The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1916-03-02

CHAPTER xvIn-(continued.)

" 80 49, g. ~ AeSNp NINSt
is a dangerous generalization, for all
sorts OF men commit murder; but il
ne should do SC, it would be only under
great ~proyocation and in the heat of
anger, certainly not in cold blood with
a moose; and, finally, if the motion Of
the curtain Miss Vaughan noticed was
made by the murderer, it couldn't pos
sibly have been Swain, because he was
with US at that moment. You will see
that there is a mass of evidence against
MN, and practically the whole defense
is that such a crime would be impos- !
sible to n of his temperament. You
know yourself how flimsy such a de-
tense is.
Against the Hindus, on the other
hand, practically the only basis of sus-
plclon is that such a crime might be
temperanaentally possible to them.
and the method of the murder savors
strongly OF Thuggee-though don't for
get that Swain admitted he could have
tied that knot. Besides, if it was the
Thug who followed them, he wouldn't
have mad any noise, and most GER
tainly he couldn't have left the prints
of SWANS fingers on the body. sui
if Swain is right in his assertion that
he saw the snake in the arbor, it is
probable that the thug wasn't far away.
Against an unknown it nay be
urged that neither Swain nor the Hin
dus could have committed the crime;
but | don't see how an coulo
either, unless he happened to be one
of the three or four people in the world
with finger tips like SWANS. And that
is too far fetched to be believable.
But this l am sure OF, Lester" and
Godfrey leaned forward again-'the
murder was committed either by SWAIN
Swain. We agree that it wasn't Swain.
Very well, then: the person who COM
mitted the murder mad a noise in
following Miss Vaughan n her IA
Their so that she should think it was
Swain who waS following them; he
picked up the bloodstained handker-
chief that Swain a dropped, per-
haps when he fled from the arbor, and
placed it beside the body: and in some
way inconceivable to me he pressed the
prints of SWANS fingers on the dead
mans robe, Now, to do that, he must
have known that Swain was injured
the bloodStained handkerchief would
tell him that; but he must also have
known that it was his right hand that
was injured. There was no blood on
SWANS left hand"
Godfrey paused. / was following his
reasoning with such absorbed atten-
ton that / could feel my brain crinkle
with the effort.
Nov, listen,' said Godfrey, and !
could nave smiled at the uselessness
of the admonition-as if l were not
already listening with all my faculties!
There is only n way i'll which the
murderer could have known that it wa;
SWANS right hand, and that was BY
overhearing the conversation in thG
arbor. But if he overheard that much
he overheard it all, and he knew there
fore what it was Swain proposed to do
He knew that Vaughan's sanity was
to be questioned; he knew that h'
would probably be placed in a sana-
torium; he knew that Miss Vaughan
would probably marry Swain. Pre-
suming that it was Silva, he knew
that, unless something was done K
stop it, a very few days would place
both Vaughan and his daughter beyont
his reach
THAT is true 1 admitted; blu
Vaughan was beyond his reach a goo
deal more certainly dead than he woult
have been in q sanatorium. Besides
it isn't at all certain that he YOU
have been sent to a sanatorium."
That's an objection, surely" God
frey agreed; but | must find out /
Vaughan is really beyond his reacI
dead"
stared at him.
You don't mean -
Il don't know what l mean. Lester
l can feel a sort of dim meaning a
the back of my mind, but can't ge
il out into the light"
Besides went on, II the yos
did it, how did he get back into tn
house before we got there"
He peeped in at the door, saw tn
coast was clear and went back throug
the library. Remember, MISS Eausha
was unconscious. That doesn't both
er me. And another thing, Lester. Ho'
did Miss NaughanS lather come I
burst in on her IN Swan IKE that
How did he know they were in til
arbor? 1t was dark and he couldn
have seen either of them.
HI might have been walking ab0l
the grounds and overheard them"
II don't believe 1t. L beneVe some
bodv told hin they were there. An
only one person could nave told him
that is Silva, No-lhcreS only OF
point l can't get past-that's the fins
or prints"
And then | remempered. ~.
Godfrey crled, there's one thlt
i forgot to tell you. You neal
Swain remark that Vaughan was