The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1912-03-01

vOASS = vO1C0 ~ Au0Ws xSx0xUUE that
was only dream. He must have
been asleep some time. becauSo the
lights were out and. seemingly eyery.
body had gone to bed He wondered
what the noise which 6tarfed him
could have been. Suddenly lie heard
q groan. He listened intently. but ali
was still. The silence was uncanny.
Now thoroughly frightened, How.
ard cautiously CROPPED his wy about.
trying to find the electric button. He
had no idea what thine It vas. It
must be very late What an ass he
was to drink so much! He wondered
what Annie would say when he didn't
return. He was a hound to let her
sit up and worry like that. Well. this
would be lesson to hint was the
last time he'd ever touch a drop. OF
course. he had promised her the same
thing hundred times before. but this
time he meant it. His drinking was
always getting him into some fool
scrape or other.
He was gradually working his way
along the room, when suddenly he
stumbled over something on the floor.
1t was a man lying prostrate. Stoop-
ing, he recognized the figure.
"Why-it's Underwood" he ex-
claimed.
At first he believed his classmate
was asleep. yet considered it strange
that he should have selected SO I'M
comfortable place. Then it occurred
to him that he might be i'll. Shaking
him by the shoulder. he cried:
Hey, Underwood. what's the mat
ter?"
trate figure. Howard stopped lower
| to see better, and accidentally touch.
ing Underwood's face, found it clam
/: my and wet. He held his hand up in
! the moonlight and saw that it was
| covered with blood. Horror stricken
! he cried:
my God! He's bleeding hes
! hurt!"
What had happened? An accident
-or worse? Quickly he felt the man
pulse. 1t had ceased to beat. Under
wood was dead
For moment Howard was too
| much overcome by his discovery to
know what to think or do. What
dreadful tragedy could have hap
pened? Carefully cropping along the
mantelpiece. he at last found the cleo
trio button and turned on the light
There, stretched out on the floor, lay
Underwood. with bullet hole in his
left temple, from which blood had
| flowed freely down on his full-dress
shirt. 1t was CHASTITY sight The
mans white, set face, covered with
crimson stream, made a repulsive
| spectacle. On the floor near the body
was highly polished revolver, still
smoking.
Towards first supposition was that
| burglars had entered the place and
that Underwood had been killed while
defending his property. He remem-
bered now that in his drunken sleep
he had heard voices in angry alterca.
ton. Yet why hadn't he called for
assistance? Perhaps he had and he
hadn't heard him.
| He looked at the clock, and was
surprised to find 1t was not yet mid
night. He believed it was at least
! five o'clock in the morning. 1t was
evident that Underwood had never
gone to bed. The shooting had oc.
Cured either while the angry dispute
was going on or after the unknown
| visitor had departed. The barrel OF
! the revolver was still warm, showing
that it could only have been dis.
| charged few moments before. Sud.
denly it flashed upon him that Under.
wood might have committed suicide
But it was useless to stand there
theorizing. Something must be done
He must alarm the hotel people or
| call the police. He felt himself turn
hot and cold by turn as he realized
the serious predicament in which he
himself was placed. II he aroused
the hotel people they would find him
here alone with dead man. Suspi.
| cion would at once be directed at him
and it might be very difficult for him
| to establish his innocence. Who would
believe that he could have fallen
asleep in bed while man killed
himself in the same room? It sounded
| preposterous. The wisest course for
him would be to get away before any.
body came.
Quickly he picked up his hat and
| made for the door. Just as he was
about to lay hand on the handle there
was the click Of latchkey. Thus
headed OF, and not knowing what to
do, he halted in painful suspense.
| The door opened and a man entered
He looked as surprised to see How.
ard as the latter was to see him. He
was clean-shaven and neatly dressed,
yet did not look the gentleman. His
appearance was rather that Of q sery.
ant. All these details flashed before
Towards mind before, he blurted out:
who the devil are your"
The man looked astonished at the
question and eyed his interlocutor
! closely. as IL In doubt aa Il, his idorti-