The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-05-12

81 thought he was leaving to-day
but he will certainly not stay after
| tomorrow" said Vernon hurriedly
before her aunt could reply
"And what have you done in town,
Jem? inquired his aunt.
| He proceeded to tell her. Vernon
| sat silent. but stole a look at him
now and again. He was not looking
well. She thought him paier and
thinner than he had been when she
knew him first: his eyes seemed larg-
er and deeper, and they had shadows
| under them. These details improved
his appearance. Had he really fined
down in these few months, or. was
| it her fancy, just because she was
accustomed to his face? She used
| to think the expression of his mouth
SO forbidding. Now, either it had
changed, or she had. It was rather
fine mouth, though not a small one
by any means.
"I don't mind him a bit now" she
thought. 81 do wish that he could
get used to me-"
what a crowd" remarked he
with some impotence, as they ap-
preached Ponthewel.
'Yes: everybody will be here
even the Trents, I suppose" said
Mrs. Bardsley with a Multiplying
smile.
There were tents in the Park for
the exhibits. but when they came out
from the house into the garden it
seemed as if all the visitors were as
sembled upon the lawn in a large
crowd, broken into small groups, all
busily discussing something.
1t was not long before Miss Tarl-
ton had discovered them, and hast
ened to be their informer. ooh, my
dear Mrs. Bardsley. have you heard
Do you know? Such a shocking
thing!"
1--WE do not know of any shocking
thing, I am thankful to say replied
Aunt Emma, her mind flying pite-
ously to Jem's peccadilloes.
Vernon, who was walking behind
her aunt at Jem's side, turned to
him. Don't let us wait to hear her
nasty talk" she said in an under
tone; 'Iet us go to the tents and see
things before the crowd flows in.''
He stared. would you like to?''
he asked, in such surprise that she
hastily replied
"Oh, not if you would rather not,
Of course!''
And as the words left her lips, the
sound Of what Miss Tarlton was say
ing suddenly made her pause and
turn pale.
"Oh yes, there is no doubt of it.
Mrs Trent is dead. The doctor was
fetched about nine o'clock this morn
ing, and said she had been gone sew
eral hours. An overdose of some
opiate; they don't appear to have
discovered what it was. Poor soul,
it seems she had suffered from in
somnia.'s
"Why yes, she told me so, only
yesterday" cried Mrs. Bardsley. "She
complained that it was growing in
tolerable and said she was trying
every remedy she couId think of. L
warned her against taking drugs
without a doctors advice" Il
well, it seems that she drove in
her car to Yeominster, and visited a
chemists chop. Then she returned
home, passed the evening quietly,
her husband being out, and retired
to bed at her usual time, perhaps a
little early. Mr.. Trent came in about
half-past twelve, and seeing her to
all appearance very sound asleep, did
not disturb her, but went into his
own room, adjoining hers. When
her maid brought her morning tea,
she was fast asleep; they seem to
have thought nothing of that. But
when she was still lying there, in
the same position, half-an-hour lat
er, her husband tried to rouse her;
and they found that she was dead"
Mrs. Bardsley was deeply shocked.
She remembered that she had given
her visitor a cool welcome the day
before; and she recalled a certain
haggard misery in the woman's eyes,
which had returned to her mental
vision several times during the even
ing. Vernon and Jem led her to a
chair, and Sophia sat down beside
her, her starved mind feeding with
avidity upon the unwonted sensation.
"And so you actually saw her yes
terday! I should think you are prob
ably the last person who had any
talk with her! Did she strike you
Continued on Page 15.)