The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1910-07-08

! turb her rest they moved quietly and
spoke in low voices.
The Cure sat opposite to Arthur.
He had a gentle, pleasant face, with
the kindly expression of interest in
all the world, worn SO often by those
who have known no great cares, and
have traversed no heights or depths
of veal or woe.
Arthur felt very grateful to them
for coming back to him; it took away
!, the feeling of forlorn loneliness
which had been creeping upon him.
making him dread ne scarcely knew
what. IN
| II fear, greatly fear, in spite OF
| our conviction of his innocence, that
| old Battiste will be condemned" said
| Monsieur Tasset, mournfully. II
cannot see who else can have been
| guilty, although I feel morally sure
that he is not; but everything is
| against him. It seems he has, with
| out the smallest scruple, said that
he possessed duplicate key of his
I masters room"
"A duplicate key!" exclaimed the
Cure. "Then why did he suffer the
! doors to be broken DOWN."
@He does not know what has be-
come of it. He will not, or cannot,
say why or when it was lost. He is
half in his dotage."
! "But that no should have mem
| toned that duplicate key, does not
seem like guilt, and must be In his
| favor" said the Cure, quickly.
$50 it is old Battiste whom they
( accuse?" said a voice, very gently
and slowly, whose tones made all
three start to their feet.
1t was Antoinette She had come
/ into the salon and had heard the last
words. She was perfectly calm, but
| she had pushed back all the fair hair
i from her brow, and that ana neE
| deadly pallor gave her a look of ex-
| treme desolation
Arthur advanced quickly to lead
her to chair. She gently put him
aside. and leaning one hand on the
! table, she said: 1T was not Battiste,
Messieurs; of that can assure you.
IF, Mademoiselle, you have indeed
any proof" said Monsieur Tasset,
eagerly, then it may indeed save the
| old mans life"
She sank into chair, and her pa.
thetic eyes turned from one to an
other of the three anxious faces.
"Messieurs," she said, "tell me the
truth as you hope for salvation. WILL
Battiste be condemned?"
| Acold terror of what she might
be going to do or say struck upon
-Arthur's heart. He spoke eagerly.
mot necessarily. Antoinette
Juries rarely convict on circumstan-
tial evidence only. There is an abb
sence of motive admitted, and we
have yet to communicate with your
cousin. {"
She turned her eyes from him to
! Tasset.
IAN Englishman cannot be fully
] conversant with French law" she
said. II conjure you to tell me the
truth. Will he be condemned"
Il fear, greatly fear" he STAN
mered.
Arthur shrank back, shrank back
against the wall. He knew what was
coming. She turned to him with her
eyes looking up to his. wild, despair
ing, terrified.
No! not" he cried. aDo not ask
me! cannot!s
Your oath!" she answered, in a
voice out of which all tone had died
away.
Heaven help me! Must 1t be?"
| She only repeated once more,
"Your oath!"
AS If under resistless spell, he
placed the talisman in her out
stretched hands. The silver case fell
to the ground. In the dead silence
that followed, they. heard the elink-
ing of the metal as it rolled away
from under foot.
Antoinette had covered her face
with her hands. She remained so for
some minutes, so long that Tasset
and the Cure glanced at each other,
fearful lest she should have tainted.
Arthur never moved. He stood fas-
cinated. motionless. He put his finger
to his lip when they would have inter-
rupted her.
AT last she put down her hands
and rose slowly to her feet. and the
three men started with a thrill. A
most strange and awful change had
passed over her. all the softness had
gone out Of her face. 1t was hard,
rigid. carved in marble. like that of
Medusa. The large, gray eyes
strained wide open, the lips apart:
all the wild. fair hair. blown back
ward, seemed to stand erect round
her head as If it had been halo. She
saw nothing, heard nothing of those
beside her. Then for the first time
the two perceived that she held be-
tween her hands. in a strange, stiff
way. slender willow wand, and they
knew instinctively what it was.