Evening star., 1909-08-31
XIX-ContinueI.

Could it be he kept asking himself as he
spoke these ordinary words that any one
could dream for moment that this girl
here with him in this narrow space. had
aught of association with the terrible
tragedy that had occurred so close at
hand? To take the precautions they were
taking, if any one could doubt her or
hers for moment was the height of alb
surdity.
"Oh. yes she said, with show of bit
ter impatience. that's a dodge to gain a
day or two. or at most week, but what
does il amount to? What's to be done
when lodges won't work any longer"
1t was the question he had constantly
asked himself as he drove through the
night. and to which he had found no
answer; but it was one thing TO make the
admission to himself and another to own
up with this girl watching his face and
hanging on his words. as if the question
of life and death turned on his answer.
We've got to tire Trafford out he
said, feebly. Its only a question OF
time
Its only a question of time she re-
peated. with strong emphasis, but not in
firing Trafford ont. He's not that kind
No, he was not that kind, and Grimble-
shaw seemed to know it as re had never
known anything before in his life. He
felt him. as it were, a merciless, untirinS
Idle, WhICnlnS, waiting, strong because
he could wait, but by no chance ever tir-
ing. All the more, who could be saved
should be, and with Calden out of reach
ing distance, why was it not possible to
save this girl. who at the most must
know little. and who, probably, simply
guessed at things of which she knew
nothing SO far as the law of evidence
gauged knowledge Concerning these
things she had merely to hold her tongue
and nothing could be eXtOrted. AS to her
presence at the farm. there was not a
shred of evidence that she had been
there until a substantial time later than
the actual commission of the murder. She
could only guess. therefore, who was the
doer Of the deed, and guesses were not
and could not be made evidence.
Miss Calden." he said, speaking earn
estly under conception of the demands of
the situation. '.why you were here that
night ] don't know, but ! do know 1t
could have had nothing to do with this
crime. Why. then. can't YOU speak out
and tell just what you saw? 1t will clear
up the atmosphere tremendously. while
the real danger is in all these wild
guesses-'
He knew he had lost the point of what
he was trying to say even before he
caught the frightened expression of her
face. which completed his decentralization
and caused him TO stop with his sentence
unfinished. On the instant she leaned
forward and, with her hand pressed on
scarce catch the words:
DIR. Grimbleshaw, have you told all
that You saw"
Yes. he said, unhesitatingly. IF !
guessed anything my guesses are not evil
dence. So far as / can recall | have told
everything | saw, everything.
And you have nothing to add, f-if-
they should try to force you to say
more?'
Nothing This time he spoke with
q a tod fn,.
every minute of time and every event
from my reaching the house until Malbon
got here
Yet, you know"
Il do not he interrupted her. NLwill-
ing even to hear what ne knew her about
to say II saw man in the doorway.
but / did not see his face though | tried
hard to, and | would not recognize him
again if l saw him. have no right to
guess who he was. and the law gives no
one any right to hear my guesses even If
l would make them. | certainly shall
not be so--crimipal. that's the right word
so criminal as to risk injuring an inno-
cent person by adding to what l know
guesses as to what ! do not and cannot
know
He knew that in this multiplying of
words lie was simply trying to induce
In her an attitude of mind that would
help her to a clean separation of what
she knew Of the affair from the mass of
-.
| naturally gathered about this as point
of departure. He watched her face with
growing and. finally. keen disappointment
that it did not respond to his effort
Where will you draw the line?" she
asked almost in the tone of one vino
| loses interest in a hopeless issue. Can
| you remember a face once seen SO that
you know it when seen again, while you
only guess at a resemblance in voice.
| He was startled at her daring In strk-
.,,.~ tI,o nf inr,
| that endangered and was likely to undo
| him.
"Is only saw one face and heard one
voice while here" he said, with positive
ness ITO the identity of neither could !
answer under oath: it would be the sheer
est guesswork.'
And yet If by this very thing you
create the impression that you are con-
cealing something?' she asked anx-
iously.
There is what / am trying to point
out to you" he said. in turn laying his
hand on her arm. "One can conceal only
what one knows, not what one merely
guesses Keep those two things separate
and that danger. and many others, will
disappear
Surely he had now said all that any one
could or need say to put her on her
guard but il seemed without effect to re-
lieVe her mind. With that he felt that
the chance of inStructing by implication
directness When he spoke farther 1t was
with abruptness bordering on rudeness:
stop guessing, Keep in mind only
what You know. Miss Calden"'
Alas she said. II know so much I've
nothing left to guess. | came here with
Horace and twas he and | carried Jonil
Altenburg upstairs.
For moment he was too surprised TO
speak Then a great rush of light came
to him and he spoke with assurance porn
of facts:
Then YOU can't know, either of you,
who did this thing?
But | know whom we came mere eN-
pecting to find" she said.
Yes but don't YOU see that expecting
to find some one here whom you did not
find sets YOU to guessing as 10 MS pos
sible connection with what YOU do find
is connection between the two? AS
| matter of cold fact. it is simply the Wild
est possible kind of guesswork.'
| But do YOU believe" she asked. study
! ing his face rather than waiting his words
| for her answer as IL her salvation de-
/ pended on it. that the fact we did not
| find whom We expected does not prove
him connected with what we did find?
i've got nothing TO do with believing
| or not believing. nor have you, he said,
desperately, fighting with the new pres
eutation of the case he drew from her
business to draw conclusions from facts.
The state and TraffOrd will do all of that
that is in anyways necessary or desirable.
I'm simply to tell what l know. You do
the same and stop short with what you
do know actually.
But / know l came here, we came
here. expecting to find some one, and In
place of finding him we found-this!'
But a dozen other people might have
been here before you came. might have