Waterbury evening Democrat., 1907-06-29
whereabouts Of the man who had


 wrecked her life and my fathers.
 first met the man himself at the Cliff
 ton club, where had gone with an
 acquaintance who was a member. It
 was not till afterward that I under
 stood his curious awkwardness on that
 occasion. A week later I called (as
 have frequently done) at the building
 in which your office Is situated on
 business with a solicitor who has an
 office on the floor above your own. On
 the stairs I almost ran against Mir. Foggatt. He started and turned pale,
 exhibiting signs of alarm that could
 not understand and asked me if l | wished to see him.
 "'No,' I replied, I didn't know you
 lived here. I am after somebody else l just now. Aren't you wellf "He looked at me rather doubtfully
 and said he was not very well. T meet him twice or thrice after that, and on each occasion his manner
 grew more friendly in servile, fiat tering and mean sort of way, a thing
 unpleasant enough in anybody, but
 doubly so in the intercourse of man
 with another young enough to be his own son. Still of course, treated the man civilly enough. On one occasion he asked me into his rooms to look at rather fine picture he had lately bought and observed casually, lifting a large revolver from the mantelpiece:
 "'You see, am prepared for any unwelcome visitors to my little den! He, her Concelvlng him, of course, to refer to burglars could not help won- dering at the forced and hollow charac- ter of his laugh. As we went down the stairs he said: I think we know one another pretty well now, Mir. Ma son, eh? And if could do anything to advance your professional prospects I should be glad of the chance of course. If you will drop in tomorrow evening, perhaps may have little proposal to make. Will you?
 "I assented, wondering what this pro- posal could be. I went and was re- ceived with eordiality that even then seemed a little overeffusive. We sat and talked of one thing and another for a long while, and began to won. der when MT. Foggatt was coming to the point that most interested me-. Sev- eral times he invited me to drink and smoke, but long usage to athletic training has given me distaste for both practices, and I declined. At last he began to talk about myself. He was afraid that my professional prospects In this country were not great, but he had heard that in some of the colonies-South Africa, for exam ple-young lawyers had brilliant oppor- tunities.
 eff you'd like to go there,' he said, I've no doubt, with little capital, clever man like you could get grand practice together very soon. Or you might buy share in some good estab- lished practice. I should be glad to let you have f500 or even little more if that wouldn't satisfy you. and
 q stood aghast. Why should this man, almost stranger, offer me f500, or even more If that wouldn't satisfy me? What claim had I on him? It was very generous of him. of course. but out of the question. was at least gentleman and had a gentleman's self respect. Meanwhile he had gone maundering on in a halting sort of way and presently let slip a sentence that struck me like blow between tho eyes.
 "T shouldn't like yeu to bear i'll will because of what has happened in tho past he said. Your late-your late lamented mother-I'm afraid-she had unworthy suspicions-I'm sure-it was best for all parties-your father al- ways appreciated
 T set back my chair and stood erect before him. This grovellng wretch, forcing the words through his dry lips, was the thief who had made another of my father aud had brought to mis- erable ends the lives of both my par ents! Everything was clear. The crsa- lure went in fear of me, never imagin- ing that I did not know him, and | sought to buy me off-to buy me from | the remembrance of my dead mothers | broken heart for f500-f500 that he had made my father steal for him! said not word. But the memory of i all my mothers bitter years and savage sense of this crowning insult | to myself took a hold upon me, and | was a tiger. Even then I verify be- lieve that one word of repentance, one tone of honest remorse, would have | saved him. But he dropped his eyes, excuses and stammered of 'un- worthy suspicious and no i'll will l let him stammer. Presently he look ed up and saw my face and fell back In his chair sick with terror. I snatch cd the pistol from the n Sp telpiece and, thrusting 1t in his face, shot him where he sat.
 My subsequent coolness and quiet ness surprise me now. I took my hat and stepped toward the door. But there were voices on the stairs. The door was locked on the inside, and left 1t so. I went back and quietly opened a window. Below was a clear drop Into darkness and above was plain wall. but away to one side. where the slope of the gable sprang from the roof. an iron gutter ended. supported by strong bracket. It was the only way. I got upon the sill and carefully shut the window behind me, for people were already knocking at the lobby door. From the end of the sill. hold Ing on by the reveal of the window with one hand. leaning and stretching ny utmost. caught the gutter. swung myself clear and scramhlad or, tha