Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1909-02-02

you such thing as match about
you? l think Janet wants to heat a
teaspoonful OF water for q strychnine
hypodermic"
CHAPTER XIV.
From Mrs. MelviIe's Point Of View.
The Palace Hotel. San Francisco,
March "a, 19O6.-My Dear Husband:
Although l sent you postal yester-
day, l am writing again today to try
to keep you in touch with our extraor-
binary series of events. Nothing has
been heard from Archie except the
letter,the letter-if he wrote (which
tells nothing except that his kidnapers
use the same kind OF writing paper as
Miss Janet Smith. l grow more sus-
picious of her all the time. You ask
(but Of course you wrote before the re-
cent mysterious and tragical occur
rencesl. you ask do like Miss Smith
any better, now that am thrown
with her so closely. No, Melville, I
have not the fatal credulity Of the
Winters! | distrust her more. She
has, admit, an engaging personality:
there is superficial amiability that
would be dangerous to one not on her
guard But am never of my guard
with her I'm sorry to say, however,
that your brother seems deceived by
her plausible ways. And, of course,
our poor aunt is still her blind dnpe
Aunt Rebecca has failed good deal
this last year; she is quite irritable
with me- sometimes, but she does not
appear to realize the full horror Of this
kidnapping. Miss Smith actually seems
to suffer more; she looks pale and bag
gard and has no appetite. l do not
think it all pretense. either; l dare
say much Of it is remorse! The situa-
ton is dreadful Sometimes think
Aunt Rebecca will not yield to the de-
mands of these wretches who have our
poor boy, and that he will be mutilated
or murdered; sometimes / think that
they have murdered him already and
are writing forged letters to throw us
! off the track. You can imagine how
my nerves are shaken! l have seen
hardly anything of the city; and Of
course have not gone into society at
all. Indeed, l have met only one
pleasant person; that was the secre-
tary of the great financier, Mr.. Edwin
Keatcham, who was here, next to Us.
The secretary is pleasing person
quite CONNIE il faut in appearance. /
met him here in the court where he
nearly knocked me over; and he apol-
ogized profusely-a and really very nice
ly, using my name. That surprised
me, but he explained that they had
been on the train with us. Then re-
membered him His name is Horatio
Atkins; and he is very polite. He is
on two weeks vacation and came
here to see Mr.. Keatcham, not know
ing he was gone. He was really
most agreeable and so sympathetic
about poor dear Archie. He agreed
with me that such nervous tempera-
ment as Archie's suffers much more
from unkindness. l could see, in spite
of his assumed hopefulness, that he
shared my fears. He has met quite
number of our friends. He may
Through Mr.. Keatcham) be a most
valuable acquaintance. Didn't you tell
me, once, that Keatcham was the lead
ing benefactor of the university?
He (Mr. Atkins) got his vacation on
account of his health; and he is going
to southern California. l don't Won
der. have never suffered more than
in this land Of sunshine! 1t is not so
much the cold of the air as the humid
ity! Do pray be cautious about chang
ing to your summer underwear. Don't
do 1t! l nearly persisted in the bleak
wind yesterday, when tried to visit
a few shops. Be sure and take the
cough medicine on the second shelf of
our bathroom medicine closet; don't
mistake rheumatism liniment for it;
they are both on the same shelf; you
would better sort them out. You are
so absent-minded, Melville, haven't
a peaceful day when I'm away from
you; and do for heavens sake try to
bow to Mrs. Farrell and call her by
her right name! You certainly have
been to the presidents house often
enough to know his wife on the street;
and / don't think that 1t was good
excuse which you gave to Prof. Dale
for calling Good morning, KATY" to
Mrs Dale (who was born Schuyler
and is most punctilious) that you mis-
took her for our cook!
miss you very much. Give my love
to all our friends and be sure to wear
your galoshes (your rubbers, you
know when the campus is wet,
whether it is raining or not.
Your aft. wife,
NJ. WINTER.
THE SAME TO THE SAME.
The Palace Hotel, March, 25, 10
P. M.-My Dear Husband: What do
you think has happened? am almost
too excited to write. Archie is back!
Yes, back safe and sound, and abso-
lutely Indifferent, to all appearances,
to all our indescribable sufferings on
his account! He walked into the par
lor about six or little after, grin
ming like an ape, as if to disappear
from the face of the earth and come
back to it were quite the usual thing.
And when we questioned him, he pro-
fessed to be on his word not to tell
ANYTHING. And BERTHE upheld him in
this ridiculous position! However, l
was told by the detective whom Ber-
tie employed, rather decent, vulgar,
little man, that they (Bertie and he)