The Caucasian. (Shreveport, La.) 1900-192?, 1911-07-02


deed, been treated vpry 8;leln,sy IA or
der that be might relurn
This was very "eHay" money. and
the most OF 1t was ,osj Ia single
evening at cards. Next night he vis-
tied tie Harrington safe aSaiH aGd So
cured brooch. which promptly be
canfe paste,
The evil spirit dwelling in the mans
breast exuited at these paitry crimes.
But there was not very much in the
safe. Mrs. Harrington and Vera had
not yet taken their jewels from the
vault in which they deposited them
Immediately after returning from
abroad Only a small sum In cash
was ever kept in the house. The
stomacher was the only prize worthy
of such an effort.
The time came. however, when Aber-
shaw was forced to look upon that
heirloom as his only salvation from
ruin. But the stomacher was too elab
crate to be copied in paste within a
reasonable time. If taken for this
purpose it's absence might very likely
be missed If money was to be raised
upon 1t the thing must either be sold
! or pledged. But low could this be
managed?
Abershaw revolved the problem in
his mind for a day or two and then
was suddenly favored with lumi-
4 nous idea. He observed one evening
q suspicious looking man engaged in
C study of the Harrington house from
the side street, where there is Il small
( paved court with fountain adorned
/ with statue OF Mercury. The win
I dows of the room into whose wall the
safe is built look out npon this court,
and it seemed to Abershaw that the
nau was studying those windows and
he wall below tncm.
That night hbershaw was on watch
from his own windows. which com
manded tho court. and he saw the
same mar who had been there in the
afternoon pass several times between
and half past O'clock Abersha "
crept down to the study" where the
safe was. ord secured the casket con
.
the valuable gewgaw. carefully meas
ured the interior of the casket and re-
stored it. empty, to the safe.
1t may be that Abershaw was espe.
cially nervous on this occasion. Ii
may be that he had taken too much
champagne to brace his courage. The
fact is that he moved with less eau
ton than usual and was heard.
I have said nothing thus far about
Adelaide harrington, elder sister OF
Vera, and it is appropriate that she
should have passed without notice
She makes very little noise In the
world. She is one of those unknown
heroines who In the midst of luxury
and selfishness refuse to be contami
mated and persist in living usefullJ
with a full realization of their duties
and responsibilities. Adelaide is {
very beautiful and cultivated CIR
with thoroughly level head.
Abershaw from the first momen
when she saw him was an open bool
"a most unpleasant volume-to AIDE
laide Harrington. His engagement
with her sister was abhorrent to her
but she was powerless to prevent it
for she had absolutely no influence
with her mother. who regarded her al
renegade and traitor TO the noble
cause of social prominence for th'
family.
On the night when Abershaw stole
the stomacher Adelaide was astir late
The door of her room was at the heat
of stair which Abershaw descended
She heard him and kept watch ant
knew where he had been
On the following day Adelaide ex
amined the Abershaw jewels. Sht
discovered that two pieces were paste
and that the stomacher was missing
She concluded naturally that this wa:
to be transmitted in the same way
and when on the following night sht
heard Abershaw go to the safe sht
supposed that he had substituted the
fraudulent article for the real one.
In fact. he had done something very
different He had at last followed
out the pidu ol uoSuS UuISldiA
which had been half formulated il
England while the gems were pledged
and had been rounded out by his OBJ
servation of the suspicious character
lurking about the house.
His knowledge of chemistry and ia
miliarity with delicate experiment hat
enabled him to construct an explosive
bomb of great power operated by the
mechanism of a cheap watch. This
he had fitted into the schumacher
casket. for of course there was a pos
sibi!ity that the thing might not &c
off, and in that case ii was eminently
desirable that it should escape obser
walton If possible. Its explosion would
blow open fhe doors of the safe and
simulate a burglary.
Adelaide Harrington. after hearing
Abershaw return from this errand
paced her room for long time in
thought. How could she best use
what she knew to break off this
wretched marriage?
f+ar ,-,,1oh meditation sho doaidof