Troy weekly news. (Troy, Idaho) 1897-1933, 1908-05-01
The Roupell Mystery
u r a n v | | / e

an stablishment-aboyea all ouch a wife
could go wrong. If the vicomte's idea
Of an Office was rather a loud one. the
undoubted good taste Of his wife cor
rected these things at home.
Those deep blue eyes of the vicomtesse
were not the only attraction at the de
Valiar mansion. There was always high
play Tor those who relished that kind of
thing, and a sprinkling of those ladies
whom such woman as the de Valiar,
as she was Familiarity called at the clubs,
would be sure to gather around her. They
were women of great personal attractions,
some of them Divorces, others on the
high road to that enviable state, the
quasi-separation, which leaves the wife In
position to enjoy herself without dam
ger OF comment, and supplies her. under
the French law, moreover, with the means
of doing so.
Of the many frequenters of the vicom-
l tesses establishment in the Avenue Wag-
ram perhaps NJ. Jules Chabot was as well
come guest as any. His undoubted re-
! spectablity made him an exceedingly de-
sirable acquaintance. NJ Chabot on the
other hand, liked the free-and-easy at
| mosphere of the de Valiar mansion De
Naliar was man who always had some
young, rich fool dangling after him, de-
sirous of seeing life. A certain portion
of the money only of these innocents
could be diverted to the innumerable and
mysterious uses of the Mutual Credit
and Trust Company. They were then af-
forded an opportunity of losing the resi-
due at the card tables in the Avenue
Wagram.
Many, doubtless, who frequented the
| vicomte's establishment were totally I'M
aware of the risks they ran. These were
rarely suffered to go behind the curtain.
NJ. Chabot was one of those who had for
some time not been admitted to the priv
LEGGED circle without great care. To do
him justice, it is highly probable that if
the veil had been removed all at once, he
would have ceased his visits altogether.
He lived in bachelor apartments. Pro
foundly impressed with a sense of his
personal dignity, he endeavored on a very
small income to keep up appearances.
Lately, however, he had joined de Valiar
in more than one investment by which
he had profted.
The willy de Valiar, who had allowed
his friend to pocket something handsome
as his share of these enterprises, OF
course, had his object in view. What
other, indeed, could it be than to discover
all about Chabot's rich friend, Nine
Roupell, concerning whom NJ. Chabot was
not at all 10th to impart information
for he would in his turn be able to dis
cover what probable dot the old LADY
would be able to give whichever of tn,
girls he should choose to marry.
Such inquiries, the vcomte, whose po
sition in the world of finance enabled hiIr
to make better than Chabot, Willingly
set on foot TO oblige his friend. He as
sured NJ. Chabot that report had not ex
aggerated Nine. Roupell's wealth. Tha
a portion of a million and a half o.
, francs had been set apart for the Wei
don sisters. In the opinion of NJ. Cha
bot, it only remained for him to declare
himself to one or the other of the younl
, ladies', and he had been, as the readel
, will have seen, on the very eve Of max
, ing such a declaration to Emily Weldon
when the tragedy occurred.
The question which now arose in tn,
, mind of NJ. Victor Lablanche, the astut
!, project of police, was this: Had NJ. Cha
DOT sought 10 pfecipltdle Ha'leis ny III
removal of the proprietress of the Cha
teau Villeneuve? He had discovered al
ready that inquiries regarding her forum
and her intentions respecting it had beei
set on foot by Jules Chabot. A littl
further research revealed the fact tina
= the Frenchman's finances were in des
perate condition. In his later enterprise
d with the vicomte de Valiar, fortune hal
> not been so kind. He had lost heavily