Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1907-10-26
CHATTER XXYI

1 a. NLNlA was Ill for long time
after that terrible hour. Al
4 ----ss:ss though Maud had not sue
AzGeJ ceeded in strangling her, yet
tie black silk handkerchief leftAnarks
ca her neck. Then the struggle, the
slock and the remembrance Of the
,rrors related by the miserable wom-
q threw her into nervous fever, and
was many weeks before she recov-
ed sufficiently to enjoy life. Debo-
h never forgave herself for having
It Sylvia alone and nursed her with
fierce tenderness which was the re-
1t of rcmOrSe.
IF that wretch 'ad killed my pretty"
e said to Paul, I'D ha' killed her,
wos hanged fur it five times over"
God has punished the woman" said
] .ul solemnly.
Serve 'er right" rejoined Deborah
artlessly What kin you expect fur
od folk if wicked ones. as 20 stran-
lating people don't git the Lord
wn on 'em. oh, Mr.. Beecot," Deb
{ Sh broke down into noisy tears. the
> rors that my lovely one ave tole Inc.
5 n murders ard gory assassi2s!'
Il gathered something of this from
nat Sylvia let drop when we came
elk from the station" said BeecDt
8 ixiously Tell me exactly what she
: id, Deborah"
why that thing as is dead, an may
e rest in peace She don't deserve,
lie how she murdered Lady Rachel
.,DJ.I m, INV nIn ,,,nStnr
Deborah" cried Beecot, amazed.
Lou must be mistaken"
no. | amt sir. That thing Guv my
! y queen the errors. JcS' you ear,
; l. Beecot, and creeps will go up your
] lck. Lor' ave mercy on us as don't
now the wickedness Of the world"
Il think we have learned something
of it lately, Mrs. Tawsey," was Paurs
rim reply. ''But tell me-
"Wot my pure angel sunbeam said?
I will. and if it gives you Nightmares
DON'T blame me-" and Mrs. Tawsey, in
er own vigorous, ungrammatical way,
related what she had heard from Syl-
via, who was now sleeping quietly.
Paul went to find Hurd and related
eli that had taken place The detective
vas equally Mortified along with Bee
cot when lie heard of Sylvia's danger
and set to work to prove the truth OF
what Maud had told the girl. He sue
Ceeded so we'll that within n compare
lively short space of time the whole
matter was made clear. Mrs. Jessop.
alias Mrs Krill. was examined: Tray
was found and questioned; Matilda
was made to speak out, and both Jes-
sop and Hokar had to make clean
breasts of it. The evidence thus pro-
cured proved the truth of the terrible
confession made by Maud Jessop to
the girl she thought to strange. Hurd
was amazed at the revelation.
"Never call me detective again." he
said to Paul, for l am an ass. ]
thought Jessop might be guilty or that
IGolkar might have done it. l could
lave taken my Bible oath that Mrs.
Ilril strangled the man, but | never
for one moment suspected that smiling
young woman"
oh" Paul shrugged his shoulders,
"5he was mad"
"Whatever made her tell Miss Nor
man what she had doneT" said Hurd.
Because she never thought that Syl-
via would live to tell any one else.
That vas why she spoke and thought
to torture Sylvia, as she did, in the
same way as she tortured that wretch
Cd man. Lemuel. If l hadn't come
elrlier to Rose cottage than usual, and
Deborah had not met me uneXpect
c lily at the station, Sylvia would GER
. inly have been Killed. And then
aud might have escaped. She laid
ar plans we'll 1t was she who in
! iced Matilda to get her sister tC
come to Kensington for chat"
"But Matilda didn't know what
) Eaud was up to?"
'No. Matilda never guessed that
rIaud was guilty of two murders OF
signed to strange Sylvia. But Maud
ade use of her to get Deborah out
Ct the house. and it was Maud who
ade Tray send the letter asking Mrs
urr to come to him, so that she also
/ ight be out of the way"
We'll" said Hurd. 81 went with the
cd woman to the address given in
that letter which Tray got written fol
Lin. He wasn't there, however, sc
/ might have guessed it was do"
But you have caught him?'
Eyes. in Hunter street. He was
rl0afing about there at night waiting
for Maud and quite ignorant of hel
cath. | made him tell me everything
Of his connection with the matter
e's as bad lot as that girl, but
SIC had some excuse. seeing her