The Richmond palladium. (Richmond, Ind.) 1906-1907, 1906-11-11


! After dinner Troye, a constable and
| the attorney rode TO Robins Inn. The
news had arrived before them. but
| only the two boys and Tunk were at
! home. The latter stood In front Of the
/ stable, looking earnestly mp the road.
"Hellor' said he, gazing. curiously at
horse and men as they came up 10 the
! door. He seemed to be eying the at
torney with hopeful anticipation
"Tunk,'' said Troye cheerfuliy. you
have a mournful eye"
Tunk advanced slowly, still gazing,
both hands in his trousers pockets.
"Ez Tower just went by said he.
with suppressed feeling. said you
was arrested for murder"
II presume you were surprised
.eWaal," said he, "Ez amt said
word before in six months"
Tunk opened the horses mouth and
stood a moment peering thoughtfully
at his teeth.
Kind of unexpected to be spoke to
by Ez Tower" he added. turning his
eyes upon them with the same curious
look
The interrogation Of Tunk and the
two boys began Immediately. The
story Of the fowl corroborated, the
sugar bush became an object of investi-
CATION. MilIdam was ten miles away.
and it was quite possible for the young
man to have ridden there and back be-
tween the hour when Tunk left him
and that of sunrise. when he met Mrs.
Vaughn at her door. Trove and Tunk
Hosely went with the officers down
10 - Ho INT 4fa
wood by path they followed that
night to and from the shanty.
They discovered nothing new save
one remarkable circumstance that baf-
fed Trove and renewed the waning
suspicion of the men of the law. On
almost straight line from bush to
barn were tracks of a man that showed
plainly where they came out of the
grass upon the garden soil. Now. the
strange part of it lay in this fact-the
boots of Sidney Trove exactly fitted
the tracks. They followed the foot
prints carefully into the meadow grass
and up to the stalk of the muffein.
Near the top of IL was the abandoned
home of the spider and around it
were the four snares Troye had OBJ
served, now full o Prey.
DO not disturb the grass here said
Ircve, land L will prove to you that
the tracks were made before the night
in question. Do you see the four
webs?"
Yes" said the attorney.
THE tracks go under Them" said
Troye, 'and must therefore, have been
made before the webs. / will prove to
you that the webs were spun before
2 o'clock of the day before yesterday. +
AT that hour l saw the spinner die.
See, her lair is deserted
He broke the stalk of mullen and
the cables of spider silk that led away
from it. and all inspected the empty
lair. Then he told of that deadly bat
tie in the grass.
But these webs might have been
the work of another SPIDER said the
attorney.
1T matters not Trove insisted, "for
the webs were spun at least twelve
hours before the crime. One of them
contains the body of a red butterfly
with starred wings. We cut the wings
that day, and Miss Vaughn put them
in book she was reading"
Paul brought the wings, which ex-
actly fitted the tiny torso of the but
terhy. They could discern the foot
prints, one of which had broken the
ants road, while another was com
pletely covered by the butterfly snare.
Those tracks We're made before the
webs, that is evident" said the attor-
ney. do you know who made the
tracks,
Il do not was the answer of the
young man.
Troye remained at Robins Inn that
night, and after the men had gone he
recalled q circumstance that was lik
4 flash of lightning in the dark of his
great mystery
Once at the Sign of the Dial his
friend the tinker had shown him pair
Of new boots. He remembered they
were of the same size and shape as
those he wee.
I'VE could wear the same boots.
&c had remarked to Darrell.
Had / to do such penance l should
De damned" the tinker had answered
Look. boy. mine are the larger by far
There's 4 man coming to see me At the j
Christmas time. man o. busy feet
That pair in your hands l bought for
aim"
Day before yesterday" said Turk
hat evening, Il was up in the sugar
1ush after n bit o hickory, an | see
| man there. an l didn't have no idee
Who twas He was tall and had white
lair an whiskers an a short blue
oat. When l first see him he was set
in on a log. but fore come nigh he
Tot up an made of"
Although meager. the description ,
vas sufficient Trove had no longer
NY doubt of this that the stranger
e had seen at barrels had been hid
az in the bush that day whose events
we're now so important. !
Whoever had brought the money. he :
aust have known much of the plans
nd habits of the young man, and, the
light before Trove's arrival at Robins
m, he came probably TO the sugar
FOODS. where he spent the next day ii :
iding.
The young man was deeply troubled.
oily and her mother sat well into the !.
light With him. hearing the story of :