The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-06-18
Continued from Yesterday.

But even then, poor weak creature
 ruined in soul as I was, I felt in- clined to rebel at an errand on which Lit sent me. but the threat to stop my cocaine soon cured me of any such inclination, and I went off on his loathsome, dirty task, the memory of
 which is now an accursed agony, an ever-present nightmare.
 You will remember that I told you
 of man of brilliant parts and intel | lect who accompanied me to Lifts shop when I went there for the first time and whose face seemed to know so we'll. It was this man I was sent to, to his flat not far from Park Lane. He
 didn't know my name, but sent in a message to say that I came from MT. Lit, and was at once admitted. The room was most beautifully fur l nished; there was evidence of wealth and taste everywhere. He frowned a little as he looked at me, recognizing l me, of course.
 What do you want here ?" he said just a little nervously.
 i've come from MT. Lit," said, l trembling horribly, for I was nervous I too. He wants me to show you this | advertisement"
 A Blot on My Conscience. It is rather difficult and delicate matter to describe the advertisement without giving secrets away, so I will only hint that it was in connection with an establishment of almost nat ional importance which was advertis- ing offers to contract for a yearly supply of drugs.
 Now this establishment was engag- ed in research work in certain shapes and forms Chats the only way I dare nj cocaine was used.
 You will now see I1its idea, which
 was that he should give a price for the supply of drugs, and that his ten der should be accepted, as the man upon whom I was calling was prac- tically the ruling power in that estab- l lishment, and his word would be fin al. No one would have the slightest | objection to cocaine being supplied to this institution, and by simply order | ing larger quantities than were nec- essary and paying the difference out | of his own pocket and manipulating l the books accordingly, It could of course, observe the terms of the con- tract faithfully, and at the same time the books accordingly. Lit could of secure his own needed supply of cocaine. Naturally Lit himself would not appear in the transactions
 
 suspected already, but he could easily put in a dummy figure to do what he wanted.
 All this explained to the man was visiting, little dreaming that I was asking him to sell his honor-not that . 1 should have minded much, perhaps, : if I had known, so reckless had be- come by then.
 But even now, though I have tried | to persuade myself that I was guilt less, it seems to me that I have the
 blood of man on my soul. And suppose I don't use my influ- ence on behalf of MT. Lifts nominee?" said the man I had called upon in Park Lane, not looking at me but out through the window.
 MT. Lit said he didn't think you would refuse" I answered feeling still more nervous, for somehow or other I didn't like this business I was now on. He said he thought it wouldn't be wise for you to refuse, knowing that he knows
 "I seei I see, Tell MT. Lit he shall have his answer tomorrow"
 Lit was delighted when I went back with the news that we were to get the answer on the following day, for he felt certain that the thing was as good as settled. he said. The man had seen how foolish it would be to refuse, and he would, of course, allow him self to be blackmailed into using his influence-for that was what it amounted to.
 But the answer Lit got the next day was very different to the one he had expected. He saw his answer in the newspaper.
 This brilliant man. this genius a1- most. within a couple of hours of my interview with him had shot him. self
 That was his answer to Lit. He knew that if he refused to use his influence, it would mean blackmail and possibly exposure; and if he did interest himself on Lifts behalf, well he wouldn't be playing the game; he would be selling himself and those who trusted him. So there was only i; one way out of it-Death.
 I needn't moralize, for the story 1 points its own moral. He was one of 1 the many victims of cocaine.
 Lit of course was furious. I could l see that beneath his apparently stolid | demeanor he was furnace of ami mated rage and disappointment.
 Mir. Lit in Difficulties.
 And day by day the difficulties of procuring cocaine grew greater and | greater and the price grew corresbon- dingly higher, and our stock dwind1ed ] lower and lower. Lit was at his wits 1 end to know what to do, and We were | all getting nervous and anxious-I! mean we poor cocaine maniacs. We trembled to think what would happen if we were deprived of our drug. and one morning there was absolutely | none left in the flat.
 went off to Lifts shop whimpering, I really believe. I was in a terrible 1 state. hardly knew how I should get 1 up to Piccadilly, my limbs seemed to ]! be made of lead, I could hardly drag l myself along. my tongue seemed swol- | len to double its size, my head was | throbbing. ringing, and I must have 1 looked like a mad woman when I staggered into the shop and into Lifts private room at the back, where I managed to splutter out demand for a dose at once.
 When I had recovered under the soothing influences of my beloved poison, and was myself again. Lit
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