The states-graphic. (Brownsville, Tenn.) 1???-1984, 1917-04-06

D
anyway, except of the charity Of your
affection. which he could not accept,
and that he could save his father. This
may all be the widest speculation. but
this is the way it presents itself 10
me-"
"And to me-" said Helen, 'sbut before
we 60 any further, let me say I should
rather be his wife than enjoy any other
fortune"
THAT Is the kind of affection his
qualities merit and would evoke Ia
the mind of discerning woman"
''Thank you. win you go ON, nOwT
"Of course you know that what We
have said is not evidence. II is all as
sumption. perhaps presumption"
'It's as true as gospel" said the girl
earnestly.
ITO you and to me, yes. Well" he
continued, Il remember that Meade
and were talking just before he went
to Burma three years ago about a new
book by a German named Schmidt
Chemnitz, in which certain methods of
calculations were proposed for the de-
sign of lacings. You know il was the
laclngs of one of the compression
members of the cantileyer that gave
way"
swell Meade and / got into a hot dis
cussion over some of Schmidt-Chem-
nitzs formulas. maintained that they
were wrong. He took the opposite
view. He was right. He was so in
terested in the matter that after we
separated he wrote me letter about
it, adding some new arguments to re-
enforce his contention. The other day
l made careful search among my pa
pers and by happy chance found the
! letter. | was half-convinced by his
reasoning then, although the matter
was dropped. am altogether con-
WINGED now. His argument is very
clear. l have examined since then the
plan and sketches for that bridge. The
calculations did not agree with those
of Schmidt-C hemnitz. His methods
were not used. Meade could not have
forgotten the matter. / am morally
certain that he made a protest to his
father, probably in writing, then al
lowed himself to be persuaded by his
fathers reasoning. AS matter of
fact, | suppose that Bertram Meade,
ST., was greater authority on steel
bridge designing than even Schmidt-
Chemnitz. Well, sometimes, the small.
er man is right. We know now, and
Bertram Meade, ST., would admit 1t II
he were alive, that Schmidt-C hemnitz
was right, and we can make good
guess that young Meade did not let 1t
pass without protest.
"Mr. Rodney, it's wonderful"
swell, that's not all. There was not
a little bit of hesitation in Meade's
assumption of the blame, not a person
who heard it doubted 1t, apparently
But was the first man to see theolder
Meade except his son and Shurtlif."
"0h, Shurtliffp
"Well come to him presently. i
was obvious that the older Meade had'
been writing. / don't know whether
the others noticed it, but it Is my BUSH
ness to take in even inconslderable de-
tails. The pen was still between his
fingers. His hand was CONSTRUCTED and
the pen had not dropped out-ln fact,
l myself took 1t out and laid 1t on
the desk"
"His last conscious act was to write
something, therefore?"
"Yes; for confirmation I ascertained
that there were ink-stains on his fin
gers"
"What did he write and to whom?"
~ don't know. l can only guess"
"What do you guess?"
"The assumption of entire response
bility and the exculpation Of his son,
probably to some paper"
"From the same motives that
prompted Bert?"
"No, because 1t was true. But that
is only an assumption, although not al
together without further evidence"
"And what is that?" asked the wom-
an eagerly.
She had sat down opposite Rodney
at the table and was leaning toward
! him. Her color came and went, her
breathing was rapid and strained un-
der the wild beating of her heart.
1.-THE blotter on the desk. l exam
ined 1t at my leisure. 1t had been
used some time. went over 1t with a
.magnifying glass. Meade, ST., had evil
IDENTIFY written letter. found the
words fault Is mine / have the blot
ter In my desk. The word fault Is
barely decipherable, is can be made
out with difficulty, but mine Is quite
plain. 1 am familiar with the older
Meade's handwriting, and though this
is weaker and feebler and more irregu-
lar than was his extraordinarily
he wrote bold, free hand-this is I'M
mistakably his. OF course no one can
say that he wrote any letter. This is
piling assumption upon assumption,
and, furthermore, there Is no evidence
of any signature having been written
beneath It."
SIS that allfr