Rocky Ford enterprise., 1912-11-08

you should chance to be here at the
time. for In all England you are the
one man we need"
glared at the intrusive vicar with
no very friendly eyes; but Holmes
took his pipe from his lips and sat up
in his chair like an old hound VINO
hears the visw-hallo. He waved his
hand to the sofa. and our palpitatins
visitor with his agitatsd companion
sat side by side upon It Mr. Mora'
mer Tresennis was more self-con'
tanned than the clergyman, but the
twitching Of his thin hands and the
brightness OF his dark eyes showed
that they shared common emotion.
Shall speak or your" he asked OF
the vicar.
well, as you seem to have made
the discovery, whatever 1t may ne'
and the vicar to have had 1t second
hand. perhaps you had better do the
speaking" said Holmes.
glanced at the hastily-clad clergy
man, with the formally-dressed lodgef
seated beside him, and was amused az
the surprise which Holmes simple de-
duction had brought to their faces.
Perhaps l had best say few
words first." said the vicar, "and then
you can Judge II you will listen to the
details from Mr.. Tregennis, or wheth'
er We should not hasten at once to the
scene of this mysterious affair. may
explain, then, that our friend here
spent last evening in the company OF
his two brothers. Owen and George.
and of his sister Brenda, at their
house of Tredannick Wartha, which
is near the old stone cross upon the
moor He left them shortly after ten
o'clock playing cards round the dining
room table, in excellent health and
spirits. This morning. being an early
riser, he walked in that direction be-
fore breakfast, and was overtaken by
the carriage of Doctor Richards. who
explained that he had just been sent
for on a most urgent call to Tredan-
nick Wartha. Mr.. Mortimer Tregen-
mis- naturally went with him. When
he arrived at Tredannick Wartha he
found an extraordinary state of things.
His two brothers and his sister were
seated round the table exactly as he
had left them. the cards still spread
in front of them and the candles
burned down to their sockets. The
sister lay back stone-dead in her chair.
while the two brothers sat on each
side of her laughing, shouting and
singing, the senses stricken clean out
of them. All three of them. the dead
woman and the two demented men.
retained upon their faces an express
sion of the utmost horror convul-
sion of terror which was dreadful to
look upon. There was no sign Of the
presence Of anyone in the house. ex.
cept Mrs. Porter. the cook and house
keeper, who declared that she had
slept deeply and heard no sound dur
ing the night. Nothing had been stolen
or disarranged, and there Is absolute
ly no explanation Of what the horror
can be which has frightened woman
to death and two strong men out OF
their senses. There is the situation
Mr.. Holmes. in a nutshell, and II you
can help us to clear 1t up you will
have done a great work"
had hoped that in some way
could coax my companion back into
the quiet which had been the object
of our journey; but one glance at his
intense face and contracted eyebrows
told me how vain was now the expec
tation. He sat for some little time
in silence, absorbed In the strange
drama which had broken in upon our
peace.
81 will look into this matter" he
said at last "On the face of 1t, II
would appear to be a case Of a very
exceptional nature. Have you been
there yourself. Mr.. Roundhay?"
No, Mr.. Holmes. Mr.. Tregennis
brought back the account to the vic
arage. and at once hurried over with
him to consult YOU"
"How far is 1t to the house where
this singular tragedy occurred?"
About a mile inland"
Then We shall walk over together.
But, before we start. must ask you
a few questions, Mr.. Mortimer Tregen-
MIS-"
The other had been silent all this
time, but 1 had observed that his more
controlled excitement was even great
er than the obtrusive emotion of the
clergyman. He sat with a pale. drawn
face, his anxious gaze fixed upon
| Holmes, and, his thin hands clasped
convulsively together. His pale lips
quivered as he listened to the dreadful
experience which had befallen his
family, and his dark eyes seemed to
reflect something of the horror of the
scene.
CTo BE CoNTINUEDJ