The Mena weekly star., 1909-06-24

teri" She drew deep intake of breath. T don't believe he touched MT. Keatchaml"
 Neither do l." said the colonel, but waitl" He went on to the theater girls report of the receiver of the tele. grams. Her hands, which clasped her knee, fell apart; her lips parted and closed firmly.
 Did l think 1t was you?" said he Why, yes, I confess I did fear fl might be and that you might be trying to shield Atkins"
 TT" she exclaimed hotly; that de, testable villainl"
 Isn't he?" cried the colonel But well, couldn't tell how he might strike lady" he ended lamely.
 q reckon he would strike a lady fl she were silly enough to marry him and he got tired of her. He is the kind of man who will persecute a girl to marry him, follow her around and importune her and flatter her and then. if he should prevail. never for give her for the bother she has given him. Oh, I never did like him. I'm afraid of him-awfully."
 Not you ?"-the colonel's voice was cheerful, as if he had not shivereo over his own foreboding vision. I've seen you in action already, you know.
 Not fighting bombs. I hate bombs There are so many pieces to hit you You cant run away"
 Well, you'll find them not so bad besides, you did fight one this very morning. and you were cool as pep permint!"
 That was quite different; 1 had time to think, and the danger was more to me than to any one else; but to think of Mrs. Winter and Archie and V all of you; that scares me-"
 Now, don't let 1t get on your nerves" he soothed-of course it is necessary to take a girls hand tc soothe her when she Is frightned. But Miss Smith calmly released her hand only reddening a little; and she laughed "Where--where were we at?" she asked in her unconscious southern phraseology.
 Somewhere around Atkins, think" said the colonel; he laughed iu his turn-he found 1t easy to laugh now Chat he knew how she felt toward Atkirs. You see, after talked with Keatcham l couldn't make anything but Atkins out of the whole business But there were those stained cuffs and his changing his clothes"
 Yes" said she.
 How explain? There was only one explanation; that was, that perhaps Mercer had discovered Keatcham be fore we did, unconsciously spotted his cuffs, been alarmed by our approach and hidden, lest 1t should be the mur derers returning. He might have wanted chance to draw his re volver. Say he did that yay. he might foolshly pretend to enter for the frs time. If he made that mistake ant then discovered the condition of his cuffs and the spots on his knee. wha would be his natural first impulse Why, to change them. trusting tha they hadn't been noticed. Maybe then, he would wash them out"
 NO" murmured Miss Smith meek | ly,, with little twinkle of her eye q did that; he hid them. How ridicu l lous of me to get in such a fright | But you know how Cary hated MT | Keatcham; and you--no. you don know the lengths that such a tempera ment as his will go l did another silly thing; I found a dagger, one O | those Moorish stilettoes that hang 1T the library; 1t was lying in the door way. When no one was looking hit | it and carried 1t of. l stuck 1t 1T | one of the flower beds; I stuck it fl the ferns; have stuck that wretchet thing all over this yard didn't dare carry 1t back and put 1t in the empt, place with the others because som, one might have noticed the place And didn't dare say anything tt Cary; I was right miserable" ''So was l." said the colonel. think ing you were trying to protect thu murderer. But do you know what ndO sense D uO
 "Go to Mrs. Winter? Oh, wanted to!"
 Exactly; and do you know wha that dead game sport said to me? Sh' said she found those washed and ironeC cuffs and trousers neatly cleaned with milka--whats milka?-and thu milka cleaned the spots so much clean CT than the rest that she had her owr suspicious started. But says she Not being a plumb idiot. I wen straight to Cary and he told me thu whole story"
 Which was like your story?" "Very near. And you see 1t woult be like Atkins to leave incriminatinl testimony round loose. That is, in criminating testimony against Merce and Tracy. The dagger, Tracy remem bers, was not in the lIbary; 1t was fl the patio. Right to hand. Atkin must have got in and found MT Keatcham on the floor in faint Whether he meant to make a bargain with him or to Kill him. perhaps VI | shall never know; but when he saw him helpless before him he believed his chance was come to kill him and get the cipher key, removing his enc my and making his fortune at blow as the French say. voila tout!"
 Do you think"-her voice sank low CT: she glanced over her shoulder "do you reckon Atkins had anything to do with that train robbery? Was il mere pretext to give chance ts murder Mir Keatcham. fixing ths 1 hln rnl, an nrdinarv hnndifg 2n