The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1905-11-05

ave- hACttllB al TIE sue puSuEu
down the lantern.
"A small chamber about seven feet
deep and four feet square lay open to
us. Al one side OF this was a squat.
brass-bound wooden box, the lid OF
which was hinged upwards, with this
curious old-fashioned key projecting
/ from the lock. II was furred outside
by thick layer of dust, and damp and
| worms had eaten through the wood, SO
/ that a crop OF livid fungi was growing
/ on the inside of it. Several discs OF
metal, old coins apparently, such as I
! hold here, were scattered over the bot
] tom OF the box, but it contained moth
| ing else.
Eat the moment. however We had no
| thought for the old chest, for our. eyes
We're riyeted upon that which crouched
| beside. II was the figure of a man.
! clad in suit of black, who sduatted
1 down upon his hams with his forehead
| sunk upon the edge of the box and his
| two arms thrown out on each side of il.
| The attitude had drawn all the stag
nant blood TO the face, and no man
| could have recognized that distorted
| liVer-colored countenance; but his
| height, his dress and his hair were ali
| sufficient to show my client, when we
| had drawn the body up, that il was in
4 deed his missing butler. He had been
| dead some days. but there was no
/ wound or bruise upon his person to
| show how he had met his dreadful end
When his body had been carried from
/ the cellar we found ourselves still con-
| fronted with a problem which was al
| most as formidable as that with which
! we had started
II confess that so far, Watson, had
| been disappointed I'm my Investigation.
| I had Teckoned upon solving the mat
ter when once ] had found the place
! referred TO in the Ritual: but now ]
was there, and was apparently as far
as ever from knowing what il WaA
which the family had concealed with
such elaborate precautions. II is true
| that had thrown a light upon the fate
| of Brunton, but now / had to ascertain
how that fate had come upon him, and
| what part had been played In the mat
| ter by the woman who had disap-
] peared. / sat down upon a keg in the
| corner and thought the whole matter
! carefully over.
You know my methods in such
! cases. Watson. / put myself in the
! mans place and. having first gagged
his intelligence. ! try TO imagine how I
| should myself have proceeded under
the same circumstances. In this case
the matter was simplified by Brunton's
| intelligence being quite first-rate. 20
| that il was necessary 10 make any al
! lowance for the personal equation, az
! the astronomers have dubbed IL. He
/ knew that something valuable was
/ concealed. He had spotted the place.
! He found that the stone which covered
! it was just too heavy for a man TO
/ move unaided. What would he do next?
| He could not get help from outside
/ even if he had some one whom he could
/ trust, without the Unbarring of doors
and considerable risk Of detection. II
was better, if ne could, to have his
helpmate inside the house. But whom
could he ask? This girl had been de-
voted to him. A man always finds il
I hard to realize that he NAV have final
" lost a woman's love, however badly
he mazaiEsNe treated her F3e would
try by few attentions 10 make his
+ peace with the girl Howells. and then
would engage her as his accompIice.
Together they would come al night TO
the cellar. and their united force would
suffice TO raise the stone. So far could
follow their actions as if | had actually
seen them.
But for two of them. and one a wo-
man, it must have been heavy work the
raising of that stone burly Sussex
policeman and / had found it no light
job. What would they do to assist
them? Probably what / should have
done myself. I rose and examined care
fully the different billets of wood which
We're scattered round the floor. Almost
at once ! came upon what ! expected.
One piece. about three feet i'm length
had a very marked indentation at one
end. While several were fiattened at the
side as if they had been compressed by
| some considerable weight Evidently
as they had dragged the stone up they
had thrust the chunks of wood into the
chink. until at last, when the opening
was large enough to crawl through
they would hold it open by a billet
| placed lengthwise. which might very
well become indented at the lower end
since the whole weight of the stone
would press it down on TO the edge OF
! this other slab. So far was still OF
safe ground.
/ And now how was 10 proceed 10
reconstruct this midnight drama?
| Clearly. only one could fit into the hole
: and that one was Brunton. The girl
! must have waited above. BTuHton then
unlocked the box. handed W the con
tents presumab ly-since they were not
] to be found-and then-and then what
happened?
What smouldering fire Of vengeance
! had suddenly sprung into flame in This
passionate Celtic woman's soul when
! she saw the man who had Wronged her
, -wrOnged her, perhaps. far more than
We suspected-in her power? Was IL
p. a chance that the wood had slipped,
2 and that the stone had shut Brunton
I into what had become his sepulchree
Had she only been guilty of silence as
' TO his fate? Or had some sudden blow
from her hand dashed the support
e away and sent the slab crashing down
into its place? Be that as il might, I
l seemed to see that woman's figure stilI
: clutching at her treasure trove and fly
ing wildly up the winding STAIR with
her ears ringing perhaps with muffieo
2 / hi l..
l drumming Of frenzied hands against
} the slab OF stone which was choking
: her faithless lovers life out
Here was the secret of her blanched
/ ! face, her shaken nerves. her peals OF
! hysterical laughter Oh the next morn
0 ing. But what had been IN the box
= What had she done with that? OF
0 course. il must have been the old metal
- and pebbles which my client had
5 dragged from the mere. She had thrown
D them in there at the first OppOrtunity
to remove the last trace of her crime.
E For twenty minutes I had sat mo-
tionless. thinking the matter out Mus
I | grave still stood with very pale face
l swinging his lantern and peering down
into the hole
These are coins OF Charles the
0 / First said he, holding out the feV
which had been in the box; You see We
E were right in fixil our date for ths
: ! Ritual
1--WE may find something else o.
: Charles the First cried. as the prob
I able meaning of the first two question,
| of the Ritual broke suddenly upon me
l Let us see the contents of the bal
which you fshed from the mere
! I'VE assembled to his study, and h
: laid the debris before me. could un
e derstand his regarding it as OF small