The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-08-20

was eventually completed by a gambler Tn the days of the Regency. Nothing was left save 8 few acres of ground and the two o-hundred-ye -year-old house, which is It. self crushed under heavy mortgage The last squire dragged out his exist ence there. living the horrible life of an aristocratic pauper; but his only son, my stepfather, seeing that he must adapt himself to the new conditions, obtained an advance from a relative which en- abled him to take medical degree and went over to Calcutta, where. by his professional skill and hls force of char acter. he established large practice In fit of anger. however. caused by some robberies which had been perpe- trated in the house. he beat his native butler to death and narrowly escaped q capital sentence As 1t was he suffered long term of Imprisonment and after ward returned to England morose and disappointed man.
 When Dr. Roylott was in India he married my mother, Mrs stoner. the young widow of Major General Stoner of the Bengal Artillery. My sister Julia and l were twins and we were only ? years old at the time of my mothers re- marriage. She had a considerable sum of money-nOt less than el000 a year and this she bequeathed to Dr. Roylott | entirely while we resided with him, with
 
 | should be allowed to each of us in the l event of our marriage. Shortly after our : return to England my mother died she l was Killed eight years ago in railway l accident near Grewe. Dr. Roylott then | abandoned his attempts to establish him. | seif In practice in London and took us 1 to live with him in the old ancestral house at Stoke Moran The money which 1 my mother had left was enough for all 1 our wants, nd there seemed to be no ob- l stacle to our happiness
 But terrible change came over my | stepfather about this time. Instead of making friends and exchanging visits with | our neighbours. who had at first been over I Joyed to see a Roylott of Stoke Moran back in the old family seat, he shut him | self up in his house and seldom came | out, save to indulge In ferocious quar- | rels With whoever might cross his path. | Violence of temper approaching to mania | has been hereditary in the men of the | family and in my si pfathers case 1t l had, believe, been intensified by his long l residence In the tropics series of dis graceful brawls took place, two of which | ended in the police court until at last | ne became the terror of the village and | the folks would fly at his approach, for I he Is man of immense strength and ab- | solutely uncomfortable in his anger. ! Last week he hurled the local black smith over 4 parapet into a stream, and | 1t was only by paying over all the money | which l could gather together that | was able to avert another public ex- | posture. lIe had no friends at all save the l wandering gypsies, and he would give | these vagabonds leave to encamp upon | the few acres of bramble covered land l which represent the family estate, and | would accept in return the hospitality of | their tents, wandering away with them | sometimes for weeks end. II has a | passion also for Indian animals, which 1 are sent over to him by correspondent, l and he has at this moment eheetah and l baboon. which wander freely over the ! grounds and are feared by the villagers | almost as much us their master. You can imagine from what say thai l my poor sister Julia and l had no great l pleasure in our lives. No servant would stay with us, and fer long time we 1 did all the work of the house. She was | but thirty at the time of her death, and yet her hair had already begun to whiten even as mine has
 l Your sister is dead, then?' 1 She died just two years ago, and 1t is of her death that 1 wish to speak to you | You can understand that. living the life which I have described we were little | likely to see any one of our own age and position. We had, however, an aunt, my mothers maiden sister Miss Honora 1 Westphail who lives near Harrow. and we were occasionally allowed to pay short visits at this lady's house. Julia went there at Christmas two years ago and | met there haf-pay major of marines, to whom she became engaged. My step 1 father learned of the engagement when my sister returned and offered no ob- jection to the marriage, but within a fortnight of the day which had been fixed for the wedding the terrible event oc- cured which has deprived me of my only companion"
 Sherlock Holmes had been leaning back in his chair with his eyes closed and his head sunk in cushion, but he half opened his lids and glanced across at his visitor.
 Pray be precise as to details said he.
 "It Is easy for me to be so for every event of that dreadful time is scared Into my memory. The manor-house is. as have already said. very old, and only one wing is now inhabited. The bedrooms in this wing are on the ground floor, the sitting rooms being in the central back of the building. Of these bedrooms the first Is Dr. Roylott's, the second my sis ters and the third my own. There is no communication between them, but they all open out into the same corridor. Do I make myself plain?'
 Perfectly SO"
 
 out upon the lawn. That fatal night Dr. Roylott had gone to his room early. though we knew that he had not retired to rest. for my sister was troubled by the smell of the strong Indian cigars whict it was his custom to smoke. She left her room, therefore, and came into mine where she sat for some time. chat ting about her approaching wedding. At II o'clock she rose to leave me, but she paused at the door and looked back.
 Tell me. Helen.' she said have you ever heard any one whistle in the dead of the night?
 "'Never.' said l.
 "I suppose that you could not possi- bly whistle yourself In your sleep?
 Certainly not. But why?'
 Because during the last few nights have always. about in the morning, heard a low clear whistle am a light | sleeper and it has awakened me, l can not tell where it came from-perhaps from the next room, perhaps from the lawn. l thought that l would just ask you whether you had heard It.
 "'No. l have not. It must be those wretched Gypsies in the plantation
 Very likely And yet if it were on the lawn I wonder that you did not hear it also.
 "'Ah. but sleep more heavily than you
 well it is of no great consequence, at any rate She smiled back at me. closed my door, and few moments later l heard her key turn In the lock.
 "Indeed.' said Holmes. Was it your