The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1919-09-10

, hand Of Bella to secure the Harmon
fortune. But Bella took the part of
the dismissed secretary and cried bit
terly as she recalled the lovable Mr..
Boffin now transformed into this terri
BILE monster of greed. She sought
again the poverty of her childhood
home. 1t did not take John Rokesmith
long to find her and the cherubic Mr..
Wilfer felt happily faint when he saw
his Bella's head find what seemed a
natural resting-place upon Johns
breast.
Meanwhile Eugene had found Liz
zies hiding-place, near Plashwater
Weir Mill Lock. Eugene rowed up the
river to the hamlet but he did not
notice the interested lock-keeper who
swung open the gates for him. Nor
Gid he know that man dressed like
the lock-keeper was near, watching
him with baleful eyes. The latter was
Bradley Headstone; the gate-keeper
was Rogue Riderhood, who was known
to hate Eugene. Riderhood puzzled
more than little when he saw Head
stone, with murder in his eyes, in
SAotASo PAOS4SS2y 4AhC -" IL.
Eugene walked at nightfall with
Lizzie by the banks of the river. Head
stone could not know that Lizzie had
begged Eugene to go away but he
saw their lips meet. A shadowy
figure kept close to Eugene after that
until something seemed suddenly to
crash in his head and the stars and
| with his assailant, there was a scuffle
and splash. Lizzie, tormented by
her talk, had not gone to her room.
| She heard the splash and rushed to
the riverbank. When she saw a face
in the river, she hurriedly leaped into
a boat. No man could have been
| more skillful with oars. She reached
the floating body, caught it by the
hair, secured it and screamed for help.
Help did not come before she had
bound and kissed that face that was
so dear to her.
Scared and marred as he was, Eu-
gene struggled back from the border
land of death. He did not expect to
recover when he asked Lizzie to
marry him, but she was as proud of
him when she was made his wife as
| though he had been standing in full
| strength by her side instead of lying
helplessly in bed.
Rogue Riderhood remembered that
Headstone had intended him to suffer
| for the crime. So he announced that
| he would dog Headstone until he was
paid handsomely. Headstone knew
| that the scoundrel would trail him for
ever, as he had trailed Eugene. He
walked away without a word, with
Riderhood at his heels. He stepped
out upon the bridge that held back
! the Thames and then suddenly caught
| his tormentor with a grip that could
not be shaken. They wrestled back
and forth on the brink, steadily near
| ing the edge. Riverhood tried in vain
TO draw a knife. He fought, he tried
to squirm free from that relentless
embrace. At last he went over back
ward with Headstone gripping him.
They found the bodies locked together.
In the meantime Silas Wegg tighten
ed his screws upon the hapless Boffin.
But the dramatic scene that he had
planned did not work out, for there
was a later will than the one he had
| found, giving everything to Mr.. Boffin.
, So Mr.. Wegg was suddenly swung out
of the house and into a passing scav-
enger's cart. His wooden leg waved
gyrating farewell as he passed out
of the Boffin house.
Bella Wilfer had become Bella Roke-
smith and there was a wonderful. tiny
Bella before she understood Mr.. Bot
fins strange miserliness. Not till
then did she learn that her name was
Bella Harmon and that Mr.. Boffin had
been troubled by her hardness Of
heart. So he had decided to try her
He was glad he had done it for it had
proved Bella's worth and given her to
the man who loved her. And now. al
though the Harmon fortune had been
left by the last will to Mr.. Boffin, he
resolutely refused to take it He kept
only money enough to live comfortably
for the rest of his happy days.
The magniflcence Of the new home
where Bella was to live impressed
even her impressive mother, and the
cherubic father was made Johns
secretary and released from the numb
ing life that had been his for many
years. But perhaps John and Bella
and the Boffins too who were living
with them were made happiest by
the long visit that they had from Mr..
and Mrs. Eugene Wrayburn. Eugene
was slowly winning his way back to
health and the old effected cynicism
had departed. He was prouder Of his
wife from the slums than he was OF
his own distinguished family and the
place in society that had been his.
! Copyright, 1919, by the Post Publish
ing Company lThe Boston PosD; Copy
minions, its Colonies and dependencies.
under the copyright act, by the Post
Publishing Company. Boston. Mass.
U. S. A. All rights reserved.
with the Mcclure Newspaper Syndicate.
All rights reServed).