The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1909-09-28

again, as had happened at the grave,
heard Alexis voice, tense and tri-
umvhant:
Then we've got Them" he said
Only, in my dreams, he said it over
and over until he seemed to shrek it
in my ears.
wakened early in spite Of my ia
tgue, and lay there thinking. Who
Has Alex? | no longer believed that
he was a gardener Who was the
an whose body we had resurrected?
And where was Paul Armstrong? Prob
lhly living safely in some extradition-
'ess country on the fortune he had
stolen. Did Louise and her mother
know of the shameful and wicked de-
ception? What had Thomas known,
and Mrs. Watson? Who was Nina |
Darlington?
This last question, it seemed to me, |
was answered. In some way the |
woman had learned of the substitu-
ton, and had tried to use her knowl- |
edge for blackmail. Nina Carrington's
own story died with her, but, however
it happened, it was clear that she had
] Cdtiitu ubI hlONltuSt W lldibCy ChC
afternoon Gertrude and I were look
ing for clews to the man I had shot
on the east veranda. Halsey had been
half crazed by what he heard; it was
evident that Louise was marrying DR..
Walker to keep the shameful secret,
for her mothers sake. Halsey, al
ways reckless, had gone at once to
DIR. Walker and denounced him. There
had been a scene, and he left on his
way to the station to meet anu notify
Mr. Jameson of what he had learned.
The doctor was active mentally and
physically. Accompanied perhaps by
J Riggs, who had shown himself not
everscrupulous until he quarreled
with his employer, he had gone across
to the railroad embankment, and, by
jumping in front of the car. had
, caused Halsey to swerve. The rest
5 of the story we knew.
That was my reconstructed theory
Of that afternoon and evening; 1t was
E almost correct-not quite.
There was telegram that morning
. from Gertrude.
' Halsey conscious and improving. Prob
ABLY nome IN uay OF 81.
q With Halsey found and improving
9 in health, and with at last something
e to work on, I began that day, Thurs
day, with fresh courage. AS Mr..
! Jameson had said, the lines were
a closing up. That I was to be caught
and almost finished in the closing was
e happily unknown to us ALL
It was late when l got up. I lay in
l. my bed, looking around the four walls
r. Of the room, and trying to imagine be
hind what one of them a secret cham
:. Der might lie. Certainly, in daylight
10 Sunnyside deserved its name; never
was a house more CHEEKY and open
less sinister in general appearance
as There was not corner apparently
~ that was not open and above-board
ct and yet, somewhere behind it's hand
u somely papered walls I believed firml!
~ that there lay a hidden room, will
= all the possibilities it would involve.
made a mental note to have tn
z. house measured during the day to dis
be- cover any discrepancy between tn
outer and inner walls, and I tried t.
nd recall again the exact wording of tn
an paper Jameson had found
The slip had said Chimney"
re was the only clue, and house a
he he large as Sunnyside was full of then
m, There was an open fireplace in m
IT'S dressing room, but none in the boz
aa room, and as I lay there, lookin
around, I thought of something tina
sly made me sit up suddenly. The trunl
De room, just over my head, had an ops
fireplace and brick chimney, an
lat yet there was nothing of the kind
'nt my room. l got out of bed and q
ew amined the opposite wall CLOSED
is There was apparently no fue. and
~ knew there was none in the hall ju
ice beneath. The house was heated
'as steam, as l have said before. In Il
e's living room was huge open fireplas
ING but it was on the other side.
Why did the trunlSroom have bo
up radiator and an open fireplace
md Architects were not usually errat
for 1t was not Is minutes before was I
md stairs, AIMED with a tape-measure
lieu of foot-rule, eager to justify
%. OF Jamieson's opinion of ply inte'ligen,
wo- and firmly resolved not to tell him
REQ my suspicion until I had more tn
by theory to go on. The hole in t
trunkroom way still yawned the,
we'd tween the chimney and the OUR W;
II examined it again, with no new
salt. The space between the bri
wall and the plaster and lath o
however, had ncw significance. 7
role showed only one side of the chi
oey, and l determined to investig
dis what lay in the space on the oil
ars side of the mantel.
md had a blister on my palm WI
out at last the Ratchet went through &
sed fell with what sounded like the report
vas gun to my overstrained nerves. I
ing M trunk, waiting to hear Liddy
Lid UP the stairs, with the household
the mind her, like the tail of a comet
the nothing happened, and with grow
tho | faeIinp of uncanninpss I set tn w