Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1906-06-07
The ADVENTURE OF .LALn
Pc ER.-Continucd.

Alighting at Il small wayside sta,ion,
we drove for some miles through the
remains OF widespread woods. which
we're once part OF that great forest
which for 80 long held the Saxon in
vncers at bhy-thc ~impenct:ahlc
"wcald," for sixty years the buIwnrk az
Britain. Vast sections Of It had been
cleared. for this IL the sent OF tho first
IRON works OF the country. and the
trees have been felIed 70 srnclt the ore.
NOW the richer fields Of the north have
abaorbcd the trade, and nothing save
these Tavaged groves and great scars
IN the earth show the work Of the past
Here. In n clearing upon tho green
slope OF n Hill, stood n long. low. stone
nouae. approached by n c~urviNg drive
running through the fields. Nearer the
road. and surrounded on three sides by
bushes. was "A small Clubhouse. one vim
dow and the door facing In our al
'rectlon. 1t was the scene OF the muir
der.
Stanley Hopkins led us first to the
house. where he introduced us to n
haggard. grey haired woman. the widow
OF the murdered man. whose gaunt and
deep lined face. with the %furtive look
OF terror in the depths of her red
trimmed eyes. told of the years of hard
ship and III usage which she had en-
dured. With her was her daugtcr, n
pale. fair haired girl. whose eyes blazed
ldehantly at us us she told us that she
was glad that her father was dead. and
that she blessed the hand which had
struck him down. 1t was n terrible
household that Black Peter Carey had
made for himself. and 1t waa with n
sense OF relief hat we found ourselves
IN mo sunlight again. and making our
way along q path which had been worn
across the fields by the feet OF the
dead man.
The clubhouse was the simplest OF
dwellings. wooden walled. shingle
rooted. ono window beside the door and
lcne on the farther side. Stanley Hop
I'm drew the key from his pocket and
had stopped TO the lock. when he
paused with a look OF attention and
surprise on his face.
Someone has been tnmpering with
yls." he said.
There could be no doubt OF the fact.
1ne WOODWORK was cut, and the scratch
~ moved white through the paint. aa
w. they had been that instant done,
Holmes had been examining the win
dow. y"
Someone has tried to force this
aiso. Whoever 1t was has failed to
make his way In. He must have been
- very poor burglar"
This Is n most extraordinary thing"
said the inspector. Il could swear
mat these marks were not here yestcr-
day evening"
Some curious person from the VIII
perhaps" I suggested.
!. very unlikely. Few OF them would
less to try to force their way Into he
cabin. What do you think OF II, Mr..
Holmcs?"
I think that fortune Is very kind to
: You mean that the person will come
IT Ia very probable. He
came expecting to find the door,
He tried to get In with the blade OF
. worry small penkntfe. He could not man
age It. What would he do?"
Come again c night with a moro
useful tool"
80 l should sny. II will he our fault
II wc are not there to receive him. Mean
let mo SEQ the inside of the abin."
The traces OF the tragedy had been re-
moved. but the furniture within the little
room stu stood Mt Is had been on the
most intense concentration. Holmes cX-
Amincd every object In turn. but his face
Sho we'd that his quest was not a SUCCESS,
fu! ono. Once only no paused In his pa
ticrs investigation.
Z Have you taken anything of this shelf.
HOpkinsT"
"1,o. I have moved nothing.
"6smething has been taken. There 10
less dust in this corner of Tho shelf than
elsewhere. 1t may have beon q book lying
on Its side. 1t may have been q box. Well,
we'll. I can do nothing moro Let us walk
IN thess beautiful woods. Watson. and
give . few hours to tho birds and the
0ow~er.. We shall meet you here later.
Hopkins. and see Il We can come to closer
quarters with the Gentleman who has paid
this visit in tho flight"
II was past IL o'clock when we formed
eur little 6hbuscnde. Hopkins was for
leaving the door Of Tho hut open. but
Holmes was OF tho opinion that this would
rouse The. suspicious of tho stranger. The
lock was q perfectly simple ono. only a
strong blade was NEEDED to push 1t back.
Holmes also suggested that we should
wait. not inside the hut. but outside II
among tho bushes which grew round the
farther window. In this way we should be
Ablt 70 watch our man II he struck a light.
and see what his object was In this
Otealthy nocturnal visit.
II Was n long and melancholy vigil. and
got brought with It something Of tho thrill
which tho hunter feels when he lies be-
side the waterproof and waits for tie COM
ing Of tho thirsty beast of prey. What
0avAg creature was It which might steal
upon US out Of tho darkness? Was It a
nercc tiger of crime. which could only be
taken fighting hard with flashing fang and
claw. or would II prove to be some skulk-
in8 jackai. dangerous only to the weak
and unguardcd?
In absolute silence We crouchcd amongst
the bushes. waiting for whatever might
some. At FIRST the steps Of a few belated
villagers. or the sound of voices from the
village. frightened our vigil. but one by one
these Interruptions died away. and an alb
0olute stiffness fell upon us. save for the
chimes Of the distant church. which told
~ Of the progress OF tho night. and for
the rustic Of = nne rain falling amid the
foliage which rooted u In.
Half-past two had chimed. and II was
h darkest hour which prccedcs the
dawn. when We all started ~ . low SHARP
click came from the direction OF the gate,
BONE ono had entered the drive. Again
there was a long silence. and I had begun
% fear that Il was . false alarm. when
. stsalthy step was heard upon the othel
oidA OF the hut. and q moment later me
A~naeA .A>>-e.--- -NeHha~- M -.