Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1919-10-06
The Second Bullet

The Second Bullet
UCORRY to intrude upon you at such
Oa late hour, Mr.. Swarthmore. 1"
Paul's tone was conciliatory, but be-
meath its smoothness there sounded an
unmistakable note of authority. "a
few additional facts have come to my
attention in the Hartshorne case, and
] shall have to ask you to amend and
amplify your former statement to me-"
Fire away, Mr.. Harvey!' Swarth-
more smiled, but his geniality was
obviously forced and his dark eyes were
somber. "Will you smoke? No? Well,
don't mind if do. Now go ahead; 1
am quite at your disposal"
You told me that you had shown
Mrs. Hartshorne certain amount of
attention because she amused you, Mr..
Swarthmore, but you neglected to tell
me that an engagement existed between
you" Paul went straight to the point
at issue.
''It did not, at the time of her
death" Swarthmore shrugged. II
can't see how you obtained that in
formation, and frankly, since she was
dead, / did not consider the incident as
being any ones affair but my own"
"But it was only on the day before
the dance that Mrs. Hartshorne prom
ised to become your wife"
Now, how the devil did you know
that!' Swarthmore frowned and added
hastily: 1T makes no difference, how
ever; the engagement was just a mo-
mentary whim on the lady's part. She
changed her mind almost Immediately"
I'm favor of some one else?"
"You are going bit too far!"
Swarthmore's voice trembled. I'm not
on the witness stand, you know. If the
lady had made any other matrimonial
plans she did not honor me with her
confidence"
Mr.. Swarthmore, have evidence
that Mrs. Hartshorne did acquaint you
with her intention to marry some one
else and that you denounced her as an
adventures and threatened to expose
her mercenary motives to the man she
had chosen, Wendle Braddock.
What do you meanY" the other
tion?"
Some one who overheard a part of
your conversation together in the con
servatory," responded Paul. you told
me that you had had no quarrel with
Mrs. Hartshorne.
Because it was no ones id
business !" Swarthmore had sprung
from his chair and his face was crimson
and notified with rage, but beneath the
buster there was an underlying note of
fear. "Who was the eavesdropper? ?
What do you know? How much did
they hear? Tell me, or I'll-"
Don't get excited, Mr.. Swarthmore
you may need to keep all your wits
about you," Paul advised coolly. "You |
told Mrs. Hartshorne that you would
spoil her game, yet instead of making
good your threat and denouncing her to |
Braddock when you met him face to |
face in the ballroom door few minutes
later, you merely laughed at him and
left the house. Why did you not keep
your word?'
Swarthmore laughed harshly but in
unmistakable relief.
The woman wasn't worth 1t! ri
could get even with old Braddock more
satisfactorily by letting him marry her
and find out later the sort of woman he
was saddled with.
"A man may threaten anything In
the heat of passion and then think bet
ter of it,"
'You are sure that Is why you re-
Trained? You were not afraid that she
would retaliate by making certain dis
closures against you, Mr.. Swarth
mOref"
There was silence for moment and
then the other man flung himself back
in his chair with gesture of sur
render.
$50 your eavesdropper heard that,
too, did he?" he said slowly. 'I've
nothing more to say, Mr.. Harvey. I'm
not the first man to meet his finish
through a woman, but by God, she's
paid for it in advanced"
"By her death?"
The other nodded grimly.
'The woman was blackmailer.
Your informant must have told you
that, if he heard the whole alteration.
She followed up what l had told her
in confidence until she had the goods
on me, clean; she boasted that she
had verified my statements as an in
vestment on which she could make me
pay dividends. She only got what was
coming to her and I'm ready to pay
the consequences of my own idiocy. /
gambled and lost, that's ALL"
CONTINUED TOMORROW