Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-08-23

--nS ONLY o'clock and there was Ct
i time to call upon Mr.. Arms before the
I could see the white house with its green
shutters. which Horsford had said was
! -. A---s Near the house soon found
/ the road took q turn to the right and
4 er'y.
The house looked asleep as I approach
% y half an hour later. Tue shutters
were drawn and the front and side doors
| 49,. "a. NO sound, save the cluck-
to of hers disturbed the silence. Then
there floated out upon the air womans
| ,Ou,is vO ce: Bonnie sweet Bes-
sic, the maid of Dundee she sang and
fasnioned brass knocker resounded
through the house.
Silence prevailed again. and again ap-
piled the knocker. This time I Caught
q shutter cautiously turned in a window
close by, and directly the door was opened
slowly. A young woman stood before me
THE one whose song / had heard and
but there was a curious. startled express
sion In her eyes that / could not under
| stand.
Il should like to speak with Mr.. Arms"
I said.
He has gone into town. SIR" the star
/ tied expression deepening in her eyes.
will he return soon?
THAT, sir. l cannot say. Sometimes it
Is noon before-before the truck is sold"
Then l will sit here on the steps for
while. He may come while 1 wait.
have walked from Overlook and this
shade is pleasant
LAS you like. sir. If you would preier
| to come inside / will call mother"
] stepped in through q narrow hall.
from which a pair Of steep stairs climbed
directly to the second floor. and into
darkened room, the door Of which the
| girl threw open for me. and which proved
/ a
! parlor. Almost before my eyes had
| grown accustomed to the dim light the
girl was back. and with her a stout and
spirited-looking elderly woman. whom she
| said was ina"
/ 1T is my son you would wish to see,
| sir?" asked Mrs. Arms.
! Your husband. Is he not?" I responded.
/ Until recently the farmer at Overlook"
Mrs. Arms laughed heartily. in COM
Portable way, that set her cap bows nod
ding.
/ My 'usband? Ho. no, sir. Ny 'usband
as been dead these five and twenty years.
| I Is my son Jim who 'ad the farm at
Hoverlook.'
Here was another surprise for me- for
l had pictured Mr.. Arms as elderly as the
woman before me appeared to be.
You come from Hoverlook did you tell
Maggie asked Mrs. Arms.
| Yes, / am the new tenant"
| WELL" she observed, there be all
sorts of folk I'm the wu-rrld. nor 1t would
no be the wu-rrld. I'm thinkin', but why
anyun should fancy Hoverlook now is be-
| yondt me. When / were in the Duke o
Castlecourt's dairy afore ! were married
! l card enough about ghosts, L did, In
deed. sir-for the place were aunted-to
last me all my life. an I've been glad to
keep away from places wi bad names
since then. l were glad. indeed, when
Jim got away from Hoverlook An I'm
thinkin' ye'll be glad to go afore great
time. sir. Ave We ne'er card tha' the
restless speerets o. the dead return t
aunt the places where they died?''
Not that, but l have heard II said
| that the man who murders cannot resist
the temptation to return to the scene OF
his crime
A short gasp startled my half-facetious
answer. and l turned quickly in the d.
rection OF the girl. She sat with her
large black eyes wide upon me. and the
color coming and going in her face In
waves.
Maggie. go bout Of the ROOM COM
manded Mrs. Arms. as though the girl
were a child. She's that narvous since
| the oil man was killed that she hacts s
IL she did 1t 'erself. she does. indeed. sir.
Mrs. Arms explained. turning to me with
trace of impotence in her voice
Maggie left the room without word.
but her face was no longer pale, and
| felt constrained to remark:
Il fear l am TO blame for having lin
Gered over so gruesome subject as Mr.;
Somhers' death. Naturally II anected
well. as to that. l s'ppose ii did,
Mrs. Arms answered refectively. "but
lor'. I were good thing fur us all
round, though We must no mistake that
were glad it 'appened: far from that
f were a fine old man were Mr.. Som
hers. sir. but e 'eld tight rein an Jim
must .caper lively to is bid"
"And your daughter. She was en-
ployed in the house. was she mott"
Mrs. Arms nodded.
AYE sir. Tt were her as saw the old
man first, an she's never been 'er old
| sell sim" She looked at me sharply. rs
it true, sir. as my nevvy Joe 'Orsford
said to Maggie this mornin that you are
a detective?"
Il am the new tenant of Overlook"
answered THE boy who drove me up
last night told me that ] should be mis-
taken for a detective"
Mrs. Arms eyes twinkled.
Then Joeie went wrong again. Not as
I cared IL We were one or not. for we 'ad
nothing TO do with the old masters death.
though yed think as Maggie 'ad from
| the way she gets the ague when We cpeak
o murder. She never were like any other
saeH | over knew-sort o -notional she
| is, an full o. dreams an farcies. l SIP
pose We came from a city,"
From New York;
IN York. I were there once when we
come to America. jamie an Maggie an
me. thought We werna a count
chap Hark! wot were that? | do
blieve 4 were my Jamie comm back"
| She raised a shade and peered through
| the closed blinds.
| Aye: that's ina 'andsome lad, now.
is ma i'm, my JIM" She laughed. mot
as e s SO much nor q lad no more.
| 'ither."
! l followed the direction of the old
woman's gaze. and caught q glimpse be-
tween the trees Of gray horse and a
brown one vending their way down the
/ road before an open wagon bearing q
man of uncertain age. He was a suriy
| faced. dark-browed fellow. I could see.
even at that distance. To the mothers