Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1910-08-24

I
they enter in and dwell there: and the
last state of that man Is worse than
| the first."
Ihey've got me down." he whisper
ed, as II the words might reach her
ear THE devils have come back, Ar
dea, my love: but you can cast them
out again. IL you will. All. girl. girl!
Vincent Farley will never need you ~
l need you this night"
CHAPTER XIII
During the first half of the year 1894.
with Norman too busy at the pipe
foundry to worry him, and the iron
master president too deeply engrossed
In matters mechanical. Mr.. Henry
Dyckman. still bookkeeper and cashier
Tor Chiawassee Consolidated. had fewer
nightmares; and by the time he had
peen month in undisputed command
at the general office he had given over
searching Tor certain packet of pa
pers which had mysteriously disap-
peared from q secret compartment in
| his desk
Later. when the time for the return
Oh the younger Gordon drew near. there
was encouraging news from Europe.
- SAssAAA AAho hOI ldItu TO keen tho
mails warm with reports of the Gordon
Gordon success; with urgings for
the return Of the exiled dynasty: and
late In May he had news Of the home
coming intention. From that on there
were alternating chills and fever. II
Colonel Duxbury should arrive and re-
sumo the reins Of management before
Tom Gordon should reappear, all might
yet be well. II not-the alternative
impaired the bookkeeper's appetite, and
| there were hot nights In June when bs
| slept badly.
| When Toms advent preceded the
earliest date named by Mr.. Farley by a
| broad fortnight or more. the bookkeep-
| er missed other of his meals. and one
| night fear and sharp premonitton of
| close-pressing disaster laid cold hands
on him; and 8 o'clock found him sk,hk-
Ing in the great train shed at the rail-
| way station. "a ticket to Canada in his
| pocket, goodly sum of the company's
money tightly buckled in safety-belt
next to his skin-all things ready for
| flight save one. the courage requisite
| to the final step taking
The following morning the promini-
| tion became certainty. In the Cor
| donia mail there was a note from tho
| younger Gordon. directing him to come
| to the office of the pipe foundry. bring
| Ing the cash-bo and ledger for a wear
| whose number was written out in let
| ters of fire In the bookkeeper's brain.
He went. again lacking the courage
either to refuse or to disappear. and
| found Gordon waiting for him. There
were no preliminaries.
; "Good-morning. Dyckman." said the
tyrant. pushing aside the papers on ais
desk. You have brought the booka?
Sit down at that table and open the
ledger at the company's expense ac-
count for the year. / wish to make a
| few comparisons" and he took a thick
packet Of papers from a pigeonhole of
the small iron safe behind his chair.
Dyckman was unbuckllng the sha wi.
strap in which he had carried the two
heavy books. but at the Significant
command he desisted. went swiftly 10
the door opening into the stenograph-
er's room. satisfied himself that there
were no listeners. and resumed his
| chair.
You have cut out some Of the pre-
face. Mr.. Gordon: I'll cut out the re-
mainder." he said. moistening his dry
lips. You have the true record of tho
L SAPChSo dSSouht That package, I'm
down and out: what is 1t you want ?"
II want written confession of Just
what you did. and what you did 1t for"
was the direct reply. you'll find Miss
| Ackerman's typewriter in the other
room: I'll wait while you put 1t in
| type"
You're not giving me show, Mr..
Gordon: the poor show common mu..
derer would have in any court of law.
| You are asking me to convict myself"
Golden held up the packet of papers.
| Here Is your conviction. Mr.. Dyck-
mantle original leaves taken from
those books when you had them re-
bound. need your statement of the
facts for quite another purpose
And If l refuse to make 1t? A cor
nered rat will fight for his life, MI
Gordon"
| IF you refuse shall be reluctantly
| compelled to hand these papers over to
our attorneys-reluctantly say, be-
| cause you can serve me better lust no ~
out of jail than in It,"
ITS an unfair advantage you're taxi
ing; at the worst. l am only an access
sorry. My principals will be here in q
few days. and"
Precisely" was the cold retoinder.
ut is because your principals are COM
Ing home. and because they are not yet
here. that I want your statement
There was no help for 1t. or none ap-
| parent to the fear-strlcken; and for
| the twenty succeeding minutes tho
| typewriter clicked monotously In the
small ante-room. pyckman could hear
his prosecutor pacing the floor of the
| private office. and once he found him.
self looking about him for weapon,
| But at the end of the writing interval
he was handing the freshly-typed sheet
to a man who was yet alive and un-
hurt.
Gordon sat down at his desk to read
1t. and again the rowing eyes of tho
bookkeeper swept the interior of the
larger rooms for the means to an end;
sought and found not
The eye-search was not fully con-
cluded when Gordon pressed the cleo
| tric-button which summoned the young
man who kept the local books OF the
|Chiawassee plant across the way. While
he waited he saw the conclusion OF the
eye-search and smiled rather grimly.
You'll not find 1t. Dyckman." he
said. divining the desperate purpose of
the other: adding. as an after though:
| anu II you Shouios you WOuiuul nave
the courage to use 1t. That Is the IA
tai lack in your makeup. 1t is what
kept you from taking the train last
4 night with the money belt which you
emptied this morning. You'll never
make successful criminal; 1t takes a
good deal more nerve than 1t does to ho
an honest man."
Hereupon the young man from the
office across the pike came in. and
Gordon handed pen to Dyckman.
II want you to witness Mr. Dyck-
mans signature to this paper. Dillard.'
he said. folding the confession so that
it could not be read by the witness;
and when the thing was done. the
young man appended his notarial at
testat.on and went back to his duties.
''Well?" said Dyckman. when they
were once more alone together.
That's ALL" said Gordon. curtly. "As
long as you are discreet. you needn't
lose any sleep over this. If you don't
mind hurrying little. you can make
tho IA ha cl IN town0