The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-06-07
CHAPTER y.
SPENCER'S SURPRISE.


Duncombe had the nerves and tenn
perament of the young Englishman of
his class, whose life is mostly spent
out of doors. and who has been an
athlete all his days. But nevertheless
al that moment he was afraid. Some
thing in the stiffness of the room OPP
pressed him. He could see nothing,
hear nothing except the clock ticking
upon the mantelpiece. And yet he was
afraid.
He fumbled desperately i'm his pocket
for his match box. When he had found
it he discovered that it was empty.
With a sense OF positive relief he
backed out of the room and hastily de-
seconded the stairs. The old lady was
still in her sitting room reading the
paper. She set it down at his entrance
and looked at him over the top of her
spectacles.
Pardon, Madame" he said, remOv-
ing his hat, Il find the rooms of Mad
emOiselle are open, but all is in dark
ness. cannot make any one hear"
Madame took up her paper
Then MademOiselle is probably out"
she declared. 1T is generally so at
this hour. Monsieur can leave his
name"
But the doors are all OPEN" Dun
combe said.
I go presently and close them."
Madame answered. The Ncareless
hussyr'
Duncombe produced a small piece of
gold Madame laid down the paper
at once She looked at it as though
ready to snatch it from his hand.
Madame would oblige me very much
if she would ascend with me at once,
Duncombe said. Il should like to make
quite sure whether the young lady is
there or not
Madame was on her feet with re-
markable celebrity. She accepted the
coin and carefully placed it in a purse
drawn from somewhere amongst the
folds of her vOlUminous skirts.
I'VE shall need a candle" DuncOmbe
reminded her.
She lit a lamp, talking all the while
Monsieur is very generous" she de-
clared. "MademOiselle Flossie is a
charming young lady No wonder she
has many friends. There was one"
she continued, who came here with
her this afternoon-but he left almost
at once" she added hastily, aware of
her indiscretion. "Ah, these stairsl
They grow sleeper for one so corpulent.
At lastw
She pushed open the door and went
sideways down the narrow passage. Di-
rectly they had entered it they had a
view of the room beyond. Madame
cried out and DuncOmbe felt all his
vague fears spring into a terrified APP
prehension of actual evil.
The curtain before the window been
hastily drawn, but the lamp which the
FORTRESS carried was sufficient feebly
to illuminate the room. The table cloth
and a broken vase lay upon the floor.
A few feet off was an overturned chair.
Upon the canopied bed lay a PROSTATE
figure, the head thrown back at an
unnatural angle, the eyes open but
glazed Duncombe dared do no more
than cast one single Mortified glance
at it, Madame set down the lamp upon
the table and made the room hideous
with shrieks.
Good God" she cried. 1T is the lit
| tie one who is dead"
Duncombe himself fetched I'm the
gendarmes, and waited whilst they took
voluminous notes of the occurrence.
/ The murder seemed to them and to
Madame to be one of a very common
class The assassin had left no clue
whatever behind him. The poor girl 5
rings had been torn from her fingers,
/ her little stock of jewelry ransacked,
/ her purse was empty, everything of
value had been taken. There was not
| shred of evidence against any one.
Madame, who had seen the man upon
/ the stairs. could only say that he was
short. and wore black felt hat. The
officer who took down what they had
| to say shrugged his shoulders as he
replaced the book in his pocket. The
affair would pass most certainly, he
| feared. into the long list of undiscOV-
cradle crimes
Duncombe left his name and address.
and enough money for the funeral.