The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1908-01-24

AH6 ~ DIV" AHy ~
tude."
Why. looking at her, did his race
change-soften. harden? Why did his
hands tren,ble SO? 1t was over in an
instant; yet I had caught a glimpse
OF his secret, I understood
ut was nothing" he said: az was
glad to do 1T was deeply pleased
when that message am this morn
ing"
you've been kinder to me than 1 de-
served" she said: and I more than half
agreed with her. How. with his eyes
before her. could she fall to under
stand? Perhaps she did underestimate
, was never sure.
In the first place. then, Miss Croy-
don" ne went on, in a different tone,
nov did your father succeed In getting
your sister away from Tremaine?"
They had gone to Paris" she an
swered, "and in two or three DAYS
Edith a awakened from her dream
she saw something In the man which
1errllled her, and she wrote a pitiful let
Ter 10 rather, who went over to Paris
at once. and finally succeeded in buy
lns me man off. Father paid him
$4,000 francs. I believe-perhaps 1t wns
the fact that he knew he was not really
fldlths husband-that he himself had
committed a ~crime-which made him
take 1t. He agreed to leave the ount
and in the following December he wroie
.ather II a he was about to sail for
martinique in a ship called the Cen
aur. He said he intended to buy q
plantation in Martinique and make that
MS home. In February. we learned
mat the Centaur had been lost, with
a saan on BOARD; After eight years. 1t
Edith felt free to marry again"
Was Mr.. Delroy informed Of thi.
early indiscreticn?'
"Certainly-and forgaye II. AZ any
good man, would" N'
Pardon me for asking the question.
MISS but 1t was necessary.
maine was still alive?"
One night nealH two months oro
Edith brought his letter to me. She
was Wild. distracted. ready to kill her
is what 1 have feared every
a since. She loves Mr.. Delroy. Mr..
God1rey; and yet she believed herself
the wife OF another man. He demand
ed that she meet hin in that apartment
mouse. 1 knew h could not bear sucl,
Il meeting. and yet he must be seen. I
o1lered 10 go In her stead: l had some
Wild Idea OF appealing to his better ma
lure, OF p~ersuading him"
She stopped. silenced by her own
emotion. IVA
That. Of course, would not have all
tered the fact that your sister was his
Wife" observed Godfrey.
NO; that was the terrible part Of
1t; nothing could alter that. There
must, OF course. be a separation: but
we hough we would solve that problem
after we had settled the other. So I
Went. he opened the doo to me. I
a never seen him. and 1 confess his
appearance and manner were not at all
what l expected. He did not look in
the least like a scoundrel, nor did he
act like one. He listened to me with
attention and seeming respect. He ever
appeared moved. Oh. I know now what
a hypocrite he was: I know that he
ming something deeper, more v%illainous.
l a brought $1,000 with me-all that
we could gather together at the mo-
1 pressed 1t upon him. urg-
ing him to take it and go away and
we would send him more. He pretend
ed 10 refuse the money, to protest that
1T was not in the least what he wanted.
but I compelled him to take it. And
Just as was hoping that prevailed
with him. the door OF the bedroom
opened and q horrible drunken man
staggered out.
We'll. Vic he cried. so this is tn.
gal. is IT? She's a likely piece. 1
Woaldn.t give her up. Vic. no. not fer
ten thousand
Go back to bed. you drunken
roughly by the arm.
But the other shook him of.
Don't lay your hands on me, vic,'
he cried. Don't dare lay your hands
on me!'
II saw the very devil spring into Ire
maine's face. He looked about him for
some weapon, and picked I'D q piece
OF pipe that lay beside the radiator.
Thompson saw the action and lurched
heavily toward him.
Coin t use that On me. vic?' he
asked. You'd better try it, and he
made a pass at Tremaine and tried to
snatch the pipe away. You try it on
an Ill blow your game like 1 did once
before down at Sydney
He struck at Tremaine again, but
the latter sprang away and in an In
slant had brought the pipe down upon
then that aendish look flashed into
Tremaine's face a second time; he
snatched out a revolver-I dimly UNI
derstood what was coming-indeed. I
had my W revolver In my hand and
l fired at him: but my shot went wild.
She stopped and buried her face IN
her hands. overcome for the moment
by the terrible spectacle her words
had evoked.
She controlled herself by an effort;
loon GOWN ner hands
H put his pistol away and stepped
over very close to me.
Miss Croydon he said rapidly. 1T
will DO wei: for you to say you did
not know me. I have committed no
crime-he was the aggressor-what I
did was done In self defence. one
thing more-your sister has nothing
to fear from mel shall never bother
her again. promise you that
HE was gone in an instant and
then the janitor came and you and
the detectives"
Godfrey nodded thoughtfully.
THAT supplies the motive, Lester"
he said Il nave felt thai my explain
alton Of the crime was not quite ade-
quate. But 1t was not only desire for
revenge that urged Tremaine ont
was also the knowledge that Thompson
knew Of his first marriage and threat
ened, with a word. to wreck his plans
a second time"
YES" I agreed. and sat silent, pom
dering the story.
Why did you take the clippings.
Miss Croydon7" asked Godfrey after a
moment.
From what you read Of them. I sus-
pected how vitality they concerned my
sister. That was a secret. 1 felt, which
U be kept at n hazard. It was
done without consideration, on the
spur OF h moment. or I should never
have had the courage to do 1t at all"
"And why did you hide them under