The Huttig news., 1912-12-21

II IS unknown property, MT. Chal- loner. But we have some reason fo think 1t belonged to yeu5 laughter
 T have seen il, Or one liEe if oftan in her hand Here his eyes sGaoenlv aiiated and the hand stretched forth 10 grasp it quickly drew back. "Whers where was ii found?" he hoarsaly demanded. 70 God am to be crushed 10 the very earth by sorrow!"
 MT. Gryce basteaed to give him Fnch relief as was consistent With the truth.
 It was picked up--last night-from the lobby floor. There is seemingly nothing 10 connect it with her death Yet" '''
 The pause was eloquent Nr. ChaJ. Ioner gave the detective an agopfzed LOOK and turned white to the lins Ihen gradually. as the silence contin. ued, his head fell forward and ha ,npt. tered almost unintelligibly:
 honestly believe her the victim or seme heartless stranger. I do now. out-bnt l cannot mislead the poiiee AL any cost l must retract state Mene mdde under false impressions ana with no desire to deceive. said that l knew all of the gentlemen who aamired her and aspired to her hand Bnt It seems that 1 did not know her secret heart as thoroughly as had supposed. Among her effects I have Just come upon batch of lettars- love letters l am forced to acknovl. eeSe-sisned hy initials totally strange to me. The letters are manly in tone most of thcm-but one
 What about the one?"
 shows that the writer was dis. pleased. II may mean nothing hut [ couid not lot tte matter 20 withnht setting myself right with the anfhari- ties. If Il might he allowed to rost here-if those letters can remain se. cred, It would save me the additional pane ef seeing her inmost eopoerns-- iRe secret and boliest reccsses of q Noman's heart, laid open to fhe p,,b h. lie For, from the tenor of most c, these letters, she-she was rot arrrss to the writer"
 MT. GH3ce moved . little restlossly Ill his chsir and stared hard a, IT,, e,f. ter so conveniently placed u-1dar his e8e. Then his manner scftancd anG { he remarked:
 We will do what we ea9. ri,. vor must understand that the rest=1r is not simple one, Tho, -ia fact. i. i contains mysteries which 9frana DO. ice Investigation. We do n6t dare to trifie with any of the fac 9.,l, inspector. and. if not he. the ccra,er. Will have to be told about thrs.. lot. ters and will probably ask Q see them.
 They are the letters of a gentle. man"
 With the one exception
 es, that is understood Then in sudden heat and with an alraagt sublime trust in his daughter noirt t,b. standing the dapleity he hati tfst d,s. covered, he declared The e.ej was an aecident-incredibl still an accident"
 MT. Gryee had respect for this out burst. Making no attempt to ans;.er It, he suggested, with some besitation that Miss Challoner had haen soen writing letter previous to taking those fatal steps from the desk which ended so tragically Was this letter to one of her lady friends, as :cpor-od. ana was It as far from suggesting t..e awful tragedy which followed. a. la had been told?
 It was cheerful letter. Such one as she often wrote to hc- ii5.la protegees here and there. fr.,~a that this was written to some girl |. .5e that. for the person addressed wac not known to her maid any more f;,sn she was to me. IL expressed an af- fectionate interest. and it bre4tAei encoura agement-enc0uraee apd she heditating her own death a{ ina moment! Impossiblet, That letter should exonerate her if nothing else does"
 When MT, Challoner rose to leava the room, Mr Grvce showed where his own thoughts still centered. by asking him the date of the corresrond. ence discovered between his daptitar and her unknown admirer.
 Some oi the letters were dated la st summer some this fall The one vou are most anxious to hear about only < month back" he added, with uneou- querable devotion to what he consid. cred his duty.
 Mir Gryce would like to have car. rieo his inquiries further. hut desis,ed
 But when he was gone and Sweet. water had returned. Mir. Gryce made it his first duty to communicate to his superiors the hitherto unsuspeeted fact of secret romance in Miss Chal. loners seemingly calm and we'll guarded life.
 CHAPTER VII.