Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1917-08-05

take I should have made if had followed
my first impulse For. upon examining
the stitches more carefully. l percelsea
that what had considered a mere deco.
rative pattern was. in fact, string OF
letters, and that these letters made words,
and that these words were:
II do not want to die. but I surely Will
Finish the sentence for me. That is
the problem l offer you. 1t is not case
for the police, but one well worth your
attention, If you succeed in reaching the
heart of this mystery and saving this
young girl.
''She is too small; l did not ask you TO
send me a midget
Thus spoke AIRS. Postlewhaite to her
doctor, as he introduced into her pres
ence little figure in nurses cap and
apron. You said l needed more care
than / was receiving. l answered that
my old nurse could give il, and you
objected that she or some one else must
look after Miss PostlewhaIte. L did not
see the necessity, but 1 never contradict
a doctor. So l yielded to your wishes.
but not without the proviso that what
eve- sort OF young woman you chose
TO introduce into this room she should
not be fresh from the training schools.
and that she should be strong. silent
and capable. And you bring me this
mite of a woman
Pardon met Little Miss Strange had
advanced. Il think. II you viii allow
me the privilege. madam. that can
shift you into much more comfortable
position" And with dizziness and ease
Violet raised the helpless invalid a
triffe more upon her pillow.
The act it's manner and the smile ac-
companying it could not fail to please
Mrs Postlethwaite made no further OBJ
lection to her presence. and, seeing
this, the doctors countenance relaxed
and he left the room with a much
uob+ar ctar than that with which he had
entered it.
And thus 1t was that Violet Strange
an adept in more ways than one-pe-
came installed at the pedslue OF tnis
mysterious woman.
Miss Strange had been at her post Tor
two DAYS. and had gathered up the fol-
lowing: :.
THAT her stepdaughter (who did not
wish to die) would die IL she knew 1t to
he the wish of this domtneering OUT APP
parently idolized woman.
That the old man of the clocks. while
senile in some regards. was very alert
and quite youthful in others. When uh
affected by the neighborhood OF the
clocks. which seemed in some non-un
derstandable way to exercise an occult
influence over him. At table ne wa
an entertaining host; but neither thert
nor elsewhere would he discuss tht
family Yet no one knew them better
and ythen Violet became quite assured
of this as well of the ruilitv o.
looking for eNnlanatton nf any klne
from, either of her two patients sne re-
solved upon an effort to surprise ohs
from him.
She went about il in this way MOI
;nr his custom of making complete
ro,,rd Of the clocks each night attei
dinner. she took advantage or MIS-. Ips
+letbwattn's inclination to sleep al th.s
bo1,1- 20 follow him from clock to CLOCK
of nVaFhParlnR
ton of the monologue with when ne
bent his head to the swinging pehdu
Inn, or nut his ear to the hidden WORKS
Tho extreme darkness of the halls IA
yored this attempt, and she was able
after a failure or two. to catch the NO
no, no, no! which fell from his lips II
seeming repetition of what ne hearo
most of them say. The satisfactloh n !,
he listened chimed in with his hopes
and gave ease to his mind. But he look
ed his oldest when. after pausing al an
other of the many timepfeces. he ecno-
ed in answer to its special refrain
Yes, yes, yes, yes. and fed the spo'
with shaking body and a distracted ar
The same fear and the same SHRINK
ing were observable in him as ne re-
turned from listening to the least con
spicuous one. standing in a short cor
rider. where Violet coulde not follow
him But when. after heslta'ioi
which enabled her to slip behind tins
curtain
he anproached and laid his ear agains
the great one standing. as If on guard
at the foot Of the stairs, she saw by tht
renewed vigor he displayed that there
was comfort for him in its message
j.. even before she caught the whisper
with which he left it and proceeded tt
mount the stairs:
TT saws no. 1t always says no.
viii heed ii as the voice of heaven
But one conclusion could be the result
of such an experiment to a mind like
Vfolet's. This partly touched old mar
not only held the key to the secret OF
this house, but was in a mood to di-
yuIge II if once he could be induced e
hear command instead of dfssuasion II
the tick OF this one large CLOCK Bu'
how would he be induced?
Another day passed and she had MOI
vet seen Miss Postlethwaite. She wa,
hoping each hour to be sent on some
Grand to that young lady's room, but
no such opportunity was granted her