The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1913-06-13
A Message
From the Dead
By RUTH GRAHAM

Mark Hutton and bis dog were walk
ing along q road between his farm and
the home Of Jennie Mills. to whom he
was engaged to be married. Looking
through an avenue Of trees ahead. he
saw a mar coming carrying q shotgun.
As the man approached Marks brow
lowered. He recognized the conner a.
Leonard Sweetser. the only enemy be
had in the world. Sweetser was one Ol
those men born bad. He had had q
trade with Hutton and vowed HuttoD
had swindled him. This led to bad
blood between them. Hutton avoided
his enemy as far rs possible, for he
was a sensible man and disliked to
have trouble with any one. Indeed.
Sweetser's accusation had caused him
a great deal Of misery.
Sweetser stopped. raised his weapon
and fred, presumably at a bird flying
between him and Hutton. Hutton fell
dead. S.f
Sweetser at once changed his direc-
ton and. skulking into a wood. disap-
peared.
Jennie Mills. who was expecting
Mark Hutton to tea, looked out Of the
window and saw a black cloud rising
in the west.
II hope Mark will come before that
storm Breaks" she said to herself. 1T
looks awful"
The storm came, but Mark did not.
Suddenly a wind dashed itself against
the house like q monster wave Of the
sea. Though the sun had not yet set,
it was dark as midnight. In the midst
Of the turmoil Of wind and hail and
the vivid fash Of lightning. the crash
Of thunder. there came a ring at the
telephone. Had Jennie not been near
1t she would not have heard. Going
to the instrument. she took up the re-
ceiver.
"Jennie!'
"Oh. Mark, where are you? l was
afraid you were out in the storm"
It was Leonard Sweetser.
At that moment there came q gust Of
wind that shook the house 80 violently
that Jennie feared it would be blown
down owe her head. 1t drowned any
further word that might have come to
her. but she held the receiver I her
al waiting for a hull in the ferceness
Of the storm. But the lull came with
out bringing anything more from
Mark. She called. but there was no
answer. She could hear through the
instrument the wind crying in the tele-
graph wires. but no sound Of a human
voice.
Then It began to grow light The
storm departed a. suddenly as it had
come. The sun came out. and the
birds began to sing. T..
But where was Mark?
Regardless Of the rfvulets Of rain
and the soft wet ground, Jennie start
ed down the road. The telephone mes
sage had indicated that Mark was I'M
der cover, but she wondered why she
had heard that unearthly wall Of the
wind through the telegraph wires. She
sped on regardless Of the streams Of
water towing here and there over the
road.
At last she heard the yelp Of a dog.
It was Marks dog Zip. She would
know it among a hundred barks. But
now 1t was rather a cry than q bark.
| She ran now. for she was oppressed
BY q great dread. Presently she came
IN sight Of the dog. He was sitting
beside something that looked like q log
on the ground and bowling, with his
face turned up to the sky. She ran
on. Then when she realized what the
log was she staggered on till she came
to Marks body.
A month passed. Only one arrest
had been made for the murder 81
Marx Hutton. and that was Leonard
Sweetser. But there was no evidence
against him except that he had beer
known to be at enmity with the mar
whose body had been found at thu
base of q telegraph pole with q bullet
hole in his head. Besides. 1t was said
that Sweetser could prove an aHbi
He would not have been tried had i
not been that Jennie Mills insisted
upon 1t. When he heard that she b
lieved him guilty and the neighbour
sympathized with her in her belief b
asked for a trial. No n had com
forward who claimed to have seen tn
murder done. Sweetser asked Tor IN
trial In order that he might Be. vind1
Gated.
when it came OF Jennie sat anon
the spectators. She had taken II
home. With her the day she discovered
w body aid he'd kept him wit
her ever since. She had him In cour
with her. but kept him at her fee<
when the prisoner was brought In an
arraigned she took the dog up In he
Ian, then lifted him with his face :
Sweetser.
with a yelp Zip jumped from be
hands. over those intervening betwee
him and the culprit and. running t
him, Jumped AZ high 40 be could ant
fixing his teeth In his coat, hung thert
This was all the evidence there Va
aeainst Sweetser. but Il was enoug
10 establish his guilt. though nc
Il AEA MZ M ~ 49,. EErA -