, as if anxious not to repeat my misadventure, I let the blotter lie where it was, and, pouring out the few remaining particles into my palm, I held them toward the light in such a way that he was compelled to lean 4 across the table in order to see them. Naturally. for had planned the dis tance we'll his finger tips, white with the chalk he had unconsciously ham
 dled, touched the blue surface of the
 blotter now lying uppermost and left their marks there.
 I could have shouted in my elation Z at the success of this risky maneuver, but managed to suppress my emotion and to stand quite still while he took good look at the filings. They seemed to have great and unusual interest for him, and it was with no ordinary emo ton that he finally asked: I What do you make out of these, and N why do you bring them here?' A My answer was written under his a hand, but this 1t was far from my pol
 icy to impart So, putting on my friend q 1 Hest air, returned, with suitable re \ sDect:
 II don't know what to make of them. x They look like gold, but that is for you x to decide. Do you want them, sir2'' ".No,' he replied, starting erect and
 withdrawing his hand from the blot H ter. Its but trife-not worth our & attention. But thank you just the 4 same for bringing it to my notice" N And again his manner became plain % dismissal.
 N This time accepted it as such with < out question. Carelessly restoring the # piece of plotting paper to the book
 from which had taken it, l made a
 bow and withdrew toward the door. # He seemed to be thinking, and the deep N furrows which I am sure had been
 lacking from his brow week previous
 became startlingly visible. Finally he n observed:
 - '.Mrs. Jeffrey was not in her right z mind when she so unhappily took her ,5 life. see now that the change in he1 ' dates back to her wedding day; conse- cIrc u : have shown at that time is not to be io wondered al"
 +o Certainly not,'' I boldly ventured
 eff such peculiarities were shown aft ;s CT the fright given her by the catas fl trophe which took place in the library d His eyes, which were fixed on mine ra flashed, and his hands closed convul V sively.
 ,d we will not consider the subject F he muttered reseating himself in the ,i. chair from which he had risen. X I bowed again and went out. did ft not dwell on the interview in my owI a mind, nor did allow myself to draw n any conclusions from it till had car 2 ried the blotter into the southwesi ! chamber of the Moore house and care
 fully compared the impressions made 10 on it with the marks had scratched if on the surface of the mantelshelf t This did by laying the one over the other after having made holes where If his finger tips had touched the blotter . The holes in the blotter and tht
 marks outlined upon the shelf coincid
 ed exactly.
 CHAPTER TX.