The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1914-08-28
The Secret !
Lonesome Cove
BY
Samuel HOPKINS Adams ;
Copyright, 1912, by the Bobbs> Merrill I
Copyright, 1912, by the Bobbs> Merrill
Company


He meets Artist Sedgwick. an cd friend,
who Is suspected OF killing her and plans
to help him..
Sedgwick tells Of meeting a beautiful
young woman, name unknown, with whom
he has fallen in love
Kent and Sedgwick go to the inquest
upOn the woman's body and engage Adam
Balm as Sedg wick's lawyer.
CHAPTER ".
Ny Lady Of Mystery.
Being q single autobiogynphic0l chapter
from the life Of Francis Sedgrick. mith
editorial comment BY Professor Chester
Kent.
~ EAR Kent Here goes: l met
her first on June % at 3 o'clock
II in the afternoon. Some won
derful cloud effects after a hard
rain had brought me out into the open.
l had pitched my easel in the hollow
on the Martindale road so as to gel
that clump OF pine against the sky.
There | sat working away with a will.
when l heard the drumming of hoofs.
and a horse with a girl in the saddle
came whizzing round the turn almost
upon me. Just there the rain had made
a puddle Of thick. sticky mud. the
mud pie variety. AS the horse went
by at full gaIlop a fine, fat mud pie
rose, scared through the air and land
ed in the middle Of my painting. |
fairly yelped.
To get it all OF was hopeless. How
ever, | went at it and was cursing over
the job when the rider came back.
Il heard you cry out" said a voice,
very full and low. Did hurt you? l
hope not"
No" | said without looking up
Small thanks to you that you didn't"
My tone silenced her for a moment.
Somehow. though. | got the feeling that
she was amused more than abashed at
my resentment. And her voice was
s~uspiciOusly meek when she presently
spoke again.
You're an artist. aren't you?"
NO" l said. busily scraping away
at my copperplate. I'm an archeolO-
gist engaged in exhuming an ancient
ruin from a square mile Of mud"
She laughed. but in a moment be-
came grave again. I'm SO sorry"
she said. II know | shouldn't come
%plunging around turns in that reckless
way. May IL should like to-buy
your p~icture?"
You may not" l replied.
THAT isn't quite fair. is it," she
asked. IF | have done damage |
should be allowed to repair it."
"Repair?' said l. How do you pro-
pose to do it? l suppose that you think
a picture that can be bought for a hun
dred dollar bill can be painted with a
hundred dollar bill"
NO: I'm not altogether a Philis.
tine she said. and l looked up at her
for the first time. Her face (Elision
and comment by Kent: | know her
face from the sketches. Why could
he not have described the horse? How,
W there's one point clear: she Is a
Oma of means.)
She said: II don't wonder you're
cross. And I'm truly sorry. Is it
quite ruined?"
At that | recovered some decency
Of manner Forgive a hermit" | said.
who doesn't see enough people to
keep him civilized. The daub doesn't
matter"
She leaned over from the saddle to
examine the picture. ''Oh. but it isn't
a Aos,hfv Sko prnkocfoA ell knAu n
little about pictures. It's very inter
esting and curious. But why do you
paint it on "copper"
explained.
oh" she said. Il should 50 like to
see your prints"
Nothing easier" said l. MY shack
is just over the hill"
And there is a Mrs. her eyes
suggested that l oil the blank.
"Sedgwick?" | finished. NO. There
is no one but my aged and highly re-
spectable Chinaman to play propriety
But in the case Of a studio the cOnven'
tons are not 81 rigid but that one
may look at pictures unchaperoned.'
I'm afraid it wouldn't do" she an.
swered. smiling. No. I'll have to wal,
until A shadow passed over hel
face. Pm afraid III have to give
it up"
Chance settled that point then and
there. AS she finished. she was in my
arms. The girth had lOOsened and the
saddle had turned with her. | had
barely time to twist her foot from
the stirrup when the brute Of a horse
bolted. As it was, her ankle got
bit Of a wrench. She turned quite
white and cried out a little. In a mo
ment she was herself again.
King Cole has been acting badl!
all day." she said. II shall have {
time catching him" She limped for
ward a few steps.
Here. that won't dol" said l.. lie
me-"
you couldn't get near him. though
perhaps. IL you had some salt
Il can get some at my place." said
gathering up my things. Your horse 4
headed that way. You'd better com
along and rest there while Ching Lun'
and l round up your mount"
Comment by c. K: Here follow