The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1905-10-08

RED mutton. she took no lQulU, as
there was water tap in the stable,
and il was the rule that the lad on duty
should drink nothing else. The maid
carried a lantern with her, as it was
very dark and the path ran across the
ODen moor.
Edith Baxter was within thirty
yards of the stable when d man APP
peared out of the darkness and called
20 her to stop. AS he stepped into the
circle of yellow light thrown by the
lantern she saw that he was person
of gentlemanly bearing, dressed IN a
gray suit of tWeeds, with a cloth cap.
He wore CATERS, and carried a heavy
stick with knob 10 it. She was most
impressed. however by the extreme
pallOr of his face and by the nervous
ness of. his manner. His age, she
thought, would be rather over 80 than
under il.
Can you tell me where 1 ann he
asked. I had almost made up my MIND
10 sleep on the moor when | saw the
light of your lantern.
You are close TO the Kings Py-
land training stables, said she.
Oh indeed, What a stroke of luck.
he cried I understand that stable
boy sleeps alone there every night.
Perhaps that is his supper which you
are carrying To him. Now, ! am sure
that you would not be too proud 10
earn the price of a new dress, would
you?' He took q piece of white paper
folded up out of his WaiStcOat pocket
See that the boy has this tonight and
you shall have the prettiest frock that
money can buy
"She was frightened by the earnest
ness of his manner and ran past him
to the window through which she was
accustomed TO hand the meals. 1t was
already open. and Hunter was seated
at the small table inside She had be-
gun 10 tell him of what had happened,
when the stranger came up again.
"tGood evening, said he, looking
through the window. i wanted to have
a word with you The girl has sworn
that as he spoke she noticed the corner
of the little paper packet prOtruding
from his closed hand.
what business have you here?'
asked the lad.
e" It's business that may put some
thing into your pocket said the other.
You've the horses in for the WeSseX
cup-Silver Blaze and Bayard. Let me
have the straight tip and YOU won't be
a loser. Is il fact that at the weishts
Bayard could give the other d hundred
yards in five furlOngS and that the sta
bic have put their money on him?'
&c So. you're one of those damned
tOuts, cried the lad. IN show you
how we serve them i'm Kings Pyland.'
He spraug an and rushed across the
stable to unlOOSe the dog. The girl
fed away to the house, but as she ran
she looked back and saw that the
stranger was leaning through the vim
dow A minute later however, when
Hunter rushed out with the hound he
was gone. and though he ran all round
the building he failed 10 find any trace
Of him."
"One moment" l asked. Did the
stable boy, when he ran out with the
dog. leave the door unlocked behind
him ."
Excellent. Watson. excellent" MUIR
INJURED my companion. The import
auce OF the point struck me so forcibly
that I sent a special wire to Dartmoor
Yesterday TO clear the matter up. The
boy locked the door before he left it.
The window, / may add, was not large
enough for man TO get through.
Hunter waited until his fellow
grOoms had returned. when he sent
message 10 the trainer and told him
what mad occurred. Straker was eX-
cited at hearing the account, although
he does not seem To have quite realized
its true significance. II left him. how
ever. vaguely uneasy, and Mrs. Straker,
waking at / i'm the morning, found that
he was dressing. In reply to her in
quiries, he said tbaJ-he could not sleep
on account of his anxiety about the
horses. and that he intended To walk
down TO the stables TO see that all was
well She begged him to remain at
home. as she could hear the rain pat
teriug against the window, but in spite
of her eureaties he pulled on his large
macintosh and left the house.
Mrs. Straker rose at 7 in the morn
ing. 10 find that her husband had not
y,a returned. She dressed herself
hastily, called the maid and set off
for the stables. The door was open;
inside. huddled together upon q chair,
Hunter was sunk i'm d state of abso-
lutte sJupor, his faVoriJe's stall was
empty and there were no signs of the
trainer.
The two lads who slept i'm the chaff-
cutting loft above the harness room
we're quickly aroused They had heard
nothing during the night. for they are
both sound sleepeTs. Hunter was OBJ
Viously under the influence Of some
powerful drug. and as no sense could
be got out of him he was left 10 sleep
il off, while the two lads and the two
women ran out in search of the absen-
tees. They still had hopes that the
trainer had for some reason taken out
ceudmg the knoll near the house. from
which an the neighbOring moors were
visible they not only could see no signs
of the missing favOrite. but they per
ceived something which warned them
( that they were i'm the presence of a
. tragedy.
About a quarter of a mile from the
stables John StTaker's ONercOat was
dappiug from a furze bush Immedi-
H.aI-4. Il
depression I'm the moor. and at the bot
ON OF this was found the dead body
of the unfortunate trainer. His head
/ had been shattered by savage blow
/ from some heavy weapon, and he was
wounded on the thigh, where there was
a long. clean cut. inflicted evidently by
some very sharp instrument 1t was
clear, however that Straker had de-
Tended himself vigorously against his
assauants, for in his right hand he held
a small knife. which was clotted with
blood uD 20 the handle while i'm his
loft no oias9ed red and black silk
Cravat which was recognized by the
maid as having been Worn on the pre-
ceding evening by the stranger who
had visited The stables Hunter. on re-
covering from his stupOT was also quite
positive as 20 the ownership of the era
vat. He was equally certain that the
same stranger had, while standing at
the window. drugged his cuTried NUT
ton and so deprived the stables of their
Watchman. AS to the missing horse,
there We're abundant proofs in the mud
which lay at The bottom of the fatal
hollow that he had been there at the
time of the struggle. But from that
morning ne has disappeared. and al
though a large reward has been offered
and all the gypsies of DartmOor are on
the alert no news has come o. him.
Finally. an ANALYSIS has shown that
the sremains of mis- supper left BY the
stable. lad contain an appreciable
amount OF powdered opium. while tre
aeonIa az fha house naffook of the