News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1916-09-20

at time when he was all preoccupied
with his own absorbing tragedy.
Even while. this thought was rum
ming through his mind, he was gather
ing the slight young body into his
arms; and he found it really astonish-
ingly easy to rise and bear her to
the bed. Then turning to his handbag,
he opened it and produced a small,
leather-bound flask Of brandy; little
Of which would go far toward shatter-
| ing her syncope, he fancied.
1t did, in fact; few drops between
| her half-parted lips, and she came to
with disconcerting rapidity, opening
| dazed eyes in the middle of spasm of
coughing He stepped back, stoppering
the flask.
"That's better" be said pleasantly.
"Now lie still while 1 fetch you a
drink of water"
AS he turned to the washstand his
foot struck the tumbler she had
dropped. He stopped short, frowning
down at the great, staring, wet, yell
low stain on the dingy and threadbare
carpet Together with this discovery
he got a Whit of an acridsweet
effluvium that spelled "OXalic Acid
Poison" as Enthusiastically as did the
druggists label on the empty packet
on the washstand.
In another moment he was back at
the bedside with a clean glass of wa
ter, which he offered to the girls lips,
passing his arm beneath her shoulders
| and lifting her head so that she might
! drink.
She emptied the glass thirstily.
,"Look here" he said almost roughly
under the lash of this new fear-'you
didn't really drink any of that stuff,
did your"
Her eyes met his with a look of
negation clouded by fear and bewilder-
ment. Then she turned her head away.
Dragging a pillow beneath it, he let
her down again.
"Good" he said in accents meant to
be enheartening; you'll be all right
in a moment or two"
Her colorless lips moved in a
whisper he had to bend close to dis
tinguish.
please :"
"YeS?"
"Please don't call anybody. :"
81 won't. Don't worry"
The lids quivered down over her
eyes, and her mouth was wrung with
anguish. He stared, perplexed. He
wanted to go away quickly, but
couldn't gain his own consent to do
so. She was in no condition to be
left alone. this delicate and fragile
child, defenceless and beset. A strange
girl, TO find in a plight like hers, he
thought: not pretty, but quite un-
usual; delicate,' sensitive, high-strung,
bred to the finer things of life-this
last was self-evident in the fine SIM
plicity of her severely plain attire.
A variety of impressions crowded
upon his perceptions in little more
than glance. For suddenly Nature
took her in hand she twisted upon her
side, as if to escape his regard, and
covered her face, her palms muffling
deep tearing sobs while waves of pent-
up misery racked her slender little
body.
Whitaker moved softly away. =.
Once, pausing by the centre-table,
he happened to look down. He saw a
little heap of the hotel writing-paper.i
together with envelopes, a pen, bot
tie of ink. Three of the envelopes
were sealed and superseded, and two
were stamped. The unstamped letter
was addressed to the Proprietor of the
house.
OF the others, one was directed to
a Mr.. G. w. Morton in care of another
person at a number on lower Sixth
Avenue, New York; and from this
Whitaker began to understand the sim
gular manner of his introduction to the
wrong room; there's no great differ
ence between Morton and Morten,
when written carelessly.
But the third letter caused his eyes
to widen considerably. 1t bore the
name of Thurlow Ladislas, Esq, and
a Wall Street address.
whitaker's mouth shaped a still-born
whistle. He was recalling with sur
prising distinctness the fragment of
dialogue he had overheard at his club
the previous afternoon.
ITO be Continued.)