Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-09-08


lead you astray. You see. / have gone
into the matter pretty thoroughly myself
In New York / alluded to another investi-
cation. You see, / chung to my theory.
Jims attitude toward me and Maggie g
conduct and manner of testimony
strengthened it. So, when I was finally
free. l engaged Coles, the famous detec-
tive, to pass himself off as a business
man on vacation and get board with
Arms. He lived there for a month and
came to know the family intimately. He
learned most OF Jim's sins. but he came
away convinced that while Arms pro-
fessed TO believe that I killed my uncle
he did not really believe 1t and was as
much puzzled as any one
Did you ever hear of q man named
La Cour?' / asked.
Milbrath shook his head.
Some blackguard acquaintance on
whom Jim is levying blackmail. no
what I knew of La Cour. by the way"
he added. lit must seem queer to you
that l didn't appear to know that Arms
was no longer at Overlook. i did know
1t once, but had forgotten it. This prop
erty. You see, has been " the hands of
an agent and I'VE given 1t scarcely q
thought. 1 must apologize for my stu
pidity."
1T is not worth mentioning. I am glad
that Arms is not here. But there are
some strictly personal matters / should
like to ask you about"
Milbrath looked surprised.
Ask me anything you like" he said.
Then I'll go to the point at once.
Where We're you the day that I came to
Winton?"
THAT was the day after our talk at
the Reform Club? Let me see. Why. at
Manhattan Beach. ] must have been
there. for i returned there directly upon
leaving you and remained there until last
Monday"
II received a letter from you post
marked Station F'?''
II sent it in by an acquaintance"
Arms asserts that he saw you here
about that time"
Then Arms is either mistaken or lies.
I was here two days before l saw you.
and again last Thursday"
| "Have you any knowledge of the au-
thorship Of this note. or how it came to
me?' and I handed him the first warn
ing.
He read II with an expression OF grow
ing amazement and incredulity.
DO you mean TO say that was sent to
your he asked.
I explained the circumstances of its re-
ceipt
Il give you my word that l know moth
ing Of 1t. Why, ! did not know. even,
that you live on 46th street"
who put this upon your uncle's library
table the morning after my arrival In
Winton; how this found its way to my
suit case the afternoon OF the same day:
or how this came to be at my place upon
the lunch table last Friday noon?" And
] laid the collection OF anonymous notes
before Milbrath.
He read them through rapidly, one after
another, by the light of some burning
matches that I held for him. He went
I th,n. tun hon q irpo hofnrn Inc
spoke.
You fancied that ] might have left
them?" he asked. presently.
Never until Thursday. when / believed
it was YOU who slipped away at sight of
Milbrath WINGED.
Yes: 1 know that my conduct had a
suspicious look But j know nothing of
these. What reason could you assign to
me for sending you such-tommyrot?"
Il thought Ii possible that you were i'm
| possession of the secret Of the south
wing. which you recalled after giving me
permission to come here. and of which
YOU wished me to remain in ignorance.
.'The secret OF the south wing" he
cried. THE south wing of Overlook?
| What do you mean"
| l recapitulated shortly the facts and
| conjectures that have already been re-
corded.
You deduce. then. that there is a Sc
cret door by which the assassin of Uncle
/ Peter made his escape. or behind which
he hid until he could leave the house in
| safety? That this door and hidden room
are connected with these astonishing
communications
! That is my belief"
| Milbrath meditated and then shook his
| head.
You are aware of no secret i'm his life,
no irregularity which would make II de-
sirabie for him TO have a place Of con-
cealment for. perhaps. papers or docu-
ments?"
$50 far az l know or have reason to
believe. Uncle Peter was absolutely up
right and honorable. l think that his life
was clean. and. aside from his outbursts
OF passion with me- very placid"
Were not those outbursts toward you
i-erratic?"
| Milbrath smiled.
! II used to think so sometimes. l con-
i fess that a few times ]. too went so far
as to think him mad. but when I stopped
to analyze the attack invariably thought
differently. Considering hts feeling to-
ward me think he was almost justified.
You see. uncle never cared for me.
/ was so unfortunate as to be the child OF
his only sister. who had been source OF
! irritation to him from her earliest years
She was many years younger than he,
and unwelcomed by him at her birth
Then she married a man whom he abb
horred. and against his expressed wishes
for he was her guardian. BY the time
| my father died, when I was an infant
he had dissipated my mothers entire for
| tune. From that time mother and ! were
dependent upon the bounty of Uncle
Peter. suppose that one of the great
est crosses Of his life was to bring me
here to live with him when mother died