South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1919-05-07

serted shack near the Cedars and goes
20 the house. where be meets bic cousin,
Katherine, and Graham. q friend. All
agree that mystery surrounds the death
OF the old man, who was one Of many
Blsckburns 70 die H. same manner.
Strange signs invariably mark the occa-
sioE OF death IN the room
You mean" the doctor an
swered. Robert Blackburn. He was
year younger than SiIas. This boy
was named in memory Of him. Why
should any one have remembered?
He died in South America more
than q quarter of a century ago.
before these children were born"
That's what silas Blackburn told
you when he came back" Paredes
said. He may have believed it at
first or he may not have. ! dare
say he wanted to. for he came back
with his brothers money as well az
his own-the cash and the easily
convertible securities that were all
men would handle in that hell. But
he never forgot that his brothers.
wife was alive. and when he ran
from Panama he knew she was
about to become a mother.
That brings me TO the other fea-
ture that made me wander around
here like a restless spirit myself
that night. You had just told your
story about the woman crying. II
there was a strange woman around
here il was almost certainly Maria
As Rawlins deduced. she must either
be hysterical or signalling some one.
Why should she come unless some,
thing had gone wrong the night
she drugged Bobby 10 keep him in
New York? She wasn't his enemy.
| because that very night she did him
a good turn by trampling out his
| tracks in the court"
Bobby took Maria's letter from
his pocket and handed il TO Paroles.
Then how would you account for
this?'
The Panamanian read the letter.
Her way of covering herself" he
explained, 'fn case you suspected
she had made you drink too much or
lad drugged you. She really wanted
you 10 come to tea that afternoon.
1t was after writing that that she
found out what had gone wrong. In
| other words, she read in the paper
of Silas lack burns death, and in
panic she put on plain clothes and
| hurried out 10 see what had hap
pened- The fact that she forgot her
managers, her professional reputa-
| ton, everything, testified TO her anx-
iety, and L began to sense the truth.
She had been born in Panama of
a Spanish mother and an American
father. She had some stealthy in
terest in the Cedars and the Black
! burns. She was about the right age
Ten to one she was Silas Black
burns niece. So for me. many
hours before Silas Blackburn walk
ed in here( the presence of the 9TH
er Blackburn about the Cedars beI
! came a tragic and threatening inev-
I liability. Had Silas Blackburn been
murdered or had his brother? Where
was the survivor who had commit
/ ted that brutal murder Maria
/ those questions. She might know.
| The light in the deserted house,
/ She might be hiding him and taking
/ food TO him there. But her crying
suggested a signal which he never
answered. At any rate, I had to find
| Maria So I slipped out | thought
/ I heard her at the lake. She wasn't
there | was sure | would trap her
/ at thei deserted house, for the diff
| fused glow of the light we had seen
| proved that il come through the
cobwebbed windows Of tho cellar.
which are set in little wells below the
level of the ground. The cellar ex-
planned also how she had TUNED her
| fiashlight off and slipped through
| the hall and out while we serched
the rooms. She hadn't gone back. I
/ couldn't find her. So I went on into
Shutdown sent a costly cable to my
father. His answer came tonight
| just before Silas Blackburn walked
in. He had talked with several OF
| the survivors Of those evil DAYS. He
gave me a confirmation Of everything
had gathered from the papers. The
/ Blackburns had quarrelled over
contract. Robert had been struck
over the head. He wandered about
the isthmus, half witted. forgetting
his name, nursing one idea Some
| one had robbed him. and he wanted
his money back or a different kind
OF payment. but be couldn't remem-
Der who, and he took it out in ang-
~ talk. Then ne disappeared, and
| people said he had gone 10 Spain.
OF course his wife suspected a good
deal. In Blackburn's desk ere pitt
ful and threatening letters nom her
which he ignored. Then she died
| and Blackburn thought he was safe
But he took no chances. Some sur
| vivOr OF those days might turn up
and try blackmail 1t was safer TO
bury himself here"
Then" Bobby said. Nara must
have brought her father with her
when she came from Spain. last sum-
mer"
Brought him or sent fer him. q"
Paroles answered. She's made
mot of her money on this side. you
know And she's as loya' and gen
arerrz -f -