Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1912-03-29
By ANNA
KATHARINE
GREEN
Copyright. 1910.
BY Anna Katharine Rohifs

L Shouiu Hnc " AuOW "udL dm "
work upon II 1t cannot be shown that
her call for help came before you en-
tered the building"
THAT would be the best defense
possible. Of course" I replied. but
neither from your standpoint nor mine
is it feasible one. 1 have no proof
Of my assertion. AL I know and can
swear to about the length Of time
was In that building prior to the ar
rival Of the police Is that 1t could not
have been very long. since she was
not only dead and buried under those
accumulated cushions. but in a room
some little distance from the tele-
phone"
THAT will do for me-" said he, 'but
scarcely for those who are prejudiced
against you. Everything points 50
indisputably to your guilt The note
which you say you wrote to Carmel to
meet you at the station looks very
much more like one to Miss Cumber-
land to meet you at the clubhouse"
1t was thus I first learned which
part Of this letter had been burned Oh.
1t was the top portion. leaving the rest
to read:
Come. come. my darling. my life! She
will forgive when al II done. Hesitation
will only undo u. Tonight q 10:3o
shall never marry any but you.
It was also evident that had fall
ed to add those expressions Of affec.
hon linked to CarmeTs name which
had been in my mind and awakened
my keenest apprehension.
otherwise" pursued Clifton. what
could have taken her there? These
lines said Come. and she went, for
reasons which may be clear to you.
who were acquainted with her weak
as well as strong points. Went how?
No one knows. By chance or by in
tention on her part or yours. every
servant was out Of the house BY 8
O'Clock. and her brother too. Only the
sister remained. the sister whom you
profess to have urged to leave the
town with you that very evening. and
she can tell US nothing-may die with
out ever being able to do 20. Some
shock to her feelings-you may know
its character and you may not-drove
her from a state Of apparent health
into the widest delirium in q few
hours. 1t was not your letter-if your
story IL true about that letter-oe she
would have shown its effect immcdi-
ately upon receiving it-that II. In tho
early evening. And she did not Hell
en-. one Of the maids, declares that she
saw her some time after you left tho
house and that she wore anything but
a troubled look: that, in fact, her coun-
tenance was beaming and beautiful"
Carmel. beaming and beautiful at an
hour had supposed her suffering and
full Of struggle! I could not reconcile
It with the letter she had written me-
The lawyer proceeded with his pres
entat1on Of my case - Il looked to
unprejudiced eyesL
Miss Cumberland comes to the club
house; 30 do you. You have not the
keys and 30 go searching about the
building till you 6nd an unlocked win
dow. BY which Jon both enter. There
are those who say you purposely LEFT
this window unfastened when Jon
went about the house the day before:
that you dropped the keys In her house
where they would be sure to be found
and drove down to the station ana
stood about there for good half hour
in order to divert suspicion from your.
self afterward and create an alibi In
case 1t should be wanted. I do not
believe any Of this myself. but there
are those who do. Your passion for
Carmel. while not generally known. has
not passed unsupported by your or
her intimates. and this in itself =
enough to give color to these suspl.
cions even II you had not gone % far
as to admit its power over you and
the extremes to which you were win.
hg to 60 to secure the wife you wish
ed. So much for the situation a. It
appears to outsiderA. OF the circum-
stantial evidence which links you per.
sonally to this crime we have already
spoken. It Is very strong and appar.
entity unassailable."
Charles" asked. ''how do they
account for the cordial that was drunk
the two emptied glasses and the
flask which were found IN the adjacent
closetT'
TITS one Of the affairs conceded In.
eongruitieA. Miss Cumberland was q
well known Temperance woman. Had
the flask and glasses not come from
her house you would get no one to be-
ueve that she had had anything to do
with them. Have you any hint to
give on this point7 1t would be well
come addition to our case"
Coroner Perry speaks Of a third
and unused glass which was found
with the flask" I ventured tentatively.
'He seemed to consider It IN important
item"
1T Is a curious Circumstance. win
make q note of 1t. You have no sug-
gestions to offer on the subjectT
"None."
1.-THE clew IL a small one," he smiled
$50 is the one offered by the array
Of bottles found on the kitchen table.
yet the latter may lead directly to the
truth. Adelaide never dug those out
Of the cellar where they were locked
up, and I'm sure l did not. Yet I
suppose I'm given credit for doing
o."
Naturally. The key to the wine
vault was the only key which was
lacking from the bunch left at Miss
Cumberland's. That It was used to
open the wine vault door is evident
from the fact that It was found in
the lock-"
you may add this coincidence to
the othet." I conceded. II swear that
I had nothing to do with that key"
Neither could I believe that 1t had
been used or even carried there BY
Adelaide or Carmel. though I knew
that the full ring Of keys had been in
their hands and that they had entered
the building by means Of one Of them.
80 assured was I Of their innocence In
this regard that the idea which after.