The newspaper., 1909-10-22
Y ROBERZS RZ7VE/Z4R1
CHAPTER I.
z Take a Country House.


Wrists the stott f.how a middle
aged spinster lost her mind. deserted
her domestic gods in the city. took
a furnished house for the summer out
of town, and found herself involved in
one of those mysterious crimes that
keep our newspapers and detective
agencies happy and prosperous. For
20 years | had been perfectly com
foftable: FOR 20 yhars | had had the
wrhdbv boxes filed in the. spring. the
carpets lifted. the awnings put up and
the furniture covered with brown
linen: for as many summers | had said
good-by to my friends. and, after
watching their perspiring hegira. had
settled down to a delicious quiet in
town, where the NAH comes three
times a day, and the water supply
does not depend on a tank ON the
roof
And then-the madness seized me.
When ! look back over the months I
spent in Sunnyside. / wonder that
survived at all AS # is. show the
wear and tear of my narrowing ex-
perienees. / have turned very gray
Liddy reminded me of II only yester-
day by saying that n little biuing in
the rinse water would make my hair
silyery. instead of yellow white.
hate to be reminded OF unpleasant
things and snapped her of.
NO" said sharply. I'm not going
TO use bluing at my time OF life. or
starch. either"
Liddy's nerves are gone. she says.
since that awful summer. but she has
enough left. goodness knows And
when she begins to go around with a
lump In her throat. all ] have to do
is to threaten to return to Sunnyside.
and she Is frightened into a semblance
of cheerfulness-from which you may
Judge that the summer there was any
thing but n success.
The newspaper accounts have been
so garbled and ineomplete-one of
them mentioned me but once. and
then only as the tenant at the time
the thing happened feel IL my
due to tell what | know Mr. Jamie
son. the detective. said himself he
could never have done without me
although he gave me little enough
credit. in print
I shall have to go back several
years-i3. to be exact-to start my
story. A. that time my brother died.
leaving me his two children. Halsey
was II then and Gertrude was seven.
When Halsey had finished his cleo
trical course and Gertrude her board
Ing school both came home TO stay
The winter Gertrude came out was
nothing but a succession OF sitting up
late at night to bring her home from
things. taking her to the drcssmakers
between maps the next day. and dis
couraging ineligible youths with either
more money than brains or more
brains than money. by spring I was
quite tractable So when Halsoy sug
gested camping in the Adirondacks
and Gertrude wanted bar Harbor. We
compromised on a good country house
with links near. within motor dis
tance OF town and telephone distance
OF the doctor. That was how We went
to Sunnyside
We went out to inspect the property
and IL seemed to deserve its name
Its cheerful appearance gave no indi
cation whatever of anything out of
the ordinary Only one thing seemed
unusual to me: The housekeeper, who
had been left in charge. had moved
from the house to the gardeners lodge
. few days before. As the lodge was
far enough away from the house. II
seemed to me that either fire or
thieves could complete their work OF
destruction undisturbed. The proper
~ was an extensive one: the house on
the top Of a hill. which sloped away in
great stretches OF green lawn and
clipped hedges. to the road. and across
the valley. perhaps a couple OF miles
away. was the Greenwood Club house
Gertrude and IIalsey were infatuated
The property was owned by Paul
Armstrong. the president of the
Traders bank. who at the time we
took the house was in the west with
his wife and daughter. and DR.
Walker. the Armstrong family ply
sician. Halsey knew Louise Arm
strong-had been rather attentive to
her the winter before, but as Halscy
was always attentive to somebody. |
had not thought OF It seriously. al.
though she was n charming girl
knew OF Mr.. Armstrong only through
his connection with the bank. where
the children's money was largely in
vested. and through an ugly story
about the son. Arnold Armstrong, who
was reported to have forged his fa-