The Washington times., 1912-05-14
THE TIMES DAILY SERIAL STORY
Behind the Curtain"
'-- By #
CHARLES STEPHENS
ing a friend of his who had been
Trinidnd
Copyright, The Frank A. Munsey Col
All Rights Reserved.

Ing q friend of his who had been in
MIR. Gettys recalled you, Mr.. Ford"
acquaintance with Lord Dunhllayne,
whom YOU, of course, recall"
i remember that speech, sir. because
Nr Ford iocEd tsriSly Vr Upset sITe aud dSSi sSid
he didn't recall Mr.. Gettys, and had
never had the pleasure Of meeting Lord
Dunillayne. 1t was beyond me- and /
think 1t was beyond the gentleman. too.
For ns soon as lie found his tongue and
began to talk freely Mr.. Bellnir would
come back to the Fame thing, or 70
nervous again.
! vas glad whan supper was over. but
YOU could have knocked me down with
a feather. when the master said:
have coffee In the Red Room, II you
please"
That's what he called the private
thought he would never enter that room
again. II was the first time he had
asked me into II. However, it was none
of my business.
room, as far as ! could see, when |
went in with the coffee. There was a
bit curtained off with red hangings, and
up against the escritoire there was a
telephone switchboard. There was the
piano, too Mr.. Ford was sitting in a
comfortable chair near the telephone
business. The place could have taken a
bit of tdying. though.
| served coffee and went out without
closing the door. Why? ! don't know.
was so unused to that door, maybe
II was not for me to close a door which
had never been allowed to open. That
was the masters prerogative. Any
how, | was only half way downstairs
when l heard the master excuse him
self to Mr.. Ford and come out to the
landing. He ran downstairs after me.
and at the foot he tapped me on the
shoulder and placed key on the coffee
tray.
Mrs. Anselm" said he. that door
locks when II shuts from the inside.
You are not to use that key unless cir
cumstances compel you to do So"
And with that he was gone looked
at the key. 1t was the key of the Red
Room; leastways, 1t was not the key Of
anything else in the house.
Next moment ] heard the door of the
study shut, and I heard the snap Of the
inside lock. | put my tray on the hat
| rack in the hall and sat down in a
chair. / am not weak person, sir,
but came as near fainting then as I
| ever did IN my life. why? That's a
silly question. ! don't know. unless It
was prcsentiment of what was going
to happen. just sat there and Won
dered what the master meant. How
was | to know when the circumstances
came? There were so many things
' you'd call circumstances in that house
that it would have to be an earthquake
at least that would compel me to open
| that door.
, One thing was certain: I would never
know what the circumstances 'were, Or
when they came, so long as / sat there
| thinking. Not all the curiosity 81 the
world would have got me to listen ~; az
| that keyhole again, but 1t seemed to
me after a bit that that was what the
| master intended me TO do. II he didn't
| mean me to listen at the door and look
| pirpnn at I
| trying to think what he meant.
So i took the tray TO the pantry and
| went up to the first landing. The gen
| tlemen inside the study were talking
they manufactured cocoa. Yes, 1t was
how they made cocoa. As that was
| hardly what you would call Compell-
entity I went downstairs for my Bible
and spectacles. When | got up to the
study door again | knew right away
that something was happening inside.
heard, Mr.. Ford calling Mr.. Bellair a
liar, a Yankee impostor, and things like
that
sit down" said the master very
sharply. II have told you that you are
thief. / would tell you that you are
| a murderer, except that the young maI
you tried to kill because he stood In
the way of your legal theft is alive
and spoke to you in the Court Hote
two nights ago"
Then there was such a stiffness In the
house that | could hear the alarm clock
| ticking in my own room downstairs
| After bit | heard another sound. II
was the noise of the big cat purring
and 1t was somewhere in or about the
study. Next thing was Mr.. Ford say
! ing very low and soft:
II don't know what you are saying
! don't know why you have asked me 10
this house. Explain yourself, please.
Then he burst out with yell that near
ly frightened me out Of my wits. Take
that back. or by heaven / will kill you
where you Sit"
Listen to me-" said Mr.. Bellair
(You see. sir, I am telling you what
they said. as well as / remember, al
though. maybe. the words aren't eX'
act) Listen to me-" said the master
"A lot of people have wondered at my
little ways. You are one of the few In
telligent persons who have ever been ir
this room, because this room contains
another besides myself And yet 1t IL
myself-my evil genius. 1t has no name
1t is a thing. 1t Is behind the curtain
there"