Union County courier. [volume] (Elk Point, Union County, D.T. [S.D.]) 187?-1913, 1909-05-20

| on the curious discovery made by the
men who were dragging. NED was
looking, If possible, rather more dls'
sipated even than usual.
whats all this ERE about?' ne IN
quired of a bystander, with a some
what unsteady wave of his hand
towards the scene of the operations.
The man addressed turned. stared
at Ned.with almost incredulous eyes,
and slowly backed away from him;
then recovered himself and shouted
out the news In a voice that maze
every one turn-much to Ned's own
amazement, whose inquiry had been
made in perfect good faith. Ned had
gone, at a moments notice, for trip
with a friend on a canal boat, and had
returned quite unconscious the con-
lectures his absence had provoked IN
the village. The next moment he was
more startled still, as his wife, who
had hitherto hardly dared to call her
soul her own in his presence, rushed
up to him excitedly and cuffed him
hard on each ear, as If to relieve her
almost historical feelings.
"You ought to be ashamed of your
self-there!" she cried; and little
group of village folk. standing round
the bewildered Ned, severely endorsed
her expressed opinion-as though it
was rather grievance than otherwise
that he should have turned up again
when he was believed to be dead.
Meanwhile the inspector was exam
lining the small revolver with the
fancifully chased handle, the sight of
which had made Stephen Ruthen turn
a shade paler-the revolver from
which must have been fired the shot
that killed Philip Hume, the revolver
he had flung into the river
Suddenly Freddy Thornton reached
out his hand, excitedly.
May | look at it, Inspector" he
cried; and he almost snatched it out
Of the officers hand. He examined |
1t for a moment; then, II know to |
whom this revolver belongs" he ex-
claimed. 1T belongs to Bonholt |
Hume!"
do you say it is Bonholt Hume's,
his revolver" broke in Stephen Ru-
hen, swiftly; and the note of strange
excitement in the cry that made the |
ones unlike the rector's caused |
Thornton to look up at him suddenly |
stephens face was white and startled |
What do you mean, Thornton?"
Just what I say This is Bonholt |
Tunes revolver-didn't you know
les crack shot? He all but won |
he 'Winans contest that we got up |
lmong members of the club some |
fme ago. He showed me his revo- |
'er then-this revolver the chasing |
m the butt is too uncommon for me |
0 be mistaken. Different chasing on
ach side, too''
Stephen suddenly became aware |
hat Thornton was regarding him Gu
lousy, as If puzzled at the intense |
excitement that his manner betrayed. |
hat new startling thought which had |
wept in on him with Thornton's
words had carried him for a moment |
eyond self-control: with an effort the |
ector pulled himself together to some |
emblance of outward composure. |
tartled as he was. This revolver that |
e had taken from Olives hand had, |
Thornton's statement were a fact, |
to Bonholt Hum!
And Stephen was convinced that it |
5as fact. This statement of own
rship threw sudden light on Bon !
olt Hume's motive for prying into
hat locked drawer, confirming his |
rst suspicion; threw light on other |
circumstances in the dark of which |
q had been cropping. He had as
umed from the first that the revol- |
er was Olives. But If it were Bon
olt Hume's, not hers, the whole as
ect became instantly changed.
Had Olive, after all, killed Philip |
Iume?
To Be Continued.