The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1913-03-13

glanced at 4, dropped IT. and burst
lpto Tears.
GOOD heavens cried
Tier she lapsA 81 sstiilg aEd ~;
5tericallys
What IS the after y
sYoa positively came here then 70
do me a real service; and an the while tH
j have been thinking that yon we're
a. r s,
+What?n
"a lunatic! covering her face,
"a lunahe2 ] was absolutely dtins
founded.
eyes; and when ! left the room II
was simply 70 call the police The
mannersot yoar entrance tnsret.
ibIe thing you told me,sir there q
some dreadful mistake. Haven't an
enemy in the whole world: There is
no WIN insthe safe. My brother and 1
live with our aunt, who owns this
house. We have no property what
ever. What have been telling you
was in the effort to keep you ID good
humor till the police arrived. But
what can it all mean , 1t Is simply In
credible"
l picked UP the envelope and stared
at it stupidity THE address is the
same" said, trying to lind some
thing to stand on.
II know 1t; that's what makes it SO
uncanny. cannot possibly under
stand. Perhapsthe police can lntangle
it,.
The police! I saw that ! should
have to give good account Of myself
when the, police arrived. Where did I
stand, anyhow? What did It mean?
No man would write such thing for
the fun OF it.
I'm sorry" said | awkwardly. II
thought was doing right. indeed, 4
really thought So"
"And thank you. You will admit
that some Of my suspicious were ex'
cusable. To whom am indebted?"-
graciously. In this mood she was
charming. y
told her my name.
She loked puzzled, and finally shook
her head.
1T has a familiar sound, but can
not place It."
There goes the bell!" l exclaimed.
TITS the polIce-come for the luna.
tic!"
The girl flew to the door, l could
easily read her mind. II l was bur-
glar or lunatlc. the police meant pro.
lection; in ease my errand was in
good faith, there would still be the POI
lice to greet the mysterious stran.
ger.
Presently she returned, followed by
a private detective and two police
men.
rs this the tellow?" asked the for
mer, scowling at me.
The girl explained, rather incoher.
emily, her mistake. Everybody sat
down. 1t was quite social gathering,
or would have been but for the scru.
tiny of the police, which bore none
too we'll. FROM all sides questions
came popping at me. and it was only
by the use Of the telephone connect
ing my bachelor quarters that | sue
ceeded in establishing my identity.
The frayed envelope was vastly inter-
esting to the police. They read 1t for
ward and backward. upside down,
and even held 1t close to the fire to
see II any sympathetic ink had been
used in writing it.
II guess Mr.. Carewe's a well.mean-
in chap, miss" volunteered the detec-
tive. but this matter will need close
attention. 1t looks like tough prop
osition." He began to ply her with
questions, but to no avail.
During the examination vaguely
wondered what the other fellow was
doing with my coat.
The clock on the mantel struck half
after midnight
There's only one thing to be done"
said the detective; land that's to turn
out the lights and wait for the blood
thirsty gent"
For three.quarters of an hour we
five sat in the semi-darkness, our ears
strained to catch the faintest foreign
sound. Once | sneezed suddenly, and
one Of the policemen nearly fell out
Of his chair. 1t may seem funny to
YOU who read, but it was mighty seri-
Gus to the girl and myself. The sus-
pense was nerve-racking. We scarce
ly dared breathe naturally. The oc.
casional slumping Of the coal in the
CRATE was pregnant with terrors. And
our faces, seen but dimiy, were drawn
and tense with the silent watching.
Every eye was directed toward the
baleful window, through which, at any
moment, We expected to see a man
crawl.
Ssh" The detective raised a warn.
ing hand.
On the stiffness of the night there
came a clicking sound, like that OF a
key being inserted in a lock. Pres
emily we heard the hall door open and
close. We waited in agony, or at
least l did. Possibly a minute passed,
and then we saw the figure Of man
loom in the doorway. We saw bis arm