The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1912-08-22

nUur L sIau wanIeu
to be alone and think.
How long l sat there do not know.
was so deep in thought that there
was neither sight in my eyes nor hear
ing in my ears. Yet the eyes will not
be denied their rights. A feeling came
over ne that some part Of my brain
was trying to tell me something. 1t
came more and more forcefully. Ny
eyes were seeing something which
they were trying to compel me to no.
tice
What was it?
pulled myself together with a start
and looked about me.
With an exclamation Of horror
sprang from the bench and gazed into
the lake just in front of me. Floating
on the surface, not fifty feet from
where l had been sitting, was the
body Of woman.
"Other suicides, other suicides"-
Davis remark of two days before kept
jigging through my brain. Other sui
cides! Katharine, Elser, the woman
at Ardway-his prophecy had been
right-and was this another in the
terrible chain?
l ran like a mailman toward the
park entrance, where l remembered
had passed policeman. 1t was
with relief that l found him still
there.
There's a woman-drowned-in the
lake!" l gasped, pointing over my
shoulder.
He ran back to the lake with me
and together We waded out in the shall
low water where the body lay. In my
horror at the unexpected sight had
not stopped to note her appearance,
nor could l have told whether she
was young or old, dark or fair.
looked at her now with more than
interest-with feeling Of sorrow, Of
understanding. The deed Of Katha-
rine Parrish had brought me to a
closer sympathy with unfortunate per-
| sons Influenced to seek death. AS
saw that this poor girl was young and
fair / sadly wondered what tragedy
had driven her to drowning.
Never shall l forget the impression
the picture of this suicide made on
me! She lay on her back, with long
blonde tresses of well-kept hair float
ing out on either side of her shapely
head. Her eyes were closed, but her
shapely brows and long dark lashes
made her face comely even in death.
! Her clothing, l observed, was we'll
/ made. and though wet and soiled as 1t
was by the water it still gave the i'm
! preston of neatness.
We grasped the body gently by the
arms and drew it in to the bank, where
we lifted it to the park bench on
which | had been sitting.
Il wonder if there is anything about
her 10 identify her by? said the po'
| liceman, and together we looked.
Apparently there was nothing. There
were no rings on her hands, though
refinement. The officer turned back
the collar of her coat, but the name
of the maker had been cut away.
'She didn't want nobody to know
who she was, guess" he said after a
hasty examination. They generally
/ try to hide their names"
Eyes, l suppose they do" l said
alphabetically.
I've got to 90 over to the arsenal
and report this and send for the wag
on. Will you wait till l come back
won't be long"
'I'll wait" l said
He disappeared up the path and
was left alone with the body. AS
sat there, meditating on the mystery
that had caused so many other trag
edies. l became conscious of the fact
that one of this girls hands was
closed, as if, even in death, she was
striving to conceal something.
STOPPING over, gently pressed back
the stiffening fingers.
An exclamation Of horror came tc
my lips as l saw what had been con
cealed there.
1t was a little scrap Of yellow paper
I could hardly believe my eyes. II
must be that this poor girl here was
another Of the victims in the battling
chain of crime | was seeking to I'M
ravel. l held the water-soaked frag
ment up to the light, but there was
nothing on it-not a word. Yet there