Rocky Ford enterprise., 1916-04-14
AUTHOR OF THE CITY THAT WAS, ETC.
ILLUSTRATED erHarryR. .Grissin6er
COPYRIGHT 1914 Bo1eS-MERRILL CO

seur of her sex. sat regarding her
spellbound.
The second woman-in fact she was
little more than girl-was slender.
blonde and fragile-her quality was
elfin. Rosalie could spare her but
glance.
81 am Mrs. Hanska. widow of the
man who was killed last night" said
the taller woman; and she hesitated.
1t was not the custom of Inspector
Martin McGee to rise when women
entered his Office in the role Of the
accused, or OF witnesses. A little bru-
tality of attitude, he felt, put them In
a meek and humble mood for the SUBJ
sequent Third Degree proceedings.
But this woman-or was it the re-
spected presence of Rosalie LIE
Grange?-drew him to his feet.
won't you sit DOWN." he said.
THANK you. May introduce Miss
Elizabeth Lane? She is here to verify
what ! have to say" All this with
perfect simplicity. Her eyes Travelled
then. with quick glance of inquiry,
to Rosalie lie Grange.
"This," said the Inspector, taking
his cue at quick prod from Rosalie's
:oot. "is Mrs. lie Grange. She is the
lady who came Into the house right
after the-accident-and took the
boarders over to her place for the
night. She's kept them there ever
since. She was just telling me what
she knew Maybe you'd like to hear
it."
"I should like very much to hear 1t"
said Mrs. Hanska earnestly.
"But maybe you want to be alone
Just at first" interposed Rosalie. max
ing a pretense Of rising.
"No-there is nothing secret" re-
piled Mrs. Hanska. 81 see no reason
why you should not stay. Indeed, you
may be able to help u.s."
Now Martin McGee summoned the
police stenographer and ordered him
to stay within call. Gone from him
was the heavy humor of his half-hour
with Rosalie. He was the Chief-sus'
piclous and brutal.
II must warn you," he said, that
| II you are implicated in this case. any.
thing you say will be used against
you at the trial" Generally that sud.
| den statement made women tremble.
drew from them a Hood Of words out
of which McGee picked the flotsam
and the jetsam OF evidence. But Mrs
Hanska did not give the preliminary
frightened start She only transferred
her limpid level gaze from Rosalie's
face to Inspector McGee's.
TT would be impossible to impli'
cate me-" Dozens Of people can testify
that was In Arden, a hundred miles
north, last night-that have not left
Arden for more than a month. Per
| haps," she continued, checking an un
formed sentence on tho lips of In
spector MCGEE. Il had better start at
the beginning and tell you all about
It."
She was talking fine" Inspector
| MCGEE reflected. Having got her
started, his best course was to mollify
her until she began to run down.
That's always best" he said.
Quite simply Mrs. Hanska began
her talk.
Il married Captain Hanska ten
years ago-when l was nineteen. He
was nearly thirty-five then. although
he said that he was younger: and he
had just come back from Alaska. He
said that he got his title in the Bo
livian army. i have since had reason
to doubt that. He was an engineer
by profession. / realize now how little
mother and I knew about him. But
he was the kind of person who carried
everything before him-you deferred
to him in those days in spite OF your
better judgment And my mother was
| very trusting. Then. too. Captain
Hanska was a very charming man
Afterward I found out how he lived.
That. for me. was the beginning OF