Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1904-05-20

/ groom, as l had supposed, but from
the so called stranger. Mr.. Pfeiffcr.
For all this proof that Mr.. Pfeiffer
was we'll known to her. If not to the
rest of the bridal party. no acknowl-
edgment Of this was made by any of
them thea or afterward. nor any con-
tradictior given either by husband or
wife to the accepted theory that this
seeming stranger from the west had
gone into this fatal room of the
Moores To crafty his own morbid Gu
riosity
On the contrary. an extraordinary
/ effort WAS Immediately made by Mr..
Jeffrey tn rid himself Of the only wit
nesscs who could tell the truth con-
1 corning those fatal ten minutes. but
/ this brought no peace to the miserable
/ wife, WHO never again saw really
happy moment,
argue extraordinary causes for fear.
| Fully to understand the circumstances
( Of Mrs. Jeffrey's death, it would be
/ necessary first to know what had hap
pened i'll 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 demand
an interview with her just as she was
on the point of descending to her
nuptials had been seated. or was
about to be seated. in the room where
death lad once held its court and
might eusily be persuaded to hold court
again.
The encouragement afforded me by
my late discoveries was such that
| felt confident that nothing could hinder
my success save the necessity of COM
pletely pulling down the house. Be
sides, all investigation had hitherto
started, If 1t had not ended. in the
library. was resolved to begin work
In quite q different spot l had not
forgotten the sensations / had ex-
periencAd in the southwest chamber.
During my absence this house had
been released from surveillance. But
the major still held the keys, and had
no difficulty in obtaining them. The
next thing was to escape its owners
vigilance. This managed to do
through the assistance of jimmy, and
when midnight came and all lights
went ont In the opposite cottage l en-
tered boldly upon TIE scene. AS be-
fore, l went first OF all to the library.
/ wished to make certain that had
exhausted every suspected as well as
every known clew to the information
sought. In my long journey home and
the hollrs of thought 1t had forced upon
me I had more than once been visited
by fitting visions Of things seen in this
old house and afterward nearly for
gotten. Among these was the book
which on that first night Of hurried
search had given proofs of being in
some ones hand within a very short
period. The attention l had given it
at moment of such haste was neces-
sarily cursory, and when later Sec
onG opportunity was granted me OF
looking into 1t again I had allowed
very slight obstacle to deter me. This
was mistake was anxious to rectify.
Anything which had been touched with
purpose at or near the time of SO mys-
terious a tragedy-and the position OF
this Look on q shelf SO high that
chair was needed to reach 1t proved
that 1t had been sought and touched
with purpose-held out the promise of
myself could not afford to ignore.
But when had taken the book down
and read again its totally uninteresting
and lnsuggestive title and by another
reference to it's dim and faded leaves
found that my memory had not played
me false and that 1t contained nothing
but stupid and wholly irrelevant
statistics, my confidence in it as
possible aid in the work had in hand
departed just as 1t had on the previous
occasion. ! was about to put it back
on the shelf, when I bethought me
Of running my hand in behind the two
books between Which it had stood.
All. that was 1t! Another book lay |
fiat against the wall at the back Of the |
shelf; by the removal of those in front
l YVES enabled to draw this book out. !
l soon saw why it had been relegated
to such a remote place Of concealment I
on the shelves OF the Moore library.
1t was collection Of obscure memoirs (
written by an Engnshwoman, but an
Engiishwoman who had been in Amer
lea during the early part Of the century I
and who had been brought more or less
into contact with the mysteries con-
nectnd with the Moore house in Wash
ington. Several passages were marked.
one particularly, by heavy pencil line
running the length Of the margin. AS
the name Of Moore was freely scatter
ed through these passages as well as
through two Or three faded newspaper
clippings which discovered pasted on
the inside cover, j lost no time in set
ting about their perusal.
The following extracts are from the
book itself. taken In the order in which
I found them marked:
sit was about this time that spent
a week in the Moore house. that grand
and historic structure concerning which
and Its occupants so many curious ru-
moIs are afioat. l knew nothing then
of Its discreditable fame, but from the
first moment OF my entrance into it's
ample aud well lighted halls / expert
enced sensation which l Will not call
dread, but which certainly was far
froio haino thu fmnuloa of pura 6aliyht