The Tabor independent. [volume] (Tabor, S.D.) 1913-19??, 1919-04-17

CURVED
LADIES
By WELLS
Author Of "A Chain of Evidence" "The Gold
Baa," "The Clue" "Ths White Alley" Etc.
By WELLS
10

meanor, and magical and instan.
taneous solution of all mystery,
And here was the great man,
clearly baffled at the queerly tan
gled web Of evidence, and, more
over, caught in the tolls Of a
woman whom Hardy fully be-
ieved to be the criminal herself.
But he only said quietly,
What way does your theory
point, Mr.. StoneR l may be able
to help you"
You cant, Hardy, because
you're so determined to find Miss
Stuart guilty that you couldn't
see it as l do. You consider the
strange features of this case-and
Lord knows they are strange =
separately, whereas they must be
looked at as a whole. The gown,
the quantity of jewelry, the smil-
ing face, the glove, the overheard
conyersation-all these points are
to be considered as one of import
AS leading to one conclusion.
And you think of them as impli-
eating separately, mind you
Miss Stuart, Miss Frayne and the
noble count. Now, all those queer
points are not only connected, but
identical in their significance. But
never mind that. Here's the place
to begin. Miss Darlington was
poisoned. She didn't poison her,
self. Who didHn
"Mr. Stone, you have put il
tersely. / entirely agree that all
we are seeking is the answer to
that last question of yours" -
81 will yet give it to you" and
Fleming Stone spoke solemnly
rather than boastingly. "1The
poison, the aconitine, was taken
by Miss Darlington as she sat
there at her own dressing table.
She took it willingly, smiling
#<a IN "ta. -
eyes, because she didn't know
she was taking it. When she ate
the sandwich 4 ID T4-
THE poison wasn't in the sand
wich. She took that poison in wa
ter. The tumbler and spoon that
were used are even now on the
glass shelf in her bath ROOM.
"You know this9". ,.. 49,.
81 know that in the glass that
now stands there a chemist has
found a slight trace of aconite. T
took the glass myself to be tested,
with that result. This is not a
great discovery, it merely proves
that the poison was administered
in water, not in a sandwich"
"But it also means that it was
given to her by someone who
could persuade her to take the So
luton, unquestioningly-not I'M
der compulsion."
"It would seem So"
"And that points to Miss Stu
art"
"Not necessarily. Hardy, I re-
fuse to discuss these things with
you if you avow everything to
condemn her. Why does what I
have just told you point to Miss
Stuart any more than anyone else
in the houseF Why not Miss
Fraynef Or Haviland2"
"Pshaw! Nobody suspects
Gray Haviland."
"But why not? If you re mere
ly suspecting here and there with
out definite reason, why not in
clude him on your listY And here s
another thing. Whoever mixed
that poison in the glass of water,
afterward rinsed the glass and re-
turned it to it's place in the bath
room. This was either done at the
time, that is, before the lady died,
or later on, after death had en-
sued. In either case, it opens up a
field of conjecture"
"It doesn't with me-" said
Hardy, bluntly. "There's no
room for conjecture. 1t simply
piles up the proof against Miss
Stuart, and all your skill and even
your will can't get her off"
A low moan was heard and a
sound as of a falling body. Stone
sprang to the door, and finging
it open, disclosed Pauline lying on
the floor where she had just fallen.
| With a low exclamation, Stone
picked her up. and carried her to a
couch. I'm a. moment she sat up
and cried, "What do you mean,
Nh. Hardy? Do you think / killed
Aunt Lucy7" i.
"sThere, there, Miss Stuart,
don't ask foolish questions" and
Hardy, deeply embarrassed, stood
at bay. 1t was one thing to assert
his suspicious to Fleming Stone,
and quite another to have them
overheard by this beautiful and
indignant girl.