Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1912-10-22
CHE
ADVENTURE
OF THE
RED CIRCLE
CONTINUALLY

tAOA1Co. rather fancy tUdL I0lS IdQy
may be az anxious to give us infor-
nation as we can be to get it. You
understand, madam, that your hus-
band will be arrested and tried for
the dealt of the man who lies before
US? What you say may be used in
evidence. But if you think that he
has acted from motives which are not
criminal. and which he would wish to
nave known, then you cannot serve
him better than by telling us the
whole story"
Now that Gorgiano is dead we fear
nothing" said the lady. "He was a
devil and monster, and there can
be no judge in the world who would
punish my husband for having killed
him"
In that case" said Holmes, my
suggestion is that we lock this door,
leave things as we found them, go
with this lady to her room, and form
our opinion after we have heard what
1t Is that she has to say to u.s."
Half an hour later we were seated,
all four, in the small sitting room OF
Signora Lucca, listening to her re-
markabie narrative of those sinister
events, the ending of which we had
CHANGED to witness. She spoke in
rapid and fluent but very unconven-
tional English. which, for the sake of
clearness, will make grammatical.
Il was born in Posilippo, near Ma
ples," said she, "and was the daugh-
ter of Augusta Barelli, who was the
chief lawyer and once the deputy of
that part. Gennaro was in my fathers
employment, and l came to love him,
as any woman mus He had neither
money nor position-nothing but his
beauty and strength and energy-so
my father forbade the match. We fed
together, were married at Bari, and
sold my jewels to gain the money
which would take us to America This
was four years ago, and we have been
IN New York ever since.
Fortune was very good to us at
hrst. Gennaro was able to do a serv-
ice to an Italian gentleman-he saved
aim from some ruffians in the place
called the Bowery, and so made a
powerful friend. His name was Tito
Castalotte. and he was the senior
partner of the great firm of Castalotte
and Zamba. who are the chief fruit
Importers of New York. Signor Fam
ba is an invalid, and our new friend
Castalotte has all power within the
firm, which employs more than three
hundred men. He took my husband
into his employment, made him head
OF department, and showed his
goodwill towards him in every way.
Signor Castaiotte was a bachelor,
and believe that he felt as If Gen.
naro was his son, and both my hus-
band and l loved him as if he were
our father. We had taken and fur
nished a little house in Brooklyn,
and our whole future seemed assured,
when that black cloud appeared which
was soon 10 overspread our sky.
One night, when Gennaro returned
from his work. he brought fellow
countryman back with him His name
was Gorgiano. and he had come also
from Posilippo. He was a huge man,
as you can testify, for you have looked
upon his corpse. Not only was his
body that of giant. but everything
about him was grotesque, gigantic and
terrifying His voice was like thun-
der in our little house. There was
scarce room for the whirl of his great
arms as he talked. His thoughts, his
emotions, his passions, all We're ex-
aggerated and monstrous. He talked,
or rather roared. with such energy
that others could but sit and listen,
cowed with the mighty stream of
words His eyes blazed at you and
held you at his mercy. He was ter
rible and wonderful man. l thank
God that he is dead!
HE came again and again. Yet I
was aware that Gennaro was no more
happy than | was in his presence. My
poor husband would sit pale and list
less, listening to the endless rawlings
upon politics and upon social ques-
tions which made up our visitors con.
versation. Gennaro said nothing, but
who knew him so we'll could read
In his face some emotion which | had
never seen there before At first |
thought that 1t was dislike I'D then,
gradually. | understood that il was
more than dislike. II was fear-a
deep. secret. shrinking fear. That
night-the night that read his terror
Il put my arms round him and | i'm
elored him by his love for me and by
all that he held dear to hold nothing
from me. and to tell me why this huge
nan overshadowed him so.
"He told me. and my own heart
grew cold as ice as listened My poor
Gennaro. in his wild and fiery DAYS.
when all the world seemed against
him and his mind was driven half mad
by the iniustioes of life. had joined
Neapolitan society, the Red Circle.
which was allied to the old Carbonari.
The oaths and secrets of this brother
hood were frightful; but once within
It's rule no escape was possible When
we had fed to America Gennaro
thought that he had cast It all of for
aver, What was his horror one eve
aing to meet in the streets the very
nan who had initiated him in Naples.
s6e giant Gorgiano. man who had
earned the name OF Death in the
South of Italy. for be was red TO the
elbow in murder! He had ccme 10
New York to avoid the Italian police.
and he had already planted a branch
Of his dreadful society in his new
home. All this Gennaro told me. and
showed me summons which he had