New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1915-07-14

that she was tho wseck q Z wy psan.
tdful woman. ,n,s e-e h;
She used . cane when. she walked.
and after dinner u the library abe vas
content to ut impaslive. detached.
propped with cushions. while Margsry
read to the boys In their night nursery
and Edith embroidered
Fred had been fussing over play
for some time and he had gone to read
4 to some manager or other. Edith al.
ready was spending the r6yalties.
I'VE could go little ways out OF
town." she was saying. ''and we could
have an automobile Margery says
theirs will be sold. and certainly It will
be bargain"
Near me Mrs. Butler had languidly
taken up the paper. Suddenly she
dropped it. and when stopped and
picked It up noticed she was trem-
bling. .
10 It true T. she demanded. "1s Rob-
ert Clarkson dead?' s s5s s.s I
YES" assented "He has been dead
since Sunday morn1ng-a suicide"
I'm glad. glad. she said. Then she
grew weak and semi-hysterical. laugh
ing and crying in the same breath.
When she had been helped upstairs
for In her weakened state IL had been
more Of shock than we realized.
Margery came down, and we tried to
forget the scene we had Just gone
through.
It was strange to contrast the way
in which the two women took their
similar bereavements. Margery repre-
scented the best type Of normal Ameri-
can womanhood. Ellen Butler the neu.
rasthenic; she demanded everything by
her very helplessness and timidity.
She was constant drain on Edith's
ready sympathy. That night while
closed the house-Fred had 5not come.
in-l advised her to let Mrs Butler go:
back to her sanatorfum. = - $40. !
At 1890 was still downstairs. Fred:
was out, and ! waited for him. being|
curious. to know the verdict son nthe
play. The bell rang few minutes be
fore and went to the door. Some
body in the vesubule was tapping the
floor mpatiently with his foot. When
l opened the door was surprised to
find that the late visitor was Wardrop.
His eyes were sunk deep In his head,
his REDEEMED lids and twitching mouth
told Of little sleep. Of nerves ready to
snap.
I'm glad it's you" he said. by way
Of greeting NJ was afraid you'd have
gone to bed"
ITS the top Of the evening yet" l
replied perfunctorily as ! led the way
into the library. Once inside. Wardrop
closed the door and looked around him
like an animalsat bay.
II came here" he said nervously.
looking at the windows. because had
an idea you'd keep your head Mines
gone; I'm either crazy or I'm on my
way there. Knox. there are people fol-
lowing me wherever l 60; they eat
where eat; il doze in my chair they
come into my dreams!' He stopped
there, then he laughed a little wildly.
'.rhat last isn't sane, but, it's true.
There's a man across the street now,
eating, an apple underea lamp. post,'a !
= Suppose you :arer under surveillance" :.
said. ITS annoying to have a: de-:
tect1ve following You around. but it's:
hardly serious. The police say now
that Mr.. Fleming killed himself. That
was your own contention. y"
Suppose I say he didn't kill him
self?" slowly. Suppose say he was
murdered? Suppose good God-sup-,
pose killed him myselfY'
II drew back in stupefacton. but he
hurried on.
''For the last two. days I've been
wondering-if1 did it! He hadn't any
weapon. I had one-his hated him
that day. had tried to save him and
couldn't. My God. Knox. might have
gone of my head and done it-and not
remember it. There have been cases
like that
His condition was pitiable. looked
around for some whisky. but the best
I could do was a little port on the side
board. When I came back he was sit
ting with bent head, his forehead on
his palms.
tive thought It all out" he said
painfully. my mother had spells Of
emotional insanity. Perhaps went
there. without knowing it. and killed
him. can see him. in the night.
when darent sleep. topping over on
to that table. with bullet wound in
his head, and am in the room. and ]
have his revolver in my pockety'
''You give me your word you have
no conscious recollection Of hearing a
shot fired"
''My word before heaven be said
ferventiy. but tell you. Knox. be
had no weapon. No one came out of
that room as went in and yet he was
only swaytng forward. as If had shot
MIN one moment and caught him as he
fell the next was dazed don't
remember vet what told the police"
.Wardrop." I asked. trying to fx his
wavering eyes with mine, do you own