Kingsbury County independent. (DeSmet, Kingsbury County, S.D.) 1894-1929, 1906-08-31
AT last she contin.


sionate sobblng. At last she contin-
ued:
Il will tell you about last night. You
are aware, perhaps. that in this house
all the servant sleep in the modern
wing. This central block is made uI
of the dwelling rooms, with the kitchen
behind and our bed room above. My
maid, Theresa, sleeps above my room
There is no one else, and no sound
could alarm those who are in the far
Their wing. This must have been well
known to the robbers, or they would
not have acted as they did.
"Sir Eustace retired about half-past
ten. The servants had already gone to
their quarters. Only my maid was up.
and she had remained in her room at
the top of the house until / needed her
services. l sat until after II in this
room, absorbed in a book. Then
walked round TO see that all was right
before l went upstairs. 1t was my
custom to do this myself, for. as j
have explained, Sir Eustace was not
always to be trusted. / went into the
kitchen, the buffers pantry. the gun
room, the billiard room, the drawing
room, and finally the dining room. AS
l approached the window, which is
covered with thick curtains, / suddenly
felt the wind blow upon my face. n
realized hat it was open. l flung the
curtain aside, n ound myself face
to face with a broad shouldered elder
ly a who had just stepped into the
room. The window Is a long French
one. which really forms a door leading
to the lawn. / held my bed o can
die lit In my hand, and, by its light,
behind the first man / saw two others.
who were In the act of entering.
stepped back. but the fellow was on
me In an instant. He caught me first
49,, 4In atVys-N nrl tIA,n hy tho fhrAnf
l opened my mouth to scream, but he
struck me a ava blow with his fist
over the eye, and felled me to the
ground. / must have been unconscious
for q few minutes, for when l came to
myself | found that they had torn down
the bell rope and had secured me tight
ly to the oaken chair which stands at
the head of the dining table. l was so
/ firmly bound that / could not move,
and a handkerchief round my mouth
prevented me from uttering a sound.
1t was at this instant that my unfor-
tunate husband entered the room. He
had evidently heard some suspicious
sounds, and he came prepared for such
a scene as he found. He was dressed
in his shirt and trousers, with his fa-
vorite blackthorn cudgel in his hand.
He rushed at the burglars, blu another
1T was an elderly man, stopped,
picked the poker out of the crate, n
struck him a horrible blow as he
passed. He fell with a groan, and
moved again. l tainted once
more, but again it could only have been
for a very few minutes during which
l was insensible. When / opened my
eyes / found that they had collected
the silver from the sideboard, and they
had drawn a bottle OF wine which stood
there. Each of them had a glass in
his hand. l have already told you,
have / not, that one was elderly, with
a beard, and the others young, hair
less lads? They might have been a
father with his two sons. They talked
together in whispers. Then they came
owe and made sure that was securely
bound. Finally they withdrew, clos
ing the window after them. 1t was
quite a quarter of an hour before l
got my mouth free. When l did so,
my scream brought the maid to my
assistance. The other servants were
soon alarmed, and we sent for the local
police, who instantly communicated
with London. That is really all that 1
can tell you, gentlemen, and I trust
that it will not be necessary for me to
go over SO painful a story again"
ANY questions, Mr.. Holiness" asked
Hopkins.
Il will not impose any further tax
upon Lady ~Brackenstalls patience and
time, Sdlu homes. BEFORE L go IN
to the dining room, l should like to
hear your experience" He looked al
the maid.
II SOW the men before ever they
came into the house." sale she. LAS
| sat by my bed room window l saw
three men in the moonlight down by
the lodge gate yonder, but / thought
nothing of it at the time. 1t was more
than an hour after that / heard my
mistress scream, and down l ran, to
find her, poor lamb, just as she says,
and him on the floor, with his blood
and brains over the room. 1t was
enough to drive a woman out of her
wits, tied there, and her dress spotted
with him, but she never wanted cour-
age. did Miss Mary Fraser of Adelaide.
and Lady Brackenstall of Abbey
Grange hasn't learned new ways.
You've questioned her long enough, you
gentlemen, and now she is coming to
her own room, just with her old The
resa, to get the rest that she badly
needs"
With q motherly tenderness the
gaunt woman put her arm round her
mistress and led her from the room.
she has been with her all her life"
said Hopkins. "Nursed her as a ba-
by, and came with her to England
when. they first left Australia, eighteen
months ago. Theresa Wright is her
name, and the kind of maid you don't
pick uD nowadays. This way, Mr..
Holmes, if o please!"
Continued Next Week.