The Black Hills union and western stock review. [volume] (Rapid City, S.D.) 1904-19??, 1909-08-27
Not the n.lds?. symonds asked

Not the pa.ads?" symonds asked
quickly.
mo. my parties know them all
right. These was strangers, and
swell down to the ground. They beat
it for a record up the lane and slid
into a cab they had over on Worcester
street."
symonds scratched his head.
Here's a mess" he grunted.
There's Clements, and there's Mains,
and here's two females, nary one of
the parties connected with any of the
others, seems like, and all of 'em
Johnny-on-the-spot at the same time,
about, old deafy knowing nothing of
any of 'em but Clements, and Hines
lying right and left on the whole
business. It's a stage break all round.
It gets me. Why is. Hines handing out
that dope? Who is these here women?
How does 1t size up that Clements has
been here, according to deafy, Hines
never opening his head about him,
While at the same time Mains has
been here. according to Hines, deafy
never letting on, and both Of, EN- mum
on the swell p%etticoats? Somebody
made up the cipher asking for the
door-key, and s'posing he got it, that
would account for him; but then what
about all the others-how did they
get in? Who could be bringing Hines
ten thousand? If only l had some way
OF opening that Willie boys mouth"
He got as far as this in his solilo-
guy when he stopped, stared a mo.
ment into vacancy, and then, bringing
n hand down upon the other with a.
smack OF the palms, grabbed the tele-
phone receiver that stood on the desk
n soon was in conversation with DIR.
F%urnivall.
we got him now, all right" he said
jubilantly a moment later to the po.
liceman. "Dr. F~urnivall is on the way
here. He won't be ten minutes. He
thinks the man is dying-and so he is,
Tor all l know" he added %virtuously,
palllatlng his mendacity to the doctor.
You go down and let him in, Usher,
so he won't ring"
The policeman, who never before
had seen DR.. Furnivall, was greatly
disappointed, as well as surprised, by
MS appearance when he arrived. From
MS reputation as an adept in occult
ism he had expected to see, he scarce
ly knew What-a person wild-eyed and
~long-ha1red, at least, with an uncanny
personality, like the performers of the
%lev1tation act on museum stages, or
the professors" Of hypnotism who put
sly-faced youths through funny stunts
before the rural audiences. And he
did not look for much from this unos-
tentatious, ordinary appearing gentle
mar with the full beard, thick, coloreA
spectacles and quiet suit of black.
But if he was disappointed with the
Doctors appearance he was more SO
with his methods, for, after Detective
Symonds had told him the story, indi-
eating what he should like to find out,
and DR.. Furnivall approached the pa
t1ent with his questions, he made no
more use of mystery, of passes and
poses and hand-washings in the air
than any man would do in ordinary
conversation. He simply stood before
the reclining subject and, removing
his colored s%pectacles, said, looking
the young fellow in the eye:
MI. Hines, who shot you?"
The policeman scarcely could re-
press a sniff Of contempt at this mild
procedure, and when Hines answered,
as he had to the detective, Charlie
Mains" and then went on with the
story just as he had told it before, the
~b1ue-coated shoulders rose in a shrug.
The thing vas a farce, and he was
about to consult the detective with his
eyes to see how he took it when he
noticed a change in the speakers
countenance that riveted his atten-
ton. In the full flow of his words he
stopped, his eyes fixed on the Doctors,
a look of surprise sprang into his
face, and this was succeeded almost at
once by a hesitant, appealing express.
sion, which gave way to a matter-of-
fact content, changing slowly to earn
estness, and finally settling into a
look of deep abstraction. Then he re.
sumed, in a voice without infection,
as il a machine were speaking:
q shot myself"
The policeman and detective uttersa
an exclamation, but DR.. F%urniyall mo.
toned for silence.
go on he said to Hines. why
did you do it? Tell me the whole
story"
The monotonous voice proceeded a
once, the eyes glued, as 1t were, to Dr.
Furnivall's, but seeing only the pags
Of memory within.
II wanted some money, and as my
father would allow me only q trile Of
two hundred a month | asked my sis.
ter for 1t. She has enough in her own
right, but father forbade her giving
me, any, because I don't just please
him in everything, and she didn't dare
to disobey him. But ! scared her into
promising at last, and she wrote to
me, in a cipher that we had played
with as children, asking for my key
and saying she would bring me ten
thousand-half what l wanted. She
came, with a girl friend, and in trying
to frighten her into making the check
larger Is%snatched up my revolver. ]
was angry and desperate, and j don't
know whether I meant to threaten her
or make her believe / would commit
suicide. But somehow the revolver
went OF, the bullet striking me in the
head, and they screamed and ram"
He stopped speaking. symonds was
Disguised.
.All this ine plant runs into Z
meAsly little accident to q measly
little Willie.booy!!s.sh he grunted. Wen,