Pierre weekly free press. (Pierre, S.D.) 1889-19??, 1916-03-23

blood u cold. 1t makes it u cold
now. to remember It'll"
How do you explain all that crystal
sphere business, anyway" asked Sim
n who had been chewing his cigar
perpleXedly. 1T stumps me-"
Lester was hypnotised and saw
what Silva willed him to see answered
Godfrey. You'll remember he sat fac
ing him"
But" 1 objected, mo one remembers
what happens during hypnosis"
They do if they are willed to re-
member. Silva willed you to remem-
Der. 1t was cleverly done, and his eX-
was clever, too. Moreover, it had some
truth in it, for the secret of crystal
gazing is that it awakens the Subjec-
tive consciousness, or great spirit, as
Silva called it. But you weren't crys-
tai gazing, tonight, LeSter-you We're
simply hypnotised."
You may be right l admitted; Il
remember how his eyes stared at me.
But ii was wonderful-I'm more i'm
pressed with him than ever"
Ut ism the fact that he hypnotised
you h bothers me- said Godfrey,
after a moment. It's the fact that he
has also h~ypnotised Miss Vaughan
The words startled me.
You think that's the reason of her
BEHAVIOR" asked, quickly.
What other reason can there be-"
Godfrey demanded. Here we have q
girl who thinks herself in danger and
summons to her aid the man who loves
her and whom, presumably, she loves.
And w days later, when he has been
imprisoned for a crime of which she
declares 1T is absurd to suspect him,
instead OF Fastening to him or trying
to carry out his wishes, she turns her
back on him and deliberately walks
into the danger from which, up to that
moment, she had shrunk with loath-
ing. Contrast her behavior of Satur-
day, when she declared her faith in
Swain and begged your assistance,
With her behavior of yesterday and to-
day, when she throws you and Swain
aside and that she is go
ing to follow Silva-to become a priest
eSs OF silva. DO you know what that
means, Lester-to become a priestess
of Siva?"
NO" 1 answered, slowly; II don't
know. Silva said it was a great des-
tiny; yes. and that it mean turning
ones back on marriage"
h is right" said Godfrey, in an
indescribable tone, there is no mar
riage-there are only revolving, abom-
Unable, u~nspeakable rites and cere-
monies. i ran across Professor Sutro,
the orientalist, today, and had a talk
with him about it. He says the wor-
ship of silva is merely the worship Of
the reproductive principle, as it runs
through all creation, and that the de-
tails of this worship are inconceivably
disgusting. That is the sort of des-
tiny Miss Vaughan has chosen.
My hands were clammy with the hor-
ror of it.
w must save her." 1 said, hoarse-
ly. "Of course she doesn't know
doesn't suspect. We must get her
away from Silva"
Undoubtedly we must do some
thing" Godfrey agreed. Il don't know
how we can get her away from Silva,
but we might get Silva away from
her. Couldn't you arrest him on sus-
picion and keep him locked up for two
or three days, S~immonds?'
81 might" Simnonds grunted.
And while he's away, you can work
with her, Lester; AXE Mrs. Royce to
see her, give her a hint of what Saliva
ism really is--or get Mrs. Royce to. If
that doesn't have any effect, we can
get her way from silva's Influence for
a few days, she will be all right again"
II hope So" | agreed, but I'm not at
all certain. She didn't behave like a
hYpnotised person, Godfrey; she seem
ed to be acting of her own free will.
| couldn't see that Silva was irving to
influence her in any way. She said
she was trying to carry u her ia
theirs wish. And it certainly was his
wisll-the will roves that. If any
body is hypnotising her, ] hould a
it was he
Well, / can't arrest him. said Sim
monds, with a grin.
Her fathers wishes NAV have had
some weight with her at the outset"
admitted Godfrey, but they couldn't
have driven her to the length to which
she has gone. And about the will. If
Vaughan had not been killed, if he had
been round insane, the will would have
beer at once invalidated. Don't YOU
get the glimmer of a motive for his
murder there. Lester?"
1T can be invalidated now, if Miss
Vaughan contests it," l pointed out.
Yes; but unless she does contest it,
it will stand. But if Vaughan had
been declared insane. the will could
never nave been probated-no contest
would have been necessary. DO you
see the difference"
Il see you mean; but | don't
think it amounts to much. Silva de-
clares that if Miss Vaughan contests
the will, he will no defend it,
But he knows perfectly we'll that
she will not contest it. The surest way
to prevent a contest is by adopting just
such an attitude. Besides, if we don't
save her, he'll get her share. too.
V~aughan's estate and Vaughan's
daughter and everything else that
was Vaughan S Will SapDG
into his nav. oh, he's playing for a
big stake, Lester, and it looks to me as
though he We're going to win it'll"
1t looked SO to me. too, and l fell
into gloomy thought.
You've got your men watching the
house, l suppose?" l asked, at last,
turning to Simmonds.
Yes; and we managed to score one
little point today"
What was that?"
Il found out that Annie Crogan, the
housemaid over there, had a cousin or
the force, SO | got him out here and he
managed to have a talk with her. He
didn't find out anything he added;
that is, anything we don't know; but
she promised to leave the door of her
bedroom open at night, and, if any
thing happened, to show a light at her
window"
"~Splendid!" 1 said. And of course
she'll keep her eyes open in the day
time"
Sure she will. She's a bright girl.
The only thing I'm afraid of is that
the Hindu will get on to her and fire
her. But she's been warned to be nigh
ty careful. If they don't suspect her,
maybe she'll have something to tell US,
in a day or two"
Perhaps h WILL" l agreed; and I
drew a breath of relief. Surely with