The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1906-03-09

the church tower.
Then he turned to her and spoke rap
lily.
s your fine lover is guilty-no doubt
he laughed wildly-"verdict tomor-
row, you know" he nodded his head
frantically; and Observation-Disclosures
We all know what will be-ha-ha-
hang by the neck-untii-'
ately.
Not SO fast" he answered., gripping
ishly; II say hang by the neck that's
the sentence-unless-you-step in and
save hint"
IT."
"Fes-you-my lovely white lily. Give
me a kiss and I'll tell you how you can
do It,"
Selling her roughly, he pressed a kiss
on her cheek, then almost flung her
from him. as she shuddered and cried
out:
That's 1t. spurn your best friend,
perhaps I won't tell you now how to
save your precious lover"
"Ah! tell me. tell mel" she said, her
hands going out in a pitiful gesture; II
VIII do anything for his sage"
Anything? VIII you? Look out
there!'-he dragged her to the win
dow-"see that gargoyle with the dogs
head?"
Meta assented.
There is a letter in that stone dogs
mouth" he said impressively; that let
ter Will give you the name Of my
brothers murderer. Ha! hal hal"
IA letter there? Your brothers mur
derer. Then you know-you know who
did it?"
II know-I know."-a demonical
laugh broke from him and echoed Wild
ly round the room-'it is my secret,
mine, mine-and you must hunt for it
In the dogs mouth, ha-ha!"
You know. yet o have let Jack"
Her voice failed. as the mailman
laughed afresh. flung his arms into the
air. shouted. "go and look for your
self-the secret is there"-and. first
pointing dramatically toward the win
dow, he next flung himself across the
room and rushed precipitately through
the door and downstairs.
Meta, too dazed and terrified to follow
him, stood still for a moment, hen she
leaned far out of the easement, a
ing her neck and straining her eyes,
until all at once she exclaimed:
II may be mad, but he has said one
true thing; there is a letter in the
dogs mouth. All! If his words should
be true! If they should be truel Jack
my Jack. I Will do 1t for your sake!!"
Slowly and carefully Meta climbed
the narrow winding staircase of the
ger had allowed her to go upstairs.
and h wound her way up and up,
pausing now INC again to look out Of
the wide openings in the wall to the
dizzy depths below.
Presently the stairs came to an
abrupt end. she was confronted by a
blank wall. while on her right hand
gaped one OF these wide openings that
gaze upon the outside world.
Clutching at the wall, she leaned out.
Below her h dared not look. A few
feet from her, round to h left, she
could see the gargoyle. jutting out over
space. h shrank back and shivered.
shutting her eyes because Of the awful
that seized her.
Il cannot do I'll cannot" she
moaned.
That moments glimpse had shown
her that to each the gargoyle, she
nus climb out Of h opening on to
spire, and reach from that to the cor
ner OF the buttress from which the
long body sprang.
ut is impossible" she said again. and
then suddenly h stood upright and
her eyes.
Il must try" she said: ut is Jack'a
life! I can but make the attempt. II
| fail fail; but l must try for hts
Sick with horror, her head dizzy and
swimming. she crawled out OF the
opening on to the narrow parapet
cling to the few stones that tutted out
Of the wall that the blood dripped from
them. but she did not heed it. Keeping
her head erect, lest for a moment she
should see the CHASTITY gulf below her,
she kept on-and on to the angle from
which the gargoyle jutted. +,
1T was a narrow enough angle In all
conscience, but compared with that
AWFUL parapet it seemed wide-almost
safe; and Meta leaned for a
against the wall to take breath. Once,
once, her eye glanced downward,
and a shiver ran through her.
lay far below for one wild
rocked and swung before her eyes; she
shut them closely and gripp I'd more
firmly at the slab OF stone till her
equilibrium returned. Their she began
most perilous part Of her terrible
adventure.
Flinging one arm as far as she dared
along the body OF the stone dog, she
dragged her own body forward-for-
ward-forward toward the g%argoyle'y
mouth, half hanging over the abyss,
half pressed against the stone beast.
Would h each its mouth? CoulA
AS v ASdSA IL, " WOulU Slc, III the
act Of doing SO, overreach herself-slip
ail-an fall into those dizzy,
depths below?
God help me-for his sake!" she
cried aloud in her agony, and, pulling
herself one step further, she put out
her right hand once more.
Her hand had touched the letter!
Hardly daring to breathe she drew it
from the dogs mouth. and slowly,
slowly, with infinite caution, dragged
herself pack to the angle, every nerve
at highest tension, every muscle taut
and straight.
She dared not pause In her backward
path; she did not rest even for a sec
ond in that friendly angle, but crept
back, bach along the parapet. fearful
lest a moments delay should bring
On a paralysis OF fear.
And at last, when, trembling in every
limb, h crept in again at the wide
opening OF the tower, It was only to
sink down upon the steps, white and
the letter clasped closely
her hand.
Jack Melville's life was saved. The
etter was the confession of the true
murderer, another clerk In the office.
Who on his own death he'd had ur;ftop